And finally, here is the final chapter of COW.

Thanks so much for reading and review! It was my pleasure to upload it for you guys. You're all amazing!

Oh yeah, this chapter takes place a year after Catchy Conclusions.

Be on the look out for COW's sequeal, BULL!

Disclaimer: I own nothing. But I am hungry. So I'm just going to upload this, go find food, and let you guys take care of the reviewing. Thanks again!

Astonishing Anniversaries

The dressing room door was open so Tawni and I could hear the shouts long before we could see our two male cast mates. We'd both been answering fan mail, taking a break from everything to spend some time together. Chad and I spent almost every moment together, whether he was on my set or I was on his, and he seemed reluctant when I asked him for one girl's only night.

"Does it have to be tonight?" he'd begged me, looking like I'd just told him we were heading to a funeral. "I thought Tawni didn't even like you."

"Actually, she's been better now that you've been keeping me out of her hair," I tried explaining. "Besides, it'll only be for one night. You're Chad Dylan Cooper. I'm sure you can find something to keep you busy."

He had sighed loudly and I knew I was winning. Just like before we started dating, the two of us could fight pretty heavily when we wanted to. We drove both our casts crazy sometimes when we went several hours, days, one time even weeks, before apologizing to each other, instead spending our time bashing the other behind their back. Many, many times the casts stepped in, working together to force Chad and me to make up.

Although the rivalry between So Random! and Mackenzie Falls was still alive, it wasn't as bad as it had been when I arrived at Condor Studios. Nico and Grady no longer had to gasp every time they heard Chad's name and Portlyn backed Chad up when he scolded his cast for making fun of the comedy. Everything was far from perfect; Mackenzie Falls still had higher ratings and their snobby attitudes because of it and So Random! still believed the other cast could use a crash course in comedy. As long as Chad and I were willing to try working things out, they were, too (or at least they were good at pretending to try).

As I watched Chad's demeanor fall when I asked for permission to spend a night with Tawni, I knew he was going to say yes. It was with a smile that I stood as tall as I could, kissing his cheek.

"I'm yours tomorrow night," I promised as I whispered in his ear, smiling at the look of happiness he gave me. "So, do you know where Portlyn is?"

"Portlyn?" he repeated me. "What do you need her for?"

"I want to invite her to hang out with me and Tawni and Zora," I replied, stepping around him. "Never mind, I know where her dressing room is. I'll go get her myself."

I only got to take a few steps before Chad was grabbing my arm, forcing me to stop beside him.

"Why don't you make it a So Random! Girl's night?" he suggested. "You're already leaving me; can't I keep one friend?"

Knowing Chad was perfectly capable of making other plans for one night without needing Portlyn, I wanted to tell him no. Portlyn and Tawni had been talking a lot since their plan to push Chad and me together (stupid C.O.W. book) and I knew they would both have fun hanging out with me for a night. But when Chad looked down at me with those eyes, silently begging me to let him have his way, there was no way I could keep myself from giving in.

'Stupid blue eyes,' I thought as I walked off his set, no invite for Portlyn left behind. 'I thought I would learn how to say no by now, but those stupid eyes still mess with me just as much as they did in the beginning. I wonder why only one of them sparkles?'

Now, with all thoughts about Chad out of my head so I could enjoy my time with Tawni (Zora declined her invite, saying she already had plans), it was nice to be able to just sit around our dressing room, reading the fan mail I hadn't had a chance to go through in forever. I was hoping for a peaceful night.

Something about the loud shouts Nico and Grady sent down the hall told me the peace was about to end.

"You two better have a good reason for being here," Tawni said as both boys ran in, nearly tripping over each other as they tried to stop. "I was right in the middle of reading a very important letter!"

"Uh, Tawni?" Nico walked up behind the tween queen, reading the fan letter over her shoulder. "You do realize all that letter says is 'You're so pretty!' in all capital letters, right?"

"Like I said," she told him, flipping her hair over her shoulder, "I'm in the middle of a VERY important, and true, letter!"

