Thursday had come, and the students were restless. They couldn't wait for the trip to Raspberry City. Right now, it was time for lunch, and Rosabel got together with Holly and Amy.

"Can you believe it?" Amy asked. "Only about 45 hours before we leave for Raspberry City!"

"I'm so excited," Holly beamed. "What about you, Rosabel?"

"More than excited," Rosabel grinned. "I'm really looking forward to what Raspberry City has to offer."

Ruby and her friends were nearby, and they'd eavesdropped on what Rosabel and her friends were saying.

"Aw, that's great to hear," Ruby cooed meanly. "Hey, since we're all excited for the trip to Raspberry City, why don't we all sit together?"

Rosabel didn't really trust Ruby, so she wasn't sure if sitting with her was a good idea. "I don't know, Ruby," she said.

"Come on, Rosabel," Amy urged. "Let's go for it. I mean, Ruby has never invited us to sit with her before, and this is our big chance."

"Yeah," Holly agreed.

"Okay," Rosabel shrugged. She, Holly, and Amy went to sit with Ruby and her friends.

"Only two more days before we finally go to Raspberry City," Ruby grinned. "I can't wait to do some serious shopping. I'm thinking of getting new brooches, earrings, necklaces, bracelets, rings, shoes, and purses! What are you going to shop for in Raspberry City?"

"Well, I'm hoping we'll go to that fancy store full of ballet clothes, so I can get a new pair of raspberry red ballet slippers," Amy said.

"And there's that indoor bee farm," Holly spoke up. "I look forward to seeing in person how beekeepers harvest honey."

"Bees make honey?" Ruby blanched.

"Well, where do you think honey comes from?" Holly asked.

"The store, where you can buy it?" Ruby sniffed. Then she turned to Rosabel and asked, "And you, Rosabel, what are you looking forward to?"

"I'm really looking forward to the Museum of Global Landmarks," Rosabel replied. "When we enter the gift shop, I have to remember to get some postcards to send to my relatives." Then she took a bite of the baked bread that was stuffed with some mystery meat.

"Well, I look forward to the magnificent restaurants," Ruby said. "I'm certain Raspberry City's restaurants have some delectable foods."

"I don't know, Ruby," Holly said. "This mystery bread is really good."

"Yeah, it's a surprise the lunch ladies don't work at a restaurant in the big city," Amy remarked. "I'd like the recipe for this."

Rosabel knew that she liked this food, but then she started to feel a little weird. Then she wondered what was in this dish. "Uh, is anyone else wondering what's in this bread?" she asked.

"Well, from what I can see, I'm guessing those green bits are some kind of herb," Amy said. "Maybe it's parsley."

"It literally tastes cheesy," Holly said. "I'd say this bread has some cheddar in it."

Ruby tasted the food and said, "I can tell the lunch ladies used only the freshest lobster."

Rosabel was horrified. "Lobster?" she gasped. At that moment, her face swelled up and turned red, much to the other girls' shock.

"Whoa!" Holly gasped.

"Rosabel!" Amy screeched.

"Rosabel, what is with you?" Ruby blanched.

"I'm allergic to lobster," Rosabel said. "This is what happens when I eat it."

"Hmm, I'll remember to bring some extra makeup tomorrow," Ruby said. "You sure could use some."

"Don't try to be funny, Ruby," Rosabel glared. "There's nothing funny about allergies."

Principal Johnson was nearby, and he'd seen Rosabel's condition. "Rosabel?" he asked. "What happened?"

"Allergy," Rosabel gulped. "This dish has lobster in it."

"Oh, dear," Principal Johnson frowned. "You'd better see the nurse right now."

"Okay," Rosabel said. She threw the rest of her lunch in the trash before going to the nurse's office.

"Who knows what everyone in Raspberry City would have to say about Rosabel's condition?" Ruby remarked.

Holly and Amy were shocked to see what had happened, and they wondered if Rosabel would be okay. They wondered if this would interfere with the trip.

