A Birthday to Remember

[amusinglydead]

Title: A Birthday to RememberRating: K+
Character/s: Tsuna, Gokudera, friendship/pre-slash 5927
Length: 4,234
Disclaimer: I don't own KHR /:
Author's note: I'm a little late but, Happy Birthday Gokudera-kun! ^^
Summary: "So? Have you thought about what you're going to do for Gokudera's birthday already?" 
Tsuna couldn't believe that he had to find out from Reborn, of all people, that Gokudera's birthday was tomorrow!


--
Tsuna walked home from school that day with a troubled look on his face. He was deep in thought, his brows furrowed and his mouth set into a mild frown as he wondered what he was going to do about… that.

"So? Have you thought about what you're going to do for Gokudera's birthday already?"

Tsuna hadn't been able to get those words out of his head ever since he had heard them last night from Reborn. He couldn't believe that Gokudera-kun was turning fifteen already, and tomorrow too! Tsuna hadn't heard anything about it before. No one had mentioned it, not even the birthday boy himself.

I wonder if Yamamoto already knows… Tsuna frowned slightly at that thought. Had he perhaps been the last one to find out? Why hadn't anyone said anything? Why hadn't Gokudera-kun told him? It seemed like it would be something that the other would do. After all, didn't he want to celebrate the day with Tsuna?

Tsuna bit his lip and wondered if perhaps the other had told him, and Tsuna just hadn't been listening.

No, I'm sure I would have remembered something like that…

Now that Tsuna thought about it, Gokudera-kun didn't really say much about himself, did he?

Maybe… he was waiting for me to ask? Tsuna bit his lip guiltily at that thought. He couldn't help but to remember that when it had been his birthday, Gokudera-kun had known even though Tsuna had never told him about it. In fact, Gokudera-kun had been the only one to remember about it under all the excitement that had been made for Reborn's party.

I'm such a horrible friend… Tsuna bemoaned miserably, feeling a dark cloud of gloom looming over him.

Augh, no, no, no! Getting down like this isn't going to help me at all! Tsuna scrunched up his forehead and shook his head as if the motion would help him get rid of those useless thoughts.

Now, what kinds of things does Gokudera-kun like? Tsuna thought as he slowed his pace, turning to head towards the shopping district instead of his home.

Dynamites? Tsuna sweat dropped at the thought of giving the other that particular gift. The last thing Tsuna wanted to do was encourage the other to continue his violent habits. It's not like I know a place that sells that kind of stuff anyway…

Tsuna tried not to acknowledge the fact that if his life continued the way it was going, he was most definitely going to end up knowing the location to such places.

Maybe I should make him a cake? Tsuna flushed slightly at that thought, quickly discarding it. Yeah, right. I'm horrible at making sweets. And it would be way too embarrassing. Tsuna could already imagine the other's reaction to such a thing. His stomach flipped anxiously.

I-I'll just buy him a cake instead. Tsuna decided, and tried ignoring his burning cheeks.

Tsuna spent that afternoon with a heavy, anxious weight at his stomach. There was nothing in particular that was catching his eye in the shopping district, at least not anything he thought would interest his Italian friend. Tsuna wished he had known about this earlier.

Ah, Tsuna suddenly had a realization.

Tomorrow is Sunday! We're not going to see each other at school! Tsuna groaned inwardly. Now along with the fact that he still didn't have a gift, Tsuna also had to figure out where the other one lived!

Maybe Reborn knows. He has to, right? Tsuna sure hoped so. He sighed. Well, Gokudera-kun does like to come over often. Maybe I should just invite him over. But although Tsuna knew the other would not hesitate to come, he still felt like he should be the one to visit. After all, he had never visited Gokudera's place before. Tsuna was curious about where and how the other one lived.
It was as Tsuna pondered on what he should do about this, that he finally managed to spot something interesting out of the corner of his eye. The brunette titled his head for a moment, staring at the object that had caught his attention, before his eyes widened and his lips tugged into a smile. That's it! He thought happily, his stomach fluttering excitedly as he turned to head into that shop. This is totally Gokudera-kun's style. I'm sure he'll like it. Tsuna grinned, glad he had been able to find something good. Inwardly, he really knew that the other would probably be happy with anything that Tsuna would give him. But Tsuna wanted to give him something special. After all, it was Gokudera-kun…