Nico rolled his eyes and I laughed as I stood from my chair, joining my cast and happily swinging an arm around Nico and Grady's shoulders. With all my Chad time, I didn't get to hang out with the two of them as often as I used to either and I missed the trouble they always seemed to be getting into.

"Maybe you guys should take off," I suggested to them, pushing them toward the door. "We wouldn't want to make too much noise and cause Tawni to miss a word while she's reading. She might think the letter says 'You're so ugly!"'

I was the only one who started laughing (why was I the only one who found most of my jokes funny?). Nico and Grady ducked out from beneath my arms as Tawni climbed from her seat, smiling at me sweetly. My laughter stopped as she closed the gap between us, resting a hand on my shoulder.

"Sonny," she stated my name, letting out a fake chuckle. For a moment, I wondered if she was going to dig her fingernails into my skin. "Sweetie. I said I was reading my fan mail, not yours."

Why had I given up a night with Chad for her sake? My reasoning was lost as my eyes narrowed and I opened my mouth to fight back.

Grady forced his way between us, placing each hand out at arm's length, making sure Tawni and I couldn't kill each other. He looked back and forth between us, the expression on his face scared.

"We didn't come here to start a fight," he explained before smiling, like an idea had just come to him. "Although if that's what the two of you want, why should I stop you?"

He stepped out of the way again only to receive a slap from Nico.

"Why are you letting them fight?" the taller of the two boys demanded. "We came to ask them for help, not to watch them fight to the death!"

My attention turned away from Tawni (like I was really going to fight with her. Didn't my cast realize yet I was too nice for that kind of thing?). I became curious as I asked, "What do you need our help with?"

"It's Zora," Nico answered, still shaking his head at Grady. "I guess she finally got stuck in one of the vents. We can hear her shouting, but we have no idea how to get her out."

I could feel my mouth fall open in shock.

"That's horrible!" I exclaimed before running past everyone into the hallway, stopping when I realized they weren't following me. "Come on, aren't you going to help me rescue her?"

Tawni sighed as she joined me, her pace much slower than the one I wanted to go at. Grady looked disappointed as well.

"That might've been our only chance of ever seeing a real chick-fight," he told Nico, finally giving his reasoning behind stepping out of the way, ready to let Tawni and I fight. "I always wanted to see two girls fight, although I heard it's better when the fight takes place in the mud…"

When I turned to Tawni, she was returning the look, nodding her head at my unasked question.

"On the count of three," she said as we both lifted a hand into the air. "Three!"

At the same time, we punched Grady on opposite sides, smiling as he let out a whimper of pain. Nico laughed, shrugging when Grady gave him a 'why didn't you help me?' look.

"Sorry, G," he said, trying to stop his laughter long enough to speak, "But you deserved that one!"

"Come on," I changed the topic. "What room were you guys in when you heard Zora? We have to try to find a way to get her down!"

Nico led the way, Tawni and I following close behind with Grady bringing up the rear, still complaining about being hit. I was already thinking of ways to help Zora out of the vent (she was always going through them and she hadn't gotten stuck before; why was today any different?), wondering if I would be too big to crawl in after her or if sending her butter and having her become as slippery as she could with it would work. If everything failed, I could always call Chad. Maybe he would have something to use on his set and we wouldn't have to ask Marshall for help, perhaps getting ourselves into trouble (I doubted playing in the vents was considered a safe place to hang out).

As Nico power walked through the halls, he explained that he and Grady had been playing video games in the Prop House when they heard a voice that wasn't coming from the television's speakers. Zora had told them about her situation and asked them to find help as quickly as they could.

Once the Prop House was in sight, I could feel my pace quickening as I passed Nico, the urgency to rescue my fellow cast mate growing stronger by the second. I noticed there was no light shining through the open door.

"You turned the lights out on her?"

"She's stuck in a vent," Nico shrugged. "What does she need the light on for?"

