[JEMMA]

The wedding was scheduled for the fifteenth of September. That was because that was the date that Elizabeth and Robert were reunited in foster care after being separated at boarding school. By sheer chance, that was one day after the twins celebrated their sixteenth birthday. Ramona and Robert talked to the kids about why they wanted that particular day for their wedding. Both kids didn't care about the proximity to their birthday and, since this was their first birthday since they had ... consummated ... their relationship, they even thought it was kind of appropriate.

The birthday celebration was a quiet affair, amidst the storm of emotion that surrounded the wedding. That was okay too. Ramona was busy with last minute wedding arrangements, but took time at lunch to have a small party. After that, Robert drove them to the Driver's License Office, where they took the test and were issued brand new licenses.

Then the kids were left to their own devices for the rest of the day. Debbie, just dripping mystery, told Robby that she had ordered his birthday present in a catalogue, but that it hadn't arrived yet. He tried to find out what it was, but she wouldn't budge. Robby, at the suggestion of his mother, had gotten Debbie flowers. He had gone to the florist shop on Broadway. It had been hilarious.

"Yes, can I help you?" asked the middle aged woman behind the counter in the sweet smelling store. Her name tag said "Madge".

"Uh ... yeah ... I need some flowers," said Robby.

"Wonderful! What kind of flowers do you want?" asked Madge.

Robby blinked. "Um ... I don't know. What kind do you have?"

Madge stifled her groan. "How about this? Who are these flowers for? What's the occasion?"

"Oh!" said Robby. "It's my sister's birthday."

"I see" said Madge. She'd made up literally thousands of bouquets of flowers, but flowers for a teenaged boy's sister's birthday was a new one for her. "And how much do you want to spend?" she asked.

"Gee," said Robby. "I didn't think about that." He pulled out his wallet and peered inside. He pulled out three crumpled one dollar bills. "How much are flowers anyway?" he asked.

Madge sighed. "You've never done this before, have you?"

"Done what?" asked Robby, looking from the three dollars to Madge.

"Gotten a woman flowers," said Madge.

Robby ducked his head. He didn't know why, but suddenly he felt like he was supposed to have gotten somebody flowers a lot of times already, and dropped the ball. "Uh ... I don't guess I ever did," he admitted.

Madge eyed the bills in his hand. "How about I put a nice rose in a bud vase and put a ribbon around it and you can give that to your sister.

Robby thought about that. He remembered how happy Debbie had been when Uncle Bob had given her a whole bunch of flowers, and one didn't seem like very much to him.

"How much would a whole bunch cost?" he asked.

"Of roses?" asked Madge.

Robby had a flash of brilliance. "Yeah, like maybe sixteen of them."

Madge eyed the boy. "Now you're talking closer to fifty dollars," she said.

"Fifty dollars!!" yelped Robby. "I don't have fifty dollars!"

Madge wanted to chuckle. The boy looked so distressed. "Well, they're three dollars apiece," she said. "Look, I'll give you two roses and the vase for the three dollars you have. I need to get back to work. I have a ton of things to do. There's a big wedding tomorrow and I've never handled anything that big."

Robby was still shocked by the idea that sixteen flowers could cost that much. Her comment gave him something to say. "Yeah, that's my mom's wedding."

Madge blinked this time. "Your mother is Ramona Franklin?"

Robby nodded, looking at his three crumpled bills.

Madge's attitude changed dramatically. "How would you like to earn the flowers?" she asked.

Robby looked up at her. "Earn them? How?" he asked.

"I have to get so many flowers over to that mansion that it's going to take four or five trips in the station wagon. You help me get them all over there and I'll make you up a nice bouquet of flowers for your sister. Are these flowers for the wedding too?" she asked.

"No" said Robby. "It's her sixteenth birthday today. That's why I thought about sixteen flowers."

Madge sighed. What a sweet boy to think of his sister's sixteenth birthday like that. She exploded into action and directed Robby, who loaded up the station wagon and rode with Madge to the Nettleton mansion. Madge had a sort of map of where everything went, both in the house and outside on and around the gazebo. It took six trips in all, but when they were done Robby left the shop with a long white box containing sixteen pink roses and two dozen long stemmed red roses, artfully bound together with ribbons and baby's breath.

"I think she'll like these," said Madge, handing the box to Robby.

"You don't think she'll be upset because there's no vase?" asked Robby.

"Trust me" said Madge. "If you weren't her brother you'd get a whole lot more than a thank you kiss on the cheek."

TBC