Birthday Party Surprise
The next morning.
I blinked hard against the blazing sunlight pouring down and turned my head.
Then my eyes snapped open and I froze for a second, staring at a ceiling that felt completely unfamiliar.
Almost instantly the memory hit me—last night I had spent the night at Sia’s house.
My gaze drifted to the clock and it read 7 a.m. sharp.
Even though I had stayed up late yesterday, I woke up this early.
Maybe it was because I slept in a place I wasn’t used to.
Back when I first slept over at a relative’s house or a hotel, I always woke up early too.
“A…”
But something felt odd.
There was a pressing sensation right on my left side.
I tilted my head down to check and there she was.
“Koo…”
Sia was fast asleep, curled up in my arms.
“…?”
I was completely lost for a second, staring in confusion, muttering nonsense while trying to gently push her off me.
She was warm in my arms, after all.
I stretched my arm out to slide her away…
ㅡ꾸우우우
…she only pulled me closer.
“Sia…?”
She didn’t answer when I called her name.
That left me stuck in thought—should I wake her or let her sleep?
But my better judgment said to wake her soon, so I shook my head.
“Mmm…”
Looking at how peacefully she was sleeping…
“Heh…”
I decided to just leave her be.
I figured I might as well catch a little more sleep myself and closed my eyes again.
◇◇◇◇◇
“Woo… Siwoo.”
“Huh…?”
“Wake up.”
My eyelids fluttered open at the soft voice and there was Sia sitting right in front of me.
I glanced at the clock—it was half past eight.
I had closed my eyes again at seven and slept another hour and a half.
“Late sleeper…”
“It’s not… like that. Good morning.”
“Yeah, good morning.”
Even though I felt like countering her “late sleeper” comment, I let it slide—after all, I had slept longer than usual.
I sat up and stretched.
Except for a slight stiffness in my left shoulder where Sia had been hugging me, nothing felt off.
“Let’s go eat breakfast.”
“Breakfast?”
“Yeah, Dad made breakfast. Mom’s cooking.”
“Oh, okay. Let’s go.”
I tossed the blanket aside quickly and stepped outside with Sia.
In the kitchen, Uncle was stirring a pot of soup.
I greeted him first.
“Good morning.”
“Ah, Siwoo’s up. Have a glass of water.”
“Thank you.”
I drank from the cup he offered, and he handed me a small spoon.
“Can you taste this seaweed soup and tell me if it’s seasoned right? Sia said it’s perfect.”
“Sure.”
ㅡ후릅
I sipped and the broth was perfectly salted with a hint of sesame oil.
Just like Sia had said—spot on.
Of course my own taste buds thought it was a little too light… but that was because my mom usually seasoned things stronger.
“It tastes perfect to me too.”
“Oh, really? That’s great.”
Uncle set the stove to low and stretched.
“Looks like everything’s ready.”
“Um… okay…”
“Siwoo, why don’t you and Sia rest for a bit? I’ll finish up.”
“Sure, we’ll do that.”
We left the kitchen and entered the living room. Sia was already darting around everywhere.
“What are you doing?”
“…Can’t see anyone blowing up balloons…”
“Need a balloon pump?”
“No, not really…”
“Then give me one.”
“Yeah…?”
I took the balloon from her and wiped it quickly with the shirt I was wearing before starting to blow.
ㅡ후우우우우우!
At first it barely inflated, but after a few more puffs it slowly grew… and then became huge.
“Is this big enough?”
“Yeah…!”
Sia’s enthusiastic reply made me groan as I tied the balloon’s neck.
The thought of it popping crossed my mind, but luckily it held.
I gave the finished balloon a good flick toward the ceiling.
The one that bounced off the ceiling and came down was snatched by Sia.
“I can’t do that…”
“You’ll get better at it later.”
After blowing up a second and third balloon,
“Everyone, time to eat!”
“Yes~”
Uncle called us to the table.
My cheeks hurt a little from blowing balloons, but I was glad.
As we approached the table, fragrant steam rose from the seaweed soup and rice.
Alongside them were all kinds of side dishes.
Sia and Uncle were already seated, so I naturally took the empty spot—right beside Sia.
“Come on, eat up.”
“Yes~”
Uncle picked up his spoon first and we followed, digging into our meals.
Everything was basically perfect for my taste buds.
My mom usually made things a little too salty for me, but Sia’s side dishes hit the spot exactly.
