Love & Deepspace (One Shots)

one last present, pt. 1. ⛄️ (f)

It was the day before Zayne's birthday, and I'd managed to persuade him to come on a special trip with me; I didn't tell him we were going to a beautiful lakeside villa or that his friends and colleagues were waiting to surprise him, just that I'd organised a little getaway for us to relax and unwind. Still, I didn't doubt he was at least slightly suspicious of me as I had been doing random things and asking random questions, and some of my hints turned out to not be quite as subtle as I thought.

After a little nagging, Zayne had allowed me to drive his car to get us to the villa; he was suffering from tenosynovitis in his wrist, and although he had been refusing to rest from time to time, I was being much more stubborn in allowing him to use it. Any time I caught him typing or writing, I simply stood and watched until he met my gaze, then narrowed my eyes, crossed my arms and shook my head in disappointment. The guilty look he always wore was adorable, so much so that I struggled to stay mad at him for long.

Once we'd parked up outside the villa, I retrieved most of the luggage from the car with the exception of one of the handheld bags which I allowed Zayne to put over his arm. It was late afternoon and so the sun was already quite low in the sky, creating a gorgeous orange hue between the scattered clouds. There was also a light breeze rustling through the trees which brought with it a pleasant chill.

We walked up the neatly laid path towards the villa and when we reached the door, I paused and pretended to catch my breath. "Would you mind getting the door?"

Without saying a word, Zayne simply looked at me with a raised eyebrow and a slight smirk; somehow, it seemed as though he knew I wasn't just asking him to open the door out of the kindness of his heart.

"I have a feeling the moment I open this, a 'surprise' will rush towards me," Zayne spoke with a hint of mirth, staring down at me as if he could see right through my feigned innocence. "Am I wrong?"

He may already have been somewhat aware of the plan and what was waiting for him on the other side of the door, but I didn't want to reveal everything before he even got to experience it. So many of his friends and coworkers had gathered at the villa to finally celebrate Zayne's birthday with him, and after years of him spending it working alone, I wanted them to be able to surprise him properly.

I kept my mouth shut and instead gave a pleading look, which thankfully was enough to convince him. Zayne twisted the handle and as the door slowly swung open, party horns sounded and colourful confetti went flying through the air, some of it landing in his hair. Everyone's faces were bright and beaming as they called out 'surprise!' in a resounding chorus. It was absolutely perfect; beautiful chandeliers hung from the ceiling and illuminated the room, colourful bunting hung above a roaring fire, and shimmering balloons and carefully wrapped gifts were scattered all over. Although Zayne was undoubtedly expecting a surprise birthday party, he still looked rather shocked as if he wasn't expecting this much effort to have been put into it.

Zayne and I dropped our luggage just in the doorway and moved into the centre of the living room where the partygoers gathered around us, offering their heartfelt birthday wishes and congratulations. The frosty snowflake cake I'd spent a whole day baking was adorned with candles and rolled over on a cart, and amidst the bustling commotion, someone thrust a birthday crown into my hands. I couldn't help smiling to myself as I gently placed it atop Zayne's head from behind him.

"Thank you, everyone. I genuinely didn't expect a surprise like this," Zayne said with absolute sincerity, steadying the teetering crown before turning to look at me. "Who came up with this?"

"If you're not happy with the surprise, then we can say everything was all her idea." Greyson awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, but I could tell by his slight smirk that he was joking around. "Go ahead, you can blame her if you want."