As Ray pushed me out of my bedroom I was greeted with a wonderful sight. There were streamers hung up on the walls along with handmade paper decorations. My other two brothers hurried past us into the living room. When Ray and I arrived there Ben and Mike shouted, "Surprise, happy birthday!" and through fistful of dried flower petals into the air. " Today isn't my birthday. My birthday is in spring." we know, but you were asleep for your birthday so we thought we would celebrate now," came Ray's excited voice from behind me.
"Oh right, I'm twelve now aren't I?!" "That's correct and you're not to far away from turning thirteen," Ben told me. "Don't worry," said Mikey, "we will still celebrate your thirtieth birthday as well! You deserve it, after all getting past the age of twelve wasn't easy for you." "I wouldn't know I was unconscious for almost all of it," I said chuckling. Mikey could be so extra sometimes, but I wouldn't change it for anything.
"Anyways," Ray said, rolling his eyes, "happy birthday!" Mikey hurried out of the living room and into the kitchen. He came back with a small white cake with strawberry preserves on top. "It's a bit hard to get the ingredients for cake during the winter, but we found a way! It's lemon flavored too."
Mikey then headed to the dining room and set down the cake. "Would you like cake or presents first?" Asked Ben. "You got me presents? You really didn't have to do that!" "Are you saying you don't want them?" Mikey questioned with a grin. "No that's not what I meant!" Ray laughed happily, "We know we didn't have to do any of this, we did it because we wanted to," said Ben. "So which do you want to do first?" Asked Ray. "I just had lunch, so let's do presents first."
Mikey came up in front of me and booped me on my nose. "I see your still as practical as ever!" He then laughed and walked over to the couch and flopped down onto it. I pouted at his comment, prompting Ray and Ben too also laugh. "Why would I want to eat cake when I'm already full?"
Ray patted my head, "Fairpoint Sue." he wheeled my chair in front of the table, which was placed in the center of the living room. There were three presents placed on the table. "Which one do you want to open first Sue?"
The on the table to the left of me was a rectangular box with light blue wrapping paper and a dark blue ribbon tied into a boat. It was about the size of a shoebox. The present right in front of me on the table was what I could only describe as a blob that messily wrapped in paper scraps and was the size of dinner plate. The last present was to the right of me. It was a large hand carved wooden box only a little smaller than a bread box (For those who don't know, which is probably almost everybody reading this, a bread box is a little bit bigger than the size of a loaf of bread. It's perfectly understandable if you don't know what it is they are not in common use in today's day and age at least in the USA. I do not know about other parts of the world.)
I could only assume there is something inside of it because if the box itself was the whole present Ben, I mean whoever this was from, would have wrapped it. It was very easy for me to figure out which gift was from which brother. They were always so obvious when it came to things like this.
"I would like to open the middle one first please." Mikey smiled ear to ear and hurriedly got up, grabbed hold of it, walked over, and handed it to me. "I just know that you're going to love it!" I smiled at him and began to open my present.
Inside the messy wrapping paper was some balled up clothing. As I undid the wad, I found a pretty, blue, hand made dress. The craftsmanship, which was far from perfect, led me to believe that he had made it himself. The seams we weren't stitch perfectly, the buttons in the back of the dress were a bit crooked, and the fabric, which must have been dyed by him as well, had dark patches where the dye hadn't been washed out well. It also looked a few sizes too large.
Besides all that it was very pretty. It was obvious that mother had helped him make to suit my taste. It was tighter at the top and flared out past the waist line so it would be fun to twirl in (if you have ever worn a dress like this you know what I am talking about).
"I know that the clothes will seem like they're too big for you, but while you were asleep you grew about two inches, according to mother, so when she was helping me make these clothes over this past summer, she told me to make them this size. She said when you woke up and put some weight back on that they should fit you well."
I was shocked, "You have been working on this gift since the summer?" Ben snorted, "No, he has been working on the dress since this past summer. He has been working on this gift as a whole since shortly after you fainted. I understand your confusion though. By the quality you would be able to tell that it took him that much time and effort."
Ben just had to get that dig at Mikey. He never could help himself when it came to that. "Don't you dare try to diminish what he's made! Yes it's clearly the work of a beginner, but that's what makes it all the more precious to me. He learned how to make all this just so he could give me something he knew I would love." I chastised Ben. I was not having any it. "Well he already knew how to…" "Hush up don't spoil the surprise I haven' seen the rest yet." I cut Ray off not wanting to hear anything about this from him either.
Mikey was grinning ear to ear at me. The fact that I was scolding the other two for him made him extremely happy. "Come on ignore them Sue look at the rest of it."
I went back to unraveling the mass of clothes sitting on my lap. The next thing I discovered was ten pairs of knitted socks. I was very pleased with them. Since it was the middle of winter I could put them to use right away. I also didn't have wait to wear them, since I couldn't walk right now it didn't matter to much if they fit perfectly. I was very particular about my socks. I didn't like when seam hit my toes. Mikey knew this and I could tell he had taken extra care in making the just right so it would not bother me.
"Thank you so much. You didn't have make me socks I know how hard it is to make them the way I prefer." "Don't say that Sue, I know I didn't have to do it. I did it because I wanted to. Now I also know why you get so upset when I accidentally put holes in your socks on wash day every now and again. It really is hard to make them this way and I know you make all your socks yourself. From this day on I promise to replace any socks of yours I put holes in myself." He put his fist over his heart as he said that last part.
I giggled at his antics and went back to my present. There was also a knitted hat, a pair of knitted mittens, he remembered that that I hated the feeling of gloves, and a kitted scarf. All of which were made from blue wool. The last part of his gift was a string of pearls that was gorgeous. They were pearls that we found in the shellfish at the lake in the forest. It must have taken him a very long time and a lot of hard work to collect them all.
"Thank you so much," I said with tears in my eyes, "I will treasure it forever." I clutched the necklace to my chest. Mikey reached across the table to me and wiped a tear from my eye. "I'm so glad I got to give it to you. You waking up is all the thanks I need," he said making me even more emotional.
Just then mother came in through the front door. "I can't believe you three started with out me!" She said while taking off her extra layers and putting them up.
"You told us you would be home by midday. Sue had already finished lunch and you still weren't back. We couldn't keep her waiting any longer without her suspecting that something was going on," explained Ben.
"Well I suppose that does make sense." Shen then moved on. She then sat down on the couch to the left of Mikey. Ray and Ben then came from behind my chair and sat in the armchairs. Ben sat to the right of me and Ray to my left.
"Do you like Mike's gift dear? He worked extremely hard on it." "I love it mother I really, truly do." "Mother don't interrupt her she seen it all yet!"
I looked through the pile once. "I don't see anything else in here Mikey." "Really? Let me see." Mikey then got up and walked over to my right side. He looked through his gift to me then mumbled, "I could have sworn… I'll be right back."