Even though he can be a little scary sometimes, Gokudera-kun is a good friend… He's always looking out for me, and helping me with schoolwork. And even though things started out a little weird between us, he was my first real friend, kind of…

Tsuna smiled ruefully as he thought of Gokudera-kun's usual attitude towards him. At first when the other had begun following him around, Tsuna had dreaded being around the other. But now… after everything that had happened…

Even though he still says the same things, he's different now… I can't really explain it, but I'm glad. Tsuna smiled, feeling a bit of warmth growing in his chest at the thought. He clutched the wrapped gift he finished purchasing close to him as he stepped out of the shop and began heading home.

Now I just need to stop by to buy a cake…

--

The ninth of September had never been a particular special day for Gokudera. At least, not in a happy sense.

For as long as he could remember, the day had only been filled with social obligations, poisonous cookies, a horrid stomachache, and even worse piano performances. The only good thing he could remember about those days was the way Shamal had treated him every evening after. His warm hands and rueful smile had always been Gokudera's favorite part of those days... although now, the memory was nothing but a bittersweet recollection.

It was for these reasons probably that Gokudera wasn't exactly excited about turning fifteen. He hadn't told anyone about it, and certainly wasn't expecting anyone (except Bianchi and Shamal of course) to know about it.

This suited him fine however. There was nothing particularly special about turning one year older in Gokudera's opinion. And anyway, he hadn't celebrated his birthday for the past five years and certainly wasn't going to start again now.

Gokudera scrunched up his nose slightly, wondering why he was even thinking about these types of pointless things this early in the morning. Usually when his birthday came around Gokudera was too busy to even acknowledge it.

Ah, whatever. Gokudera rubbed the back of his warm neck, popping out the lazy kinks of the morning as he moved to shuffle up into a sitting position. His thin covers fell down to his waist as he lazily moved to lean against the wall.

Now what should I do today? Gokudera pondered through sleepy half-lidded eyes. He stretched slightly, yawning as he reached over to his nightstand and moved to lit up a cigarette.

In a way, he was glad that there was no school today. He almost felt like staying home all day; less chance to run into the quack and his freak of a sister that way. He knew the two wouldn't make an effort to meet him if he wanted to stay home. Bianchi especially seemed to have stopped her horrid habit of stalking him whenever he was out of her sight. That had been especially irritating after he had first run away from home back when he was nine. He had always been paranoid that he would catch sight of her out of the corner of his eyes back then.

Ugh, Gokudera held his stomach gingerly in remembrance, a pained grimace spreading across his face. He was thankful that his sister hadn't yet bothered to find out where he was currently living (or so he assumed, due to her lack of visits). He shuddered horrified at the thought of her finally coming over.

He supposed he had to thank Reborn-san for her lack of attention. Gokudera really was deeply grateful to him about it.

Thinking about the Sawada household however only made Gokudera go into a thought zone that he had been trying to avoid.

I wonder if the Tenth is doing anything in particular today… Gokudera let a puff of smoke pass through his lips, watching as it dispersed into the air in a circular motion. As usual, his desire to see the Tenth overrode his desire to avoid the rest of the idiots that surrounded his life.

I… want to see him. Gokudera frowned slightly, wondering if perhaps Reborn-san had something planned for today. Gokudera sure hoped so.

Well, no need to wait about in bed all day, I guess. And with that thought, Gokudera snuffed out his cigarette and moved to get ready for the day, heading to the shower first before stopping by his kitchen. He would have to stop by the convenience store soon, he noted. He was beginning to run out of food already.

It was as Gokudera was calculating just how much he could safely spend on food for the upcoming week however, that he was suddenly interrupted by a hesitant knock on his door.

Gokudera blinked in surprise. Who the heck? The white-haired teen stood frozen still for a second, his mind racing as he wondered who would be visiting him at this moment. His list came up rather short.

The rent's not due yet. Oh god did Bianchi finally decide to come over? The smoker stood still for a second longer, before gulping anxiously and beginning to inch towards his door. He dared not peek through the peephole of the door, and instead called out wearily, "Who is it…?"

There was a muffled but definitely distinct, "Gokudera-kun?" from the other side of the door.

