Grabbing his coat, Jinki quickly hurried out of his house. The winter cold slapped his face mercilessly when he walked out of the apartment building. “Why is it so cold on your birthday?”

Jinki made a dash for his car (because even though he’s also a December baby, he hates the cold weather) and let out a sigh of relief when he the heater in his car. “Let’s hope she’s smart enough to sit in the coffee shop instead of waiting for me out in the cold.” Jinki quickly drove off to meet his date, with a large box in the trunk of his car.

~~

“Damn, where the heck is he?!” I grunted, checking my watch every three seconds. Jinki was never late for our dates, it was always me. As a girlfriend I know I have to forgive him this once because no one is perfect, but the temperature for today was -9°C and I hate the cold. Telling me to meet in front of my apartment when there is a coffee shop right in front -  

Okay. I’m dumb.

As fast as my legs could carry me, I made my way to the coffee shop opposite. I embraced the warmth with open arms – not literally of course – and sat down at the far corner of the small shop. Jinki should be here in a few minutes, or I hope that he would. To pass time, I played with the book phone accessory dangling off my precious gadget. It was his first gift to me, back when we were still friends. There were a few scratches on it, but it is still in shape. I couldn’t believe that that was five years ago when we were still in high school.

The bells chimed, and I looked up. I saw Jinki smiling at me and rubbed his hands together. It took me a second to realise that he was saying ‘sorry’. He sat opposite me and continued smiling. “Stop it Onew. Seriously, stop.” I said, controlling my laughter. Onew was a nickname all his friends call him, because he was (and forever will be) such a warm-hearted guy. He leaned closer and I burst out laughing. This kid always knows how to make me smile.

“Sorry Hee-ah, I was late because I had to work on my assignment.” He said apologetically. Jinki’s a guy who sets his priorities straight, and that’s one of the million reasons why I love him.

“Whatever, where are we going?” I asked, ready to leave the coffee shop and go on our date. We hadn’t been on one since forever because of university, so I was definitely excited. He chuckled and held my hand. We exited the shop, only to be welcomed by the coldness. I swore that the temperature dropped while we were in the coffee shop.

“Let’s get onto my car, it’s freezing.” He said.

“Glad you know.” I said, completely annoyed by the cold.

He drove off almost immediately after turning on the heater, and I wondered what the rush was all about. Maybe he was really apologetic about being 15 minutes late. I remembered him saying that time is precious, and I guess he really means it.

Little did I know it was because we were not alone today.

On the car, we talked about almost anything we could. I talked about my outfit (a pullover, a plaid jacket, a thick coat, leggings and skinny jeans), he talked about his assignments, we talked about how stressful university was and laughed about our friends. Time passed by quickly, and before I knew it, we were in front of a chalet. I raised an eyebrow at him, but Jinki said nothing.

We got out and he held my hand. I followed him into the dark chalet. As he fumbled with the keys, I could hear some whispering from the other side of the door. Jinki unlocked the door and the lights like magic.

“SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAEHEE!”

I shrieked and grabbed onto Jinki, who only laughed and high-fived Jonghyun, his friend since middle school. With my mouth still wide open from the shock, I looked around and saw most of our closest friends. Most of my high school clique was there, with the exception of Soojung who went back to California after graduation. Most of his was there too, excluding Lee Joon.

“What is this?” I asked, still stunned from the surprise greeting. I didn’t know I was still grabbing onto Jinki’s arm.

“A birthday surprise. Seems like it worked really well, seeing how surprised you are.” Jinki laughed, and pushed me closer to the center of the living room.

“We’re all here to celebrate your birthday, we haven’t met since graduation!” Eunji, one of my closest friends since middle school, chimed.

“Come on birthday girl, the candles are about to melt into your cake!” Kibum nagged, and I quickly clasped my hands together to make a wish. Everyone clapped when I blew out the candles. (They just had to get me 21 small candles, these kids.)

“You were expecting a date weren’t you?” Taeyeon nudged me and winked. I pushed her and she burst out into her dorky laughter. I swore my face was bright red when everyone joined in. Jinki only shook his head and plucked out the candles one by one, with the help of Minho. I glanced up at him and could see him blushing too.

