Author's Note: Seeing how it's supposed to be Ryo's birthday today, I couldn't resist putting up a little one-shot to celebrate. :) I hope my readers enjoy it, and as I mentioned elsewhere, I hope to get back to my other fics here soon.

I do not own City Hunter or any of its characters.

Thank you to everyone who reads/favorites/reviews this. It is always appreciated. :D

Endless Summer—A Gift of Years

Kaori Makimura walked along the city streets, gazing into one shop after another in a desperate search to find a gift. Ordinarily, she considered herself to be thoughtful and deft at choosing gifts for her friends and for the friends who had become like family to her.

This time, however, she faced the daunting challenge of trying to find a birthday gift for Ryo…and it was a challenge she worried about more and more with each passing day.

Kaori sighed as she stared at the latest shop on her journey while trying to decide if she was going to go in. Last year, she thought that she had made the perfect purchase of a fine watch for the very first birthday that Ryo would celebrate. Sadly the watch was destroyed during Ryo's gun dual with Umibozu, who was fighting him at Sonia Field's request, and all Kaori had to offer Ryo to replace his gift was the promise she too would make sure to spend all of Ryo's birthdays together with him.

Thinking about Ryo's birthday managed to produce a melancholic twinge in her heart. Kaori still remembered to this day how shocked she was when she learned that Ryo had no memories of having a birthday or of anyone celebrating it. It was moments like those when Kaori had begun to realize the heavy price Ryo had had to pay to become the professional that he was today. But it was also moments like those that strengthened Kaori's resolve to continue to find ways to give Ryo as much of a normal life as he could have given his work and his lifestyle. It was the impetus for her to give him an age and a birthday and to be sure to celebrate it with him to make up for all those years when time passed him by with no acknowledgement of his entrance into this world.

Kaori moved closer to the glass and lightly pressed her hand against the store window. Despite the fact that she had to watch Ryo spend his first official birthday grappling with grief and guilt when confronted with the daughter of one of his old partners and then fighting for his life only a few days later, Kaori found that she actually was at an even greater loss as to how to approach his birthday this year.

About eight months ago, Mick Angel, one of Ryo's closest friends, showed up in Japan having been hired to kill him, and shortly after that, the man who hired him, Ryo's adoptive father, Shin Kaibara, arrived in Tokyo as well. All of this led to a tragic series of events with Mick almost dying and being forced to retire as a sweeper, Ryo having to kill his own father in self-defense, and Ryo almost getting killed a couple times himself.

Kaori's hand started to tremble and she moved it away from the window. She knew that all of this had taken an enormous toll on Ryo and it was one of the reasons why she had been able to eventually forgive him for keeping all of this from her when she briefly lost all of her memories of these incidents. There were times, however, when she wondered if they were both still living under the shadow of these incidents and if Ryo especially was still dealing with the repercussions.

'So much has happened since that last birthday,' she mused. 'So many heartaches and so much misfortune. Does Ryo even want to think about the passage of another year in his life?'

Kaori moved her hand away and resumed her stroll down the street. Even though she was unsure of how he might feel about celebrating his birthday, she was determined to keep the promise that she made to Ryo when she assigned a birthday to him.

Still unsure of what kind of gift to look for, Kaori decided to put her search aside for a little while and go check in with Miki and Umibozu at the Cat's Eye Café. As she walked in, Kaori was greeted with a smile from Miki and a nod from Umibozu, both of whom were standing behind the counter, wiping cups and saucers.

"Hi, Miki-san, Umibozu-san," she said as she sat down at the counter.

"Kaori-san, I've sent Kasumi-san to get some things we'll need for Ryo's birthday party," Miki said. "Do you still want to do it this next week on the 26th?"

"Sure, and thanks for letting me hold his party here at the café," Kaori replied. "I just need to make sure that Ryo doesn't go out and do something stupid on that night."

"Hmph, I thought that's what he did every night," Umibozu smirked. "And every day for that matter."

"Falcon, that's not very nice," Miki sighed.

"No…but it is kind of true," Kaori also sighed as she put her elbow on the counter and placed her chin on her palm.

"Is something wrong, Kaori-san?" Miki asked her. "You seem so worried."

