Chapter 1: Is Turning 18 Worth It?
"Happy 18th birthday, süsse." With a strong German-accent, Eva's mother greeted her as soon as she answered the phone call.
If only her parents' professions hadn't conflicted with their plans, Eva's birthday celebration would have been among the happiest and most memorable ever.
Her father is a food critic and inspector for Michelin stars, while her mother is an attorney.
As the only child, Eva will inherit their family's company once she reaches the legal age to take on significant responsibilities.
Eva glanced at the wall clock with a phone on her right ear and saw that it was 1:00 in the afternoon. She glanced at the dishes she had made for their lunch while waiting patiently in front of the dining table.
"Are you calling to let me know you and dad won't be able to make it to lunch?"
"Forgive us, süsse. It's just that our schedule is extremely busy today."
"But today is my special day. Isn't it possible to make an exception? Only this once," Eva insisted, her loneliness palpable in her voice.
"W-We tried, süsse."
Eva couldn't stop herself from sighing. She's been through this since the day she was born, spending her birthdays by herself or with a relative she wasn't particularly close with.
"I understand. Thanks for telling me," she replied.
"Thank you for understanding, Eva. Also, there's a box of your favorite chocolate on top of the coffee table."
She glanced at the living room where the coffee table was, catching a glimpse of a maroon matte box that was ribbon-tied with a fuschia ribbon.
"I already saw it. Thank you, mom."
"You're welcome. We'll see you later tonight. We love you so much."
"I love you both."
After the call ended, she put her phone inside her pocket and got up from her seat, going to the living room.
She took the box of chocolate her parents gave her as a gift from the coffee table.
"What is the use of enjoying this if I can't eat it happily?" she asked herself.
The sound of the doorbell outside caught her attention, and when she turned to look at the glass panel door, she saw her friends.
Edward, Barron, Johnny, Alex, and Daniel were excitedly peering through the door, while Aiden was left peering through the window and waving his hand.
She set the chocolate box down and smiled as she walked up to the door.
After opening the door, Eva was surprised to see Alex and Edward rush inside and immediately start hugging her. Daniel shortly followed them and stayed behind while observing them with a small smile on his face.
"We missed you so much, hon!" Edward exclaimed, then Daniel gave her a gentle pat on the head.
"I can't believe you guys will show up today," Eva said as they all withdrew from the hug. "You're meant to be away on Christmas Eve, right?"
"How can we miss your special day?" Barron gives her a relatively short hug before he joins the first three guys in the living room.
"I wish my parents know how to spend their time with me just like you guys."
"Are they out again?" Alex's voice was heard afar.
Before Eva could answer, Johnny approached her for a sweet and empathetic embrace.
"Oh, honey, don't be sad." He gently kissed her on the cheek, then let her go and moved further inside the house.
As she turned to face her friends who were gathered in the living room, Aiden walked up behind her and softly caressed the back of her head. He simply smiled at her, then walked forward after catching her sight.
"FOOD!"
Edward caught everyone's attention, making them rush on their heels to the dining area with Eva.
"Did you make all these?" Barron asked her, completely amused.
"My parents and I were supposed to have lunch, but they said they couldn't make it."
"That's a shame," Alex replied. "These dishes all looked good."
Aiden approached the table before taking a fork and tasting one dish. The guys reacted aggressively because of what he did.
"It's okay," Eva interjected to calm them down. "You guys can eat it if you like. No one will eat it anyway."
They stared at her for a moment of silence before suddenly celebrating in excitement, leaving Eva giggling and seeing her friends enjoy the dishes she made to their heart's content.
An hour after they had finished filling themselves up and feeling satisfied with the lunch, Barron proposed they head to the amusement park before dusk to accompany their beloved Eva on her special day.
Despite the greatness of the rides in the amusement park, their favorite area was by the sea bay.
Leaving the others in complete embarrassment, the extroverts—Edward, Johnny, and Barron—couldn't help but scream in excitement as they ran towards the fences dividing the land from the seawater.
"Can you lower your voice? We're in public," Aiden told them, following behind.
Their arrival at the amusement park brings back the memories from their younger years.
"Guys, this is where we promised to be Eva's protectors!" Edward said. "Oh, and who are those bullies again?"
"If I could remember the names correctly, they're Elise and Amanda," Johnny replied.
"Not only did they put dope inside Eva's bag, but they also accused her of selling them because she is from Italy, where I presume the majority of drug dealers come from," Daniel confirmed.
"When Alex alleges that they had placed it in Eva's bag and they refuted him by saying that he's a liar," Edward added. "It was so funny when he confronted them by saying—"
"Do you know me enough for you to say that I'm a liar?!" The guys ended up saying in chorus, imitating the way Alex said it back then.
Their laughter spread like wildfire and drew in the attention of others almost quickly.
Eva grinned shyly. "You don't have to mention that. Past is past. It's better left out and forgotten."
"If it's a good memory, then it shouldn't be forgotten at all," Barron responded, leaving Eva speechless but with a smile on her face as she realized they have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.
The group eventually settled on a bench table to wait for the sunset while enjoying ice cream in the middle of winter.
In spite of Johnny noticing what she was doing, Eva couldn't help but check her phone to see if her parents had texted her already.
"It must be hard to be an only child."
Eva gave him a soft sigh and smiled before putting the phone back in her pocket. Sitting to her left was Barron, who gave her a curious glance.
"Haven't they texted you yet?" he asked before taking a mouthful of his mint chocolate ice cream.
"Not yet, but it's okay. For nearly half of my life, I have considered how busy they are."
Eva wasn't aware of the guys' secret glances at one another. Edward then decided to lighten the mood by making a surprise announcement.
"Alright guys! It's time for gift giving!"
"Gift giving?" Daniel asked him. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"I told you we'd need to buy gifts for Eva's birthday," Edward said.
"Oh, yeah." Barron pointed at Edward as he nodded. "I remember you said that."
"Are you sure you told us about that? Because I cannot recall anything," Johnny said.
"You're not always remembering anything, Johnny," Edward called him out.
"Edward's just messing with us," Alex added.
"Hey! I'm not kidding. Even Barron backed me up," Edward exclaimed. "Are you guys just saying that because you didn't hear my announcement or because you forgot?"
The others were silent as they looked at one another and then at Eva, who was simply oblivious to what was happening.
Edward gasped. "I KNEW IT!"
"Alright," Eva interrupted them. "I don't care if you have or don't have gifts for me. All I need is you guys, and being with you on my birthday is enough."
They remained to stare at her while taking in everything she said.
"You're enough for us, too, Eva." They were quickly drawn to Aiden's voice because he wasn't as talkative as Edward.
The group starts to get ready to leave as soon as they finish their ice cream with Eva promptly rejoining the group after using the restroom.
She spotted a lovely view in line with the approaching sunset where the guys are lined up in front of the fences, their backs facing her as they enjoy the view of the sea.
Eva picked up her phone from her pants' back pocket and opened the camera, then she secretly snapped a photo of them. With a smile on her face, she continued looking at them through the camera.
Until Daniel turned his head around and saw what Eva was doing.
"Guys," he called the other guys' attention. "Let's turn around. Eva's taking a group picture of us."
"It was supposed to be a candid one!" Eva complained, making them chuckle.
"It would be rude if we remained to turn our backs against you," Daniel added.
After capturing a few pictures, Alex offered to take the picture of the guys with Eva in the center, then a group photo was taken with him at the front.
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