A Sunday Surprise
Rachel woke up to her house phone ringing. "Hello," she grumbled. "Hey honey." "Hi, mommy." "What are you doing?" he mom asked. "Trying to figure out why you called at six in the morning knowing I hate mornings." Her mom laughed. "Why didn't you call us yesterday?" "I was hanging out with Andre in the day and I had a date last night." "Oh, well the pastor called and they need you to run the daycare today if you aren't busy," her mother said. "Mom, I'm not in the mood to babysit those bad asses." "WWJD?" "Jesus knows I hate mornings and let me go back to sleep." "Rachel I will call back at in two hours and you better be on your way to church," she hung up the phone before Rachel could argue. "Uuuugh," Rachel groaned, "I guess I up." She put on her robe and turned on her mom's old record play. "Boring, boring, boring, boring," she said going through her mom's albums, "Well, you guys will have to do." She put on the Temptations and got her day going. Getting dressed and singing "My Girl" from the top of her lung she almost didn't hear the doorbell. She turned off her music and went to the door. "Does a Rachel Marron live here?" a delivery guy asked. "Yeah," she replied. "Here you go," he handed her a box and started to leave. "Wait, who is this from?" she yelled. "Read the card and find out." Rachel closed her door and opened the box. There was a purple petunia in it with a note. She read the note out loud, "Something to brighten up your day since you brightened up my night. Love Frank Farmer." She started to smile and feel all fuzzy inside.
"Frank, can you just take the toys to the daycare?" his mother asked. "No, mom; those kids don't deserve her stuff," he shouted. "Don't yell at your mother Franklin," his father said. "Then tell you her to leave me alone." "Frank, can we go one year without arguing on her birthday, you don't understand how unhealthy that is for you to…" "ALRIGHT, Jesus, I will let them have one thing and that is it. Please don't bother me again about this." He left out the house to cool off. "He must have forgotten who he was talking too," his mother said. "Katherine, you know that his temper is bad this time of the year. She was his little sister and probably his only real friend," Herb said. "I know, but he has to remember that we were her parents and it hurt us too when she died. He can't blow up on me when I try to help him get over her no matter how mad he is." "Katie, calm down, he will be fine."
Three hours into it, Rachel wanted to shoot herself in the face. "Rachel, I can't find my dolly," a little girl said. "Your dolly is in the bathroom where you always leave it." Rachel was having the worst time of her life. "Miss Rachel, I need to go," a little boy said. "You need to go potty?" "I already went; I need to change my pull-up." 'He is four and he isn't potty changed yet.' "I alright Willis go get your pull ups." "Well, my pull ups are at my house, I was supposed to tell you when I had to go," Willis said. "Then why didn't you?" "Because I thought I could hold it." "Ugh," she started to rub her temples. "Are you mad at me?" "No, sweetie. I'm not mad. Come on lets go get you a pull-up out of the storage closet." After getting him set up she hung out at the sign in desk. "Rachel, you can go over the books if you are so bored," the First Lady said. "Curse me for being so good at math," she bent down to get the receipts and that's when Frank walked in. "Hello?" he asked. 'Wait, I know that voice,' Rachel thought. "Is anyone watching these bad asses?" she heard him mumble. 'I knew I liked him. Damn it, the one day I go without makeup and I run into him.' That when she came up. "Hello, how may I assist you?" she asked. "Hey, what are you doing back there?" Frank asked. "The Lord's work, what are you doing here?" "I'm donating a toy," he answered. Rachel confusingly looked in the box. Catching the look on her face he said, "I thought someone should pick one so I don't have to." "Oh okay, follow me to the toy center aka the storage closet."
"Who do these toys belong too?" Rachel asked sitting on the closet floor. Frank sat next to her, "My, uh, little sister." "I didn't know you are a big brother, does she care if you give away one of her toys?" Rachel asked. "Um, she died six years ago." Grief started to flush through Rachel's head. "Oh, I'm sorry, what was her name?" Frank looked at the ground. "Jocelyn, we called her Josie, she was only four years old." "Frank," Rachel whispering in a soothing way. "You know today she would have been ten. She had been planning for since she found out that ten was a huge milestone and she didn't even live to see the day." Rachel scooted closer to him and put her arms around him. "It's okay, Frank." He was not normally that open, but he had still had stuff pent up. "Hey, look at me," she turned his face so he'd look her in the eye, "No matter what happen too her, she is in a better place. Now, if you don't want to give these crumb snatchers anything I will keep that box in here, okay?" "Okay, thanks." "You know, I leave in about fifteen minutes, do you want to go get something to eat. I know this great bakery down the street," Rachel said. "Okay, and could you not tell anybody about this, I will look sissy?" Frank asked, helping Rachel off the floor. "Talk about what?" she smiled slyly. Frank only chuckled a little.
"Ciao bella ragazza, you working on you vacation?" a man with a heavy Italian accent asked Rachel when they walked in to the bakery. "You know that isn't true, Frank this is my Italian uncle Giorgio, Gio this is Frank," Rachel said. "Oh, you that guy she says and I quote is, 'So Gorgeous,'" he said in a high pitched girly voice. Frank looked at Rachel, who was blushing but was ready to snap Giorgio's neck. "Gio, may I talk to you for a minute?" she asked. "Sure bella, follow me to the kitchen." Rachel looked at Frank, "I'll be back in a second. Sit down and make yourself comfortable." "Okay," he sat at a two chaired table while she followed Giorgio to the back.
Ten minutes later Rachel came out of the kitchen with a small circle chocolate cake with a candle and a lighter. "You didn't," Frank said. "Oh yeah I did," she said sitting next to him. "How did him to make this?" Frank asked. "I promised him a Christmas bonus." "What?" "My family owns this place, I'm just not working till summer," she explained, "I didn't know what was your sister's favorite flavor was so I just thought that you couldn't go wrong with chocolate. Plus, this is what I do every year on my grandmother's birthday, it makes me feel better." "This is probably the best thing anyone did to do to make me feel better. It is way better than hearing that it okay." "Well, I'm nice like that," she put the candle in the middle of the cake and lit it. "So what do you think she would wish for?" Rachel asked. "Probably a pony with a diamond studded saddle." "Okay then that's her wish, now blow out the candle before wax get on the cake." He started blow but stopped. "You blow with me," he said. "Okay, on three. One, Two, Three."