When Kaitlyn sent her suggestions along to Philip, she had almost expected him to back out of the whole thing and shut her down. What she hadn't expected was to be invited along for the ride.

She sat in the passenger seat of the dingy blue-grey sedan as it rumbled along. Her eyes felt puffy and thick with sleep as she stifled a yawn unsuccessfully. "Do you always get up this early?"

Philip nodded. In a development that had initially shocked Kaitlyn awake, he wasn't wearing his usual formal outfit. The dress shirt and slacks had been replaced with a faded logo t-shirt and board shorts. His exposed arms and legs appeared shockingly pale in comparison to his face and hands.

"No. I wake up earlier."

"Why?" She groaned. The sun was barely visible above the horizon. "It's not even light out!"

"The extra time in the morning allows me to schedule extra studying before work."

"I guess…" Kaitlyn mumbled. "Just… geez, I might need a nap later…"

Philip shrugged unapologetically. "It only makes sense to set out early. The earlier we begin, the more time we will be able to spend at our destination. Especially considering that I am scheduled at the restaurant tonight."

Right… she glanced out the window. Buildings swept by as the car cruised down the street. Hey, at least he's trying. I can't complain about that.

Kaitlyn glanced down at the little square box in her lap. As they pulled up to a stoplight, Philip followed her gaze. "Once again, I feel compelled to remind you that this was unnecessary. There was no need for you to bring anything."

"Yes there was." Kaitlyn chuckled. "Its your little sister's birthday. Do you expect me to just not bring a present?"

"It's not the act of you bringing a present I object to. It's the present itself. There was no need to expend so much time and effort."

"You don't know how long these took," Kaitlyn feigned offense. "I could have made them all in one night. Besides, the extras sold really well, so it basically paid for itself."

Philip fixed her with a look. "The fact that you sold the others indicates that these are, in fact, of substantial value."

"Well, they're not for you anyway, so you can't complain." She gently hugged the box to herself. "These are all for the birthday girl. So you'll have to ask her to share."

In short order, the drive took them past suburban neighborhoods and toward a small, unassuming house just outside of campus. As they pulled into the driveway, Kaitlyn took note of the faded and peeling white paint across its exterior walls. A narrow lawn stretched toward the street on either side of the driveway, its brownish grass interspersed with the occasional bare patch of dirt or struggling weed. An AC unit mounted in the window completed the picture.

I don't want to judge based on appearances, but… Kaitlyn bit her lip. It kind of lines up with what I expected. But hey, at least he's not homeless or living under a bridge or something! That's a good sign.

It wasn't all bad, either. Near the front door sat a few pots of flowering plants with bright green leaves and colorful buds. A couple of wind chimes made from old bent forks, spoons, and bottles tinkled gently in the breeze. In fact, if she made sure to only focus on the entryway, the whole setting looked a lot less run-down.

She stepped out of the car, gently tucking the box against her chest as she opened its door. Philip led her toward the front door of the house. Amber light peeked through the dusty blinds covering the windows to either side. Pushing it open with a slight effort, he stepped aside to let Kaitlyn through. "Come in."

As they stepped into the space, Kaitlyn glanced around what appeared to be a small living room. The place was sparsely decorated and furnished. A well-worn couch and recliner sat around an old-style boxy television. The walls also bore a few framed pictures and cross-stitched hangings. But other than that, there wasn't too much to note aside from the scents of dust and coffee.

"Grandmother, I'm home–"

"Phil!"

Kaitlyn looked to her left for the source of the high-pitched voice. There, framed in the doorway of a small bedroom, stood a little girl in pink and white pajamas that were a few sizes too small. Her rosy-cheeked face was positively alight with joy.

The girl bolted out of the doorway and toward Philip, tackling him with a hug. He reached down to ruffle her raven hair affectionately. "Good morning, Serena. And happy birthday."

"Good morning!" Serena grinned up at Philip toothily. The physical similarities between the two were fairly obvious, despite the complete and utter difference in demeanor. Kaitlyn could see echoes of Philip's severe features in his little sister, although greatly offset by her smile. The main difference was their eyes. Rather than the grey stormcloud color of Philip's irises, his sister's more resembled the blue-grey of slate.

