Disclaimer: Not mine. Not making money.

A/N: Another one in the "Wheeler and Linka's first year together" series that I'd been doing. When I did Linka's birthday, a few of you mentioned Wheeler's birthday. Of course I had to have a birthday fic for Wheeler! Today is also my best friend's birthday, so it's fitting that I'm getting Wheeler's birthday fic posted today!

But It's My Birthday!

I woke up that morning when I felt something jump onto my bed, only to find Linka hovering over top of me, staring down at me and smiling.

"Good morning Sleeping Head!" she says as she leans down to kiss me.

"That's 'Sleepy' Head," I correct.

"Whatever."

"And good morning to you too," I say.

Except, it doesn't feel like morning. I don't hear the birds chirping, and it's awfully dark outside.

"Babe, what time is it?"

"Time for you to get up," she says. "I made you breakfast!"

She gets off the bed and comes back carrying a tray with a plate of a huge stack of blueberry pancakes, maple syrup, chopped up strawberries, whipped cream, and two glasses of orange juice. She then sticks a small candle on top of the pancakes.

"Watch this…Fire!" She says with a laugh, as she uses a lighter to ignite the candle.

It's not like Linka to make stupid jokes…that's my job. You know it's a special occasion when Linka is acting goofy.

"Funny. So what's the occasion?" I ask.

"Do not act like you do not know. Happy Birthday Yankee."

"Thank you Babe…so are you gonna sing to me or what?"

"I was not planning on it," she says.

"YOU HAVE TO! It's not a real birthday unless someone sings 'Happy Birthday' to you."

"Geez, how old are you? You act like a five year old!"

I look at her with my best puppy dog eyes.

"Ok, fine," she relents. "Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Wheeler, happy birthday to you. Now make a wish."

"Watch this…Wind!" I say with a wink as I blow out the candle.

"Hey, get your own joke!"

I take a forkful of the pancakes and stick them in her mouth to stop her whining, and then I shovel a forkful into my own mouth. We continue to eat the plateful of pancakes like that with me feeding her in between my own mouthfuls until they are all gone.

"Mmm, that was delicious," I say as I press my lips to hers, "Can I go back to bed now?"

"Nyet. Now you get up and get dressed and meet me at the Geo Cruiser."

"You're killin' me Babe!"

I do as I'm told and when I get to the Geo Cruiser, I see that everyone else is also waiting there.

"G'mornin' everyone…did she wake you up at this ungodly hour too?!"

"We are here willingly," Kwame says. "Ready Ma-Ti?"

"Ready."

And before I know it, Ma-Ti grabs me and Kwame puts a blindfold over my eyes.

"Hey! What's goin' on?!" I protest.

"It is a surprise," Linka whispers against my ear. I can't see her, but I can still tell that she's standing very closely in front of me. The next thing I know, she's kissing me and then takes me by the hand and leads me to my seat in the Geo Cruiser.

Hours have passed and I have no idea where we are, but we've landed. It's noisy, where ever we are. Linka takes my hand again and leads me out of the Geo Cruiser. We are just standing there when she wraps her arms around me from behind and asks,

"Know where we are?"

"No clue."

She pulls the blindfold off my eyes and I can't believe what I see.

"CONEY ISLAND!!"

"Happy Birthday Yankee!"

"Oh my God, Babe! This is awesome! I love it! I love YOU!" I exclaim as I scoop her up into my arms and twirl her around.

"Well, I know how badly you wanted to come here on your last birthday, but did not get to."

"You are the BEST!" I say.

"So where do you want to go?" she asks.

"Everywhere!" I say as I grab her hand and lead her into the park.

We all make our way through the park going on all of the coasters, eating a famous Coney dog, or several in my case, and playing games.

After lunch, Gi says she's going to go to New York Aquarium and Kwame and Ma-Ti say they are going with her. I ask Linka if she wants to go, but she says no. That surprises me. Linka loves animals so I thought for sure she'd want to go to the aquarium. Once the others are out of earshot, I ask her,

"Why didn't you want to go to the aquarium?"

"It is not that I did not want to go to the aquarium, I just wanted to have some time alone with you."

"Oh. Well in that case, where do you want to go?"

