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“Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Paula, Happy Birthday to you.” The bright, cheery voices of Benjamin and Emiliana mixed with Tom’s low and gentle baritone echoed through the bedroom as she slowly opened her eyes. Her hair was a tousled mess and for a moment she couldn’t quite grasp what was going on around her. Tom was carrying a beautiful looking cake with a few candles burning on top while the children had a bouquet of flowers and a few presents in their little hands.
“Oh wow...what a lovely surprise,” she mumbled as she sat up in the bed, rubbing her tired eyes once more ere Ben stretched the flowers out towards her. “Happy Birthday, Paula,” he smiled widely and as soon as she had accepted his gift, he climbed onto the bed to press a wet, sloppy kiss onto her cheek. “Thank you darling,” Paula smiled lovingly and helped him to climb under the blanket with her ere her attention was once more drawn towards Emmy and Tom. “Emmy, shall we do the candles first before they ruin the cake and then we hand over the presents?,” Tom suggested and the little girl nodded immediately.
“Well, here we go, birthday girl,” he mumbled, his blue, shimmering eyes resting on her, causing a slight blush to creep up her cheeks. “Thank you,” Paula whispered, admiring the cake, a deliciously smelling mix of strawberries and whipped cream. “That looks absolutely delicious,” she smiled at the children before Tom nodded towards the candles. “Make a wish, Paula!,” Ben reminded her and she took a deep breath to blow them out in one go. With her eyes closed afterwards, she bit her lip, hoping for the coming year to be as wonderful and perfect as the last.
“What did you wish for?” Of course the children were curious but she only laughed quietly. “I can’t tell you, otherwise it won’t be coming true!,” she winked while Tom carefully placed the cake on the bedside table, helping Emmy up with all her presents shortly after. “This is from me and this one is from Ben and this one is from Daddy and downstairs there are loads more from your Mummy and Daddy and your brother and from Grandma and Grandpa and from Nana and Poppa and I think from Benedict and Sarah as well, right Daddy?,” Emmy counted the wonderfully wrapped presents lying on top of the blanket while remembering the big pile from downstairs as well. “That’s right, sweetheart, well remembered,” he smiled, breathing a kiss onto her head. “That’s a lot of presents, Paula,” Ben reminded her and she giggled quietly. “It is, isn’t it? Do you think I deserve them all?,” she whispered into his ear and the little boy nodded eagerly.
Feeling as happy as never before, she smiled at him and kissed him on the temple before she looked at the gifts in front of her. “Which one shall I open first?” Before she had even finished the question, Tom, Emmy and Ben had all held out their presents towards her, laughing at her confused expression for a moment ere Tom retreated, leaving the field to his children while he watched them with a gentle smile. “Oh dear...um...is it okay if I open Emmy’s first, Ben?” The little boy nodded and continued to hold the small box in his hands as if it was the most precious thing on earth.
Paula, meanwhile, carefully opened Emiliana’s gift to her, a soft shawl in bright, friendly colours which matched her hair and skin colour perfectly. “Oh wow, that is beautiful, Emmy. Goodness me, what a wonderful present, thank you so much, dear!” A bright and proud smile on her face, Emmy crawled towards her to fall into her open arms. Quietly, Paula mumbled another thank you ere pressing a kiss onto her cheek and the little girl looked happy beyond measure that her gift was so liked by the young woman she adored so much.
Wrapping the new shawl around her neck, Paula turned towards Ben who placed the little box carefully in her hands. His grey, sparkling eyes rested on her hands as she ripped the wrapping paper off to reveal as small black box inside. Opening it, a necklace lay on top of a small black cushion and she took it out to look at it properly. “It says ‘wonderful’,” Benjamin explained quietly and pointed at the pendant. “Because that’s what you are,” he added in a whisper, blushing immediately as he looked first at Paula and then at his dad. Tom’s eyes, however, rested on the young woman whose bright blue orbs now shimmered with yet unshed tears. Unseen by Paula he motioned to Ben to give her a hug and the little boy did so without a moment’s hesitation. Touched by the gesture and the thoughtful present, Paula pulled him into a tight embrace as a single tear rolled over her rosy cheek. “Thank you so much, Ben. That is the most perfect necklace I’ve ever been given,” she whispered and he smiled widely, proud at making her so very happy.
“Now Daddy’s present, Paula,” Emmy smiled and nudged her father so he’d hand his little pink box over to her. Breathing another kiss onto Ben’s cheek, Paula let go off the little boy and turned towards Tom who smiled at her lovingly as she wiped another stray tear off her face. “Happy birthday, my love,” he said and handed her the present. Carefully, she opened the pretty bow on top and handed the ribbon to Emmy who immediately tried to wrap it around her little ponytail while Paula’s eyes grew wide at what she saw inside the box. “Oh my god, are you serious?” She looked up at Tom, disbelief and surprise dominating her gentle features, and he nodded, biting his lip with a smile. She extricated herself from the warm cocoon of her blanket to crawl over to him and pulled him into a tight embrace. “You are crazy. Thank you so much, Tom,” Paula mumbled against his neck as they hugged and he simply laughed quietly and held her close. “I am glad you like it,” he breathed, kissing her gently, before Emmy and Ben interrupted them.
“What did he give you, Paula? What is it?” Snuggling up to Tom, she turned towards them with a wide and happy smile. “He gave me tickets to see the new production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the National Theatre and this is so very special because it’s sold out for months and I love this play so much,” she replied, looking back up at him once more. “Is that the one with the fairy queen?,” Emmy enquired, remembering her father reading the children’s version of the play to them one rainy day. Tom nodded, proud at her having remembered it.
Feeling incredibly peaceful and content, he watched his children for a moment, their happy, excited faces even though it wasn’t even their special day but Paula’s. The sun seemed for once to agree with the extraordinary nature of that particular day in May as it shone brightly from the clear blue summer sky, encouraging the birds to sing their prettiest songs at the top of their lungs in honour of the birthday girl.
Paula in his arms giggled quietly at something Emmy had just said and the rumbling of her laughter through her body went straight into his own, awakening his senses once more to the happiness she emitted. It felt natural to have her snuggled up against his chest, her fingers stroking over his arms while his children climbed over their bed and her legs, laughing cheerfully. They adored her beyond measure, this young woman who happened to fall into their lives seemingly out of nowhere almost two years ago with no intention then to stay longer than a year. She was part of their lives now, a part that one would not be able to simply take away again without leaving a void. Meanwhile, Tom sincerely hoped that there were many birthday still to come which they could celebrate together, pushing away the dark clouds of his memories which tried to invade his thoughts every now and then.
There was no need for pessimism now, though. She was here in his arms, Emmy and Ben were by their side, and for once everything was simply good. Especially the cake...