"Happy birthday, Erika!"

I drew in as much air as my lungs could take, and blew out the assortment of multicoloured candles in one massive breath. The room filled with whooping and cheering and congratulatory words. Even King Dedede gave me an eager thump on the back.

"You gettin' mighty old, missy!" he guffawed. "It's all downhill from here!"

I forced a smile, trying not to take offence. How old was the King, anyway…?

"Erika!" Tuff interrupted, placing a medium sized box in front of me. "Don't forget our present! This is from me, Tiff, and Kirby."

"Aw, you guys!" I grinned from ear to ear. "You're so sweet!"

I tore open the box to reveal an assortment of colourful candies - but not just any candies.

"These are all my favourites!" I was so touched that they remembered my favourite sweets.

"It wasn't easy hiding them from Kirby until your birthday," said Tiff.

Kirby was already unashamedly reaching into the box and attempting to open a packet of gummy bears.

"Kirby! That's not yours!" Tiff scolded, trying to lift a protesting Kirby out of the candy box.

"Don't worry," I laughed. "He can have some candy, I don't mind."

"You won't be saying that when he eats your whole stash," said Tuff with a cheeky grin.

As everyone began helping themselves to a slice of cake, I looked around the room at all my smiling party guests, thinking about how quickly time passes. Tiff and Tuff were growing up so fast. Their parents, Sir Ebrum and Lady Like, didn't look much different, but they were already adults anyway. Ditto the King. Double ditto Meta Knight, Sword, and Blade - nobody really knew how old they were, especially since they kept themselves hidden beneath armour all the time. Kirby, while still mainly speaking in 'poyo' language, was growing stronger as a warrior every single day.

I couldn't help thinking it was a little bittersweet. Not only that, but the one person I really wanted to be celebrating with me… wasn't there.

Tiff, astute as always, noticed my sadness and placed a gentle hand on the shoulder of my green cardigan. "I'm sure Escargoon will be here soon, Erika."

I instinctively shrugged her hand away and scoffed. "Pffft. Who cares? He obviously didn't even want to come." I turned away with a sassy swish of my pigtails.

Of course I cared, more than anything in the world. I couldn't say it though. Even if I wanted to, I just couldn't make the words leave my mouth, instead sticking in my throat like some disgusting treacle.

It was strange; I couldn't stand the guy when I first moved to Dream Land to take a job as one of King Dedede's servants. But after the Cream Puff incident several months ago we finally put an end to our bitterness, and now it wasn't uncommon for us to hang out together after our work for the day was done. The residents of Cappy Town took notice, even referring to us as a pair. Escargoon-and-Erika. It was unusual to see one without the other. We were firm friends, best friends. We even had cheesy nicknames for each other, Esky and Errie, shortenings of our full names. He didn't like me calling him such a silly nickname at first, but when he started calling me 'Errie' in retaliation, both nicknames just stuck. It was a symbol of just how close we had become in our friendship.

Except that the day we decided to call ourselves friends was the same day I realised I had a crush on him. I tried to push it to the back of my mind, hoping it would go away like all my previous crushes, but that was several months ago and my feelings had only grown stronger since then. I always told myself the same lie; if I didn't say it out loud, it didn't have to be true.

And yet, every day my heart was crying out louder than my voice ever could. I just couldn't face up to the fact I was falling in love with that stupid snail.

"Erika, you've got another party guest!"

I was abruptly pulled from my daydream by Tuff. He was right; there was a loud knocking at the door. I didn't let it show outwardly, but I lit up on the inside; I knew that knock.

I dashed to the door and swung it open. As expected, there he was - my heart skipped a beat at the sight of his sweet smile.

"You made it…!"

"Happy birthday, Errie," Escargoon trilled, entering the room and handing me a small wrapped box. "I got you a little something."

The box was adorned with turquoise-green ribbon, a favourite colour we shared. It was so pretty, I almost didn't want to open it, but I quickly tore the wrapping paper away before I could change my mind.

Beneath the wrapping paper and ribbon was a small white jewellery box.

Is he proposing to me?

I mentally slapped myself. Don't be so stupid, Erika.

