Over the next few hours, Tetra proceeded to have the time of her life at the wedding of two complete strangers. She’d been entirely prepared to be the perfect model of a quiet wallflower (not that the patio had any walls), lurking in the shadows (not that there was a shadow to be had beneath the unforgiving sun) and keeping to herself (on a deck full of flowing spirits and boisterous, happy people).

It took Lupe about five seconds to break Tetra out of her shell. Once the overburdened buffet table was relinquished to the masses, Lupe ran over and grabbed her hand.

“Let’s dance!” she said, pulling Tetra to her feet.

“You are incredibly strong for such a tiny person.”

Lupe giggled and tugged at her friend. “Come on.”

“But no one’s up there yet,” said Tetra. “And this isn’t my party.”

“The bride and groom already christened the dance floor, which makes it fair game. Those are the rules.” Lupe pointed to the band. “You want to let all this fabulous music go to waste?”

“Well, when you put it that way…” Lupe spun around to take the lead—Tetra put a hand on her friend’s shoulder and began joyfully hopping after her.

“No running around the pool,” scolded a very stoic boy in a bowtie and shorts. He looked a little depressed about the fact that he was not properly dressed for the pool.

“We’re not running,” said Lupe. “We’re dancing. Join us!”

The boy looked dubious, but two little girls—one in a mass of green ribbons and one in a Disney Princess gown—instantly took hold of Tetra’s skirt and began dancing behind her.

By the time they reached the band, most of the children had joined the impromptu conga line, skipping and twirling and hopping around in peals of laughter while their parents and guardians ate.

After two songs, a significant number of adults had joined the dancing, and Tetra was pooped. “This heat is killing me,” she said to Lupe.

“Cool. We’ll take a break. Have something to eat.”

Another line Tetra would never have dreamed of crossing. “Are you sure that’s all right?”

Lupe reached up to fix the flower in Tetra’s hair. “Trust me, chica. I have worked about a hundred of these weddings. First off…do you like seafood?” Tetra nodded. “Our chef is a particular master at any dish whose main ingredient comes out of the ocean, but all the food is fabulous, and there is never a shortage of it.”

Lupe ladled a large helping of lobster salad onto her plate, along with a few giant prawns and what looked to be fried oysters. Obediently, Tetra followed suit. “And the second thing?”

“You could be an entire baseball team in uniform and no one would mind.” She paused as she gave the statement some thought. “Well, maybe one wedding party in the history of all those wedding parties, but they were some exceptionally uptight people.”

“There’s always one,” Tetra agreed.

“Right? Anyway, like I said, you could be a total stranger and it wouldn’t matter. But it doesn’t matter anyway, because you’re not a total stranger.”

“Because I’m with the band.” Tetra still hadn’t gotten tired of saying that.

“You’re also my friend,” Lupe added. “But even better, these children now love you. That essentially makes you family.”

“You’re kidding.”

Lupe wagged a breadstick at her. “The opinions of children are far more important than most people give them credit for. Especially at a venue like this.”

Tetra shrugged. “If you say so.”

“I’ll prove it,” said Lupe. “Follow me.”

As crazy as the whole situation seemed, Tetra did as she was bade. She still couldn’t quite believe that she’d found a friend—a local friend!—so soon. She loved that Lupe was brash and strong and afraid of nothing. Tetra would not have been surprised to find that Lupe hid a spandex S beneath her uniform, or kept a Lasso of Truth in her locker.

Instead of finding an empty table, Lupe made a beeline for one where a young couple sat, enjoying the music. “Do you mind?” she asked them as she pulled out a chair.

“Not at all,” said the man.

At that point, Tetra would have called the mission a success and gobbled up her food in silence, but Lupe didn’t stop there. “Can I get either of you anything before I stuff my mouth full?”

“No, no,” said the man. “We’re good. Please, eat. And be sure to snag some of those crab puffs on your next trip. They’re divine.”

