My Boyfriend's Birthday - Yuna's Heart (4)
April 6th. Jihyeok’s birthday had arrived.
“Huaaam…”
Jihyeok woke up, climbed out of bed, and stretched with a big yawn. Still half-asleep and a little unsteady on his feet, he shuffled into the bathroom, washed his face, and stepped out into the living room.
“Morning, son.”
“Yeah… Why are you smiling like that? Your mouth’s about to reach your ears.”
“…Must be your imagination.”
“…?”
The same bright expression he had seen yesterday morning was back again today, giving him a strange sense of déjà vu. Deciding it was nothing important, Jihyeok changed into his school uniform as usual and sat down for breakfast.
“…Is today some kind of special day?”
“Hm? It’s your brother’s birthday, isn’t it?”
“That’s true, but… you didn’t just bring a bunch of side dishes from the store, did you?”
“Aww~ Does your mother look like the kind of person who would do that? I made everything at home~”
“Hmm… I see.”
When the full twelve-dish royal breakfast appeared before him, Jihyeok ate with unusual determination. Even as he wondered, Why is she going all out like this all of a sudden…? he knew that suspecting his own family wasn’t something a good son should do.
After finishing the extravagant meal and preparing for school, Jihyeok slung his bag over his shoulder and called out to his parents.
“I’m heading out now.”
“Alright. Have a good day.”
“Be careful on your way, son~!”
“Oppa, have a nice day~!”
“Yeah.”
Their unusually high energy still felt unfamiliar. Jihyeok left the house with a slightly bewildered expression.
“Yay~ Good morning, honey~!”
“Good morning.”
Yuna immediately wrapped herself around his arm, openly expressing her affection. When full hugs weren’t possible, linking arms like this was their favorite way to feel each other more deeply.
“You seem to be in a particularly good mood today.”
“Do I look like it?”
“Yeah. Your tension is way up compared to usual.”
“Is that so~? It must be because my honey is right next to me!”
“Really? …Then, want to do our morning greeting?”
“Didn’t we just—.”
Yuna stopped mid-sentence as she realized what he meant. A smile spread across her face while she secretly licked her lips, coating them with a thin layer of moisture.
“…Let’s do it.”
“Okay.”
Before heading to school, they shared a quick Cross Kiss. At some point, it had become their unspoken promise to exchange one both on the way to school and on the way home.
Chu.
The now-familiar kiss filled them both with a pleasant flutter. They followed it with a light Bud Kiss.
Chu.
“Did that feel good?”
“…When does school end? Should I just skip today?”
“Pfft… Your girlfriend cannot allow that! Are you really going to turn down the party and presents the teacher and our friends prepared?”
“They made it for me, so of course I have to accept. We can’t be late, so let’s get going.”
“Okay!”
They walked while chatting about their date plans, and before they knew it, they had reached the school gates. The moment they entered Class 1-1—
“The star of the show has arrived!”
“Happy birthday, Jihyeok!”
“Jihyeok! Happy birthday!”
As soon as he opened the back door, his classmates set off small, safe party poppers they had clearly been waiting to use. Sparkling paper streamers rained down on his head, creating a moment that begged to be photographed.
“We couldn’t forget this! Happy birthday, Jihyeok!”
The teacher, who had been hiding behind the lectern, emerged holding a cake and offered his congratulations. The whole situation had happened so suddenly that Jihyeok stood frozen, body completely stiff.
Yuna spoke up beside him.
“Our classmates are all celebrating your birthday. Aren’t you going to say thank you?”
“Uh… yeah? Right. I should. I was just surprised because it was so sudden…”
Seeing his reaction, the class clapped with triumphant grins, clearly pleased their plan had worked, and began sincerely wishing him a happy birthday.
“Alright everyone! Let’s hear a few words from the birthday boy before we start the party!”
“Yes!”
“They only listen when it’s something like this.”
“Hey~ When have we ever not listened to you?”
“You’re the problem, idiot.”
“Ah. Busted.”
Watching the playful back-and-forth between the teacher and his classmates, Jihyeok felt the tension inside him ease. He smiled and asked,
“Should I stand at the lectern?”
“Of course!”
Jihyeok stood in front of the lectern and began expressing his gratitude to the class.
“Um… I’m not sure where to start, but thank you everyone for remembering my birthday. I told you not to make it too big because I felt bad turning you down, but now that it’s actually happening… it doesn’t feel bad at all. …It would be nice if next year could be like this too, but what matters is that I get to spend this year’s birthday this way. Thank you so much, everyone.”
When he tried to return to his seat after finishing, his classmates weren’t satisfied.
“Where do you think you’re going? Yuna!”
“Huh?”
“What we want is a commemorative photo of our class’s representative couple. The King of Photographic Memory and the Princess of the school? We can’t pass this up.”
“…Excuse me?”
Suddenly pulled up to the lectern alongside him, Jihyeok and Yuna turned to Shin Huiyeon—the mastermind behind the situation—with flustered expressions.
“Hurry up and pose. It’ll be over quick.”
“Could you not sound like an unlicensed doctor talking to a patient about to undergo dangerous surgery?!”
“Still, I am a little curious about a photo of our class’s representative couple.”
“Teacher!”
