I painted my toenails light green-same color with my eyes-whilst watching SpongeBob SquarePants.
My grandma sat at the couch above me, occasionally making comments about how childish it was of me to watch SpongeBob SquarePants.
I continued painting my toenails, finishing my left feet and moving on to my right. "Irene" I hear my grandma softly call out to me "yes, grandma?" I say without turning to face her.
"There's some money on the counter, go get yourself a cake." I sighed and finally faced my grandma. I wished she'd just let me be, doesn't she knows how much I hate my birthday? "No" I told her quietly. "But it's your-" she started saying but I cut her off "if I go, promise me that you'll never ask me to do anything for my birthday, ever again" "yes dear" she replied with a small smile, her gaze as warm as honey.
I got up, took the money, my jacket and then locked the door since it was only me and my grandma.
The moon was very bright that night, it was a little after seven but I didn't need a flashlight since it was so bright.
With my hands in my pocket, I trekked to the bakery since it wasn't far from my home, probably a 2 minutes walk.
My name is Irene and I'm an only child. My dad died because of me when I was 7 years old and my mom hated me since then because of it, leaving me in the care of her mother. I'm 17 years old and have lived in the town of Embers for like almost 5 years now. I don't bother with people much since I find it hard to maintain relationships. I have friends though so I'm no longer, fun fact about me? I hate my birthday, but I guess you already know that.
I soon arrived at the bakery but it was closed, oh c'mon. There is another one close by so headed there because if go back home without a cake, grandma will probably be upset and it's going to be hard to lie to her when she asks if I have checked the other bakery so...
The bakery was a little bit on the other side of Embers which I rarely go to but not unfamiliar with.
Inside the bakery, there are few people as expected and only one person working who looked annoyed when she saw me, who can blame her, everyone wants to go home, I think.
"What would you like?" I pointed at a sky blue plain "HBD" cake. At the same time, someone pointed to the same cake.
I traced those slender fingers, long arms to hazel eyes, although he was good looking that wasn't the reason I couldn't stop staring.
"I was here first" I say, I didn't notice him at all when I came in. "So?" So? "Then again it might not be the same cake" I say, before turning to the girl in front of me. "Please wrap it up for me and don't write anything on top" I say "same here" I heard him say with a gorgeous smile on his face and I couldn't help giving him a pointed look. The girl looked back and forth between me and him, visibly irritated. "Oh for the love of- would you two just decide already?" She says. Also annoyed by him I left the bakery without any cake.
I walked hurriedly, kicking invisible stones, I have never felt so angry In my entire life! I recognized the guy, he's Shawn something, we go to the same school-since there's only one school in Embers, it's a fairly large school- he's a little bit of a central figure, I've seen him here and there at school but we've never made contact before as our paths have never crossed. I hope I never see him again, I'm doubtful he'll notice even IF our paths ever crossed...
"Eyy" a cake box blocked my vision, I looked up to see hazel eyes staring at me with a sheepish smile. "I took it too far" he says, I reply with a "it's ok" and continued walking ugh! So annoying I really was craving cake, if all things he just had to literally shove it In my face to prove that he got the cake not me! So childish.
He caught up to me in no time and apologized and held my arm, I turned the other way. "Forgive me" I could hear the sincerity in his voice.
" I said it's okay didn't I?" "Yeah but you didn't say you've forgiven me" " ok fine, I've forgiven you" I say before yanking my hands away and continued walking. "I'm Shawn" he says besides me, Luke I didn't know before and how is he so fast? "Niceee" I say my voices laced with sarcasm.
Even though it was night, I occasionally ruffled my dyed red hair in order to hide my face.
He caught me off guard when he abruptly stood in front of me and bent and leveled his face with mine. I freeze for a second before turning my face away.
"Have we met before?"
"No"
"Then why don't you want me to see your face?"
"Nothing"
"..."
"..." Everywhere fell silent before he broke it "you still haven't told me your name"
"It's Poppy" I say giving him my middle name which I have never used before in my entire life. Even if he were to search for me with my features and the name I gave him, he'll never find me.
I reached home with the cake that he later gave me, cut a slice for grandma and I didn't know why, but did the first time after my dad died on my birthday, I didn't feel awful.
