137 An Irreversible Dream

"Happy Birthday."

The words slithered past my lips softly. Appearing in front of me to be Marvel's back. He stopped in his tracks, his face quickly turning to his shoulder as he looked rather surprised. Aligning the focus, we finally found each other's gazes.

Standing by a bookshelf in his office, he was in his typical black suit, looking neat and handsome as always. A familiar musky fragrance swarmed in the air around me as I stepped closer to him. From the way he made a face, he seemed like he had completely forgotten about this day.

His gaze softened, recovering after the unexpected remark. He seemed to have words already composed in his mind while studying my face.

"I've been waiting for you to wish me one day, but that was a rather bashful expression than the one I've ever imagined," commented Marvel, lifting the palm of his hand in front of me. "Then? You couldn't be saying that empty-handed, could you?"