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Anabelle had zero reaction other than to slightly turn her head toward Ethel’s voice.

Ethel, as always, moved with surprising agility for someone her age to deposit the ice cream in the kitchen, then returned to take her place in hiding in the living room.

Decorations were minimal, but Troy had done a wonderful job choosing a tasteful array of burgundy and teal streamers and balloons, along with a banner that simply read: Happy 30th! No “over the hill” signs in sight. Subtle and temporarily hidden decorations had been set up by Milo earlier to be unfurled when the time came.

With Ethel returned, everyone took their hiding places, and Milo turned out the lights—moments before Rowan entered.

“Ethel? Why did you rush ahead? You can have some of the ice cream if you really want to. Hey, why are the lights—”

Just as Rowan flipped the lights back on upon reaching the living room, everyone leapt to their feet.

“Surprise!”

Notes:

I have a problem. Not with this fic! I already have the next chapter ready for you, and the chapter after THAT, which I freaking LOVE. Might be the best spicy scene I’ve ever written. But you don’t get to read that yet! XD

First… wtf do I do with Superhero Rowan and Milo?

So I figure, yeah, they finish their sexy times, agree to call a truce to escape the building together, and Milo is even okay with not stealing whatever he’d wanted to steal. I could then time skip to them planning another hookup, or still just basking in the afterglow, while Raina and Troy (and Ray and whoever else would be Milo’s villain team) TOTALLY know shit went down. Like, Rowan would be found out and, as a superhero, be all, “It’s rehabilitation!”

Raina: “And the rehabilitation is your dick?” XD I love her. Do others make her sarcastic and hilarious? I think I may be having her channel what would totally be a young Ethel.

Anyway, we could end there, right? Crack-fic ending, funny, the MCs banged, THE END. But SHOULD that be the end? What else could I do with this, because I feel like there should be more, but what? Thoughts?

Notes:

Okay, when I said thoughts? Just answering to have them BANG more is not enough of an answer! XD Anything constructive out there for my Superhero AU? I’ll have to keep thinking about it…

In the meantime, back to our regularly scheduled fic. ^_^

ROWAN

“Surprise!”

Rowan was stunned. The most important people in his life right now were all here—sans Ruben, which he was totally okay with. Ruben had sent him a virtual card that morning. Once activated, it had three-dimensionally projected up from Rowan’s tablet two normal round balloons flanking a third oblong balloon with the words below it: No YOU Grow Up!

Ruben: Seriously, bro, love you. The world doesn’t know what it’s in for with you in your thirties.

Aside from the dick balloons, it was actually pretty sweet.

And so was this intimate surprise party that Rowan definitely should have expected.

He’d thought Milo had been acting strangely all week, but then, what was normal when Milo had only been alive fordayscompared to the months he’d been Rowan’s… well, property didn’t sit well with him.

Assistant? That wasn’t inaccurate. Now, Milo was so much more.

He was a boyfriend who’d gone to all this trouble just for Rowan.

The others flocked to him with words of congratulations and half-hugs or pats on his shoulder. Nothing overly affectionate.That wasn’t Rowan’s way with his sisters, and definitely not his way with Troy, though Ethel went for a full-on bear hug, despite barely clearing Rowan’s waist. He was glad she hadn’t ordered Anabelle to try hugging him. He couldn’t look at bots who weren’t Milo the same way anymore and felt uncomfortable under their idle stares.

Milo was last to come forward but far from idle like Anabelle, for he wore his blinding smile, with all that sentient light in his eyes, having seen how truly touched Rowan was and rightly proud of himself for it. Normally, Rowan hated surprises. He hated his birthday. He hated any attention on him, usually. But once in a while, especially from Milo and this close-knit group of people, it felt kind of amazing to be the reason they were together.

“You allsuck,” Rowan said with a growing grin of his own, knowing Milo would get the sarcasm as he came forward with a simple round cake sporting a printed frosting pattern of the nighttime city skyline, and a single candle in the shape of the number thirty.

Milo kicked off the birthday song, which the others joined in on, refreshingly all on key.