Happy Birthday Little One!

Good Morning Gorgeous Birthday Girl!

"Good morning gorgeous birthday girl," his familiar voice whispered in my ear around noon that Saturday morning. His cool breath was close enough to my ear so that it tickled me softly, and I giggled when I felt a warm rough tongue lapping over my cold tootsies, which were sticking out the end of the cream duvet.

"Alf!" I laughed, still half asleep, "What have I told you about licking my toes  in  the mornings?"

He laughed a hearty laugh,  throwing his head back the way he always did, as our crazy baby girl came bouncing up to us. I was pretty sure she was hyperactive.

He kissed me on the forehead and wrapped his arms around my shoulders affectionately. I  couldn't  think of a more perfect way to spend the morning of my 25th birthday, all snuggled up with my baby girl and  baby boy.

Alfie cuddled me close whilst I lay my head on his chest, listening to his strong, reassuring heart beat and feeling his soft warmth radiate on to my mind and body. We lay there happily in silence for five minutes. We hadn't a need to speak, since there were no words to describe what we were feeling. We both just lay there peacefully, listening to the rhythm of each other's perfectly relaxed breathing, feeling each other's steady heart beats. And all I could think about was him. Alfie Sydney Deyes. Pointless Blog. My best friend. My boyfriend. How we had met  through YouTube. How our  relationship had flourished and how we had bonded. The first time he said 'I love you.'. How special he was. How much I loved him. How lucky I was to have him standing by my side through all of my good and bad moments. He was mine. I couldn't live without  him.

I  took a mental image of this lovely moment and locked it away at the back of my mind to cherish forever. I could have stayed contentedly like this for the rest of my life without a care in  the world. In my own happy place,  with my other half holding me close to him, and Nala sandwiched excitedly in between us.

I sighed happily.

Abruptly, Alfie untangled himself from our little web of snuggles and, as a consequence, he received two pairs of wide puppy eyes, intended for guilt so that he would climb back in with us.

"I'll be back in a minute, baby girl," he reassured us.

Unsure if he was talking to me or Nala, I asked him playfully.

"Both. I promise, it'll be worth it," he said, with a cheeky smile and what I  think was meant to be a mysterious look, although it looked more like he was had a dodgy squint in his left eye .

I laughed at him as he walked out the door and closed it behind him, wondering what was so important that he had been able to walk way just like that. I grabbed my phone from the bedside table and slipped underneath  the stuffy covers. Nala followed  me under and gave me lots of birthday kisses as I checked social media.  I scrolled through seemingly endless edits and tweets and quotes and messages, replying to all that I could. Although it would take me hours, I felt guilty that I couldn't  reply to every single one of them, telling  them how much I loved and  appreciated them. Because I truly did. If it wasn't for my lovely, devoted fans, I wouldn't be where I was today. I would probably still be working in retail, unhappy as I used to be. I wouldn't have my job or beauty range. I wouldn't have my house. I wouldn't have half of  all my amazing friends. And most of all, I wouldn't have Alfie. So that was why, when I was walking through the lanes and I was stopped by people asking for selfies  or autographs, even on the days where I was running late or feeling anxious, never ever in a million years would i say 'no'. Because my fans were the reason for everything. They were what kept me going. And I loved them so much.

As I scrolled through more and more messages, I literally felt like I was about to explode with happiness. The warm fuzzy feeling I had inside was only made stronger when a tweet popped up from Louise.

Happy birthday Chummy! Love you a lorra lorra lot! Just a shame I won't get to see you ;) xxx

I sighed. It certainly was a shame. The only people who lived near us were Anna and Jonathon, who had the most gorgeous kids ever,  Amelia and Eduardo. And although Alfie and I loved them lots, we constantly found ourselves missing Jim and Tan, Matt and Louise. There were so many other friends of ours, not all YouTubers, that we didn't get to see that often. 

'It would be  so nice," I thought, "if we could all just get together and have a great time,"

Imagine. All of my wonderful, crazy friends under one roof. Now, that would be amazing.

I heard a door creak open, and Alfie's big,  soft footsteps coming towards me. I peaked my head over the covers to see him carrying a tray which held a mug of hot, milky tea made in my favourite mug. But the real focal point was a large white plate stacked sky-high with pancakes, topped with maple syrup and berries galore. Saliva flooded my mouth as he placed it on my lap and climbed back in with me. I licked my lips and he grinned widely.

"Tuck in," he said smugly.

It took all the will power had to place them on hold for a second, retrieving my phone from under the quilt and positioning the tray on my pillow.

"Hang on," I said, as Alfie looked confused, "This so going on Instagram,"

"In that case, you may want to include this in your photo," he beamed, reaching into his bottom bedside drawer and pulling out a small, slim parcel. It was "wrapped", if you can call it that, in rose gold paper with what looked like an attempt at a baby pink bow tied around it.

I couldn't help but  chuckle a little at the wrapping attempt. Alfie hid his head in his hands. He was adorable when he was  embarrassed.

"I know, I know," he groaned into his palms, "Wrapping  skills on fleek..." 

I gently lifted his hands away from his face, kissing him lightly on the cheek.

"It's perfect," I whispered, "Just like you,"

After taking a few pictures and uploading the  to the good ol' Instagram,  I devoured my pancakes in about two seconds flat, while Alfie tried and failed to distract Nala from my yummy breakfast with a squeaky toy. However, after holding her hostage proved inefficient, he ended up locking her outside the door until I had finished. Listening to her scratching and whining at the door, I had to wonder who missed Alfie more when she was away from him, me or Nala?

When I had finished, I lay there blissfully sipping my tea, and Alfie went to get Nala back. She bounced in so excitedly, that her little legs couldn't keep up with her body, and she toppled over, adorably dazed. Alfie cradled her and placed her on my lap, where she scuttled  up to my face and licked me to death. 

Just as my eager fingers were about to open the present, Alfie  whipped it swiftly away from me.

"Nope," he smiled smugly as he put it in his back pocket, "Not opening that one until  later, I'm afraid, Little One,"

"What?" I moaned, as the inner grumpy-teenager emerged from within me for a second, "That is so unfair!"

I could tell from me expression on his face that he felt triumphant, so when he beckoned me to the door I shook my head and giggled. "Not moving till I get to open that present," 

"Fine, have it your way,"  he said, walking towards me.

And before I knew it, he had scooped me up as easy as he had done with Nala and was walking be out the door and down the stairs as I batted him playfully.

"Alfie!" I laughed, " Put me down! It's my birthday, you have to do what I say!  Put me down right now,  Alfalfa!"

We were at the kitchen doorway and I couldn't stop laughing. Without a word, Alfie pressed his soft, warm lips against mine. Without breaking our kiss, he put me back on two feet, slipped his arms around my waist and gently pulled me closer. My hands ran through his thick, dark hair and moved down to cup his face. When eventually had to come  up  for air, I stood on tiptoes to make  the  kiss last that second longer. He laughed softly and rested his chin on my my head, eyes closed. I pressed my face into his warm chest, inhaling deeply.

"I love you, Alfie,"

"I love you, Zoe,"