Gokudera's eyes immediately widened. His shock was then quickly replaced with delight. He almost smacked himself with the door as he rushed to open it.

"T-tenth!" Gokudera beamed as his eyes caught sight of his boss standing right outside of his apartment. He couldn't believe he was here! Gokudera took quick notice of the other's nervous but slightly determined expression, as well as the fact that he seemed to be holding something behind his back.

Immediately, Gokudera's mind quickly went from, Is there something wrong? To, Did I forget something was going on today? And back to, Oh god, I can't believe the Tenth came to visit me!

Thankfully, instead of bombarding the other with questions, Gokudera managed to calm himself a bit. "What brings you by here today, Tenth?" he ended up asking the other instead, with a barely restrained grin tugging at his lips.

"Ah, um…" There was a brief second of silence, in which Gokudera noted that his boss seem a bit hesitant to speak. Before Gokudera could furrow his brows and ask if anything was wrong however, the Tenth finally managed to answer his question, albeit a bit more forcibly than Gokudera had expected.

"H-happy birthday, Gokudera-kun!" The Tenth suddenly exclaimed, thrusting what he had been hiding behind his back towards him and looking firmly down to the ground as a small flush began to rise up to his cheeks.

Gokudera blinked in surprise. For a moment, he wondered if he was still dreaming.

Definitely, Gokudera thought dazedly, staring down at his boss with wide eyes as his brain struggled to assure him that he was in fact actually awake. Gokudera's eyes then moved from his boss' face and down to the bag that had thrust into his hands. The realization of what must be inside the bag sent Gokudera's heart to jump up at his throat.

Ba-dump.

Gokudera couldn't believe his fortune. The Tenth…not only had he known that Gokudera's birthday was today, but he had gone out of his way to come and visit him. And he had even brought him a gift! Gokudera felt touched, stunned even. His fingers clutched tightly at the bag the other had given him, as if afraid that if he didn't it would disappear.

Gokudera couldn't help but to stare at his boss in speechless awe. But somehow, after a moment more, he managed to finally find his voice. (A good thing, since his boss seemed extremely uncomfortable at Gokudera's lack of reaction.)

"T-tenth…" the white-haired teen's voice came out small and timid, though his eyes were sparkling in fierce admiration. Gokudera felt overwhelmingly happy, and did his best not to tear up at his boss' infinitely kind nature. He bit his lip happily instead, trying to contain the joyful grin that was threatening to overtake his face. In the end, he couldn't help but to give in to his urge and threw his arms over the other's shoulders. "Thank you very much, Tenth!" the birthday boy cried out in eternal gratefulness, completely oblivious of how this action made his boss stiffen in surprise.

"Ah, um… Gokudera-kun?" Tsuna had to call out timidly after a couple of seconds, noticing the other wasn't planning to move any time soon. Although Tsuna had hesitantly brought up his own arms after getting over his surprise, the dynamite-user had still yet to let go.
It… was making Tsuna's feel rather uncomfortable.

Thankfully, his reminder of the fact was really all it took to get the other to release him.

"Ah! Forgive me for my impertinence, Tenth!" his self-proclaimed right-hand man immediately cried out, letting go of him and stepping back a couple of steps. His face looked a little flushed, although it was his eyes that made Tsuna look away. They stared at him with such an intense admiration that it was making his stomach feel weird.

"Ah!" Gokudera's eyes widened once more then as he finally remembered his manners. He looked sheepishly embarrassed at having kept the Tenth at his entrance for so long.

"Um, so would you like to come in?" Gokudera asked his boss in a bit of a rush, still feeling his heart racing happily at his chest.

"If it isn't too much trouble, Gokudera-kun…" his boss answered shyly, beaming him a small smile.

"Of course not! Come in! Sorry about the mess…" Gokudera stepped back to let the Tenth in, his eyes immediately darting over to the messy state of the room. Thankfully, the Tenth didn't seem to mind at all, but still…

"If I had known you were coming I would have cleaned up, Tenth!" Gokudera turned to apologize once more, but the Tenth merely shook his head and shot him a sheepish grin of his own.

"No, I'm sorry for coming by uninvited, Gokudera-kun. I would have called, but…" Tsuna rubbed the back of his neck bashfully as he stepped into the apartment, closing the door behind him. "I wanted to surprise you, Gokudera-kun." he confessed with a small reddening of his cheeks.

