The wounds heal.

Happy twenty-six.

Liu Kang's past is not a secret, it's well known he was adopted by the Shaolin monks when he was just a baby. He was orphaned at such a young age because his parents were brutally murdered. Raiden, who witnessed everything, didn't manage to save them, but fortunately, he was able to save the infant from his terrible fate. The god of thunder was the one who left him at the mercy of the monks to take care of him and later train him to represent Earthrealm in the tournament.

Since there is few information on who his parents were, the exact birth date is unknown. However, the monks agreed to give him a birthday, July 6th, the day Raiden delivered him to the monastery. The day in which his life completely changed from being a helpless baby to a member of the family of monks. They considered that what he had lived before wasn't a life and this change symbolized a new birth.

Returning to the present. Four months had passed since Kung Mei and Kung Jin's last visit, during those weeks, Liu Kang gradually got over his breakup with Kitana. It wasn't an easy thing, but thanks to the passage of time and Kung Lao keeping him busy, he managed to deal with it. The latter kept making sure his friend wasn't alone for a long time, this to prevent him from remembering his ex-partner again. To do this, he invited him to go out or do activities together when they had free time, either alone with him or with his other classmates at the academy.

Even though the chosen one has always been someone introverted and that many times he preferred to do things on his own, he felt quite comfortable being with more people around. However, he also enjoys the times when he's alone, which he uses to meditate and cherish those little moments of solitude. He managed to strike a balance between taking time for himself and being with others, which allowed him to improve his physical and emotional condition.

During all this time, Kung Lao had been telling him all the things he had done and seen during the six months the champion was absent. Thanks to this, he learned anecdotes that he couldn't find out at the time because he was dealing with the problems of Outworld. In the same way, Liu Kang told him about the diverse and strange situations he lived there and that he couldn't tell him before.

This was very important in his recovery, since no one from Outworld was listening to him, he was free to express his sincerest opinions and count the times he was belittled by Kitana's allies on various occasions. Likewise, Kung Lao, being the sarcastic prankster he has always been, would reply with derisive comments. This with the aim of making the chosen one feel better. Although many of these jokes were absurd, his sense of humor made those not-so-satisfying memories funnier.

All this served him as a therapy and their friendship became even stronger and more intimate. As time passed, he realized all the negative things he had with Kitana and that, if they had continued their romance, things between them would have gotten worse. As a result, Liu Kang accepted what happened to him and took it as a life lesson. He didn't even mind making jokes about his failed relationship or that others did.

Weeks passed until July 6th.

This time Kung Lao woke up before Liu Kang. The moment he opened his eyes, he immediately got up from his bed. That day he had prepared something special, so he walked stealthily until he reached some boxes he had nearby. With each step he took, he placed the tip and then the heel, avoiding making noise. Although his friend was in another room, being next to each other, he was afraid of causing some sound that could wake him up.

When he arrived, he slowly opened the drawer and took out a small cardboard box, which he carefully opened. This package contained an individual mooncake, a red candle, and a party whistle. He breathed a sigh of relief as he realized that everything was intact as he had left it the night before. Then he placed the dessert in the palm of his hand and buried the candle in the center of it. It was all already set.