CHAPTER 1

“Oops, sorry, Mimi!”

I watched in horror as a spark landed on my grumpy cat, Mimi, who was resting in the living room.

“Ava, not again!” my mom shouted while patting down the small fire. “You and your workshop need to move to the garage!”

“But it was an accident!”

“Your inventions always make a big mess,” my dad said sternly.

“Okay, fine!”

With my robot in my arms, I stormed off to the garage.

My robot wasn’t just any robot. She stood at knee height and was shaped like a super cute pastel pink mouse. I named her Bubblegum.

After months of hard work, I connected the last few wires and started her up. My heart beat quickly as the soft hum of the machine filled the garage, and Bubblegum’s eyes flickered to life for the first time.

“Hello, Ava!” Bubblegum said brightly. “What can I do for you today?”

“Yes! It works!” I said, jumping out of my seat. I could hardly believe it!

My parents called me for dinner, and as I walked into the kitchen, I smelled boiled chicken and ginseng. My mom was making a hot stew because my little brother, Jack, had a cold, and she always cooked this dish whenever someone in the family was sick.

We all ate until our bellies were full, and afterward, my mom told Jack to get ready for bed. As soon as he left, both of my parents looked at me.

Uh-oh, I thought. I must be in big trouble for accidentally setting fire to Mimi.

“Ava, we know it’s hard to make friends in high school, especially since Katie moved to California,” my mom said seriously.

“I have friends! I just hang out with them at school,” I lied. The truth was that ever since my best friend Katie moved across the country, I had no one.

“We just wish you could find people who share some of the same interests as you,” my dad said.

“Ugh,” I groaned. “Can I go now?”

“You may,” my dad said.

I rushed back to the garage to test out my new robot. While Bubblegum zipped around the garage floor, I was deep in thought.

“Maybe my parents are right about making new friends,” I told Bubblegum. “I miss Katie. She was a good listener.”

I remembered the times when Katie and I walked to school and talked about our hobbies. For me, it was robotics, and for her, it was photography.

We had plans to put together a website with photos of my inventions. But before we had a chance, she moved away, and now I feel lonelier than I have ever felt in my entire life.

Right then I decided that I would make at least one new friend at school next week—and oh boy, did things get wild!

CHAPTER 2

The following Monday, I walked into my high school full of hopes, dreams, and a stupid amount of determination. I was going to find a friend.

I found a popular group by the lockers who always seemed to have a lot to say. Thankfully, I recognized two of the girls, Chloe and Zuri, from math class.

“Um, hey guys,” I said, adjusting my glasses.

“Who are you?” one of the boys asked.

“She’s in the same math class as me and Zuri,” Chloe said, popping her gum.

“I’m Ava,” I said.

“Ava, do you know what Mr. Johnson's car looks like?” Chloe asked.

“It’s a small red car, isn’t it?”

“Do you mind pointing it out to us?”

I didn’t have a good feeling about this, but I wanted to make some new friends. Everyone was looking at me expectantly, so I agreed.

We went to the parking lot, and I showed the group which car was Mr. Johnson’s. Then one of the boys took out his keys. He bent down and prepared to carve something on the surface of the car’s shiny new paint job.

“Wait!” I said. They all looked at me. “You can’t do that!”

Chloe laughed as the boy carved a long line into the car, and I cringed at the sound of the screeching keys.

“What do you think you’re doing?!” Mr. Johnson shouted.

He had just walked out of the school and was running toward us. I froze in place. Chloe and her friends scattered. They laughed as they ran.

“Ava?” Mr. Johnson said. “Did you do this?”

“No, Mr. Johnson,” I yelped, terrified.

“Then who did?”

“I can’t say.” I shook as I answered.

I knew that if I told the truth, Chloe and her friends would turn a lot of people against me.

“Ava, I expected better from you,” Mr. Johnson said sternly. “I thought you were one of the responsible students.”

“I tried to stop them,” I pleaded helplessly.

“If you don’t tell me who was behind this, then I’ll have to report you to the principal.”

I kept my mouth shut, so Mr. Johnson took me to the principal’s office.

Principal Harris was usually a fair woman, but she could be very strict when she was in a bad mood.

She had a large forehead, greasy blonde hair, and a gummy smile. After working for many years in a public high school, she didn’t take any nonsense from troublemakers.

“Miss Kim, please sit,” Principal Harris said, motioning toward the uncomfortable-looking wooden seat in front of her desk.

