Will woke up with a gasp. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in a pair of shorts and a trench coat. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the rec room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited twenty-five of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend three hours playing fun games like Monopoly and charades. His mom was planning to make plenty of cotton candy and cherries jubilee for everyone. Will would try to blow out all eight candles on the amber and turquoise cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Will would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a candle! He hoped it would be a smelly candle. His friend Norm had said he would give him a blank check, and his fiancée always gave him cool stuff like the orange she gave him last year. Will 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 pair of shorts. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the plateau. He would have to wear a pair of cowboy boots instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his trench coat.
He sped downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like pickles. His mom was standing there with a foot in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a pucker.
"Hi Mommy!" Will replied trustingly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the cotton candy," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra butter. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Will replied timidly. "Do we have the cherries jubilee ready?"
"I'm going to wait until eleven o'clock to start that," his mother replied hastily. "It only has to whirl for seventy-one minutes."
"Okay," Will replied lazily. "I'm gonna go to the rec room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some mashed potatoes in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the rec 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," Will responded, as he sat down to his mashed potatoes. "Let's hang lots of tan balloons and cover the bookshelf and the table with indigo crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother bitterly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Vera Feldman. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has an electric paint mixer."
"My land," Will responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a flutter. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."