“Uncle Carl, really, you shouldn’t give up on Rosie so easily,” I say, steering him back. “Give her a chance to say no at least. Like a real no, not just an eye roll. You have to at least give it a shot.”
He takes a drink of coffee and then sighs. “Well, you two nosy mind readers might as well know that I’ve been saving some money the last few months. And that maybe I’ve been looking into a certain kind of jewelry that many say might symbolize a certain kind of commitment.”
Birdie can’t help himself. His eyes light up like lightbulbs. “Oh my gosh, your top secret mission is to buy an engagement ring?”
Uncle Carl touches his nose and nods. “So perhaps a trip to Paraby Jewelers might work. Just to look. I’m no fool. I know you have to shop around for things like rings.”
He winks at me and I smile at him. He’s never actually proposed with a ring before.
“Yes!” Birdie hops up from the futon. “Can we please please please go to the mall?”
Uncle Carl looks at me as he takes another long drink. I’m expecting him to say something about not having the money just yet, but he says, “I don’t know. I’m not sure if you two knuckleheads can be trusted on a bus anymore.” I see him trying to hide his smile and that’s when I know we’re in.
• • •
At the mall, we walk into the jeweler’s and it’s like everything is made of light and crystal. The counters shine, the jewelry shines, the clerks shine. Even the one giving us a dirty look seems to sparkle.
Birdie’s eyes are ablaze. “Wow,” he whispers.
Uncle Carl gazes around, scratching under his chin. He keeps a buffer space between him and the glass and doesn’t look at anything too close. I look down and see that some of the jewelry doesn’t even have the prices marked. And the ones that do are way too expensive. There’s no way Uncle Carl can afford anything in this store. I tug on his sleeve.
“You know, Uncle Carl. Maybe diamonds aren’t the way to go. Kids in Africa die getting those diamonds. Even Mama didn’t like to wear diamonds because of those kids.” I glance at Birdie and raise my eyebrows, hoping he’ll get the idea.
“Oh. Yeah, that’s right, Uncle Carl,” says Birdie. “There are better gems. I’ve read about it. Diamond is so, so last year.”
“Really?” Uncle Carl says, looking around. “Man, kids these days know too much. I never knew anything about anything when I was your age.”
“Let’s look over there.” I point to another display with rings of all colors.
Birdie goes over and presses his nose up against the glass, his eyes open wide, probably thinking about all those rings on his own fingers. His breath makes a cloud on the display.
“Please don’t touch the glass,” says the man in the suit behind the counter. Now his arms are folded. He probably thinks we’re going to steal something. “Is there anything at all I can help you with? I’m not sure we have anything . . . in your price range.”
Uncle Carl’s head jerks back in surprise and he folds his own arms like a mirror image of the clerk.
“Excuse me, buddy,” says Uncle Carl, bowing his head in a funny way with a smirk on his face. “Maybe my sister was right. Maybe we don’t want your child slave labor rings.” Then he takes each of our hands and we walk out.
• • •
We get to the Royal Chinese Buffet, where they have Chinese zodiac placemats.
Uncle Carl’s finger traces the chart. “Jack, you’re a sheep. Gentle, introverted, responsible.”
“I’m a dog,” says Birdie. “Honest and loyal and a true friend.”
“Rosie is a rabbit, which is noble, lovely, and elegant,” I say.
“Dang, these placemats are good! If that doesn’t describe Rosie, I don’t know what does. And lookie here: Your mama was a dragon! ‘Dragons are eccentric and complicated with a passionate nature.’ Well, that’s her all right.”
My heart buzzes listening to someone else describe Mama. Complicated and passionate. I look at Uncle Carl, but he keeps his face pointed down at the mat as he continues to read. “And I’m a snake: ‘Perceptive and intense with a tendency toward physical beauty.’”
Birdie looks up at Uncle Carl and the three of us laugh. Uncle Carl sticks two not-very-Chinese breadsticks into his upper lip and grins, crossing his eyes. He looks like a walrus. “Physical beauty,” he says.
I laugh again and take a bite of my sweet and sour pork.
“At school tomorrow, I can use the computer to get some more information about the hot-air balloon rides. Like ticket information and stuff.”
“And I will make you a fancy bow tie,” says Birdie. “Something dapper. Maybe even suspenders!”
Uncle Carl picks his teeth with a toothpick and looks over at the buffet like maybe he’s contemplating a fifth plate of food. “Well, I hate to throw a wrench into your plans, but I was actually thinking of proposing in less than two weeks. I need a ring before she leaves.”
“Why? Isn’t she coming back?” I ask, my heart suddenly beating a little faster.
“Well, sure, as far as I know. But she doesn’t know how long she’ll have to stay, with her dad’s health and all.” He sighs and shrugs his shoulders.
“Well then, we better get organized. You are in charge of the ring,” I say. “You can find a ring somewhere else. That clerk was a jerk. Maybe online? And Birdie will work on clothes. I’ll find out about the balloon ride. We can meet again tomorrow after school. It will be the most romantic proposal ever. A top secret mission proposal.”
Uncle Carl smiles at me and nods. He says, “Deal,” and I can see his mind is going a mile a minute. “What about a ruby? Rosie’s birthstone is a ruby.”
As soon as he says it,