"There!" she says as she points to the Wonder Wheel, Coney Island's Ferris wheel.

"Let's go!"

I can't believe she remembered this, I can't believe she planned all this for me. I'm so lucky.

As we're standing in line, I wrap my arms around her and rest my chin on top of her head.

"This is the best birthday I've ever had," I whisper.

"It is not even over yet…it could get worse!" she teases.

"Nope. It'll only get better," I say as we step into our Ferris wheel car.

How cliché is this? Here I am on a Ferris wheel with the girl of my dreams, my arm around her, a beautiful view of the ocean, and we're makin' out like a couple of teenagers. I'm not gonna lie, I've done this before with a girl, more than once. Every guy in Brooklyn has. This is different though. This isn't just any girl. Some day, I'm gonna marry this girl. Some day, we'll bring our kids here and tell them about how mommy surprised daddy and brought him here for his birthday once.

"Wheeler?" she says as she pulls away slightly.

"Hmm?"

"We should stop. Those kids are staring!"

I glance over to the opposite car and see a group of teenage boys gawking at us.

"Let 'em stare. This'll be the closest they ever get to a girl this hot…or any girl at all judging by their dorkiness!"

"Wheeler! That is mean!"

"Then you better shut me up! It's my birthday; you have to do what I want!"

"Well, I guess I cannot argue with that," she says as she continues our kiss.

When the ride ends, I take her hand and lead her to Spook-o-Rama, the haunted house ride located right next to the Wonder Wheel.

"Oh nyet. I do not want to be scared."

"But Babe! How am I supposed to hold you in my arms and protect you if you're not scared?"

"I do not need you to protect me from FAKE dangers!"

"Good to hear…then I guess if you don't need protecting, then you won't mind going on this ride…remember, it's MY birthday, I get my way!" I argue.

"Fine."

I know what this ride is all about. It's cheesy. There's nothing scary about it, other than the shock of having things jump out at you. It worked on Linka though because sure enough, as soon as the first skeleton popped out of the wall in the dark, she jumped, grabbed my arm, and held on for dear life. I put my arm around her and she spent the rest of the ride with one eye open, and the other pressed into my neck.

When we exit the ride, I say to her,

"That wasn't so bad was it?"

"Nyet, it was good…for you!"

"No, it was GREAT for me. And to show you my appreciation, I'm going to win you a stuffed animal prize…how about that puppy?"

"Wheeler, that is HUGE!"

"Ha-ha. That's what she said."

"What?"

"Nothing. Bad joke. Never mind. Come on, I'm winnin' you that puppy!"

A half hour and thirty dollars later, that puppy is still hanging up on the wall.

"Come on Wheeler, I do not need that dog. It is just something we will have to carry around the rest of the day. Besides, you are wasting all of your money."

"Yeah buddy, you realize you coulda bought your girl two giant puppies at the toy store for the amount that you've spent on trying to win this one!" The guy running the booth jokes, much to the amusement of his co-worker…and Linka.

"This stupid gun is busted. That's how you guys make your money. It's not even sighted in right," I argue.

"Oh, you mean you haven't been spending the last half hour sighting it in? I thought that's what you were trying to do!" The other guy jokes.

"Come on Wheeler. Let us go back on the Cyclone."

"No, I'm gonna get that dog!"

"Oh for God's sake! Gimme the gun!" she says as she takes the rifle out of my hands, fires off five quick rounds, and hits every single one of the moving targets.

"OOOOOOOH! WE HAVE A WINNER!!" the guy running the game declares as he hands Linka the giant puppy. "Here ya go beautiful."

"Thank you." She then turns to me and shoves the stuffed animal into my arms. "Happy Birthday Wheeler…Can we go now?!"

"Yeah. And I'm even willing to overlook that greasy goomba hitting on you, or the severe blow to my ego that my girlfriend just won a prize for ME because that was so freakin' hot! Where did you learn to shoot like that?!"

"Easy. After watching you for a half hour, I just did the opposite!"

"Oh ha ha. Very funny. Seriously…how'd you do that?"

"My father and brother would go hunting. I of course would never shoot an animal, but if I wanted to be a part of their outings and spend time with them, I would have to learn how to shoot. So when they would go target practicing, I would go with them."

