~26th - 27th February~
Despite not knowing why your entire body tensed up. As if someone or something was coming. You had lived in Wakanda for eight months now and even stood by T'Challa when Killmonger had gotten here. You knew the country like the palm of your hand and found it peaceful, so why were you tensing up?
A hand touched your shoulder and you quickly turned around, grabbing them in the movement and judo-flipped them onto the grass beneath you. Only to realize that you knew the person.
"What the hell were you thinking? Sneaking up on me like that?" you asked Ned as you helped him up from the ground while M.J tried not to laugh.
"I realize now that it had been a bad choice, but we wanted to surprise you!"
"How did you two even find out?" you asked with a sigh. You never told anyone about this day, your birthday. Despite what your public past says, you hated being in the center of attention and hadn't told anyone here or in New York about it. Only people who had known you since birth knew the date.
"Well, we were hanging out at Peter's..." M.J slapped his arm and he yelped while you sighed. Peter.
For the first month and a half, you had sent him voicemails almost every day, but he didn't answer. Whenever you visited New York, he was conveniently busy and he never visited you here. It took you a while to get used to the fact that he didn't want anything to do with you, but even now when you had, your friends tried not to talk about him with you.
"It's fine. You guys can say his name. Just tell me how you found out."
"Well, as I was saying, we were hanging out at his place and May was making small talk when she decided to ask us something. Are you guys going to do something with Y/N for her birthday? apparently Happy had told her so she told us the date." he explained and you groaned, what a traitor Happy was. Normally, he was one of the most loyal people alive, but not now apparently.
"How could you not tell us about your birthday?!" M.J asked and you sighed.
"Because I don't want it to be a big thing. I don't like it, never have, never will. I like to pretend it is just any other day of the year." you said before hearing someone clear their throat behind you.
"What would you like to be just any day?" Shuri asked and you turned to her with a sigh.
"Nothing-"
"Tomorrow is her birthday," M.J said and you sent her a glare before turning to Shuri, who looked offended.
"It is your birthday soon and you didn't tell me?"
"I know right, she didn't tell us either," M.J said and you groaned. Now they were making it an even bigger deal. It wasn't that special, you were only turning sixteen. "Sweet sixteen", more like hell on earth. Why did they make such a big deal of people's sixteenth birthday?
"I didn't want anyone to know because it isn't that big of a deal. Can we please just... keep this under the radar?" you asked before noticing that T'Challa had joined the group.
"Keep what under the radar?
"Oh for fu..."
***
All you had wanted was a calm day, nothing big. Maybe chilling in your PJs and watch some Netflix. But no, because as soon as T'Challa found out Ramonda found out, then Okoye and before you knew it, everyone knew.
To make matters worse, T'Challa and Ramonda decided to make it a bigger deal than it is by hosting a fucking ball. A ball to celebrate your birthday, the complete opposite of what you wanted.
"I'm sorry I told them, I really didn't think this would happen," M.J said as the two of you got ready.
Shuri told you she would make sure you both got dresses you would like, which meant neither of you had a say in what you would wear. While it turned out she has a great sense of style, it felt so formal. Weird in comparison to the casual attire you normally would have. But you got dressed nonetheless, covering the scars on your arm with makeup.
M.J's dress and hair
Your dress + hair (Hair below dress picture and dress is in your favorite color)
Once you both were dressed, you linked your arms together and walked out, both feeling nothing but nervosity. But neither of you let it show and walked through the door to the ballroom with your heads high.
The ballroom was huge, massive. It was beautiful, modern yet fashionable old. How they had gotten it so festive in twenty-four hours was beyond you.
"Y/N!" Shuri called from across the room and you both walked over, trying your best to ignore the gazes on you.
"Shuri, don't you think you and your family went a bit overboard?"
"Maybe, but considering how gorgeous you look, I am not about to apologize," she said and you sighed, turning around and eyeing the room for Ned. He stood at the opposite side of the room, steadily making his way over to you three.
"You two look great, I don't think I've ever seen you wear a dress Y/N." he joked and you smiled.
"And I have never seen you in anything that isn't topped by a hoodie, yet here we are," you said and he chuckled, looking behind you and seeing Shuri.
"You look as beautiful as always." He had always had a playful flirting relationship, although you don't think either of them really likes each other that way.
"And you look handsome, as alw..." she got cut off by an explosion, coming from the wall furthest from you. You quickly twirled to grab both of your friends and look them in the eyes as you said;
"M.J, take Ned to my room and don't come out until I come over and tell you it's safe, understood?"
"What about you?" they asked in one mouth and you sighed.
"I've been through worse, now go!" they both hurried away and you turned to Shuri. "Could you alarm others, I have a feeling it is a small group so if we could surround them..."
"On it." she turned to leave, but stopped and grabbed your arm. "Be careful." you nodded with a small smile before grabbing the hem of your dress and holding it up slightly as you ran towards the hole in the wall.
"Let's have a ball, they said. It will be fun, they said."
1174 words
In comparison to the other ones, this one has action right away, which is interesting to write. What do you think about Ned and Shuri's relationship? Is that something you'd like to see as more than just stupid jokes?
- A/N