After breakfast we all started moving again.
Luckily Uncle had found the balloon pump, so we quickly inflated them and taped them to the ceiling to fix in place.
The rest, he said he’d handle later. While we finished decorating with ribbons, he wrapped up the cooking.
He even brought a cake from the bakery.
All of it came together smoothly, and just ten minutes before Aunt arrived.
“Whew… let’s rest a little, everyone.”
“Yes~”
We were all tired, but honestly Uncle had done the most.
Cooking, fetching the cake, helping with decorations—Uncle had worked the hardest. Yet his face was bright and smiling the whole time.
Somehow it felt a little different from our own home…
We always feel warm at home too, but compared to Sia’s house it still felt lacking.
Of course, Sia’s house really was warm and lively.
Sitting on the sofa to cool off after a long while…
ㅡ띠띠띠띠띠 띠로리!
The sound of the front door opening echoed through.
Sia and I were supposed to hide, just like we planned, while Uncle dashed into the room beside the entrance.
“What’s going on? Where is everyone?”
Aunt came in, slipping off her shoes.
She’d be in view in about three steps.
Sia and I exchanged quick glances and then bolted forward at the same time.
“Happy birthday~!”
“…!”
Uncle also appeared at the perfect moment and pulled off the surprise.
Aunt stood there with wide eyes in shock, then broke into a big smile.
“Thank you all…”
“Hungry yet? Come eat.”
“Yeah, okay.”
Aunt dropped her bags and sat down. Uncle then brought out the full meal he had prepared.
Boiled pork, bulgogi as the main dish, and colorful banchan followed.
“Did you make all of this?”
“Yeah, the main dishes are mine.”
“Wah, our husband is the best!”
“Taste it and you’ll see it’s amazing.”
“Then… I’ll eat up.”
Aunt took a bite and her eyes lit up.
“Mmm, it’s so good.”
“Right? I worked really hard on it.”
“Exactly. Dad worked super hard.”
“Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me like that.”
“Everyone, eat quickly. Siwoo, Sia—eat as much as you want.”
“Yes~”
The meal began.
Unlike the light breakfast earlier, lunch was generous.
I used my chopsticks eagerly and filled my plate with banchan.
The boiled pork was tender and juicy, the bulgogi perfectly seasoned.
Sia and I ate until we were full.
Almost at the end of the meal…
“Now for the cake?”
“Oh… there’s cake.”
Uncle pulled the cake out of the fridge.
The box was impressively large.
And so was the cake inside.
“Wow… it’s huge.”
“Must be a custom order.”
“The message is a little too…?”
“Why? ‘Celebrating Jiyeon’s birthday’ is fine.”
“Yeah, it’s the thought that counts…”
“Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me like that. Let’s blow out the candles.”
Uncle lit the candles on the cake and Aunt closed her eyes for a moment, making a wish.
Then she blew out the candles with a soft whoosh.
“Ready to eat cake?”
“Yay!”
“Um… can I have some too?”
“Of course!”
“Oh… yeah…”
It was my first time at someone else’s birthday party, so everything felt new and a little awkward… but it was incredibly fun.
We sliced the cake and served it to everyone’s plates before digging in.
The sweet cream filling in my mouth was absolutely delicious.
After finishing the cake,
“How about a board game?”
“All together?”
“Of course!”
We started playing board games.
It was our first time with Bruma, but the rules were simple and we picked it up right away.
“Aha! New York!”
“How much? 1.2 million!”
“Hahaha! Sia’s on a deserted island!”
“Waaaaah!”
“Wow, Siwoo bought Seoul.”
“Lucky card!”
We lost track of time and played without a care.
Eventually the moment to go home arrived.
“Aigoo, thanks for looking after Siwoo.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
“Our Siwoo didn’t cause any trouble, right?”
“Of course not. If anything, he helped decorate my birthday party.”
“Really? Then this is my present to you.”
“You already gave me one yesterday. What else?”
“A simple bottle of wine as a birthday gift. Don’t worry about the cost.”
“…That actually makes me more embarrassed.”
“Anyway, we’re leaving. Siwoo, say goodbye.”
“Goodbye.”
“Okay, take care, Siwoo. Sia, say goodbye.”
“Goodbye… see you.”
“Okay, Sia, stay well~”
As I followed Dad and Aunt to the door, a feeling of sadness lingered in my heart.