There was a certain pattern to his birthday lately, Antonio noticed.

The celebration always begins the night before, the moment his old friends invite him to go drinking. The venue always changes every year; never have they visited the same establishment twice, for there are always new places to try. Francis and Gilbert took turns in selecting the site, making the atmosphere alternate between classy and downright rowdy. Antonio never really minded, of course; as long as they were together, anything was fun.

Once the three of them were sufficiently drunk, usually by dawn, they parted ways, each returning to their own homes. Antonio would have returned to his house by ten in the morning, at the latest, and he had usually sobered up enough by then to be civil towards any visitors. Feliciano would visit him around noon for lunch, bringing several others with him; Ludwig, Roderich, and Elizaveta come along the most often, along with other random acquaintances.

Never Lovino, though. Never once had Antonio seen Lovino come with his brother to the lunch. Naturally, he was rather disappointed the first time it happened, and even now, he is still a bit disappointed about it.

Of course, now that he knew what Lovino was really up to, he didn't mind the brunet's absence at the lunch that much.

Feliciano and the others would leave at around half past four, after siesta. Antonio would then clean up after them, unless Ludwig had gotten to it first. He'd then just laze around the house, waiting for Lovino to come—which was exactly what he was doing at the moment.

"Five minutes to six..." Antonio quietly murmured, eyes looking at the clock expectantly. Lovino always, always shows up at six, and so far, he was always, always punctual, if only for this one day.

Exactly five minutes later, there was knocking at the door, and Antonio practically leaped off the sofa, an excited expression on his face. Quickly, he opened the door, and as he had expected, Lovino was there, a bouquet in one hand, face slightly red from embarrassment. Without any hesitation, he gave the younger nation a hug, sighing contentedly.

"...Let me go already, idiot..." Lovino quietly murmured after several seconds, silently watching as Antonio pulled away from him. After a moment's hesitation, he thrust the bouquet into the other nation's hands. "Feliz cumpleaños," he hastily murmured as he walked past the older nation and into the house, heading straight for the kitchen.

Antonio could only let out a quiet sigh and shake his head at the sight. Some things really never change.

He then turned his attention to the bouquet of red roses, smiling happily, yet his eyes clearly showed that he was looking for something. A short while later, he pulled out a single red carnation from the bouquet, giving the lone flower a fond look before returning to the living room, placing the roses in a vase he'd prepared. He then moved on to his room, placing the carnation in a small, slim vase on the nightstand and giving it one last look before leaving for the kitchen to help Lovino with making dinner.

Many would love surprises on their birthday, but Antonio was perfectly content with this routine.