7/31 Kamui Gakupo🍰 Happy Birthday🎈

💜💗💜💗💜 Story 💗💜💗💜💗 Between Worry and Surprise After the cart was brought to a stop in the center of the lounge, everyone quickly took their places on either side of it. The staff had gradually gathered, and the food and drinks for the party were already prepared. Yet no one seemed eager to begin the celebration. Everyone’s attention quietly shifted between Gakupo and the box on the cart as they waited for the next step of their carefully arranged plan. Gakupo did not sit down to rest. He paced back and forth across the lounge, glancing toward the entrance and pausing whenever he heard movement in the corridor. Each time footsteps approached, he immediately turned his head, but the only people who appeared were staff members arriving for the party. Luka still had not returned. When they first came backstage, everyone had only said that she had gone to prepare something. Gakupo had assumed she would be back soon, but quite some time had passed since the concert ended. He approached the doorway again. “I’m still going to look for her.” Rin and Len, who were adjusting the ribbon beside the cart, looked up at the same time. “No!” Their answer was so perfectly synchronized that even the staff nearby turned to look at them. Gakupo stopped and stared at them in confusion. “Why not?” “Because…” Unable to think of a suitable excuse, Rin turned toward Len. Len immediately took over. “It’s busy outside right now. The stage crew is still clearing the equipment, so you might get in their way.” Gakupo glanced down the silent corridor. “But I don’t hear any equipment being moved.” Len’s expression stiffened. Rin hurriedly added: “They may have stopped to take a break.” “Everyone happened to take a break at the same time?” “Because it’s break time.” Gakupo looked at them. “You’re both terrible at lying.” Rin lowered her head and whispered to Len: “I told you that excuse wouldn’t work.” Len whispered back: “This plan was your idea in the first place.” “Having Luka hide inside the box was something we came up with together!” The moment the words left her mouth, Rin abruptly covered it. The entire room fell silent. Len stared at her with wide eyes, while Teto drew in a sharp breath nearby. Miku quickly spoke up, trying to redirect the conversation. “What Rin means is that she and Len came up with this surprise together.” Gakupo narrowed his eyes slightly. “It sounded as though she said something else.” “You misheard her,” Len answered immediately. “I heard her very clearly.” “Your ears might still be bothering you after the concert,” Teto added hastily. “The stage speakers were so loud. It would be perfectly normal to mishear a word or two.” MEIKO pressed a hand to her forehead. “The more you explain, the worse this becomes.” Inside the box, Luka quietly listened to the conversation outside. She could not see anyone’s expression, nor did she know exactly where Gakupo was standing. Only a faint trace of light entered through a narrow gap. Other than that, she could rely only on the sounds beyond the walls around her. She heard Gakupo pacing throughout the room, as well as Rin and Len clumsily inventing excuses. This birthday surprise, with its playful touch of mischief, had originally been Rin and Len’s idea. A few days before the concert, the two of them had quietly proposed the plan to everyone: Luka would briefly disappear from Gakupo’s sight and hide inside the box on the cart. Then Gakupo would open it himself and find his girlfriend waiting inside as part of his birthday surprise. At first, Luka had thought the idea was rather mischievous. But Rin had confidently insisted that Gakupo would be both shocked and delighted. Len had promised that the entire trick would not last long and that Gakupo would only be confused for a short while. Seeing how excited everyone was, Luka had finally agreed to take part. She had assumed Gakupo would merely find the situation strange. She had never expected him to become so worried. His footsteps sounded outside the box again. “She only told me that she was going to prepare something, but she never said where she was going.” Gakupo’s voice sounded more urgent than before. “Her phone is still on the table. If anything happened, she wouldn’t even be able to contact us.” Luka froze slightly inside the box. Unable to see outside, she could only tell from the sound that Gakupo seemed to have walked toward the table again. She instinctively reached toward her pocket, only to remember that her phone truly had been left in the lounge. To keep the plan secret, she had brought nothing with her that might make a sound inside the box. At the time, she had only been thinking about preventing the surprise from being discovered too soon. She had not considered that this would make Gakupo even more uneasy. “She’ll be fine,” Miku reassured him gently. “How can you be sure?” “Because she looked fine when she left.” Gakupo was silent for a moment. “She was already tired before the performance ended.” Luka’s heart tightened inside the box. She had not