Unexpected Visitors at Dawn

 

Maureen was half sleep and a bit confused when she answered the phone ringing beside her on the night table. It was instinctive for her to answer the phone. It was a remnant of another time when she expected emergency calls. As she responded, Maureen, realised it was old Jack calling and without waiting for her to answer said “Hi dear I’m on my way to yours… with some friends… for a nightcap …” Maureen didn’t have time to respond or say anything. She was still half asleep, and old Jack didn’t let her to say anything. Maureen couldn’t believe his audacity and made her angry and thought to herself “Who calls at 4 o’clock in the morning? if it is not an emergency…, what am I saying, Jack of course he would, bloody Jack.

“The nerves of your dad” Maureen said to her partner who was getting out the bed and was beginning to dress. “What are you doing? Seriously? Are you, really getting dressed? Your dad doesn’t understand the concept of boundaries, does he? and apparently neither do you” she mumbled. 

Young Jack didn’t respond. Instead, he continued getting dress and asked Maureen to do the same thing. Maureen, visibly annoyed, grunt something that sound like “no I’m not!” She turned off the light, on her night table and with an exaggerated gesture turned over into bed, pretending to sleep thinking, “Why on earth did I answer the phone? It’s four in the bloody morning… for crying out loud... and you, Jack, what is it with you and your incapacity to say no to your dad?”

In the meantime, on the other side of town, old Jack, who was no longer allowed to drive, was being helped into a mini van by the two PSWs working the night shift at the retirement home on Chemong Rd where he lived. He had got up early to make sure all the plan he had arranged for that morning were in place and happened without any hiccups.

Danny and Rob, his young friends, and accomplices on his plan, had arrived shortly before to pick him up from what Jack called his “minimum-security prison.”

After few minutes all the passengers were accommodated in the minivan and began their trip to Maureen and Jack’s place. The PSWs who had helped Jack to get into the minivan, were giggling, watching the van full of festive people moving away, commenting “Too bad we are not going with them.”

By the time old Jack and his companions arrived at Jack and Maureen's. His son was waiting at the door to let everyone in. 

Old Jack asked his son where Maureen was, young Jack responded. “Dad really? …it’s four in the morning …where do you think she is?” his father with a mischievous smile responded, “great this is going to be so much fun. It will be a real surprise” Then turning to his companions said, “ok lads is now or never!” 

His companions were Rob and Danny and a quartet of mariachis who had just set up their instruments. The musicians upon hearing the instructions began to play an old Mexican song. “That music…” Jack said to his son, “…is called ‘el son de la negra’ and is one of the happiest introductions to a ‘serenata,’ you know a serenade.” Walking towards the bottom of the stairs shouted, “Happy Birthday love...We brought mariachis for you… the nightcap can wait until later.”

The sound of the music and visitors made Maureen jump quickly out of the bed. Her reaction was initially of confusion. Then she realised the celebration she was hearing downstairs was for her. Maureen promptly put on some clothes and remembering it was her birthday. Then with a mix of feelings went down the stairs where the two Jacks were embracing and, unsuccessfully, trying to sing along to the old Mexican song. Old Jack, up on seeing her, gave her and said “this time is not my fault love, this young buck”, pointing at his son, “instructed me to find mariachis for you…needless to say it’s something almost impossible here in Peterborough, Danny and Rob found them in Toronto and drove them here to begin the celebrations of your day…did we surprised you?”

Maureen holding tears and trying not to break her voice responded, “Had I known I was going to have guests at 4 a.m., I would have tidied up” to which everyone laughed. Maureen kissed her partner and began hugging old Jack with tears of happiness running down her chicks as the mariachis played a new song.