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“Happy birthday, Ellie girl,” Zaide whispers in my ear as he sets me back down on my feet. I turn in his arms and beam up at him.
“Thank you, Z Bear.” I grin as he groans, running his hand over his beard.
“I told you not to call me that ever again.”
I shrug, the wide smile on my face never dropping. “I like it,” I tease. He rolls his eyes but doesn’t say anything more. I knew he wouldn’t.
I turn back to my locker, and fumble with the paper I have in my hands. Z grabs them from me and I smile my thanks as I start putting in the combo to open my locker. “What are these?” he asks, flipping through the stack.
“Remember my grandma? My mom’s mom. She passed when we were in middle school.” He nods, still looking at the papers. “I guess she left me a trust. I didn’t have access to it until today. Someone stopped me on my way to school to give me the papers. I have to meet with her attorney later this week. I guess she left a letter for me too.”
He nods along with me. “That’s pretty cool. You were close with her.” It makes me smile that he remembers. I always looked up to my grandma, a woman before her time. She was always involved in all of the business of my family. I love my parents, but it’s a marriage like my grandparents’ that I want for myself.
I open my locker and am immediately sidetracked by what’s inside. Every year V and the guys decorate it, but this year the cutest red teddy bear I have ever seen sits in the middle of all the other decor. My mouth parts open in shock as I pull it out and cuddle it to my chest, turning to grin at Zaide.
“My own little Z Bear?”
A hint of red coats his cheeks as I run my fingers through the soft fur of the stuffed animal. I don’t even have to read the tag to know this gift is all Zaiden.
“Is Zaiden Hollis blushing?” V exclaims from behind me. He flips her off just as my best friend wraps her arms around me and squeezes, smacking a loud kiss against my kiss. “Happy Birthday, B!”
Hudson is right there, pulling me away from his twin and spinning me before he drops me into a dip. “How does it feel to finally be legal, Baby B?” I roll my eyes and stick my tongue out at him. They never let me forget that I’m the youngest of us. The last one to turn eighteen.
“Yeah, yeah,” I huff as I straighten myself and move back towards my locker. I put the bear back in and grab the books I need for my first couple of classes. By the time I’m done, Ash and Eli have joined us. Both lean in to kiss either side of cheeks at the same time, wishing me a happy birthday as well. My cheeks are already sore from how much I’ve been smiling and we haven’t even made it to first period yet.
“We left your presents at home,” Eli explains, taking my bag from me and lifting it over his shoulder. “We knew you’d already have your hands full,” Ash teases.
“I doubt it will be that bad,” I defend but the words die on my lips as we walk into our first class to find a bouquet of at least two dozen red dahlias sitting on my desk. I raise my brows as I look at the guys and Vanessa accusingly but they all wear matching surprised expressions.
“Wasn’t us, Bri,” Vanessa swears, holding her hands up placatingly. The guys all trade looks and almost seem annoyed as I walk over to the massive bouquet and look for a note, but there isn’t one. I laugh nervously, unsure what to think of the gesture.
“Happy Birthday, Brielle,” Chase, another kid in our class, calls out and I smile at him as I say thanks. I bite my lip, dragging my eyes back to the dahlias. What the fuck am I supposed to do with them? “I can run those up to the office real quick,” Chase offers. “They already have a sign up for where to drop off gifts for you.” He grins as I groan, pressing my fingertips to my temples. “It’s already filling up,” he teases.
The guys all burst out laughing and even Vanessa giggles. I glare at her but she just shrugs. “You should know what to expect by now,” she chides.
“Why at school though?” I whine. “Everyone knows we’re having a huge party this weekend.”
“Not everyone is invited,” Chase remarks, lifting the bouquet off my desk.
“Thanks, Chase,” I sigh, plopping down in my seat as I text my mother. Her reply is as snarky as my friends’ faces, telling me she already has someone on the way to pick up the presents.
Vanessa takes her seat at my side, the guys falling into their normal seats around us, whispering to one another about something, frowns marring their handsome faces.
“It is kind of creepy though, isn’t it,” V whispers. “Dozens of your favorite flower without a note.”
I nod along with her words. My love of dahlias isn’t widely advertised, in fact when asked, I always lie about my favorite flower. The reason behind my love for them always felt too personal for just anyone to know. I was sure it had to be her or the guys, but they wouldn't lie to me about that. I swallow and shrug. “Maybe it was just a lucky guess,” I say, trying to diffuse the tension in our little group. Everyone nods as we change the subject and move on.
I can almost forget about the strange moment until I walk into second period and find my usual order from my favorite cafe sitting on my desk. In third period, it’s an assortment of my favorite snacks. Fourth, my favorite champagne. I get a dirty look from my teacher for that one. It continues into fifth period with a succulent plant in a llama ceramic, and then in sixth I find a gold bracelet with my birthstone and matching earrings.
Each new gift sends another shiver down my spine as I realize how well whoever is behind this knows me. Just how closely do you have to watch me to pick up on all my little preferences? The guys have only gotten more agitated throughout the day. Vanessa is looking over her shoulder as she walks with me to my car.
I catch sight of the guys, leaning against my car and finally start to relax. No more surprises, no more presents with no cards, no more feeling like someone is watching me.
“Happy Birthday, Brielle.” Carson catches hold of my wrist and pulls me toward him just as I let down my guard. I stumble in my steps, but V catches my elbow and helps me remain steady on my feet. He smiles down at me, and I can’t place exactly what it is about it that makes anxiety crawl down my spine.
“Thanks, Carson.” I try to smile at him, but it falters as he continues to hold my wrist, his thumb stroking over the skin there. Vanessa glares at him and he finally releases me.
“I haven’t been able to catch you all day, but I wanted to let you know I’ll bring your present on Saturday,” he continues as if we talk all of the time. “I know how you hate the big fuss at school.” When did we start acting so familiar with one another?
