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A cheerful cartoon girl and a golden retriever run through a messy room, with a school bus visible outside. The image is a book cover titled "Best. Day. Ever."

A cheerful cartoon girl and a golden retriever run through a messy room, with a school bus visible outside. The image is a book cover titled "Best. Day. Ever."

Book cover for Best Day Ever by [Your Name] “Zaria!” Mommy’s voice sliced through my dreams. I groaned. I’d stayed up way too late at my cousin’s house last night. Couldn’t I just… five… more… minutes? “ZARIA!” Louder. Urgent. Uh-oh. Today was the school trip to the Metropolitan Zoo. I shot out of bed like toast from a toaster. BEST. DAY. EVER. Five minutes to get dressed, brush teeth, and find my lucky green socks. One was under the bed—fuzzy with dust bunnies. The other… dripping with dog slobber. “Mr. Wiggles!” I glared at our dog. He wagged like he’d just won an award. Still… best day ever. Breakfast. Yogurt. SPLAT—right onto my brand-new yellow dress. Still best day ever (if you ignored the flamingo-shaped stain). Outside—screech! The bus! Early! I dashed for it—only to have Mr. Wiggles clamp onto my backpack like a furry barnacle. Rrrrip. Fabric in his mouth. Me? Backpack swinging like a kite. I reached the driveway just in time to see the bus zoom away. “Okay… maybe slightly less than best day ever,” I puffed. Daddy screeched up in the car. “Hop in!” Halfway to school, he sniffed. “What’s that smell?” I sniffed too. Ew. “Skunk, maybe?” he guessed. At school, I boarded the trip bus. Replacement driver. Packed. Loud. And the smell? Oh, it was still there. “It stinks!” Leo groaned. “I know!” Jessica fanned her nose. I laughed like I wasn’t gagging. “It smells like—” Nia, Omar, and Sue started in chorus— “Zoo at last!” Ms. Hollis cut them off. Okay, maybe this wasn’t best See more