P Keeps a Secret
Can you keep a secret? Have you ever — intentionally or not — spilled the beans (when you should’ve stayed quiet)? -DAILY PROMPT
TANKA
P could never keep
Secrets all to himself with
Inadvertent slips
Dogging his quirky life and
Letting cats out of the bags.
P saw his neighbour going out to get the newspaper in the morning and hollered out “Happy Birthday for Yesterday, Chris!”
Neighbour, eyebrows curled in puzzle: “???????”
P wondered why his neighbour’s lips seemed to be so locked and sealed. He guessed it could be because he had not turned up for the party the previous evening. P sprinted close to the fence to offer his apologies.
P: “Please say sorry to your daughter for me. When she phoned last week, I had promised to be at the surprise birthday party but I could not make it last evening.”
Neighbour with a quirk to his lips: “????? Ah!”
P: “You know I saw you several times during the day yesterday. It was hard keeping my trap shut, not wishing you all the best then, but your daughter wanted the party to be a big surprise for you and I wanted to prove everybody wrong and show how well I could keep a secret!”
P noted that his neighbour was still not talking much, but laughter glinted his eyes and his lips were quivering with suppressed mirth.
P: “Well, How did the party go?”
Neighbour: “Oh! I won’t know till it’s over. My birthday is today!”
Full Tanka