“Will do! I’m Lupe,” she said. “This is my friend Tetra. She’s with the band.”

At that comment, the woman turned around. She had the most amazing hair—it stood in a perfect, curly halo around her head. Her strapless white gown was trimmed with topaz gems that set off her flawless dark skin. “How wonderful! They really are a lot of fun. What name do they usually play under?”

“10mm Conspiracy,” said Tetra.

“Hmm.” The woman thought a moment. “Can’t say that I’ve ever heard of them. Are they always this good?”

“Oh, absolutely.” Tetra smiled at the compliment. “But I’m biased.”

“And that singer is just scrumptious.” The woman hummed as if she’d just been presented with a vat of ice cream.

Lupe turned to the woman’s husband and raised an eyebrow. The husband lifted both hands in surrender. “Shoot, I’d date him too.”

Tetra and Lupe both burst out laughing at the unexpected comment. The woman patted her husband proudly on the shoulder. “I’m Raz,” she said. “This is Jinn.”

Jinn waved. “Like the genie, not the alcohol.”

“Got it,” said Lupe.

“Do you think they have any albums for sale?” Raz asked Tetra. “I know it’s probably not the done thing at a wedding, but I suspect Trish and Andy wouldn’t mind.”

“Trish would probably set a table up for them herself if she wasn’t busy getting married,” said Jinn.

“They’re going on tour after this, so I’m sure they have all sorts of swag in the van,” said Tetra. “I’d be happy to ask after this set.”

“Fantastic!” said Raz. “Oh, I’m so glad you girls sat here.”

Lupe turned to Tetra and gave her a bold wink before chomping down on a mouthful of lobster salad.

By the end of the festivities, Lupe had cemented herself in Tetra’s mind as the Luckiest Charm of All Time. When the band wrapped up their first set, Lupe called them over to the table and introduced them to Raz and Jinn as if they’d been old friends for ages. Xander held court and drew a crowd—including Trish and Andy, who eschewed their fancy Wedding Party table to sit beside the lead singer. Tetra was all too happy to give up her seat to the bride.

Raz’s (and by then, everyone else’s) desire for merchandise sent them back to the trailer to retrieve plastic buckets of 10mm Conspiracy t-shirts, postcards, and CDs. Tetra, Lupe, and several of the older children took over sales so that the rest of them could get back to the stage at the happy couple’s demand. Raz and Jinn’s son Harold, the extremely serious boy with the bowtie, turned out to be the best salesman of the bunch.

“Will they be upset if we sell all their merchandise before the tour even starts?” asked Lupe.

“I can’t imagine they would,” said Tetra. “Besides, see that guy over there?”

Lupe squinted across the pool to the throng of dancing people. “The one who looks like an accountant, or the one who looks like a used motorcycle salesman?”

“The second one,” said Tetra. “He’s a pretty famous rockstar named Donny Z.”

Lupe’s eyebrows went up. “Even I know that name.”

“I suspect he’s got a few connections,” she said with a bit of sarcasm. “Chances are, they won’t be out of anything for long.”

“Good,” said Lupe. “Because this is the most fun I’ve had at one of these shindigs in a long time.”

“This very well may be the best day of my whole life.”

“Oh, hon.” Lupe wagged her finger at Tetra. “Don’t go jinxing things.”

Any other day, Tetra’s superstitious nature might have worried about tempting fate. As the sun set on the pastel waves beyond Xander’s head, she honestly couldn’t imagine anything spoiling this perfection.

Xander pulled Donny on stage to perform the requisite Z-Train hits, and the company sang along with such gusto that they almost drowned out the microphones completely. Tetra and Lupe joined in, holding hands and dancing in a ring with the children. Tetra threw her head back and thanked the universe for her amazing day. The last time she had felt this joyous, this free, she had been younger than most of her new young friends.

People often quoted some old adage about bottling up a day and keeping it forever.

Tonight, Tetra finally understood what that meant.