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jaehyun had been talking about his birthday for weeks now, not in the usual loud way, but in his subtle, excited tone. m/n found it adorable, how jaehyun would drop hints, suggesting different things they could do.
but today, the day had finally arrived — it was jaehyun's birthday, and m/n had made sure to get him the perfect gifts. he even picked up extra ingredients for the cake jaehyun wanted to bake together, though the rain decided to make his trip back less than ideal.
by the time m/n reached jaehyun’s place, he was drenched. his hair stuck to his forehead, water dripping off his jacket. jaehyun greeted him with a laugh the moment he opened the door.
"you look like you’ve just been through a storm." jaehyun said, his eyes lighting up as he noticed the bags in m/n’s hands.
"feels like i have." m/n muttered, shaking his head as he stepped inside. "but i got everything. happy birthday!"
"thank you!" jaehyun smiled, taking the bags from him. "you didn’t have to go all out like this."
"it’s your birthday," m/n shrugged, pulling off his soaked jacket. "figured you deserved it."
before heading to the kitchen, m/n handed jaehyun a small gift bag. "before we bake, open this." he said, smiling.
jaehyun’s eyes lit up, and he carefully unwrapped the gift. inside, there were two small boxes and an envelope. he opened the first box, revealing matching rings. jaehyun’s breath caught for a second, his fingers brushing over the rings.
"you got us matching rings?"
m/n nodded, a little shy. "yeah... thought it’d be nice."
jaehyun smiled, then reached for the envelope. he opened it, finding some money inside. he blinked, looking back at m/n. "you really didn’t have to!"
"just wanted to make sure you could spoil yourself a bit." m/n said, rubbing the back of his neck.
without another word, jaehyun pulled m/n into a tight hug. "you’re amazing!" jaehyun murmured into m/n’s shoulder, his voice soft and full of gratitude. "thank you so much."
after a moment, they pulled apart, and jaehyun smiled, slipping one of the rings onto his finger. m/n reached out, gently grabbing his hand. "don’t get too excited. baking is messy, and i don’t want you losing that ring somewhere."
jaehyun chuckled, slipping the ring off and placing it in his pocket. "okay, okay, you’ve got a point."
"i always do." m/n teased. "now let’s make that cake."
so they headed into the kitchen. the table was already covered with ingredients jaehyun had laid out earlier, but m/n added a few things he’d bought, just to make sure the cake would be perfect.
"you’ll help me, right?" jaehyun asked, leaning against the counter.
m/n nodded, seeing the excitement in jaehyun’s eyes despite how casual he tried to act. "of course." he said, rolling up his sleeves.
they started with the basics, measuring out flour and sugar, joking about how precise jaehyun was with everything. "you’re acting like we’re in some fancy bakery." m/n teased, nudging him lightly.
"hey, this is serious business!" jaehyun said, laughing. the warmth of his laugh spread through the kitchen, and even though m/n had been soaked to the bone just minutes ago, he felt warm too.
as they mixed the batter, jaehyun got a little too enthusiastic with the flour. a cloud of white powder puffed up, landing all over m/n’s already messy shirt. jaehyun’s eyes widened for a second before he burst out laughing, the sound echoing around them.
"you did that on purpose." m/n said, trying to sound annoyed, but he couldn’t hide the smile pulling at his lips.
"maybe." jaehyun replied, shrugging with a playful innocence. his eyes softened as he glanced down at m/n’s flour-covered shirt. "guess you’ll have to clean that up later."
they moved on to cracking eggs, m/n focusing while jaehyun leaned in close, peeking over his shoulder. "you’re really good at this." jaehyun said quietly, his breath warm against m/n’s neck. it sent a small shiver down m/n’s spine, but he brushed it off, concentrating on the task.
the cake was finally in the oven, and they leaned against the counter together, watching it rise. jaehyun had flour smudged on his cheek, and without thinking, m/n reached out, wiping it away gently.
"oh, thank you." jaehyun said. m/n just smiled, not saying anything in return.
the cake was baking, and jaehyun turned to m/n. "i have one more request."
"which is?" m/n asked, not sure what was coming next.
jaehyun didn’t answer right away. instead, he stepped closer, too close for m/n to pretend this was still casual. instinctively, m/n backed up a step, but jaehyun followed, gently nudging him until m/n’s back hit the wall.
jaehyun’s hand came up, slowly tracing the tie of m/n’s apron, his fingers brushing against the fabric at the back. "just... wanted to fix this." he murmured. his fingers fumbled with the knot, but m/n wasn’t sure if jaehyun was really trying to fix anything.
"jaehyun?"
“yeah?”
"you’re distracting—" m/n finally managed to say.
"happy birthday to me."
the cake in the oven became the last thing on either of their minds.