expected him to notice. She had indeed felt slightly tired after dancing for so long, but she had only told him that she was fine. After taking a short rest, she had completely recovered, but Gakupo had no way of knowing that. “If she only went somewhere to rest, she should at least have told me where,” he continued. “But now no one is willing to tell me where she is.” Luka quietly lowered her head. She could not see Gakupo’s worried expression, but she could clearly feel his anxiety through the growing urgency in his footsteps and voice. The prank that had once filled her with anticipation now carried a weight of guilt. She wanted to tap on the wall of the box or simply call out and tell him that she was safe. But the moment she made a sound, the surprise Rin and Len had so carefully arranged would immediately be ruined. Everyone had worked hard to prepare the party, and the staff were all waiting outside to play their part. Luka could only clasp her hands together and silently say within her heart: “I’m sorry for making you worry.” Outside the box, Gakupo seemed to approach the doorway once more. “I’ll only go and check. I’ll be right back.” Teto hurriedly stopped him. “There’s really no need! Luka isn’t lost, nothing happened to her, and she definitely hasn’t been shut inside anything.” Inside the box, Luka stiffened at the final remark. Considering her current situation, it was not a particularly convincing statement. Len immediately pulled Teto back. “You didn’t need to say the last part.” “I was only trying to reassure him!” “You’re only making him more suspicious.” Gakupo sighed helplessly. “What exactly are all of you hiding?” KAITO finally walked over to Gakupo, with MEIKO joining him a moment later. “I know you’re worried about Luka,” KAITO said. “If you know that, then let me go and find her.” “She’s safe,” MEIKO answered calmly. Gakupo stopped and looked between them. “You know where she is?” KAITO and MEIKO nodded together. “We do.” “She’s really all right?” The two exchanged a glance, then answered seriously: “She isn’t hurt, and she isn’t feeling unwell. She’s somewhere everyone can look after her.” Hearing that from inside the box, Luka quietly relaxed. Although she still could not see what was happening outside, she could sense that Gakupo’s hurried footsteps had finally stopped. Yet the thought that she had made him pace around the lounge in worry only deepened her guilt. Gakupo remained silent for a moment. “You’re certain?” “We’re certain,” KAITO said. MEIKO added gently: “If anything had truly happened to Luka, we wouldn’t still be standing here preparing a party. Please trust us this once.” Gakupo studied their serious expressions, and his shoulders gradually relaxed. “All right.” He was not completely reassured, but he stopped looking toward the doorway so often. KAITO smiled with relief and glanced toward the cart. “Then I think we can continue.” MEIKO stepped aside, leaving the space in front of the cart open for Gakupo. “Go and see what everyone prepared for you.” Rin and Len immediately took their places on either side of the cart. Their expressions held both anticipation and a trace of guilt, since the mischievous surprise had originally been their idea. “We really didn’t mean any harm,” Rin explained quietly. Len quickly added: “We only meant to surprise you a little.” “You have already succeeded in surprising me a great deal,” Gakupo replied helplessly. Teto could not hold back a laugh. “Not only surprised. You almost ran out to search for someone.” “Teto,” MEIKO warned. “I’m only telling the truth.” Miku stood nearby and smiled at Gakupo. “Try not to think too much about it. Once you open it, everything will make sense.” Una nodded as well. “And you really don’t need to worry anymore.” Gakupo looked at everyone, then turned toward the box on the cart. Inside, Luka heard his footsteps approaching, and her heartbeat quickened with each one. She could not see his expression. She could only hear him stop in front of the box and the soft rustle of his sleeve as he moved. She had prepared many birthday wishes for him. But now, there was only one thing she most wanted to say. “I’m sorry for making you worry.” Outside the box, Gakupo reached toward the ribbon. “Can I open it now?” “You can,” Miku answered with a smile. MEIKO nodded. “This time, no one is going to stop you.” Gakupo let out a quiet sigh. For the first time, curiosity began to replace some of the worry in his eyes. “Then I’ll see what all of you have prepared.” Everyone stepped back, leaving the space in front of the cart to him. Rin and Len exchanged an expectant glance. Teto struggled to hold back her laughter, while Una nervously clutched Miku’s sleeve. KAITO and MEIKO stood nearby, relieved to see Gakupo finally reach toward the ribbon. The room gradually fell silent. Gakupo grasped one end of the ribbon, ready to open the surprise with his own hands. And inside the box, unable to see anything beyond its walls, Luka listened quietly to his movements and waited for the moment it would finally open.