They each pick a side and hug me, their hands resting over each other’s.
“You did. Thank you.” Thank you doesn’t feel like enough, but what else can I say?
“There is one more gift,” Casey says.
“There is?” Auggie and I ask in unison.
“Yes. It’s more a gift for all of us than for you. And it’s kind of dorky and nerdy, so I hope you like them.”
“Them? Now I’m intrigued,” Auggie says.
Casey takes a paper bag out of his pocket and tips three key rings onto the table. Each one is a wooden square, representing an element in the periodic table. My heart swells as I look at each one.
“Our elements. They’re perfect, Casey. Thank you.” I fling my arms around his neck.
“Our elements?” Auggie asks.
“Gold.” I hand him the Au keyring.
“Why the fuck is gold A-U?”
“It’s derived from the Latin word for gold, which is aurum,” I reply.
“Uh-huh. I guess it’s true that you learn something new every day.”
“I certainly did.” My cheeks flush.
Casey arches his eyebrow.
“Auggie taught me how to suck cock.”
Casey widens his eyes. “I guess you’ve had a good birthday, then.”
“The best.” I pick up the Ca keyring and give it to Casey. “Calcium.”
“Oh, well, that makes sense. He needs strong bones to be a good swimmer, right?” Auggie says.
We all laugh.
“And gold makes sense for me because my family is rich. And both of these elements are the first two letters of our given names. But why isn’t yours E-M?”
I chuckle. “There isn’t an E-M element.”
“Well, there should be. Hurry up and find a new element that you can name Emulinium or something.”
I clutch my stomach as I cackle. “I want to research new medicines, not discover new elements.”
“Details. Details. What does Es stand for?” Auggie asks.
“Einsteinium. It was named in honour of Einstein.” Casey replies.
“Oh, yeah. I get it now. That’s perfect for our nerdy mega-brain. Good job.” He and Casey fist-bump.
“I love my keyring, thank you.” I kiss Casey softly.
“I thought we could order pizza and then snuggle on the sofa while watching some films,” Auggie says.
I gasp. “You’re not going to cook me a birthday meal?”
