My birthday party is in full swing. There's drinks and dips, games and laughter. It's being held at Tess' house because when mum came from home from work last time she'd taken one look at the state of the living room and kitchen and told me I was never to hold such an impromptu do again. Then she saw my bedroom and lets just say- it wasn't pretty. Shit went down...
Anyway, that was last month. Right now is my birthday party. It feels a lot more crowded than it is with all my group and a few other stragglers all being jammed into Tess' garage. There's a small table set up for presents, at the sight of the small pile my heart lifts and a childish smile lights my face. I can't wait to open those.
"Oi. Smelly. Eyes off the presents." Will snaps his fingers in front of my face and I flinch back then poke my tongue out at him. He grins wickedly back. "You're going to love this."
The room is plunged into darkness, I scream at the top of my lungs, expecting the same reaction from every other person in the room. But no. By the time I've shut up I realise that no-one else is screaming.
"Well this is awkward." I comment to the people that I can't see anymore. There are titters of laughter.
Suddenly the door leading into Tess' house swings wide open, the doorway filled with blinding golden light that silhouettes Tess' body and a massive looking thing in front of her. The door swings shut behind her with a dramatic slam. It's only then that I notice there are 18 lit candes on top of the white cream and gold dusted mass, which means- my eyes fly wide open- that is my cake!?
My theory is further supported by a small clearing between me and the "cake" (try mountain) and everyone bursting into a rousing and lively rendition of what I think is 'Happy Birthday' but sounds more like the caterwauling of dying ally cats. I laugh with delight as I near the cake.
This has got to be one of the best birthdays ever!
The singing- thank god- finally stops and I lean in to blow out the candles, sucking in a huge breath, putting on a show for the cameras all around.
Without any warning whatsoever, my cake explodes.
No joke.
There are bits of cake everywhere. My face, for example, is caked in cake, no pun intended.
The breath that I'd just taken in? Yeah, that's released in a short scream that has me stumbling backwards. I shake my head once, twice, three times. I rub my eyes. I look on, slack-jawed, at what remains of my cake.
There is a man standing in my cake. In my cake. He's wearing nothing but a gold leather thong. And he's standing in my cake.
He. Is. Gorgeous.
His dark skin glitters with gold shimmer. He looks like midnight on a moonless starry night. That's what is standing in my cake.
The Midnight Man in the gold thong has a body that belongs in an Abercrombie and Fitch magazine. I'd eat cake off his body... but I guess that's the idea when you're best friends buy you a stripper cake for your 18th.
"I'm guessing you're the birthday girl." His sexy gravelly voice has half the girls in the room swooning.
I, naturally, blush like I've never blushed in my life. Me, Melanie, the girl who simply doesn't blush. I'm making a tomato look pale right now.
Tess decides to make a re-appearance at this point, grabbing my arm and shoving me forwards.
"Hell yeah this is the birthday girl!"
Her proclamation is met with cheers from everyone else as I collide with his solid muscle physique.
"Well then, Mel, I have been a very bad boy recently..." He smirks down at me.
ΔΙΑΒΑΖΕΙΣ
Behind the Cherry Tree, A Not-So-Short Story
ΡομαντικήMel and Mike met as toddlers in the playground. One thing lead to another and they became unlikely best friends, quite the reverse of their parents feelings- which are something more along the lines of the hatred shared in Romeo and Juliet. But fear...
