Maliha woke up in the morning and felt around for Donghae. Her hand was met with a cool spot. Right, he was with Hyuk. She felt a slight giddiness overcome herself. Today was it! Those weeks of planning will finally pay off. She felt bile rise up and ran to the bathroom. Gah, this was always annoying.

                She walked downstairs and saw her mother frantically waving a printed piece of paper in the air. “Maliha! Apparently they delivered the food to the wrong place, and the hotel forgot that they may not have all the room available for the early guests!”

                Maliha felt the blood rush to her ears and she breathed in deeply to calm herself. Things will be okay. The food isn’t that important. They can easily redeliver. But the housing, was going to be a problem. She got on the phone and called the Waldorf.

                “Hi, I have three hundred guests who will be arriving from all over the world. There has been issues with the Four Seasons Hotel. I swear, they are so unreliable. Is it possible that if I paid a little extra, I can squeeze people in?”

                The concierge was cool and polite. “I’m sorry, Ma’am. I’m afraid we are quite booked.”

                Maliha lowered her voice quietly. “I know perfectly well that you are not booked. In fact, I’m pretty sure that I checked yesterday with your manager and he had said rooms would be available in cases of emergency. Tell him that Lee Soo Man asks for it. There are favors owed to him. Thank you.”

                The namedropping must have worked because all composure slipped and he stuttred over the phone. “Y-yes, in fact, I’m sure we do have three hundred openings. We have five hundred in fact. I’ll gladly arr-arrange it.”

                Maliha shut the phone with quiet satisfaction. She hated having to use blackmail but when worse came to worse, it was the only method. She knew that for SMTown NYC, a scandal had happened between a guest and workers at the Waldorf. It was Soo Man who helped to alleviate the tension, and the manager has not forgotten.

                She sank into the couch, praying there would be no more of these disruptive disasters. She only had to get through seven hours. Her phone rang again. She looked at the caller ID cautiously and fell into a silent dismay. It was Jill. What happened now?

                “Maliha, we need to go back to the estate. Apparently they’re saying some of the decorations were destroyed by last night’s rain. What rain? I didn’t even know it rained. Oh, and Hyuk is going to have a hard time entertaining Hae. He’s been mumbling things about hating birthdays.”

                She sighed. “We’ll have to get the artists back. They need to redo them! What type of party would not have sets? We need to work on the theme! Oh my gosh. I’m going to start crying. I’ll meet you there.”

                The entire train ride, she fought off the feeling of impending doom. When she arrived, she saw that some sets were indeed ruined. Their color and design running into one another, smearing down like sad tears on a face. It looked like Edvard Munch’s Scream. Her friend placed a hand on her shoulder.

                “It’s okay. They promise that they will fix it in three hours, maximum. We need to make sure all the other places are up and running.” They walked inside and were glad to see everything running smoothly. Maliha stayed until five, supervising and overseeing the final touches. Finally, everything was perfect. Please, no more disasters.

                At six, she went to the hotel and began greeting everyone. She ushered them in and heard the oohs and ahs as they surveyed the wonders that has transformed the Great Hall. It wasn’t until seven that Hyuk called her.

                “I can’t find him. I swear, I leave him alone for a second and he’s gone. I don’t know where he is, but the party is starting. I’m so sorry. I know everyone is probably waiting for him right now. I should have kept a tighter hold on him. I didn’t think he would run, he was in such a funk the entire day. Aish, Maliha, I’m sorry.”

                That was it. It was finally the time of the party and he wasn’t here. The very thought made her want to scream. What the hell was wrong with him? Yes, he doesn’t know what she has planned, but what was with this running away. You’re a twenty-five year old man, Lee Donghae! Stop acting like a five year old.

                She tried to contain herself. Think, Maliha. Where could he be? She mentally ran through all the places he could run off to. When her phone rang, she picked up without even checking who it was. She snarled into the phone, “What now? Because if there’s something else that-”

                “Maliha? It’s me, Donghae. I decided, screw this. It’s my birthday. It’s the first birthday I’ve celebrated since we got married. People forget about my birthday, but it’s okay. I need to want to celebrate it myself.  I’m at the Waldorf right now. Come join me?” his soft voice came over the speakers.