"Well, it looks like whatever you learned, it stuck with you! Where to next?"

"How about the carousel?" she suggests.

"A Coney Island tradition…excellent choice Babe!"

We make our way to the carousel, which is especially fast for a carousel…this ain't no kiddie ride! I help Linka up onto her horse, hop on behind her, and reach my arms around her to hold onto the pole. This is much better than the Spook-o-Rama. At least here, I can still hold onto her, but she's not freakin' out. She leans back against me and tilts her head up to look at me.

"Are you having a good time?" she asks.

"Of course. I meant what I said earlier, this is the best birthday ever. I can't thank you enough for doing this for me," I whisper against her ear before leaning forward slightly and kissing her cheek.

"You do not need to thank me. I am glad you like it. Seeing you happy makes me happy."

"YOU make me happy…everyday. Being with you is like getting the best birthday present EVERYDAY."

"Good."

"Maybe later I can unwrap my present?" I ask suggestively.

"Maaaaaaybe," she says as she cranes her neck to reach up and kiss me.

"But it's my birthday," I plead against her lips and can feel her smile in return.

I don't know if I'm feeling dizzy from the ride, or if that's just my usual reaction to Linka. The ride starts to go full speed and I hold onto her a little tighter. Even if the ride was going slow, I think I still would have found an excuse to hold her closer.

When the ride ends, I hop off the carousel horse and then grab her by the waist, lift her off, and set her down in front of me, still resting my hands on her waist as I lean down to kiss her.

As we are walking away from the ride, she asks,

"Want to go into the photo booth?"

"Yeah! I want proof of this day!"

We step into the photo booth, deposit the money, and proceed to pose. Cheek to cheek and smiling at the camera; pulling her into a hug and pressing my lips against her temple; her putting her arm around me and kissing my cheek; a just plain ol' goofy one where we're sticking our tongues out at the camera; and finally, my personal favorite, a steamy kiss.

We take the print out of the pictures and have a good laugh. This is as good as gold…proof of Linka letting loose and having a good time…priceless!

"Now where?" I ask as I put my arm around her waist…mostly because I wanted to, but partly because I caught some guy and his buddies admiring her. Sorry pal, this one is taken and I'm never gonna let her go.

"It is your birthday, you pick."

"I think you already know what I'm gonna pick."

She smiles at me mischievously. "I was wondering when you were going to suggest it."

"I missed my chance last year. I have to make up for lost time."

So off to the Tunnel of Love we go!

"Do you know how the Tunnel of Love started Babe?"

"Nyet, but I am sure you know all about it."

"I know a thing or two. They started out as an Old Mill ride, just a boat going through dark tunnels with weird or scary scenery. But back in the day when public displays of affection were frowned upon, young couples would go on The Old Mill to sneak kisses away from the prying eyes of parents or chaperones. That was back when the women were wearing clothes that covered them from head to toe, and wearing little shorts like this," I trace the hem of her shorts with one finger and let the others brush against her thigh to shock her, "that would've gotten you burned at the stake!" I continue to run my fingers along her leg and boldly go under the fabric of her shorts.

"JASON JOSEPH WHEELER!" she chastises as she swats my hand away.

"Whaaaaat?" I whine as I pull her against me. "Gimme a break…it's my birthday."

"What did you just get done telling me? Wait until we get inside…away from the prying eyes."

I don't know if I've mentioned this yet, but this is the best birthday EVER.

This Tunnel of Love ride DEFINITELY made up for my falling asleep the last time I went on one of these with Linka.

It started out innocent enough, I had my arm around her, she was nestled against my side, and we were holding hands. As soon as we were in the tunnel, however, our lips and hands were all over each other, cupping, and squeezing, and rubbing…it was all going very nicely until one of the punk ass kids that work the ride took out their flashlight and turned it on us. Might as well have been a hose of cold water! I heard him and his co-workers having a good chuckle over it. Jerks. Their job is to yell at the little kids who put their hands outside of the boat and splash…at least, that's what their job was when I was one of those little kids many years ago…their job is not to be spying little perverts, out to embarrass the park patrons. I have half a mind to write a strongly worded letter to the owners of the amusement park…

"To whom it may concern; my girlfriend and I were minding our own business, doing some heavy petting in the Tunnel of Love when one of your employees interrupted by shining a light on us and laughing…that's very unprofessional!"

