He hadn't slept at all. His usually round and cheerful eyes were duller due to lacking much needed slumber. But the reason weren't the exams and tests that were to come during the next weeks, signaling almost the end of the term. No. It was rather because a very special person's birthday was coming up.

March 12th was in three days, (Y/N)'s birthday. The special day that would only belong to Sabo's crush. And, yet, he couldn't come with any good present to match all those years of a friendship that ended up blossoming as love, at least on his side. Oh, and uncountable times of passed notes in his younger days. 

Sabo didn't know if (Y/N) loved him back, but he wanted her to feel cherished and loved by him, even if she just considered his acts as friendly and nothing more. That's why he had been awake for seven hours straight, constantly pondering on ideas for gifts, but ending up discarding all of them.

So, coming to a conclusion that he supremely tried to avoid (but given the situation it was no more than his only and last hope), he decided to ask for some help to his crazy friend, Koala.

The next day, upon getting to his classes, he didn't need to say anything in order for the brunette to ask him why there were slight dark circles under his eyes. She was a very watchful girl, especially when it came to Sabo. He even got to think that she loved him, but the idea was soon shoved away when he confessed his newly discovered love towards (Y/N) to her... and she agreed to help him make her his.

"Sabo-kun." She called, sitting down next to him, and opening the text book before the professor had even arrived. "Is everything okay?"

"I ran out of ideas, Koala." He sighed, looking around; his eyes widened when he realized that the girl who constantly attacked his thoughts, and won over them, had sat by her usual seat, also preparing her things for the class that was about to start. "It's almost her birthday." He whispered, looking away when the girl noticed his stare and decided to smile at him.

He missed the worry as (Y/N)'s lips were pulled into a thin line, however, when he avoided her (E/C) gaze.

"Is that so..." Koala dragged her words, sighing as the man about to start the lesson wrote something down on the large blackboard. "Let me think, I'll definitely come up with a great idea!" 

Break time came eventually, but Sabo had told his siblings, Ace and Luffy, that he wouldn't be staying with them that half hour. He wanted to talk to Koala about the subject in hand. (Y/N) was also in that group, and the sudden evasion on Sabo's part started to concern her.

"What have you thought about?" Sabo asked lowly, hoping that it wouldn't be any crazy idea. This is Koala we're talking about, after all. She scratched her chin and smiled widely, like a Cheshire cat would. 

"We could throw a surprise party. My place in three days, whaddya say?" The blond man sighed, shaking his head gently.

"I had thought about that, but do you really think we can prepare a surprise party in three days?" Her smile would have widened even more if possible, and she winked at him. 

"We will. Believe me, it will be the best surprise party, I swear." Sabo rolled his eyes, but a smile crept up to his face almost without him noticing. He could already picture those sparkly eyes as (Y/N) looked around with bewilderment and glee plastered in her expression. He nodded his head enthusiastic, and Koala did the same.

"We will need help from the others." Sabo pointed out, drawing a sigh from his friend's lips. Apparently, she had enough confidence to think that she was well able to do everything in her own. But, of course, a surprise party was something for more than three persons alone. "Ace and Luffy can look for some nice decorations, you know." 

"Yeah." Koala dragged the word in amusement. It was funny how Sabo always wanted to get his siblings involved, not that she minded; those boys were surely lovely ones, the younger maybe a little crazy and hyperactive. A sweetheart as much as a butthead. 

"Also, if I remember correctly, Luffy has a friend who can cook pretty well, and-" Before he could continue, Koala had settled a slender finger on his lips, effectively shutting his rambling up. 

"Don't involve Luffy and food that was meant to be done for another person." She mumbled darkly, and Sabo sweat-dropped. It would be a catastrophe, indeed.

"S-Sure..."

"Hey, Sabo!" You called, voice melodious with excitement as you waved your hand while running towards the boy. Classes were over for the day, and you had thought that maybe he wanted to hang out with you later that day. However, you didn't miss the way he flinched upon hearing your voice.

