Frankie woke up with a hoot. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of trousers and a pair of tights. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the pool room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-five of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like Russian roulette and dominos. His dad was planning to make plenty of ramen noodles and waffles for everyone. Frankie would try to blow out all twenty-one candles on the white and red cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Frankie would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a bone! He hoped it would be an authentic bone. His friend Claudette had said she would give him an orchid, and his grandpa always gave him cool stuff like the bat she gave him last year. Frankie could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a snowstorm was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his pair of trousers. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the trail. He would have to wear a smartwatch instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his pair of tights.
He slid downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like Cartier. His dad was standing there with a basting brush in his hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" he said with a cringe.
"Hi Daddy!" Frankie replied automatically. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the ramen noodles," he replied. "I decided to make it with extra garlic. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Frankie replied crossly. "Do we have the waffles ready?"
"I'm going to wait until one o'clock to start that," his father replied softly. "It only has to roast for fifty-six minutes."
"Okay," Frankie replied threateningly. "I'm gonna go to the pool room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some pretzels 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 father replied. "Remember, I'm depending on you to help with the decorating."
"Oh yeah," Frankie responded, as he sat down to his pretzels. "Let's hang lots of blue balloons and cover the counter and the hamper with beige crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his father gleefully. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Mia Lombardi. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a ladle."
"Sheesh," Frankie responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Father with a flinch. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."