[The Wattys 2021 Shortlisted Finalist]
One case, two detectives, three friends, and a thousand emotions.
Sometimes nothing is a coincidence, but then again, everything is.
After the mysterious deaths of Amyra Valdez's eldest Uncle followed by her...
We reached home shortly afterward (I mean Xaviers' Bungalow, I don't exactly remember since when I had started calling it 'home'). Jonas carried the shopping bags upstairs while I went to get Bruno from Mrs. Arabella's house. Kelvin had called Jonas to inform him that he would be dropping Bruno at her house before leaving for the bureau in the morning. I couldn't thank Mrs. Arabella enough for taking such great care of Bruno every single time. He seemed to be so fond of her now that he wasn't even willing to come to me at first.
"He's probably mad at me for leaving him so often," I joked.
Mrs. Arabella laughed as Bruno eventually bounced towards me a couple of minutes later.
"I'm too overwhelmed with happiness about your and Sophia's reconciliation," she rejoiced.
"I'm assuming that I owe you a thanks for carrying out the secret mission of informing mom about me," I chuckled.
We stood there for almost ten minutes, conversing wholeheartedly.
"I'm so sorry for not recognizing you though, Aunt Bella," I said towards the end.
"It feels good to hear Aunt Bella from you again," she smiled.
I smiled back before climbing upstairs. I freshened up and took a shower before getting to work. It was time to bake the cake!
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"Look Amy, the cake's fluffing!" Jonas exclaimed, peering through the oven in front of him.
"But June, don't you smell something burning?" I asked, sniffing a burning smell.
I attempted to tie up the balloon I had just blown (let's not mention that it burst in the process) and went to check. As expected, the cake had burned at the edges.
I glared at Jonas, blowing out air in vexation.
"Never mind, it was the first try," he muttered with an innocent look, trying his best to gain my sympathy.
"It's already 6, where do we get another cake now?"
"Guess what, I bought two cake mix as a backup," he grinned, displaying another packet in his hands.
"So you were sure that it was going to burn," I teased.
"I mean, we should be prepared for the worst," he laughed away.
"And what if Kelvin returns home before we finish planning our surprise?" I questioned, crossing my arms.
"Wait, I've got a plan for that."
He scurried to his room and returned a couple of minutes later after making a phone call. He had called someone named Mr. Frank, Kelvin's associate detective in the bureau, and asked him to keep Kelvin busy with work till 11:30.
Smart plan indeed.
We quickly prepared a fresh cake batter with the second cake mix. I took the duty of guarding the cake in the oven now while Jonas took over the decoration part. A persistent aroma wafted across the room as soon as I opened the oven door this time. The chocolate fudge cake was in its best shape!
