“He might not have understood what he was seeing. I barely understood it and I am not even ten years old.” I pleaded with my brother to let our nephew go and let him go immediately.
“How could he not understand?” Jack said, practically yelling.
“Because he is ten, he wasn’t in on the secret. We didn’t tell him because we didn’t want him to accidently let it slip on what was happening.” I shuffled slightly to the side so Jeff was standing almost directly behind me. I had never seen Jack get this angry, especially over something that seemed so minor. The night had not been ruined, it was just a little of a surprise taken out. All because we didn’t tell the ten-year-old not about the plan. Jeff had never been good about keeping secrets, mainly because he hated secrets and he hated surprises. He liked everything to be nice and orderly.
“He has ruined it! He had ruined the entire plan – the entire night gone. Because of one kid!” Jack stormed off leaving Jeff and I by ourselves in the kitchen. Everyone else had merged to the backyard to escape the unnecessary yelling. Leave it to Jack to ruin a perfectly executed plan. He had no one to blame but himself. And no matter what Jack thought, Jeff hadn’t ruined anything. No one had planned a surprise party for our father without him finding out. Tonight had been no different. Especially since Jack’s mistress had gotten involved.
Standing Room Only 