Gokudera didn't think he could possibly feel any happier, but he did. "It's not a bother at all, Tenth!" he exclaimed immediately, beaming down at the other. "I'm glad the Tenth decided to go out of his way to visit me! I'm immensely honored!" he insisted excitedly, his hands tightening his grip on the bag he was still carrying.

Tsuna sweat dropped a bit at that statement, although he had definitely expected the other to say as much. It just wouldn't be like Gokudera-kun if he didn't act like this. Still, Tsuna couldn't help but to smile fondly at the other's antics. "How many times do I have to tell you, Gokudera-kun? You don't have to be so formal all the time!" he berated the other for what had to be the twentieth time, shaking his head as he did so.

Although Tsuna knew the words would have no effect on the other, the brunette hoped that one day Gokudera-kun would change his mind and at the very least call him Tsuna. He doubted that this would happen, but still, one could hope, right?

Right… Tsuna inwardly sighed as he noticed the other was about to begin his usual response to Tsuna's (almost daily) request. He smiled wryly but moved to stop the other before he could even begin to say anything.

"Anyway, Gokudera-kun," Tsuna brought the other's attention back to the reason Tsuna had come over. "I brought some cake for us to eat as well, if you'd like to that is. It's in the bag." Tsuna scratched his cheek nervously but gave the other a warm smile.

The dynamite-user looked as pleased as ever to hear this.

Soon enough, they were both sitting down, with a piece of cake for each of them in front of them. Gokudera hadn't been able to keep still ever since his boss had come in. There was a warm, giddy feeling dancing in his chest. It still felt all kinds of surreal that the Tenth was here, in his apartment, eating cake with him. Gokudera didn't think he had ever felt happier than at this moment. As much as he said he didn't care for birthdays, Gokudera would always, always remember this one. He would treasure this special memory for the rest of his life. There was no doubt about it.

"So, um, is this alright with you, Gokudera-kun?"

Gokudera turned the happy grin he had been directing at his plate back up to his boss. "Hm? What is it Tenth?"

Tsuna was looking down at his plate as well, fiddling with his utensil nervously as he ate the cake too. "Oh, well, I didn't know what type of cake you liked so…" Tsuna mumbled slightly, wondering if his choice had been the right one. He had picked a pretty simple one, since he didn't really know what type the other one liked. (Next year, he would do better. Now that he knew when Gokudera-kun's birthday was, Tsuna vowed to make his next one a great one.)

Tsuna shouldn't have worried though.

"Of course I love it! It's perfect!" Gokudera-kun beamed up at him.

Tsuna let an inward sigh of relief. "Really?"

"Of course! After all, the Tenth was the one who bought it for me! I couldn't ask for anything more!" Tsuna couldn't help but to flush darkly at this admission. How did the other continuously manage to embarrass him with only his words?

"T-that…" Tsuna almost wanted to reprimand the other-that hadn't really answered his question! But at the same time, Tsuna knew that the other was saying nothing but the truth. The realization sent Tsuna's stomach into a crazy whirl of twirls that he tried to ignore.

"Can I open this next, Tenth?" Gokudera then asked as he took out the one other thing that was still inside the bag. His heart fluttered slightly as he wondered what else the Tenth had gotten him. He still couldn't believe that the other had gone out of his way to do so much for him. Next month, when it was the Tenth's birthday, Gokudera would be sure to reciprocate.

The Tenth nodded at his question, although he was beginning to look anxious once again, as if he was afraid that Gokudera wouldn't like what he had gotten him. Of course I would! Gokudera thought with a small touch of exasperation. The fact that the Tenth wanted to get me anything at all makes me happy enough! Gokudera thought with a heartfelt grin.

It was with these thoughts that the dynamite-user began to unwrap the untouched box that had been lying inside the bag. Gokudera took care not to rip open the paper, his chest tightening in anticipation as he wondered what his boss had gotten him.
Much to his surprise, when Gokudera finally managed to open up his gift, what he found inside managed to leave him speechless. For a moment, the only thing Gokudera could do was stare down at the contents of the box. He tried to speak, but it was as if his throat had suddenly decided to clog up.

"This is…" Gokudera finally managed, his eyes widened slightly before turning starry with elation.

