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“Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear Maxxxxx! Happy Birthday to you!” The whole room chorused, led by the dulcet tones of a guitar played by the loudest, happiest voice in the room, David.
“And many more!” Niki shouted, giggling from her spot upside down on the kitchen counter. Her party hat, which was on her chin, muffled the exclamation. Neil smirked at her and playfully snapped the elastic against her cheek.
Gwen blew a noisemaker, the shiny paper unraveling like a tongue. She laughed and rolled her eyes, looking at the birthday boy.
He was staring pensively at the candles on his cake, a one and an eight glaring back at him. She raised her eyebrow at him and caught his gaze, he used his pinky finger to pull down his eyelid, sticking his tongue out. She snorted.
“C'mon birthday boy, blow out your candles and make a wish!” She said encouragingly, putting a hand on his shoulder. He scoffed as moved his shoulder away from her, but looked back at the candles just as contemplative as before.
Niki, who was paying more attention to the slow descent of her party hat as it began making its way off her face, piped up. “Yeah what do you want to wish for now that you're officially an adult? A motorcycle? A helicopter? An attack cheetah?”
Neil snickered at her again, rolling his eyes “I mean it’s not like there’s much he hasn’t already done before he turned eighteen, ya know like drink, or smoke, or watch porn, or Hotwire a car and go for a joyride, or-“
“Okay! Let’s stop listing all the highly illegal and moderately immoral things Max did as a child and let him think about his wish , why don’t we!” David said, cutting off an ever growing list of stunts Max had gotten up to, his eye vaguely twitching. The young adults of the room all snickered, ruffling David's feathers was still their favourite past time.
“Max, I’m sure there’s something you must want to wish for now that you’re eighteen?” David said softly, patting him encouragingly on the back.
Max laughed and looked at him fondly.
“Well… there issss, but…” Max started, his words dropping to a whisper.
“It kind of depends on you, actually.” Max admitted, watching the candle wax drip into the icing.
“Max, you know I’d be happy to give you anything I can.” David said sincerely, the candle-light flickering against his face like a campfire.
“Well, there is something that I’ve been waiting for, ya know, now that I’m legally an adult .” He looked at David pointedly, causing the man’s eyes to widen.
“Oh! Oh…I-I….” David went quiet for a moment, his eyes suddenly on the floor, an imperceptible blush across his cheeks. Max could see him sneaking a glance towards Gwen, then Nikki and Neil. He was biting his lip and for a moment Max thought he was going to have a panic attack. When he finally looked back up he caught Max’s gaze with an intensity he’d only seen a handful of times before, one that Max would always associate with pouring rain and bonfires and caring.
“Are you sure?” David asked resolutely.
Max nodded, just as determined. “Absolutely.” He replied, biting his lip. He could feel the confused stares of his other party guests, looking from him to David and back, trying to parse what they were talking about. With the exception of Nikki of course, whose party hat had begun migrating down far enough to cover her eyes.
David took a shaky breath, rubbing the back of his head.
“There uh… there could be a lot to lose.” He said it as a final warning, a line he was drawing in the sand and asking Max to cross.
Max grinned at him and shrugged.
David blushed harder. “Well then… make your wish.” He all but whispered, stepping closer to Max.
Max felt his own heartbeat in his throat, anticipation for what was about to come.
He closed his eyes, blowing out the candles in one breath.
In the next, he felt David’s lips against his, their first ever public kiss. After years of keeping their relationship secret, he could finally, finally kiss his boyfriend without reproach.
He stood up, invading David’s space, long limbs making room for him, the chair he’d been sitting in scraping against the floor as he kicked it backwards. David’s arms wrapped around his hips, and Max threaded his hands into David’s red hair. The kiss was soft, chaste, something sweet and fragile. He could feel the man shaking, heard the gasps and shocks and outrage behind him and he firmly placed his hands over David’s ears, sheltering him for at least just a moment longer.
David pulled back from the kiss, keeping his eyes only on Max. Max smiled sheepishly back at him, he knew this was a huge step in their life together.
“Happy Birthday, Max.” David whispered, a worried but lovesick smile on his face.
“Thanks.” Max whispered back, trying to ignore the shocked and disgusted look Gwen was giving the back of David’s head. “You…you okay?” He whispered back, watching David’s eye twitch, noticing the way his hands were shaking against his back.
“I think,” he began, breath a bit wobbly. “That if I don’t look at anyone’s reaction, I will be able to avoid a panic attack.” He admitted and Max scoffed, tugging at the blindfold that David had put on him the moment he’d gotten home before leading him to the kitchen they were currently standing in. Max had moved it to his forehead after everyone had yelled surprise and was still wearing it as a headband making his curly hair stick up at odd angles.
He pulled it off his head and slipped it on over David’s eyes, making the older man laugh weakly. He moved his hands down to David’s hips, pulling him in towards him, letting David rest his forehead on his own.