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"Haitham, when's your birthday?"
"I don't see why you need to know. People put way too effort about celebrating the day they were born. Wouldn't it be better to apply that enthusiasm towards their daily lives and improve their standards of living?”
"Haitham...You're my dearest friend and I love to hear your thoughts and opinions regarding anything from the ants to the universe but that is not what I asked for. I asked when your birthday is. Not your opinion regarding them."
"If I really am your dearest friend, you wouldn't complain about hearing my opinions regardless of whether you asked for them or not."
You sigh and give him your best blank stare to show how unimpressed you were with his replies while you tried to fight the urge to strangle him (affectionately of course). Sure, one year surprisingly had been more than enough time for you and Alhaitham to warm up to eachother and grow to be very close friends, more than enough time for the two of you to freely bicker and banter. But one year had most definitely not been enough time for you to get used to his occassional dry responses, his teasing, and the way he'd often try to be too much of a smart-ass and- Ok. Deep breaths.
“Well...If I really am your dearest friend, you'd have no qualms whatsoever with sharing what day your birthday is with me.”
Alhaitham sighs with a look of resignation and you gleefully smile to yourself. Checkmate.
“If you really must know, my birthday is on the 11th of February. There. Are you happy now?” Alhaitham answers your question with a not-all-too happy expression.
“Yes. I'm very happ- Wait what. February 11? The 11th of February? As in…NEXT SUNDAY?!?!”, you practically screech once you realize just how close that INFURIATING young man's birthday was.
“Congratulations, you know how a calender works.”
“Haha, very funny Haitham. Why didn't you tell me this sooner?!?!?”
“Precisely because of this. I don't need you to work yourself up into a frenzy just because it's my birthday. It's nothing special. Besides, I haven't really celebrated it ever since my grandmother passed away.”
At this, your ears perk up and you glance at Alhaitham and you take note of the nostalgia embedded in his expression, that bittersweet feeling that one gets when taking a trip down memory lane.
“...What did you and your grandmother usually do for your birthday?” You ask gently. Alhaitham never talked much about his childhood. In fact, he rarely ever talked about his life before enrolling in the Akademiya. This was a chance to get to know him better, perhaps even gain an insight to how his mind worked. But most of all, this was a chance for you to show him once again that you cared.
“My birthday was never any extravagant event. My grandmother knew I didn't prefer such stuff either way. So instead, she'd always bake me a nice carrot cake and occasionally give me a small present in addition.”
“A carrot cake, huh? Why don’t you buy a carrot cake for your birthdays then?”
“They don’t taste the same.”
“Ah…”
You fall silent and the gears in your head slowly start turning. Anyone with a brain and two working eyes can easily tell that Alhaitham loves his grandmother a lot and cherishes the memories he made with her.
Suddenly, you reached a decision on what you’d do for his birthday.
○o。..。o○
“This is a bit of an abrupt time to have a study date, y’know? We don’t even have any quizzes or tests coming up,” Alhaitham remarks as he opens the door to his house and lets you come inside.
“Oh hush. It’s good to be up to date with what we’re learning. And don’t call it a study date, it sounds like we’re dating.”
“Hm.”
If Alhaitham was suspicious about your decision to suddenly come over to his house and study with him, he didn’t show it and you were thankful for that since you didn’t come over to study. The real reason behind your visit was to find the recipe for the carrot cake that his grandmother always baked for him. You were going out on a limb here as you weren’t even sure whether his grandmother was the type to write down her recipes. Most of the old people that you knew were pretty much born knowing how to make the dishes that they make. Or that’s what they all say at least.
You and Alhaitham start studying and you patiently bide your time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to slip away and do some snooping around.
“Do you want some snacks?” Alhaitham asks after an hour of studying with you.
FINALLY.
“Sure, just don’t burn the snacks like last time.”
“That happened only once.”
“One time is too many.”
Alhaitham rolls his eyes at your words and walks away to the kitchen to get a few snacks for the two of you. You smile to yourself and immediately get up from your seat once he’s out of sight and sneak around his house.
“ Recipes are written down in cookbooks, and books are always kept in the library”, you reason with yourself and walk off to the personal library that Alhaitham had. Well…you sure had your work cut out for you since his personal library was immense, undoubtedly storing tomes and scrolls that were passed down for generations in his family of scholars.
Just as you were losing hope of ever finding any sort of cookbook from his grandmother, you notice a shelf that appears to be solely dedicated to studies within the Kshahrewar darshan. Score. The books had to be from his grandmother since she was a Kshahrewar scholar.
You quickly get to work, unsure of how long Alhaitham would take with the snacks this time. You rifle through the books, being careful to be quick but not accidentally rip or tear any of the books. You’d never hear the end of it if you ended up ruining one of his grandmother’s books and you doubt you could ever even forgive yourself if you did so.
Perhaps the archons took pity on you as you managed to find a cookbook within the first few minutes of searching. You flip through the pages, praying to every single archon that you know of that you’ll find the recipe for the carrot cake and lo and behold, on page 26, you find it. You get to work quickly, bringing out a pen and paper that you had hidden in your pocket and start to copy down the recipe, taking care to not leave out a single detail. Each and every tiny instruction counted for who knows? Maybe that one pinch of cinnamon is the reason for its special taste.
Just as you finish copying down the last instruction and having put the cookbook in its place, you hear a voice behind you.
“What are you doing?”
“H-Haitham! Hey… I uhm….I just got curious and decided to check out your library!”