"Yes...?" He asked almost unsure, turning around to meet your gaze, which was softer now with what looked like self-confidence. His smile looked so forced, it was as if he didn't want to be close to you. What was wrong with him?

"Um... I was wondering if you wanted to go out with me today. Maybe for a walk, you know..." You trailed off, thoughts and wonders haunting your mind nonstop. He started sweating, and looked away.

"W-Well, I have to... To go out with Koala today... Yeah." He whispered, missing the way your eyes widened; you didn't know that those two weren't romantically linked yet, so this brought a sharp stab to your heart. Your head hung low, and you nodded uninterested.

"That's fine. Well, bye." Without saying anything more, you went away. 

And Sabo had the feeling that he had definitely messed up.

"Tomorrow's the day, boy!" Was the fact that Koala had reminded Sabo all the day known as March 11th. Now, he found himself trashing around on his bed, thinking about every single thing that could go wrong; there were so many, in contrast to the things that would surely go smoothly... 

However, he couldn't stop thinking about how you had looked really down these last two days. At the end, Koala and Sabo had decided to make it a small party where only they both, as well as Ace, Luffy and the latter's friends, would be invited. And, of course, you, the host. 

The thing was that he had been so busy, and nervous, that maybe of maybe not he had avoided you way too much these days. But he didn't want to, of course not. He never acted shyly around you, rather warm and lovely, just like he is.

Nervousness is never good.

You were woken up by the buzzing of your mobile phone, and a groan left your lips as your hazy mind wandered to the fact that it was Saturday. In a way, you felt thankful, because it's never something nice to spend your birthday in a stinky classroom for God knows how many hours. However, you loved being with your friends, so it would definitely be worth it. 

Talking about friends, you noticed it was Koala the one who sent you a message when you unlocked your screen. You read it quickly, and a frown was settled on your face.

Hey! Happy birthday, (Y/N)! (I hope I'm the first one xD) I was wondering if you could come to my place to finish this (F/S) project. Yeah? Awesome. See ya at 5 pm, and not earlier!

You sighed, but smiled and got up, getting ready for what you hoped would be a great day. At least you would spend your birthday with Koala. As you washed your teeth, you faintly heard your mobile's buzzing and message tone you had assigned. More "Happy Birthday" messages, probably from relatives and friends.

Your heart skipped a beat when you thought about Sabo. The blond boy had been acting so strange lately... and it hurt so much. You silently prayed that one of those messages was his, but you only found one from your parents – which made you smile – and some others from cousins or classmates. 

None came from Sabo.

"(Y/N)! You're here!" You smiled awkwardly as your female friend dragged you inside her house. You had waited on the street next to the one her place was because Koala was able to be a little mad if you were there before the time she had settled. And she was able to see you from afar as well, so you tried to stay out of her deep blue field of sight until the moment came. 

"Y-Yeah. I only brought the laptop, so I hope you don't mind us using your book," You said almost shyly, and Koala's grin became wider. 

"Oh, don't worry." She giggled. "We'll not need it." She added lowly, making sure you hadn't heard her. As you made your way into the house, you flinched, a loud noise came from the living room, and your friend cursed lowly.

"What the hell did they do this time?!" She closed the door with a bang, and stomped over to the room, which had all its lights off. You followed her insecurely, but when she flicked the switch and screamed, you picked up your pace, worried. 

And there you met a sight that made your eyes water slightly, and not because of the mess. Because there stood Luffy with (F/D) all over his face and clothes, well, rather lying on the floor while he received the beat of his life from Nami, Sanji, Usopp and Ace. The rest of Luffy's gang was either sighing and muttering about how everything turned out to be a disaster, or sitting quietly, like Robin was.

All around them, decorations, colorful pieces of paper and even a shelf were on the floor as well, making the hugest mess you had seen in a long time.

"WHO CAUSED THIS?!" Koala yelled, stopping everyone's movements, or at least those of the ones who were moving, and look at her terrified. 