Even if Zora was stuck in the vent, if the boys were able to hear her shouts, she was probably close enough to the opening that she could see the lights. What was she thinking now that they were off? Was she afraid? Did she think Nico and Grady were going to leave her instead of getting the help she requested? Why had the two of them turned the light off anyway? As far as I knew, it was always kept on until everyone left at night. Was Mr. Condor finally getting firm about wasting energy?

Not wanting to think about how scared Zora had to be, I found myself running the last few feet left before reaching the Prop House. I ran in ahead of my cast, using the wall to stop my feet as I ran my fingers along it, searching for the light switch. Finally I found it and waited the few seconds it took before the room filled with light, ready to call out Zora's name and listen for her answer.

"Surprise!"

I nearly fell over when I heard the shout, reaching up and covering my mouth to keep from screaming. There was no need for me to call out Zora's name; she was standing near the front of the huge throng of people, all of whom started clapping as they watched my reaction to their shout and sudden presence.

Besides Zora, Chad and the rest of the Mackenzie Falls cast were gathered in the Prop House, along with actors I recognized from the other shows filmed at the studio. Everyone seemed to be crowded inside, including Josh (the mail delivery boy) and even Marshall. In the doorway behind me, Nico, Grady, and Tawni watched the scene before them, all three laughing at me.

My eyes swept around the room as I kept my mouth covered, unsure yet what my reaction was supposed to be. Why were they all gathered in the room and trying to surprise me? All the cardboard cut-outs of Chad from his last birthday party were around as decorations, only this time, a few of me were added with a lot of new ones containing the both of us together. A huge cake was in front of all the people with the word Congratulations! covering the whole length. Balloons were everywhere with colorful streamers and there were brightly wrapped packages on the counter.

Chad stepped forward from the group, looking proud of himself as he wrapped me into a tight hug. I let him do it, still feeling more than a little confused. He must've noticed that when he let me go because his smile fell.

"What's wrong?" he asked, the worry clear on his face. "Do you not like it?"

"No, no, that's not it at all," I set his mind to ease, shaking my head back and forth quickly. "I just…why is everyone…what, exactly, are we celebrating?"

I couldn't think of the right question to ask. I didn't want to hurt Chad's feeling by asking (obviously the party was for me), but I was out of luck. If I wanted to know the real reason behind the huge ordeal, I had to ask.

"You don't remember?" His voice was sad enough to break my heart and I wished I could take back my words. "You really don't remember, do you, Sonny?"

"Chad, I-,"

He took my shoulders, turning me so my back was to him and so my eyes were on the wall.

"Maybe that will remind you," he whispered, his lips too close to my ear.

A huge banner hung across the wall, part of it showing the Mackenzie Falls logo with the So Random! one farther down. Between the two logos were the words I needed to spark my memory:

Happy One Year Anniversary, Sonny and Chad!

I started running through dates in my head quickly. No way could the sign be right. Chad and I hadn't been going out for a year yet. Only a few months ago had my cast thrown me a party celebrating one year with them. Chad and I hadn't started going out until after that-

Wait…Chad had asked me out after only a few months of flirting with me and driving me crazy. The party my cast had thrown me had been a few months ago. It was a Saturday when Chad and I started our relationship, and today was Sunday, which would be the case if it was a year later.

Oh my goodness. I had totally and completely forgotten my own anniversary!

"Chad," I said as I turned to face him again. "I am so, so sor-,"

I didn't get a chance to finish my apology. Nico and Grady spotted the cake and took off running, Tawni and Portlyn went to find some music, and the crowd moved forward as everyone came in to talk to Chad and me, clapping us on our backs and shaking our hands and occasionally even hugging us. I smiled through it all, but my mind wasn't on the party.

Chad hadn't only remembered the day he'd asked me out, but he also threw me the greatest part on the face of the planet (even Selena Gomez was there and boy did she have a lot to say about the whole 'relationship wizard' thing). He was the best boyfriend ever!

Then there was me, little Sonny Munroe from Wisconsin, the small town girl new to Hollywood who everyone only knew the name of because of my relationship with Chad Dylan Cooper. Not only did I forget about our anniversary, but I had begged Chad to give me the night off so I could spend it with my girls. How horrible was I?