I opened the box. Inside was a sparkling yellow sun-shaped pendant on a metallic chain. I lifted the pendant out of the box and watched as it delicately sparkled in the light. My eyes sparkled too just looking at it. It was beautiful.

Tuff sniggered in the background. "Wow, Escargoon. It's not like you to be nice."

"Can it, pipsqueak," the snail grumbled in response. He turned back to me. "You like it? I know you like shiny things, and there's nothing shinier than the sun."

I was speechless. The charm was beautiful. It was like my own personal sunshine.

"Oh wow," were the only words I managed to breath out.

"What's this you got here?" Dedede barged his way over and snatched the necklace from my hand. "Well ain't this nice!"

"Hey, give it back!" I cried.

The King laughed and tossed the necklace back to me. "Don't go gettin' your pigtails in a twist!"

"I think Escargoon likes Erika," Tuff teased. "Why else are they always hanging around together?"

"Tuff, you shouldn't say things like that," said Tiff. "It's up to them to decide when they want to admit their feelings to each other. It's wrong to push them into it."

I buried my head in my hands, partly out of embarrassment, partly to hide the flustered blush that was surely beginning to show on my face.

"Come on, Erika." Escargoon took me by the arm. "Let's go for a walk."

I nodded, and the two of us slipped out of the room while everyone was too busy chatting and eating cake to notice. I would never pass up an opportunity to spend some alone time with him.

I felt I could spend hours with him, just the two of us, and never get bored. We found ourselves walking together through the castle grounds, across the drawbridge, down the winding paths, across the grassy fields where children played, talking and joking and laughing the whole way. Before we knew it, the two of us had walked all the way to Cappy Town.

"You wanna get coffee or something while we're here?" I asked.

"I had a feeling you might say that," he replied with a smirk. "And I expect it'll be on me?"

"It is my birthday, after all," I teased, poking out my tongue. "Consider it a way of making up for being late for my birthday party."

"That we sneaked out of," he added.

I giggled, linking arms with him in a flirtatious manner. "Spending time with you is more fun."

"Flattery will only get you so far."

Halfway across town, not far from our favourite coffee shop, he suddenly came to a halt outside a store.

"Is something the matter?" I quizzed.

"This was the store where I got your necklace," he said. "It's actually one of my favourite stores in Cappy Town."

I looked up and down at the elegant looking building, the store name and opening hours written in a swirly font. The window display was filled with an assortment of glittering necklaces, brooches, and rings, all sparkling in the sunlight.

"They're all so beautiful," I said in awe. "I can see why you like it here."

Escargoon was quiet. I glanced over to see his distant expression, staring intently at the window display. But not just any particular part of the display. He was gazing longingly at the most delicate shimmering rings.

"You're staring at those rings so hard you're gonna burn a hole through them," I teased. "Thinking about your future wedding again?"

"Well…" he started. "I'm just wondering if anyone would ever…" He trailed off.

"Anyone? Or… someone in particular?" I dared to ask, my chest fluttering.

He said nothing. There was definitely someone on his mind while he gazed at the jewellery display.

"Esky. Are you OK?"

He shook his head as if to shake away his daydream. "Yeah…" He paused. "Actually, no. I'm not. Can we… can we talk somewhere private?"

My heart started to beat faster, but I tried not to let it show. "Of course. Let's go down to the bridge, it's usually pretty quiet at this time of day."

Without another word, we made our way across town to the river. As expected, there was nobody there. The local kids usually loved to play by the river, but they had already gone home for dinner by the time we were standing on the wooden crossing, listening to the babbling of the water flowing underneath us.

"So…" I spoke up, a slight tremor in my voice. "What did you want to talk about?"

The nervous snail took a deep breath. "Do you remember… when I said I wanted to get married someday?"

"Of course I do."

"The thing is… I don't want to marry just anyone." He hesitated. "There's someone I want to be with. Someone I can't stop thinking about, no matter how much I try."

My heart was pounding so wildly I felt it would burst right out of my chest. My entire body was trembling as I tried not to faint from nerves. Was this the moment I've longed for, begged the heavens for?

"The truth is…" he continued, eyes unable to meet mine, hands balled into shaking fists. "…I'm in love. Head over heels in love. I've never felt this way about anyone before."

