I Like Myself When I'm With You

Part Two

After being forced to work overtime, I dragged my legs through the street, dreadfully walking home with the weight of disappointment clinging to me in every step. The echoes of an underwhelming birthday followed me suit like shadows, sticking to me with every move I made, not wanting to go away.

As I walked down the quiet and poorly lit streets just a few hours shy of midnight, I realized that my birthday was coming to an end. Upon my sudden realization, it made me determined to make the most out of the dwindling moments, and I began wondering about what token of self-acknowledgment I could get before the clock officially struck twelve, turning the day into a new one.

Just a little something to treat myself I guess. A self-reward thing. Or whatever that people would generally do when they try to make themselves feel better after a crappy day.

Perhaps a dessert? I wondered to myself, silently. I'm not looking forward to celebrating my boring existence right now, but I'm sure it wouldn't hurt to enjoy a sweet treat once in a while. I mean, who could resist a delicious dessert after a long, crappy, tiring day at work, right? At the end of the day, I deserve it. Especially after working hard on the same piece of work for three days in a row, no thanks to my project leader from the darkest pits of hell, P' Lisa.

As I was lost in my own thoughts with my mind aimlessly wandering thinking about food, a sudden aroma of freshly baked goods filled the air and entered my nose. I couldn't resist the warm, inviting scent that wafted towards me from the nearby bakery, nestled right in the corner of the street. Seemingly answering the question that I had lingering in my mind about treating myself with desserts, it looked like I was in for a surprising treat. Approaching my steps closer towards its direction, I noticed that the bakery was still open despite its later hours.

A bakery?

That is open after 10 PM?

That's rare.

"I never realized that there's a bakery located here," I muttered to myself, glancing left and right along the familiar street I treaded daily to work. "How did I miss a bakery that opens at night? And how come I have never noticed it during the day?" I shook my head. I swear I had never seen it before, and suddenly it appeared on my street like it was magic. With a deep sense of intrigue, I kept on walking.

Oddly enough, it feels like the universe is nudging me to grab a dessert, challenging me to embrace the remaining spontaneity left in my day. The delightful scent of freshly baked bread wafts through the air, luring my senses and gently guiding me towards its main source. Feeling the sudden urgency to mark the last-minute occasion and enticed by the delightful aroma of bread, I succumbed to the temptation and opted for a quick visit to the bakery.

As the automated doors slid open at the entrance of the quaint bakery, my eyes were fixated on a small cake positioned enticingly in a glass display located by the counter. It bore the lively features of Spiderman, with his iconic face crafted from vibrant red and black icing. The cake took the form of a perfectly contoured oval, circling the head of the charming neighborhood hero. The drawn image was also tastefully centered, with Spiderman's iconic webbed mask spanning the entire cake surface, layered above blue icing designed like a web. The mask was drawn well, too. It wasn't like one of those tacky cakes at kid parties where the animated characters can come off as botched or weird. This one was rather nice, and it wasn't expensive either.

A subtle smile played on my lips as I examined the cake up close, appreciating its neat simplicity. It lacked the thick frosting and intricate fondant designs that often adorned cakes, and there were no fruits in sight too; something that often interrupts the design of the cake and makes it distasteful. The Spiderman cake, although evidently meant for a child, truly embodied the kind of minimalistic style and fun aesthetic that appealed to me personally.