"Nan, would you please tell me what it is you are cooking up in your brain?" Bess pleaded in a whisper.  "Honestly, I don't even know why we're doing this.  If you ask me, you're just stumbling into another way for both of us to get in trouble!" she lectured indignantly, crouching low beside Nan.
     "Don’t ya want to make sure that Dan asks ya to the April Fool’s dance next week?" she demanded impatiently, momentarily switching her gaze to glare at Bess.
     A bewildered look crossed her face.  "Well, yes . . . I s-suppose I was hoping . . . "  Bess stopped, her cheeks flushing.
     Growling softly, Nan rolled her eyes.  "Bess, look over there," she pointed to the porch in front of Gerson's General Store.  "The only way we can make absolutely sure that Dan and Nat ask us to the dance is to get rid of those two . . . ninnies.  As long as they're around, I bet they'll get Dan and Nat to do anythin' they want," Nan muttered.  "Especially askin' 'em to the dance."
     Half-expecting Bess to respond, Nan turned around when she didn't.  Instead, Bess' eyes were burning with rage.  "Look at her!" she cried vehemently.  "That . . . that . . . little Miss Georgina Pruitt!  She's drooling all over him, like he were her beau and he's just taking it all up!"  Bess' cheeks flamed with anger.
     Nan rubbed her hands together, smiling wickedly.  Bess was riled up now, and she'd most likely going along with anything—anything to get back at Dan.  "See, I told ya!" she boasted proudly, nudging Bess in the shoulder.  "Now, we just gotta get rid of 'em."

     "G-g'bye Georgina," Dan swallowed, watching at the petite brunette walked away, flouncing her bouncy curls through the air.
     "Good-bye Dan," she giggled, waving back at him.  "I'll see you later."
     He smiled slowly, lost momentarily as he watched Georgina, soon joined by Alicia, walking away.  "Ahh . . . " he sighed, running a hand through his hair.  "She really likes me."
     "Who likes ya?" Nick asked, dropping a bag of grain into the wagon.  Noticing the two giggly girls that were slowly walking down the road, he grinned slowly.  "Lemme guess. . . . One o' tho' two girls?"
     Dan straightened from his rather slouched stance and fumbled with his hat, flushing. "I . . . Uh . . . Do ya need some help?" He changed the subject, not looking Nick in the eye.
     "Ya gonna ask 'er ta the dance?"
     "Awe, I do' know." Dan shrugged, responding before he thought about it.
     "What 'bout Bess? I thought ya were gonna ask 'er. I bet she'll be disappointed when ya don't," Nick winked, loading another bag.
     Shifting uncomfortably, Dan cleared his throat.  "H-hi Nat."
     Nick dusted off his hands and pulled his hat off.  "Ya fellows ready ta go?" he asked, placing it back on his head.
     Both Dan and Nat nodded, so they climbed up into the wagon.  "So, are you going to ask Georgina Pruitt to the April Fool's Dance?" Nat asked curiously, looking over at his friend.
     Again, Dan's cheeks colored.  Avoiding the question, he instead asked, "Are you gonna ask Alicia?"
     It was Nat's turn to flush.  "I don't know.  I might.  Kind of depends," he shrugged, looking down at the moving ground.
     "Well, whatever ya fellows decide, ya better decide quick.  That dance is the night after tomorrow and those are two pretty lil' ladies.  They prob'ly got lots o' other fellows waitin' ta ask 'em."  Nick cast a mischievous look over his shoulder, rather curious to see what the boys' reactions would be.
     "Tomorrow night, huh?" Dan repeated.  Glancing at Nat, he grinned.

     "Psst!  Bess!  Come here," Nan beckoned, poking her head over the edge of the loft.  Tucking her blond hair behind her ears, she waved with her hands, motioning for Bess to come up.
     "What?"  Bess turned around, confused, and then noticed Nan hanging over the edge.  "Nan!"  She jumped, dropping her pail.  "Be careful.  You're going to fall off if you're not."  Pushing her arm through the pail handle, Bess prepared to climb the ladder.  "What did you want me for?" she asked upon reaching the top.
     Nan sat up and clapped her hands together.  "I know just the thing we ken do!" she squealed excitedly, pouring out her news.  "I just heard Dan and Nat talkin'—they're gonna ask Alicia and Georgina to the dance!"
     Bess frowned.  "Wait a minute.  Nan, I thought the point was to get rid of them, before Dan and Nat asked them to the dance," she pointed out.  "Why are you rejoicing over the fact they they're going to ask them?!"
     Shaking her head, Nan continued.  "Shh, you didn't let me finish.  Anyway, I heard them talkin' and they're gonna ask the girls to the dance," she grabbed Bess's hands.  "They're gonna buy 'em chocolate to give 'em when they ask 'em!"
     Still confused, Bess looked at Nan like she'd gone nuts.  "So, they're going to buy them some chocolate.  Why are you so excited about that?"
     "Don't you see, Bess?" Nan asked.  "They're goin' to buy the chocolates this afternoon after they finish with their chores.  We can sneak out tonight and . . . " She finished explaining the rest of her plan.
     After hearing Nan's little plan, a slow smiled crossed Bess' face and she raised a brow.  "Oh dear Nan, you truly are a genius."

