Chapter 15

The foundation for the partial wrap patio had been laid and hardened, and Emerson was this week able to walk upon it. He was staring down the hill at the farmhouse below when Mei walked up and startled him.

“What are you doing?” she asked in her own suspicious way.

“Nothing,” he replied nervously. “Just… looking.”

“Come on,” she said.

“Where are we going?” he asked, allowing her to lead him to the car.

“Shut up,” she ordered, hustling him into the vehicle.

“Mei,” he protested, “how can I drive anywhere if I don’t know where to go?”

“I’ll drive!” she told him, shoving him out of the driver’s seat.

Emerson moved over to the passenger seat and fastened his seat belt. He said nothing more as they drove along, leaving the already sparse signs of town behind. He vaguely recognized the place as they pulled up at a very large mansion. Mei wheeled the car around back and then turned to Emerson.

“Okay, I hide in the back seat. You honk the horn twice,” she said, climbing over the seat like a teenager. “When Bo comes out, you drive away! Wait, let her in first, then drive away!”

“Uh… okay,” Emerson agreed hesitantly. He slid back to the driver’s seat while Li laid down in the back. He beeped the horn twice and waited anxiously. After a few moments, Bo appeared at the back door and hurried out to the car. Emerson threw the car in gear and sped away.

“Whee!” Bo cheered. When they had gone a few miles Li sat up with a big grin on her face.

“Um, I hate to put a damper on things,” Em said, “but where am I going?”

“It’s our birthday!” Li informed him. “We want to go out! We have to get and have our gifts!”

“Oh, what gifts did you get?” he asked.

Li smacked him on the back of the head. “We don’t know yet! We haven’t opened them!”

She laughed merrily as he drove down the street. As they neared town she directed him among the city avenues, finally arriving at a small restaurant with a sign above the door. They went in and ordered and had a good time drinking and eating and laughing and talking. The Mei twins toasted each other’s good health and exchanged small gifts wrapped in flat paper. They each exclaimed at the gold necklaces they opened.

“Was that planned?” he asked, slurring a bit from the alcohol.

“No, my sister is just perfect and knows me well,” Li told him as she clasped the necklace around her throat. Her twin did the same and the two sisters looked happily at their mirror images.

“Your birthday is next,” Bo said, giving Emerson a poke.

“Really?”

“Sure!” she said, raising her glass. “It’s only a matter of time.”

“Really?” he repeated.

“Everyone has a birthday every year,” Li said, “whether they want to or not.”

“Hm,” he said. “Everyone?”

The wheels turned in his head as he thought of things. Then he took his wallet from his pocket and laid all his cash on the table. “Well, happy birthday, Mei… and Mei.”

They laughed and drank again. Bo gave him a big smile and said, “I’m glad you came. It was very festive.”

He raised his glass in salute and drank, but his mind was already a million miles away.

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