The Ocean

Chapter 12

"Happy Birthday, Raymond!" Serena said, smiling at me.

"You do remember that I told you to call me just 'Ray', right?" I said, trying to hide how happy I was.

"Well, I can't seem to get enough of your annoyed face, you know." she said, laughing.

That smile always seemed to melt me down. The way she laughed was just.. out of the world. I just couldn't get enough of her.

Snap out of it, you idiot! I said to myself as I came back to reality. That was a close one.

"You actually remembered?" I asked her, kind of nervous.

"Well, of course I did." she said, moving a little closer.

"I don't know what to say.. we lost contact cuz of me. I'm sorry."

"You idiot!" she said as she gently hit my head, "Stop it! It's your birthday, dude! Just chill and enjoy!"

"Yeah," I said as I felt a smile come upon my face, "You're right."

"Well, you see.." she reached out for something in her pocket. "I got you a gift." She then took out a small, flat box-like thing from her pocket. It was gift-wrapped in red glowing sheet of paper, and though small, it meant a lot to me.

"You what-- wait.. you seriously got me a gift?" I didn't know what to say.

"Of course I did. Now take it!" she said, thrusting it in my hands. She then looked at me and ran away suddenly. I think I got a look at her face before she ran off.

Was she really blushing?

...

The gift that Serena had given me was a fidget spinner. A glossy, three sided, pink one.

Pink? Hah... Could she get any more girly? Even I knew that I liked it very much. Spinners were in the trend those days, like everyone had one. But my parents didn't really see it as a useful thing and hence I didn't have one. Serena knew what would make me happy.

But that wasn't it. It was something else that made me happy. Something I knew very well. I think I almost felt my eyes get wet.

...

In the second break, I tried to search for Serena but she was nowhere to be found. Nevertheless, I just roamed around the school. Then suddenly I felt another familiar voice call out to me. I turned around and it was him.

Peter.

Bastard. He has the audacity to show up like this after all he had done?

"Hey!" he said. He had something in his hand. Sort of a paper. Did I even care?

"Sup?" I said with a smug look.

"Look at you, all grown up!" he said throwing a hand over my shoulder.

"Well, it's not even been a year since we last talked. Jerk." I said. Grown up? The hell?

"Haha.. you sure grew up a year!"

I was kinda surprised that he even came to wish me. Like man, he actually remembered?

"You remembered?" I asked, trying not to show how surprised I was.

"Well, yeah I did!" he said as he gave me that paper thing. It was a letter. For me.

We talked for a while and he left. I opened the letter and read it. It was touching. He had written so many things, so many things from our childhood. All the silly things we had done. All the memories we had.

Maybe this birthday wasn't the worst afterall.