(I didn't want my Wattpad users to miss out on this chapter, but it's been months since it's been out so my apologies.)
"Good morning, Star Shine~" A hand gently shook the girls sleeping body with one hand. "The Earth says 'Hello~'"
"Nooo." The young girl pulled her blanket above her head, hiding herself. "Sleepy..."
Her mother giggled, "But Starshine, it's your birthday!" She reminded.
This seemed to take away from the sleep as the girl sat up excitedly. "Birthday?!"
She jumped out of the bed falling face onto the plush rainbow carpet below.
"Please don't knock out more teeth." Her mother pulled her hands from behind her back to reveal a stack of pancakes with pink frosting, sprinkles, and an unlit candle. "You won't be able to eat these if you don't have any."
She snapped her fingers creating a small flame on the tip. She placed it on the candle holding the stack out towards her. "It's best to make a wish for the best of luck."
Slowly opening her eyes [Y/n] stared at the ceiling of her bedroom as her fingers ran through through spotted fur. Her hair a long since dull violet color with no motion. Not even a small flicker. Her once brightened freckles could only be compared to burnt-out lightbulbs.
"Go away, Alex." The girl ordered, as her brother sat on the edge of her bed.
Alex frowned. "I understand this day always bums you out, but you need to move on." His words only made her pull her covers over her head.
"Allow me to wallow in my self-pity alone where my demons roam."
"Great, now you're being edgy about it."
"This is depressing to see," Bisa commented, staring at her sister through the crack in her bedroom door. She carefully, shut the door turning to her look alike. "I'll go get the ice water."
"I don't know." Kojo wiped his teary eyes, as he tried to wipe the image of his depressed sister from his mind. "Maybe we should leave her alone for the day. Our project isn't due for a while..."
Bisa scoffed, "As if. "
"Kane!" Bisa screeched, stepping into the laundry room. Her voice echoed between the walls amplifying her voice. "We need to talk to you!"
"There's no reason to shout, Bisa..." Kojo said, voice a lot quieter.
The sound of a ringing bell reached their ears. "I'm over here." The man responds, not looking up from his task of folding laundry. "If you're concerned about your sister's well-being, then don't be. I can assure you she is fine." Kane dismissed.
"Are we talking about the same, [Y/n]?" Bisa face twisted into a look of annoyance.
"Yes, Bisa, we are." He sighed, placing the towels inside of the nearby basket. "She just needs her space for the day."
"But she's supposed to be up!" Bisa argued. "She needs to be helping us with our project!" She stomped her feet, face turning an interesting shade of red. "It's not fair!" Feeling a tantrum coming along, Kane took a step back.
"Alex!" He called out, not knowing how to deal with the situation.
"What the hell is going on in here?" Alex groaned, sluggishly pulling himself across the room. "I just got [Y/n] out of bed to take a shower."
"[Y/n] is being a terrible teenager!" Bisa shouted. "She's not being responsible and helping us out!"
"What are you talking about?" He questioned, rubbing his forehead trying to soothe his headache.
Since their whole mission Kojo spoke up, "Well, we have a project due next week on the 12th, and [Y/n] promised to help us." He whispered.
"Your project is going to have to wait for a few days." He stated, turning on his heel and making his way out of the room.
"Why does everyone keep running?" Bisa stormed after him, eyes blazing.
Alex stepped into the public house bathroom, locking the door before the twins could step in. "Hey! Let us in you butt weasel!"
Pressing a few buttons on his phone Alex waited for the line to be picked up.
"Come on, old man. I only call you once a month, so pick up for once." Eventually, the line was finally picked up.
"Alexander?"
"Yea, it's me. Liste-"
"You never call me unless it's an emergency. What happened? Are the twins alright?"
"The twins are fine, it's [Y/n]-"
"What happened to, Starlight?! Did she break something?!"
"What? No, listen-"
"Did she catch a fever again? Did you forget the emergency plan? Do I need to come home-"
"Dad! Stop talking for five seconds!" The other line went silent.
"It's October 11th..." It was silent for a few seconds.
"It's...October...11th." His dad repeated, slowly. "THE PLAN!" Alex yanked the phone from his ear wincing.
"¡Dios mío, maldita sea!(1)" He swore.
"I'll be back sometime this afternoon with the stuff! Call over her friends and make sure she doesn't suspect a thing!"
