Sincerely Yours, No Matter Where

The Power of Friendship V

The final chapter of The Power of Friendship.
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"Don't forget to come to my house, my birthday party's gonna be in an hour," Thomas said as he walked next to Christina.

She halted when they neared the end of the school's entrance pathway and gazed at him for a moment. An awkward and controlled smile began to form on her face. Her hand fidgeted with the strap over her shoulder, nervously adjusting the colorful book bag behind her when she spoke, "I know, just have to go to the store before."

"You promise?"

"Yes," she wobbled her head, crossing her eyes, "are you crazy? Why would I miss it?"

Thomas laughed, "no, but I dunno, your mom could go to work and you can't make it?"

"Would walk to your house anyways, silly. Done it before, right?"

"Yeah, when my parents coulda picked you up."

In the ten months since she had moved to her mother's, Christina would see Thomas almost everyday of the week. Her mother's erratic work schedule meant the Andersons would often take care of the child. They didn't mind it though, since they'd worry about her staying home alone and unattended. Sometimes, she didn't want to bother them, and would decide to walk to their house instead.

"It's just—" Christina was interrupted by Celia stationing her car a few feet across from them.

"Hey, Christina!" Celia leaned over the passenger seat.

"Hi, Mrs. Anderson!"

"Are you coming with us or is Veronica picking you up today?"

"Ummm, mommy's picking me up."

Thomas craned his neck and searched the area, "don't see her."

"Are you sure?"

Christina's lips tightened, "she'll be here." The words sounded forced and she struggled to smile.

It was an odd smile, and Celia scrunched her eyebrows in confusion, noticing that the little girl was acting strange. "Is everything all right?"

"Mm-hmm," Christina nodded.

Celia's brown eyes softened and she released a long sigh, she would have to question her when she had more time. "Ok, no problem. Say hi to your mother for me and tell her that I'll go over tomorrow to bring some of the birthday leftovers she'll be missing out on."

"'Kay, I'll tell her."

"Bye, see you soon!" Thomas waved from the car.

Christina smiled and waved back.

"Did you have a nice day at school?"

"It was ok. Mark and Billy got in trouble like always ..."

Their voices were drowned out by the growling engine and crunching stones beneath the rolling tires. She watched the blue car slowly drive away, receding and reducing in size, until the only discernible trait was the sparkling sunlight reflecting off the roof of something that seemed more like a tiny toy car.

The front of the school was logjammed with parents waiting inside their cars, barely moving for extended periods and rearranging themselves every time a child was picked up. Most sat in the driver's seat while talking or scrolling through their phones, a few stuck their heads out of their windows and yelled at others to hurry up. None of them would be Christina's mother.

She had told her mother that Mrs. Anderson would be picking her up from school. Lying wasn't something she commonly did, but she needed to buy Thomas's birthday present and surprise him with it later that day. The surprise would've been ruined if they had picked her up. In any case, they were also probably going to be too busy preparing for the party, she thought to herself.

Several clouds were accumulating in the distance, but they seem very far to her, much too far to ruin her walk. The store was five blocks away from the school and three blocks away from Thomas's house. If it didn't rain, which she was hopeful that it wouldn't, she'd arrive at his house just before the party began.

After thirty minutes, she reached Phillip's store. It was a quaint little building, with an old-fashioned facade painted in dark colors, and a faded sign hanging over the entrance. Bells clashed with an abrasive jingling when she opened the door and a musty smell wafted out of the place. Shelves full of books covered the walls to the right, toys were in the center area, and odd trinkets decorated the shelves to the left.

"Well, hello there! Just holler if you need help with anything," said the man behind the counter.

His untamed white beard, rosy cheeks, and deep voice reminded Christina of what a retired Santa Claus would look like. She nodded and walked over to one of the shelves.

There were many choices, but none seemed suitable for Thomas. It wasn't until she searched further in the back that an object caught her eye. The decorative cover and characters filled her with a sense of familiarity, as if she had known it all her life. She held it under her arm and chose another that was perfect symbol of their friendship.

"Some fine choices you've made here," the man said after she placed the items on the counter.

She pulled herself up, whispering: "it's a birthday present."

His eyes widened, "a present you say? Then we'll have to wrap them up, so it's an even bigger surprise when they see it! Let's see, I have many different styles here," he muttered as he searched the wall behind him. When he turned around he presented her with two rolls of wrapping paper.

"No," she grimaced at the first one, then smiled at the second, "that one!"

When she exited the store, clouds had filled the sky, casting a large shadow upon the town. Rain was imminent and her time was limited. She stared at the present in her hands while she walked. It was covered with a colorful wrapping paper full of blue, red and yellow swirls. The yellow bow on top was semi-transparent and had shimmering thread interlaced along its borders. It was beautiful, she thought, and hoped Thomas would be happy with his present.

Beaming, she continued to peer down at it, tilting it every so often as she crossed the street.

A sudden thump on her side caused the box to fly out of her hands. Its pointy edges dented every time it impacted on the gravel, scrunching and blunting with each flip. The bow became undone. Unfastened by the violent beating, it twisted in the air and glided onto the ground's surface. Jaggedly torn wrapping hung from the box and ripped away from portions of its sides.

Her ecstatic smile had disappeared. All she could do was sadly look on, until it finally stopped rolling away from her.

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