[Action Post: Backdated to the 18th]
He had spent many long hours in careful consideration to come up with the day's list of events. And it required getting an early start - not just to have his boyfriend's birthday date underway, but out of nervous anticipation as well.
One, it was Valdi's birthday. You only get one of those a year, so the necessity to not fuck it up was in high standing.
Two, not only was it his birthday, but Valdi requested that they go to the zoo for his birthday. Which meant nature. Which meant animals in nature.
Three, Kai was terrified of all the things the zoo had to offer. Birds, zebras, elephants, lions, sloths, billy goats, squirrels. Essentially, he considered himself fucked.
Four, knowing his divine luck (as had been foretold by the third coming of the chairtergeist) someone would leave an enclosure unlocked and he'd be mauled to death in a most gruesome way by something inane. Like a donkey. Or a puffin.
Probably a puffin.
But when they had arrived at the zoo he was surprised to see that their bee line path was not to see the puffins or the penguins, nor to visit the giraffes. Instead Valdi grabbed Kai by the hand and drug him off to the children's section, where they had a petting zoo filled with tame farm animals that were used to being tampered with. Goats, sheep, cows, horses, rabbits, ducks, chickens, donkeys, pigs.. they spent a long while playing with the baby ducks and baby goats, though. A good hour or two at that, until they were starting to get 'the look' from parents who wanted to allow their fussy children to pet the animals (and so Kai wouldn't start a riot to free the baby goats and ducks). And though he was terrified as they continued through the zoo exhibits Valdi was not far away, all the while patiently letting Kai cling to his hand in a death grip and stand as close as he needed so as to not be scared.
Well, at least part of the time he was scared. The other part he just wanted to be closer to the Icelander and felt that if their relationship wasn't a valid enough reason, then fear was a good instigator.
From the zoo they moved into perusing shopfronts near and around the miracle shop, stopping in for ice cream and various desserts throughout the day. Their sugar-laden smörgasbord was padded out near mid-afternoon with a meal at the Grotto, then tempting their taste buds with various seafood delights. He ate until he felt like he might be sick, and then a few more bites beyond.
As they walked off their meal Kai pondered and stewed about how he might not awkwardly invite Valdi back to the house, seeing as the present he made for him was far too big to carry on their epic journey both near and far. Though he wasn't entirely certain why he had worked himself into a nervous mess about it, as Valdi surely acquiesced and they were on their way.
Presents were given to him quickly upon entering the home, Kai much like a child on christmas, eager to show Valdi the things that he had to surprise him with. They began with a simple book with a not so simple meaning: it was in promotion for Northern European tourism, depicting Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland within it's pages and all the many sights you might see when visiting. Throughout the sections on Denmark and Iceland were portions Kai had highlighted himself with a marker and left post it notes, scrawled upon them stories of his ventures there or denoting places he'd like to visit with Valdi someday.
The second was then a cookie jar in the shape of a puffin, wearing some sort of ridiculous winter hat and wrapped with one of Kai's own scarves. On the outside was taped a large card which read “Kai and Valdi's Northern European Trip Fund” in bold letters. The Dane was quick to start their collection by pulling a few bills from his wallet and putting them inside the cookie jar for safe keeping.
The last of the surprises to come was something Kai himself had made as his latest scrap metal project: a barn star with added embellishments, namely the way it had been embossed with the colors of the Icelandic flag and kept true to the shape with the Nordic cross streaking proudly up and down, left and right. The gifts were enjoyed and cherished until food coma struck with a vengeance roughly around Four, where they then laid down to take what was supposed to be a quick cat nap.
When he opened his eyes he blearily made out the numbers as “9:14” on his alarm, and by the tell-tale signs of darkness beyond his curtains attributed that it was night and not morning - a sign that maybe Sindre wouldn't skin him alive (just yet). Deciding it best to ignore the hour for now he shifted just so that he might bury his face down into a crown of pale hair once more, breathing Valdi in deeply as his eyes slipped close. He tightened his arms around the smaller man and kept him close, absently running the backs of his fingers across the length of his spine for added comfort on both their parts.
“You awake?” He absently whispered to the man in his arms, sleep thickened speech made that much more difficult by his choice to use Danish. When he earned no response he assumed the other's slumber, and peeled his head back just enough so he might yawn without disrupting Valdi further. "Mm, keep on sleepin', then. Ain't no rush to go home.. 'cept Sindre will probably kill me, but you can stay the night if you sleep that long."
Kai settled himself back in without another sound, stubbornly refusing to open his eyes lest the peaceful world might shatter and break. It wasn't much longer before sleep crept over him like a warm blanket and carried him away, lost to the hours as they passed onward.
Operation “Give your boyfriend an awesome birthday and not fuck it up you dumbass”? Successful.