Laura couldn't choose between her long flowing blue dress that had an ombre pattern cascading downwards or her more simpler floral summer dress. If her and Ross were going to be walking along the shore line, then she didn't want her dress to get wet from the waves, which is exactly what would happen if she wore the long ombre dress. But if it got cold later at the beach, she didn't want the wind to make her dress fly up, which is what would happen if she wore the floral summer dress. She sighed, frustrated.

Why was she worrying so much? She looked at herself in the mirror. She couldn't believe what had happened just a few days ago. Ross had confessed. She had confessed. They had both confessed. And now, three days later, they were dating.

If only he would make the last finishing touches by asking her to be his girlfriend. He knew how she was, very old fashioned, very reserved. She wanted to make this right with him. She wanted it to last forever. But then again...

Didn't every girl? She stared again at the two dresses laid out on her bed, biting her lip in distress. Finally she came to her senses.

"Vanessa! I need your help again!"

OoOo

"Mommy, can we go, pretty please?" May pouted. "I need to see Austin & Ally in person! Please, Mommy?" Delilah looked at her daughter, who had been absolutely relentless about Austin & Ally ever since the interview she had done about a month ago now. She smiled. May was such a bright, beautiful young girl and everything she had imagined in a daughter.

"Of course, sweetie. And you know, Austin & Ally aren't real characters, right? They're actors. So don't be disappointed if they aren't as lovey dovey in real life like they are in the show," she pointed out to May. Her daughter, although only four, was already quite the big romantic. It was a mother's job to sometimes bring your child back down to Earth. After all, it had been only a year ago when her own husband had left her, just packed up and left without a single word or note.

Sometimes love didn't always have a happy ending.

"I know that, Mommy," May replied, rolling her eyes. "They're celebitys."

She chuckled. "Cele-brit-ies, sweetie."

"That's what I said!" she exclaimed, frowning. It was hard to pronounce syllables properly with her two front teeth missing. "Oh, and Mommy, can Riley come?"

Riley was the boy that lived next door who was about May's age. They had been playmates since the day they'd both been born. Plus Riley's mother, Joanna, was Delilah's best friend. Ironically, both of their husbands had left them.

The only difference was that Joanna had it official on paper and in court.

"Of course Riley can come, sweetie. Let me call them right now," she said, picking up the phone. Anything for her daughter.

OoOo

"So they were really holding hands, Destiny?" Claire asked as they prepared for the party. The girls were all at Georgia's house, standing in front of the mirror, curling their eyelashes, fixing their hair, applying their lipstick...

You know how it is.

"I swear!" she exclaimed. "They really were! And Georgia can vouch for me, right Georgia?" She turned around to face her best friend who had been sitting on the bed. "Where'd Georgia go?"

"Guys?" a timid voice asked from the doorway. The girls turned around and gasped in unison.

"Woah...Georgia..." Destiny breathed.

"You look..." Sam said.

"Gorgeous!" Claire squealed. They huddled around their best friend, admiring her flawless makeup, effortlessly swept up, wavy hair with a few loose strands framing her cherubic face, and her long, flowing dress that very much represented the color of a million sunsets.

"How do I look?" she asked, still feeling a little awkward and nervous to be so dressed up. The girls all started laughing and hooting.

"You look hot!"

"Yeah, trying to attract some cute guy tonight at the party?"

And for the first time in awhile, Georgia laughed out loud. And by loud, really loud. The kind of laughter that came from the heart. She just wished her mom could be here to see how beautiful she looked and felt.

OoOo

"Are you sure you put the right address into the GPS?" Megan asked. Jason was driving as they headed to the beach party. She had called him right away as soon as she'd found out about it on some Austin & Ally blog... Tumblr, he believed?

"I'm positive," he said. "Don't worry, we'll get there. I promise." He took her hand in his, intertwining their fingers.

"Hey mister, keep your hands on the wheel. I'm too young to get into a car accident," Megan taunted.

"Never say that," Jason said, his voice panicked. "I would never forgive myself if something happened to you while I was driving!"

"Nothing is going to happen," she replied softly, squeezing his hand. "Now come on! I need to meet Ross and Laura!"

"Yeah, and I need to thank them."

"For what?" she asked.

"For getting us together," he reminded her. Their smiles were irremovable as they cruised down the road.

OoOo

The sun was peeking just above the horizon as people began to arrive to the beach. The party was jam packed with the cast, crew, and fans. Ross stared at his phone, wondering what was taking his girlfriend so long.

Girlfriend. He smiled. She was his now, and only his to keep. He would finally get to hold her hand, kiss her, and show her that she had nothing to be afraid of. He would make sure of it. He fiddled with his blue and white plaid button up shirt until Calum walked over to him.

"Dude, she's coming. Don't worry," he promised. Ross nodded, still wondering why his stomach held so many butterflies. Why was he feeling so nervous?

