Gus woke up with a squint. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a midi skirt and a necklace. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the pool room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited seventeen of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend seven hours playing fun games like bridge and checkers. His mom was planning to make plenty of dry toast and scrambled eggs for everyone. Gus would try to blow out all thirteen candles on the green and salmon cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Gus would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a nail! He hoped it would be a golden nail. His friend Knuckles had said he would give him a flag, and his aunt always gave him cool stuff like the pair of headphones she gave him last year. Gus could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a dense fog was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his midi skirt. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the range. He would have to wear a miniskirt instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his necklace.
He scooted downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cedar. His mom was standing there with a mixing spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a power fist.
"Hi Mommy!" Gus replied unexpectedly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the dry toast," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra egg white. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Gus replied unexpectedly. "Do we have the scrambled eggs ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his mother replied sleepily. "It only has to sear for sixty-six minutes."
"Okay," Gus replied caustically. "I'm gonna go to the pool room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some biscuits and gravy in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the pool room first?" he begged.
"It looks just like it always does," his mother replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Gus responded, as he sat down to his biscuits and gravy. "Let's hang lots of fuchsia balloons and cover the bar stool and the dining table with pink crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother numbly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite singer, Bretta Bacon. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a melon baller."
"Well I'll be," Gus responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a raised eyebrow. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."