"Probably worried that that idiot is going to go out to get drunk and tell everyone that he's still twenty years old," Umibozu said.

"That does sound like Saeba-san," Miki said as she rolled her eyes. "I wonder why he keeps clinging to that ridiculous idea. It's not like anyone who knows him could actually believe that. And I doubt that he's fooling that many women with that line of his."

"Just because something doesn't work, doesn't mean that that pervert won't keeping trying the same techniques over and over again," Umibozu said. "After all, we have already established how much of an idiot he is. But maybe…."

"Maybe?" Kaori said, raising her head. "What is it, Umibozu-san?"

"Maybe he just doesn't want to think about getting older," Umibozu said. He then sat the towel in his hands onto the counter and leaned against the wall.

"Professionals rely on their strength, on their senses and on their ability to think quickly in any situation," he continued. "But no matter how keen those senses are, no matter how powerful he might be, nothing can stop the march of time. And with time, those abilities fade and with that fading comes the increased risk that someone younger and faster could take advantage of this weakness."

"Take advantage…and kill him," Kaori whispered. "That's what you mean, isn't it Umibozu-san?"

Umibozu nodded, and Kaori lowered her eyes. Sensing the tension in her posture, Miki reached over a put a hand on Kaori's shoulder.

"Don't worry, Kaori-san," she said. "Saeba-san is probably years and years away from having to worry about things like that. Isn't that right, Falcon?"

"Possibly," Umibozu shrugged. "But who really knows?"

"Falcon," Miki with a scowl before looking back over at Kaori. "Listen, Kaori-san, just because a sense or a skill isn't as sharp as it once was isn't the end of the world. Look at Falcon. Just because his sight is poor doesn't mean that he isn't capable of taking care of himself."

Kaori nodded, but continued to stare silently at the countertop. Miki tried to find some words of encouragement, but before she could say another word, Kaori got up and walked toward the door.

"I need to get going," she said. "Ryo acted like he would be going home in a couple of hours, and he'll probably be hungry once he gets there."

"Kaori-san," Miki said, reaching a hand out toward her. Kaori paused and turned back toward Miki with another smile on her face.

"It's ok, "she said. "I'll talk to you two later when I know for sure what Ryo plans to do."Kaori then rushed out the door and walked down the streets, her pace quickening as she got closer to the apartment building where she and Ryo lived.

As she walked, Kaori thought again about what Umibozu had said and her mood grew even more pensive. It was then that she realized that she had been concentrating so much on keeping her promise and trying to give Ryo something she felt everyone probably needed in their lives, she hadn't considered the possibility that Ryo didn't really like or even want the birthday she had given him.

'I didn't even give him a chance to pick some other date for his birthday if he didn't like the one I chose,' she thought. 'I just gave him the one that…felt right, somehow.'

'That felt right to me.'

Kaori stopped walking and shuddered. Deep down, she knew why she had chosen the day that she did, and a part of her suspected that Ryo knew why she had chosen it too, even though he had feigned ignorance when she first mentioned it. She had hoped that Ryo had seen it as an act of solidarity, a way to let him know how meaningful she considered their meeting each other and the partnership they lived and breathed every day. The kiss he had given her that night seemed to her to be proof that he had understood her intentions.

But the more she thought about it, the more she wondered if perhaps Ryo thought that she had only thought of him in terms of herself and how she saw him when she chose that day.

Kaori gripped her hands tightly and resumed journey back to the apartment building. She figured that there was little that she could do now about the decision she had made and decided that the best she could do is offer Ryo a wonderful gift and celebration so he could at least enjoy the birthday she had created for him.

Once she arrived, she climbed the stairs to Ryo's floor. As she approached the front room area, she heard faint sounds of giggling. Upon hearing them, Kaori sighed and put a hand to her face. Years of living with Ryo made so that she recognized that kind of laughter and could easily guess what he was up to.

Kaori flung the door open and Ryo gasped, the magazine that had been in his hands flying up into the air.

'Of course,' she said to herself. 'I knew that that was the mokkori giggle that I heard.'

The magazine plopped onto the floor, and Ryo scrambled to pick it up and hide it behind his back. Kaori thought about scolding him over it, but decided that it wasn't really worth her time today.