I needed to think of a way to make it up to him. In order to do that, I needed to talk to Tawni or Portlyn.

With Chad at my side, I couldn't find an opportunity to slip away from him. I desperately wanted to get the advice I needed, to find someway to make it up to him by the end of the night, but the hold he had around my waist wasn't lessening at all. The people wanting to talk to us (and of course, they wanted to speak to us together) didn't stop coming forward all night. Did we really have to be in such a large friend group?

When Nico and Grady came up to let Chad know they had told me the Zora story to trick me into coming to the Prop House just as he'd apparently asked them to do, I figured it was as good a time as any to get away.

"I think I'm going to leave the three of you to talk," I said, gently taking Chad's arm from me, placing it back at his side. "I see someone I want to talk to."

"Why don't I go with you?" Chad suggested, taking a step forward as I did.

"No, no, no," I protested, putting my hands on his chest. "It's kind of a…private…conversation. I'll be right back though, ok? I promise."

He took my hand in his, keeping it until I was as far away as our arms would let us reach. Even then, I felt him give my fingers an extra squeeze and I felt even worse about having to leave him. How many other things was I going to do to hurt him tonight before I would learn my lesson?

To my surprise, Tawni and Portlyn were still hanging out together. They didn't notice me when I first walked up, standing with their backs against the present-filled counter as they watched a group of boys who were on Tween Gladiator. Both girls giggled and waved when one of the boys turned to look at them. He smiled back nervously before returning to his friends, not looking to the girls again.

"Sorry to interrupt your flirting time," I started speaking, sending both Tawni and Portlyn into surprised jumps, "But I really need your help!"

"What could possibly be wrong?" Portlyn asked, motioning around the room. "Your boyfriend is throwing you a party beyond parties; shouldn't you be happy?"

"I am happy. I'm so happy, I'm happy about how happy I am!" I replied, which was the truth. I was happy Chad cared enough about me to throw a party almost as big as the one he'd thrown for his birthday. "The problem is, I forgot today was our anniversary. I didn't get Chad a present."

Tawni started laughing loudly (that red liquid in the glass was punch, right?) as she walked to my side, slapping my shoulder.

"Oh, Sonny! No one actually keeps track of their anniversaries!" she explained, still laughing like the words she was saying were the most obvious ones in the world. "Well, other than your boyfriend. But he keeps track of everything involving him. He probably even remembers the first time he wore a diaper and-,"

Thankfully, Portlyn cut Tawni's sentence off, reaching over me to take the glass from her hands.

"Either she's crazy tonight or someone spiked this stuff," she said, bringing the glass to her lips as she breathed in the smell, shrugging her shoulders afterwards. "As for you and Chad, I wouldn't worry about it. I was talking to him earlier and his only concern was whether or not you would like this party. I don't think he's expecting anything from you."

"I don't care if he's expecting something or not," I told her. "He threw me this whole party. I would look awful not giving him anything in return!"

"If it means that much to you, take Chad off alone and give him something special."

"Something special?" I repeated her. "Like what?"

She glared at me, Tawni laughed again, and I felt my jaw drop as I caught on to what the two of them were talking about. By 'take Chad off alone' they meant-

"Come on, Sonny!" Nico and Grady appeared at my sides, each of them grabbing an arm. "It's time to open presents!"

Chad was already sitting on the couch, all the guests behind him, the presents no longer on the counter, instead on the table in front of him. Little Kimberly was sitting on his lap (how did I not notice my favorite female Cooper?) and she stretched out her arms to hug me once Nico and Grady forced me to sit, my body landing so close to Chad's it was impossible to not have our legs touch. I tried to ignore the feeling shooting through my body as I returned Kimberly's hug.