                She felt a mix of annoyance, relief and guilt wash over her. “Donghae, you’re at the Waldorf? Sure, I’ll be right there.”

                “I can’t wait to see you. Finally, I’ll have a birthday which I will remember.”

                She rushed in front of the mirror. She had some time to kill. Donghae was right across the street. He wouldn’t be expecting her for a good forty minutes. She sat in front of the mirror for the longest time until Jill and Lia walked in.

                “Maliha, are you okay?” they walked up next to her, flanking her sides.

                “Donghae thinks I forgot about his birthday. He’s right at the Waldorf and he wants me to go there, to celebrate his birthday. I don’t know what to do. I feel so bad that he even thinks that. That’s probably why he’s been so miserable,” she fought down the thickening tears that threatened to form.

                “Go, go to him. Change into your dress and go to him. Don’t worry. The moment he comes here, he would know.” They smiled at her and handed her the brilliant deep blue gown they had asked a seamstress to make. The gown was long and swept the floors. The thin straps were beaded with tiny studs of brilliant opals, October’s birthstone. The neckline of the dress was rounded and made of satin. They had attached long, opalescent, flowing sleeves that gave the entire dress an antique air. Maliha smiled at her own reflection shyly.

                “Go,” they pushed her out the door.

                She walked across the quiet Manhattan street, leaving behind the bustle of the party. The official festivities haven’t started yet, it was all just music and light chattering, getting to know the people who loved the Fish. She felt a warm breeze, warm for October, caress her face.

                Donghae met her at the lobby and he took her by the hand. On the elevators, they were silent and it wasn’t until he opened the doors to the suite that she realized how much he has prepared for this. There were rose petals scattered all over, and an open bottle of sparkling water. Tiny sweets that he knew she liked were dotted around the table, and in the middle was a cake. When she saw what was inscribed on the cake, she felt tears. Haeliha.

                She was speechless and didn’t know how to get him to go with her. Not after he set up all this. She stood in the middle of the room, just trying to get her vocals to work. “Do you like it?” he whispered in her ear? She nodded. He grinned, and popped a chocolate covered strawberry in . “Did I tell you how gorgeous you look in that dress?”

                She blushed and he wrapped his arms around her waist. “We should dance.” He picked up a remote and the lights dimmed. Beautiful began to play. They were silent as he swayed her around the room. She observed him quietly. He was only in a tank top, the white jacket was lost somewhere on the chair. His toned arms held her gently and his eyes looked into hers. She wanted to hit herself, how did she get so lucky?

                The shrill ringtone from her phone was dissonance in the silent atmosphere. They both jumped and she saw that it was Lia. “Maliha, come now. Soo Man has arrived, and he demands to see the birthday boy.”

                This brought Maliha back to her senses. Turning to Donghae with what she hoped was a panicked expression, she clutched at his arm. “Oh no! Apparently Lia is right across the street in the Great Hall. But she said something happened. We have to go to her!”

                Donghae stared at her. “Lia! Something happened, we have to go!” she repeated, tugging at his arm for emphasis. He nodded, and couldn’t’ hide the hurt in his eyes fast enough. Maliha chanted in her head, it’s all for you, Donghae.

                They walked down the stairs, and Maliha lost her shoes several times. Donghae finally scooped her up in his arms and carried her down into the lobby. The other clients watched and several women sighed with envy. If only their husbands would be as romantic. Maliha’s heart pounded in her chest.

                The closer they got to the Great Hall, the more nervous she became. But it was now a good type of nervous. She wanted to see his face, wanted to see his reaction. He set her down gently on the steps and looked at her in confusion.

                “It doesn’t seem like there’s anything wrong. Where could Lia be?”

                Maliha shrugged. She walked over to the heavy wooden doors, and put a hand on the knocker. “We’ll have to go in and find out.”

                She slowly opened the door, letting the anticipation build. There was a flash of white light and a loud hush. When the doors finally swung open, the room exploded.

                “Surprise!”