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For the first time in many years, Angela really enjoyed her birthday this time.

And she credited it to all the people who had been there for her when she really needed them. Her father and brother had always been there, but their relationship was bland in the previous years, and she didn\'t think it would ever improve. So many things happened in the past few months that she believed contributed to the change.

Of course, one of those was Gael.

There was this feeling inside her that made her feel different. So different that she learned to appreciate more things than she usually did. Like the food was better, the air smelled fresher, even the plain water tasted sweeter. Angela thought she was being over the top, so she didn\'t tell anyone those findings, but she admitted them to herself. And perhaps that caused her to smile more often.

Angela didn\'t care much for gifts. When she knew her father organized her birthday celebration—even after she told him she only wanted a small gathering, she asked him to indicate on the invitation that instead of material gifts, she requested that the guests would instead write a check or send a donation to her foundation. Because honestly, she didn\'t need any more new clothes, jewelry, bags, or whatever they thought she needed.

Most of them complied. However, some of her relatives still brought something—mostly expensive stuff, wanting to leave an impression that they were generous on top of their donation, or they just didn\'t want to come empty-handed. Several boxes sat on a table next to the dessert table.

Apparently, Gael told his family about the celebration too. They didn\'t know about the donation thing until the evening when Oliver mentioned it to Gael while they waited for Angela. So during the day, the Su household signed and received several deliveries from them.

Alessandro sent six crates of Italian wine, which the Sus and the rest of the guests enjoyed throughout the evening. Giovanni sent some Amedei chocolates and a bouquet with a card that said: "Angela, I like you. But this is not a romantic gesture. Happy birthday, you cute thing. x Gio"

Giovanni\'s flowers were displayed by the stage, next to Gael\'s bouquet of pink roses—Angela\'s favorite. Gael\'s grandmother, Susan, sent a package, carefully boxed with safety puffs inside. Angela couldn\'t wait to see what it was that she opened it as soon as she saw it. It was a light blue mug with a flared handle and a statement that read: "my book smells better than your tablet ?"

Angela absolutely loved it. She and Gael laughed. That one was her favorite already; she couldn\'t wait to use it right away. Then, Gael told her that his family also donated to her foundation. She was extremely thankful to them.

When the party finally ended, there was over $200,000 donated in accumulation from about seventy guests. And with Charlie\'s, Oliver\'s, and the De Lucas\' donations, Angela knew there would be a lot more funds to work with. This was the best birthday she could hope for, and she wanted to do this every year. She was no longer averse to the idea of having a more extensive guest list the following year.

***

After seeing the guests out, Angela, her family, and Gael all slumped in the living room. Entertaining was exhausting. They were thankful they didn\'t have to leave the premises to go home.

They all sat in silence for a few minutes before Charlie got to his feet and kissed the top of Angela\'s head, and said goodnight. Oliver ruffled his sister\'s hair and followed his father up the stairs. As soon as they were left alone, she crawled onto Gael\'s side, partially resting her legs on his lap and sighed like a satisfied kitten that found its spot.

Her eyes became heavy, and she was too tired to talk. She let her eyelids close and thought she could rest her eyes for a while. Angela felt Gael\'s fingers stroking her wrist; then he was fumbling on her bracelet—the one he gave her a couple of weeks ago. 

She peeked and saw him opening a red velvet box. Inside the soft cushion sat a tiny gold letter "G", and she realized that it was a charm for her bracelet. "Happy birthday, Love." He kissed her temple, his warm lips lingering on her skin, sending a zap of current on the spot and down to her arms.

Angela gasped, and a smile immediately appeared on her face. "I love it! Help me put it on."

He unclasped the bracelet for her, but because his fingers were too big to handle the delicate jewelry, he let her slide the letter onto the chain until it settled next to the diamond setting and then clasped the bracelet back around her wrist. "I wanted to be the last one to give you a gift today," he admitted.

"Regardless of when you give it, your gift is my most favorite. I won\'t forget it so easily—I won\'t forget it at all."

"I thought Grandma\'s mug was your favorite?"

"Don\'t tell her I changed my mind."

They laughed, and she kissed him on the lips, thanking him again. He had already given her so much, she wasn\'t really expecting anything from him. But she still loved the new addition to her favorite bracelet.

***

Angela prepared for bed, feeling so spent as she dove into the plush mattress and pillow, but she had a hard time falling asleep because her mind was just too active.

After two hours of tossing and turning, she sat up and stared at her door. Her lip curled inward, and she chewed on it as she contemplated going to Gael. However, his room was right across Charlie\'s, and she couldn\'t possibly go through the door. What if Gael locked it? She had to knock, but her father was a light sleeper.

Perhaps she could call him, and he could open the door, but the sound of a door opening and closing might wake Charlie up too. Not to mention, some of the floorboards in the hallway were creaky. She didn\'t want to risk it.

Angela shifted her stare towards her balcony. When she was a teenager, she used to sneak out through there and climb down to the garden undetected. She wouldn\'t have to climb down, though, if she were to go through the balcony now. The mansion had a wrap-around balcony from east to west, which was made to enjoy the estate\'s view, especially the lake.

She had thought about this the first night they stayed in the mansion, but she only had the strong urge to act on it tonight. The only problem was that she had to pass by Charlie\'s and Oliver\'s windows before getting to Gael\'s.

Whatever. She would just need to be careful. Quietly, she left through the door leading to her balcony, and a curse escaped her lips. It was freakin\' freezing outside, and she was wearing a thin nightgown. Wanting to grab a coat from her bedroom, she opened the door again.

"F—" Angela stiffened. The door was locked.

Frustrated, she threw her arms about and rubbed her face while inaudibly crying, feeling so stupid.

Left with no choice, she stalked down the platform towards Gael\'s room, hugging herself though it was useless against the chilly night.

When she neared Charlie\'s room, Angela sank on all fours and crawled past the window, not wanting to risk her shadow from alarming her father. The tiled floor was like ice on her skin. Her ears were flushed, and her hands became white.

This was so silly. She was twenty-nine years old, and here she was, sneaking around the house to meet her boyfriend. 

Angela got up after Charlie\'s room and did the same when she had to pass by Oliver\'s window, only getting back to her feet afterward. 

Finally, when she reached Gael\'s window, she exhaled in relief. The only thing left to do was knock on the glass and hope Gael would wake up before Oliver noticed her light rapping.

Using her fingers, she tapped on the window and waited.

.

.

.

Nothing.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

.

.

.

Shit.

Was he too tired?

God, she was an idiot. No phone. No coat. She was shivering out in the cold. She would die here due to hypothermia.

She could already imagine the headlines in the morning: "Death by Stupidity: Promiscuous Woman Eager for a Hookup!"

Despite herself, she found that hilarious.

If Gael really wouldn\'t wake up, her last option was to climb down the balcony and enter the mansion through the kitchen, then go back to her room.

Angela rubbed her hands together and blew onto them. She was just about to tap the window one last time when the curtain slid to the side, and she saw Gael\'s baffled expression.

"What the—"

He didn\'t think twice as he opened the door for her and she rushed inside his room.

"Oh, my god. I thought I was gonna die out there." 

Gael chuckled. "I can\'t believe you\'re here." He pulled her to him, and he stiffened. "Shit. You\'re ice cold. You\'re shaking."

He picked her up and placed her in the middle of his bed, his lips tilting into a devilishly handsome grin.. "But I know just the thing to warm you up."