My sleepy eyes open as I see Mommy sneaking into the room with a smile on her face. Then she jumps and yells, "Surprise! Happy Birthday, Adrien!" she blows the streamer, and I giggle. "Do you know how old your turning?" Mommy asked, as she puts her arm around me. I count on my fingers. One, two, three, four? "Four, that's right. And we're going to have a party with your friends! Now, you'd better get a wiggle on!"

Mommy helps with my pajamas and I take her hand as we walk into the kitchen. The smell of pancakes fills the air, and a coffee smell too. I'm way to young to drink it, but it smells good. "Adrien," Father turns to me with smile. "I heard someone in this house having a birthday." "Me, Daddy!" "Goodness, your growing up so fast!" I giggle and tuck into my breakfast.

I head back to my room, for Mommy told me I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise, but apparently there's already one up there! Curious as cat, I scamper upstairs and I see my cousin Felix. "Yay! We can play together. Did you bring your cards?" Felix grins, pulling a deck out of his pocket. "I don't leave the house without them."

I love when Felix puts on a magic show, especially when he puts on the top hat and cloak from the dress-up box. I recently got a toy wand from the toy store, and I hand it Felix. We play until Mommy calls us, our friends are arriving!

"Good to see you again, Adrien. You remember my daughter, Kagami?" I nod, feeling a little shy around Miss Turgsui. Kagami is wearing a red dress with red bows in her hair. "Can we go play in the garden?" Kagami asks. "I don't see why not," Mother answers, "Though we are waiting for one more guest to arrive."

Its not long before Marinette arrives, though she looks shy and is holding her mother's hand. "Adrien, how about you gather your dinosaurs and you can play in the sandbox until Amile and I get the food ready." Felix touches my shoulder. "I'll get them. Its your party."

Kagami looks at Marinette as I lead my guests outside, and I'm glad my back is turned so they can't see my face. Will everyone get along okay? I just want them to have fun! "Ooh, I could make a sandcastle," Marinette climbs into the sandbox cheerfully, her shyness forgotten. "Yeah, and we could build it for the dinosaurs!" Felix chimes in, lugging the bucket of toys.

Soon, we're all playing happily, but Kagami is sitting by herself on one of the garden benches.
"I'll be right back," I tell my friends and walk over to Kagami. "Don't you want to play? Marinette is a very nice girl, and…." "Its not that, Adrien. I just don't know how to express myself and Mother would be mad if I got dirty." "Its not fun to play alone," I tell her, and Kagami clasps her hand together. "Wait! Kagami, are you still doing your sketches?" Her face brightens. "Yes!" "Marinette wants to be a fashion designer. We could all take turns modeling while you sketch us. We could make it into a game!"

Everyone loves the idea, and we think of the most silly poses. But when Mother calls for cake and ice cream the game is forgotten. "Smile!" Aunt Amile calls and the camera flashes.

Later, when I'm getting ready for bed, Mother comes in and sits down on my bed. "I'm proud of you, Adrien." I hug my stuffed cat. "I didn't do anything. I just played and ate cake." Mother smiles brushing my bangs back. "You helped Kagami join in the fun, even if she was feeling shy. You could have focused all the attention on you today, but you didn't." "I just want to be a good friend."

"You'll have many friends someday, love. And maybe you'll have a special friend, that you share all your secrets."

I never told the wish after I blew out the candles. But I wished for a friend who is there when I need a hug, or a kind word. A friend who can make me laugh. Little did I know that friend was at my party. Marinette Dupain-Cheng.