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It was a bit of a slow day for Aiko. She hadn’t gotten up yet - she was still laying in her bed, tired from the night before. Even when the sunlight poked in through her curtains, she just turned over in bed, closing her eyes again. She stayed up late last night, having some work she needed to get done, but now… her Friday was fully open. Aiko had forgotten why exactly she wanted to make it open, though, with the work she had done the night prior.
She opened her eyes a little, though, when she heard a notification on her phone. The blogger blinked a few times, getting her eyes adjusted, before sitting upright, checking the message. She seemed to have quite a few of them, actually - all from different people. She checked the first.
>Aiko!!
>Check the day!
It was from her best friend, Yuta Asahina. She checked the second. She looked at her calendar - October 4th. She immediately gasped, hopping out of bed immediately as she made her way to the bathroom, rushing as she quickly took a shower. She left the other messages unread for now, but she figured they were similar sentiments from her friends - Aiko had talked about her birthday quite a bit, after all.
Once she was done with her shower, she quickly got dressed - a simple dress shirt, her plaid pink skirt, a bow for her shirt, her blue, white, and pink socks, and… huh. Where’d she put her hoodie? It’s usually on the chair, and yet it wasn’t there.
There was a knock at the door. Aiko’s eyes darted to it, before she approached it, opening the door a crack. Behind the door was Chiaki Nanami - Aiko’s partner - holding a bright yellow rabbit hoodie in her hands, along with a fairly large tote bag.
“Looking for something?” Chiaki said, a smile forming on her lips.
“Ah- I am, mhm.” Aiko chuckled, taking the hoodie and slipping right into it, the bunny ears on the hoodie perking right up. She noticed that it smelled fresh and felt very soft to the touch. “Did you?-”
“It’s been a few days since you washed it, and I thought you’d like it all cleaned up for your special day.” Chiaki smiled, giving Aiko a peck on the cheek. The blogger let out a small giggle, before returning one to Chiaki’s cheek.
“I really like how it turned out… I dunno how you get clothes to be so soft…”
“Special fabric softener, mostly.” Chiaki smirks, before taking Aiko’s hand. The blogger smiled, before slipping into her loafers, adjusting the bows on each of them. She didn’t wear them often, usually choosing house shoes or sneakers, but she did enjoy wearing them on special occasions. Chiaki then led her out, making sure to lock Aiko’s door, before pulling her along quickly.
“I hope I didn’t keep you all, um, waiting…” Aiko said, a little nervously. She pulled her hoodie strings, fidgeting with them.
“You didn’t, don’t worry… it’s around noon, and you said 12:30. I just figured it’d be good to make sure you got up.” Chiaki scratched Aiko’s back, the blogger curling up to the gamer as she made a big smile. “It was just me and Yuta waiting for you, and that’s cause we wanted to be a little early…”
“That’s good… and you guys like the location, right?”
“Of course. The cafe has a really cozy feel to it. It’s my first time actually visiting it though.”
“Really? I thought you’d have already been there. It’s perfect for you, especially cause you love cats…”
Chiaki giggled, squeezing Aiko’s hand a little. “Well, I do, mhm… I just haven’t gotten a chance to go there until now.”
“I promise you’ll love it!” Aiko replied, excitedly.
When the two arrived at the cafe, Aiko could spot a table further in the back - at that table was Yuta, Aoi, and Chihiro. Her eyes lit up excitedly, the blogger quickly rushing to greet the three of them.
“Hey, look who’s up!” Yuta spoke first, opening his arms wide - which Aiko quickly darted into, giving her best friend a warm embrace. Yuta spun her a little, before putting her down. “Chiaki thought you overslept your alarm again.”
“I did a little, though I mostly just forgot it was today…” She scratched the back of her neck, turning a bit pink out of embarrassment.
“How’d you forget! You always get really excited for it whenever October rolls around.” Aoi exclaimed, tilting her head.
“Ah, there was just a lot goin’ on… I had to get some work done for my classes, and some council stuff… it sorta slipped my mind, honestly!” Aiko let out a small squeak, still a bit pink.
“Well, we’re glad you could make it!” Aoi said, getting up and giving Aiko a hug as well. Chihiro got up after her, also joining her in a hug. Aiko let out a happy hum, her face feeling warm in the embrace.
