Cake for the Soul

“Beep! Beep! BEEP!” goes my alarm pleading to me for the hundredth time to open my eyes and face the inevitable . I groan as I quickly roll over throwing the blankets off my exhausted body. Sitting up I swing my legs over the side of my bed. Still discombobulated I rise up out of bed and head to the bathroom to take a shower hoping it is just what I need to wake up.

As I finished up getting dressed I headed down the stairwell to get breakfast. Carefully watching my footing down the steep steps I walk into the kitchen. I stop suddenly and I am met by an eerie silence. “Mom!” I shout. “Moooooom!” Still I’m met by a deafening silence which is unusual in my household. I’m used to my mornings filled with the constant chatter and bickering of my two younger siblings Tyler and Tory as my mom jokingly rolled her eyes as she sipped on her usual cup of Folgers.

As I continue on something bright orange catches my attention in my peripheral. I head towards the refrigerator snatching off the small note. “HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRINA! WE DIDN’T WANT TO WAKE YOU SO WE LEFT TO RUN A FEW ERRANDS. 7 PM DINNER BE THERE! LOVE MOM. P.S. I LEFT A LITTLE SURPRISE FOR YOU IN FRIDGE.

Birthday? BIRTHDAY?! How does a person forget their own birthday?! Maybe between the late night study sessions and picking up the extra shifts to get a few extra dollars I lost track of the days and months. Honestly I never made much of a fuss about it but my mom…let’s just say celebrating our birthday is equivalent to celebrating Christmas or Thanksgiving according to her.

I sit the little note on the countertop as I reached for the refrigerator door handle. I see it as soon as I swing the door open sitting in a red container with another sticky note attached to it. “LOVE YOU” I read. I take the note and container, grab a fork, and make my way to the table. Full of anticipation I pop off the lid and a familiar aroma teases my nostrils. MOMS FAMOUS CHOCOLATE CAKE!

Now this cake right here doesn’t taste like any normal cake. Mom bakes it from scratch and often claims that she put her “WHOLE SOUL” into creating it. It literally melts in your mouth! Sadly, although my mother is great at baking, she never really has the time to because her job demands so much of her schedule so I look forward to the special times of the year like Christmas and my birthday where I’m reunited with this deliciousness.

As I sit distracting by my thought the shrill cry of the telephone ringing causes me to jerk up suddenly almost knocking my slice of cake off of the table. “Whew!” I cry out as I regain my composure then head to answer the phone. “ Hello?” I answer. An unfamiliar deep voice comes through the other end. “ Hi. Are you any relation to Antoinette Peters?” I hesitate….. ”Yes”. ” This is her daughter” I answer.…. I can hear the stranger on the other end take a deep breath “Hi,Im Deputy Austin and I’m sorry to inform you that there has been an accident involving your family ”.

Accident? My mind can barely process the last statement as he continues on. “MA’AM!” I snap out of the trance I had fallen into hearing the man’s somewhat agitated voice. “ Yyyyyes” I stutter out. “I know this is hard for you to grasp but do you have family you can contact. Assuming you’re a minor I’m goin to need an adult, preferably next of kin, to identify victims as well as pick up items retrieved from scene of accident.”

“ Sir?” “May I ask what exactly happened?” I brace myself for the answer. “Head on collision” he replies. “Semi swerved into front of vehicle from opposite side of traffic”…”I’m so sorry sweetheart”…. Tears,they come,yet remain unshed. “Thank you” I choke out. “I’m going to contact my family so we can meet and make arrangements”. “Ok ma’am. And again I’m sorry for you’re loss.” I click my cell phone off and stare off.

“Did they feel pain?” “Why me?” “Why MY FAMILY?!!” I scream out falling onto the kitchen floor as the tears that I’ve felt threatening to break lose finally came spilling down my face. THIS HAS TO BE A DREAM! How could I lose the three most important people to me ALL AT ONCE! I felt as if someone was slowly tearing my heart out as my mind seeped into the realization of my reality.

I slowly lifted myself up from the kitchen floor coming face to face with the slice of chocolate cake I had earlier sat on the table before the horrible news. An even deeper sadness fell over my soul realizing this was the last time I would eat my mothers homemade cake. Not on my birthday and not ever. I grabbed the slice and placed it back onto the cake tray. I close the refrigerator door then wipe the remainder of my tears off my face. I prepare myself to begin making calls. Ignoring the deep sorrow and anxiety sitting in my chest I pushed forward even though I was forced to live a life without my family.