Normal | Rhekker

Prologue - V

"Hello?" Ava said when she opened the door. A delivery man stood with a small parcel, she hadn't ordered anything?
"Delivery for Dr. Bekker?"
"Yes?" Ava thought back to what she could have ordered.
"Sign here"
Ava signed quickly for the parcel, taking it into her kitchen. She picked up the card and undid the ribbion, inside was a small round one serving sponge cake with delicate white frosting piped around the edges.

Ava flicked open the card with her thumb.

To Ava,

Happy Birthday!

I found the one gift you can't tell me was too pricey or you didn't need ;)

I have plans to travel for the winter holidays, I'd like to see New York, I always liked it in winter...

Until then, enjoy this V sponge.

Best wishes,
C. Rhodes

Ava smiled brightly to the noted, a faint blush forming on her cheeks. Putting the card down she stole a swipe of icing on her thumb to try before the doorbell rang.

She dusted off her hands and moved to open it.
"Oh, hi. Sorry I'll be out in just a moment" she returned to the counter to grab her purse, taking the cake she knocked the card to the ground, placing the sponge securely in the fridge before returning to her visitor at the door.

*

It was late at night when Ava returned to her apartment, walking slowly up the halls. They stopped outside her door. "Thank you for dinner" she smiled.
"Can I come in?" He asked.
"I have work tomorrow" she told him with a grimace.
"No problem, you look stunning" he leaned in to kiss her cheek goodbye. Ava watched him walk down the hall before letting herself into the apartment. She took off her heels and dropped her bag on the kitchen counter, collapsing onto the sofa in a pile of fabric. She opened her eyes, her gaze falling on the cream fridge illuminated in the dark of New York.

Ava sat up from her sofa, getting a fork from her cutlery draw her took the small parcel from the fridge and returned to the sofa. The first bite was delicious, as Ava knew it would be, the whole thing was. She checked the package it came in, seeing the bakery was a New York one, making a note of its name if she ever needed cakes.

Her eyes caught something on her kitchen tiles, the handwritten slip of paper the treat had came with. Quickly standing up she took the paper, as if afraid to the caught, hurriedly stuffed it in the box at the top of her closet.
She returned to the sofa and cake after changing out of her dress, sitting back to finish the last of her birthday treat Ava spotted something black under the cake paper at the bottle of the box.

Moving the paper to the side Ava pulled out a 100$ Bloomingdales gift card.

You seriously thought I'd only get you cake for your birthday? x

Ava roles her eyes, "Rhodes"

*

It was three days after her birthday when she finally got a hold of Connor.
"Long time no see?" He said over the line.
"That's for sure" she smiled, trying to peel an onion with one hand.
"How are things in the Windy City?"
"Good, busy and chaotic. Schools are starting to let out so lots of broken legs, ankles, arms from playgrounds and god knows what else"
"Anyway" he breathed, "hows the concrete jungle?"
"Just the same, only it has this really great invention, called the sun. It makes it warm outside so South Africa's don't freeze to death"
"Oh really now? We should really try investing on one of them"
"Yeah, you should. Would increase African tourism greatly"
"Speaking of Africans, how was your weekend?" He asked, smiling into the line as he sat at his desk.
And smiled softly that he'd taken the time to do something.
"Good, I got your gift. It was delicious, which is why you didn't need to put a gift card in. A gift card I intent to return to you"
"Oh Avey, you really thought I would get you a refundable gift card? You think this is my first time getting you a present?"
"You know you didn't need to do anything" she said softly, slowly chipping an onion to add to her pan.
"It was an important birthday" he argued.
"I know, I'm thirty" a winced, "I'm basically a old relic"
"Hey, what am I then?"
"I don't know, about seventy-"
"Don't finish that sentence" he said quickly, laughing after.
"No, you don't look a day over thirty-six" she told him.
"Oh well you keep me young, Dr Bekker"