"You're wondering why you're feeling so nervous, aren't you?" Calum asked. Ross gaped at him.

"How did you know that?" he asked.

Calum shrugged his shoulders. "Because I'm a guy. And you're nervous because this is your first big public event with Laura as just more than friends! Isn't it obvious?" Calum clapped a hand onto Ross's shoulder. "But you have nothing to worry about. She's already almost yours. All you gotta do now is show her how happy you are to be hers."

Ross grinned, nodding. "You're right. Thanks, man. Now go find your own girl!" They both scanned the crowd for Raini.

"Found her. See ya!" Calum chuckled as he zoomed his way over to Raini. The two were clearly heating up as Calum pulled her in for a hug. Ross chuckled. He knew they would end up together soon. Time could only tell.

Ross checked his phone again. 6:30. Where was she? When he looked up, he felt his heart drop.

There she was, walking towards him with a smile on her face, in a floral summer dress. Lightly curled hair fell around her face. But that wasn't what had made his heart drop. His jacket was draped around her shoulders. He grinned, practically running towards her only to pick her up and twirl her around. She threw her head back, laughing.

"Ross, put me down!" she exclaimed, still laughing. He stopped twirling and set her back down.

"You look amazing," he said, staring straight into her eyes. He watched as the blush creeped up her cheeks and he laughed.

"You look just as handsome," she replied, smiling and straightening his collar. He watched her as she did this, how her eyes focused on his shirt and how attentive she seemed. He wanted to capture this moment, to engrave it in his mind forever. It was nothing special, her fixing his shirt. But it was these little things that reminded him how he had fallen for her in the first place. She cared. Not only for him, but for everyone around her. And as bubbly and bouncy and crazy as she seemed, it all came from her heart.

How had he gotten so lucky?

When she looked up at him, she frowned. She put her hand against his cheek. "What's with the long face?" she asked.

He looked at her for the longest time, this girl he had met nearly three years ago, this girl that in so many ways really did resemble her character Ally: she had always been there for him, had sung mindless melodies over the phone with him during their late night phone conversations, had always been on his mind and in his heart, even when he'd been away on tour.

"I," he said, taking her hands in his own, "am the luckiest guy on the planet to have landed someone as caring, kind, and beautiful as you are." A smile slowly came to her face, and he leaned down to kiss her, the gentlest one he had yet to give her out of all the times he had kissed her so far. He didn't let go of her hand as they walked around the party, mingling with others, not noticing how people smiled at them fondly.

"I knew they would get together sooner or later."

"Oh, how cute. Young love."

"They are adorable."

The air around Ross and Laura seemed to glow as they realized that, in a way, they kinda did have forever. They had a long journey ahead of them, and they were glad that they would be trekking through it... together.

Someone tapped on Ross's shoulder. He turned around, only to face a dark haired guy just a few years older than him.

"Hi," Ross managed to say. The guy was holding hands with another pretty dark haired girl.

"My girlfriend Megan is a huge fan of your guys' show," the stranger said. "I'm Jason."

"Well we're so happy we have older fans," Laura replied. She turned to Megan. "You and your boyfriend are so cute together."

Megan could only manage a smile and a squeak. She was feeling a tad bit star struck at the moment. She was facing Laura. And Ross. Auslly. Raura. Together. She couldn't even breathe.

"I'm sorry, she's a little fazed right now," Jason chuckled. "But I just wanted to say thank you. Your show made me realize that I should finally confess to my best friend how I felt about her."

Megan blushed. "Luckily I felt the same way he did," she teased and Jason laughed. His eyes turned to Laura's and Ross's hands intertwined.

"I'm guessing it brought you two together as well?" he asked, smiling and nodding at their hands. Now it was Laura's turn to blush. Her and Megan exchanged a look that only girls could understand.

"Yeah, it did," Ross said, gripping tighter on Laura's hand. The conversation continued for a couple more minutes until Jason and Megan bid their "see you laters" and mingled with the other people at the party.

"See? We're like Cupid!" Ross exclaimed proudly, swinging their hands back and forth.

"I guess we are," Laura agreed. Suddenly a tiny pair of hands wrapped around her waist. Alarmed, she looked down to see a little girl embracing her. "Hello there."

The girl looked up, beaming and smiling. "Hi! I'm May and I love your show!" the little girl shouted happily and then turned around. "Riley, come here! It's Austin and Ally, I mean, Ross and Laura! They're celebitys!"

A little blonde boy ran towards May. "Wow!" he said, staring up at Ross and Laura. "Real celebitys!" Two women ran after the small children.

"Sorry about that," one of the women said. "My daughter just really loves your show. She's obsessed."

"C'mon May, look, they have a chocolate fountain!" Riley exclaimed, grabbing May's hand as they ran off to the buffet table. The two mothers sighed, running after their children. Laura giggled.

"How cute," she sighed.

