Sliding into his room, Whip noticed Adel lounging on his bed and reading some sort of book. She couldn't quite see the title, but she suspected it was one of his favored sci-fi novels. Some mixed music played in the background-it seemed to be some symphonic metal at the moment, as it usually ran between that, full-on classical, and synthwave-and a cup of coffee was by the bedside. Gwan was snoozing at the foot of his bed, the new cub-Cinder-seemingly bothering the kitchens, much like Gwan himself used to (and still did.)

"Hey!" she said cheerfully, as he looked over at her and grinned.

"Hey, you," he said, sitting up and putting the book aside. He was mostly dressed; a sleeveless shirt which showed off his frame well, cargos and socks; his coat and boots were thrown aside. She knew he had gotten back not long ago. "How are you?"

"Great! Got some time off," she said, wandering over to him, the item she needed soon in her pocket. Running her hands through his thick, blond hair, she kissed him as she always would.

Returning the kiss, they stayed for some time, Gwan still asleep, as he hadn't tried to nose his way in there for his own affection yet. Deciding to cut it short-lest the kiss turn to something else given it had been a few days since they were together-they separated, with Adel tweaking her under the chin.

"Just name what you want to do tonight," he said.

"It's your birthday tomorrow," she replied with a smirk. "You should be the one choosing. But first…" she said, whipping something that looked like a long strip out of her pocket, "I need to do something."

Adel blinked. "Huh?" he asked, somewhat confused. The item seemed to be a tape measure, and he was wondering why she would have such a thing.

"Hands up," she said. His shirt was tight enough to measure through it…but she decided to help him lift it off anyway. Her eyes sparkled for a moment as they would as she admired his scarred, yet very well built, torso, complete with the silver nipple rings that she had grown quite used to.

"Oookay," he said, uncertain, but at the same time amused. "Is... what is this for?" he asked.

"You'll see," she grinned, flicking the measuring tape out with a quick snap of her wrist. She then proceeded to wrap the tape around his chest, getting the proper measurements. Adel had a rather…ample pectoral area, being rather built and broad-shouldered…all of which Whip quite appreciated. In fact, she raised her eyebrows in admiration when seeing the numbers.

"Like what you see?" he grinned.

"Oh yes," she chuckled, giving him a wicked smirk. "We'll play later, though."

"I hope so," he said, teasing her under the chin for a moment with a rough hand.

"Who's all coming tomorrow, by the way? Are the guys coming from Shanghai?" she was, of course, talking about Duo Lon and Shen, whom they had made friends with after some incidents. Duo Lon was now one of their circle-having been dating Leona for a little over a year-and Shen, of course, went where his friend did.

"Yes!" he said. "I was glad they could make it. Never know with those two. I think they're flying in tonight, in fact, but Duo Lon and Leona are going to that one bar they like, and knowing Shen and his jetlag, he's gonna have to sleep it off."

"Oh, yeah," she said. "By the way. My little brother and that gang all wish you a happy birthday. He even managed to say it without grunting this time," she added with a chuckle.

"He's getting there," Adel said, knowing K' doing anything without grunting was a high compliment.

"Anyway," she said, turning to look out the window. "Looks like we're going to get some snow tonight."

"Might it be nice to drop by the pizza place?"

"The Christmas place?" she grinned. They had a tradition where they'd go to some slightly more upscale pizza place, neither of them being particularly into the typical trappings of the holiday. It was their way of discovering their own lives the first year they had met.

"Yeah. It tastes good. We don't only have to use it for Christmas pizza."

She poked his stomach. "I'm sure they'll be glad. You eat for three." Adel's monstrous appetite was an ongoing joke between them.

He shrugged. "Happy to help."

Checking her watch, she looked outside again. "Want to go now? I have a little to do tonight, but I can be back later on. Probably closer to midnight."

"Sure," he said, his stomach rumbling.

Once again unsurprised, she looked down. "Yeah, let's get you there before you scare them again."

Adel quickly grabbed Whip around the more ticklish spot at her waist for her teasing, causing Cinder, who was padding down the hallway, to wonder what was going on.

"Hey."

