Febuary 2nd

"What do you mean, you're not celebrating?" Rylie had both her hands on her hips, giving Dawn a pretend threatening glare, as menacing as the sweet blond girl could muster. Dawn chuckled.

"You can bet I still want the cheesecake, Rylie. They're to die for," Dawn said to her roommate. Standing behind the kitchen counter, Rylie gave a smiling nod as she wiped her hands with her flour-covered apron.

Dawn turned her attention to the blond man who was half-gaping at her.

"But it's your birthday!" Nicky cried out in a high-pitched voice.

It actually was the morning of Dawn's birthday. Nicky had came to hang out and asked Dawn if she was doing something for it. He was surprised when she replied 'I don't care for birthdays. I'm not celebrating mine'. Sulking, he sat on her comfy sofa, with one finger in a bowl of chocolate dip they had given him. As he licked off the sugary liquid from his forefinger, Dawn joined him on the couch.

"I don't like the fuss." Dawn said simply. She watched in amusement as Nicky continued his preoccupation with chocolate. He was clearly deep in thought about how to convince Dawn otherwise.

"It's true," Rylie piped up from the kitchen. She was adding cream cheese into the food processor as she spoke: "If we're not on a mission, we usually stay up to watch horror movies and we eat cake. It's a tradition."

"See?" Dawn raised both her shoulders. "No fuss."

"But it's a day that celebrates you. You should at least do sometime you like, and force the rest of us to go through with it." Nicky looked adamant.

Dawn laughed. "That just seems like too much work."

"Maybe Nicky wants to join you trekking through some tropical jungle," Rylie teased. Both girls giggled as Nicky felt his cheeks grew warmer. He knew they were taunting his disgust towards crawling creatures, especially in a wet, humid forest. If it weren't for his work, he would never stepped a foot near there. Except maybe if Dawn went with him, alone…

"If it counts for something, I did go hang-gliding on one birthday," Dawn said, breaking Nicky's thoughts. She scrunched up her face to remember the event, but gave up. "What's the big deal about birthdays anyway?"

"You get birthday presents." Nicky grinned hopefully. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Rylie shaking her head in amusement.

"Get presents? From my six brothers?" Dawn chuckled. "The three eldest always collect a bucket of worms and beetles to serve at my bedroom door. Skye's nice, he usually helps me clean out my room after the creatures were let loose. The twins just sing loudly until I tell them to stop. The nicest thing I've gotten from those two is a collection of dead flowers that were my favorite." The red-head grinned at the last thought. "They figured out then that plants won't last more than a week without soil and water."

"It was a really nice thought though," Rylie joined in. "I love Ashton and Axel. They're adorable."

As Dawn beamed, Nicky cringed at the memory of when he met them. He was determined to do something special for the girl's day. He tried again: "Let's go out for a birthday dinner, Dawn. We can finally taste something nicer than dining common's food. It'll be a nice night out…," He paused as he glanced at Rylie. "…for all of us."

Dawn looked over at her roommate, who shrugged back. Rylie continued to add the sugar she measured into the mixture. Dawn gave Nicky a defeated smile.

"Sure, Nick. We can check with the rest of the squad if they want to go out. But," Dawn looked at him intently, "it'll be just us. I don't enjoy crowds."

"Allright!" Nicky pumped his chocolate-covered fist into the air, almost knocking down the bowl itself. Rylie giggled from the counter as Dawn shook her head. "Let's ask them now!"

"Huh? Can't we just give them a text, a call?" Dawn asked lazily, but Nicky had grabbed one arm to pull her onto her feet. As they both stood, Nicky added cheerily:

"When they see your pretty little pout, they will say yes nonetheless."

"I'm not pouting."

"We'll see about that." Nicky grinned, and Dawn looked slightly concerned. The man turned to the blond at the kitchen. "You're coming right, Rylie?"

Rylie smiled at the two before replying. "Yes. And don't bother Ryan. He will go, I promise."

"Thanks kiddo," Nicky said, understanding that she will request him to come along. "Don't tell him this, but the guy gives me the creeps sometimes."

"It's his one flaw." Rylie said softly, but Nicky paid no attention as he urged Dawn to come along. Rolling her eyes, Dawn reluctantly followed Nicky's foot steps outside her apartment. Rylie waved them goodbye as she place the baking pan into the oven.

Outside, Nicky went to the adjacent apartment and knock loudly on Ryan's door, much to Dawn's surprise. He then sprint to around the block and gestured Dawn to do the same.

"We can't leave!" Dawn whispered loudly to him. "He'll be pissed."

"Well, I guess you can invite him yourself then," Nicky teased. "Don't forget to pout." Nicky made an exaggerated sad expression. Dawn shuffled her feet, and heard footsteps. She panicked and quickly ran towards Nicky. Both of them ran around the corner and rushed downstairs. They ran past a few more apartments before Dawn stopped to take a breather.

