꧁ Cʀᴏᴏᴋs: Bᴇᴛʀᴀʏᴇᴅ ʙʏ Bʟᴏᴏᴅ ꧂

12. Bɪʀᴛʜᴅᴀʏ Bʟᴜᴇs

{Please read the authors note at the bottom!}

I've been thinking about this particular day all week- all month, honestly. It's been lingerging in the back of my mind and now it's finally here: happy 18th birthday to me.

Today should be special, and I guess it is special. I should feel happy like everyone else does. It's a milestone, the transition into adulthood, something meant to be celebrated with joy. But I'm not happy, nor celebratory. It's like an extra weight has been added to my shoulders. Sure, I'm glad I at least got to this point, but I'm not ready to be an adult. What about my childhood, my teenage years, all of it? It's gone, it's been wasted, and today is the day that I officially can't do anything about it.

I rolled out of my bed and noticed a note on my nightstand, it read: "check the kitchen counter". Assuming it was probably my mom, I fixed my hair to look presentable and stumbled over to the kitchen. A few small gifts were laid out on the counter, but nobody was there. I looked around to see if there was a note or anything left, but still nothing. I jumped as someone creeped up behind me, placing their hands on my shoulders and leaning into my ear.

"Happy birthday!" Lucille exclaimed, embracing me with a cheerful hug.

I sighed in relief, feeling my mood start to lighten up. "Thanks, Lucy- where's Mom?"

"You know, that's a good question, I'm sure she'll be out in a second; open your gifts!"

I was confused as to why my mom hadn't made an appearance yet, as she was usually awake at this time anyhow. Whatever. I grabbed one of the three gift bags from the counter, each one fairly small but nicely decorated. I didn't really expect anyone to remember or care about my birthday, let alone Lucille, but she seemed to be very ecsatic.

"Are these all from you?" I asked.

"Duh, they didn't appear out of nowhere."

"Oh, uhm- thank you, I didn't think you would even consider getting me anything. You didn't have to."

She shrugged her shoulders. "It's the least I could do. Go ahead, open it."

I carefully removed the tissue and wrapping and grasped hold of a tiny drawstring pouch. Inside was a silver necklace with a locket in the shape of a heart underneath, clearly worn but still as shiny as it could be. Lucille formed a wide grin as I observed the necklace.

"It's gorgeous, ain't it? It used to be mine when I was a little girl. My best friend gave it to me when I moved away from Austin to be sent to boarding school, and even though I never saw her again, it always reminded me of our friendship. I figured I would pass it down to you."

My eyes widened in admiration but also in surprise. Why would she give something so valuable to me, what made me special? I didn't want to accept it.

"Wow, are you sure you want to give this away," I paused for a second, "...to me?"

"Of course, you can keep it with you as you journey through life, like I did. It will always be there to remind you when I'm not that you're never alone. I trust you, kid, I love you like you're my...."

She paused. I glanced down at the locket, then back up at her. "Like your what?"

There was a slight hesitation in her voice. "A sister, I guess."

I suddenly felt my previous bad mood start to lift, and I immeditaely wrapped my arms around her as tightly as I could.

"Thank you, Lucy, really. You have no idea how long it's been since I've had someone care that much." I said, feeling the happy tears start to well up. I felt silly getting emotional over something so simple, but it really felt nice to have someone who cared about me to that extent; it's been a while.