     "Thank ya, Mr. Gerson."  Dan tucked the rest of his meager amount of change into his pocket and picked up the small, ribbon-tied box of chocolates. "See ya tonight."
     "Yeah, see you tonight, Mr. Gerson," Nat smiled before following Dan out the door.  Hiding the box in his hat, they walked out and climbed into the wagon.  "You think that Alicia and Georgina are going to like the chocolate?" he asked hesitantly as they drove out of town.
     Dan shrugged.  " 'Course.  Girls always like chocolate.  I don't really see why they wouldn't."
     "Oh," Nat nodded his head.  But then he pulled his brows together and looked up.  "Girls always like chocolate?  Where'd you learn that from?"

     "Naaan . . . " Bess wailed, tripping down the stairs after her.  "It's after twelve o'clock at night.  Don't you think you could have drug me down here a little earlier, or in the morning?"
     Grabbing Bess' wrist, Nan tiptoed down the stairs.  "Shh! They're gonna hear ya," she warned.  "And it is the mornin', Bess."
     "Grr . . . "  Rolling her eyes, Bess allowed herself to be led into the kitchen.  "Do you have the chocolates?" she asked.
     "Yup, its all here.  I snuck in and got 'em before we came down," Nan assured her.  "Ready?"  She untied the satin ribbon from around the small box, exposing the little round chocolates inside.
     "I-I . . . Do you think we should do this?" Bess asked hesitantly, having second thoughts.  "It seems . . . like a rather cruel thing to do, just to make sure that Nat and Dan ask us to the April Fool's dance."  Her cheeks flushed with slight embarrassment as she spoke.
     "They ken handle it," Nan assured her, picking up one of the dainty truffles and inserting the small knife through the bottom.  "I should be really good at this, 'cause I've gotten a lot o' practice with Dr. Pierce," she boasted proudly, carefully scooping out some of the filling.
     Taking a deep breath, Bess picked up her own knife and glanced warily at the perfect little chocolate. "Well, here goes . . . "