"I will. Bye." He hung up the phone, taking in a deep breath. He opened the bathroom door making the two twins that were pressed against it, trying to listen in.
He stepped over them opening the various cabinets, pulling out a mixture of items. "Can you get me a stick of butter?"
"Will you answer our question first?" Bisa shouted, face becoming bright red.
He rolled his eyes, "Kojo, can you pass me the butter?" He asked. The boy didn't hesitate in passing the unsalted fat.
"Is she mad at us?" Kojo questioned, eyes watering.
"No." He said, calmly pulling on the apron that hung on its hook. "She's not mad at anyone."
"Can you tell us what's the problem then?" Bisa snapped, completely fed up at being left in the dark. "If she isn't mad at us then what's wrong?"
Alex sighed, knowing he couldn't avoid it much longer. "It's her birthday." He admitted. "Before she came here she would celebrate her birthday with her mom."
"Why would she miss her mom?" She asked, disgruntled. "I thought, her mom sent her here like how your mom sent you." She received a glare for her words.
"Unlike us, [Y/n] had a relationship with her mom. As a matter of fact, she had her own life back in America." He stated, stirring the ingredients in the bowl together. "And she just misses her."
"Then why can't she just come to her birthday?" Kojo questioned.
Alex hesitated. "Her mom died back when she was five." He sighed, dumping the ingredients into the bowl. "Our moms had a choice whether or not to keep us. She didn't..."
For once the rather talkative Bisa didn't have anything to say. She bowed her head staring at the ground as she felt guilt creep up her throat. "She should've said something..." She mumbled.
"Did you enjoy the Ferris wheel, Mama?" The girl questioned, watching as her mom's face was deathly green shade.
"It was perfect, Starshine." Her mother covered her mouth, ready to lose her lunch.
[Y/n]'s big [e/c] eyes roamed across the boardwalk, happily munching on her cotton candy. They stopped when seeing the infamous mirror maze.
She tugged at her mom's hand, "Let's go into the mirror maze!"
Her mother paled at the mere thought. "How about we go to the Aquarium?" She suggested, hopeful.
"Hmm, nope!" She tugged harder, making their way to the illusion maze. "Let's go!"
Her body felt heavy, but at the same time weightless. Her mind was foggy, yet waves of throbbing, nauseating pain pulsed through. Her stomach was twisted and folded into knots leaving her appetite gone.
"Meow." Hina loomed over her face and gently licked her nose. Her rough tongue caused a small prickle of pain through her that barely registered in her exhausted mind.
Her fingers touched her soft fur. "Thanks for always being here for me, Hina..."
The cat suddenly pulled away jumping off the bed towards the bedroom door. She pawed at it meowing softly, looking back at her owner with sad big eyes.
She sighed, "I understand you don't want to stay in a stuffy room the whole day." She pulled herself from the comforts of her sheets ignoring her heavy body.
The moment she opened the door she was met with the sight of small cut up stars leading in a path. "Great. Another one of the twins projects." She groaned, following the path.
Stepping into the kitchen the girl had to do a double-take at the completely clean kitchen and with no signs of mess anywhere. "Did Kane already clean?" She looked around, stopping at a single envelope that sat at the table.
She picked up the card first nearly dropping it at the star and moon decorations covering it.
After staring at the envelope for what felt like hours she carefully opened it. Out fell a single card. Flipping it over she read through the words, eyes widening.
"The galaxy revolves around you today. Happy Birthday, Starlight..." Her heart dropped, as she continued to read the letter. "Eat your birthday pancakes and take a step into the night..." Below the words were cute little doodles of balloons, cake, and stars. Various names ranged across the card from family, to classmates, to teachers, to mentors.
What took her breath away was the stick figure drawing that had her multicolored hair and a crown that read 'Birthday Queen'.
A tap on the patios door made her turn towards it in surprise.
Slowly pulling the door opened her whole body was quickly covered in confetti and streamers.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, [Y/N]-CHAN!"
Standing around on the patio was her friends, teachers, and family. The whole deck was covered in lights, balloons, and streamers of all kinds.
On the way back she could see a table set up. Gifts of all shapes and sizes were scattered across it, each one having a sweet message attached to it.
"You guys..."
Before she could stop them she felt her tears began to cascade down her face. They hit the card in her grasp as a small smile came to her face. "...are such idiots..."
1. God damn it!