Chapter 37
August 31st, 2011
2:30 PM
Jeff's house
"Are you two seriously still freaking sleeping? Get the hell up!"Matt and Shannon yelled at me and Jeff. I groaned and just buried my face further into Jeff. "Go away."Jeff said, burying his face in my hair. "What he said."I said. "Jeff if you don't get out of bed right now, I swear I'll take Vanessa over to Dad's and have him show her all of your most embarassing pictures."Matt threatened. I smiled a little. Tempting. Jeff was nice and warm though. I could go see embarassing pictures of him any time. Jeff, however, had other plans. "Okay, okay, I'm up."He said, sitting up. I whined in protest at my pillow moving. "Your turn Vanessa. Get up Pixy."Shannon said. I shook my head. They didn't have any blackmail material on me, so I wasn't worried. "If you don't get up Adam told me to say that he's not afraid to tell Jeff what happened after the first time you saw Jeff in person."Shannon said. I sat up quickly.
"Alright I'm up." I said.
Matt and Shannon high-fived their sucess. I looked over at Jeff. "Today's your birthday. Why don't you get to sleep as long as you want?"I asked him. He sighed. "I don't know. Matt's a jerk I guess."He said. Matt scoffed. "Please. I was nice and let you sleep this late. If I had let you sleep any longer, you wouldn't of slept tonight."He said, crossing his arms over his broad chest. I chuckled. "Two things Matt. One, you sound like such a dad right now, and two-"Jeff cut me off.
"We weren't planning on sleeping tonight anyway."He said smirking.
I chuckled again. "Yeah, what he said." Matt had a look of utter distaste on his face. Good. He deserved it for waking us up. Our flight hadn't gotten in until like 4 o'clock in the morning. So we were really tired. Shannon just shook his head. "Get up. Get dressed. You have twenty minutes. If we come back in here and you're both sleeping again, Matt and I are not afraid to break out said threats."He said sternly and walked out of the room with Matt following.
When the door shut I turned to Jeff. "How embarassing of pictures we talking about?"I asked him. "Pretty embarassing. How embarassing of a reaction?"He asked me. My face reddened a bit. "Pretty bad I'm guessing if you're blushing. In that case, I say we get up."He said. I nodded in agreement.
*Downstairs*
Jeff had just walked into the kitchen when his home phone rang. "Vanessa, can you get that? I'm trying to find something to eat!"He called from the kitchen. "Only if you make me what you're making you!"I yelled back. "Deal!"He said. I chuckled and picked up the phone. "Hello?"I said, still chuckling. "Is Jeff there?"A woman's voice said. "Yes he is. He just walked into the kitchen, would you like me to get him?"I asked. "No, no. That's fine. Just tell him that...Beth says Happy Birthday."My eyes widened. Beth was calling. The one that cheated on poor Jeff. "Um, yeah sure thing Beth."I said politely. Why should I be mean to her? She hasn't done anything directly to me. "Thanks. Um I hope you don't mind me asking but, is this Vanessa?"
"Yes it is."
"Treat him right Vanessa. He deserves to have someone that can love him unconditionally."With that she hung up. I placed the phone back in its cradle. Well that was weird. Just as I'd put the phone down, Jeff returned to the living room with two sandwiches. "I brought food!"He declared, handing me my sandwich. Turkey. My favorite. Smart Jeff. "Who was on the phone?"He asked. "Beth."Jeff froze. "She says to tell you happy birthday."I said, trying to act like I didn't see his shocked expression. "She say anything else?"He asked. I shook my head. "Nope. Well nothing that was for you anyway."I said.
"What'd she tell you?"
"She said to treat you right and love you uncondtionally. She's a little behind, because I already got that covered."I replied. Jeff nodded and relaxed. Did Beth really make him that jumpy? I just shrugged and brushed the thought off. Just as I bgan eating my sandwich, the phone rang again. "Your turn."I said. Jeff reached over me and answered the phone. "Hello?"He said. He listened for a second. "Yes Dad Vanessa came with me."He said chuckling. "I don't know, you'll have to ask her."He listened. "Why do I have to ask her?" Jeff sighed and looked at me. "My dad wants to know if you would be so kind as to make your steaks again for my birthday dinner that I guess we're having at his house?"He asked. I smiled. "How many people are going to be there and is he providing the meat?"I questioned.