Adel heard the words as he slept soundly. He didn't know it was past eleven; quite late for him. He and Whip were typically both early risers. But after Whip had gotten back last night after she had done what she needed to, they had a few drinks and got a little frisky, staying up rather late.

She had left early in the morning to take care of a few more things, nursing what was a little more than a slight hangover. She was fairly capable, at least, though she would appreciate a nap later.

"Hmm?" he said, still sleepy. He was still nude-as he usually was when he slept-and felt Whip's hand stroking his hair.

"I haven't seen you sleep this late since we were at Duo Lon's place on vacation," she said with a chuckle. She leaned over, kissing his forehead as he sleepily came to.

"Damn," he said, checking his watch and rubbing his thick, disheveled hair. "Must have gone to sleep real late."

"You stayed up another two hours, didn't you?"

"Kinda."

She laughed at this. "I couldn't stay up anymore." She yawned herself. "Coffee has been my friend. Speaking of which…" she trailed off, handing him a large cup gotten from the hotel that she had taken here when she had gotten her ride. "Here you go."

"Mmmm," he said. Adel was one who liked to get away from his rich upbringing from time to time-it was why they liked to go for pizza over Christmas as a little tradition of theirs. "Thank you."

Settling on the bed next to him and sipping her own, she didn't say anything about the large box that was sitting on the chair. "Did you hear from the guys today?

"Yeah!" he said. "They sent a message. As we said yesterday, Shen is probably going to be asleep all day, but they'll be here in the afternoon." He sat up, sipping the coffee. "Ash and Betty were with them in Shanghai, it turns out. I think they're still there on vacation."

"That reminds me of our trip there."

"We'll go back this summer." He rubbed her back.

"Oh! Here. I didn't forget this." She handed him a bag; she had one of her own. In it was a rather immense croissant with sausage, egg, and cheese, along with a giant pastry. The big fellow's stomach rumbled.

"Thank you," he said gratefully.

"Your hangover probably isn't as bad as mine," she said, crawling into the bed next to him after sliding her sneakers off, "But you have to feel it." She took her own sandwich out, looking over at him. "Oh yeah." She leaned in, giving him a deep kiss; he returned it, leaning back and sliding his hand into her soft and slightly windblown hair. "Happy birthday."

"Thanks," he chuckled. Having woken up, he was already feeling slightly frisky, but his eyes trailed back over to the box.

"Oh! That. I grabbed that for you." She spoke quite casually.

"Oh?" He slid out of bed, walking over to it to examine it. It was relatively heavy, though not to an extreme amount. Sliding his thumb underneath the tape, he managed to pull it open quickly enough.

Inside was a massive, nicely cut, somewhat casual yet somewhat intimidating looking leather longcoat; one that looked even more fitting to his current look than the current one he saw.

"I figured you were due for an upgrade," she said, coming up behind him.

Taking it out, it was sized perfectly for him. Coming down to his knees, it was heavy and well-protected; in fact, he noticed the lining of it was Kevlar. He smiled at this, looking at her.

"I know what this is," he said.

"Yes. This and the form-fitting body armor underneath your clothes should do the trick when you get into those meetings that go sideways."

"Thankfully that hasn't happened in a while," he chuckled. "But wow. Thank you." The extra embellishments were silver, which matched the black nicely. "This looks amazing." He grinned at her, leaning in for a deep kiss one more time. "I…hang on." He moved to the corner to pull a pair of his cargo trousers on. "I'll look like a streaker if I try this on naked."

This caused Whip to burst out laughing. "Yeah, you better."

After adjusting the pants, he went to pull the big, heavy coat on. It had a modern look; almost gothic, not quite formal, but a step up from casual.

"Wow," she said. "That looks better than I imagined."

Adel grinned, fastening it and checking it from the side. It sat extremely well on him, and even had a few extra buckles and belts, giving it a more intimidating look than his last one.

"This is great. How do you know what fits me so well?" he said.

"I guess I know you well enough by now?" she joked, walking up to adjust it. "Sexy, intimidating, yet with a touch of class." She folded her arms and nodded. "Just how I like them."

He grinned evilly, leaning down to kiss under her chin and down her neck. "The others won't be here for a few hours, he said."

