Happy Birthday

Kazuki checked the address Renka sent him, then checked it again as he stood outside the door to what should have been her apartment. He raised his finger to press the doorbell, hesitating just centimeters from the button. He gripped Renka’s gift tightly in his hand, quickly reminding himself not to hold it too tightly or he might ruin the wrapping. He took a breath. Why was he nervous in the first place? Was he worried she wouldn’t like the gift? Or was he stressed about meeting her friends? He swallowed the lump in his throat and pressed the button.

A moment passed with no response until Renka’s smiling face appeared in the doorway. She wore her green blouse with the little pink flowers that her grandmother had made her, her hair falling across her shoulders without a matching ribbon to tie it up. Her smile broadened when she saw Kazuki.

“Kazuki! I’m so happy you could make it! Come in!” She stepped aside for him to enter. “And you brought your guitar?”

“I was practicing earlier and didn’t have time to drop it off at home first,” he lied. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“I don’t mind at all! You keep it in the genkan or in the living room if you’d like.”

Kazuki stepped over the precipice into the apartment’s genkan with a nod to Renka and removed his shoes before joining her and her friends in the living room. Two women, one with a short haircut and the other with a long braid, and a man sat on the sofa with Renka, chatting and eating snacks. Kazuki put his guitar down against a wall and greeted them all.

“Hello, I’m Kazuki Magaribuchi. It’s nice to meet you.” He said with a slight bow.

“So, this is the guy you always talk about?” The woman with short hair nudged Renka’s arm with her elbow. “Nice to meet you too Magaribuchi-san. I’m Nami Takahashi.”

“My name is Junko Imagawa.” The other woman spoke up, her smile bright, and her nose dotted with tiny freckles.

The man raised a hand in greeting. “Hiroto Ueda.”

Nami got up from her seat and walked over to the fridge. “You want a beer, Kazuki?”

“Uh, sure?” Kazuki was somewhat taken aback by her casual tone, but Nami and the rest of Renka’s friends seemed quite nice.

Nami took two cans from the fridge and handed one to him before sitting down next to Junko again. She cracked open her Sapporo beer and took a drink.

“So, you’re the one writing music with Renka? She won’t stop talking about it, she’s so excited!” Junko said with a bright smile.

Renka blushed. “I don’t talk about it that much…”

“Oh, yes you do.” Nami winked at her.

Kazuki opened his own beer and took a sip. “Yes, Renka and I have been working together on music. We’re hoping to get into the Sakura Song Festival next year.”

“We’re hoping to win,” Renka corrected happily.

“Sounds like quite the feat,” Hiroto said, shifting in his seat. “Why don’t you play us a song, Kazuki? You brought your guitar after all.”

“That would be great! I’d love to hear your music, Kazu!” Junko clapped her hands together excitedly.

Nami shrugged with a smile. “I’m not opposed to hearing it either.”

Renka looked between her friends, somewhat flustered. Her gaze finally fell on Kazuki, her brows furrowed in consternation. “Kazuki, you don’t have to play if you don’t want to. Don’t feel pressured…”

Kazuki set his beer down on the table. “I don’t mind. I did have a song in mind, actually.”

He grabbed his guitar case and retrieved his guitar from inside. He slung the guitar strap over his shoulder, the very one Renka had brought him from Hokkaido, and quickly tuned the strings. He took a breath, the room falling silent and all eyes on him.

The first note resonated through the room, and Kazuki felt that it was almost too loud as it cut through the silence. He silently hoped the neighbors wouldn’t make any complaints against Renka, but playing a short song would probably be fine. He continued playing, his fingers dancing across the frets as he played each chord, the vibrations of the strings traveling like ripples through the air. As the introduction to his song came to a close, he started to sing, quietly at first, then increasing in volume and passion, his previous insecurities melting away.

His voice rose and fell with the notes elicited from his guitar, painting images of mountains and forests and sparkling rivers, of sunshine and warmth and fields of flowers. He’d spent the entire week working on this song, specifically for Renka’s birthday, and he’d wondered if it would be ready in time, if she would enjoy it at all. He realized he’d had his eyes closed as he played, and on the final chorus, he opened them, meeting Renka’s gaze. Her eyes glimmered like starlight, completely entranced by his music.

Then, something he never expected happened: Renka began singing along. Her friends must have also been surprised as their attention snapped to Renka who sang the words as if she’d known them her whole life. And all the while, Renka’s eyes were locked on Kazuki. He played the last note of the song, and the sound lingered in the air for what seemed like eternity, their gazes never straying from one another. Kazuki’s chest felt tight at the sight of Renka so transfixed, glowing, shining like a beautiful star in a cloudless night sky.

“That was beautiful.” Junko broke the silence.

“I haven’t heard Renka sing like that in a long time…” Nami commented.

Hiroto remained silent but nodded in agreement.

Renka seemed somewhat shocked by the sudden sound of her friend’s comments and snapped her attention away from Kazuki. She smiled shyly at them.

“I don’t know what got into me. The song was so moving, Kazuki.”

“I’m really happy you enjoyed it,” Kazuki remarked.

“Wait, you’ve never heard it before?” Junko grabbed Renka’s arm in amazement. “And you sang along anyway?? You’re incredible, Renka! Oh, and you’re really great too, Kazu!”

