I was worried about Molly.
I didn't want her to have an operation.
But I was also worried about me.
What if I couldn't think of a way to cheer Molly up?
What if I—Iggy, the incredible inventor—was finally out of incredible ideas?
Josh and Jenny went home, and I went to my room.
To get my mind off worrying about Molly, I started tinkering with my fan.
And guess what.
I found out that my fan worked with batteries!
I didn't need electricity to use it.
I liked having my fan on again, even if it did just blow hot air around.
Later Josh, Jenny, and I visited Molly.
Since we had no electricity, we played games and did jigsaw puzzles together.
At first Molly seemed cheerful.
But then she began to look sad again.
"My whole summer is ruined," she said.
"I can't ride my bike in the park or go on the swings.
If only that bee hadn't chased me!"
"Don't think about that," said Jenny.
"Think about getting better quickly."
"I saw a TV show about how pets can help people get better," I said.
"My mom is allergic to cats and dogs," Molly reminded me.
"Why don't you keep Caswell as a pet?" suggested Jenny.
Josh laughed. "You could keep him in a cage like a zoo animal!"
Caswell started hopping around the room.
"I'm a monkey! I'm a monkey!" he cried.
That made everyone laugh.
But I noticed that Josh was unusually quiet.
When Molly was searching for a missing puzzle piece, I saw him whispering to Jenny.
Jenny's eyes widened.
Then she nodded and smiled.
A moment later Josh and Jenny went into the hallway.
I could hear them talking to Molly's mom in low voices.
". . . help Molly . . ." I heard Josh say.
"If he's quiet," answered Molly's mom.
What would help Molly?
And if who was quiet? I wondered.
After that Josh and Jenny went downstairs to their apartment.
When they came back, they were carrying Tufty in his cage.
Molly smiled. "Hello, Tufty," she said.
"Have you come to visit?"
"He's come to stay forever!" Jenny burst out.
"Jenny and I want to give you Tufty," said Josh.
"We already have two pets, and Tufty will cheer you up."
Molly's mom had come into the kitchen.
She was smiling broadly.
"Can I keep Tufty, Mom?" Molly asked.
"I told Josh and Jenny it would be all right as long as Mr. Chen agreed," replied Mrs. O'Donnell.
"And I'm not allergic to birds."
"My dad thought it was a great idea!" said Josh.
"We can visit Tufty every day," said Jenny.
"I can't believe it!" cried Molly.
"My own pet!
Thank you, Josh and Jenny!"
"Wow," I thought.
I hadn't been able to invent something to help Molly.
But Josh and Jenny found a great way to help her.
"Maybe we can teach Tufty to talk," said Jenny.
"I don't think so," said Josh.
"Aunt Lydia said she never heard Tufty say a word."
I leaned closer to Tufty's cage.
"Hello, Tufty," I said.
Tufty cocked his head and stared at me silently.
"I'm glad Tufty is a quiet bird," said Molly's mom.
"Our apartment is pretty small."
Tufty opened his beak wide.
For a second I thought he was going to yawn.
Suddenly the loud roar of a subway train speeding under the street filled the room.
But there was no subway train under our street.
The roar of the subway train had come from Tufty!