(This is Sophia's first birthday celebrating with Kyle)
Kyle's POV
Yeah I'm a man crazy in love with my woman.
Why you may ask? Isn't it obvious? ITS SOPHIA OFC I AM CRAZY ABOUT HER.
But what is so special right now? Her birthday is coming up in a few weeks time. I know there's a lot of time to prepare but I can't stay still, I have to start preparing now.
What flavor cake does she like? Does she enjoy parties? Should I book a whole club? Take her on a yacht? Take her to Paris?
Hmmm....AAAH CLAIRE IS THE ONE I SHOULD ASK. Yes. Lemme just ask her to meet me.
"Hey Claire, are you free right now? I need some advice from you".
"Oh hey Kyle! Of course, I'll be in front of your office in 10 minutes"
"Sounds good".
-
"Okay so what do you want? Is it about Sophs?" She asks and I nod.
"Can you tell me what she likes for her birthday?. I wanna make it special for her".
Claire suddenly had a small sad smile at that. "I guess you don't know this fact about her huh?" She asks, making me more confused.
"What do you mean?" I ask.
"I'll tell ya what I mean. Let's sit". We take our seats in the cafeteria.
"Kyle....Sophia isn't very fond of birthdays at all. If anything, she....sort of hates it". My eyes widen at that statement.
"We both know her childhood wasn't the best at all. Every year she had a sad face because of what kept happening at home. Those two dead bastards always said how cursed she is and that her being here is useless. We practically had to drag her to our secret spot so we could cut the cake".
My heart started to get heavy as Claire told me why Sophia never liked birthdays.
"On her 17th birthday, we found her crying in the school basement. We had kept a small cupcake for her which she tried to eat but she was having a breakdown. She tried her best to eat it with a smile but....."
"You know the worst part? We don't even know if her birthday is her real birthday". She says, making my eyes widen.
"What do you mean by that?"
"You know....the truth we all got to know after you both returned back to DC...."
My hands clenched till my knuckles turned white. Then I dared to ask another question.
"What about....the years when we...I mean when I went back to Japan?"
Claire sighed once again. "She completely gave up on celebrating. All she did was kill, come home and sleep. Then repeat. She didn't listen to us. No matter how much we tried. She forgot that she has a special day but she told us that it was of no use since the special person she wanted to celebrate it with was no longer there with her-
"Hey guys, what are you doing here?" It was Sophia. Claire suddenly stopped and got up to hug her.
"Eeeek! My black panther! I was gonna visit you when I bumped into Kyle. Come onn we both gotta get you that new white suit which you wanted!".
"Come on Claire you don't have to-
"Shut up, we ARE GONNA GET THAT SUIT NO MATTER WHAT. Hey Kyle, Imma steal my bestie for sometime". She signaled me to agree with her which I obviously did. I...I needed time to process all that.
"Of course. Enjoy snowflake, I'll see you at home. I love you". I move forward and bring her close to me and I instantly felt her snuggle into me. Claire had a soft smile looking at her.
Soon both of them left and I was....still processing a lot. And damn did I blame myself again for it. Of course I did. What an idiot I was. It's almost as if I destroyed the last bit of happiness for her.
What kind of a monster I was back then?
No. I'm not gonna let her think about her birthday like that. She needs to know how special she is to me. That how grateful I and for her being in this world and that she is a blessing in my life.
I need to do something very important now.
So that I can make up for my idiotic mistakes.
I go inside the office and enter Tyler's cabin. "Hey Ty, I need your help".
-
"Please guys, I need you to help me out with this one". I request Ryan, Ash and Claire.
"I don't know Kyle....we don't wanna upset Sophia but we understand your side too". Ash says making me sigh. I know that I'm literally making a decision which might cause a fight but I really don't want to give up right now.
"It's all part of the surprise. I need you to distract her the entire day. You guys can take her out for lunch while I prepare a small candlelight dinner. I promise I won't go overboard and overwhelm her. Please....I want to make up for my mistakes..."
All of them had a look of sympathy on their faces. I know I can do this at anytime of the year but it's her birthday for fucks sake. How can I let her feel that her special day isn't worth it?
"Alright, We'll keep her busy till then, text us when you're ready so we can drop her back". Claire says to which I let out a sigh of relief.
"Also Kyle...thank you so much for telling us this. You're really a good man for our tiger. You told us a really important thing about her and we're grateful you didn't hide it from us". Ash says with a soft smile.
"Thanks guys...thanks for giving me a chance".
-
Oh god why am I feeling so nervous? It's not like we never had dinner together before. But this time it's different. I can feel my insides coiling as I patiently waited for her to come to the rooftop of the hotel where I planned this dinner.
Message notification from Ryan :
Hey, we just dropped her in front of the hotel.
I text back with an okay. Here it is, Kyle, make it up for being an absolute idiot. It was going to be midnight in 40 minutes and her birthday too. Please let it go smoothly.
I have a big surprise for her. I don't know if she's gonna appreciate it or not but something tells me that she will. She needs to know this. And damn did this take so much energy.
Soon I saw the door opening and her entering the rooftop and god dammit, she looked breathtaking as always. Her hair was all fluffed up as she wore her simple cargo pants with an oversized hoodie. Even in such simple outfits, she looked so mesmerizing.
She was visibly surprised to see me here. To keep her comfortable, I was too wearing a pair of baggy jeans, a shirt and a denim jacket.
"Kyle? What's all this for?" She asks as she comes near me. I didn't waste a second and scooped her in my arms, inhaling her calming scent.
