Happy Birthday!

The sun was threatening to escape behind the mountains in the distance, casting the sky in an orange hue around it before fading to a darker and darker sky as the car pulled into the parking lot of a local park. The same park where Mega Corp held the family picnic that started all of this. The park seemed tranquil to Bailey as he stepped out of the car, holding onto the door to steady himself in the tall heels. Bailey was on the same side of the car as Derrick and when he got out he gave Bailey a little wink. The blasted man was charming, Bailey had to admit it while wishing he hadn’t automatically smiled back at him. When everyone was out of the car Derrick walked a little ahead of the group with a quick pace before turning around with hands held out to the side facing them. “Time for the Princesses to find their royal court, all they have to do is follow the lights.” Edna wasn’t sure what was going on and looked to the girls to see where they would go, while both Candi and Bailey looked around for lights. The park's lamps had recently turned on before they arrived from the time of day, but those were everywhere. Derrick couldn’t see behind him, but when he saw Amanda shake her head he frowned and held one hand forward with his index finger up. “Hold on one second.” Pulling out his phone that looked to already be on a call with someone he touched something. “I said It is time for the Princesses to find their royal court and only need to follow the lighted path!” With that a strand of white Christmas lights lit up on the ground next to the sidewalk walk and led deeper into the park. From the parking lot it was clear it veered off down a path past the water fountain where the girls learned of their similar shoe size before going out of sight.

The three adults trailed behind the two platinum blonde girls, watching as they moved at a pace that wasn’t safe for the height of their shoes. Candi was brimming with excitement and held her friend’s hand tight. Bailey noticed how her hand was shaking a little, it was different than when her energy bubbled over. “Are you okay?” Candi nodded her head not saying a word, her pace not slowing down by even a fraction. The quick pace came to an end when the two rounded a bend around some trees and saw what had been set up for them. The area once had a twenty by twenty park pavilion with two wood and metal benches under it that was within ten feet of a sand volleyball court. The white Christmas tree lights went up the sidewalk and up into the rafters of the pavilion, the benches had been pulled out and set up with large speakers connected to a docking station for a phone. The lights went off in two directions from the pavilion, one to the volleyball court. The lights were wrapped around the courts net making it look like it glowed in the soft light, while the other direction went to a large white tent. Candi’s eyes were wide in awe and she started to take a few slow steps forward as if she was in a trance. Inside the white tent it was lit by those same Christmas lights, but on them hung with clothes pins were pictures, all scattered throughout the enclosure. Bailey gripped his friend’s hand tighter as he started to see what was waiting for them. At the back of the tent was a pair of large silver balloons the size of his torso in the shape of a one and an eight, small tables were scattered throughout the room for people to sit by, each having a paper lantern with different shapes cut out of the paper. The battery operated candles shone through the cut out holes, projecting hearts, stars and horseshoes around the dimly lit room. One table was set up to be a hot coco station, another had an assortment of their favorite candies. Walking into the center of the large tent that was devoid of people both Candi and Bailey spun around the room slowly taking it all in. They both looked to be in awe of what they were seeing, Bailey for a very different reason as she glanced at each of the photos around the room. They were photos of the two of them growing up. One would be of him and the next of Candi and on, and on, and on. Though hers were of her childhood, the ones of him were just wrong. He saw one photo of himself looking like he was ready to head to Highschool Freshman Homecoming, another of him sitting on Santa’s lap. He had seen them before, but seeing them hung up beside Candi’s photos it was like she was creating a story for someone that didn’t exist and in a much more real way and when he saw the photo of himself with his father he felt an emotional pain. Aunt Megan had altered the photo, it was no longer of him riding Cherry next to his father who walked alongside as he made sure the horse was going to accept him as a rider. It now looked like Bailey Ann was riding her horse next to him… his checkered shirt was changed to pink, and his hair was elongated so that he had cute girly pigtails that had been curled hanging down under his cowboy hat.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” a group of voices cheered from the tent opening the two had just walked in from. Everyone had been away from the tent so the girls had a chance to see everything before they came to see them. “Ohmygosh, ohmygosh WE JUST LOVE IT!” Candi yelled back to everyone as they filtered in. Bailey could see the excitement and joy in Candi’s eyes as she took everything in and he felt it fitting he was wearing all black, this felt like a type of funeral where he was both being celebrated and the one deceased. Candi stepped close to her friend and gave Bailey a large hug, holding him tight. “I was so worried, that’s why I was shaking. I like chose to be here and thought I wouldn’t… it doesn’t matter, oh my gosh this is so perfect.” Pulling back Candi held Bailey by his shoulders, smiling at him. “RIght?” She was looking for confirmation and the only thing he could think was this was a perfect nightmare. “I never expected any of this.” Somehow Candi’s smile brightened before she turned to the group of people. Seeing those they arrived with and Miss April, Aunt Megan, Ryan, August, Jeremy. Ten total people at the party including herself didn’t sound like a lot of people, but to her, at that moment it was perfect, just like Bailey said. Candi dashed past Ryan who was coming up to give his own birthday wishes and wrapped her arms around her fathers torso, burying her face on his shoulder. “I’m sorry, what was that Princess?” Derrick said, only hearing a muffled sound from his daughter talking into his chest. She pulled back and he could see she was doing her best to fight off some tears. “I love, I love you so much this is like… oh god you are the best Daddy ever!” Derrick returned the hug as he let out a happy laugh. “I had some ideas, but this was mostly Mandy, Megan and April’s doing.” Candi pressed herself into her father again with a big hug before stepping back, letting her hands fall to her sides. Her smile hadn’t wavered as she looked at him and then who he had indicated. “They really are the Best!” She said before moving off to greet people. “The Best, I would have to agree.” He said to himself watching the Best sisters flank Bailey and point around the room to different photos and Bailey plucking one down from the line, looking at it fondly.