As the girl noticed that Philip wasn't alone, she leaned to the side and stared at Kaitlyn with open curiosity. "Who's that?"

"This is Kaitlyn. She's a friend of mine."

"Hi Kaitlyn!" Serena waved enthusiastically. "I'm Serena."

"Nice to meet you, Serena." Kaitlyn suppressed a chuckle at the girl's earnestness. "Happy birthday."

I've never really liked kids much, but… she's pretty cute.

Philip extricated himself from the girl's grip and crossed toward the couch. "I'm surprised to see you already up. I thought I'd need to wake you myself."

"Nope!" She grinned. "I'm a big girl now! I can wake up all on my own."

"Really?" Philip raised an eyebrow. "Well, if you're such a big girl, then perhaps you're too old for presents."

"Presents?!" The girl bounded after him. "You're never too old for presents!"

"Are you certain? I wouldn't want to infantilize you too much." He stooped to pick up a grocery bag from the couch. "I can always return this if needed."

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"Philllll!" Serena gasped in horror. "You big meanie!"

"Fine, fine. If you're certain..."

Kaitlyn watched with amazement as the girl unwrapped the plush bunny with unbridled joy. Rather than Serena though, her attention was focused on Philip. His expression was unlike she'd ever seen it. His usual expression had practically melted, his eyes softening and usual impassive face betraying an obvious fondness.

I can see why. A small smile came to Kaitlyn's own face. But still. It's nice to know that he CAN smile like that.

"Thank you!" Serena wrapped Philip in another big hug while still holding her bunny. "I love it so much!"

"Of course. Happy birthday." Phiip glanced toward Kaitlyn. "Though it seems you have another present as well."

"Two presents?!" The girl's eyes widened as Kaitlyn's heart clenched a bit. "Really?!"

"Yup." Kaitlyn forced a smile and held out the box. "I couldn't bake you a full cake, so I got you the next best thing. Happy birthday."

She handed Serena the gift. As the young girl hugged her rabbit under one arm and pulled the lid off, she gasped.

Within sat a perfect little collection of cupcakes, each with neatly swirled frosting and sprinkles on top. There were four flavors in total: vanilla, double-chocolate, strawberry lemon, and – Kaitlyn's personal favorite – blackberry white chocolate.

After finishing her testing on all of the recipes, Kaitlyn had managed to narrow the selection down to these four. However, it had been too hard to decide between them. So she just brought them all. It helped that her toaster oven didn't have the ability to make a full cake, so she had a perfectly good excuse to stick with smaller portions.

As Serena marveled at the cupcakes, eyes sparkling with delight, Philip nudged her gently. "What do you say?"

"Thank you thank you thank you!" The little girl snapped out of her awestruck staring. She practically bounced in place, sending the cupcakes wobbling within the box. "Which one's mine?"

"They all are," Kaitlyn grinned.

Her eyes nearly popped out of her head. "Really?!"

"Yup. All yours."

The idea took a moment for Serena to process. Once she realized that Kaitlyn wasn't joking, she turned toward her brother. "Look, look, look! I have cupcakes!"

"I can see that, yes."

As Serena continued to celebrate her gift, Kaitlyn's own grin widened as well. It was hard not to smile when the girl's happiness was so infectious.

I don't think anyone's ever been this excited for my food. Not even Heather. And she hasn't even tasted it yet.

"Good heavens. You all are quite energetic this morning."

Philip and Kaitlyn looked over. A thin, elderly woman emerged from another bedroom, her hands clasped behind her slightly bowed back. Blue-grey hair fell loose about shoulders covered by a thick shawl. An whitish nightgown hung off of her form, reaching just past her shins.

The woman slowly crossed the carpeted floor toward the group. "Oh? And who's this?"

Philip nodded. "Good morning, grandmother. This is Kaitlyn. She's a friend of mine."

"A friend? I see." The woman's eyes crinkled as she smiled. "Nice to meet you, dearie."

"You too, uh..." What do I call her?

The woman chuckled, reading her mind. "You can call me Granny."

"Granny. Right." Kaitlyn ducked her head apologetically. "Nice to meet you."

