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- Time really seemed to pass by this year. It was your birthday just around the corner and you were eagerly awaiting the day.
- Your husband, the one and only Jumin Han was taking the day off just to be with you, but beyond that, he swore everything for your birthday was a surprise.
- But you didn’t know what more he could do to surprise you.
- He’d taken you to so many countries, bought you so many things from just having thought of you, that it was almost impossible to be surprised this time.
- You were just ecstatic that the Jumin Han, your husband, was able to take time off from his hectic schedule to be with you.
- You didn’t care where you went. As long as you had him, a picnic would have sufficed.
- He was always so busy, but always tried to make time for you when he could.
- And that was what mattered.
- Jumin Han, the love of your life, your husband, wanted to do whatever he could possibly do to make you happy.
- He wracked his brain for months trying to come up with something for you. It was your birthday. It had to be special. It had to be memorable.
- Would he pick a new dress for you and fly you somewhere?
- Neither you nor he knew the answer right away.
- As the day drew near, you didn’t see him so much.
- He was hardly home, returning into the late hours of the night, only to be gone before the sun rose.
- You had to admit it kind of hurt, not being able to see him so close to your special day.
- Then, the day before, you were reading in the lounge when he called.
- “Kitten, I’ve been called to take a business trip. It’s going to last for a couple of weeks. I really wanted to bring you with me on this one, but it was last minute. Can you forgive me?”
- Not one word about your birthday. Not. One. Fucking. Word.
- Did he forget? Was the business deal that important? He promised to take the day off just for you.
- “I… yes, darling. Of course I forgive you.” (But you owe me for this one, damnit.)
- “I’m so sorry, my love. I know you wanted to be able to spend time with me. I didn’t expect this so suddenly.”
- “It’s fine, Jumin. Just stay safe for me and come home as soon as you can.”
- “I wouldn’t dream of anything else, princess.”
- With that, you two hung up. The room seemed quieter, more absolute in its silence. He really wasn’t going to be there for your birthday.
- But that was all you wanted. And he didn’t even mention anything. As if he really had forgotten.
- His business deals were important, you knew that, but it didn’t stop the gnawing ache from seeping into your chest.
- You resigned yourself to bed, feeling your eyes sting with each step to the bedroom.
- When you lay in bed, you felt a few tears slip, streaming over the bridge of your nose and toward your ear, but you never bothered to wipe them.
- Instead, you closed your eyes, hoping a dreamless sleep would overtake you.
- The next morning, you woke to an empty bed, but there was a piece of paper on his pillow.
- Confused, your hand slapped at it in your sleepiness, and you tried reading it with bleary eyes before sitting up to better understand.
- It was in Jumin’s handwriting. But he wasn’t home. Who could have left it?
- The only other living person allowed to enter that room was the maid, and she was always courteous enough to wait until it had been cleared. (She knew when the two of you were awake and out of there.)
- Shaking your head, you squint past the tiredness in your eyes to read his elegant script.
- “Kitten, I want you to know how much I love you. Every flaw, every blemish you see on your body, I see places that need lavished with attention. While you sleep, your ethereal form has me believing I’ve truly been given an angel. One I intend on keeping by my side for the rest of my days and beyond. Even when we’re apart, I want you to remain absolutely healthy. So if you would please remember to eat while I cannot be near you, I could not ask any more than that. All my love, Jumin.”
- As sweet as it was, it only served to bring back the ache in your chest that he wasn’t home for your birthday.
- But he wouldn’t be happy if you skipped a meal. The thought made you chuckle in spite of yourself.
- It made you remember when you had first been brought to that apartment and entered that chatroom.
- One of the main stressors of any RFA member was asking if you’d eaten and to get proper sleep. (Coming from the people who were chatting at three in the morning… thanks, guys.)
- With a sigh, you threw on your silk robe and went to order something from the chef.
- However, when you got there, the menu wasn’t around like usual. It was always there, regardless if Jumin was home or not. (Great. So now I have to use the phone to get something made.)
- It wasn’t really a big deal, but now it was one more thing to your already disappointing day.
- The smell of something sweet wafted toward your nose. You knew that smell.
- Strawberries.
- As if on cue, one of the chef’s assistants was wheeling a cart toward the table, topped with a covered dish.
- “Mrs. Han, would you like to sit down?”
- You nod, a bit perplexed but ultimately intrigued as he pulled out a chair for you, allowing you to sit and get comfortable before lifting the lid.
- Strawberry pancakes. If your day was disappointing, the sight of those pancakes brought back sweet memories with your love, allowing the faintest smile to twitch the corners of your mouth upwards.
