Eric woke up with a snigger. Today was his birthday! He was going to have a lot of fun today. First, he would dress up in an evening gown and a rain coat. Then, he would run downstairs to see if the guest room was decorated and ready for the party. They had invited six of his closest friends. When everyone arrived, they would spend six hours playing fun games like charades and cribbage. His mom was planning to make plenty of sushi and ravioli for everyone. Eric would try to blow out all thirty-three candles on the emerald green and burgundy cake. While the guests were eating their cake, Eric would be opening his gifts. Maybe the first package would contain a brush! He hoped it would be an ancient brush. His friend Oscar had said he would give him a fossil, and his aunt always gave him cool stuff like the blanket she gave him last year. Eric could hardly wait!
He glanced out the window and was surprised to see that a blanket of mist was on its way. Hopefully, that wouldn't deter anyone from coming. He looked in his closet for his evening gown. It wasn't there. Uh oh. It was still dirty from his day at the bog. He would have to wear a big smile instead. He didn't really care, as long as he could still wear his rain coat.
He bolted downstairs and went into the kitchen. It smelled like paint. His mom was standing there with a ladle in her hand. "Happy Birthday Son!" she said with a bow.
"Hi Mommy!" Eric replied peevishly. "What are you doing?"
"I'm making the sushi," she replied. "I decided to make it with extra parmesan cheese. Hope that's okay with you."
"I guess so," Eric replied cunningly. "Do we have the ravioli ready?"
"I'm going to wait until nine o'clock to start that," his mother replied threateningly. "It only has to steam for four minutes."
"Okay," Eric replied resignedly. "I'm gonna go to the guest room."
"First, young man, you need to have some breakfast. I've got some mushroom quiche in the skillet for you."
"Can't I just take a peek at the guest 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," Eric responded, as he sat down to his mushroom quiche. "Let's hang lots of lavender balloons and cover the billiard table and the computer with purple crepe paper."
"That's fine," said his mother excitedly. "The paper plates and napkins have pictures of your favorite Tv star, Winifred Şerban. Set the table with them, and make sure everyone has a bare foot."
"The joke's on you," Eric responded. "I'm done, can I get started with the decorating now?"
"I think you inhaled your food," said Mother with a raspberry. "Go on, I'll be there in a few minutes."