And I say, what about...Breakfast at Tiffany's
Beth knew she wouldn’t be in New York when her hanai-mother’s birthday came around, so she made the arrangements for everything to happen in a quiet way. Caterer’s to deliver breakfast in bed. And beside her juice and coffee and the molten chocolate souffle, a box. Long and slender and wrapped in the unmistakable colour; Tiffany blue. Matching ribbon. And with it, a hand written note in her signature purple sparkly pen.
“Donna,
Please take this token as a symbol of my enduring love and faith in you. I can’t tell you how much you’ve shaped and changed my life. You took in a scrawny stranger and helped her become the woman I am today. You and Jay have always been my hanai-family and if I had a thousand years to thank you, it wouldn’t be enough.
The knock at the door had her waking up early in the morning. Too early for a Sunday morning. She wasn’t expecting anyone, and anyone who would be visiting her at this hour, had keys to her apartment. So, riddled with confusion and sleep, she opened to the door…..to find the amazing display of a molten chocolate souffle and the smell of coffee.
“What?” she was not quite sure what was happening here, but she was not going to complain.
“Yeah?” she would be whoever the person was looking for. Not really. But she had been tempted.
“Happy birthday!” the caterer smiled, and Donna just stepped back and let the man place the tray on her table. She was so out of it, she completely missed the opportunity to tip the man. When she remembered, he was already waving her off, that it was taken care of. Huh. Happy birthday? She counted the days in her head as she closed the door behind her. It seemed she’d been working more than she should have, if she’d forgotten about her own birthday like that.
She made her way back to the food, dipped a finger into the souffle before licking the chocolate off. Curiously, she picked up the note, immediately knowing who it was from, from the sparkly pen. It made her smile, a mixture of happy for Beth remembered her birthday, and sad, because she missed having her nearby.
The words had her in tears, happy to know that Beth thought so fondly of her, that she considered her like a mom. It was a relief to know that her best, had been enough. She placed the note down and carefully picked up the box, taking her time in untying the ribbon and lifting the box off.
“Oh.” She let out a soft noise of wonder as she looked at the necklace that sat there. Donna did not want to think of the fortune it must have cost. Perhaps it was why Beth decided to get it, there was no way Donna could refuse it with Beth so far away. At any other time, Donna would have protested. It was too much.
She gently ran her fingers over the gemstones. But the food was getting cold, so she put the lid back on and set the box down. She would have to call Beth later and thank her, and remind her that she was very much loved.