Unwrapping the presents seemed to take forever (did everyone have to remember my anniversary but me?). Chad let his sister tear the paper off most of them and then he and I would both smile and thank whoever the giver was. I have to say, our guests did have interesting taste: lipstick the same brand Tawni used (given to me by my blonde cast mate), a meat launcher (from Zora, who explained we could use it next time we had another fight), a coupon to try a new sandwich (Nico and Grady gave that one, claiming this one would surely be good enough to beat Chad's. He quietly muttered to me that there wasn't a chance of that happening), a copy of the episode of So Random! Chad guest-starred on (Marshall was in tears as he hugged the two Coopers and me, not believing he was the one to get the two of us together. He really wasn't, but neither of us fought him), a mirror (Portlyn said that way Chad could use it when he wanted to see himself or the two of us could use it at the same time to remember how cute we were), a card (from Selena, with a message claiming she'd been right all along) and many, many more from everyone else, too many names and items for me to remember.

There was only one present left on the table when Kimberly leaned forward, Chad needing to grab her waist to keep her from falling to the floor. She grabbed the last package, putting it into my hands instead of keeping it in hers.

"I want you to open this one, Sonny," she explained, grinning from ear to ear. "It's from me!"

"Aw, you and Chad worked together to buy me something?" I asked, returning the smile.

"I didn't help her with that," Chad informed me. "My present to you is this party. I have no idea what Kimberly got you."

Now I was confused. Kimberly was just a little girl. How had she gotten the money, much less a driver, to buy Chad and I a present? She was smiling up at me brightly though, waiting for me to open the present. Exchanging a look with Chad, I starting pulling off the paper.

Underneath was a book, one that looked only too familiar to me. The book was black and in a faux leather material. On the cover, in all capital gold letters, three letters stood:

C.D.C.

I tried to hide the book before Chad could see it, quickly putting it on my other side. I wasn't fast enough; he'd seen the letters and his eyes narrowed.

"What was on that book?" he asked firmly.

"What book?" I laughed nervously, covering Kimberly's mouth as she started to answer the question for me. "I don't see any books!"

Everyone seemed to realize something was going on. The room fell silent as all eyes fell on the couch, waiting to see what would happen. Even I knew it wasn't a good thing when Chad continued to glare.

"Sonny."

"Chad."

"I think we need to talk."

Without another word, the crowd began moving toward the door. I stood up, shaking my head as I gave my hand to Kimberly, helping her off Chad's lap so he could move as well.

"I think this will be much easier if we go into the hallway instead of all of you leaving," I said, stopping the crowd as Chad and I walked through them, the black book in one hand, the other in Chad's. "Just in case I don't make it back alive, thanks for coming, everyone!"

He pulled me out of the room before I could say another word.

We didn't walk all the way over to the Mackenzie Falls set, but we did walk into another hallway. My guess was Chad wanted to be far enough away that no one would hear him if he began yelling at me. I had a feeling a lot of yelling was going to be taking place soon.

The book in my hands was the thing used to get Chad and I together a year ago. It was his C.O.W. book, something I was hoping I would never have to see again. I'd taken it from his dressing room ages ago, bringing it back to my house (hiding it in the dressing room would be too easy for Tawni to find it) and putting it in the bottom drawer of my dresser beneath a pile of clothes I never wore anymore. No one was supposed to find it again, but apparently Kimberly had gone through my room one of the many nights she had come over. My goal was to only show Chad the book if he asked to see it, meaning he realized it was missing. Otherwise, I was off the hook.

Now that the book was in my hands, Chad was going to take one look at it and know exactly what it was. He would also know I'd stolen it from him. He was going to be mad at me for taking it, maybe even mad enough to break up with me.

It was horrible, breaking up after exactly one year of dating, but I deserved to lose him. I hadn't even remembered an important date for the two of us. I shouldn't be going out with Chad Dylan Cooper. He would be much better off with some girl who would bow to his every need and remember every little detail. He deserved someone a lot better than me.

Once we were what Chad considered a safe distance from the Prop House, he let go of my hand, turning so he was facing me. Without saying a word, he extended his hand toward me, waiting for me to hand over the book.

"I really love the party, Chad," I tried to change the topic, giving him my best smile. "It's so great how you got so many people to show up! And the music selection is just amazing! We should really get back in there and cut into that delicious cake!"

