“I try,” he says, handing me a plastic fork.
The cake is made of white icing that’s covered in green and pink and purple icing flowers. Declan clearly had it custom made just for me, in a garden theme. “This is beautiful,” I say, stabbing my fork in the corner to take a bite. “Thank you so much.”
“There’s… something more,” he says with a nervous lilt in his voice. He reaches into the box and retrieves a much smaller box. Blue, with a silver ribbon tied around it.
My teeth dig into my bottom lip. “You got me a present…”
“I hope it’s not weird,” he says, looking more anxious than I’ve ever seen him. “I know we haven’t been together long but… you’re special to me, Sophia.”
With that, I know that whatever gift is inside here, I will cherish it forever. I open the box, and glance up at Declan. He’s watching me nervously, which only makes me like him more.
“How did you get this?” I ask, picking up the beautiful silver necklace. It has a shiny silver charm that sparkles under the fairy lights. It’s a key. A perfect replica of the real garden key, only it’s small enough to be a necklace pendant.
“I had it custom made,” he says, reaching out for the chain. “May I?”
I turn to the side and pull my hair back, letting him fasten the jewelry around my neck. My fingers wrap around the little key. “I love it,” I whisper.
“Happy birthday,” Declan says, kissing me gently on the lips.
I close my eyes and kiss him back. And I know two things: I will never ever take off this necklace. And this is the best birthday ever.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Home sweet home,”Belle chimes as we enter our dorm room after four days of being pretend runaways. I mean, I guess we were kind of real runaways but it didn’t feel like it. The outdoors is beautiful and I love our secret garden more than anything, but I’m happy to be home. We’re coming home winners, as far as I’m concerned. I stuck it out, I’m an official adult, and I get to stay here until graduation. I might have lost a ton of money, but I’m slowly coming to terms with that.
It’s early in the morning on my birthday, and I barely slept at all last night after Declan left. I keep reaching up and feeling my necklace, unable to hide my smile. I took the cake home and Belle and I plan on eating some for breakfast. I set the cake on my desk and then lug my backpack and suitcase into the closet and drop them on the floor. I’ll clean out everything later. For now, I just want a nice hot shower, some cake, and a nap.
“Happy Birthday,” Belle says. She’s holding out a present wrapped in purple polka dot paper. Her smile reaches all the way across her face.
“Belle! You didn’t need to get me anything.”
She rolls her eyes. “You’re my cousin and my bestie. I wanted to get you something.”
My birthdays over the years have always been a big deal. As a kid, my parents would rent out some massive ballroom and fill it with princess stuff, a white horse, bounce houses, and more. As a teenager, my parents would let me rent out the coolest night club and invite all my friends and have a big dance party with mock-tails and lots of Justin Bieber music. The last few years have been kind of a contest between my Malibu friends and me as we all try to outdo each other with extravagant parties.
But this year, I’m celebrating with my boyfriend and my cousin on the campus of our school. I think this is my favorite birthday celebration yet.
I pull off the wrapping paper, revealing a shipping box. She’s blacked over the label with a marker so I can’t tell which company she ordered from, which makes it all the more mysterious. Inside the box, I pull out something bubble-wrapped. It looks a lot like a laptop cover. The kind that snaps over the top and bottom of it to protect it.
And that’s exactly what it is. I bite my lip to hold back the tears as I reveal the custom photo laptop case Belle has ordered for me. I don’t know when she took this picture, or how she took it because it’s so stunning, it’s basically professional quality. It’s a photo of my garden.
“It’s so you’ll always remember it, you know, after you’ve graduated.”
I press the laptop case to my chest and hug it. “I love it so much, thank you.” Then I give her a coy grin. “But what makes you think I’m leaving?”
She blinks. “We have to leave. You said it yourself. We can’t stay in these dorms forever.”
“I know but… I don’t want to leave this town. I’m thinking of asking Aunt Kate if I can move in with you guys after graduation. And maybe go to college around here.”
“Really?”
I nod.
Belle grins. “We do have a spare bedroom.”
“Do you think Aunt Kate would mind?”
“Are you kidding? She’d love it.”