"Weird. They look like mini versions of us," Ross stated as he watched them dip their hands into the fountains, or at least attempt to before the mothers snatched their children up and away from a chocolatey disaster. What they didn't see was that May's mother bumped into a man, a very handsome man who she would be talking to for the rest of the night... maybe even for the rest of her life. Maybe love had happy endings after all. Maybe love meant second chances, too.

OoOo

The sun was setting now, hiding behind the hills in the distance, making waves of pink, orange, and deep red appear in the sky. The DJ was playing slow music now and everyone was on the dance floor, even Claire, Sam, Georgia, and Destiny.

Raini had her arms wrapped around Calum's neck and her head resting against his chest. Before he could stop himself, he pulled away for a quick second:

"I like you."

Raini froze. "You... like me, like me?" she asked.

"Yes. And I've been wanting to tell you for the longest time, especially during our date, but I feel like I might have messed up when I didn't kiss you, but that's only because I was so-"

She pressed her lips against his before he could say anymore, and they danced this way for what seemed like an eternity.

Ross had his arms around Laura's waist as they swayed back and forth. She was so small, especially since she wasn't wearing wedges; he couldn't help but smile. Now was the time. He stopped swaying. Laura looked up at him.

"Why'd you stop?" she asked.

"C'mon," he whispered, taking her by the hand and dragging her away from the music, away from the crowd, away from the world. They walked until they reached the shore, the waves slowly swallowing up their feet, then washing back to where they came from.

"Why are we here?" she asked, laughing. The water was freezing, she was pretty sure her toes would get frost bite.

"Because," he said, "I need to ask you something."

Now it was her turn to freeze. She looked up at him as he took her hands in his. "Laura," he began. "I am stupid. Beyond stupid for not doing this sooner, for not doing this from the moment I met you, but..." He took out a necklace, heart shaped and silver. "I promise you that we're worth it."

He turned her around, draping the necklace around her neck. Laura felt her smile wobbling and her eyes welling up with tears. Ross began to panic.

"You don't like it? It's okay, I can get you another one or maybe you'd prefer a bracelet instead-"

"Ross," she interrupted. She went up on her tippy toes to kiss him. "I love it. I..." She had almost said it. Three small words that could change everything. She fiddled with the necklace, noticing an engraving on it. Girlfriend. She smiled, courage building up inside of her.

"I love you," she murmured quietly, staring down at her necklace. Ross gaped at her for a moment. He tilted her chin up so that she could face him.

"I love you, too," he replied, smiling. The hug that followed would break all timers... it was a little too long.

OoOo

As they walked back to the party, it was as if the world seemed brighter, better, clearer. With her new necklace sitting on her clavicle, she felt like the luckiest girl on Earth. Little did she know that Ross himself was thinking the exact same thing. How had he landed himself such an amazing person? The question was incomprehensible, something he would probably ponder for the rest of his life.

Then they both spotted someone. Two someones, really.

"Hey!" Laura exclaimed, marching up to the pair. "You're the-"

"She's the-" Ross chimed in.

"You're the lady that interviewed us!" they exclaimed simultaneously. Bill and Doris stood before them, all dressed up.

"Indeed, that would be me," she smiled.

Laura folded her arms. "You tricked me."

"Yeah," Ross said, unknowingly mimicking his girlfriend's movements, "you made me look stupid on the Internet!"

"Did I?" she asked. She took a sip of her drink before she continued talking. "You two should be thanking me."

"Thanking you?" they asked in disbelief.

"Ross, did I not get you to realize that you were in love with Laura?" she asked him. Ross felt his face suddenly heat up.

"Well, yeah, but-"

"And Laura, did I not get you to admit that you were in love with Ross?" she asked.

Laura fiddled with her fingers. "I guess, but-"

"And did I not get you two together by making sure fans chased you into the woods so that we could watch you two confess to one another?" she asked.

"That was you? You sent them after us?" Laura asked. "But why? Who are you, anyway?"

"She is a Cupid interviewer," Bill said, finally speaking up. "Her job is to make celebrities realize they're in love with one another and help them get together."

Doris nodded. "That's right."

"Well..." Ross said. "In that case, I guess we really should be thanking you guys."

"Thank you," Laura said, smiling. "You should be a spy, not an interviewer."

"Oh no," Doris laughed. "I already tried that."

Ross and Laura shot each other looks.

"I'm only joking," Doris said, and the four burst out laughing. Bill put his hand into his pocket just to make sure it was there. When he was certain it was, he took Doris by the hand and turned her around to face him.

"Bill, what are you-"

"Doris, just give me the time of day for once. We're always been busy with our work and making other people fall in love that we never had time to fall in love ourselves." The whole entire party grew quiet. "Doris I've loved you since college. Even when you had to wear that head brace to sleep every night, I loved you even then." He got down on one knee and the entire party gasped. Laura squealed, squeezing Ross's hand. "Will you marry me?"