I turned around, heading back the way we'd come. Chad picked that moment to reach for the book, easily pulling it from my grasp. I faced him again, nervously twisting my fingers together.

"Before you say anything, I'm sorry for taking your book," I apologized, wondering if it was too late to dig myself out of the hole a little bit. "I know it was wrong of me to take it and I'll totally understand if you hate me forever. I just didn't think you would need it anymore since we're going out. Well…we were going out, anyway. I get it if you want to break up…Chad? Are you listening to me?"

Through my entire speech Chad didn't look up from the book. When he first studied the cover, his brow was wrinkled and he seemed confused, like he had no idea what was inside it. After reading through the first few pages, slowly his brow straightened out and his lips formed a smile. I could only imagine what he was thinking about. I was sure he was reading through all the names, remembering the girls who'd come before me.

Maybe he was even thinking of the girl who was going to come after me since we were probably breaking up any minute now.

"This is the book of every girl I've ever liked," he told me, flipping from page to page too fast to actually read them. "I was wondering where this book went!"

"I stole it months ago," I explained, sighing loudly, knowing I was in trouble. He had missed it; he just never told me because he thought there was no way I would be the thief. "You might as well keep it now. You'll need it for the next girl."

Finally, I had Chad's attention. I turned my back to him again, but this time, I heard the book slam shut. He ran in front of me, standing in my path, taking my chin in his free hand and forcing me to look at him.

"What do you mean I'll need this for the next girl? There isn't going to be another one," he said.

"Don't you want to break up?" I was confused as I searched his eyes, wondering if he was lying. "I stole the stupid book from you, I forgot today was our anniversary, I asked you for a girl's night when you begged me to spend time with you…How could you still like me after all that?"

As though he could find the answer inside the book, Chad opened it to the back pages. Wondering what he was going to do, I let him block my path, not even trying to get around him as I waited for him to speak.

"'Selective Sunday,"' he started, and I realized he wasn't coming up with the words, but was reading them from the pages. "'Sonny Munroe is picked as new girl. She nearly faints when I touch her."'

Despite the fact the book had been in my room for a long time, I'd never read any of it. Other than the night Portlyn had shown it to Tawni and me, I'd never looked inside it. Whatever Chad wrote was his business, not mine, and if he ever wanted to tell me about his other girlfriends, I figured he would do it. There was no need for me to read through the book and spy on him.

He was reading my week to me. He was letting me know exactly what had been going through his head the week he tried to win me over, the week I ended up falling for him even though I fought it as hard as I could.

He was taking me back to the week I already remembered so well.

"'Munroe Monday,"' he went on, his voice speeding up as he rushed. "'Sonny lets me come over to her house and we spend the night with her mom going through old pictures and stories. I kiss her hair in the hallway as we say goodnight but I don't get any sleep once I get home. I can't stop thinking about her.

"'Twizzle Tuesday. I plan to take her and her mother ice skating, but she finds out and invites my family along, too. I am ready to kill Bryson when he takes her away from me, but I know better than to bother the two of them. Not only will Bryson beat me up for it later, but I may end up fighting for her, something I know she wouldn't like. When I can't take it any longer, I send Kimberly out to find her. She pushes an ice cream cone into my nose and for some reason, I laugh along with her.

"'Waterfall Wednesday. I take Sonny to the waterfall that Mackenzie Falls is based off and ask her out. She requests time to think about it and I agree to it, but not before making her agree I get to win her over. When I try to kiss her, she turns away, but we make up for it when we trip as we hike back to my car, both of us blushing furiously at the stance we find ourselves in. I text her later that night, once again unable to get her off my mind.

"'Take-Along Thursday. Sonny comes with me to a Hollywood party, but when I am forced to do an interview, she starts dancing with Kiss Cam guy. We fight, it's not a good night, and I know I must make up for it tomorrow.