Jonghyun clapped his hands and passed me the knife. Contrary to his macho appearance, Jonghyun is actually a pretty nice man. He used to be very childish, but after a year in university this kid has grown a lot. I could totally understand why Jinki is friends with him, despite their very obvious differences. I sliced the cake with the knife and spent the rest of the night eating, laughing, cake smashing and playing games. It was definitely the best and most memorable birthday I have ever had.

Night fell and we all became tired. Despite having drunk a few glasses of wine, I was still wide awake. I slipped out of my sleeping bag (that Eunji got while raiding my closet while I was out, with the help of my younger sister) and made my way to the living room. It was very cold, so I sat near the heater and looked out of the window. The night sky was really beautiful and I finally got to admire the sky after a year of hectic schedules. Suddenly I felt a pat on my shoulder and shrieked.

“Ssh, it’s just me.” Jinki whispered and sat beside me. I punched his arm playfully and we shared a blanket.

“Can’t sleep?” I asked, resting my head on his shoulder.

“Both of us have high alcohol tolerance I guess.” He chuckled.

“You planned the night?” I asked, linking arms with him under the blanket. The party was still fresh in my head. Thinking about it made me feel warm inside, as if I have a heater in my body. My cheeks were still sore from smiling and laughing too much, but not that I minded.

“Yep, last week. You liked it?” Jinki said, looking down at me. His eyes were so soft and warm; I wondered why I took three years to like him. I can never understand the younger me sometimes.

I nodded and he let out a soft chuckle. “Glad you did. Happy birthday, Jaehee-ah.” His voice was deep, and I almost melted for a moment. It’s been two years, but I still loved him the way I did two years ago. Sometimes I wondered what I did in my past life to deserve such an angel as my other half. He’s basically the man every girl wants to get, and I’m the lucky one that got all his love.

Before I could say anything else, he took out a large box from the corner and told me to unwrap it. I did as I was told. I almost screamed when I saw what his present was.

“It’s a freaking Gucci bag! It’s Gucci! Oh my god what else are there inside?” I fired in an excited whisper. No way was this happening. I’ve wanted that bag since two months ago when we were on one of our dates. I couldn’t believe that he got it for me! How much must he have spent? Touched was an understatement about how I felt.

I took out the contents in the handbag to discover a planner for next year, a blue scarf, a tube of lip balm and a small box. Jinki said that he thought that the best gift is something that is practical, and I gave him a peck on the lips for them.

“Then how is this box practical?” I asked, pointing at the beautifully wrapped box the size of my palm. He gestured with his chin to open it. I rolled my eyes at how he keeps gesturing me to open things like I’m a little child. I tore open the wrapper and opened the box.

Inside was a simple silver necklace, with a silver ring as the pendant. It was a simple ring, no special designs, no gems, just like a simple wedding band. I looked at him, mouth agape.

He took the necklace and helped me put it on. “Don’t worry, it’s not a proposal. You said you won’t get married till you have a stable career, so I won’t propose till then.” He teased, causing me to blush and punch him in the chest. I looked down at the ring and noticed that he has the same necklace as I do. I grinned, unable to contain the happiness in my heart.

“We never had a couple item except for the hats we bought two years ago.” He explained. “Plus, if we were to just wear the rings, we’ll leave them in the restrooms since we can be quite forgetful.” I laughed in agreement.

“I love this.” I said. “Thank you.”

He only smiled, but that was more than enough. A smile, a touch, a kiss, it was much more meaningful than the infamous ‘I love you’.

I never liked birthday surprises, they scare the out of me and it’s super embarrassing.

But this one, on this night, I can’t help but love.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GAL! Hope you had a blast today! ^^

This is really crappy in my opnion, but that's all I can manage in a few hours OTL. Hope you liked it nonetheless(:

The poster was bad as well, because my mind is super tired from work and coffee (you know how coffee makes me sleep). Give me your feedback yeah?

Thought a fluffly, romantic, aww-worthy fic would be much better than a sad one for your birthday so here it is! I included a bunch of people and some of my boys (can't help hehe), hope you don't mind that either. Lastly, happy birthday! Love you~~ XOXO

Thanks for reading~