"Hmm?" she teased, pretending to act clueless, though getting quite hot in the pit of her stomach.

She then squealed as he tossed her on the bed, making sure the door was locked double in case anyone else tried to wander in for a surprise greeting.

Early Evening

"So…I have to ask," Adel said, adjusting his new, impressive looking coat after the pair had showered and gotten dressed and ready for the night. "How the hell did you get this thing made overnight?"

"Hmm?" Whip asked, standing next to him in the mirror. She was feeling quite satisfied now; the pair had behaved themselves pretty well yesterday due to the short time they were running on, only having a quick session when they had returned, and this paid off today from their far more extended afternoon romp. The big blond had some rather nice, visible afterglow as well.

"You took my measurements only yesterday."

"Oh, that," she chuckled. "I knew what size you took. I just felt like seeing how big you were again face to face." She grinned, patting his chest.

"As if you didn't know already," the big blond replied, grabbing her around the waist, nipping her neck as she tried to escape. A faint flash passed through his mind how the pair were so awkward at first, over two years ago, and now felt so natural.

"Still," she said, laughing almost breathlessly. She stopped, turning around for a moment, adjusting his coat from the front. "Anyway, I think our friends are waiting downstairs. Cinder probably hasn't left Duo Lon's hair alone."

"True. We know he loves it." He fastened his coat, making himself look altogether regal and intimidating. Whip added her own, fixing her slightly disheveled hair; it was now just about touching her shoulders.

Heading downstairs, Duo Lon, Shen, and Leona were all hanging around the front door of the Sky Noah, with the cub indeed trying to bat around the large weight at the end of Duo Lon's hair as he sat on the bench. Given how heavy it was, he was still too small to make much of an impact on the thing; it would mostly roll slightly. The cub let out a tiny snarl in frustration, causing Leona to crouch down and smile, scratching him.

"What are you doing?" she asked. "You have a few months before you can move that."

Cinder screeched, pawing at her hand. The assassin smiled, crouching down near him as well.

"You'll be able to swat it around like your father does soon," he said.

Shen laughed. "D'awww. Look at that rascal." He knelt, rubbing the cub's stomach, unable to resist. He wasn't exactly someone to fall for overly cute things, but he couldn't help this one.

Adel and Whip looked at each other, looked back at them, and shook their heads; it was an awfully cute scene.

"Are you ready to go?" Duo Lon asked, standing after giving the cub one more pat before adjusting the leather jacket that he wore tonight; the group were all dressed fairly casually. Leona did the same, almost looking sad she had to let the furry little guy go; the cub scampered off to the kitchens to bother the cooks as his dad taught him to do.

"Yeah. Let's do this."

"Happy birthday, by the way," Leona said, giving him a hug.

He returned it as Duo Lon did the same; the two had become quite good friends after the entire incident almost two years ago now. Shen, of course, gave him a friendly jump on the shoulders, one large arm wrapped around him for a moment, before stepping off to shove a cigarette in his mouth, though waiting to light it.

"Barhopping, was it?" he asked, fingering the lighter in his hands.

"Yeah," Adel answered. "Somehow I'm in the mood for that this year." He took Whip's hand as she went to grasp it, interlocking fingers with her. "Henrik will drive us into town in the limo and drop us off. None of us have to take it easy." Not that Duo Lon had to worry about that, but he didn't feel like making one of his friends drive tonight.

This caused Whip to laugh. "Let's see what sort of adventure we find, then?" she said as the five wandered outside into the cold, yet pleasant night.

A/N: Happy Birthday yet again, Adel!

I had to do something cute and funny, as usual, and this one happened inspired by a little discussion among the fanbase about chest size, lol.

Most of the friendships and relationships here are all touched on in the stuff I've written over the past years.

Nothing more than a quick, cute lil' bit of slice of life fluff here. Food porn, chilling, implied sexy times and comedy. (I like the idea of Leona liking cats-it's just cute, btw.)

I always try to keep birthday traditions with my favs, even if it's just something small and doesn't actually further any actual plot. It gave me an excuse to put him in a good looking new longcoat, which I forever think would look super hot on him.

And like, chest measurements. Whip would totally pull this on him.