Chapter Fourteen

                                    

                                          
14.
It was my 25th birthday party, and I had invited my friends: Ino and her fiancé, Sai, and to everyone's surprise, Hinata and Naruto, who had just returned from their honeymoon in Jeju Island. Ino, with her usual flair, raised an eyebrow and took a drag from her cigarette, saying, "So, did you bring the cake or just your charming self?"
Sai chimed in with a playful grin, "Oh, I hope it's cake; I'm starving!"
Hinata, with a warm smile, joined the conversation, "It's your special day, so cake or not, it's a treat."
Naruto, still sporting a holiday tan, added with enthusiasm, "Speaking of treats, you won't believe the seafood we had in Jeju, guys!"
Laughter filled the room as we chatted away, and the atmosphere was full of warmth and humor as we shared stories and celebrated my birthday.
The apartment bell rang, catching everyone's attention.
"Oh," I exclaimed, taken aback by the unexpected interruption.
Intrigued, Ino, her cigarette hanging from her perfectly manicured fingers, asked, "Who could be coming at this hour?"
I hurried to the door and was astonished to find Sasuke standing there.
"I came to congratulate... the new face of Japan's current affairs," Sasuke said, pointing at a newspaper headline featuring a photo of me interviewing the Aghani case. 
"Huh?" I stammered, utterly surprised and momentarily at a loss for words.
I was genuinely surprised and thrilled to see my face on the newspaper, finally being recognized for my hard work as a journalist. Caught up in the moment, I hugged Sasuke tightly.
Sasuke didn't refuse the hug but let out a protest, "Sakura... It's too tight," he murmured, slightly out of breath.
"Oops, sorry," I whispered, my smile beaming widely. "Actually, it's not too late to join my birthday party," I invited him to enter my apartment with me.
My friends were all taken aback to see Sasuke there.
"Oh, not much of a surprise," Naruto commented sarcastically.
"The frog prince arrived at last," Ino sneered.
"Let's not turn this celebration dull with your dry humor," Sai teased Sasuke.
"Sasuke, welcome," Hinata greeted him warmly.
I emerged from the kitchen, bearing the birthday cake that I had labored to make myself, diligently following the recipe. Though it had come out slightly burnt, I had attempted to mask the imperfections by generously slathering it with colorful birthday cake jam. Placing it on the table, I began slicing and serving it to my friends, including Sasuke, who had joined the festivities. They all started singing "Happy Birthday" while clapping and eagerly sampling my culinary creation.
"Delicious," Naruto said, though his facial expression didn't quite match his words.
"Really special," Sai chimed in, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
"It's really...really very good," Ino exclaimed, forcing a grin. 
"Really. It's very nice," Sasuke added nonchalantly while furrowing his brows.
I couldn't help but chuckle, realizing that there was indeed something wrong with the taste of my cake. However, I was pleased to see that my friends were making an effort to enjoy it. I took a bite of the disastrous cake myself and had to admit it was far from perfect. We all burst into laughter despite the culinary catastrophe, finding humor in the situation.