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Oliver was starting the new year in the most productive way possible. Settled down in the Life labs, he had actually found a semi-permanent place to get work done. There was just enough room at the computer desk to stash several days worth of candy, and the old, threadbare chair with stiff wheels and creaky joints was a relic from the 90's that could tilt backwards far enough for a slouched nap. It would tip far enough to topple over entirely if Oliver wasn't careful, but resting his feet on the computer housing under the desk, he felt relatively secure for short naps.

This small area had become more of a haven than even his own room, and while he never shirked his exercise regimen or personal hygiene, the corner with the computer was where he came back to after his brief bouts of activity. Even when he would grab a couple hours of real 'sleep' in the dorms, the naps in the old chair were almost preferable.

That was how Oliver would be found, slumped contentedly in the chair, fast asleep. There were no less than six empty cans of coke on the desk and two half-finished bags of doritos, a testament to how long the kid had been working away on his current project.

Oliver was not a deep sleeper even under normal conditions. The nervous vigilance that had been drilled into him on the island hadn't done him any favours in this regard, neither had adapting to short, frequent bursts of sleep. So when he felt the hand on his shoulder he startled out of sleep with a violent jerk, leaning back to pull away from the touch. The poor old chair was not prepared for his flailing. As it began to fall backwards Oliver yelped loudly, and his feet hit the underside of the desk with a thud hard enough to send a couple empty coke cans rattling onto their sides and rolling onto the floor.

Somehow he managed to sit up fast enough to keep the chair upright, but the abrupt waking left him looking frazzled. "Ah... H-Horace, um, w-what's up?" He stammered, briefly glancing around the room for whatever potential emergency he was reacting to. As it became clear the only emergency was almost being dumped on the floor, Oliver slowly relaxed.

"Y-yeah, um... yeah." Oliver almost wanted to ask Horace the same thing, the other man looked at him like he had grown a second head for a bit there. Maybe, just maybe he had overreacted a little upon waking up, but actually falling out of the chair would have been worse.

He stretched his arms over his head, and then stifled a yawn. In spite of the dramatic waking up, Oliver seemed more relaxed and comfortable in his surroundings than he had in a long time. "Everything is okay, right?" he asked, almost hopefully. It wasn't often Horace came to visit him in the labs after all!

Oliver stiffened slightly. It was clear he was thinking about what could possibly be not okay right now, and why Horace would come to wake him up. It could be anything... except maybe the most obvious explanation for his friend's stern expression.

He began looking a little pale. "Please don't tell me Hattie lost her roomba... With something dangerous attached to it..."

Although it seemed like his worst suspicions had been confirmed, Horace was quick to inform him of the real reason for the stern look.

Oliver blinked in surprise. Missing a birthday was no big deal, it was just another day that had come and gone, no need to fuss over it. After seven years of not celebrating anything at all, Oliver's 18th birthday, with all it's gifts and visitors, was more remarkable than the one that had just passed.

"... Why?" He asked after a second of silence. "It's okay that we didn't do anything... It's probably even a good birthday, all things considered, I didn't even have to spend it in the infirmary this year."

Oliver looked left and then right, possibly searching for an escape, before getting up and scurrying after the taller man.

"Um... Y-you don' have any of those things planned, do you?" He asked hesitantly. "With uh... people, or stuff?" Oliver didn't really elaborate, but it at least clarified the nature of his nervous glances. When words failed to convince Horace, it wasn't like he would ever actually bail on his friend, but he was extremely on guard for loud surprises of the birthday variety.

The relief was almost instantaneous. "Oh!" Oliver brightened visibly, but his expression was still one of pleasant surprise. A part of him hadn't expected his preferences to be taken into account when it came to 'fun' things like birthdays, there were socially acceptable actions to be taken, and socially acceptable responses, and it was on him to try and fit that mould despite how uncomfortable it could be.

Oliver didn't have to work hard to keep up, just running coffee back in the day had required a more frantic pace. "A-are you sure? It's not, um, too much work? I don't know anything about baking cakes..."

"Um..." Oliver trailed along and slowly took a seat. Unlike his preferences for real food, the kid was not picky at all when it came to junk food. Anything with a high enough sugar content was fair game, and as far as cakes went, he had never had a bad one. It had always been good, chocolate, vanilla, carrot cake, ice cream cake... Oliver simply couldn't play favourites with this dessert.

He shifted nervously, and scratched at the scar on his nose. "I guess, uh... whatever we have stuff for... Um... yeah..."