“Hi,” Robin said from her place at the cash register.
“Hi yourself.” Sammy took off his jacket and set it on a table. “Oh! Cupcakes! I’m going to need a half dozen of those. I don’t care what kind they are.”
“You look serious. Good thing I have some serious cupcakes.”
He laughed. “I need them for a tutoring session in a few minutes.”
Robin bent to retrieve his order from the display case. “Six delicious, cream-filled chocolate cupcakes coming right up.”
Sammy set the cupcakes on his table as Ben walked through the open door. Ben sat down, and Sammy explained that they would be playing a game for cupcakes. They’d both make a rhyme out of history facts and then memorize them. Then they’d challenge themselves to write the facts down correctly, either in verse or just the fact.
Winner take all.
A half hour later they landed on the last fact. “Okay, one more right answer for the win.” Sammy held up a notecard. “When was the Battle of Waterloo?” He and Ben wrote their answers down, then compared them. Sammy had written 1815, but Ben’s card read June 18, 1815. Sammy flipped over the flashcard. “Looks like you win the cupcakes, my friend.”
“Yes!” Ben did a fist pump and hooted. “I knew I could take you, old man.”
“Hey, who you calling old man? I still got lots of fight in me.” Sammy’s mock horror made the smile on Ben’s face stretch wider.
“I knew I’d win. You didn’t stand a chance.”
“All right, you won fair and square.” Sammy stood and so did Ben. They gave each other a fist bump. “I can’t wait to see the grade on your history test.” Ben pulled on his jacket and grabbed the box of cupcakes.
“See ya later, Sammy.”
Robin stood at the display case, wiping the glass. “Pretty smart idea, studying history facts like that.”
Sammy shrugged. “You taught me that game. Don’t you remember setting a pile of Oreos in front of me in study hall? Because of you, I passed chemistry.”
“Oh yeah. I remember now. I had to switch to bringing Grandpa Jim’s oatmeal cookies because you kept winning all my Oreos.” She scrubbed at a spot. “It was fun to see you working with Ben when you could be doing something else.”
Sammy stretched, then approached the case where Robin was working. “I suppose, but it doesn’t cost me anything to spend some time with the kid. He’s got a good mind. It just needs to be steered in the right direction.”
“Well, today it cost you a half dozen cupcakes.”
“True. I’m gonna need to buy some more. I actually wanted to win those. I promised my mom I’d bring something home for dessert tonight.” Sammy leaned on the counter, being careful not to smudge her hard work. “When did cupcakes get added to the menu, anyway?”
Robin groaned. “I met with the plumber on Friday. He came in and did a rush job on Saturday. The amount it’s going to cost for me to pay for those pipes is astronomical. I had to add in a few new items to make ends meet. Besides, cake baking is therapeutic for me.”
He studied the cake in the display. “This looks amazing. That shiny stuff on it almost looks edible.”
“Gee. Thanks.”
“I mean… Sorry. That did come out wrong, didn’t it?”
“A little bit.” Her toothy smile belied her pretended offense. “That ‘shiny stuff’ is gold leaf. It’s totally edible. I thought it worked with the school colors.”
“It definitely does. People will be beating your door down for these cakes.”
“That’s the hope. Well, maybe not literally beating down my door. I have enough to fix up around here without having to replace that too.”
“Yeah, your cabinet did look pretty sad the other day.”
“Oh, now you’re insulting my kitchen too? You’re in trouble, Johnson.” Robin put her hands on her hips.
He held his hands up in surrender. “I keep sticking my foot in my mouth. I think I need to fill it with a cupcake instead.”
“Good plan, mister. I’ll box up these chocolate ones for you. Lucky for your mom, I have a dozen left.”
