The sun was peeking out from a thin layer of white clouds, Main Street bustling with people going about their day. I took a sip of the hot apple cider I was holding, waiting for my brother to finish whatever business he was taking care of for Dad inside the post office. As I watched two sparrows chase each other in the tree above the sidewalk, Aiden appeared next to me.
"Thanks for meeting me here, Ava. I really needed your help with this last gift for Lucy's birthday tonight." He gave me a weak smile as he offered his arm to me; I linked my arm around his elbow and we headed for the jeweler's shop nestled between the florist and Aunt Skylar's beauty salon.
"So, what did you decide on?" I asked as he held the door open, a true gentleman.
"I'm getting a bracelet for her," he started, waving to Fred behind the counter, "with a pink pearl set onto the chain. You know, to remind her of our graduation trip a few years ago. But I need your help to pick out the bracelet."
"Alright. Let's find you the perfect bracelet."
Aidan took a deep breath before he headed towards the nearest display case, carefully inspecting each piece of jewelry. Fred stood nearby, answering Aidan's questions without hesitation or a belittling demeanor. I wandered to the other side of the store, trying to picture my brother giving each bracelet to Lucy and imagining her reaction. After a few minutes, I spun around to face Aidan, my eyebrows wrinkled in slight contemplation.
"One question. Are you open-minded to telling her how you really feel about her?"
"Yeah." Aidan admitted sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Unless you think it's stupid to do it on her birthday."
"Good, and no I don't think it's stupid... I think I just found your gift."
I waited until he walked over, smiling as I pointed to the top row of boxes. Aidan raised an eyebrow questioningly, his eyes meeting mine; the second I nodded in approval, his face lit up.
"Fred, I'd like to see this one." Aidan indicated which bracelet he was referring to and Fred nodded just like I had, turning the key to open the glass case.
"Very good choice, sir."
"Is there any way a pearl could be added to it?" Aidan asked, removing a small pouch from his pocket and removing the pearl in question, handing it over to Fred to inspect.
"Of course. It should be no more than half an hour before it's ready." Fred informed him. "Would you like to come back later?"
"I'll stay here, look around. Maybe get a few ideas for Christmas..." Aidan turned to me. "You can go wander around the bookstore across the street. I know you're dying to get a couple of books on that ever-growing list you have saved to your phone."
"Thanks, bro. I'll be back soon." I grinned, halfway to the door as I waved eagerly over my shoulder. I could hear him chuckling as the door swung shut behind me, blocking out whatever he started to say to Fred.
"Who's ready to par-tay?!?"
Lucy burst into my room with a bottle of champagne in her hands, a mischievous grin playing on her lips. Mia swiveled away from the vanity to face our friend as I sat up from laying on my bed.
"Get ready, bitches - it's my birthday!"
"Woo!" We responded, laughing as Lola opened the champagne with a pop!
"So, what's the game plan?" Mia asked, peering at her reflection in the mirror. "I mean, now that the family dinner is over?"
"Dancing at the Rabbit Hole, duh!" Lola exclaimed, her eyes lighting up her face. "My mom's already called Dante and reserved one of the VIP lounges for us!"
"This is going to be the greatest birthday bash ever!" I high-fived Lola before reaching for the phone on my nightstand. "And because of that, it's time to call in some backup."
Quickly pressing a few buttons, I held the phone to my ear and waited as it rang. On the third ring, the person on the other end picked up.
"Yes, Ava?"
"It's time. Operation Twenty-One."
"Ten minutes."
With a click, the line went dead. Flopping back onto my bed, I grabbed one of the magazines to shift through while we waited. Lola and Mia began swapping pieces of the latest celebrity gossip they read, heatedly debating which love rumors were true and which ones were false. A brief knock on the door interrupted them, confusion weaving into their facial expressions.
"Come in!" I called out.
The door swung open slowly, revealing Mom, Aunt Skylar, Lola, and Grandma Clara. Each woman had something in her hands, earning curious glances from the girls on my bed. Aunt Skylar had two large caboodles of makeup and hair products. Mom had a cart of shoes and jewelry, and Grandma and Lola both wheeled in racks of dresses. Lucy and Mia both gasped in surprise as the older women took over the room.
"Happy birthday, baby!" Lola embraced her daughter, kissing her cheek. "We're here to give you a birthday bash makeover!"
"Skylar will be in charge of makeup and hair, obviously." Grandma smiled, motioning Aunt Skylar toward my vanity. "Jade, Lola, and I are here to help with fashion advice. And the food is on its way from La Placita, Lucy's favorite taco shop."
