Otherworld

Lullaby [DevXRaven]

Lullaby

[DevXRaven]

A special happy birthday to Raven!

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I stared at the calender with a cold chill creeping up my spine.

Today was the day... My birthday.

Once upon a time, birthdays had been a fun thing. It was a chance to get together with my family and friends, to go out and do something fun, to get gifts, usually things that replaced my old and worn out stuff, but gifts nonetheless. We would go out to eat at a nice restaurant, gather together in the palace afterwards, maybe do an interview or two for the media, who were always dying to know what I was doing on my birthday.

But the last time I'd celebrated a birthday, or the last time I even remembered I had one, was laying in Julius's bed trembling, the cold chill nipping at my feet, the rough knit blanket barely protecting the rest of me from the cold and Julius's prying eyes. The sound of men shouting outside the tent, the putrid stench of their sweat, blood, filth, and cooking meat. The tent was dim, nearly dark, and I could hear Julius's footsteps growing nearer and nearer, my heart pounding violently against my chest as I choked on a sob and curled up under that disgusting blanket to hide to no avail.

Yeah, I wasn't really looking forward to celebrating something like that anymore. Not now that it was tainted.

"Hey, babe, breakfast is ready." I blinked and turned away to see Dev setting plates at the table. The stench from my memory faded and was replaced with the warm smell of Dev's breakfast menu. Scrambled eggs, light and fluffy, bacon that still seemed to sizzle on the plate, toast heated to a golden brown, and a side of peach yogurt. It smelled delicious, and a smile of relief came onto my face as I moved away from the calender, draping my towel around my shoulders.

"This is an awfully nice breakfast." I commented. Normally, we'd go out to eat or Dev would scrape up what cereal Terry had left behind for us to eat. Even though Terry was sixteen, he still refused to grow up enough to clean up after himself. The kid was the only reason our shared apartment looked like a frat boy house. I'd managed to get Dev to join me when it came to cleaning, but Terry was ever determined to make a mess.

Teenagers.

"Well," Dev said slowly as he pulled out a chair for me to sit down at, and he leaned down to kiss my cheek gently, "It's kind of a nice day, right?" I hesitated at that, glancing up at him and he smiled.

"Happy Birthday, baby." He said, giving me another kiss before taking his seat. I forced a smile, even though it hurt my face. I didn't want to ruin Dev's surprise. He didn't know that my birthday no longer meant anything cheerful. I liked seeing him pleased to do something for me. It was always vice versa, what with my constantly nagging to clean the place up, get to work, dragging him out of bed and into the shower. I was always on his case.

If I couldn't make this day work for me, I should at least make it work for him, so I just smiled as I ate breakfast, pleased with the rich flavor of it. He'd added his own seasonings and little touches, making my stomach practically soar.

"Ooh, that smells good," Terry's voice said from the hallway as he wandered in, "Any left?" Dev scoffed.

"I should just keep stuffing Lucky Charms down your throat given the way you left the kitchen last night. What happened to all the chips?" He asked. Terry wrinkled his nose adorably.

"There was a Naruto marathon on last night and I needed everything I could get so I wouldn't have to get up and leave it." He insisted. Dev made a noise of supreme disgust. But he really only had himself to blame for Terry's Japanese anime obsession. If he hadn't of bought everything Terry asked for, it probably wouldn't be like this, but I knew Dev didn't regret anything.