I sat down.

“Mr. Johnson has reported a serious incident involving vandalism,” she said. “He claims that you were present, and he suspects that you know who was responsible. Care to explain?”

“I’d rather not,” I said quietly.

“If that’s the case, I’m going to have to put you in detention for a week starting tomorrow,” she said.

“Great,” I muttered under my breath. “That’s just what I needed today.”

The next day, the start of detention was incredibly boring. I sat in my seat, staring at the colorful posters on Ms. Nelson’s classroom walls, when the door swung open, breaking the silence.

A boy walked in, and I recognized him. He was a rebel, a troublemaker, and now, it seemed, my unexpected detention companion. His name was Reggie.

“You’re late,” Ms. Nelson said harshly, focused on grading papers. “Sit down.”

I glanced at Reggie as he settled into the seat beside me. He looked confident—too confident for detention.

“Hey,” he said, looking over at me. “What’s your name?”

“Ava,” I whispered.

“Quiet, you two,” Ms. Nelson warned. “No talking in detention.”

Reggie took out a slip of paper from his backpack. He started writing on it and passed it to me. The note read:

Wanna see something funny?

CHAPTER 3

I looked at Reggie, confused. He smiled at me and took a mini-controller out of his pocket.

He pressed a few buttons. From the back of the classroom, a blue robot carrying a physics textbook zoomed across the floor, dodging desks and chairs in the process.

Everyone in the room noticed the robot—everyone except Ms. Nelson.

The robot hid behind an empty desk; then, it dropped the textbook, which hit the floor with a loud thud.

Ms. Nelson yelped in shock. All the students laughed as the robot returned to its original place, pretending to be innocent.

“Who did this?” she angrily asked everyone in the room.

Her face was turning red. She was like a fire-breathing dragon, and I could almost see the steam coming from her nostrils.

Reggie remained calm as he quickly put the controller back in his pocket.

Thankfully, the bell rang, and all the students packed up their belongings and rushed out the door. Reggie and I left together.

Once Ms. Nelson was out of earshot, I couldn’t contain my curiosity and excitement any longer.

“Was that your robot?” I asked.

“Yeah, I’ve been working on it for weeks. I’m on the robotics team,” Reggie said proudly.

“That’s super cool. I also like building robots in my free time,” I told him.

“You should come to one of our meetings. It’s a lot of fun.”

“Hmm, maybe I will.”

“Cool,” he said, his face brightening.“ Just be warned that there are some idiots on the team. That’s why I ended up in detention in the first place.”

I looked at him curiously.

“This guy named Griffin said that having girl members would ruin our chances of winning the competition. He even tried scaring some girls away from signing up by putting his pet tarantula on them. So I smashed his robot to pieces to teach him a lesson.”

“Sounds like he deserved some punishment, but that seems a little harsh,” I said.

“Yeah,” Reggie said. “He’s a jerk, but you’re probably right. Anyway, you can meet us after school tomorrow in room 107.”

“All right,” I agreed happily. “I’ll see you then!”

The next day after my last class, I entered room 107 with Bubblegum in my arms. Reggie motioned for me to come join him and a pretty South Asian girl—the only other girl in the room.

“Hey Ava, this is Priya,” Reggie said, gesturing toward the girl next to him.

Priya asked me about my robot.

“This is Bubblegum, my latest invention!” I said proudly.

Priya’s eyes lit up.

“Incredible! I love the ears!”

One of the boys on the robotics team scoffed.

“You have anything to add, Griffin?” Reggie asked the boy, frowning.

“I don’t see what’s so great about it,” Griffin said with a sneer. “It’s just so… pink.”

“Pink is a great color, for your information,” I said. “And it just so happens to be my favorite.”

“If we’re going to win nationals, we need a robot that scares the other teams. If our opponents see your girly mouse robot, everyone will laugh at us,” Griffin snapped.

Reggie stood up. He stared down at Griffin angrily.

“Settle down now,” a deep but calm voice said. “Sit down, Reggie.”

Behind me was Mr. Jenkins, one of the engineering teachers. Everyone who had him said he was the coolest teacher in the entire school. He made eye contact with me.

“Who do we have here?” Mr. Jenkins said.

I introduced myself.

“Welcome to the team, Ava. You can find a seat. I will be going over a few announcements.”

I sat as Mr. Jenkins started to speak.

