Читать книгу The Birthday Kitten - Enid blyton - Страница 4

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The twins’ mother came into their bedroom the next morning, and drew the curtains. “Happy birthday, twins!” she said. “Even the sun has decided to make it a nice day for you!”

She gave them each a birthday hug and a kiss. “All your presents are waiting for you downstairs,” she said. “So I know you’ll dress at top speed this morning! WHAT a good thing it’s Saturday, and there’s no school today! Well, well—to think you’re nine years old—and in your tenth year already! You are growing up!”

The twins washed and dressed at top speed. As they dressed they heard the postman come. What a loud ratta-tat-TAT he gave! “He must have a lot of cards for us, and perhaps some parcels!” said Terry. “Oh, where’s my other sock! I’m longing to go downstairs.”

The postman had certainly brought them a lot of cards! Eight for each of them, and four between them as well. And there were four parcels besides, all looking very exciting in their brown paper.

On the breakfast table were other parcels, this time wrapped up in pretty birthday paper, not brown paper. “Hello, twins!” said Daddy, and gave them a birthday hug each. “Many happy returns of the day! How does it feel to be nine?”

“Well—no different from yesterday, really,” said Terry. “I always think there’ll be a difference, but there isn’t. Mummy, may we open our parcels?”

“Two each before breakfast—and the rest afterwards,” said his mother. The twins looked at the parcels. It was quite clear that none of them held a puppy or a kitten! But perhaps one was waiting outside! Once when they had had a tricycle given to them, it had been out in the yard. A puppy might quite well be out there too—in a box, or even a kennel!

They chose two big parcels and opened them in excitement.

“I say! Look at this ship!” said Terry, his eyes shining. “And I didn’t even put it down on my list. Who gave it to me? OH! Isn’t it a beauty. Daddy, may I sail it on the pond this afternoon?”

“I should think so,” said Daddy. “Look, there’s the card to say who gave it to you.”

Terry looked at it. It said “Lots of love from Daddy.” He ran at his father and gave him a real bear-hug. “Daddy—you gave it to me. Oh, it’s a beauty. Tom’s got one too, but his is only half the size of this one. Oh, what shall I call it?”

“LOOK what I’ve got,” said Tessie, suddenly. She had been undoing one of her biggest parcels too. “A doll’s cot! Mummy, I know it’s from you, I know it is! You said the other day that my baby doll ought to sleep in a cot! Oh, Mummy, it’s lovely! I can buy some blankets and sheets and a pillow for it if I get any birthday money.”

“Look and see what Granny’s given you before you do that,” said Mummy, and Tessie hurriedly undid the other big parcel.

“Oh, Granny’s given me everything for the cot!” she said in delight. “Look Mummy—there’s even a little eiderdown! Oh won’t my baby doll be pleased?”

Terry had undone his second parcel now—and he couldn’t for the life of him think what it was. It was a long curved piece of wood, smooth to the touch, and sharp at the edges.

“Oh—I know what it is!” he said. “It’s that funny thing they throw in Australia—that comes back to your hand—what’s it called now?”

“A boomerang,” said Daddy. “Yes, Uncle Roddy has sent it from Australia—he bought it specially for you. You’ll be able to practise with it in the garden—throw it at one of the apple trees and knock off the ripest apple at the top!”

“You really must have your breakfast now,” said Mummy. “Then you can open your other parcels. Sit down, twins.”

The twins sat down to their boiled eggs, gazing at the ship, the boomerang, the doll’s cot and the cot-clothes. What fun they were going to have with them—and there were still plenty of parcels to undo. Really, a birthday was very exciting!

But still at the back of their minds was a little worrying thought—was there going to be a puppy or kitten—or not? That would be much the nicest present of all—something alive, that they could love and that would love them. They listened for any bark or mew from outside—but they couldn’t hear anything.

They opened the rest of their presents after breakfast. A magnificent new pencil-box for Tessie, filled with pencils, pens, crayons and two rubbers—an enormous jigsaw between them both—snap-cards for Terry—a book for each of them from Granpa—and hurrah, they were the books they wanted.

“Mine’s all about birds—the very one I was looking at in the book-shop the other day!” said Tessie. “Good old Granpa! It’s a beauty! And oh—you’ve got the animal book you wanted, Terry. Bags I read it after you! What super pictures!”

There was a tin of toffees for each of them, a clockwork car for Terry, and a lovely little Spanish doll for Tessie.

“I know who she’s from!” said Tessie, in delight. “Auntie Kate—because she went to Spain for her holiday and told me she’d brought back my birthday present from there! Mummy, I shall call this doll Juanita, and stand her on the mantelpiece, because she’s good enough for an ornament! She’s too smart to cuddle!”

The twins were really delighted with all their presents. They set them out on the floor and gloated over them.

“Clear up the paper and string, dears,” said Mummy. “And I’ll clear away the breakfast.”

“Mummy—there aren’t any more presents, are there?” asked Terry, still hopeful that there might be something alive, even if it was only a canary.

“Good gracious, dear—how many more do you want!” said Mummy, stacking the plates together. “You’ve been very, very lucky.”

“There aren’t any out in the yard this time, are there?” said Tessie. “You know—like our tricycle was once.”

“No, darling,” said Mummy. “You sound quite greedy! Now go and kiss Baby—she’s not old enough to know it’s your birthday, but you must kiss her all the same!”

The twins went off to the little room where Baby slept by herself. She was awake and kicking all the clothes off.

“We didn’t have a puppy or a kitten after all,” said Terry, mournfully, as they looked down at the smiling baby.

“I know—and I’m awfully disappointed that we haven’t even got a canary,” said Tessie. “I’d much rather have had that than that lovely doll’s cot. Still—we’ve got Baby Anne—she’s really quite a pet, isn’t she?”

“Yes. She’s a darling,” said Terry. “And she’d love a puppy too, I know she would. Oh well—let’s go and put our cards up round our bedrooms. We really have been very lucky, you know!”