I wanted to scream, to disappear into the background like the faded party decorations. But instead, I stood there, frozen, awkwardly holding a plate of half-eaten cake, as the night devolved into a mess no one could salvage.
By the time the last guest left, the living room looked as chaotic as the evening had felt. Wrapping paper littered the floor, and the balloons sagged, their helium spent. David sat on the couch, staring blankly at the now-smudged frosting on his cake, the candles long forgotten.
“Happy birthday, huh?” he said with a bitter laugh, his voice barely above a whisper.
I didn’t know what to say. Sometimes, there aren’t any words that can fix a day like that. All I could do was sit next to him and hope that, somehow, next year would be better.
“I’m sorry, David,” I m
