Page 72 of GR8VITY

His arms are already open and waiting on me. "Good morning, sunshine."

"Good morning," I tell him, smiling up at him ready for the kiss he drops on my lips.

"Happy birthday," he whispers against them.

"Thank you," I say, not able to keep the grin off my face even if I tried.

"We're making you an American breakfast," Dav En announces, passing some of the glasses of juice off to Kyung for them to take to the table.

"Is that what that good smell is?" I ask, walking over to Yeon and glancing over his shoulder.

He turns his head, pressing a kiss against my temple. Flipping the pancake in the pan, he turns and gives me a full body hug and another kiss against my cheek before walking us both over to where In Se had been standing a few moments ago. In his place is a sparkling yellow bunny on the counter with a small box between his feet. I set the other two on the counter next to him.

Yeon picks up the box and hands it to me. "Happy birthday."

I open it and can't control the tiny intake of air in surprise. Inside lies the prettiest bracelet with tiny yellow flowers and tinier diamonds inlaid into them. "Yeon..." I start, looking up at him and remembering what In Se said. Instead of finishing with, “This is really too much,” like I want to, I tell him, "It's beautiful. Thank you."

"Mmm," he says, waiting until I reach up on my toes for a kiss before pressing his lips against mine.

Taking it out of the box, I hand it to him to put it on me. I play with it on my wrist, lifting my chin for another kiss. He complies easily before In Se calls him back to the pancakes he's trying not to burn.

"What can I do to help?" I ask as In Se, relieved from pancake duty, trades places with Yeon.

"Nothing," he says, swatting at my butt and pushing me out toward the table. "Go sit your pretty self down. We'll be done in a few minutes."

Jae-un meets me around the edge of the counter, grabbing me up in a solid hug, murmuring a happy birthday in my ear. When I laugh because it tickles, he spins us around a few times before setting me back down on my feet. I'm slightly dizzy when Seong Su takes my hand, and it takes a second to focus on his face. He laughs, pressing a kiss to my cheek and pulling me in for a hug. Not going to lie, this could be my present from him, and I wouldn't complain. Out of all eight of them, Seong Su is the least affectionate. Even towards his members. So, the fact that I got a kiss and a hug? I'll take it.

Minsul stands over by my chair and pulls it out for me, giving me a quick kiss on the opposite cheek and telling me happy birthday. A few minutes later, they've got breakfast finished and laid out on the table. There are pancakes, bacon, sausage, eggs, potatoes, and toast. I haven't had chocolate chip pancakes in years. I make it all the way to putting the first bite into my mouth and chewing a few times before the first tear rolls down my cheek. I try to hide it with a quick swipe, but it doesn't go unnoticed. Kyung rubs his hand across my back. I smile over at him, letting him know that I'm okay.

TRACK 18

LITTLE SUN

LIZ

After we've eaten, Minsul jumps up from his chair excitedly and comes around the table to take my hand. "Present time."

At this point, I'm assuming that they all got me a present of some sort, because I've caught on to their little character theme with each one. Sure enough, when Minsul leads me into the living room, there's a sleepy-looking black bear with stars for eyes sitting on the table next to a fairly large box with a bow on top. Minsul walks us over next to it so that we can kneel next to the table. Now, his comment from our first dinner about his favorite animal being a black bear and the others laughing makes so much more sense now.

He doesn't wait for anyone else to come in before pushing the box in front of me. Sharing in his excitement, I open it. I think that even if there had been a puppy inside, I would've been less surprised than I am now. My hands shake a little as I start taking the pieces out one by one, starting with the keychain versions of their GR8VITZ that are babies compared to the ones I bought. There are so many sets of little cards with my guys’ faces on them. They're dressed in different outfits and look so much younger in some than others. There are unopened CDs and bigger albums. My favorite has to be the rectangular box settled at the bottom. I look at Minsul and smile. I haven't ever been to a K-Pop concert before, but I know what it is after falling down the rabbit holes when Kyung said it was okay.

Sure enough, as I open it, the GR8VITY light stick stares back at me in all its glory. A shiny white like the stars in the night sky with an 8 symbol inside the globe that also has tiny stars on it. Lining the bottom of the box, I lift out the last thing that is wrapped in tissue paper. It's a navy-blue hoodie that says I heart GR8VITY with tiny white stars all over it.

My heart nor brain care that the rest of them have found their way in here with us. Having just come to the realization that I do in fact love these men, this hoodie hits a little different than it would've before. I can't help the tears when they start falling. Minsul pulls me to his side.

"I warned you," I tell him softly around sniffles as I feel another body move to my other side and take my hand.

"And I told you that I would hold you when you did," he reminds me.

They give me all the time that I need to pull myself together. We open their albums together. They argue over who is better to bias, like I could pick a favorite between them. They argue over who looks better in the little cards, but where they chose themselves better to bias, they always claim that one of the others takes better photos. It's so sweet and considerate of each other that my heart swells again to the point where I think I might start crying...again.

I think Dav En notices, because he jumps to his feet and announces, "Okay. Time for my present."

Everyone but him and Minsul get up to leave the room. I look around at how quickly they cleared out and glance at Dav En with a raised eyebrow in question. The two of them laugh.

"This isn't going to make you think any different than what you're thinking," Minsul warns, slipping a dark cloth over my eyes and tying it at the back of my head.

Between the feel of his fingers trying not to tie my hair up with it, the way that they brush down my back afterward, and his soft breathing close to my ear, I feel myself blushing.