"K-Koala-chwan, you see..." Sanji started, clearing his throat nervously. "We were waiting for (Y/N)-chawn to come here, but Luffy started eating the dessert for her, so we tried to stop him and thing went out of hand... just a bit..."

"Just a bit... Just a bit?!" She was almost gripping her short locks in aggravation, but breathed deeply twice before continuing. "I can't leave you alone for a moment, can I? Well, now (Y/N)'s surprise party is ruined!" 

"So... surprise party?" You gaped, smiling softly as you wiped your eyes in order not to let your tears fall down. "You did this for me?" Koala scratched the back of her head, nodding slightly.

"Of course we did. You're a great friend and person, so it's only fair that you get the best of the best." She paused, sighing while looking around her. "But I see it's not possible with these beasts..."

"You..." Biting your lip as it quivered, you flashed a huge grin, sniffling softly. "You're the best friend one can ever ask for! Thank you so much for the effort!" And you spent the next two minutes throwing hugs at everyone, smile never faltering as you felt them reciprocate the action in their very own way.

But you noticed someone was missing. As Koala sent everyone to clean what they had done, – yet promising them and you that you would all have pizza or whatever you wanted once they finished – you approached Ace.

"Hey, do you know where Sabo is?" You asked softly and timid, looking down. He smiled gently, and pointed his thumb over his shoulder.

"He said this was a mess, and that he didn't want to see the disappointment in your face, so he's regretting his useless efforts by the backdoor, as he said." He chuckled, letting you know that he wasn't one to worry about something like this. Wait a second...
Efforts...?

You thanked Ace, and left the room in a dash. Once you reached the kitchen, you saw the opened backdoor, and Sabo sitting on a doorstep with his head in his hands. Your gaze softened.

Quietly, you made your way next to him, without Sabo noticing, and sat down. The blond knew there was someone next to him, and it wasn't long until he recognized the (F/F) scent as yours. He jumped startled, and stared at your bright and reassuring smile for an eternity. 

"O-Oh! (Y/N)! Hello... Happy Birthday... Uh... do you like this weather? Because the clouds passing by are just nice and-"

"Sabo." You called lowly, he flinched. "It wasn't your fault. It was no one's fault, you know?" His lips became a scowl, thinking about how it really was a mistake to let Luffy too near the (F/D)... "I love the gesture, I really do. But... Why? This is the first time you do this..."

"Because I wanted you to feel special... Although this was Koala's idea." He muttered the last part, but he realized you wouldn't have heard it; his first statement blew you away. A fiery blush replaced your usual (S/C) complexion.

"Y-You shouldn't have... But I really think it was a great job. Although I was worried about the fact that you had been avoiding me these last days." You mumbled, and he bit his bottom lip.

"I did, didn't I? I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to ignore you... I was just so nervous that I couldn't come to talk to you." You blinked quickly, and a small smile was placed on your lips.

"That's a relief." You breathed out, and he chuckled. "You know? We are going outside to eat pizza or whatever, so let's get going. Maybe they'll be done soon." You said briefly, standing up, and Sabo did as well.

But before you could go any further away, he grabbed your arm, gently yanking you towards his chest; the flush on your face became bright red.

"Wait." He breathed out, and you felt goose bumps on your skin, your heartbeat accelerated. "(Y/N)... I never bought you a present."

"O-Oh, that-t's fine, Sabo. You don't need to-" But you were cut when his lips met your cheek in a chaste kiss. He separated quickly, and he moved to your own soft cushion-like lips. But he stopped as he barely brushed over them, blushing almost as much as you. "S-Sorry... I got carried away..." And then, mustering some courage, you ended his cut intentions.

It was just a mere and innocent peck, but it set both your and his body ablaze. 

"I really like you, you know?" You whispered, as if scared, but he heard; his smile said it. He nuzzled your neck and kissed it softly.

"Me too." He hummed, and pulled away. The most loving of smiles graced his lips, and you felt yourself grinning as well, your heart beating quickly, your stomach clenching and unclenching with these new sensations, and your mind where the only thing you could see was his tall being. "Come on... Your day is far from over, my Birthday Girl."