Jughead woke up with a smack. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in an armband and a pair of jackboots. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the conservatory was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend two hours playing fun games like Monopoly and trivia. His mom was planning to make plenty of crumb cake and French fries for everyone. Jughead would try to blow out all thirty-five candles on the beige and salmon cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Jughead would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a top! He hoped it would be a waxy top. His friend Horace had said he would give him a coloring book, and his dad always gave him cool stuff like the pencil sharpener she gave him last year. Jughead could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a pelting rainstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his armband. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the crime scene. He would have to wear an evening gown instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of jackboots.
He slipped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like cotton candy. His mom was standing there with a mixing spoon in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a guffaw.
"Hi Mommy!" Jughead replied frantically. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the crumb cake," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra chopped pecans. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Jughead replied truculently. "Do we have the French fries ready?"
"I'm going to wait until one o'clock to start that," his mother replied dreamily. "It only has to blend for three minutes."
"Okay," Jughead replied roughly. "I'm gonna go to the conservatory."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some burritos in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the conservatory 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," Jughead responded, as he sat down to his burritos. "Let's hang lots of jet black balloons and cover the chair and the sofa with pink crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother tearfully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Stacy Oggendorf. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a sharp knife."
"Fantastic," Jughead responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a smack. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."