"D-do you not like it, Gokudera-kun?" The Tenth once again misinterpreted his silence.

"No, no! I love it!" Gokudera was quick to reassure him, beaming brightly at his boss as he reached for the bracelet the other had gotten him and put it on. He stared down at it for a bit, feeling so unbelievably happy with his new present, before turning to thank the Tenth once more. "I'll never take it off!" he announced with a ridiculously pleased grin plastered on his face.

Tsuna had a very similar grin appear on his face at these words.

"I'm glad you like it, Gokudera-kun." Finally, Tsuna was finally able to relax and let out a sigh of relief, knowing that his self-proclaimed right-hand man had liked his gift. Tsuna had been worried about it ever since he had bought it, to the point that Reborn had had to kick him unconscious last night so he could finally fall asleep. Tsuna resisted the urge to rub the slight lump he knew was in the back of his head at the memory.

"I'll treasure it for the rest of my life Tenth!" Gokudera-kun was still thanking him in his overexcitement. "Thank you! For everything!" he added then, and Tsuna could tell the other was resisting his urge to jump him again. The thought made Tsuna break out into a small grin.

But then, once Gokudera calmed down a little, he finally decided to ask the question that had been plaguing him ever since the Tenth had shown up to his apartment.

"If I may ask, Tenth…" Gokudera began hesitantly, as his fingers began fiddling with his newly-gifted bracelet. "How did the Tenth know that today was my birthday?" Gokudera's eyes moved to gaze up at his boss discreetly, wondering what the other would say.

At this question, Tsuna couldn't help but to sigh slightly, and he looked down at his lap a bit dolefully. "Reborn, actually. He's the one who told me." he confessed with a frown. He looked up to see his right-hand nod his head in comprehension, as if that should have been clear from the beginning. This reaction irritated Tsuna slightly, and he couldn't help but to bite his lip as he gathered the courage to speak his mind about something that had been bothering him for a while.

"But," Tsuna then added rather decisively, his frown deepening as he turned his gaze straight towards the white-haired teen. "what surprised me most was that Gokudera-kun didn't say a single thing about it!" he protested and crossed his arms rather huffily over his chest.

Gokudera looked a bit sheepish at this reprimand. "Ah, about that…" the white-haired teen rubbed the back of his head embarrassedly. "I guess I just kind of forgot about it?" he tried. "Well, it's more like it didn't seem that important. I didn't want to bother the Tenth with something as insignificant at this."

"No," Tsuna's frown turned decidedly displeased at these words. "Gokudera-kun is a very important friend of mine, and because of this, of course I want to know more about you!" he protested once more, looking faintly unhappy that he had to be pointing this out.

Gokudera's heart skipped a beat at these words. He wasn't sure what say in response to that. "Ah, um, well…" He floundered for some sort of excuse for his actions.

"No, Gokudera-kun." Tsuna felt a little exasperated at the other's unchanging attitude. As much as the other had improved over the past year, when it came to "little" things such as this, his friend could be such an idiot. "Do you know how mortified I felt when I had to ask Reborn for your address? I couldn't believe that in all the time we'd known each other, you had never invited any of us over to your apartment!" Tsuna huffed slightly. "From now on, Gokudera-kun has to talk more about himself! If you don't tell us things, then how are we supposed to know?" Tsuna ended these words with a pointed glare, although it was obvious that he wasn't angry, merely exasperated.

Gokudera felt his face flush darkly as he listened to this lecture, staring down into his lap as he tried to decipher why his lungs had suddenly decided to run out of breath at that moment. He felt lightheaded, and also a little embarrassed, but mostly, he just felt happy. Cared for.

Unable to get his voice cords to work, Gokudera merely nodded in acquiescence at the Tenth's orders. It would probably take a while to get used to following such a request, but for the Tenth, he could do anything.

"Thank you for everything, Tenth." Gokudera was finally able to manage after a couple of long moments. When he gazed up at his boss it was with a heartfelt look in his eyes and a grateful smile. This had been the best birthday, no, the best day of his life.

"Any time Gokudera-kun." Tsuna looked at the other with a warm smile on his face, feeling equally happy about the way the day had ended up turning like. Even though he had been in such a panic yesterday, today had turned out just perfect. And for that, Tsuna was glad.