     "How do I look?" Dan asked nervously, although he insisted that he wasn't.
     Nat pulled on his hat and shrugged.  "You look fine, Dan.  Don't worry about it.  Besides, if they're gonna go with us, it should be for who we are and not 'cause we're all dressed up, pretendin' to be someone that we're not," he corrected, crossing his arms.  "Are ya ready?"
     Dan frowned thoughtfully.  "Yeah, I guess ya're right.  Fine, let’s go."  He grabbed his own hat and left the room with Nat at his heels.  They tromped down the stairs, through the front door and outside where everyone was waiting.  Since it was a Saturday and Jo needed a few things in town, they decided to make it a "family" outing.
     Nudging Nat, Dan lifted the edge of his vest, barely exposing the fancy little chocolate box.  "Uh-hmm . . . " Nat replied quietly, clearing his throat when Nan and Bess looked their way.  Dan pulled his hand away, smiling hesitantly.
     Once they reached their destination, Dan and Nat were the first to leap from the wagon.  Nan and Bess watched, trying to be inconspicuous.  The boys strolled along in front of Gerson's General Store for a moment until as predicted Georgina and Alicia seemed to "coincidentally" walk by.
     "Come on," Nan whispered, grabbing Bess' hand.  "Let’s follow 'em."  Checking to make sure the coast was clear, they jumped from the wagon and nonchalantly sauntered over to look at a rack of old books sitting out.  "Just pretend like you're lookin' at the books," she instructed.
     Bess did as told, and quickly leafed through a copy of Romeo and Juliet.  For some reason, she was nervous.  The book abruptly slipped from her fingers and dropped to the ground.  "Oh," she muttered, half-surprised and half-embarrassed.  Bending down, she quickly retrieved it and started skimming through it, trying to act as though nothing had happened.
     "Why Dan!  What a surprise," Georgina gushed sweetly, batting her long lashes at him.  Alicia pretended to flush next to her, fanning her face with the embroidered handkerchief in her hand.
     "G-Georgina," Dan swallowed.  "I . . . I . . . " He was momentarily lost in the gleaming of her brown eyes.  Sighing a little impatiently, Nat nudged Dan with his shoulder.
     "Are ya gonna ask her or aren't ya?" Nat wondered in a raspy whisper.  "We haven't got all day," he reminded.  At that moment, Alicia smiled at him, her dark blue eyes sparkling.  Shifting uncomfortably Nat fell silent, flushing under her gaze.
     Clearing his throat, Dan straightened.  "Hey Georgina, I was wonderin' if ya might . . . " Pausing, he pulled the candy box from his shirt pocket.  "T-these are for ya," he shoved it in her direction, waiting for her to take it.
     Georgina's eyes lit up and she grinned broadly.  "Oh!" she squealed piercingly.  "Is it for me?  Really truly?"  Clapping her gloved hands together, Georgina giggled, quickly taking the box from his hands.  "Do you mind?"  She looked at him hopefully.  Before Dan had time to respond she untied the ribbon and opened the box, gasping at the little specialties inside.
     "Nan, look!" Bess whispered, poking her friend in the shoulder.  "She's opening the box of candy."
     Nan's head shot up and she snapped her book closed.  "Now's our time, Bess," she whispered, and beckoned for her to follow.  Picking up her speed, Nan ran and slid to a most unladylike stop right before ramming into Nat.  "I'm Nan Harding," she reached for Alicia and Georgina's hands, shaking them vigorously.
     "Nice to . . . meet you," Alicia replied slowly, turning up her nose.  Georgina didn't even seem to notice.
     "Chocolate, how I love chocolate," Georgina panted, staring wide-eyed at the specialties in the box.  With greedy fingers, she reached in and pulled one out, quickly shoving it into her mouth.  "Mmmm . . . Oh, chocolate, how I love chocolate!!"
     Dan shifted, slightly put off by the most unladylike way Georgina was hustling them down.  Bess tipped her head, trying to keep the smile from forming on her lips.  Nat raised his brows, and Nan snickered, covering her mouth.
     "Do you have some for me too, Nat?" Alicia asked, her sweet little voice quite syrupy.  Nat frowned, then realized what she was talking about.
     "Oh, ah, y-yeah.  Yeah, I do."  He quickly pulled the box from his pocket and held it out to her.
     "You're just so sweet!  Both of you," Alicia gushed, opening her own box with haste.
     Nan leaned over to Bess and snorted, "they ain't gonna be thinkin' they're so sweet in very long."
     Biting her lips, Bess shifted and tried to refrain from giggling.  She managed to keep it down, but a smile spread across her face.  "I bet little Miss Georgina Pruitt and Alicia Harper didn’t quite get what they were expecting," she commented, noticing how both girls wolfed down the sweets.
     "I guess they like?" Dan whispered, leaning close to Nat.  He didn't take his eyes off the two girls.
     Nat shrugged.  "Yeah, I-I guess."
     Suddenly, Georgina's face twisted in disgust and she screamed.  "IEH!!"  Her mouth fell open, her tongue sticking out.  "What did you DO to this?  Are you trying to POISON me?!" she demanded, throwing the box to the ground.  "Well, Dan, after this, I wouldn't go to the dance if you asked me to!" she screamed angrily, tensing her hands so tightly they trembled.
     Alicia gasped, clapping a hand to her throat as she tried to breathe.  "These aren't chocolate!  They're filled with coffee beans!"  She shrieked nervously, fanning her face with her gloved hand.  "Oh my, oh my, I'm hyperventilating.  I'm going to faint!" she declared, touching a hand to her forehead.  "Catch me, Nat."  But he didn't act soon enough and Alicia fell to the ground with a loud "thud".
     "She fell," Nat blinked, making no attempt to bend down and wake her up.
     Nan and Bess couldn't help it.  They snorted, laughing hysterically at the scene before them.  Why, it was even better than they had imagined!
     Startled by the girls' outburst, Dan and Nat both turned to Nan and Bess, watching them suspiciously.  "Coffee beans?" Dan repeated.  "You wouldn't have by any chance . . . have anythin' to do with this, would ya?"  He pulled a brow up and crossed his arms.
     Bess stopped and straightened, her face falling solemn.  "Uh, N-Nan," she poked her friend in the ribs.  "I-I think I hear . . . Aunt Jo calling us. . . . Yes, Aunt Jo is calling."  Grasping Nan's arm, Bess turned and prepared to quickly get away.
     "Wait a minute!"  Dan grabbed her arm, pulling her back.  Bess flushed crimson and turned around, smiling hesitantly.
     "Y-yes?" she asked meekly.
     He didn't let go of her arm.  "Just how did those coffee beans get into those chocolates?  I can guarantee ya that Mr. Gerson didn't put 'em in there."  His eyes darkened as he watched her, waiting for an answer.
     Swallowing, Bess pulled her brows together.  "A-April Fool's?"
     Nat stared on, blank with disbelief.  "You know," he shoved his hands into his pockets, "that's the last time I give a girl chocolate."

THE END