Laughter rang out inside the Condo on a warm spring night. The Bohemian family, with the exception of Mark, were gathered around the metal table where, placed in the center, was a professional looking vanilla cake topped with white icing and an intricate arrangement of sliced strawberries, with a large candle in the shape of the number '26' placed on the top of the cake. Penny sat at the head of the table, laughing with Maureen as Joanne kept Rodolfo from sneaking a strawberry from the top of the cake, much to the amusement of Lucia and Zack, while Emily momentarily stepped away to answer the phone when it rang. Shortly after picking up, she placed a hand over the speaker grill to call Penny over.
"Penny, Mark's on the phone." Immediately smiling, Penny crossed the room to speak with her father, while Rodolfo, Zack and Lucia called out their greetings, raising their voices to ensure Mark could hear them. Mark was currently out of town, attending a mandatory business meeting in Connecticut. As a result, he was unable to be home for Penny's 26th birthday.
"Hi, Dad," Penny spoke as she took the phone from Emily.
"Hey, Penny," Mark's voice responded. "Happy birthday. Sorry I can't be there, Ladybug."
"Don't worry about it," Penny assured. "I understand why you're not." For a brief moment, Penny paused, thinking about how distant Mark's voice sounded over the phone. "So, when are you coming home?"
"My flight back to New York is scheduled for Saturday. I should be home in time for dinner."
"Great. I'll make sure Rodolfo and Zack don't finish the cake before then."
"Thanks for that, Penny. You know I always look forward to tasting your mother's cooking. But just promise me you'll have a wonderful birthday, all right?"
"Sure, Dad, I promise. I better go, though. Aunt Joanne's not going to be able to ward Rodolfo away from the cake much longer. See you Saturday, okay?"
"Of course. Put your mother back on before you go, all right?"
"Right, here she is." After passing the phone back to her mother, Penny started to head back to the table, where Rodolfo had somehow managed to snag a strawberry when Joanne was looking the other way. But before she could sit down again, there was a knock at the door. Lucia was the one who reached the door first, dodging around Penny as quickly as she could. Outside in the hall was James.
"James!" Penny's smile widened even more, as she went up to greet him with a quick kiss, which he tenderly responded to.
"Hi, Penny. Happy birthday," James greeted.
"Well, what are you doing standing out in the hall?" Penny laughed. "Why don't you come in? We're just about to start serving the cake."
"I can't," James shook his head, sounding very reluctant at turning down the offer. "Unfortunately, Allen never showed up for work tonight, so I have to go in and cover his shift tonight. I can tell you one thing, Sammy's babysitter is very angry with me for calling her over on such short notice.
"James, I keep telling you," Emily, who had ended the call with Mark, spoke up. "You can always just bring Sammy over here. We're always more then happy to watch your little brother for you when you're working."
"I know, Mrs. Cohen," James replied. "But I didn't feel right just pawning him off on you this time, since I have to cut out on Penny's birthday like this. It didn't feel right. I just wanted to come over and apologize to Penny in person for missing her special day."
"Oh, don't worry about it, James," Penny waved a hand. "It's really no big deal."
"Yes, it is!" James insisted, grasping her hand and looking straight into her eyes. "I really wanted to be with you today. It's not every day your girl turns 26 after all. I'm going to make it up to you, I promise. My boss has guaranteed this weekend off for me, and I'm gonna set the whole evening aside for you. Just you and me, doing whatever you want to do. Okay?"
"Well, if 'making it up to me' really is that important to you," Penny gave in, "I guess that would be okay with me."
"Believe me, Penny. It's very important to me." James smiled before kissing her forehead. "As cheesy as it sounds, seeing you happy will always matter to me. You and Sammy.
"Unfortunately, I better get going. My boss will bite my head off if I don't my shift soon."
"Have a good night, James," Penny said, hugging him goodbye.
"I'd have a much better night if I could stay here," James stated. "But at least there's always this weekend. You enjoy your night with your family, Penny. I'll see you Saturday." With another tender kiss, James left the Condo.
"Man," Rodolfo groaned from the metal table, rolling his eyes. "If I ever get that sappy, just put me out of my misery and shoot me on the spot." Rodolfo's quip was rewarded by a light cuff from Emily.
"Is it time for cake?" Lucia asked hopefully.
"I suppose it is," Emily decided. "Penny, since it's your birthday, you're the one who gets to cut the cake."
"Right," Penny agreed, taking the knife. "And Rodolfo can have the piece he already took the strawberry from."
Outside, on the nearly empty streets, James stood glancing up at the Condo's window, where the light from the kitchen could be seen.
"Happy birthday, Penny girl," he whispered to himself before getting into his cab to drive off to work.