Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…
Samantha felt suspended in a fairytale. Dylan's arms were wrapped around her waist as he hummed the birthday song in her ear. He wasn't a very good singer, but his horrible attempt to hit the high notes made Sam smile at him lovingly. She was wearing her favorite black silk dress and a gold medallion engraved with the letter D hung from her neck. The flame of the candles seemed to danced in time with the rhythm of the song.
It was just the two of them. The room was pitch black except for the various pillar candles that had been lit prior to Sam's arrival to the restaurant. "Make a wish, beautiful." Dylan whispered the words against her neck and watched her bite down on her lips as she attempted to focus on the task at hand. "Remember you only get one."
"I don't know what to wish for." Samantha shook her head repeatedly before looking up at him. For the first time in a long time she had everything she needed. "I don't need anything. I already have you."
Happy birthday Sam…Sam…Sam?
Dylan's words came in and out of focus. The distorted sounds made the young actress' head spin. She was drowning in the memory. All her senses were intoxicated by the image of that night. It was the last birthday she'd spent believing in the idea of love. Her last birthday had been celebrated within the confines of the rehab center's cafeteria. There were no candles, or dimly lit restaurants, or even cake for that matter. All she got was a small cupcake with a plastic ring on it that read Happy Birthday.
Samantha forced herself out of the dream. It took all the energy she could muster to pry her eyes open. Looking up at the ceiling she counted the twirls of the fan the spun overhead. Her fingertips trailed up and down the stitches of the cotton comforter. If she squinted her eyes she could pretend that she was back in her childhood home. But this wasn't that home. The safety of that childhood place could never be reproduced, no matter how hard she tried.
"Happy birthday to me…happy birthday to me…" She whispered the words to herself. No song, no rhythm. Just a tone deaf girl accompanied by silence. The words serving as a reminder that she was another year older and maybe a little bit wiser.
A stream of knocks on the bedroom door pulled her attention away from the whirring fan. Her right hand immediately sunk beneath the pillow in search for her cellphone. What time is it? Pressing down on the phone her eyes were greeted with a blinding brightness. 6:15 A.M. There was an annoying jiggling of the doorknob, a demand that she open the door.
"Just a minute!" Sam sat up slowly and slid her tired frame towards the edge of the bed to retrieve her silk robe. Sliding her arms into the openings she made her way to the door. Her fingers wrapped around the knob but her body wasn't ready to deal with Syd's enthusiasm. The blond haired woman always came bearing gifts: champagne, white chocolate, off-pitch singing, and overpriced flowers.
Samantha banged her head against the door a few times before taking a deep breath and parting the door slightly. It was wide enough for her to peak her head out, but not enough for Syd to barge her way into the bedroom. "Syd I'm really not in the mood today."
"I'm not Syd." The private investigator looked at the woman's sleepy gaze and couldn't help but smile. "Happy birthday Samantha Swift." Eddie didn't wait for permission to come inside. After all the times the petite brunette had barged into his home at three in the morning it was only fair that he return the favor.
"And hello to you too?" Samantha tightened the robe around her waist. Oh god, is my hair a mess? The fact that her mind immediately drifted to presentability caught the girl completely off guard. There was no reason for her to care about what she looked like. This man was her friend, nothing more. "Umm…what is that?" Sam pointed towards the small rectangular cake Eddie had set down on her nightstand.
"It's a cake." Eddie gave his partner a puzzled look. "Please tell me you've had cake before."
"Of course I've had cake before." She watched as Eddie reached into his back pocket and pulled out a pack of multi-colored candles. "I just meant why did you come to my house with a cake."
"Because it's your birthday? I feel like we're going in a circle here." He began counting below his breath as he stuck the candles around the perimeter of the cake, making sure not to disturb the pink frosting that spelled out Happy Birthday Sam. Once he'd counted to 23 he stopped and looked over his shoulder. "I think we'll just call it 25." If he'd learned anything after years of friendship with Chris, it was that you never ask a woman her age.
"How 18th century of you." The actress rolled her eyes at him and snatched the candles from Eddie's hand. "Yeah, I'm 25 plus 4 more." A small smile formed across her lips as she stuck a few more candles into the cake. Her eyes danced across the pastry, admiring every single inch of the cake. She loved how blatantly obvious it was that Eddie didn't know her favorite color. In order to make up for his lack of knowledge he'd made sure that there were several flowers piped in every color of the rainbow. "It's beautiful." Samantha extender her arms out in his direction and wrapped them tightly around his neck. "Thank you for this."
"Anytime." He returned the embrace, wrapping his arms around her waist. Sam's robe felt cold against the palms of his hands as he pressed the young woman closer to his frame. "Now it's time for you to make a wish." Pulling away from her hold Eddie craned down and began lighting the candles.
"Umm…" Shaking her head she tried to come up with something, anything that she wished for the coming year. On a normal day Sam could list off a hundred things she wished she had, yet in that moment her mind was blank. Filling her lungs with air she bent down and hovered directly over the cake. Don't waste a wish. Ever since she was a child, Sam had wholeheartedly believed in the power of a birthday wish. During her time in rehab Samantha had wished for a friend and a few months later she'd met Eddie. The man with a rough exterior had become one of her closest friends and allies. On occasion she would go as far as to call him part of her family. "Aren't you supposed to sing before I blow the candles out?" Sam tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled at her friend. "Go on, start singing."
Eddie shook his head, "I'm not singing."
"You barged into my house with cake. Which means that you owe me a birthday song. Come on, it's tradition." Samantha ran a finger across the orange flame and tried to contain the immense happiness that coursed through her body. It had been a very long time since she'd felt this unconcerned about the future. A part of her wished she could live within this moment for the rest of her life. "You better hurry, the candles are melting all over the cake."
Eddie continued looking at her for several moments before finally giving in. "Fine." He gave her a playful look before breaking out into song. "Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Samantha, happy birthday to you."
Sam clapped for the both of them. For him because he had a surprisingly good singing voice and for her because life seemed to be getting a little brighter. Taking another deep breath she leaned into the cake and blew out the candles. I wish for many more birthday's with the people I love.
