Chapter Text
Today was a very very very special day. It was Bai He’s birthday today. She was now not only officially in the double digits, but she was also twelve years old. A pre-teen. This was like a rite of passage. To Bai He, this meant she was extra-cool now. Super-extra mature. She bragged to the kids at school that on how she was basically a teenager. Her friend asked if she wanted to come and play at their house next weekend. Bai He’s response to the question was curt, straight to the point. A newly turned teenager didn’t have time to mess around, after all.
“No.” She flipped her hair to make sure she got the point across. “But we can hang out , if you want.” Bai he crossed her arms and a sly grin painted her face.
Her friend rolled her eyes lightheartedly, for it wasn’t out of character for Bai He to be this dramatic.
“Hey there, kiddo!”
Bai He cocked an eyebrow. She was slightly taken aback when Sandy picked her up from school today instead of Macaque. She had been living with Macaque for a couple months now. Neither of them had acknowledged it yet, for they were both equally as stubborn, but that was her home as much as it was his. The guest room slowly became her room over time. He’d make her breakfast every morning, pack her lunches as well. He’d take her to school and pick her up every single day. If Macaque couldn’t make it, she would be escorted by a shadow clone. She had no qualms with Sandy picking her up whatsoever, though, she absolutely adored Sandy. It was just different from what she was used to. She rode on his back until they reached their destination.
Some time later, she opened the door to Pigsy’s Noodle shop where MK, Mei, Pigsy, and Tang were all lined up at the entrance. “Surprise!” they all shouted in unison. Her eyes widened as things began to click inside her head. It was a surprise party! That made sense, Sandy picked her up from school so they could celebrate. Why didn’t she consider this possibility sooner?
The afternoon stretched on. They played a bunch of party games, and she won every single one! At first, she thought she was just that skilled. When they played games involving darts, she knew she had it in the bag because Macaque taught her how to aim. When they played musical chairs she used Macaque’s advice on how to time herself properly, and she was already naturally pretty fast.
Maybe she was just so incredibly skilled that none of these adults could seem to keep up with her, not even the legendary Monkie Kid! Though, as the games went on she just began to suspect that they were letting her win all these. In her heart, she knew that they just couldn’t be this terrible at every game. She didn’t mind all that much, really. It still felt good. It was still all so fun.
They danced together, they laughed together. To top it all off, Pigsy had prepared the most delicious yi mein for everyone to enjoy. Bai he gasped lightly, her joy was so apparent that stars seemingly formed inside her pupils. She loved loved loved yi mein due to its very specific texture, so she always looked forward to it being served during special events.
Albeit as time went on, she began to wonder where Macaque was.. deep down inside of her guts she had the slightest worry that he had forgotten about her. She decided to not think too hard about that right now and shrugged it off just to be able to enjoy herself properly. Even though it would be a lot more fun if he was here, too.
The sun began to wane, dipping into the horizon as the sky began to darken, so that meant Bai He needed to head home. Sandy and MK offered to walk her home but she rejected. She was basically a teenager! She didn’t need an escort. She could walk home on her own, she had the route memorized. She walked out the door and headed straight for Macaque’s house.
A few seconds passed before she came back in and asked MK to walk her to the area Macaque lived. He cheerfully accepted her request and held her hand as they walked to his house. It’s not like she didn’t know the way. She’s not afraid of the dark, either! It’s kind of a touchy subject for the young girl, but she realized she didn’t really like being left alone.
And so, she reached Macaque’s house. She waved MK goodbye, then turned to face the front door. First, she took her shoes off and slid some slippers on instead, then she turned the doorknob. Someone was there eagerly waiting for her.
“Happy Birthday, bud!” Macaque greeted her, holding out a large cake that was laced with her favorite fruits. Her face lit up immediately and she rushed out to embrace him.
“For a teensy tiny brief second, and only for a second, I thought you forgot about me or something! Why weren’t you there? At the party?” She began to interrogate him as she broke the hug and looked up, directly into his eyes.
Macaque sighed and laid the cake down on the table. He redirected his gaze towards her, resting his weight on his hip.
“I’m offended! You know me better than that, now. I’d never forget about you. And, ehh, huge parties aren’t really my thing.”
A half-truth. Bai He was exceptionally good at recognizing those. Bai He also took note of how he seemed to avoid the others, Xiaotian being an exception most of the time. She wanted to ask why, because they’re really nice! Why would you go out of your way to avoid them? At the same time though, she didn’t want to pry, or make things awkward. It’s better to leave that subject alone for now. She could venture into that uncharted territory at a later date.
She simply gave a smile for a response and sat down at the table, Macaque following right behind her. He sat down and reached for the knife to cut the cake into even slices but Bai He stopped him before he could do so.
