Hey dear readers. First let me say thanks for clicking on this fic. If it was by accident, please give it a chance. This is my very first fic and I wrote this for Squalo's birthday.

Please r&r. Constructive criticism is much appreciated but pls don't be too mean in your wording as I'm quite sensitive. Ok I shall stop blabbering and get on with the fic. Enjoy! :D

"VOOOIII!" Superbi Squalo glared at that hideous thing before him. He stood there in the Varia's dining hall, flailing his sword wildly. This happened every year. "Why, it's a cake Squ-chan" twittered the Varia's mother. "I baked it specially for you!" Squalo didn't really mind cake. But this one was PINK! Pink with baby-fucking-blue icing on top that read "Happy 32nd Birthday Squalo!" The shark growled. That damn Lussuria. Last year it was purple. The year before some other girly color. And he did not really want to be reminded of how old he was. All the members of the Varia were present. Except for the one bastard Squalo wanted to see the most.

Everyone in the dining hall had gotten their Strategy Commander a gift, even the resident psycho prince. Happy Birthday was sung and the cake eaten without much fuss. After that, Squalo proceeded to kill time in various ways. Training, napping and screaming at the odd servant.

Squalo wasn't really bothered by his boss's absence. It wasn't unusual for his boss to be absent from the cake cutting and all each year. Come to think of it, the white haired swordsman could only recall one time when Xanxus had come for the cake. And that was only because Luss had somehow managed to convince the others to drag their temperamental boss into the dining hall. It had gone rather well. Aside from the usual wineglasses being smashed over heads and a gaping hole in the wall caused by a shot from said boss's pistol, no serious injuries had been sustained. Xanxus had, surprisingly, stayed until the end but had not partaken in any cake himself.

After that he had silently gone over to Squalo's room, wished him happy birthday in a tone that suggested anything but, and chucked a present at Squalo, as he did every year. Sure it wasn't much but the mere fact that Xanxus had been willing to swallow his pride in front of everyone and stay in the dining area meant a lot to the shark.

But today, the crimson eyed asshole just lounged about in his room all day, not stepping out even once. Truth be told, Xanxus could practically live in his room with no need whatsoever to come out. The room had one of the grandest bathrooms Squalo had ever seen, a lifetime supply of alcohol and he had his meals brought to him by servants. Squalo waited. He was by no means a patient man but he was convinced that his boss would sneak out of his room sooner or later to carry out his annual practice of wishing his right hand man happy birthday and whatnot.

Slowly, the hours had crawled by. Squalo lay on his bed and glanced at the clock on his nightstand. 11.44 p.m. The others would be asleep by now. The clock itself was, in fact one of the birthday presents he had received from the shitty boss over the years. It was expensive of course, like all the other gifts Xanxus had gotten him. But the price of the gift was irrelevant to Squalo.

After a while, the swordsman risked another peek at the clock. 11.57 p.m. He swore under his breath. Did that idiot of a boss really forget? No, that was impossible. Firstly, the Varia had been howling Happy Birthday so loudly that everyone within a one kilometre radius would have heard it. But what really bothered the shark was that Xanxus had never failed to remember any of his right hand man's birthdays in the 19 years since that fateful first meeting at some mafia party. Although you wouldn't believe it from the way the two of them acted towards each other, Squalo was Xanxus's closest friend and vice versa. So….did this mean his best friend, boss and lover had finally gotten sick of him…? Squalo was close to tears. The clock on his nightstand seemed to mock him.

Suddenly, the door swung open, snapping Squalo out of his reverie. For a split second, Squalo wondered if an intruder had somehow managed to sneak into the mansion, even though the logical part of his brain told him that it was practically impossible. But it was an all too familiar presence.

Xanxus quickly walked over to the bed where the shark was sitting. "You bastard" snapped the thoroughly pissed off Squalo. "I thought…"

Xanxus pulled a small box out of his coat pocket. It was black with a velvety red ribbon tied on it. As he handed the box to Squalo he explained "those idiots at the shop took so long to prepare it. I only received it a minute ago." Squalo slowly pulled the ribbon off and opened the box. A soft gasp escaped his mouth as he saw what lay inside.

It was the most stunning pendant Squalo had ever laid eyes on. A solid gold rectangular plate attached to a silver chain. Squalo had no idea how they did it but there was a picture, made entirely of gemstones, set into the gold. Sapphires formed the shape of a shark which seemed to be swimming gracefully in the sea of gold. There was a liger made from rubies, poised majestically facing the shark, as if the two of them were engaged in some sort of mystical dance. The intricate detail was absolutely breathtaking. The animals almost looked real. Squalo realised that in a way, they were. Alo, his Grande Pioggia Squalo as well as Bester, Xanxus's Ligre Tempesta di Cielo. He turned the pendant over and saw these words set into the gold with emeralds. La Famiglia e Per Sempre. The entire thing glinted and flashed in the moonlight.

"I…I don't know what to say…" Squalo was truly lost for words.

"Then don't say anything."

"Just so you know, I have one too." The shark looked up and saw a pendant identical to his hanging around Xanxus's neck.

Then Xanxus took the pendant from the box and hooked it around Squalo's neck. He leant down and wrapped his arms around Squalo in a tight embrace, whispering in his ear "Happy Birthday. Thank you for always being there for me." Lastly, he planted a brief, chaste kiss on Squalo's lips. Before Squalo could say anything, he briskly got under the covers, muttering a gruff "goodnight" and closed his eyes. Squalo knew the idiot wasn't really asleep. He was just embarrassed after expressing his feelings like that. Squalo chuckled and pulled the covers over himself. He heard the church bell ring twelve times in the distance. Squalo fell into a blissful sleep with a heartfelt smile on his face and his arms curled around Xanxus.

Family was indeed Forever.

Aaaaaannddd….that concludes my very first fanfiction! P.S La Famiglia e Per Sempre means Family is Forever in case any of you didn't get it. Did you like it? If you did please give me some encouragement by leaving a review. If you didn't, please tell me how to improve (nicely please) by PMing me or leaving a review. Happy belated Birthday dear Squalo :D. Till my next fic guys (hopefully soon). Ciao!

-PyromanicDreamer