“You’ve been here a few times already.”
“W-well yeah! But there’s so many books! It’d be impossible to sate my curiosity with only a few visits!”
Alhaitham raises an eyebrow but says nothing, simply opting to sigh and walk away and you quickly follow after him once you got a whiff of the delicious scent of samosas.
○o。..。o○
“Keep your eyes closed. If I see you taking even the tiniest peek, I will not hesitate to gouge your eyes out.”
“Threatening me on my birthday? What a good friend you are.”
“Shhh!!! Let me fix some stuff!”
“Really…I don’t see why you’re going through so much trouble just because it’s my birthday.”
“Oh be quiet already Haitham! You can open your eyes now.”
Alhaitham huffs and opens his eyes which almost immediately widen once he sees the sight before him. You had dragged him to a secluded area in the gardens of the Akademiya, a special spot where you and him often hung out together. You were standing in front of him and holding up a plate of carrot cake, one that looked the exact same as the one his grandmother used to bake.
“You didn’t…”
“Happy birthday Haitham.”
“How…when…” Alhaitham pauses and remembers how he had caught you in his library just a few days ago. So that’s what you were doing.
What a sneaky little thing you are.
“Well? Take a bite and tell me what you think!” You urge him, looking incredibly nervous. You had spent the entire morning baking the carrot cake, doing your best to follow the instructions down to every last minute detail. You could only hope it tasted the way his grandmother’s did.
Alhaitham picks up a slice and takes a bite and closes his eyes while savoring the taste. Fond memories of his birthdays spent with his grandmother run through his mind. The cake tasted just like hers. And yet…it’s logical for the taste to slightly differ depending on the baker. The cake tasted just like his grandmother’s…and at the same time… it tasted like something you made. Was that even possible?
You nervously look on at Alhaitham’s expression, trying to discern his reaction. Did he like the cake?
“Put the plate down.”
“Wha- huh?! Uh..alright.”
The minute you had set the cake down on a nearby bench, you almost stagger backwards as Alhaitham almost suffocates you in a very tight and very warm bear hug.
“You didn’t have to. Just for today…you didn’t have to.. I’ve told you before, haven’t I? It’s better to put such enthusiasm into every single day,” Alhaitham muttered. His voice was quiet and sounded choked up. Was he crying?
“I could bake this cake for you every single day if that’s what you want”, you reply and ruffle his hair fondly.
“That’s not what I meant.”
Sigh.
“Well…yes, you’re right. Everyday is worth celebrating. But today even moreso.”
Alhaitham doesn’t say anything and instead hugs you even tighter.
I don’t think I can imagine a life without them.
○o。..。o○
“Look Traveler, there’s Alhaitham!” Paimon said and pointed at the Akademiya Scribe who was sitting at a big table in Lambad’s Tavern.
“Paimon, it’s rude to point”, the Traveler chided her and walked towards Alhaitham.
“Happy birthday Alhaitham!”
“Oh? I wouldn’t have guessed I’d bump into you two in a Sumeru tavern. Thank you for your wishes. It is indeed my birthday. I just hope that today will be as relaxing and enjoyable as any other.”
“What are you doing here all alone? Mind if we join you?”
“I’m currently waiting on the others. Feel free to join me as well. They're coming over from Avidya Forest, so they should be arriving any moment.”
Just as he had spoken those words, a small group of people entered the tavern and made their way to the table where Alhaitham was sitting with the Traveler and Paimon. After receiving birthday wishes from Kaveh, Cyno, Tighnari and Nilou, the group all sat down but there was still space for just one more person.
“Where’s-”
“Looking for me?”
Alhaitham turns and sees you rushing towards the table while holding a plate of a big carrot cake, topped with cream cheese frosting and made just the way he likes it. It was easy to tell that you had been in a hurry. In fact, you even had a tiny bit of frosting on your cheek that you presumably had been too distracted to wipe off.
“Sorry I was almost late Haitham. It’s hard to navigate through the hustle and bustle of Sumeru city while trying to keep this cake in one piece”, you sigh and take your seat beside Alhaitham, feeling his arm slowly wrapping around your waist to keep you close to him.
“It’s no big deal. I’m just happy that you’re here. By the way, you have a bit of frosting on your cheek.”
“Oh. Do I? Lemme just-”
Your words are cut off as Alhaitham wipes the frosting off your cheek with a finger and licks it off. The man leans in and presses a quick kiss to your cheek, in the same exact spot where the frosting was, relishing at the sight of your face turning red.
“The frosting tastes sweeter this time.”
“Oh, get a room you two! We’re here to celebrate Alhaitham’s birthday! Not to see you two lovebirds being unable to keep your hands to yourselves!”
“It’s my birthday, so surely I should be allowed to enjoy it however I wish? Or do you have a problem with that, O’ master architect?”
“You-!”
“Alright, settle down you two. Surely you can put off your bickering just for today?” Nilou laughs, ever the peacekeeper.
As a pleasant atmosphere emerges, one full of chatter and banter, you take hold of Alhaitham’s hand and gently squeeze it. He turns to look at you with a subtle smile, although you notice the questioning gaze in his eyes.
“Happy birthday Haitham.”
The man nods, the subtle smile growing just the tiniest bit wider. His gaze moves towards the carrot cake in the center of the table. The sight of it made him feel as though his grandmother was still with him, watching over him. The feeling was nice. It was a feeling that brought him peace.
Alhaitham’s grandmother’s wish had come true. He was leading a peaceful life, just as she had hoped for.