Jeff reported this information back to Gil. "He says it's just gonna be me, you, Matt, Shannon, Julie, and Shane and his girlfriend. And yes he's providing the meat. You're on your own with the spices he says."I nodded. "Mkay. Tell him I'll be over around 5 to start cooking if that's alright."I said. I didn't really care. I loved making my steaks. "He says that's fine with him. He'll see you then."He said. "What's that Dad?"Jeff listened. "What do you mean I'm not allowed to be there?" I laughed as I heard Gil say "Because I'm your Dad and I said so."And hang up. I loved Gil. Jeff handed the phone back to me and I put it back where it belonged. "You know what this means right?"I asked him. He shook his head. I smiled at him. "This means that you are going to the grocery store with me!"
*Grocery Store!*
While I thought it was just going to be Jeff and I going to the store, I was wrong. Shannon, Matt and Shane all wanted to go. I didn't really care. That was before we got to the store. Having three grown men grocery shopping with you is like having three little kids with you. At least Shannon was mature about things and actually contributed. "We have everything we need Pixy?"He asked. I nodded. "For the most part yes. The only thing we need to get is different kinds of steak sauce."I said. He nodded. I heard a crash behind me and I looked over my shoulder. I groaned. "Shane!"I complained. He'd knocked over about 10 boxes of insta-rice. "Jeff pushed me!"He argued. "I did not! It was Matt!"Jeff retorted. Matt opened his mouth to reply but I beat him to it. "I don't care whose fault it was. Pick it up and then go pick out your favorite steak sauce."I said. They quickly picked the boxes up and ran to another aisle.
"How is it we're the youngest ones, yet we're the most mature ones?"I asked Shannon.
"I don't know but I see trouble ahead."He said.
I followed his pointing finger and saw a woman looking at a can of soup. "Why's she trouble?"I asked. Shannon looked at me with wide eyes. "You mean you don't know who that is?"He asked in a whisper. I shook my head. "Should I?"I whispered back. "Wait, why are we whispering?"I asked. Shannon smacked his palm to his forehead. "Vanessa, that's Beth!"He said. My mouth made an "o". "Ohhh!"I said, understanding. "I still don't know why she's trouble. It's not like she's going to come over here or anything." Shannon looked back to Beth. "Oh great job Vanessa! She's walking this way! Act normal!"He ordered. "I am acting normal! You're the one that's freaking out!"I whispered at him.
"Hi Shannon."Beth said, stopping by us.
Shannon smiled at her. "Hey Beth! How's it going?"He asked. She smiled back at him. "It's goin good, I suppose."She looked to me. "I'm assuming this is Vanessa?"She asked him. He nodded and she gave me a brief smile. "Well, it's nice to meet you Vanessa."She said in a strained voice. 'Sounds more like you wanna rip my throat out' I thought. I smiled back at her. "Likewise of course."I said. Once again, another crash was heard. I groaned. "Shannon, watch the cart. I think those idiots just broke something."I said, walking towards the end of the aisle. I'd just about reached the end of it when I was picked up and spun around in the air by Jeff. "I love you!"He declared happily. I looked at Shane and Matt. "Alright which one of you idiots gave Jeff Skittles?"I asked, still in the air. Matt raised his hand guiltily. "You are so dumb Matthew."I said.
"It's my birthday! I can have as many Skittles as I want!"Jeff protested.
"You still have to be good or no present."I reminded him.
He nodded and set me back on my feet. He then proceded to kiss me excitedly. 'Wonderful, Jeff. Kissing me in front of your ex finace is such a good idea. She already wants to kill me.' I thought. Jeff pulled away and looked over in Shannon's direction. His body tensed up when he saw Beth standing next to Shannon. Her knuckles were white from gripping the cart so tightly. I groaned in my head. Fan-fucking-tastic. I could tell Jeff's hyperness was completely gone now. As was Matt's and Shane's. "Oh, hey Beth."Matt said, breaking the silence. She gave him a forced smile.
"Hey Matt. Shane."She said. They smiled at her. "Hey Jeff."She said. Jeff,who still had his arms wrapped around me, started dragging me in the other direction. He led me into another aisle. He had just completely blown off Beth. He didn't even say one word to her. I tried not to feel triumphant, but I couldn't help it. Vanessa 1, Beth 0! "You alright Jeff?"I asked, looking up at him. He smiled at me. "Yeah. I just really didn't want to talk to her. Today is my birthday, and I don't want her face to ruin it."He said. I detected bitterness in his tone. I cradled his face in my hands and smiled at him. "Yes, today is your birthday. And it's all about you and what you want babe."I said, trying to cheer him up. He smirked at me. "Anything I want?"He asked. I nodded, knowing I would probably be regretting it later on.