"Hey Ryo, you know, your birthday is coming up," she said instead. Ryo fell back onto the couch and looked up at the ceiling.

"Already? Wow, I didn't even notice," he said. "So how many more days is it before I turn twenty?"

"Ryo, do you really expect me or anyone else to buy that you're just now turning twenty years old?" Kaori sighed. "It's pretty obvious by now that there's no way you could have done all the stuff you have in your life if you were just now turning twenty."

"Who says?" Ryo said, sticking his tongue out at her. "I am pretty extraordinary you know. Maybe it just doesn't take me as long as everyone else to get things done."

"Whatever," Kaori said, holding up her hands. "Anyway, what I really wanted to talk to you about is your birthday party. Miki-san, Umibozu-san and Kasumi-san have said that we can use the café, and they are getting us some supplies. So I was thinking we could spend the evening there on your birthday. We could invite Saeko-san and Reika-san and…."

"Sorry, I can't do it," Ryo said, as he laid down on his back and crossed one of his legs over his knee.

"What? Are you saying that you already made plans?" Kaori asked, incredulous.

"No," he answered. "But I'm sure that I will by then. I just got the telephone number from that new hostess over at Nekomama's. Ah Ryo-chan is so lucky."

Ryo started to laugh again, but immediately stopped when he saw a hammer appear in Kaori's hands.

"Ryo…you promised," she growled at him. "You promised that we would spend our birthdays together. Don't you remember that?"

"I do," he said with a frown. "But who says we can't just have my birthday be a day or so late? I mean, it's not like it's set in stone or anything."

"What are you saying?" Kaori said, her grip on the hammer tightening. "You can't just change your birthday whenever you feel like it…and you certainly can't keep saying that you're only twenty years old while everyone else around here keeps growing older." Ryo suddenly jumped up from the couch, and Kaori flinched at the dark glint in his eyes, her hammer instantly disappearing.

"Why can't I change my birthday?" Ryo said. "It's not like anyone really knows when my birthday is or how old I actually am, so why can't I make it whatever I want it to be?"

"That's…that just isn't how it is," Kaori stammered. "Everyone gets one birthday and that's it. And every year they grow a little older. That's life, Ryo."

"That's your life," Ryo shot back. "That's most people's life. But that's not mine. And that's how I like it."

"But why?" Kaori asked. "Why wouldn't you want a birthday of your own? Don't you want to be like everyone else and celebrate your time in this world?"

"What's there to celebrate?" Ryo snarled at her. "Should we celebrate all the people I've killed? Or how about all the people I know who are dead now? Or maybe you think we should celebrate the fact that every day means another chance that I won't be around for tomorrow."

Kaori gasped as he said these words, and Ryo turned away from her. Seconds later, he looked back at her, his usual cheerful grin plastered on his face.

"Hey, Ryo-chan is hungry," he said. "What's for dinner tonight?" Kaori backed away from him toward the kitchen.

"I…I...," she stuttered. "It'll just be a little bit. Let me whip something up."

Kaori then dashed into the kitchen and slumped against the counter. She knew that Ryo hadn't meant to reveal so much of his thoughts and feelings and would spend the rest of the evening making sure to distract her so she would forget about what she had just said, but Kaori knew that she would not be able to get his words or the look he had had in his eyes out of her mind, no matter what he did.

'Is that how he sees his own birthday?' she wondered. 'Is it just a reminder of all the pain in his past and of all the people he has lost?'

In that moment, inspiration struck and Kaori was certain that she finally knew why Ryo always tried to say that he was twenty years old and why he stubbornly refused to think of anything outside of the present: because thinking about his past would only deepen the wounds in his heart and thinking about the future would only remind him of how uncertain his life usually was.

Kaori mechanically walked over to the cupboards and pulled out some food to prepare for dinner. She had to admit that she couldn't really blame Ryo for wanting to avoid all that pain, and that everything that had happened recently was probably increasing his desire to dodge those memories and any thought of the future.

"That's your life…. That's most people's lives."

"But that's not mine."

Kaori felt a lump in her throat as she considered the undeniable truth behind Ryo's words. No matter what she did, the fact remained that Ryo's life would never truly be like everyone else's. It simply wasn't possible.

