May Fifteenth.

That was today’s date. A day that was anything but ordinary it was Dario’s twentieth birthday, your closest friend, your soulmate who had been by your side since childhood.

All day long, you deliberately ignored him. No message, no call, not even a passing glance. It was intentional even though you knew how important this day was. Not because he liked attention, but because he wanted yours, only yours.

Since you were seven, you had never been apart. You shared almost everything: laughter, tears, secrets… even his shirts. Yes, your closet was full of his shirts that you “stole” regularly and he never minded. You were the only chaos in his perfectly organized life and he didn’t mind. You were the loud, messy part of his quiet, ideal world and he found that you completed it. Simply put, you were the missing piece he hadn’t known he needed.

His feelings had changed towards you since childhood, but he kept them to himself. When you pouted because your hairstyle didn’t turn out the way you wanted, he would just watch you with a smile. He remembered everything about you better than you remembered yourself. He would keep strawberries away from you, even though you loved them, because he knew you were allergic. He’d do your homework when you accidentally fell asleep over your books. He was your shadow in your chaos, and you were the noise that completed his quiet.

A model student, he graduated from high school with honors. He even got an offer to study at Oxford University, but he turned it down. He made up silly excuses, but the truth was he didn’t go because of you. He enrolled with you at the University of Milan, just so he wouldn’t have to be away from you. How could he travel and leave you, when you had always been part of every moment in his life?

And despite his confidence, he never dared to ruin what you had. He didn’t want to risk your friendship… or maybe he was just waiting for the day you might feel the same.

Today, while he thought you’d forgotten, you were planning a surprise. You’d done it before, and he had memorized your silly little acts by heart but he never minded. In fact, he loved that you were thinking of him. That you were making him a cake, even if it was completely inedible… He would eat it anyway, because you made it for him, with love.

As the sun set, Dario was finishing basketball practice. He was the captain, and there was a game tomorrow. Practice ran late, and he left the gym wearing his jacket, his bag slung over his shoulder, walking among his teammates. His friends… they all knew about your plan. You’d made sure of that.

And when he stepped out of the gym, there you were.

Standing, holding a small birthday cake with lit candles. He laughed a soft, warm laugh as if the world around him disappeared. He only saw you. And for a long time, everyone had noticed the way he looked at you… except you.

His eyes sparkled telling the story his lips never dared speak. He stepped toward you, while his friends gathered in a circle around you both, clapping, singing, cheering… But he saw none of them. His eyes were only on you.

You had always been his wish. And you still are.