"You're such a kid!" She cried out, but chuckled.

"And you had fun, you birthday prude." Nicky beamed at her, who giggled at his retort. He then noticed that they were standing next to a lounge that the building provided for residents. It was almost completely empty. Nicky glanced inside and saw something that made his eyes glint.

"Come inside, Dawn." He took one of her arms and gently pulled her to follow his pursuit. Dawn rolled her eyes and wondered what their next prank would be this time. As she stepped into the hall, she realized that she hadn't been there for some time. The round cushy chairs were arranged around a mock fireplace, and pale-colored tapestries decorated the high walls.

"You know, I didn't get you a present because the others advised me not to." Nicky started.

"They're right."

"But I want to give you something anyway."

"Huh?" Dawn was becoming slightly worried. She noticed that he had pulled her towards the grand piano on the corner of the lounge. "You… play?" She was puzzled.

"I do." Nicky replied, with a childlike look in his blue eyes. "My mum taught me when I was a kid, and after she passed, I sometimes play in her memory."

Dawn nodded. She felt a twang of sadness.

"I'm a little rusty, so don't laugh." Nicky grinned. He placed his right hand onto the white and black keys, and he began to play a simple melody that Dawn instantly recognized: it was the happy birthday song. She grinned as the dry melody finished, but Nicky shook his head that it was the end. He repeated the song again, but after the first melody, he added harmony chords using his left hand. The song instantly became more pleasing to the ear. After the second version finished, he played another variation of happy birthday. This time he used higher notes, and the melodious sounds were like birds chirping at the start of spring.

"That sounds amazing," Dawn said, as she sunk onto the piano chair to share with him. Nicky beamed as he twirled around with a few high-pitched notes before ending with a smooth cadence on the low octave. He gave her a satisfied smile, which Dawn responded with a joyful grin. As they locked eyes, both realized the small distance between their faces to each other. The blond was stunned as the red-head leaned in, but she stopped midway and turned her face away.

"Thanks." Dawn said curtly. Nicky felt his cheeks burned.

"What for?"

"The song. I like the way you play it." A smile crept up upon her tanned face. "No one has ever played for me before."

"Do you wanna hear another one?" Nicky asked. Without waiting for an answer, he played a different melody. This time the tone was doleful but yet with a strangely moving rhythm. "It's called Moonlight Sonata, by Beethoven."

"I've heard this somewhere." Dawn pointed out. "I never cared for classical music though."

"They're my favorite. Maybe 'cause they were the types my mum used to play."

Dawn nodded and felt the twinge again. She slowly placed her head onto Nicky's shoulder to comfort him. As the pianist did not protest, Dawn listened to the smooth and heart-rending cyclic melody. Her head moved along with the movement of Nicky's shoulders as he played.

"When I was ten," Dawn spoke, "I wanted to go on a horse ride for my birthday. So my family went, and my parents even brought the twins who were two-year-olds then."

"Sounds nice."

"Yeah, until I did something stupid. I held up Axel near a horse because I wanted him to pet the animal. For some reason, the horse snapped his teeth forward. It barely missed my brother's tiny fingers."

"Wow."

"Tell me about it. The poor boy cried, and Ashton cried. There were no injuries, but my parents quickly got us out of there. I just felt horrible. The twins didn't come near me until a few weeks later. Maybe that kind of killed the birthday vibe for me, permanently."

"Maybe that did," Nicky agreed, as he wrapped up the last bit of the sonata's first movement. Nicky then stopped playing and looked at the mess of red hair on shoulder. He tried soothing her: "Just because it's your birthday, that doesn't mean you became perfect that day. You're bound to make mistakes, just like any other day."

"I guess so." Dawn sighed. She then lifted her head to look at him. "Thanks for being so sweet about today."

"No problem, I enjoy it." Nicky shrugged his shoulders. "Everyone should take a day to celebrate themselves, you get what I'm saying? Especially really cool people like you." Nicky gave the girl a mischievous smirk. Dawn smiled back at him. She then surprised him as she embraced him in a tight hug. Even though he was stunned, Nicky couldn't help to wear a smug look as he hugged her back.

As Dawn pulled back, she said "Despite that cheeky exterior of yours, Nicky, I think you're really something underneath all that."

"Why, thank you. I feel honored to be in your good books." Nicky gave a slight bow, which made Dawn laughed.

"Now let's find Zack and Ava before night falls. Or we have to cancel that birthday dinner." This time it was Dawn who pulled Nicky to stand up. As she led them outside the lounge, Nicky mentally patted himself proudly on the back for making Dawn feel good on her birthday.