Kaori brushed her fingers across her eyes and was about to start chopping up some vegetables when another thought entered her mind and her eyes lit up.

'Yes…that's it. Other people's lives…the years in other people's lives….'

Kaori smiled and hummed as she dragged her knife across the food. She finally knew what to give Ryo for his birthday present this year.

She just hoped that he would understand it.

A few days later, Ryo's birthday came and Kaori got ready to join the party that would be starting as soon as she and Ryo arrived. She walked up to Ryo's bedroom and knocked on his door. She was then greeted by Ryo opening the door and walking past her.

"Hey, Ryo, where are you going?" she asked as she followed him.

"Out," he said. "Don't wait up for me."

"But tonight is your birthday party," she said. "Remember?"

"Oh…well that's ok," Ryo said. "You can go. I'll be busy visiting the hot, mokkori waitress at that new bar in Shinjuku. Did you know that they actually have a "peek-a-boo" night? I wonder what that could be."

Ryo started to giggle and Kaori had to work hard to suppress the urge to make another hammer materialize.

"Well…before you go, let me give you your birthday present," she said.

"A present?" he said, pointing at his nose. "For me?"

"Of course, it's your birthday," Kaori smiled at him. She then walked out of the room for a couple of moments. She returned with a large, flat box in her hands."

"Happy birthday, Ryo," she said as she handed it to him.

"Yay, what is it?" Ryo said as he opened it. "Some mokkori magazines? Or maybe that rare mokkori video I've been trying to find?"

He ripped open the package and his expression immediately became quizzical once he saw what was inside.

"What's this?" he said as he pulled out some sheets of paper.

"They're letters," Kaori said, beaming.

"Letters?"

"Yes," Kaori nodded. "Letters from some of our former clients. I tracked some of them down and asked for their help with your present. Go ahead and read one."

Kaori reached into the box and picked out the letter on top.

"Here's one from Sara Nishikujo," Kaori said as she scanned the paper. "You remember her, right? The girl who can read minds? She says that she is enjoying high school and hopes to attend university before too long. Oh and look, here is one from Maiko Tsugihara. You know, the dancer? She says that she's really happy in New York and that she's going to be in a big Broadway show here soon."

Kaori continued to pull out one letter after another and read a couple of lines from it before grabbing another one. After a couple of minutes of this, Ryo put his hand over hers, stopping her.

"Kaori…what is this?" he asked. "What's with all these letters?" Kaori reluctantly moved her hand away and took a deep breath while holding up the box closer to him.

"Ryo…you asked me what we could celebrate for your birthday," she said. "And here it is. All these clients, all these people you helped. Don't you see, you made it so that they can keep celebrating their birthdays. You made it so they could keep celebrating each year in their lives."

Kaori carefully put the box in Ryo's hands.

"And their years are yours too, Ryo," she added. "You gave them that gift, and now you and them have the gift of another year, another page of life unfolding. No matter what happens in the future, those lives will go on…and those years will still be yours too."

Ryo stared at the stack of letters in the box, his mouth hanging open in astonishment. Kaori noted his shocked, silent demeanor and she started to worry that maybe her idea wasn't such a good one after all.

Ryo then closed the box up and held it close to him for a moment before carefully sitting it down next to the couch.

"Kaori," he murmured.

"Yes Ryo?"

Ryo opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly snatched her arm and pulled her close to him before gently placing a kiss on her cheek.

"Thank you," he whispered to her. "Partner." Kaori felt her face grow red, but she was determined to keep some shreds of her composure.

"You're welcome, Ryo," she said. Ryo nodded and closed his eyes for a moment before looking back at her with another wide grin.

"Come on, Kaori-chan, let's go," he said, pulling her toward the door.

"Ah Ryo, where are we going?" she asked.

"Where else?" he smirked at her. "To my birthday party. Ryo-chan wants more presents, so let's go and see what everyone else got me."

Ryo laughed and Kaori couldn't stop herself from laughing with him as he guided her down the stairs to his Mini-Cooper. As they drove down the streets toward the Cats's Eye, Kaori smiled and watched the city lights speed by her window in a blur.

'A gift of years,' she thought to herself. 'Years given to others and given to us.'

'And here is to wishing for many, many more years for us together.'