“Aww, thank you… thank you all.” The blogger let out, before taking a seat next to Yuta - Chiaki’s seat was right next to hers as well, and she was across from Chihiro. She noticed there were a few gift boxes, but then her eyes went to the center of the table. There was a plastic container with at least a dozen cinnamon rolls - all of them were sprinkled with numerous toppings. Some had blueberries on them, others had strawberries, and a few had extra cinnamon. Aiko let out an excited noise at the sight of it.
“T-The cafe had a promotion for today… It's cinnamon roll day today, and we know you really like them, so…” Chihiro spoke up, putting her hands together. “I g-got all of the special flavors they made for today, hehe…” She smiled eagerly, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink.
“Well, I’m hungry… I haven’t had breakfast yet, after all.” Aiko said, leaning forward and taking a plate. Chihiro opened the container, letting Aiko pick hers out first. They were fresh, too - still somewhat hot, and they smelled like they were right out the oven. Aiko excitedly picked the one with extra cinnamon, putting it onto her plate as she grabbed a nearby fork.
“You know, that’s not the best cinnamon roll here.” Chiaki said, smirking a little.
“Huh?” Aiko replied, confused.
“The best one is right here.” Chiaki poked Aiko’s arm, causing the blogger to turn really pink from the compliment.
“Oh- I, uh, hehe…” She was quickly flustered, blushing as she beamed. She took a bite of her cinnamon roll - it was very buttery, with the aroma of cinnamon strong. She made a gleeful sound as she took another bite, taking in the soft texture and great flavors.
“I-I see you really like it!” Chihiro exclaimed, happy that she enjoyed them.
“Mhm! Mhm!” Aiko replied after swallowing. She noticed that the other four had quickly gotten their own plates, going for some of the other cinnamon rolls in the container. Aiko took another one, this time one that had some Oreos crumbled onto it.
“Well, don’t eat them all now. We’ve still got cake for later.” Aoi replied, smiling as she put a strawberry one onto her plate.
“Ooh, cake? What kind?” Chiaki asked, leaning in slightly.
“Well, that’s a secret!” Yuta exclaimed, the young track star smirking. He had helped Aoi bake the cake the night prior - though he had yet to actually reveal it, having kept it in his own dorm.
Aiko giggled happily. “Well, I can’t wait until later then. I’m sure it’ll be good.”
“Yeah, it took up my whole-” Yuta stopped talking suddenly, realizing he’d spoil the surprise. Aiko’s eyes lit up.
“Wait- did you make an ice cream cake?” The blogger blurted out, excitedly.
“Well… maybe?” Yuta was not very good at concealing when he was trying to keep a secret.
Chihiro giggled. “It takes a lot of skill to bake one, doesn’t it?” She had finished her cinnamon roll, now looking at the others.
“Well… it wasn’t that hard, mostly cause we don’t bake the ice cream.” Aoi said. “We just add it on after, like a layer in the middle.”
“Makes sense.” Chiaki said. “Sonia wanted one for her birthday too. She’s huge on ice cream, I think.”
As they all spoke, Aiko noticed something - one of the cats at the cat cafe had walked up to her, the blogger scooting her chair back softly so that she could get a better look. “Oh my goodness- one of the cats is here!!” She extended a hand - they were an orange cat, one who was friendly, eagerly sniffing Aiko’s hand before allowing her to pick him up.
“Woah… seems you’re familiar with this one.” Chiaki said, admiring the cat in her hands.
“Mhm! This one’s Solar, he’s a really nice cat.” Aiko said, petting the small cat with her left hand. “Whenever I come here, he’s always out and about…
“I see. He looks really soft…” Chihiro spoke up, extending a hand to scratch the orange cat’s cheek.
“Yeah… he’s really soft, really cuddly, and a bit sleepy-” Aiko noticed that the cat had hopped out of her arms, running off to one of the food bowls that had recently been restocked. “Aww, there he goes.”
“...you know, you’re gonna enjoy one of the gifts I got ya.” Yuta said, smirking a little. “Wanna head to your place now?”
Aiko beamed. The morning had been the perfect start to her birthday, and she looked forward to what the rest of the day would offer. She got up with the others, smiling brightly as she picked up a few of the gifts, before heading off with the others.