Kazuki chuckled at Junko’s quick comment to him. “That’s very kind of you. I was surprised Renka sang along too.”

“I couldn’t help it.” Renka’s cheeks reddened.

“Well, I think it’s time for the rest of us to sing now,” Nami announced, walking over to the fridge once more. “And time to eat some cake!” She took a box from the fridge and placed it on the counter. “Come help me with this, Junko.”

“On it!” Junko hopped up from her seat and rushed over to help Nami.

Kazuki carefully put his guitar back in its case. Hiroto watched him before directing his attention to the cake that Nami and Junko placed on the table in front of Renka. It had various fruits on top of it and a message reading “Happy birthday, Renka!” along with some candles around the edges.

“Let’s sing!” Junko exclaimed and started singing ‘Happy Birthday.’

Everyone else joined in, with Renka smiling happily as her friends sang around her. When they had finished, she blew out the candles. Junko clapped excitedly.

“Did you make a wish?” she asked, her eyes sparkling.

“Of course!” Renka giggled. “But it’s a secret! If I tell you, then it won’t come true.”

“You don’t have to tell me, silly! I just want to make sure you wished for something good! You only get one chance a year, so you’d better make it worthwhile!”

Hiroto rolled his eyes with a slight smile. It seemed he was used to Junko’s zealousness and found it amusing. Nami similarly smiled at Junko’s enthusiasm as she removed the candles from the cake and handed Renka a knife to cut into it.

The rest of the evening was spent eating, drinking, and discussing assorted topics, often coming back to Renka and Kazuki’s music and how they had met. Hiroto quietly listened most of the time, occasionally interjecting to tease Junko about something, while Nami laughed at Junko’s reaction to his teasing. Renka seemed to enjoy herself, laughing along and making her own quips to the others. Kazuki didn’t feel like only an observer as they always tried to include him in the conversation, telling stories about each other and asking him about himself.

Hours passed easily between the group, until it became rather late. Hiroto stretched with a yawn, standing up and cleaning up his spot.

“I think I should head out for the night. Happy birthday again, Renka. It was fun.”

“I should go home soon, too,” Junko whimpered.

“Same.” Nami agreed.

Renka beamed. “Thank you all for coming. It was great!”

Kazuki also got up from his seat, grabbing his guitar and making his way to the door with the others. Renka joined them, hugging each of her friends goodbye as they walked out the door. She stopped when Kazuki started putting his shoes back on.

“Oh, Kazuki. Can you wait for just a minute?”

Kazuki blinked in surprise, starting to feel a bit self-conscious now that Renka’s other friends had left. “Sure? What is it?”

Renka rushed to her room and came back with an envelope. “It’s the selection results for the festival. They came in the mail today…”

“Oh.” Kazuki’s chest tightened. What if they didn’t get selected for the festival? Wouldn’t that ruin Renka’s birthday? “Why don’t we wait until tomorrow?”

“I want to know now. Even if it’s not good news,” she insisted, her eyes full of determination.

Kazuki nodded, watching as she carefully tore open the envelope. Her fingers lingered on the letter inside, not pulling it out. Kazuki gently grabbed her hand.

“I’ll look at it first if you’re scared.”

Renka pressed her lips together for a moment before handing the envelope to him. His heart raced as he slowly pulled the letter from inside. He unfolded it, briefly scanning over the introduction until he came to the results.

“We…” He paused in disbelief. He had been so confident before, but the results written on the paper in front of him made his breath catch in his throat. “We got in,” he said breathlessly.

Renka grabbed his arm. “We’re in? We’re in… We’re in!!” Renka let out a squeal of joy and embraced Kazuki tightly.

He wrapped his arms around her, wide smiles painted across both of their faces. They were one step close to winning now. They held each other for a time before Renka finally pulled away, her eyes teary.

“Don’t cry!” Kazuki gasped.

“They’re happy tears, don’t worry!” Renka laughed.

Kazuki grinned, realizing he too had tears in his eyes. He wiped them away, and another thought occurred to him that he had completely forgotten.

“Oh, Renka. I nearly forgot. I got you something for your birthday.” He grabbed her gift and held it out to her. “It’s not much, but… I thought of you when I saw it.”

Renka took it with a jokingly disapproving look. “You really didn’t have to get me anything.” She started unwrapping it, and her expression quickly became one of shock. “This is…”

She pulled the ribbon out of the packaging. Pink flowers dotted the green ribbon, matching her blouse almost perfectly. She grasped the ribbon tightly, tears streaming down her cheeks. Kazuki panicked, gently grabbing her shoulder.

“Renka, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to make you—”

“This is the most beautiful present…” She sniffled. “Thank you so much, Kazuki.”

She hugged him tightly, burying her face in his shoulder. He held her close, his heart beating loudly in his chest. He didn’t know how long their embrace lasted this time, but it simultaneously felt like a mere moment and an eternity that he hoped would never end. What was this feeling? This aching in his chest?

Finally, Renka pulled away again, and tied her hair up with the ribbon. She wiped her eyes with her sleeves and smiled at Kazuki, brighter than ever before.

“I’ll wear it to the festival. It’s perfect.”

You’re perfect. Kazuki thought.