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“No dying, no broken bones, no excessive bleeding!” Mary Jensen said. She did not shout it; she did not need too. Her voice cut cleanly through the noise of a full household without any effort. The noise level was thanks to a house full of children and corresponding adults. It was Bella’s birthday party, and she had invited her whole class, as well as some friend. She had also special requested the nice radio men who brought daddy home, so Sammy and Ben were in attendance as well.
It was a cool day in September, so Mary had no compunctions against throwing the kids outside to play until food was ready. The Jensen family wasn’t rich by any means, but Mary refused to let that stop her from throwing a fantastic party for her baby girl’s birthday. And Sammy and Ben being there meant she could send them outside without any concerns about lack of supervision.
She stepped back from the food prep and took stock. Four homemade pizza crusts lay ready to be covered in premade sauce and pre-chopped veggies, a birthday cake that was waiting to be frosted, 3 gallons of fruit juices that Ben and Sammy had brought, because they were incapable of not bringing her something when they visited, and a couple bowls of pretzels and chips to snack on. She heard a noise from her front yard, and craned her neck to get a look out the front windows. Sammy had headed out that way after he got a phone call, and Ben, predictably, had followed. She didn’t see anything, but before she could get concerned, the front door opened and shut.
“Sammy, could you come help the kids outside?” Mary called through the open kitchen door.
“Sorry Mary, I can’t, it’s bad for the baby,” Mary paused. She definitely would have remembered inviting anyone with a baby in the family, she always made sure to keep track of that so that the parents would be comfortable. She distinctly remembered going places when Bella and Tim were infants and not having a good spot to change them or anything and did her best to not let that happen to other parents.
“What baby?” She poked her head around the doorway and nearly lost it. “Ben Arnold!" She could barely speak for laughter "You get out from under there right now!”
“Hi Mary!” Ben was buried in the front of Sammy’s hoodie, it was unzipped enough that only his eyes and nose showed, but it was clearly Ben. She couldn’t stop smiling. It was just like the two of them to manage to make her laugh in the middle of all this work.
Ben began the process of wiggling out, which took longer than it should have.
“What can we do for you Mary?” he asked brightly, eager to help as always.
“If the two of you could go back outside to check on the kids? Cynthia is alright but I don’t trust her with them for longer than 10 minutes” Sammy and Ben both nodded in understanding and started back there.
“oh, boys?” they turned back upon hearing her, “Thanks for coming, it really meant a lot to Bella, and me.” In unison, their faces twisted up.
“Its really no big deal Mary, we love spending time with you and the kids.” Sammy nodded along to Ben, and ducked out the back door. Ben looked after him. “I think it embarrasses him sometimes, how much people are willing to say out loud to him.”
Mary nodded, thinking back to all the things people must have said to Sammy for him to have that reaction to an honest and heartfelt thank you.
“I best head out, or Sammy’s gonna suplex Cynthia… not that I don’t want that to happen… but the kids don’t need to see it!” Ben grinned brightly and dashed out the back door. Mary couldn’t help from smiling after him. Ben Arnold had changed over the years, from a small boy who always got into something or another to a young man who watched opportunities slip him by while he stayed in town, to an adult who never lost his spark of light, a man who stood up to corrupt mayors and sketchy institutes, and UFOs.
She loved her radio boys.