Nah, I think I'll skip the letter because I know if I were that kid, I'd have done the same thing!

When our boat emerges from the tunnel, I look over at a disheveled Linka, who is trying to discreetly tuck her shirt back in while her face is beet red.

"Betcha no one back in the Victorian days ever did that much in the Old Mill!" I joke.

"You are a maverick, Yankee."

"Hey, don't play innocent with me…I was there, remember?…you were pretty rebellious yourself, Gropey McGrabber!"

"I think we need to cool off," she says. At my disappointed look, she continues, "Let us go back to the Geo Cruiser and change into our bathing suits. We are going to the beach!"

Going to the beach shouldn't be a big deal, especially for two people who LIVE on an island, but this beach is special to me. I spent so many summers here. This beach was my FIRST beach home.

We get back to the Geo Cruiser and drop off the giant puppy that Linka won for me…it's still kinda embarrassing to admit that…and change into our swimming suits. Linka thought of everything, she brought my favorite pair of board shorts and my favorite bikini. The red one that drives me nuts everytime she wears it. We get down to the beach and find a spot to lay our stuff out.

She takes out a bottle of sunscreen and squirts a generous amount into my hands, then turns her back to me, indicating that she wants me to cover her back, a request that I am happy to fulfill! I've come to the conclusion that sunscreen was invented by a guy…not so much to protect your skin from the sun, but to use as an excuse to rub your hands all over girls in bathing suits! And if you're lucky, a girl will rub her hands all over you…kinda like Linka's doing to me right now.

"I do not want you getting sun burn on your birthday," she says.

"And I don't want YOU getting sunburn on my birthday," I say with a sly smile.

"Do I even want to know why you are so worried about me getting sunburn?"

"Well besides the obvious of not wanting you to get skin cancer, or premature aging due to harmful UV rays, I don't want you to get sunburn because I want you to be as comfortable as possible when I have you on your back all night!"

"WHEELER!" she says with a shocked look on her face as she checks to see if anyone heard.

I anticipate the smack I'm about to get, so I'm able to grab her hand and then the other hand and avoid her hit.

"What? It's my birthday!" I coo. I'm still holding onto her hands, leaving her vulnerable to my attack…not that she was putting up much of a fight. I pull her against me as we kiss and carefully kneel down on the blanket, and then gently ease her onto her back, never breaking contact. I finally let go of her hands and she immediately puts them on my hips and pulls me closer.

The next thing I know, we are being dowsed with water.

"Get a room you two!" Gi says as she and the others laugh.

"What? We were just applying sunscreen!" I say.

"Hmm, so it's applied by rubbing bodies against each other…and here, all this time, I thought you were supposed to use hands," Gi replies.

"See, what you've been missing?! Get a boyfriend Gi!" I joke. "So how was the aquarium?"

"Great! It's not just a place where people go to look at fish. They are doing a great job of raising awareness about issues facing the ocean and its inhabitants with special exhibits, public events, and research. Very educational," she says.

"Good. I am glad you are also having a good time," Linka says.

"Yes, but not NEARLY as good a time as Wheeler!" Kwame jokes.

"Hey! It's MY birthday!" I say.

"Come on birthday boy, let us go swimming."

We find a nice quiet spot away from the splashing kids and crowds. They say that beauty is in the eyes of the beholder and 'beautiful' is not a word that many people would use to describe Brooklyn, but it's my home. It always will be, and right now, it has never looked more beautiful…but that might have something to do with the woman in my arms.

The water is a little too high for Linka to stand, so she has her arms wrapped around my neck, and I'm holding onto her. She shivers and says,

"It is colder here than I expected."

"This isn't your typical beach. We're pretty far north and the waters aren't that warm," I pull her closer against me and lean my forehead against hers.

"Better?"

"Da…Is there anything else you want to do today? This is pretty much all I had planned. I did not even make plans for dinner because I figured you would be eating hot dogs all day!"

