Here it is, as promised! It's one of the shortest chapters but I really liked it. I had this idea in my head for a while. Hope you guys like it!

Lucas woke up early that morning with every intention of wishing Maya a happy birthday but he got a text from his lab partner, asking him if he could meet up with him before class to go over their work. He sighed and replied with an 'ok' and got ready for the day. He stopped by the girls' doorway before leaving but they were both fast asleep and he didn't want to disturb them. He'll see Maya later anyway.

He was about to leave his class to go home to see Maya and maybe take her out to lunch to celebrate, when a pretty bad fight broke out in the middle of campus. Two guys were throwing punches and slurs and a large group of people had gathered around them, egging them on. Of course Lucas couldn't just let it happen. He stepped between them and had to dodge a few swings. Then the bigger one got around him and tackled the other to the ground. Lucas managed to pull him off just when a security guard approached them. And of course it had looked like he was a part of the fight so he had to go in with them to answer questions. He never did find out why they were fighting.

By that point he had to get to another class. It was his Zoology class which was very important to him if he wanted to become a veterinarian. He got back his test and saw that he had gotten a C on it. This lead to him being distraught for the rest of the day. He didn't even think to at least text Maya birthday wishes. He had completely forgotten about it altogether. He would soon regret that.

He had spent the remainder of the day talking to his professor, pleading for a makeup test and then studying in the library like his life depended on it. He was on his way out of the library at around 9 pm when he ran into Riley, who looked distraught.

"Hey, Riles, what's up?" She looked up at him with wide eyes.

"I was working on a paper that's due next week when I saw that I have another paper due tomorrow that I completely forgot about! Not only that, but I have a pop quiz for Algebra sometime this week. I can't do it, Lucas. My brain's gonna implode!" Lucas chuckled and put his hands on her shoulders.

"Riley, it'll be okay. You're smart, you'll get through all of this. I'll leave you alone so you can work. Just don't forget to take small breaks so you don't actually die." Riley nodded and sat down.

"Oh, Lucas! Just so you know, Zay's not gonna be home 'til late tonight. He said his ballet group is going to some competition soon, they just got accepted today. He said he's gonna be doing nothing but practice." Lucas held back a laugh.

"I actually forgot he was doing ballet. Good for him." He waved goodbye and headed out into the cold.

When the wind finally blew him into their building, he saw that it was a quarter to ten. Walking up the stairs, he kept trying to shake the feeling that he was forgetting something. He checked his pockets and saw that he had his keys and phone. He had all of his notes. He opened the door to see that all of the lights were off. He could just make out the small banner that had been hung up in the living room.

'HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BABY GIRL'

Lucas' eyes widened. Oh shit. He ran to Maya's room and found it to be empty. He dug into his pockets and fished out his phone, calling 'Penelope.' After a couple rings he could hear a few lines of 'Cowboy' by Kid Rock coming from the fire escape. He put his phone away, knowing she wasn't going to answer. He tentatively walked up to the doorway. There he saw Maya in her usual spot on the bench, wrapped in two different blankets, with a whole cheesecake on the table in front of her. There were nineteen candles in it but they weren't lit. Without looking up, she spoke.

"Did you like the banner? My mom made it for me on my fifth birthday and I've used it every year since."

"It's beautiful," he said quietly. He didn't know what else to say. He took a couple steps out but didn't approach her. She nodded to the cake.

"I found out my favorite bakery delivers. And they didn't even judge me for ordering a couple blocks away. The woman even asked what the occasion was and I said my birthday and she wished me happy birthday." She paused. "She was the only one."

"Maya…" He took another step toward her.

"It's okay. I know everyone was busy. Riley was freaking out about a paper and then another paper and some quiz. I didn't wanna bother her. Zay's busy dancing with a bunch of pretty girls. I made sure to congratulate him. My mom's Facebook status says she's swamped with work today… And I'm sure you had a good excuse." When he heard her sniffle, that was the breaking point for him. He rushed to her side and sat next to her on the bench.

"Maya, I swear I was going to do something for your birthday. But things kept getting in the way. There was my lab partner and a fight and my stupid Zoology test…"

"It's okay, Huckleberry. I get it. It's not like I'm not used to being forgotten. ...It just hurt a little cuz it reminded me of being alone on birthdays in the past, what with my mom working and my dad being gone. I would be at home with a babysitter of some sort. I would get to stay up half an hour later and watch whatever cartoon I wanted. And then I would play with my dolls in my room and I would have them sing Happy Birthday to me. Then I'd go to bed and have dreams of having a normal birthday party. One with both parents and friends party games. But there are times when a child has to wake up." Lucas stared into her eyes, so deeply and sincerely that Maya had to look away.

"I am so sorry, Maya. Nobody should have to go through that. And I'm sorry I brought back those memories. W-What about Shawn? He seemed pretty adamant about making sure you had a memorable birthday." She shook her head.

"He's on the road again, somewhere up in the mountains. He texted me a week ago, saying he wasn't gonna be reachable for a while. I don't blame him though. He's out there, following his dream. He doesn't need another thing weighing him down." Lucas stared at his shoes, then got up, sprinting into the house. Maya stared after him, a confused look on her face. He returned with a lighter and a fork. He leaned down to light each candle and then pulled her forward so she was directly in front of the cake. Then he sat behind her, wrapping his arms around her.

"Happy birthday to you… Happy birthday to you… Happy birthday dear Maya… Happy Birthday to you…"

Her vision of the cake blurred into a mass of candlelight as her eyes filled with tears. Lucas leaned down and whispered in her ear.

"Make a wish." Maya pursed her lips and wiped at her eyes. Then she leaned forward slightly and blew out each one. Lucas smiled into her hair and reached out to slice into the cake with the fork and held it up to her mouth. She smirked and accepted it. She then took it from his hand and fed him a bite. They didn't speak, they just silently fed each other until a third of the cake was gone. Maya took the fork and held it in her mouth as she leaned back against him, sighing in contentment. He looked down at her and lowered his lips to her cheek.

"One," he whispered. He leaned her head down so he could kiss the top of her head.

"Two." He kissed her forehead. "Three." Maya didn't stop him. She smiled wider with each press of his lips. He continued.

"Nine." He brought her hand up to his mouth. "Ten." His lips brushed the side of her neck. Maya shivered but still let him continue, even giggling at times.

"Seventeen." A kiss on the nose. "Eighteen." A kiss on the chin.

"...Nineteen." He hesitated for a moment before quickly brushing his lips across hers. He didn't give her time to process it because a second later he had hidden his face in her hair again, tightening his arms around her torso. Maya blushed, snuggling into him some more.

"Huh…" She whispered. "My wish came true."