- Once you’d been served, the chef’s assistant wheeled the cart away, allowing you to dine in peace.
- And so you took the first bite.
- Those were Jumin’s pancakes. (Did the chef get the recipe or something from him?)
- They tasted exactly like the ones he’d made for you many times before. And each time, they always tasted exquisite.
- That was the very same taste you got with these.
- So, you decided to add that as one piece of brightness in what you believed to be an otherwise gloomy day.
- After breakfast, you retired to the lounge. (Might as well do some reading…)
- When you got there, Elizabeth the 3rd sauntered to you, as if full of pride about something.
- “Good morning, princess,” you cooed to her, lifting her once she was close enough. “You miss him, too, huh? Wait a minute… What’s this?”
- Fastened to her collar was another piece of paper. She was pampered, so how she managed to not throw a fit with something new on her, you didn’t know.
- You took the paper from her color and gently set her down, opening the paper to find another note from your husband.
- “I hope this letter finds you well, my love. You are my most precious treasure and I want to keep you locked away in my heart forever, so I may always keep you near. If ever there comes a moment that I cannot be by your side, please remember that there is no place I’d rather be than with you. Every moment, I find myself falling more in love with you than before, and there is nothing I wouldn’t do for you. I love you, kitten.”
- It brought another brief smile to your lips, making you think that maybe the day wouldn’t be so bad.
- If you kept finding notes like that, anyway.
- Keeping the note close, you turned to the bookshelf to find something relatively new to read when your eyes landed on a volume you’d never seen before.
- (Did he have a new book delivered?)
- It was a new release from an author you’d loved, one that wasn’t even supposed to be on the shelves yet.
- Leave it to the one and only Jumin Han to be able to accomplish something like this.
- You sat down, opening the front cover, just to have another piece of paper escape onto your lap.
- This one, however, wasn’t a note from Jumin.
- It was an inventory tag for one of the shops in the penthouse.
- (Maybe the bookshop?)
- You dressed yourself, wanting to see if there was something that shop might have misplaced, sending it to the lounge by mistake.
- However, you get to the bookshop, showing them the paper, only to have them shake their heads in confusion. It was definitely a slip for one of the shops in the penthouse, but it wasn’t theirs.
- But which one? There were so many.
- It seemed like it would be an all day task, as many shops as there were.
- Each shop you’d gone to showed no sign of recognizing the paper, but insisted on treating you to something for being kind enough to try to do the right thing. And, being that it was your birthday, the least they could do was give you something special.
- The salon gave you a new hairstyle, one of the ones you’d selected from their books. The adjoining beauty parlor gave you a top of the line skin care regime as well as fixing your makeup. One of the clothing shops had a new outfit they asked you to model, only to end up giving it to you in the end.
- To you, it seemed a bit suspicious. Maybe he really did remember your birthday, that this was his way of apologizing.
- Okay, more than just a bit suspicious. You only felt more validated in your beliefs when you entered the jewelry shop after lunch at the café.
- A new set, complete with diamonds and your birthstone. Ones you knew were outrageously expensive. Necklace, earrings, bracelet and matching ring. (Jumin Han, what have you done?)
- The sales representative insisted he’d paid in advance, which really didn’t surprise you.
- It had taken you over half the day, and not one shop had claimed the paper. Sighing in defeat, you started to return to your floor of the penthouse.
- In the elevator, you’d heard the faint hum of music. The piano, there was no question. But… unless Jumin approved someone’s entrance ahead of time, no one got past security.
- When you’d arrived at the lounge, you found who’d been playing the piano.
- It wasn’t no one, and it wasn’t just someone.
- He was home.
- And he was singing for you.
- The most arrogant yet loving smile painted his handsome features as he sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to you, his fingers gracefully over the keys as if it were as natural as breathing.
- You were moved to tears, choking on a happy sob as you smiled back, almost shyly.
- He finished, approaching you with so much love as he took you in his arms, breathing you in as if he hadn’t seen you in years.
- “Happy birthday, darling. I trust everything went off without a hitch today?”
- There was a tease in his voice.
- He hadn’t forgotten at all. The business trip was only a half-lie, he did have one he needed to travel abroad for, but he was bringing you along. To Tahiti, and you two would be leaving the next day. Your stuff had already been packed. He set everything up, all for you. All for your birthday.
- “You… I…”
- You were speechless, and it seemed he always knew how to make you that way.
- The loving smile never left either of your faces, even when he treated you to dinner that evening, reserving the entire five-star restaurant you both enjoyed so much.
- It was definitely one birthday surprise you wouldn’t forget for quite some time.