The Bike That Came Back

In October, Paola had a week of vacation. She lived with her mom and her grandpa. Her plan was simple: ride her bike every day. But her bike was old and ugly. It was dirty, the seat was hard, and the chain made a terrible noise.

On Monday night, Paola looked out of the kitchen window. The patio was dark and empty. Her bike wasn't there!

On Tuesday morning, the bike was back, and it was clean! "Mom, my bike's got a clean seat and a shiny chain!" Paola shouted. "That's strange," said her mom.

On Tuesday night, the bike disappeared again. On Wednesday morning, it had a new silver bell. On Thursday morning, it had two small lights.

At breakfast, Grandpa yawned and yawned. "Grandpa, you've got black hands," said Paola. "Oh, that's from the garden," he said. But garden dirt was brown, not black. This was grease from a bike chain.

That night, Paola went down to the patio very quietly. There was a light under the garage door. She opened it.

Grandpa was inside with her bike, a brush and a can of blue paint. The bike was bright blue now! "You've got very good eyes," he said with a laugh. "Your birthday is on Saturday, and I haven't got money for a new bike. You ride it every day, so I bring it back every morning."

Paola hugged him, and they painted the last part together. On Saturday morning, the blue bike had a big red ribbon on the seat. Paola rode around and around the patio. Ring, ring!