AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I feel bubbly all of a sudden. No one ever sends me flowers because their smells choke me, but this is a clever equivalent. Fruits have barely any scent.
“Thanks!” I yell at the cab, but it’s already moving.
I bring the arrangement inside and check it out.
It’s the full gamut: melons, strawberries, grapes, pineapple, and so on, but under it all, instead of a vase, is a cake, along with a longer note.
This gift is also a challenge. Eat all the fruit, then see if you’ll still want the cake afterward.
Some of the earlier bubbliness goes stale. I know it’s a girl cliché and all that, but is Art telling me I need to lose weight? Granted, in the most roundabout way possible.
Woofer whirs to life and bumps into my leg.
I’m not sure I would be so gauche as to call my human overlord fat, but I do think she’d shed less skin cells for me to suck if she dropped a few pounds.
Gritting my teeth, I take out my phone and set it to record video.
“Challenge accepted.” I start devouring the fruit with gusto.
It’s very nice, actually. Juicy and refreshing. Is fruit always like this? I don’t eat it outside of the garnishes they include in desserts, so I don’t really know. Of course, it’s possible I’m simply dehydrated from the banya and all the alcohol. I know this, though: there’s no way a few berries and pieces of melon will prevent me from eating that cake.
Except it’s not a few pieces. It’s a lot of pieces.
The more of the arrangement I eat, the more room it takes up in my stomach.
Skunk. I can’t let Art win. Even if I don’t enjoy it, I’ll have that cake.
Maybe.
When I’m done with the fruit, the idea of having the cake seems almost repugnant.
Damn it.
I delete the video. If Art asks, I ate the cake.
My phone dings.
Oh, right. People are waiting to hear from me.
I go over to my computer, set up a meeting on Zoom, and send everyone invites.
I wait until five identical-to-mine—but slightly thinner—faces turn up. Then Mom and Dad make their appearance, followed by Gia and her twin Holly, and, for some reason, Fabio.
“How did you get an invite?” I ask him.
Honey ducks away from her screen and shows up in Fabio’s. “Sorry. He was at my house when the invite came.”
“Fine,” I say. “Let’s begin.”
Honey returns to her screen and joins everyone in staring at me expectantly.
I take a moment to bask in being the center of attention for once. Then I say, “Looks like I’m the first Hyman sister to get hitched. That’s all the news I’ve got. Any questions?”
