Finding Stardust

Slowly, the sun set on the horizon. The sky began to change colors and was now adorned with tinges of purple and orange. It looked like a painter generously stroke his brush on a canvas with different colors. It was so beautiful.

"The sun has set," said Haoran happily. He pointed westward. "Now, I want to celebrate my birthday."

His voice sounded like an overly-excited child. Emma looked at the young man with an amused face. It"s hard to believe this 19-year-old who had always acted mature and calculating, could behave like a child.

"Yes. We can light your birthday candles now, and then you can blow them out," Emma said, pulling Haoran"s birthday cake to the middle. The cake already had two candles on it with the number 19.

"Oh ... wait, I will go to the kitchen to get a match," Haoran said. He was about to rise from his seat when Emma"s hand held his shoulder gently.

"Ssshh ... who said we need a match?" asked the girl. She lighted a fire on the tip of her index finger and casually lit the two candles on the cake while smiling. Haoran patted his forehead softly while grinning.

Of course! Emma could control fire. They don"t need any match.

"Happy birthday to you ... Happy birthday to you ... Happy birthday, dear Haoran. Happy birthday to you ..."

Emma sang in her melodious voice while lifting the cake toward Haoran and smiling broadly, giving the young man a signal to get ready to blow out the candle. For a moment, Haoran was enchanted by Emma"s singing and forgot to blow.

He had never heard the girl"s voice when singing before and did not expect her voice to be this beautiful.

"Blow the candle," Emma whispered, staring at Haoran with gleaming eyes.

Haoran was moved from his reverie and nodded. He closed his eyes and then blew out the candle on the cake with one blow.

"Thank you," said Haoran. "Now, I will cut the cake and give it to you."

Haoran took the cake from Emma"s hand and put it on their picnic mat. He then took a cake knife and cut two pieces from the cake and put them on paper plates. One for Emma and one for him.

"Do you know what to wish for your birthday?" asked Emma, ​​watching Haoran cut the cake. She saw Haoran close his eyes before blowing his birthday candle.

She guessed that Haoran must have wished to see his mother again. They have separated for over five years. Of course, the young man"s feelings were now be filled with a deep longing for his mother, just as Emma herself really missed her parents.

"I wish for you to see your parents again," the young man answered while handing Emma the first piece of cake.

"Oh ..." Emma was stunned by Haoran"s answer. She did not expect that Haoran was more concerned about her than himself. She asked in puzzlement, "Why don"t you wish for you to meet your mother again?"

Haoran only shrugged. "I can see my mother whenever I want with the satellite access that Goose gave me. Someday, I will DEFINITELY meet her again after I get rid of my father and take control of Lee Industries. I just need to be patient and wait a few years. But you ... You have been missing your parents longer, and until now, we don"t know what their fate is, and where they are now. So I guess ... you have it worse than me and need more support."

"Oh .. Haoran ..." Emma looked teary when she heard his thoughtful reply. "Thank you."

"Eh ... don"t cry. I only talk about facts and make decisions based on priority levels. After all ... I don"t know whether birthday wishes would really mean anything." Haoran chuckled. He patted Emma"s shoulder and raised the cake. "Let"s eat the cake."

Emma nodded with a smile. "All right. After we eat the cake, I have a birthday present for you."

"I can"t wait to see it," Haoran said. He was curious to know what gift Emma had prepared for him.

"I hope you will like it," Emma said, smiling faintly. She scooped up her cake and ate while enjoying the sunset. The skyline was especially stunning at that moment. It was rich with twilight colors such as orange, purple, pink, and yellow.

They sat side by side, enjoying the cake while staring at sunset without saying anything. The scene in front of them was majestic and they were worried that they would ruin the atmosphere if they made a sound.

Both were moved from their reverie when the night went dark and the s.h.i.+p"s automatic sensors suddenly turned on the lights. Emma and Haoran looked at each other. They realized that it was already nightfall, even though it felt like they had just left the marina.

"I"ll drive you home later," Haoran said. "What time do you want to go back? We are about half an hour from the land."

Emma shrugged. "What about you? I can go home anytime. I already told Grandma that I am going out with you to celebrate your birthday. She wouldn"t look for me even if I go home too late."

"Ahh .. well then. I will follow what you want. Whenever you want to return to the land, just say so. I will immediately take us home."

Emma nodded. "All right. But first, I want to give you a birthday gift that I have prepared especially for you."

The girl took her bag and pulled out a small box from inside. She handed it over to Haoran, who received it with a radiant face.

"Wow ... thank you. Can I open it now?" Haoran asked. Emma nodded.

The young man opened the wrapping paper from the box and opened the lid. His face was immediately adorned with a big smile as he saw six letter-shaped cookies arranged neatly in it. Those letters made his name "HAORAN".

"I"ve never baked before. So I decided to make cookies especially for you and learned from Grandma how to make them. Each letter was made with love," the girl said with a smile.

"Oh ... this is so beautiful. I will never eat it," Haoran said happily while admiring the cookies.

"Ahahaha ... no, you must eat it. Later the cookies will rot if you don"t eat them. Let"s just eat it when you finish admiring it, so I can give you my next gift ..." Emma said with a chuckle.

Haoran was stunned to hear that. "Next gift? You have something else for me?"

The young man had no idea that Emma prepared more than one gift for him. He was quite happy to get the cookies as his birthday present. They looked so cute and so personal.

He could imagine Emma, ​​who had never baked anything before, struggled to learn how to make the cookies in her kitchen while covered in flour. He could almost see her happy face when she wore the baking gloves to take the cookies out of the oven. Ah ... how cute.

His chest felt warm, imagining the sight. He can"t help thinking about their future together in a few years where they lived a domestic life together. When the time came, he would marry this girl, and they could live happily, doing things like a normal family.

Someday, they would have a family of their own... something that neither of them had right now.

Emma would be baking cookies for him and their children while humming her favorite songs. He would hold their baby and play with their older kid, waiting for mommy to take out cookies from the oven. Every now and then, he and their kids would annoy her with their antics and stole the sweet dough to eat because they couldn"t wait for the cookies to bake.

This thought made him smile so wide that his face hurt.