A cake, a cold winter birthday, and the one that got away

A long forum post that reads like a gut-punch. The writer describes growing up with an abusive father who would beat them whenever he was drunk, while their mom did nothing to stop it. In middle school, the bruises were so bad they couldn't go to school for days — and their homeroom teacher barely cared, just called once, and never followed up.

Then the story shifts. A classmate who sat across from them noticed the marks, showed up at their door, and instead of making it awkward just said 'why, do you get the newspaper delivered?' when they opened the door looking wrecked. Later that same day, out of nowhere, the classmate suddenly yelled 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY!' — except the writer's birthday is in summer, not that freezing winter day. Confused, the writer said 'today's not my birthday.' The classmate laughed and said 'oh... well, happy birthday anyway. I'll get the real date right next year. Thanks for being born.'

The writer says they almost cried hearing that — it was the first time a guy had said something like that without being embarrassed about it. They hung out at the PC bang, ate cake quietly, and then the classmate said 'I like you. I've liked you for a while. This is basically my graduation gift to you — I just wanted to say it. I know you're going to a boarding high school.' They parted ways laughing. They never met again — the classmate stopped coming to school after that day, and the writer had to move away because of their dad's job. Ten years later, the playground where they played has been paved over into an asphalt road. The writer ends: 'That cake you gave me kept me from completely falling apart. I miss you. I liked you too.'