Happy Birthday: A Tragedy

"Broken dreams around the floor; a shattered hope, is there no more?"
-anonymous

Rose, a cheerful 10-year old girl who was a very diligent pupil having great grades in school. You could tell she was well-raised by her father despite having no mother since she was working abroad to provide for the family in place of the girl’s father, a humble baker. It had been three years after her mother went to a distant place in high hopes of finding a job and has never returned since then. But Rose and her father lived life the same as always, running a small bakery at the far side of town, waiting for Rose’s mother to return.

Every child dreams of having the best birthday party ever, complete with balloons, ice cream, and a show-stopping decorated birthday cake to brag to their friends… But all Rose wanted was to see her mother on her birthday. After telling her father, he seemed as excited as she is about the idea of his wife returning home to them. So they talked all about it on the phone and she finally agrees.

A few months after, Rose’s birthday came and her father told her to stay at home while he goes to their bakery to grab the cake as well as fetch her mother from the airport. Rose, being the obedient child she is, humbly did what her father told her and stayed at home. Hours had passed and the sun began to set. Rose grew worried about her parents probably getting involved on some kind of road accident on the way home or they could be stranded at the bakery. Ignoring her father’s orders, little Rose went to their bakery by herself.

Upon arriving at the bakery, she was horrified in what she saw with her own eyes. The bakery was wrecked as if a great earthquake destroyed the place. She reluctantly stepped inside despite of the pieces of glass on the floor and the broken chairs scattered all around the place. When she saw the yellow light coming from her father’s office, she went directly to it hoping that her father was there, alive and well. As she entered the old room, the place was not as damaged as the outside was. She searched for her father but she couldn’t see any person in the area. She reached for her father’s desk and noticed a paper with a red stain on it. This couldn’t be blood, it shouldn’t be blood. Maybe her father accidentally dropped a red velvet cake mixture on the paper. Her father is alive and will return home soon with her mother and cake, at least, that’s what Rose thinks. With trembling hands, she carefully opened the letter:

“Dear Mark,
I’ve heard that your bakery went bankrupt last month. I’m about to file a divorce to you since I already have a family here. My husband needed the divorce papers sooner so I’ll be coming over to file divorce and also for our Rose’s birthday. Please take care of our daughter Rose. I’m really sorry.

-Janice”