His face turned pink, as did mine. I held my breath without realising, unable to make any sound. The only noise around us was the wind gently blowing through the trees.

Suddenly, he yelled, "Well?! Aren't you gonna say something? I know it's ridiculous so just go ahead and laugh already!"

"I'm not laughing," was all I managed to squeak, hardly daring to hope that this was the love confession I've waited for.

But like a dam holding back a lake, it was as if letting out those few words opened the way for more, and I found a cascade of passionate words falling from my mouth before I could stop myself.

"I feel the same way!" I blurted. "I didn't want to admit it, I thought if I pushed it away it would just disappear, but I can't hide it any longer! Escargoon, I… I love you!"

His mouth dropped open in shock. We both stood there in stunned silence. Every second that passed by was agony for my aching heart, longing to know if he felt the same way.

"Erika…" He stopped for a second, unsure how to continue. "I thought you knew that I…?"

"Knew… what?"

"I'm… I'm gay. I always thought you knew that."

My blood ran cold as I realised what this meant. I had just poured my heart out, only to discover that not only does he not love me back, it's impossible for him to love me back…?

I felt sick. I wanted to run away. No, I wanted to die.

"Erika, I do care about you," he continued, clearly trying to spare what little dignity I had left. "But you're like a little sister to me."

A little sister.

I knew I should have been happy that he viewed me so fondly, but I couldn't think past the dull ache in my chest.

"Wait a second." Through the fog in my mind, I suddenly remembered. "Then, who are you in love with?"

"Well…" He looked away, a slight blush returning. "I don't know if I should tell you now."

I wracked my brain, trying to think of who it could be. Was there anyone close to Escargoon other than me?

An awful realisation dawned on me. I thought back to our old rivalry, when he falsely assumed I was in love with the King. I suddenly knew why he saw me as a threat. He wasn't jealous because he was in love with me, he was jealous because he was in love with…

Oh no. It couldn't be.

Escargoon must have noticed my widening eyes. "I guess you've figured it out," he said weakly.

"K… King Dedede…?" I stammered, barely audible.

The snail nodded shyly. I couldn't bear it. My heart, my soul, my spirit was shattering into pieces, and I couldn't bear it.

Without a second thought, I darted forward and clumsily mashed my lips against his. The split second euphoria was quickly interrupted by a hard shove. I stumbled backward and landed on my rear with a thud, yelping as my tailbone hit the ground and sent a sharp pain shooting straight through my body.

"Erika!" he cried. "What the hell did you do that for?!" Escargoon scrubbed at his mouth with the back of his hand in disgust.

I froze, immediately realising how badly I had messed up. "I… I just thought, maybe…"

"You thought what? You could fix me? Cure me? Make me normal?" He was trying to sound angry, but his words kept catching in his throat and tears were forming in his eyes. "This was a mistake. I'm leaving."

He turned and stormed away from me, his steps so angry it caused the bridge to vibrate. I didn't even try to call out to him. I simply remained on the ground, watching him disappear down the grassy path, into the distance and out of sight.

I was left alone, sitting on the cold wooden bridge. My mind was blank. I didn't even know how to begin processing what just happened. I couldn't even stand up. I simply say there, too stunned to do anything.

In the corner of my eye, I spotted my reflection in the river below. I saw the yellow glint of my sun necklace. Earlier that very day it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen, but now I couldn't bear to look at it anymore.

A wave of despair washed over me and I grasped the charm in my fist, pulling hard and breaking the chain clean in half. Before I even had a chance to think clearly about what I was doing, I crawled to the bridge's edge and cast it down into the rushing water below. After watching it disappear out of sight I gazed at the rushing water for a short while. I swung my legs over the bridge and let them dangle freely, the sound of the river lulling me into a state of hypnotic peace.

As time passed by, I realised I couldn't see my reflection clearly anymore. I looked up - the sky was dark. I must have been sitting there for hours, but it only felt as if minutes had gone by. Time clearly meant nothing to a broken heart. I didn't even feel sad. I felt nothing. I felt empty.

Slowly, reluctantly, I picked myself up and started the long walk home.