“As you all know, the National High School Robotics Competition in Nevada is coming up in a couple of months.”

As Mr. Jenkins began to outline the preparations for the upcoming trip, I could feel the excitement in the room building.

“Any questions?” Mr. Jenkins asked.

I raised my hand.

“Do you think I can compete in nationals with my robot, Bubblegum?” I asked.

Before Mr. Jenkins could respond, Griffin interrupted.

“But she’s a new member! It’s not fair to us. We’ve been on the team since the beginning of the year!”

A couple of other students nodded their heads in agreement.

“I’m afraid he has a point, Ava,” Mr. Jenkins said. “We can only enter a limited number of robots into the competition, but we could still use your help. Don’t worry, we’ll find something for you to do.”

Griffin flashed a nasty smile at me when the teacher wasn’t looking.

Despite my disappointment, I nodded along as Mr. Jenkins outlined our tasks to prepare for the competition.

Once he was done speaking, we were able to work on our robots.

"Hey, could you lend me a hand with this circuit?" one of the other team members asked, gesturing toward a tangled mess of wires.

"Sure thing," I replied.

CHAPTER 4

As the weeks passed, our after-school sessions became intense, with everyone perfecting their robots. My teammates were most concerned about the final round of the national competition: the showdown. We practiced battling each other in a small sparring ring.

Meanwhile, Priya, Reggie, and I became good friends. We organized workshops and demonstrations, and soon after, a couple more girls decided to join our group. We were able to make the robotics team more inclusive, which made me happy.

The day before our flight to the nationals in Nevada, I video-called my best friend, Katie.

“Hey, Ava,” she said. “How’s it going?”

“I’m actually doing pretty well,” I said. “I made some new friends!”

I told Katie about my adventures with Priya and Reggie. Katie frowned.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” she said. “My mind was in another place. Anyway, it’s great that you’re making friends. My mom is calling me, so I think I have to go.”

Katie ended the call, so I finished packing my bags for the trip.

The next day, my parents took me to the airport, where I joined the rest of the team. The busy airport started to make me anxious, which only worsened once I settled into my window seat on the plane.

I looked out the window to watch the landscape shift from farmland to desert. We eventually arrived in Nevada, where the air was hot and dry. For the rest of the day, we stayed at the hotel, where I was rooming with Priya.

That night, I dreamt about Bubblegum. I shrank to her size, and we were being chased by Mimi and several scary-looking bots. I think I heard my teammates laughing at us, too.

Then Bubblegum and I fell into a dark pit. I woke up, sweat dripping off of my forehead. Aside from the soft moonlight peeking through the window, the room was pitch black. I sighed and fell back asleep.

The next day, after breakfast, I quickly grabbed my robot tool bag, and we drove to the arena. It was amazing! Robots from all over the country were packed into one building.

I was admiring all the different inventions when my phone buzzed with a text. It was from my best friend, Katie.

“Look behind you,” it read.

Confused, I turned around, and to my amazement, Katie was there! She was holding a camera.

“Surprise!” she said. “You weren’t expecting me, were you?”

“I—no, not at all,” I answered.

“I drove here from California to cheer you on.”

I explained to Katie that I would not be competing with my own robot.

“Oh,” she said. “Well, at least I get to see you. I missed you!”

“Me too.”

We hugged and started to catch up on life.

I introduced her to my friends on the robotics team, and we watched as they went through the first few rounds.

Reggie's robot impressed the judges because it was fast, while Priya's delivery robot amazed them with its usefulness for everyday life.

As the showdown approached, Griffin’s robot was the only one left to compete. He was nervous, so a few hours before the final match, he decided to go and do a last-minute check on it. Seconds later, he rushed back to the team with tears in his eyes.

“Who did it?” he yelled.

Mr. Jenkins tried to calm him down enough so he could explain what was happening.

“My robot!” Griffin said. “Someone sabotaged my robot!”

We all walked to where Griffin’s robot was kept. Sure enough, Griffin’s hard work had been destroyed. Pieces of metal and plastic were scattered across the floor. Griffin stared at Reggie.

“You did this, didn’t you?” Griffin shouted.

“I didn’t! I swear!” Reggie protested. “Why would I want to destroy your robot? Even though I don't like you, we're a team! Plus, the judges won’t let me use my robot for a second round. My guess is that one of the opposing teams did this.”

“What do we do now?” Priya asked Mr. Jenkins.

