Chapter 12: Happy Birthday
ELENA
Four years. That was how long it had been since I had celebrated anything. A birthday.
A normal day. A moment where people gathered together for something other than survival. I stood there quietly, watching everyone prepare. This is my first birthday celebration in four years. The thought should have made me happy. But instead… Something twisted painfully inside my stomach. Nowella. My little sister.
I closed my eyes for a second. I suddenly remembered something that hurt more than I expected. I never celebrated her birthday. Not once. She is twelve now.
But once… She was eight. She was just a little girl who deserved a cake, presents, laughter, and someone telling her how special she was. But we didn't have that.
We were too busy surviving. Too busy hiding. Too busy making sure we didn't become the next victims. And when we reached the Reestablishment… That was taken away too. Our identities. Our names.
Our lives. There was no celebration there.
No birthdays. No happiness. Only numbers. Only orders. Only survival.
I blinked, forcing myself back to reality.
The memories faded. The present returned. Everyone was preparing around me. The dining area was filled with people setting food on the table. Emma was in the drawing room, carefully placing decorations on the walls. I looked around.
This was Ian’s house. And I realized something. My house and his were almost identical in structure. Both had stairs leading upstairs. Both had only one bedroom. Downstairs had the dining area connected to the drawing room. The kitchen was on the right side. A common bathroom sat beside it. But despite being built the same… They felt completely different. My house was… Normal. That was probably the word. It had white stairs.
Blue and cream colored walls. A simple, comfortable design. But Ian’s house… It felt alive. Warm. Peaceful. The entire house had a different atmosphere. The walls had a wooden appearance, giving the place a natural feeling. Warm lights covered the ceiling. Small spotlights followed the staircase. The wooden stairs combined with the soft lighting made the whole place feel like somewhere you could finally breathe after a terrible day. Even the kitchen was different. Cream. Beige.
A little white. White cabinets. Warm lighting again. I almost smiled. This boy is obsessed with warm lighting. But honestly… I understood why. It made the place feel safe. Human. Comforting. My eyes moved toward the drawing room. The wall there was completely empty. A large square space. Unlike my house, where there was a television on the wall. Here…
There was nothing. Just a blank space surrounded by the wooden walls. It felt strange. Like it was waiting for something.
A television. A painting. Maybe a portrait.
Something to fill the emptiness. But I didn't think much about it. My thoughts drifted upstairs. What does his bedroom look like?
I immediately stopped myself. I shook my head slightly. What am I even thinking?
Instead, I looked around again. Ian grew up here. He didn't just live here. He made it home. Maybe one day… I could do that too.
Maybe one day, after I found Nowella… I could fix my own house. Make it feel alive.
I clenched my fists. I will find you. I had to.
Then another thought came. Maybe Ian’s house reflected him. From the outside…
He seemed solid. Strong. Unbreakable.
But inside… He was warm. Kind. Peaceful.
Everything I had seen from him proved that. He was funny. Calm. He helped people even when he was injured himself.
He was probably around 5'11. Strong. Masculine. The kind of person who stood in front of danger without thinking twice.
But maybe… Behind all of that… He was just a kid. A kid who needed someone to hug him too. Someone who told him it was okay to be tired. I blinked. “HEY!” The sudden voices pulled me out of my thoughts. Valery and Diana were staring at me. “Are you helping us or not?” I realized I had been standing there completely still.
Like a statue. “Oh…” I immediately looked embarrassed. “I’m sorry. Yes, tell me what to do.” Valery smiled. “Emma already finished the decorations.” Diana pointed toward the table. “And we wrapped the gifts.” I looked. My eyes widened. There were so many flowers. At least seventy bouquets. Maybe more. Most of them were flowers. But there were thirteen wrapped gifts. I knew who they were from Thomas , the doc , the two girls and the two boys , dameon , Emma , Mary of course, Katherine , James, Caine and Hog , suddenly a small smile appeared on my face. But then… A different feeling appeared. Guilt. I didn't bring anything. Not even a small flower. Nothing. Valery handed me a bundle of fairy lights. “You can take these.” She pointed toward the stairs. “Wrap them around the stair handle all the way upstairs.” I nodded. I started working immediately. The small lights wrapped around the wooden railing, making the staircase glow softly. When I arrived upstairs… I noticed something. Ian’s bedroom door was slightly open. I froze.
I didn't want to invade his privacy. That wasn't right. But… I could see part of the room. Books. So many books. Shelves filled with them. Lamps. A desk. The rest was hidden behind the door. The curiosity was there. Strong. But I looked away. I finished the lights and immediately went back downstairs. “Everything is ready!” Emma announced. Everyone looked excited. “We should get Ian.” Valery and Diana nodded.
They exchanged a look. Then they went toward the door. “We’ll bring him.” They paused. “Mary said she was passing by his house and fainted. She needs help.” I almost laughed. They were really going with that excuse? But Ian didn't know.
He was still resting. Everyone said that besides his broken ribs and his injured back, he was handling himself better than anyone. A few moments later… A loud sound echoed. THUD. The front door opened. Almost like it was about to break.
Ian rushed in. His body was tense. His expression alarmed. Like he expected danger. Then Everyone started singing. “Happy birthday…” He froze. His expression changed instantly. The tension disappeared. His eyes softened. And for a second… I saw something different. Not a soldier. Not a survivor. Just Ian. A young man who wasn't expecting anyone to remember. His eyes almost filled with tears when he saw Mary. He immediately hugged her. “Thank you.” His voice was quiet. Then he looked around. At everyone.
At the decorations. At the gifts. Then his eyes landed on me. There was a small moment of surprise. Then he smiled. “Thank you for this.” I smiled back. “It was mostly Emma, Valery, Diana…” I looked toward Mary. “And especially Mary and everyone else.” Ian laughed softly. Everyone pulled him toward the cake. The candles were lit. The room is filled with voices. For a moment… Nobody thought about the infected. Nobody thought about the Reestablishment. Nobody thought about death. They just lived. I stood slightly away from everyone. Watching. And I realized something. This was rare. Finding happiness in a world like this… Finding kindness. Finding people who still cared.
That was its own kind of survival. My eyes moved toward the people laughing around me. Then my thoughts returned to one person. Nowella. I whispered silently to myself.
I’m going to find you, baby. No matter what.21Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ80kSpZZ58p
and then Add to home screen.