“This turned out well I think, but this is yours.” Derrick looked to his side seeing April wearing a canary yellow dress and black heels. In her hand was a stack of recipes and a credit card on top. “It turned out more than well, I swear if Candace held onto me a second longer I might have broken down and cried and it looks like Bailey is fighting off the same tears of joy Candace is. Your ability to produce something like this within the timeframe given tells me you have a great future at Mega Corp, or anywhere else if they are stupid enough to you get away.” April felt her cheeks grow a little warm at the praise, but tried to keep it from her voice. “High praise, but it would be better if you put that in writing in my personnel file. Maybe something along the lines of..” She tapped her index finger to her pink lips, her nails matched her dress perfectly. “Miss Gates shows ambition, and drive to succeed. She would do well in a leadership position, such as a department supervisor or project manager.” She said in a gruff fake male voice. Derrick raised an eyebrow at her. “Was that supposed to sound like me?” She pursed her lips while giving him a nod. “That sounded nothing like me.” April leaned closer to him and adjusted his tie that was a little askew from his hug attack he received from the birthday girl. “It sounds exactly like you, and those exact words have been already sent to your email in pdf format, all you have to do is electronically sign it and send it off.” Derrick put one hand on his stomach as he belted out a huge laugh. “That… that is wonderful, ambitious, but dangerous.” April just gave a shrug and held up her phone. “I’m going to go turn on some music, do you think what I just did was more wonderful or dangerous?” Derrick held her gaze for a second and looked around the room til he found Candace biting into the strawberry flavored red vine candy she enjoyed, before turning back to the darked haired woman next to him. “Miss Gates, I think you were right. That letter sounds exactly like something I would say.” The confident look on her face melted away to something more child-like and filled with a joy that she was too afraid of to show till this exact moment. “Thank you sir, that does mean a lot.” Derrick kept smiling at her and motioned towards the room full of people. “Small price for you doing all the leg work for all of this and don’t call me sir. Even at the office don’t do that. Mr. Connors there, and just Derrick when we set… say even a foot out of the office.” April felt her face grow warm again and excused herself to go put on music to play out in the pavilion.

April docked her phone with one hand and fanned herself with another as she looked back to the man she was talking to a moment ago. “Oh I love those green eyes of his, Amanda you are one lucky woman.” She said thinking more about how it was less about the color of his eyes and more of how when Derrick focused his attention on you, it made her feel like she was the only one that mattered to him at that moment, and it was enthralling. The music filtered out of the speakers and drifted off into the rest of the park and inside the tent. Now that she had a moment to herself out here she thought about what Derrick had said he saw with Bailey holding back tears looking at a photo and wondered what photo it was that bothered him the most. If she had to guess it would be the one where he looked twelve and was sitting on Santa’s lap looking grumpy. This was such a wonderful night, not just because she had gotten a feather in her cap, but that sure didn’t hurt things. Candace was a sweet girl who gave up part of her summer to be here and loved the idea of making sure it was special for her and the extra spice of seeing Bailey **** to live out the persona he chose surrounded by people that both know who he really is and those that only know the ditzy girl. Tapping her index finger to her lip again as she sat down on one of the benches she considered getting her brother to get the birthday girls to come out and dance. She had already laid some groundwork with him, about how he knows so little about Bailey and how someone like him, a dreamer with plans for the future might do better with someone with ambition like Candance. He deserved something real, and she thought the two of them would be cute together.