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Ai had been exceptionally lucky with his previous roommate--courteous, considerate, and kind in his own way. Rin's desk had always been neat and tidy, he had helped Ai whenever he asked, and he had made sure to stay quiet when he left early or came in late from training while Ai was still asleep. His current roommate on the other hand...well he couldn't expect to be as lucky the next time. This particular train of thought entered the sleepy swimmer's head as the fiery ball of energy that was his roommate persistently shook him and called out his name. From the watery sliver of light streaming through the semi-opened curtains that Ai viewed from peeking through one half-opened eye, it was probably really early in the morning. Great.
"Nitori-senpai! Nitori-senpai! C'mon, wake up, wake up, wake up! Let's go out today! You promised to come with me to pick something out for Gou-chan!
"But Momo-kun it's so early," Ai grumbled, turning over to shove his face in his pillow. "Can't we leave after the sun comes up completely?"
"But all of the good stuff will be gone," the pouty otter whined. We have to leave NOW so we can get her those hair pins I heard she wanted from Nagisa-kun!"
Resigning himself to the fact that if he didn't get up, Momo would just keep tugging on his arm, the short gray-haired youth slid out of bed with a sigh.
"I'll even treat you to something while we're out!," Momo hummed, pleased that his plan of annoyance succeeded.
"Whatever," Ai muttered while pulling on a pair of jeans and an oversized cream sweater, cramming a matching beanie over his sleep-tousled hair. Everyone knew that waking the captain up before nine a.m. when it wasn't necessary was absolutely forbidden, but Momo always did get away with a lot more than the rest of the team. Stifling a yawn, the grouchy teenager slunk out the door and stalked towards the station with a chattering ray of sunshine following close behind. Even after boarding the train the incessant flow of words never ceased, providing a dim buzz of background noise to Ai's unorganized thoughts.
He wasn't jolted back to reality until the train stopped at their station where Ai was not surprised to find Momo still talking, unperturbed by the lack of response from his companion. Shaking his head with a slight smile, the two of them left the station, leaving snowy puffs of breath in their wake on the way to the shopping district, each step lifting Ai's spirits until he was his usual post-9 am self. The crowd of people was manageable this early in the morning, and the duo had no trouble weaving their way to shop after shop filled with hair pins, cell-phone charms, and other cute accessories. In one particular store, an small light gray plush caught the boy's eye, but he quickly looked away when Momo came over to see what distracted him.
"What's wrong senpai?" inquired the otter, straining his neck to see what Ai had been admiring.
"Nothing. Just saw the duck and thought it was cute," Ai smiled, walking around the younger boy. "Have you found anything for Gou-chan yet?"
Rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, he shook his head. "Not yet. But I'm hungry; let's stop for some crepes first senpai!" he exclaimed, heading towards a small stand at the side of the street.
The upperclassman hurriedly followed after so they wouldn't be separated by the slowly growing crowd. After ordering one dessert crepe ("It's never too early for dessert senpai!") and a simple fruit one, they found an unoccupied bench nearby and huddled into their wintery clothing for warmth.
"Momo-kun, where did your crepe go?"
The kouhai cocked his head in confusion, "Uh...I ate it already."
"Wh-what?!" Ai sputtered. "How could you have eaten the entire thing? It's only been two minutes!" exclaimed the older boy.
Momo didn't even pretend to look abashed as he laughed at Ai's horrified expression. "I always eat that fast! Well, if you're still eating, can you stay here for a few minutes by yourself? I think I found the perfect gift for Gou so just wait here, okay?"
Ai nodded his consent and went back to stuffing his face with strawberry crepe until Momo returned with a big shopping bag in tow.
"I thought you were only getting her hair pins?" enquired the amused captain.
"Ah well…" Momo stuttered, "I-i… couldn't control myself I guess…anyway we can go now! I have everything I need."
"Sure," Ai shrugged, rising to his feet. "It's getting even colder anyway. I want to head back and sleep for another three years," he laughed to himself. They wandered back to the station, making small talk along the way before heading back to Samezuka. On the way back to their dorms, Momo stopped near the pool.
"Hey will you wait here for a second? I forgot my Japanese lit notes in here after practice yesterday. I'll only be a moment!" shouted Momo, jogging towards the locker rooms.
"Alright!" replied Ai. He leaned against the wall to wait for his kouhai, allowing several minutes to go by. "Where is he?" demanded Ai, irked at having to wait so long when all he wanted to do was crawl back underneath his blankets. "How hard is it to find notes in an empt-" Ai stopped with his phone halfway to his face, its luminous screen displaying his background, his notifications, and the time and date. "No…" he whispered to the empty hallway, not believing what his phone was telling him. "It can't be the fourth…my phone must be wrong…how could it…MOMO!"
Ai rushed into the pool where, to his absolute shock, a table stacked with presents and a cake stood in the spacious area decorated with balloons and streamers and a giant banner reading "Happy Birthday Captain!" His entire team standing in front of the display shouted "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" with a discord of "captain," "Nitori," "senpai," and even an "Ai" at the end. The birthday boy stood in front of them, choking back tears as they surrounded him, whooping, and smothering him among their limbs.
"Bu- how did you know?"
"I told them," resounded through the chamber from an all too familiar voice. Whirling around, Nitori found himself staring at-
"Rin! And Sousuke! What are you guys doing here?" exclaimed Ai.
"We wouldn't miss your birthday captain!" Rin chuckled, going over to ruffle the younger boy's hair. "I'm surprised. Momo said that you didn't even seem upset that no one wished you a happy birthday earlier."
Ai's face blushed crimson. "Ah well… Momo-kun woke me up so early and I uh… never checked my phone so…" he coughed, visibly embarrassed. "I may not have noticed that today was the fourth," he mumbled to himself, hoping no one else heard the admission.
Rin stared at Ai blinking for a moment before bursting into laughter, having to hold on to Sousuke to avoid falling into the pool. "Of course you would Ai. You're still just as unorganized as when I left," chuckled Rin, shaking his head at his former roommate's antics and wiping a single tear from his eye.
Ai managed to look ashamed before turning to Momo who had been waiting patiently next to him. "Is this why you took me out this morning? To get me away from the party?"
"Well part of it was that but really, I didn't know what to get you so…" Momo held out the shopping bag with the present he bought for "Gou". Raising an eyebrow in question, Ai took the bag and opened it, revealing the adorable plush duck he had been admiring earlier that day.
"This is-! You took me out to pick out a birthday present!" He held the stuffed toy close to his chest, smiling softly at everyone surrounding him.
"Thank you everyone. This is…this is the best birthday I've ever had!" Ai sniffled, bursting into elated giggles when everyone around him tackled him in another team hug.