You wanted a birthday call, not a reason to wonder whether you mattered.
By midnight, the silence had begun to feel like an answer.
If they cared, they would remember. Without a hint. Without an alarm.
Yet people can care and still forget. That does not explain why this person forgot, or undo the hurt. And if being overlooked is a pattern, a calendar entry is not a repair.
Setting a reminder proves nothing about their feelings. But it can be a way of taking your birthday seriously enough not to trust memory alone.
A reminder cannot love you. It can help someone who loves you make the call.