For Yukino, visiting Ichin's home was nothing special — she had been there countless times and was long used to it.
But today was different. Today, there were things prepared that she had no idea about.
As soon as she stepped inside, she noticed that the room was pitch black — no lights on, and all the curtains in the living room were drawn.
What's going on?
Tilting her head in confusion, Yukino bent down to change her shoes and was just about to call out when suddenly — several heads popped up right in front of her, holding something she recognized.
Pop!
Pop!
"Happy birthday!!!"
The sound of the bursting confetti startled Yukino so much that she froze in place.
Just then, Haruno stepped up beside her, a confetti popper in hand, and gently pulled the string.
Pop!
"Happy birthday, Yukino-chan~~"
That was when Yukino finally snapped out of her daze.
"B–Birthday?"
As the living room lights flicked on, Utaha revealed the beautifully decorated space — the entire room had been transformed into a birthday party scene. On the wall, large balloons spelling out "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" gleamed under the light.
Kō and the others stepped aside as Ichin emerged, carrying a large cake topped with candles.
"Happy birthday, Yukino. Make a wish!"
Yukino blinked in astonishment. Something like this… had never happened to her before.
In past years, her birthday always fell while she was back home in Chiba, so there'd never been a chance for her friends to throw her a party. As for gifts, the last couple of years they had given them either before New Year's or when she returned to Tokyo.
She'd assumed this year would be no different — so she hadn't thought much about it. Never had she expected this.
Looking at the cake and the flickering candles, Yukino opened her mouth slightly, unsure what to do.
Haruno patted her shoulder, smiling.
"Go on — make a wish and blow out the candles."
Led by her sister, Yukino finally stepped forward into the middle of the party.
As soon as she sat down, Eriri plopped a paper birthday crown onto her head.
"Yukino's the star of today — you have to wear this!"
Touching the crown, Yukino's face flushed red.
Everyone gathered around as Ichin placed the cake before her and dimmed the lights.
Utaha smiled and said, "Alright, go on — make your wish and blow them out."
Yukino looked at the candles, then at everyone around her. Smiling softly, she closed her eyes and clasped her hands together.
After about ten seconds, she opened her eyes and blew out the candles shaped like the number "20."
In the past, turning twenty had marked the age of adulthood in Japan — though it had been lowered to eighteen in recent years. Still, even if it no longer carried that same formality, this twentieth birthday was without a doubt the most memorable one Yukino had ever had.
Yukino lowered her hands and looked at everyone, her voice soft but heartfelt.
"Everyone… thank you for preparing all this for me. I'm really happy."
"It's too early to be happy yet!"
Aoba grinned, pulling a small box from behind her back and holding it out.
"Here! Your birthday present!"
"Hey! Aoba, you beat me to it!" another voice cried. "Yukino, this is my gift—take mine first!"
"And mine, mine!"
Before Yukino could even react, everyone began piling their presents in front of her, one after another, until the gifts were stacked in a small mountain before her stunned eyes.
Meanwhile, Utaha had quietly slipped away, only to return from her room with an enormous Mr. Pan body pillow in her arms, which she promptly shoved into Yukino's embrace.
"Of course the first gift you open has to be mine~~"
"Utaha, that's cheating!"
"Wha—! You bought that huge thing? You're totally making the rest of us look bad!"
Utaha just ignored their protests and sat down triumphantly.
Yukino, clutching the giant panda pillow, froze for a few seconds — it was like her breath had stopped.
"Mr… Mr. Pan!"
With a delighted gasp, she buried her face into the pillow and took a few deep breaths like she was inhaling pure happiness.
Nearly a minute later, she finally lifted her head and looked at Utaha, her cheeks pink.
"Thank you, Utaha-senpai. I really love it!"
"As long as you like it." Utaha propped her chin on one hand, smiling smugly. "It took me quite a bit of effort and some connections to get that pillow. Right, Ichin? You should take out the one you prepared too. I saw you sneaking around this morning after shopping—don't think I didn't notice. You must've gotten something else, right?"
"Ha, I knew I couldn't hide it from you."
Ichin shrugged and pulled a small, palm-sized wrapped box from his pocket, setting it down in front of Yukino.
"Utaha told me that baking the cake was enough, but after thinking about it this morning, I decided to prepare a little extra. Go on, open it."
Just as Yukino was about to pick it up, Nene immediately reached out to stop her.
"Hold it! That's not fair! We gave our gifts first, so ours should be opened first!"
But before she could argue further, Umiko grabbed her from behind and pulled her into a hug.
"Don't fuss. What difference does the order make? Besides, Ichin's family with her — it's only natural she opens his first."
With Umiko holding her in place, Nene went quiet right away and nodded obediently.
Everyone silently gave Umiko a thumbs-up.
Impressive. Truly impressive.
With no more objections, Yukino picked up Ichin's gift and carefully unwrapped it.
Inside was a small box from a niche but high-end Japanese accessory brand. The moment they saw the logo, Aoba, Nene, and Iijima Yun — all of whom loved fashion trinkets — had their eyes light up.
Yukino clearly recognized the brand too, and with a hint of excitement, opened the box.
Inside lay a beautiful hair clip with a cat motif, gleaming softly against the black velvet interior.
"Ohhh!!! That's adorable!" Yun exclaimed, leaning closer with envy. "Wait, isn't that one of the upcoming animal-series hair clips for the spring release? Ichin-kun, how'd you even get one?!"
"Pretty much the same as Utaha — pulled a few strings," Ichin admitted. "Got lucky, too. Akane happens to know someone from that brand and helped me get one early."
After grocery shopping that morning, he'd sat in the car searching for a perfect gift for Yukino. When he found this one, he knew it was right — and thanks to his connections, he managed to snag it early.
The moment Yukino saw the hair clip, she picked it up immediately, gazing at it for a long while before fastening it into her hair. She didn't wear clips often, but every now and then she liked changing her style.
"Thank you, Onii-san. I really, really love it!" she said with a bright smile.
Watching the joy on Yukino's face as she compared Ichin's and Utaha's gifts, Haruno quietly puffed out her cheeks on the side.
Great… her real sister's gift just got outclassed.
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