Life is a pack of cards

Allen Frost

On days like this, Allen Frost wished he never decided to follow his passion for cooking. Michigan was a complete mess! He regretted ever showing up there. He could not seal the contract he was so sure he would get and honestly he could not be any happier about it. The city was as stressful as a cancer.

All he needed to do was wait for his manager to call him about the partners that wanted to meet with him. He needed sponsors for his restaurant, and he knew he would get it. No one could ever resist his meals. No one.

Allen was busy thinking about how he would present his capabilities and assets to the potential partners when his phone rang. It was his daughter, Thelma. Allen smiled. She must have seen them.

"Hey, baby. I was just about to call you. Did you see the shoes? Lovely, aren't they?" He got her a pair of one of the latest Adidas sneakers. When he saw them online he remembered how much she loved shoes and got them for her. They were a little pricey but nothing was too expensive for his daughter's happiness.

"Dad, come on. We were supposed to go out today," Thelma whined over the phone. He smiled again. Thelma could be childish sometimes.

"I know sweetie. Today is just not a good day... You know we-" She didn't let him complete his sentence before she interjected him ever so politely.

"When is then? It was a good day three weeks ago when we picked a date," Arguing with Thelma was a sport. Over the years, Allen had learned that it was either he kept quiet and let her speak or she would go on and on until she could twist things in her favor. He could not leave where he was to Okonia at the moment and he could not predict when he would so, he chose the former option.

"So when are you planning on coming over?" She asked quietly. accepting defeat. Bingo! Allen saw this as is opportunity to explain things to his strong-headed 17-year-old daughter.

"To be honest sweetie, I might not be in Okonia in the next month. There are some meetings I have to see through with some potential partners. I also have to prepare for this presentation I have with my sponsors. I might cook for the New York governor in a fortnight as well, so there is that too. My schedule is just really packed at the moment, but I will check my planner and tell Michelle to get back to you."

"Michelle? You hired a new PA? What happened to Ariona?" Thelma asked amused. He could hear her smile over the phone. He relaxed. `Just as he was about to explain why he fired his sexy but messy personal assistant, his phone rang. It was Michelle.

"Yeah. Honey, I have to go. I will call you as soon as I get the chance to though, okay? Daddy loves you!" He said and cut the call.

"Hello, Michelle. Did Patrick call you? "

____________________

Thelma

"Ugh!" Thelma groaned for the umpteenth time after failing to come up with content for her literature assignment. They were told to write an essay based on the analysis of a poem. She sighed audibly as she squinted at the poem again, struggling to concentrate.

"Little eyes, they are always watching.

As I go through fields of sunflowers and clouds of crows,

They see everything I do.

Little eyes"

She got up from her study chair and walked around her room, trying to make sense of it.

"Little ears, they are always listening.

As I whisper words that I throw around like pebbles into a river,

They hear everything I say.

Little ears"

She recited it out loud this time. Slowly, ideas started to form. She continued reading the poem from her textbook.

"Little hands, they always do what I do

As I pick up the burdens of this life and hold them tightly to my chest

They copy everything I do

Little hands"

Thelma smiled with a mischievous glint in her eye as she read this stanza of the poem by Ella Phillips. She was understanding it better. She looked into her friend's eyes as she read the last two stanzas out loud with more rigor and excitement than she did with the previous stanzas.

"Little mouth, they always talk as I talk

As I cast my words into a sea of disregarded lies and careless feelings

They say everything I say

Little mouth

Little feet

As I walk down the highways of shadows and allies of sunshine

They follow me wherever I go

Little feet."

Thelma's smile widened at the end of the poem. She looked like a psychopath ready to reveal her true intentions.

"You know you're very insane, right?" Adrianna commented shakily as she chewed on her lower lip and licked her thick gloss. Amara laughed.

"Aww. Are you scared?" Amara teased her in a child-like voice.

"Shut up! Your friend is psycho." Adrianna replied, annoyed.

"You were so scared." Amara continued.

"How is this going to help us with our assignment?"

Amara shrugged, "I don't know. Ask Einstein over there," she nodded towards Thelma.

Thelma wasn't bothered about the assignment. She already knew what to write on. She knew Amara did as well. Adrianna was the one to worry about, but that didn't bother her either.

"Yo! I think I have an idea..." Thelma started, "let's go to Madagascar for my birthday."

Adrianna snorted. "And you think this is a good idea because...?"

"Well, for one, it's my birthday. Two, Madagascar has some great clubs so, it will be a good first time for club virgins like Amara and me." Amara rolled her eyes. Adrianna tried interjecting, but Thelma had more, "plus my aunt has property over there that we can stay in. It'll be a nice memory. Think about it. I mean, my birthday is still like seven or six months away so there's no rush." Thelma said and shrugged.

Adrianna didn't look pleased, though. Vacations were supposed to be nice experiences for everyone involved. It required planning and preparation. No one should just up and go somewhere just because they have a place to stay and some cash to spare. Thelma was always a little odd. Why did she always try so hard to be different? It was irritating.

Thelma looked at Amara at the same time Amara looked at her. They both smiled knowingly. Of all her friends, Thelma knew Amara the longest. Coupled with the fact that their mothers used to be close, they were also neighbors for the first eight years of their lives. They had a lot in common.

The bond they had was unique. They understood one another and, because of that each one always let the other thrive in her space. Although their goals couldn't be any more different, their beliefs were very much alike. So, it wasn't just goals that tied them together; it was something more. Maybe it was the fact that they both knew finding someone else worthy of all the pain and understanding required in a friendship would be extremely difficult. For the both of them. It wasn't the kind of friendship most people their age could boast of.

Thelma sighed as she plopped down onto the floor. The joint was about to hit. She laid on her back and spread her hands and her legs. Slowly, she began to move her arms up and down and her legs side to side. She was making a snow angel, except the snow was her furry off-white rug.

"I'm hungry," Amara said softly. She got off Thelma's comfortable bed and proceeded to join her chubby friend on the rug. She curled into a ball right beside Thelma's snow angel.

"Me too," Adrianna agreed, yawning.

Thelma snorted, "Of course. When are you not hungry?"

Amara laughed, stopped, and laughed again. Thelma looked in her hysterical friend's direction and started laughing too.

It took Adrianna some time to join the party, but she eventually gave in and started laughing too, "Why are we laughing?" She asked, between laughs.

Thelma shrugged in response. After a while, the laughter subsided and the room became quiet.

"Thank God my door is soundproof," Thelma said, chuckling.

There was another bout of silence, then Amara replied, "Yeah. Thank God. Gladys would have been up in our faces," she

She uncurled and lay on her back to look at the ceiling.

"What about our homework?" Adrianna asked. None of them responded. It took a while, but it finally hit her.

"Oh my God! Are you guys high?"

Thelma and Amara turned to look at her, smiling maniacally. They both nodded their heads. Yes.