Rosabel's condition had been reported to the nurse, who dismissed her for the rest of the day. The nurse called Alma and told her what happened. Then Alma called Guillermo and told him about their daughter's condition before going to pick her up. Alma took Rosabel to the ER, and after an hour, she took her daughter home, where Rosabel got into her pajamas and was put to bed. Guillermo had been dismissed from work for the rest of the day, so he could tend to his daughter. As Rosabel lay in bed, Alma and Guillermo looked at her in concern.

"Yes, that's definitely a classic case of lobster face," Alma sighed.

"How do you feel, mijita?" Guillermo asked.

"Like a balloon," Rosabel replied miserably.

"Don't worry, Rosa," Alma consoled her. "It'll take a good four days, cortisone, and some fresh fruits and veggies to bring the swelling down. You'll be better by Monday night."

Rosabel was a little surprised. "Monday night?" she asked. "But we leave for Raspberry City on Saturday morning. Do you think I should wear a mask until then, so nobody will see my face like this?"

Alma and Guillermo cringed upon hearing that. They knew that their daughter had been looking forward to this trip for weeks, but at the same time, they knew she needed the truth even if it would hurt all three of them.

"No, I'm sorry, Rosa," Guillermo sighed, taking his daughter's hand. "You won't be able to recover in time, and we can't let you go like this."

Rosabel had a feeling she knew what her father meant. "I don't like where this is going," she said.

Alma sighed before telling her, "Rosabel, you're going to have to stay home for spring break, at least until the swelling goes down."

Now Rosabel was beyond disappointed. "Stay home?" she gasped. "But I've been looking forward to this trip the entire school year."

"We know, and we're sorry, but your health comes first," Alma told her. "I'll call the school tomorrow and tell them that you won't be going on the trip."

"Okay," Rosabel sighed.

"I'm sorry, Rosa," Guillermo apologized. "Tell you what: this summer, we can all go to Raspberry City together to make up for this."

"Okay," Rosabel said.

"Get some rest," Alma said. "We'll be back to check on you." She and Guillermo left Rosabel alone.

Rosabel lay miserably in bed. She'd looked forward to the trip to Raspberry City the entire school year, and she had to suffer an allergic reaction to lobster bread just a few days before and couldn't recover in time. She didn't know what to do for the rest of spring break.

Later, school was over, and Holly and Amy got together. They were both wondering how Rosabel was doing and if she could go on the trip with them.

"How do you think she's doing?" Amy asked. "Do you think she'll be better by Saturday?"

"I don't know, Amy," Holly said skeptically. "You know that when Rosabel's face puffs up from eating lobster, it takes four days for the swelling to go down."

"Maybe it's different this time," Amy hoped. "After all, she only ate a little bit of lobster."

"Let's hope so," Holly said. "I'll call you later, and then we'll call Rosabel."

"Great," Amy smiled.

At Rosabel's house, she was reading some books that her parents brought down from the attic library when her cell phone rang. "Hello?" she answered.

"Rosabel, are you okay?" Holly asked. She and Amy were having a three-way cell phone conversation with Rosabel.

"No, I'm not," Rosabel sighed. "It'll take until Monday night before my face is back to normal."

"Monday night?" Amy asked. "What will everyone in Raspberry City say when they see you with a puffy face?"

"Nothing because I'm not going," Rosabel said.

"Not going?" Amy gasped.

"I'm stuck here for the whole spring break," Rosabel sighed. "I can't leave the house until the swelling goes down completely."

"Oh, that's too bad," Holly said. "You're going to miss all the fun. You would've loved Las Begonias."

"And I'm sure you would've loved the Black Swan ballet," Amy chimed in. "I'm really looking forward to that."

"Good to know," Rosabel said.

"You would've loved the indoor bee farm," Holly said. "That ought to be a lot of fun."

"That's nice," Rosabel sighed. As she listened to her friends talk about how excited they were about the trip, she was feeling more miserable about having to miss out, and she didn't want to hear any more. "Well, I'll see you when you get back." Then she hung up without giving her friends a chance to speak, and then she got back to reading. But then she turned to the baggage, which was still full of stuff she'd packed for the trip. She figured that she should unpack her baggage over the weekend.