"Okay, you ready, Amy?"
I hear the click of a lighter and know that Daddy's lighting candles. I squirm in my seat, trying to peek out underneath the blindfold but Daddy has it good and tight. I'm not seeing anything unless he wants me to.
I'm so excited. Finally, I'm going to be an adult. And I'm so happy that I get to spend the day with Daddy. I never see him much anymore, and Mom isn't happy with me wanting to visit. Still, it isn't every day that your daughter turns 18 years old. Besides, she wouldn't let him come to my party later on. I really want him to be there for my birthday, even if it's just for a little while.
I hear footsteps and smell the unmistakable scent of burning candles. Daddy's bringing the cake to the table. I don't know why he has the blindfold on, since I can tell it's a cake. It isn't going to be much of a surprise.
"Alright, you ready?" Daddy asks again, and I nod enthusiastically, my mouth already watering.
I feel his hands at the back of my head and the blindfold loosens until it falls away completely. I take a deep breath before I open my eyes, a smile breaking out across my face at the sight in front of me.
It's a vanilla cake, with pink swirls of icing spelling out
Happy Birthday Amy!
There are exactly eighteen blue candles sticking up from the cake, little flames burning, wisps of smoke curling into the air.
"Oh, Daddy, it's wonderful!" I breathe, looking up at him and smiling. He has this strange look on his face, but I figure it's simply too much for him to think of his little girl growing up so fast.
"Why don't you make a wish, hun?" Daddy says, stepping closer and placing his hand on my shoulder. He rubs slow circles into my skin there, and I relax under his touch.
I close my eyes and think for a second. I really can't wish for anything else, not in this moment. I'm here, with Daddy, celebrating my eighteenth birthday, and I'm going to have the best party ever in just a couple hours. I think back on all the other birthdays I've had, all the times Daddy isn't there to see me grow up, and I know what I want my wish to be this year.
I wish that Daddy enjoys my birthday just as much as me.
Satisfied, I take a deep breath, hold it for a moment, then blow out all the candles at once.
Daddy goes to get plates and forks, and I start plucking the candles out of the cake, licking the icing off the bottoms. When Daddy comes back he cuts me a big piece of cake - the part with
Amy
written on top in pink swirly letters - and hands me the plate. I waste no time in shoveling a huge forkful down my throat.
"Mm, Daddy it's so good!" I moan, shoving another piece of cake into my mouth. He clears his throat and I look over at him. He's smiling at me, but it's strange, like another expression is warring to take over his features.
"I'm glad you like it, Amy girl," Daddy says, ducking his head down. I shrug and keep eating my cake.
We sit there in silence, me munching away at my birthday cake, and Daddy sitting next to me. I start feeling a little lightheaded, and I ask Daddy to get me some water. When he gets up, I notice he's barely touched his cake. I look behind me; he's busy fiddling with the faucet. I reach out and take his plate, shoveling the cake in my mouth as fast as I can.
I put it back before he returns, trying not to giggle like a schoolgirl. Daddy comes back and sets a glass of water down on the table, sitting back in his chair. He looks at his plate, then looks at me, something sparking in his eyes.
"Amy, did you eat my cake?" he asks, a smile tugging at his lips. "Tell the truth."
"Yes, I did, Daddy!" I practically shout. My hands shoot to my mouth, my eyes growing wide. I didn't mean to say that. I want to lie. We both would have known it's me, but still...
"Uh, s-sorry," I stammer, lowering my hands to my lap. I shake my head, wondering why I feel so dizzy all of a sudden.
I see Daddy reaching towards me and I look at him. "You've got something here, Amy," he says, and I look down. A bit of cake has land on my chest, just above my right breast. I blush, embarrass that it's fallen in such a prominent place.
"Oh, godβ" I start, making to move.
"Stay there," Daddy says, and for some reason I feel frozen to the spot. The flush is rising in my cheeks, and I want to clean myself up, but I just don't feel like moving.
"I'll get it," Daddy whispers, and he reaches out again, his hand coming closer to my chest. I want to move back, move away, but I can't, and I don't understand why. I feel like I'm floating away.
Daddy's finger touches my skin, and I shiver a little. He scoops up the piece of cake, then raises his finger to my lips. I look at him, confused, even more so at the darkness that seems to have come over his eyes.
I sit there for a moment, not sure what's going on, until Daddy says, "Open."
My mouth goes wide, and so do my eyes.
What the hell?
I didn't want to open my mouth, and yet...
A weird smile spreads across Daddy's lips and he slowly moves his hand closer to my face, sticking his finger in my mouth.
"Close."
It's like someone else is in my body, making me do it. But my mouth closes around Daddy's finger. I can taste the pink and white icing, and the fleshy taste of his hand. Reflexively my tongue moves, licking the icing off of his finger, and I see something dangerous flash in his eyes as I do it.
My heart is racing. What the hell is going on?? Why is Daddy shoving his finger into my mouth? More importantly, why am I
letting