It felt so strange. Jake had finally asked you out after months, years of misreading every signal you ever gave him. You admit that it was partially your fault that one time, when he asked you right out how you felt about him. You were an idiot back then. You'd since accepted it and moved on. But you never expected him to ask you out. Jake and Dirk had only been separated for, what? A week? But you talked it over with Dirk (just to be sure and avoid any hurt feelings... like last time) and he didn't seem to have any problem with it. He seemed almost too eager, practically throwing you in Jake's arms. It scared you a little how sincere he was. You still took your sweet time answering Jake, though. It just seemed right to wait a bit longer, even if they had moved on so freakishly fast.
And now it was your two year anniversary. Well, technically, it was the night before. Everyone wanted to help you celebrate, or rather, Roxy made a big fuss over it and decided everyone should celebrate it. That you and Jake had finally become an actual thing was big to her. That you were still going strong after two years was just a sign from the all-powerful wizards and a testament to their mystical majyks.
And you were going strong. Your love for Jake wasn't like before sburb, but you did love Jake. It was just a more mature love, based off who he was, not what you wanted. And he really loved you. It was hard for you to see at first, but it was there. He was never really good at talking about how he felt, but he was trying with you.
The party began around five and everyone was there already. Everyone but the Striders. They always had to make a huge deal out of being a little late. It was one of their things, but you didn't mind. When they did show up, they had several large boxes in their arms. They could have easily been captchaloged, but the boys insisted they sit out for the remainder of the night. You knew a good prank was being prepped and far be it for you to stop it.
Dave had no trouble making himself at home, but then, it was Rose's place. She had managed to convince everyone to think of it as a sanctuary; a safe-haven for when things got too hot to handle (which was admittedly sometimes; you'd all been through a lot). It was hard not to see it like that, though. Five gardens, all separate of one another, twenty rooms, all with roaring fireplaces, softly decorated in her dark, yet pleasing style, all soundproof, and every sport room and court imaginable made Rose's therapeutic castle a central point of gravitation to all that entered. It was one of the reason's Roxy had chosen to hold the party here. The other reason was known only to Rose, who wouldn't say anything more about it other than it was the right place and the right time.
You had long given up trying to get a straight answer out of that girl. You laughed a little to yourself and Rose smiled at you from across the room. The room was buzzing with excitement and congratulations for Jake and you. That soon subsided and everyone broke off into smaller groups and began trying to catch up on things they had missed. You all attended the same school, but beside John, Dave, Rose and yourself, it was still pretty new to everyone else. That you were all freshmen in college only made it that much easier to get lost in extracurricular pursuits.
You couldn't help but notice when Dirk wandered off and out of the room. Rose must have noticed as well because she followed him out. It wouldn't have bothered you, except she looked a bit concerned. Or, at least, more than usual. But she was back almost as quickly as she had left and the concern was gone and replaced with a smile and a little bit of something familiar you couldn't quite place. Dirk didn't come back. You just assumed it had something to do with the boxes in the hall.
Someone, most likely John, proposed some kind of toast as a joke, but Roxy loved the idea so much she left for the kitchen and came back with a bottle of sparkling cider and eight champagne glasses. The bubbles went everywhere as she opened it. Unfortunately, you were standing the closest and were drenched as she held the bottle out and away from her. You just laughed it off and went in search of a towel upstairs.
You'd never wandered the halls so late before, so it wasn't too surprising to you when you bumped into almost everything. You would have turned on a light switch, but you knew there wasn't one. During the day, the great stained windows would light the halls beautifully in shades of purple and orange. Eventually, you found your way to the linen closet and started to search for a hand towel. There was one on the top shelf. You raised your arm to grab it, but it was much higher up than it appeared. You tried your tip-toes, then you began to jump. Nothing. You sighed and contemplated just using a regular towel, but then a familiar hand reached up out of the darkness and brought the hand towel down to you. Dirk.