"I missed you so much baby". I whisper, feeling her wrap her arms around me and snuggled close. Dammit no where in this world I can find this level of peace. No where. She's my comfort.
"I missed you too silly". I felt her smile against me, felt her recharging me and felt her making my world light up even more. She pulls back slightly, feeling confused.
"Why didn't you tell me about this? I could've dressed better". She complains cutely to which I couldn't help but chuckle.
"You look pretty all the time snowflake". There goes that sweet blush on her cheeks. She playfully hits my chest, "you're so cheesy Kyle". She says.
Damn right I'm cheese for her.
Okay this was it. I have to properly apologize.
"Sophia....I want to celebrate your birthday with you". I finally let it out and she looks visibly shocked. I can tell she didn't expect this at all.
"Before you say anything, I want you to know that your birthday is like a day of blessing for me, because that's the day you were born and how can I ever think of it as a curse when my only source of happiness was born?"
"K-Kyle...." Her lips trembled as she tried to keep her gaze at me.
"Please snowflake....give me a chance to prove myself. I want to makeup for all those years we were away from each other, not just those years, even the coming ones, every lifetime for eternity...."
She was flabbergasted to say the least. I was feeling afraid now. Was this too much for her? Suddenly I saw her let out a sob.
"S-Snowflake! What's wrong?! I'm so sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable....I-I was just-
She instantly hugged me tight, lightly sobbing as she held onto me. "K-Kyle....P-Please...p-please d-don't leave..." she begged.
"Shhh baby, I'll never ever leave you. I'm really sorry for bringing this up...it's just-
"N-No it's not that....I-I forgot about that long back....it's something else..."
I didn't even think twice before lifting her up and bringing her to the couch and placing her on my lap as she tightly held onto me. She was breathing heavily as she tried to control her sobs.
"What is it baby?" Gently whispering into her ears, I kept my arms around her. She felt so....small in my arms. Even though physically she is so strong, she feels so soft and that made me realize one thing.
Not every strong looking person has a strong heart.
After a few minutes, she lightly hiccups and sniffles, her cheeks are blotchy with tear stains and there's a pink flush on her cheeks. I start kissing her forehead, then cheeks, then eyes, then nose and finally a small peck on her cherry lips.
"Snowflake? You ready to talk about it?" I wasn't gonna be disappointed if she said no. There must be a really strong reason for such a breakdown. I wasn't gonna feel bad if she says no.
"It's n-not about us being apart". She softly starts. I wait for her to continue as she gulps and breathes heavily.
"E-ever since I-I got to know that m-my real parents w-were killed on my birthday....it's been so tough to even think a-about celebrating it. At first...it felt worthless because of those two...but now it feels painful to even smile..." she lets out a choked sob and snuggles closer to me.
My heart started to throb with pain. How did I not notice the amount of pain she's carrying. What kind of a man am I? Not even noticing how broken she is..
"T-the worst part is....I don't even know if my birthday is my real one....I don't know anything about my real parents....I-I d-don't even know where their resting place is....h-how c-can I-I celebrate it k-knowing t-that t-they were brutally k-killed o-on the day I-I was born...."
She cries into my neck as her tears wet my skin but I couldn't care about that. My eyes started to sting as tears accumulated but I had to control myself. I couldn't fall weak right now, because I have to stay strong for her.
So that I can be her pillar.
"Snowflake....look at me". She hesitates for a moment but looks at me.
"The start was horrible. Very horrible. I so badly wish I could change things but it's just not possible. What I can truly say with my whole heart is that your parents are so proud of you. Despite going through hell, you made it out strong. That's what they must've imagined for you....to always be compassionate and strong".
She stares at me with those pearly eyes, lips trembling as a tear trickles down her cheek which I wipe away with my finger and cup her face. She sinks into my touch, taking all the warmth.
"They're still in your heart baby. You may not know them but the fact you still think about them just shows how powerful the connection is. They're watching us from the heavens....they're showering their blessings from there. Don't you think it's gonna hurt them if you think so negatively about the day they brought such a gentle soul on this earth?"
"I-I'm....I-...." She tries to say something but couldn't. I nuzzle into her face and rub our noses to which she lets out a small giggle. Such a sweet voice.
"B-But m-my real birthday-
"Here, open this". I take the envelope from the table and give it to her. She looks at me with confusing red eyes but I smile at her in reassurance.
She opens the envelope with trembling hands and opens the page. After reading it, she lets out a loud gasp.
"K-kyle...t-this...
"Your real birthday baby, the day your parents brought an angel to this world and that angel is in my arms".
I took Tyler's help in finding out the hospital where Sophia's mum had given birth to her. It was a tedious task but anything for my snowflake. She deserves to know her true identity and not live with a fake one.
She instantly hugs me with all her energy and sobs once again. This time I let my tears flow freely as I tighten my arms around her. It felt like I was atoning for all my sins. One smile on her face and I feel like I've won in life.
"T-thank you so much K-Kyle..T-Thank y-you so much! H-how can I ever repay y-you f-for this?" She sobs. I bring her away from my neck and look into her teary eyes.
"Just you being in my life is more than enough. Please stay with me forever and for eternity, that's all I ask for".
Suddenly she leans in and gently kisses me. Closing my eyes, I feel our tears mixing in our kiss. Every kiss with her is electrifying, every moment with her is like living in paradise.
Every second with her feels like a part of me is healing.
Pulling away from the kiss, I press our foreheads and whisper.
"Happy birthday baby, I love you so much".
It was midnight, her birthday. Her real birthday. She no longer has to celebrate a fake one. Finally she can start embracing her special day.
"Thank you so much Kyle, I love you so much....Thank you for this gift".