*+Surprise!

__ Surprise! __

By: Anya

When I wake up in the morning, I know that something is off, and I have a sneaking suspicion that whatever it is, it’s big. There’s something different about this day, something that sets it apart from any other day. I get out of bed and run in to my four-year-old sister’s room. Then I realize why the day seemed so off.

My little sister is not in her bed.

This is bad. This is very, very bad. Fear and panic wash over me like I've been hit by a huge wave at the ocean. My little sister, my pride and joy, the little drop of happiness when everything is wrong, is gone. She's gone!! Little Alexa.......

Alexa has a strict schedule of always –ALWAYS – waking me up in the morning. She's scared of the monster in the laundry room, (aka the washer and dryer running) but if I'm there, the fear isn't as great. She always wakes me up as soon as she’s up. Whether she’s sick, or we’re on vacation, she’s always there.

And now she’s not.

Trying to contain my worry for what might have happened, I go into my parent's room.

What is going on? They aren’t here, either!!! Images of little Alexa and my parents being levitated into an alien spaceship fly through my head. Then, I see them all packing suitcases and leaving me here, alone, to fend for myself.

“You know what?” I say out loud to myself, pushing those horrible thoughts away, “I’m going to go have breakfast, and when I’m done eating, they’ll all be back in their beds. Everything will be normal and I’ll just have been hallucinating.” And the closer I get to the kitchen, the more I believe that what I said was the truth. But really, the hallway to the kitchen has never seemed darker than it does right now.

What is that smell? I'm pretty sure I smell bacon and.... Is that pancakes?? Are there aliens cooking breakfast in my kitchen??

“HAPPY 13th BIRTHDAY, CHLOE!!” I reel back in surprise!! There stands Mom, Dad, Alexa. Thank god they're okay!! Uncle Kent, Aunt Jami and my cousins Jack and Leah, from down the street are here too! Finally I see my Grandmother and Grandfather, who probably drove all the way from South Carolina to here, the perfect house in Mountain Brook, Alabama.

“WHAT?!?” I say loudly. Then: “Oh yeah, it IS my birthday, isn’t it.”

“Ummm….. Yeah Chloe. How could you forget your 13th birthday??” Jack says, in awe.

“Oh. Well in that case, thanks guys!!”

" Sorry for not letting Alexa wake you up, honey," my mom says quietly.

" She wanted to, but we needed more time to cook the breakfast!" my dad adds.

Over a delicious breakfast of eggs, bacon, and pancakes, I tell about how freaked I was about the previous events of the morning.

"Thanks for coming down here for my birthday, Grandma and Granddad. It means a lot," I say.

"It was worth it, honey," Grandma replies.

Alexa comes over to me.

“I wanted to wake you up but Mommy and Daddy wouldn’t let me." she says sadly. “I love you, Chloe!”

I feel like crying because that’s like, the cutest thing I’ve ever heard, but instead I pick her up, put her on my lap, and say, “I love you too, little sister. Thank you for the best 13th birthday ever!”

She grins and I know that everything I went through this morning was worth it, just for this moment with my little sister.