So Philip lives with his grandma, then? Where are his parents? Kaitln glanced around, but no other figures appeared. Are they just not around right now? Or...?

"Granny, look!" Serena thrust the box toward the old woman. "I got cupcakes!"

"Oh, my. Those certainly look delicious." Granny peered into the box with interest.

"We should share!" Serena thrust the box out again, toward Philip this time. "I get one, and everyone else does too!"

"Oh, dear. I'm quite all right myself." Grandma patted the girl on the head. "How about you eat mine for me? You are the birthday girl after all."

"You don't want a cupcake?!" Serena looked as if she couldn't believe her ears. "But Granny! They're cupcakes!"

Philip crossed his arms. "This may be hard to believe, but not everyone enjoys cupcakes as much as you."

"But they're cupcakes!" The girl repeated the statement with more emphasis, as though that were explanation enough.

After a little bit more convincing, Serena reluctantly agreed to keep Granny's share for herself, but only if she could share the others with Philip and Kaitlyn. The girl stared at the box in deep, serious contemplation before selecting her flavors. Her expression finally resembled the stoic one Kaitlyn had come to expect from Philip, making their similarities even more obvious. The fact that it was over a cupcake only made the comparison more hilarious.

Serena ended up picking the strawberry and chocolate cupcakes, while Philip went with plain vanilla. It left Kaitlyn herself with the blackberry white chocolate one.

That's fine. I kinda figured the other three might be her favorites anyway. I'm pretty confident in that strawberry frosting.

"I'll save mine for later." Philip placed the treat in the fridge and turned toward his sister. "For now, we have one more surprise to see to."

"Mmmph!" Serena made a muffled sound of excitement through a mouthful of cupcake. Once she'd swallowed, she bombarded Philip with questions. "What is it, what is it? I wanna know! Are we having a party? Is it a surprise party?"

"Well, it wouldn't be a surprise if I told you, now would it?"

"Yeah it would!" Serena complained. "It's already my birthday! So you don't have to keep it secret anymore!"

Philip shook his head in amusement. "Be patient. You'll see when we get there."

Seeing that her efforts won't getting her anywhere, Serena decided to switch tactics. Her pleading gaze swung toward Kaitlyn. "Will you tell me? Pleeeease?"

She chuckled at Serena's obvious attempt to weaponize her cuteness and puppy-dog eyes. "Sorry, your brother says no. My hands are tied."

As the girl pouted, Philip continued. "We should head out soon. Serena, are you prepared to leave?"

"Uhhhhh... almost!" With one last bite of cupcake, the girl bounded back toward her room.

"I would suggest wearing shorts! Perhaps something to swim in as well!" He called after the girl and gave a resigned sigh.

"She's quite something," Kaitlyn remarked.

"She can be quite excitable, if that's what you're referring to." He shook his head. "She has a tendency to overwhelm."

Kaitlyn giggled. "I can imagine. She's really cute, though."

"Yes." A hint of pride lit up his eyes. "Yes she is."

His grandma chuckled. "Well, you kids have fun out there. I'll be here when you get back."

Philip nodded. "If you need anything, do not hesitate to call. I can also stop at the store on the way back if we need to restock on something. The neighbors are home if there's an emergency. And–"

"I'll be just fine, Philip." The woman waved a hand at him. "You go and enjoy. I'll see you when you get home. If I'm not already asleep, that is."

"We will not be gone so long. I have work this evening. But I'll drop Serena off before then."

As if on cue, Serena came bounding back into the room dressed in shorts and a t-shirt. "C'mon! Let's go already!"

"Did you brush your teeth?"

Serena pursed her lips. After a moment of hesitation, she sprinted back toward the bathroom. The sounds of a faucet turning on and frantic brushing followed. A moment later, she appeared in the living room once again. "C'monnnnnn!"

Philip shook his head with a small smile. "I suppose it's time to head out then."

With a wave goodbye to Granny, they headed out toward Philip's sedan. Kaitlyn smiled as Serena alternated between urging them to hurry up and pestering them about where they were going. The girl's genuine joy made the whole thing feel a bit endearing rather than annoying.

This was already worth waking up early for.