“Unless someone has another robot we can compete with, we’re going to have to withdraw from the competition,” Mr. Jenkins said.

Everyone was upset by the news, especially Griffin and Reggie. At that moment, my phone buzzed with a text. It was from my mom.

Ava, did you get to the competition okay? By the way, you forgot to pack your robot, so I put it in your equipment bag for you.

My mom’s text seemed too good to be true. I quickly unzipped and opened my bag, and sure enough, Bubblegum was safely tucked inside!

CHAPTER 5

“I brought Bubblegum along, Mr. Jenkins! My mom packed her in my bag,” I announced excitedly. “But she’s not ready to fight. She was only created to assist people.”

“Then we’re going to need everyone’s help,” Mr. Jenkins said.

Everyone started working on Bubblegum. Even Griffin picked up the magnetic pieces from his broken robot and added them to mine. Katie followed instructions, handing me and my teammates pieces to make Bubblegum stronger.

Soon, Bubblegum and I were making our way to the official sparring ring. I saw the robot I was fighting against. It was a black robot with glowing red eyes and big metal fists.

I felt beads of sweat glide down my back. Maybe Griffin was right, I thought, trembling. Maybe my robot is too cute to be a fighter.

We got into the ring, and before I knew it, the fight was ready to begin.

“3… 2… 1… Fight!” the announcer said.

The other robot threw punches at Bubblegum, causing her to fall.

“Come on, Ava!” Griffin shouted. “You can do it!”

I made Bubblegum stand up quickly, and despite a few scratches, she was okay. She tried to attack, but the other robot got away just in time.

Then, using her magnetic paws, Bubblegum attracted the black robot's fists, making them look like they were about to dance. She spun around, forcing the black robot to spin with her.

Then she let go, sending the black robot flying across the ring. It crashed against the wall and lay perfectly still as the announcer counted down from ten.

“We have a winner!” the announcer said enthusiastically. He handed me a golden trophy.

The crowd cheered, and my friends came forward to give me a group hug. As I looked around at the smiling faces of my teammates and the spectators, I knew that this moment would be one I would treasure forever.

But there was just one thing that still bugged me—who broke Griffin’s robot?

After celebrating, I went back to where it was destroyed, but I wasn’t the only one there. Katie was picking up the pieces of Griffin’s robot. And she was crying.

“Katie, what’s wrong?” I asked gently.

“I’m so sorry,” she said, tears running down her face. “I was jealous of you because you were making friends while I was struggling at my new school in California. It felt like you replaced me. I was so angry that I broke your friend’s robot.”

Katie’s head drooped down in shame.

“What?! You broke Griffin’s robot? How could you? We spent months building our robots!” I shouted. “You’re not the friend I thought you were.”

I stormed out of the room, leaving Katie behind.

For the rest of the trip, I pretended to be cheerful. I didn’t tell anyone about what Katie had done because I didn’t want to ruin the mood after we had just won the competition.

In fact, I didn’t speak to Katie at all until about a month later, while I was resting at home.

My phone buzzed with a text from her. It was the third time she had texted me since nationals. She kept trying to apologize for breaking Griffin’s robot.

I opened the message, but instead of an apology, I saw a link. Out of curiosity, I clicked on it, and it brought me to a website with professional-looking photos of me, Bubblegum, and the robotics team at nationals.

I saw a caption below the photographs.

The caption read, "Meet Ava and the mighty cute Bubblegum, champions of the National High School Robotics Competition! Their inspiring journey to victory reminds us all that anything is possible with determination, creativity, and teamwork. Congratulations, Ava and Bubblegum, on your well-deserved win!"

I replied to Katie’s text, thanking her for sharing the link.

She texted back.

I worked on this website with Griffin, Priya, and Reggie. I told them what happened. They were mad at first, but they eventually forgave me.

Another text from Katie appeared.

I just wanted to apologize again and to say thank you for being a great friend. You always remind me to be myself and that it’s okay to like cute and girly things. I’m very sorry for breaking Griffin’s robot. I need to remember that even though we are thousands of miles apart, our bond is still strong.

Katie’s text warmed my heart.

I typed out, I forgive you.

As I hit send, I couldn't help but reflect on how lucky I was to have friends like Katie, Priya, Reggie, and even Griffin by my side. Without them, I wouldn’t have won nationals. But most importantly, I would not have realized the true value of friendship and the importance of staying true to myself.