commitment and strive for change."
"I'm glad our efforts are really showing." I closed my eyes. "I love to help and make changes that will benefit everyone. It's just exhausting, you know?"
"Ya." His hand brushed through my hair, and I opened my eyes to meet his smile. "I'm proud of you for sticking through."
"Thank you."
"I know it's a day early, but do you want your birthday gift?"
"Oh?" I blinked. "You got me something?"
"Well...I kinda designed it and got it made by a reputable brand," he elaborated. "But if you don't like it, it's fine."
"Why wouldn't I like it?" I asked in astonishment.
"Uh. It's a pretty specific item...or what would be a better word? Risky?"
"A risky item?" I clarified. "Why can I envision you making a device that helps us soar through the sky before it malfunctions?"
"No, no." He chuckled and shook his head. "It's not electronic."
"I'm sure I'll love it," I reasoned. "But if it means going outside, that's a no since someone decided to throw my entire underwear drawer in the washer while I was showering."
He looked away as if he wasn't the prime culprit but slid my legs off his lap so he could get up. "Close your eyes and count down from ten."
"Sure," I placed my hands over my face and began counting down. "10...9...8..."
I kept going; slowing down until I reached the final number. "1...0.5...0.25-"
Finnick began to snicker, the sound coming from in front of me which meant he was back.
"Zero!" I cheered and opened my eyes. Finnick was holding a white box with an orange and gold ribbon securing its closure. He lowered it onto my lap before taking a step back and beginning to blush.
"Uh...I wanted to do something that would complement you in a sense while emphasizing how divinely beautiful you are," he began, and his face grew redder as he looked at the floor and twiddled his thumbs.
"I also wanted to give you something that I created during this chaotic time. Though everything has been busy and a little crazy, I've never been so determined and well...happy," he confessed and lifted his gaze to meet my curious one. "You mean a lot to me, Red. A lot to all four of us, and you're always working on helping everyone else and never really get the time to take care of yourself, so I figured this could help on your birthday."
He gestured for me to open it, and I took a deep breath in suspense as I tugged on the ribbons and slowly lifted the lid of the box.
My eyes widened at the immediate dose of colors. I had to put the lid to the side where I sat as my fingers dove in to lift up the lace materials of the multiple sets of lingerie.
"Y-Y-You designed this?!" I exclaimed while lifting my gaze to look at him and then back at the first set I was holding, which was actually called Brianne. The colors were gold and orange, and the lace had little turquoise rhinestones that decorated the sunset-colored bra, panties, and stockings. White trimming lined the edges of the bra and the waistline of the panties.
The combination was unique, leaving me in shock as I took it all in. The other sets were uniquely different, the color combinations complementing one another.
Blue, purple, and black trimming to red, pink, and lime green trimming. It was like each theme had a seasonal spin to it, and the combination of lace, rhinestones, and floral designs left me speechless at the final outcome.
"Ya," he finally answered, his whole face as red as a tomato. "I wasn't going to get it designed, but Jax caught me designing it with a sketch of you and immediately encouraged me to get it created. I obviously didn't know where to start, but Connor directed me to Mia and Miya, and they have loads of connections with clothing companies in Korea, especially lingerie. I created the designs when school started, and these are the results after I approved the samples they sent. It was hard as hell to hide it from you since Miya and Mia were extremely excited to share, but at least your birthdays are in the same month and were two months away at the time so they were willing to maintain the secret."
"You guys were able to do this in two months?" I concluded.
"Basically," he said with a shy grin as he reached for his sketchbook. He flipped through the pages until it landed on two pages