I spent my birthday this year (19th) in my uni accommodation. There were 11 other people living in my on campus "house". Over the course of the year leading up to my birthday other people had their birthdays and the whole house signed a card and they received cake and small gifts. When it got to mine I sort of expected something similar? Idk if that was too much to expect because I didn't have a lot in common with most of them but I just thought because everyone else had had that for their birthdays before mine that it would happen.
Before my birthday happened I was asked which of the nightclubs I wanted to go to in the evening, so I picked one (even though I'm not hugely into clubbing I did want to celebrate my birthday somehow and that's what everyone seemed to do). Anyway so my birthday rolled around and my closest friend at uni and one or two others said happy birthday to me. I figured bc we were going out in the evening that that was why no one had given me a card yet. Plus, I had seen the packaging for some cake candles on the kitchen table and thought they must've organised something.
Later on in the day (early evening) I had a concert to perform at with the music society - I told some housemates about it and said I'd be back at about 8 to join in with pres before we went out. So that's what I did. When I got home everyone apart from my close friend was fairly drunk. One of them had a friend over who asked me when my birthday was and I said today and he smiled awkwardly. There wasn't any cake or a card or anything. After I said it was my birthday the rest of them said happy birthday and looked a bit guilty. Feeling fairly disappointed but not completely defeated I poured myself a drink and decided to go out regardless.
11pm rolled around and everyone was getting ready to go. They all seemed cheery and I had somewhat forgotten about my earlier disappointment. I told everyone I was going to go get my jacket from my room (3 flights of stairs away from the kitchen where everyone was), and I ran up there and back with everything I needed to go.
Except everyone when I got downstairs everyone had already gone. The kitchen was empty apart from my close friend who apologised for them and asked if I still wanted to get a taxi with just him. I said no. Instead we went up to his room and watched criminal minds until 3am. I was upset to begin with but after a couple episodes it wore off.
It's not really a hugely sad story because I did end up spending my birthday with the one guy in my house that I did really get along with, but it was at that point that I realised my attempts to befriend everyone else had failed miserably. I tell myself they were all just too drunk to remember to wait for me or that we were supposed to be going out for my birthday, I feel like that might not be true, though.