"'Falling Through Friday. The day I get to ask Sonny out again and I hope she has fallen through by now. To make up for last night, I send her flowers of every color, rent a horse and suit of armor, and take her for a ride around the studio. She kisses my cheek and agrees when I ask her out for dinner. We go for a walk afterwards and the fireworks spell out my question for me. She answers with something better than a yes or no; she kisses me on the lips this time."'

Remembering what happened on Saturday of that week, I tried to walk past Chad, but he grabbed my arm, not allowing me to walk.

"Chad, I really don't want to hear this-,"

"'Smack-down Saturday,"' Chad went on, and I flinched at his title. "'Sonny runs in the water from the fire alarm, looking more beautiful than I have ever seen her before. I join her and we end up falling together, sharing another magical kiss. A few minutes later, she breaks up with me and I catch her kissing Kiss Cam guy. My heart feels like its going to fall out of my chest."'

That was the part I didn't want to hear. I didn't want to hear how much I had hurt him that day. It had all ended up a huge misunderstanding between us and it was a day I didn't like to think about when I could help it.

I had broken up with him, and now tonight, he was going to do the same to me. To be honest, I didn't see why he was putting if off so long. Why couldn't he just say the words we both knew he was going to say so we could get on with our lives?

"I'm not done yet," Chad said, stopping me for what had to be the third time when I tried to walk down the hall. "'Catchy Conclusions. A week later, Portlyn and Tawni straighten everything out. They were tricking Sonny, she was tricking me, and I have no future with her after knowing the truth. She apologizes to me, getting kicked off her show because of it, and I know I need to talk to her. When I run into Kiss Cam boy, I punch him and when Sonny sees the blood on me, she rushes to help and I see that despite the trick she was playing on me at first, she really does care about me. We kiss and I know I am lost. I am hers forever."'

A silence fell between us as Chad shut the book, turning his attention to me. He looked at me, waiting for me to speak.

"What?" I asked, shrugging. "Was that your long way of telling me we're over?"

As his answer, Chad threw the book to the floor, using his hands to pull me closer to him. He didn't hug me this time but instead kissed me. I wasn't quite sure what to think about it; why was he kissing me if we were just going to break up?

"You missed the point, Sonny," he said when he let me go, keeping his forehead pressed against mine. "It doesn't matter to me if you forgot about today, or if you forget again next year, or if you forget every year for the rest of our lives! You'll never do anything bad enough to make me let you go. Do you understand?"

I could feel the tears starting to gather in my eyes, but I pushed them away, trying my best to keep them in. The last thing I wanted to do was cry in front of Chad but with him being so cute and saying all the right words…..

"Really, Chad?" I forced my voice to say. "You really mean that?"

"Really, Sonny. I never plan on us breaking up again, and I always get what I want. I'm Chad Dylan Cooper, remember?"

Laughing, I let my arms wrap around Chad's neck as I hugged him tightly. He brushed away my tears before taking my hand and pulling me back to the Prop House where we stood among our friends, the two of us working together to cut the cake. He shoved a piece into my face and I returned the favor; it wasn't long before the whole room joined in.

As cake flew over our heads, Chad pulled me onto the couch, leaning protectively over me so any cake that landed near us would hit his body instead of mine. I laughed at his cake covered face and he laughed back at mine, but I found a simple way to shut him up.

"I won't forget next year," I promised him as the screaming continued, Tawni's protests the easiest to make out. "And to make up for this year, I'll give you something that will top this party."

"Good luck with that," he said sarcastically. "No one tops Chad Dylan Cooper."

"You're right. No one tops Chad Dylan Cooper…But he'll still lie if it means making Sonny Munroe happy, which letting her top this party would certainly do."

Chad shook his head, brushing a strand of my hair from my face even though I was on my back and it was already out of the way.

"Happy anniversary, Munroe."

"Happy anniversary, Cooper."

Zora picked that moment to pop up beside us, throwing a huge piece of cake into Chad's face. He jumped away from me, chasing her around the room in a quest to get his revenge. Portlyn grabbed my arm, bringing me back into the fight as well.

I couldn't have asked for a better night than this.