"Of course, it wouldn't be a party without a few more people," Mom walked back to the door and pulled it open to let in my cousin Bella, who was standing in front of a few girls; I recognized a couple of Lucy's friends from her sorority as well as a familiar face of my own.
"Violet! What are you doing here?"
"Surprise!" My best friend from childhood threw her arms over her head, her red curls bouncing with joy as she hugged me. "I'm home for break and thought I'd come to see you!"
"I'm so glad you're here. Did you know about this?" I turned to Mom, who beamed.
"She called last week while you were out with your dad and I told her I'd keep it a secret," Mom admitted, showing the other girls into the room. "It wasn't easy keeping in touch to finalize plans, you'd walk into the room every time I went to call or text Vi."
"That makes so much sense now." I laughed.
"Come on, girls. Browse through the dresses, and pick out some jewelry. Let's get this birthday bash started!" Lola clapped her hands excitedly.
The room dissolved into giggling and stories about Lucy growing up as girls tried on dresses and fawned over the sparkling diamonds. Aunt Skylar expertly brought each girl's dream hair and makeup to life, carefully matching the skin tone of each guest to one of the many bottles of foundation laid out before her. Mom and Grandma went around the room, fastening necklaces and heels as they made sure everyone was okay. A brief knock on the door interrupted Lola's story about the time Lucy had remade a school project entirely out of mini marshmallows after her baby brother, Malik, had destroyed it with his toy cars. Since I was the closest to the door, I answered it, smiling at the sight of my own brother.
"I just wanted to let you know that Uncle Leo has a limo outside waiting to take you to the Rabbit Hole. The guys and I are leaving right now, so we'll see you there." Aidan said, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "Could you give this to Lucy?"
He handed me a long slender box, wrapped in a pretty purple bow.
"Is this...?" I raised an eyebrow, inspecting the box.
"Yeah."
"Do you want to give it to her?" I dropped my voice to a whisper, careful not to draw attention to us. Aidan shook his head frantically.
"Just make sure she gets it."
Aidan disappeared down the hall without saying another word. Seeing him flustered about Lucy made me happy that he was interested in someone who liked him back. Unlike some people.
Shoving the thought to the back of my mind, I turned back around to search for Lucy. Spotting her at the vanity with Aunt Skylar, I made my way over to them, slipping the box in front of her.
"This is for you, birthday girl." I said, collapsing into the chair beside her and winking at Aunt Skylar.
"Who's it from?" She asked curiously, picking the box up carefully.
"Just open it." I urged her, rolling my eyes. Grinning, Lucy unwrapped the box, gasping softly when she removed the lid.
"It's beautiful..."
Nestled against white tissue paper was a sterling silver bracelet; attached to the chain was a small wire in the shape of a heart and a pink pearl. Lucy lightly touched the pearl, smiling to herself.
"A pink pearl... from our vacation to Hawaii, after graduation." Lucy glanced at me, tears on the verge of filling her eyes. "You helped him, didn't you?
"Guilty." I said, holding my hands up in surrender. "We went this morning after breakfast. He wanted to get you something special."
"Special," she echoed quietly, returning her gaze to the bracelet. "I'm an idiot..."
"No, you're not." Aunt Skylar reassured her. "You just didn't see the signs. It happens to the best of us."
"Yeah, just look at your parents." I teased, nudging Lucy's shoulder. "It took your dad forever to figure out your mom had a crush on him."
"And even then, he couldn't believe it." Mom joined us, shaking her head in laughter at the memory. "I thought Paul was going to have to lift his jaw up from the ground!"
"I think I can understand why," Lucy blushed. "How... how long has everyone else known?"
"Oh, honey. We've known since you two were toddlers just learning how to be independent." Mom told her, resting a hand on Lucy's shoulder. "We were just waiting for you guys to figure it out on your own."
"Ava," Grandma called my name. "It's your turn to pick a dress."
"Coming!"
"What color were you thinking of wearing, dear?" Grandma looked at me as I shifted through the racks.
"Maybe red?" I shrugged. "Something cute and glittery."
"Let's see... what about this?" Grandma held up a V-neck long-sleeve sequin dress, a burgundy color that matched 85% of my wardrobe.
"It's perfect!"
I took the dress from Grandma and headed into my bathroom. Quickly changing out of my leggings and oversized sweatshirt, I slipped the soft material over my head, smoothing the dress down as I made sure it fit properly. Flipping my hair out from the back of the dress, I threw my clothes into the hamper hidden in the closet and walked back into the bedroom, pausing for dramatic effect as the girls oohed and ahhed.
