Riley's Box

Part 19

I had to admit it, amidst all of the stress that I had endured regarding Susie, the parking lot argument with Jason had somehow been the most poisonous chocolate chip inside of the cookie. 

That wasn't to mention the fact that, with everything going on, I had totally forgotten about my birthday! 

I only realised this, when my parents wandered into my room with a huge stack of breakfast pancakes, candle included. My parents really were the best. 

Look no further, people, because I was probably the first person in history to actually forget all about their own birthday! 

"Hi," I greeted Jason, when I found him outside of the hall that I had rented for my birthday party. 

It was my sixteenth birthday, after all! 

To mark such a glorious occasion, I was wearing a baby blue dress, had on some heels to match and had pulled my cocoa-brown hair up into a high ponytail so it wouldn't get in the way if I did do some dancing. 

"Hey," he said. 

"How are you?" I replied. 

 This caused him to frown. 

"Riley," he said, with some pain in his voice, "You know I hate small talk." 

Right, right. I supposed I should have remembered as much. 

"I had a difficult evening, if you must know," he said, when I gave him an expression that read 'please tell me what's going on in your mind right now'. "That's all there is to it," he continued, as the two of us made our way into the hall with my parents. 

"Surprise!" April said, as she jumped out from behind a table. 

The rest of the party guests, by which I mean most of tenth grade, soon came out from their hiding places, too. 

I noticed that even Whit and Eric were there, which was weird but it was good to see them. Whit, that is. 

The guests soon got started on eating and drinking, while my parents wandered over to me to wish me a happy birthday for the second time that day. 

They handed me a present in a blue box and I gave it a quick shake as to determine what it was. 

I didn't have a clue. 

"I'll open it in a bit," I told them, as they watched me with anticipatory gazes. 

They nodded and then made their way out into the garden of the hall, where there was a barbecue. 

With them now outside, I turned my attention back to Jason with my most serious expression upon my face. 

"Jason, what's going on? You had a difficult evening? Was it because..." I trailed off. 

Jason's father had been arrested almost exactly a year ago for domestic violence. He still hadn't been allowed out and for good reason! I had never trusted him. 

"They're thinking about letting him out," he said. 

"No," I said. 

"Yeah. They are. Mom is thinking about just..." his voice faded out. 

I could tell from the glint in his gaze that he must be feeling absolutely defeated. 

"Jason, what's the matter? What's your mom thinking about?" I asked him. "I know you tend to keep things to yourself, but don't keep this to yourself, alright? I'm sorry about yesterday but-" I cut off. 

"I can't tell you that," he said stubbornly. 

I should have expected that much from him. 

Releasing a sigh, I grabbed a pastry from one of the buffet tables and started to eat it. 

"I'm a tough person, Riles. I don't need any help. I don't need to talk about it, nor do I want to," he said and his gaze darkened. 

I released another anxious breath. 

I wished that he would talk to me, even when he didn't feel that he could. 

We usually told each other everything, but recently things hadn't been quite the same. 

Fortunately, I didn't have to feel so bad for too long because my grandmother soon made her way over to me. 

"Hey, Mrs. Ruby," Jason greeted her. He managed to form a smile onto his previous solemn face. 

"Hi Jason. Good to see you, sweetheart. Uh..." my grandmother trailed off then, which led me to meet her with a curious expression. 

"Yes, grandma?" I asked. 

"I need to speak to you," she told me. 

It was then that I noticed she was holding a large box in her hands. Gift wrap included. 

"You do?" I asked her. 

In response to that, she gave a small nod of her head. 

"I do indeed," she said. 

"Well, we're talking now, grandma," I remarked. 

Her eyes lit up with some amusement. 

"I realise that, mi nieta, but I need to talk to you about this in private," she told me. 

Turning momentarily to give Jason a curious expression, I soon followed my grandmother out of the hall, into the cool, fresh outdoor air. 

I took a moment to take a breather, as the weight of what Jason had told me earlier crumpled onto me. 

Soon after that, I returned my focus to my grandmother. Just what did she want to speak to me about? And, more importantly, what was inside of that box? 

I met my grandmother's gaze again and gave her a friendly smile, anticipating just what it could be that she needed to talk to me about. 

"My darling Riley, this is your birthday present. Happy birthday," she said, as she handed over the box to me. 

It was so heavy! 

"Grandma, do you lift?" I asked her. 

She eyed me with some wonder behind her eyes, then. 

"Yes. The box is very heavy. I just lifted that." 

She said it as though it made sense. However, my grandmother suddenly having the muscle capacity of some of the more athletically-inclined teenage boys in my gym class didn't make any sense at all. 

"I need to give you a warning, mi nieta," she started to say, "Once you have unwrapped this gift- you must not open what is inside no matter what." 

"Is there a key?" I asked. 

"Yes. No opening, though! Trust me," she said. 

Then, she bid me farewell with a calm smile, and left me outside with the box.

I eyed it with curiosity.