"And you figured right! I say we grab a few more Coney dogs for dinner before heading home, but not yet…I like this right here, as long as you're not too cold."

"Nyet. I like this too. I am getting used to the temperature. Besides, being cold just gives me a good excuse to get closer and do this," she says as she kisses me.

Now I'm the one who shivers.

"Are you cold?"

"No, you just give me the chills. Even after these last nine months together, I still feel just as giddy when you kiss me now as I did when we first got together. When you smile at me, I still feel like the luckiest guy alive for being the one that you're directing that smile at. And today just proves to me that I AM the luckiest guy in the world. If someone had asked me to describe my idea of the perfect birthday…it wouldn't have been anything like this…this is WAY BETTER than anything I could have imagined. Thank you."

"You are welcome. I am glad you enjoyed it. Happy Birthday Yankee," she says as she gives me a quick peck on the lips.

"I love you Babe."

"I love you too."

"Ready to go home?" I ask.

"If you are…we have a triple chocolate cake waiting for you."

"Then let's go! I can't wait for my dessert! The cake sounds good too," I say as I nip at her shoulder.

It's been a long day. After all, I was woken up before sunrise. The cake was delicious, but I was getting tired and couldn't hold back my yawn as we walked hand in hand back to our cabin.

"Am I boring you Yankee?" she teases.

"No, of course not. I'm just getting my second wind…besides, I still have one more present to unwrap…right?"

"Nyet."

My jaw nearly hits the ground.

"BUT IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!" I protest.

"Let me finish…you have TWO more presents to unwrap."

"Two?" I ask as I hold the door open for her to enter first.

She walks over to the bed and picks up a small gift bag and hands it to me.

"This better be little and lacey and meant for you to wear!" I joke.

"Aww, you ruined the surprise."

I hastily dig into the bag, but what I pull out is not what I was hoping for…it was better.

"Oh my God Babe…it's perfect. I love it."

It's a picture frame with spots for multiple photos. Somehow, Linka had gotten the pictures from our photo booth session enlarged and into this frame, no doubt with a little help from her sidekick, Gi. The frame was engraved, "Happy Birthday Yankee, All My Love, Linka."

"You do not think it is stupid or cheesy?"

"No way! I want to always remember this day, and this is the perfect way to do it," I say as my eyes tear up. "But how…"

"I sent Gi a text message and asked her to get the picture out of the Geo Cruiser while we were on the beach and take it to a photo place to get copies made. I already had the frame. I was planning on having our pictures taken at a photo booth…I was just hoping you would agree to it, that you would not think it was a stupid idea."

"Babe, don't you know by now…I'll do anything you want me to. If there had been a skimpy, little night gown in this bag and you said it was for ME to wear, I'd do it. Whatever you want, just name it...and I'll..."

"Shut up," she says as she pushes me down so I'm sitting on the bed. "I want you to remember that today is all about you. September 26th is 'Wheeler Day' and on that day, the only thing I want, is what Wheeler wants…so what do you want?" she asks, her lips millimeters away from mine.

"This," I say as I put my hand behind her neck and pull her towards me. She pulls my shirt off and pushes me back to lie on the bed. She trails kisses down my neck and chest. I'm not tired anymore! Wide-awake as a matter of fact. I remove her shirt as we continue to celebrate my birthday by continuing to disrobe.

The celebration carried on well into the night and into the next morning. Technically, it wasn't my birthday anymore, but I don't think it mattered at that point. Linka fell asleep, draped over top of me, her head resting on my chest. I reach over to pick up my picture frame and give it one last look. She really put alot of thought into this and no one has ever done that for me before. I run my finger over the inscription, "All My Love." And she meant it, if I ever doubted it before…and I have, not because I doubted her feelings, I just thought it was too good to be true…those doubts are gone now. This is the first time in all of my years on this planet that I've ever actually felt loved on my birthday. This was the best birthday ever.

The End.

A/N: I've never been to Coney Island, but was trying to keep it as true to the real place as possible. The Spook-o-Rama really is by the Wonder Wheel, and shooting gallery, but from what I understand, the rider is alone in the car, so there wouldn't be any cuddling…but we like cuddling, so we're pretending that it's a 2 person car!