Jihyeok looked at Huiyeon, who had created this mess, and the teacher who was going along with it. He wanted to refuse, but—
“We haven’t taken that many pictures together, have we?”
“That’s true, but…”
“When they’re giving us such an obvious opportunity, shouldn’t we take it?”
“Uh… I guess?”
Seeing that Yuna had no intention of refusing, Jihyeok reluctantly gave in.
“…Let’s just take it quickly and sit down.”
“Yay~”
Since the teacher was present, he didn’t think they would ask for anything too outrageous.
“So what pose should we do?”
“What are you even asking? Obviously a kiss.”
“This is school, you idiots!”
But his classmates completely shattered that expectation. No matter what, kissing your girlfriend in a place meant for learning and growing as a member of society felt like too high a hurdle. If they were alone it might be different, but with the entire class and even the teacher watching, he couldn’t even imagine it. Even though the teacher usually acted like one of the friends, there was no way he would allow such a request.
Jihyeok looked to the teacher for intervention, but—
“Normally I would stop you, but since it’s Jihyeok’s birthday, I’ll overlook it just for today.”
“You don’t have to overlook it! In fact, I’m begging you to stop us!”
Even though Jihyeok’s desperate plea reached the teacher, the man simply gave a thumbs-up and said,
“Better make it quick. This isn’t a regular cake—it’s an ice cream cake. It’ll be a disaster if it melts.”
At the teacher’s words, Jihyeok and Yuna looked at the cake and saw that part of it was already beginning to melt. Realizing they couldn’t drag this out any longer, Yuna called his name in a sweet voice.
“Honey~”
“…Yeah? What is it, Yu—?!”
The moment Jihyeok turned to face her, Yuna cupped both of his cheeks and pressed her lips to his. It happened so suddenly that he barely had time to register the feeling of her lips before the students and teacher began their photo session.
Countless eyes were on them, watching the couple kiss and even taking pictures. While Yuna seemed fine, the overwhelming stimulation was too much for Jihyeok. His mind went blank, and he collapsed right where he stood.
“Jihyeok?!”
“Oh my. Look, Jihyeok fainted.”
“He has zero resistance to skinship.”
“Haha. Is this just normal for students these days…?”
With his classmates’ help, Jihyeok somehow managed to stand again. Inside his head, he screamed, I hate birthday parties like this…
“Jihyeok, are you okay?”
“Haa… That was way too stimulating.”
“Now I feel bad…”
“It’s not your fault… It was just because so many people were watching. The kiss with you was really wonderful.”
“I’m glad to hear that…”
Aside from that final moment, the party had been completely satisfying. It was the first time his classmates had celebrated his birthday, so he felt genuinely touched. He could tell everyone had put real thought into the gifts they prepared for him.
…Even if most of them were just notebooks or writing utensils.
When Yuna didn’t give him a present, the part everyone had been most excited about was skipped, and they couldn’t hide their disappointment. But Jihyeok firmly told them that his girlfriend’s gift was something only he should see, completely crushing their expectations.
After the successful party ended and school let out, Yuna spoke to him on the way home.
“Aren’t you curious what my present is?”
“Your present is what I’m most curious about.”
“Hehe. Is that so?”
“Yeah. I didn’t want to rush you, so I was planning to wait until you were ready to give it. You’ll give it to me today, right?”
“What if I said I wasn’t going to?”
“Were you planning not to give it?”
“No~ Just wait a little longer~”
“Got it. …I wonder when I’ll get to receive it~”
Hearing his slightly playful tone, Yuna looked at him and found the cuteness radiating from her boyfriend almost unbearable.
“Let’s hurry. I don’t think I can wait any longer.”
She grabbed his hand and led him toward their usual spot.
“Close your eyes… Hurry.”
“Okay. …I love you, Yuna.”
“I love you too…”
After exchanging those heartfelt words, they slowly embraced and pressed their lips together. They savored every detail of each other’s touch that they couldn’t fully feel at school. Behind the empty building, Jihyeok and Yuna held each other tighter, wanting to taste more of one another, focusing every ounce of their attention on their partner.
After the three-minute Cross Kiss ended, they both gasped for the air they had neglected while lost in their love.
“Huu…”
“Haa…”
They must have run out of oxygen while completely absorbed in the kiss. Hearing the breathless sounds coming from each other, they looked at one another and burst into quiet laughter.
“What am I going to do? Your reactions are just too cute, honey.”
“And when such a pretty face makes such a cute voice, it just makes me want to eat you up even more, babe.”
Hearing his words, Yuna pouted her lips and said,
“…Want to eat more?”
“…Just a taste.”
After that, they shared countless Bud Kisses.
“Huh?”
“Why are you so surprised? We’re just trying to celebrate our son’s birthday.”
“Your dad and I have both been so busy that we felt bad, and since you got a girlfriend, we thought we’d do something special~”
“Oppa! Happy birthday!”
“You don’t have a choice. Come here, accept your presents, and let’s eat.”
“Uh, yeah… Thank you?”
The birthday party had started in the place he least expected. Jihyeok stood there stunned for a moment before the wave of emotion hit him. Looking at his family, he said warmly,
“…Thank you so much. For celebrating my birthday… I really mean it.”
A warm family celebration that couldn’t be felt at school, along with the one-on-one birthday party prepared by his girlfriend, Han Yuna, was just about to begin.