“Wait, let me cut it.” She insisted, and Macaque obliged her demand. He gave her a small smirk. “Taking initiative today, are we?”
“Now and forever!” She corrected. “Now that I’m a teenager I should be able to do a lot more things on my own now.”
“Oh, are you now?” He teased, letting a small snicker escape from his mouth.
“Basically! You just watch— hey what’s funny? Don’t laugh! I won’t share my cake if you keep it up!”
“Oh ho~! My bad, then! By all means, continue.”
Neither of them could really take her threat seriously, because afterwards they both broke out into laughter at the same time.
Bai He finished cutting the cake, the slices were slightly uneven but that didn’t matter much, she reasoned with herself. The cake still tasted the same either way.
They spent the rest of the night together. They played games, ate cake, Macaque even performed a shadow play, written just for her.
Some of the characters in the play looked familiar, though. She pointed to one of the shadows and giggled. “Hey.. is that my character? The OC I told you about last week? I thought you said this was supposed to be one-hundred percent original!”
A cheeky grin crept onto the shadow monkey’s lips. “Hey now, It’s rude to interrupt the show! Basic theater etiquette, kiddo, you know better.” He lightheartedly scolded before he continued his show. Bai He crossed her arms and hummed a small ‘hmph!’. Looks like she’s going to have to sue him for plagiarism.
He gave her gifts, and then they were on the couch watching TV together. She laid on his chest with his arm wrapped around her. The show went to commercial and that’s when Bai He broke the silence that was embedded into the room.
“Macaque..” Bai He began. “On the topic of birthdays, when is your birthday?”
She was met with silence. Usually people answered that question immediately without having to think about it. It was second-nature for most people. However, for Macaque? It took a second. He was clearly not ‘most people’.
“Sheesh, kid. It’s been a whileeee since I’ve even thought about my birthday.”
In hearing that shocking, devastating, revolting news she immediately jerked up to look him in the eyes.
“You WHAT?” She said, trying her best to not raise her voice too loudly. “Why wouldn’t you celebrate your birthday? That’s the best part of the year? The food, the presents— everything!”
“Agh,,” Macaque groaned as he begun to explain himself. “When you’re my age it just becomes tiring to keep up with it. I used to celebrate them with, someone .” He paused briefly, as if he was remembering something he didn’t want to remember.
Bai He could tell she might’ve accidentally broken the surface of that pre-mentioned uncharted territory. Thankfully the conversation didn’t become awkward and he continued right where he left off. “But that’s all in the past. Wayyyy in the past. Birthdays are mostly for people like you, anyway. I honestly forget about it most of the time. I swear to you it’s no big deal.”
Bai He shook the monkey ever so gently. “What do you mean it’s ‘no big deal!’, of course it’s a big deal!” She let go and slumped next to him again and looked at the TV before continuing. “You didn’t even answer my question.”
Macaque sighed in defeat. “If I remember correctly, It’s exactly two months from now.”
Bai He giggled, today she was victorious. This small piece of information was slightly more important to her than all the gifts she received today. All the food she ate, as well as all the games she played. “Thanks! I’m going to throw you a party! Get you a bunch of gifts! A cake, too! All that good stuff.”
“Ah, you don’t have to do all that. Besides, where would you even get all that? What, you have a job or something now that I don’t know about?” He joked.
Bai he crossed her arms. There was that sly smile of hers again. “Maybe.”
“Ohh~ do tell me more! I'm intrigued!”
“Okay, you gotta keep it a secret, though.”
“Lips are sealed.”
“Okay,,” She brought her voice down to a whisper. “I sell super illegal stuff. Black market type-stuff.” She joked along with Macaque.
“Heh, that’s my girl!” Macaque ruffled her hair, they both laughed but their conversation was interrupted when the show they were watching came back on.
Macaque planned on letting her stay up a lot later tonight, one last birthday gift. But, she ended up falling asleep around the same time she usually does in his arms while watching tv. A grin snuck its way onto his face as he watched her sleep peacefully with admiration. He moved a few pieces of her hair from out of her face as he had a quiet moment to himself.
Twelve years old huh?… you’re growing up so fast .
It wasn't just the physical growth. He watched her grow from that quiet little girl she was after being Lady Bone Demon’s host to the kid she is now. He could feel a sense of pride wash over him, a feeling that was new and unrecognizable. A feeling that he slightly feared. He pushed those thoughts away and forced himself back to reality.
He stretched, before turning the TV off and slowly picking Bai He up, so that her slumber would be left undisturbed.
He walked through the hallways and opened the door to the guest room, and gently placed her onto the bed and tucked her in.
“Sweet dreams, kiddo.” Macaque whispered before walking out of the room and slowly closing the door.