"What color heels do you want, Bug?" Mom asked from across the room.
"Black is fine!" I answered, sitting at the vanity where Aunt Skylar was waiting with a curling iron heating and a can of hairspray.
"Curly or super curly?" Aunt Sky asked me, our eyes meeting in the mirror.
"Super curly."
As Aunt Skylar worked her magic on my hair, my mind wandered back to Eli; a slight blush crept into my cheeks when I caught myself wondering if I would see him again before my therapy session in a few weeks. Don't think about him right now, I scolded myself mentally. My attention needed to be on Lucy and making her birthday unforgettable.
"Done." Aunt Skylar set down the hairspray. "You look incredible as always, kiddo."
"I was blessed with good genes," I said, beaming proudly at my reflection. "Are we all ready to go?"
The room erupted into loud cheers of "Yeah!" and "Let's go party!" The girls followed Lola and Lucy out of the room, their giggles and cheers filling the house as they exited the house. Bringing up the rear, I made sure all the girls were in the limo before signaling to Taylor to take us to the Rabbit Hole.
"Happy birthday, Lucy!" Maverick, the head bouncer of the Rabbit Hole, grinned once he spotted us climbing out of the limo parked at the curb. "The guys are inside waiting for you ladies."
"Thanks, Mav!" Lucy stood on her tiptoes to give the man a kiss on the cheek before heading inside, her friends waving to him flirtatiously as they sashayed past the rope.
"Tell Aidan he's one lucky guy," Maverick called after her, sending me a playful wink.
Although a couple of years older than me, Maverick and I had been friends in high school; thanks to our Chemistry teacher pairing us up for the science fair while I was a freshman taking a junior class, Maverick made sure that I didn't fall behind too fast. After we won third place, we became unofficial study partners and our friendship lasted well into adulthood. Maverick even befriended Aidan after one of our study sessions, claiming that eventually he would need a "big brother" in the Carmichael gang business. Keeping to his promise, Maverick took Aidan under his wing, showing him the ropes when the time came. It was nice to see the two of them bond like brothers, which made sense in a way that they were exactly that, according to Uncle Leo's rules.
"We all know Lucy isn't your type, Mav." I responded, laughing at his playful attitude.
"Aw, Ava. You know you'll always be my number 1." Mav grinned, hooking the rope back into place behind me. "Enjoy your night out."
Following the thumping bass and flashing strobe lights, I quickly located the girls at the bar just feet away from the VIP lounge; the bartenders checked each girl's ID to make sure they were old enough to drink. Mia and Isabella were the only two who had wristbands placed around their wrists, the words "UNDER 21" in bold black letters. After ordering a Sweet Poison, I headed for the lounge where Aidan and the others were waiting.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LUCY!"
Blushing from the attention, Lucy walked around the lounge, thanking everyone for coming. Her eyes never left Aidan as she made light conversation with the other guests; from where I had taken a seat, Aidan never stopped watching her either. Slowly, they met each other on the other side of the room, in a corner away from the party. As I watched them talk animatedly, their heads close together, the pang of envy stabbed my chest for the second time in twenty-four hours. Unable to shake the empty feeling growing in the pit of my stomach, I took another sip of my drink and set it on the table in front of me before I stood up.
"I'm heading to the dance floor!" I called out, throwing a peace sign over my head. "Come join me if you want!"
Taking the stairs to the lower level one at a time, I let my eyes roam around the room, checking out the other people already grooving to the live DJ; the booth where the turntables were located was raised above the dance floor, so the DJ could see everyone. She caught my eye as I reached the middle of the staircase, her eyes lighting up in recognition. Nodding in acknowledgment, the DJ turned to the left side of the booth, flipping through her records until she found the one she wanted. Giving me a thumbs up, she quickly changed tracks, the tune of Lucy's favorite club song to dance to blaring through the speakers. I knew the instant Lucy recognized the song; a loud squeal mixed with the melody and seconds later, she appeared next to me on the dance floor.
"Hey... do you know that guy?" Lucy asked a few minutes later, nodding to the second-story floor. I followed her gaze as we kept dancing, pretending not to look at the person she pointed out.
"Who?" I turned back to her in confusion.
"Him!" She said, tilting her head behind me. I motioned for her to spin me, my eyes locking with a familiar chocolate brown standing an arm's length away.
"Hey, stranger."
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AN: I just have to say that writing Aidan and Lucy's love story on the side is one of my favorite parts about this project. They're so cute and awkward, and UGH my heart.
Okay, that is all. Happy reading! :)