He tightened his grip on me a little. "When we get back, let me show you something. Just me and you. No Matt, Shane, or Shannon. Just us."He said. I smiled and nodded. "Alright. We should probably head back to the guys if you want to have enough time before I have to go to your dad's."I advised. He nodded and took my hand. I followed him back to where we'd left the guys. Beth was gone. Jeff breathed a sigh of relief. "What was that Jeff? You can't just kidnap Vanessa and blow Beth off like that!"Shane said. Jeff smiled. "Actually, I think I can."He said. "Now, let's go back home!"He demanded.
*3rd person POV*
Jeff took Vanessa's hand and led her through his backyard and into the woods. They walked for a while in silence before Vanessa began singing a song. Jeff, not recognizing the song, asked what it was. "Speechless by The Veronicas. I decided it was going to be our song."She said. Jeff chuckled. "Sing it to me."He asked. She nodded and began to sing the song from the begining.
"Feels like I have always known you
And I swear I dreamt about you
All those endless nights I was alone
It's like I've spent forever searching
Now I know that it was worth it
With you it feels like I am finally home"
Jeff continued to led Vanessa through the woods as she sang the song to him in a soft, yet beautiful voice.
"Falling head over heels
Thought I knew how it feels
But with you it's like the first day of my life
Cuz you leave me speechless
When you talk to me
You leave me breathless
The way you look at me
You manage to disarm me
My soul is shining through
Can't help but surrender
My everything to you"
Jeff was begining to see how this could be their song. It did seem to fit them rather nicely. Vanessa singing it to him made it all that much better.
"I thought I could resist you
I thought that I was strong
Somehow you were different from what I've known
I didn't see you coming
You took me by surprise and
You stole my heart before I could say no
Falling head over heels
Thought I knew how it feels
But with you it's like the first day of my life"
That last verse really hit home with Jeff. He never thought he'd find someone as amazing and wonderful as Vanessa. Her presence in his life really did take him by surprise. Jeff knew now that he loved her from the moment he'd set eyes on her.
"You leave me speechless
When you talk to me
You leave me breathless
The way you look at me
You manage to disarm me
My soul is shining through
I can't help but surrender
Oh no
My everything to you
You leave me speechless
(the way you smile, the way you touch my face)
You leave me breathless
(it's something that you do I can't explain)
I run a million miles just to hear you say my name
Baby"
They were nearing the spot Jeff wanted. He hoped Vanessa would like his surprises. He'd been working on them for a while now. He began rethinking the second surprise. What if it was too early? He sighed and shook his head. He was doing it. Jeff smiled and continued listening to his girlfriend singing to him.
"You leave me speechless
You leave me breathless
The way you look at me
You manage to disarm me
My soul is shining through
I can't help but surrender
My everything to you"
Vanessa finished singing the song just as they reached the spot Jeff was talking about. Vanessa's eyes widened in surprise. Scattered around the small clearing, were many paintings done by Jeff. The majority of them were of her, and her alone. There was one with her, Adam and her mom, one with her and Amy and then there was her absolute favorite one. Jeff had painted them together in many different positions. Vanessa absoulutely adored these paintings. "Do you like them?"Jeff asked nervously. Vanessa turned to Jeff and kissed him enthustiactically. "I love them. And I love you."She said happily after she'd pulled away. Jeff smiled at her and decided the time was right. "Sit down with me Ness."he said. She nodded and sat on the cool grass with him.
She cocked her head at Jeff. He seemed to be pretty nervous. Why would he be nervous? They've spent lots of time together alone. She took his larger hands in his. "You alright Jeff?"She asked. He smiled at her and nodded. "Yeah I'm alright Vanessa."He reassured her. She smiled back at him. "Good."She said. They sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes. Jeff broke the silence. "Vanessa?"He said suddenly. Vanessa looked at him.
"Yes?"She asked.
He took a deep breath. "I love you."He said. She grinned. "I love you too."She replied. Jeff puts his hands on her hips, as he usually did when he wanted to talk to her about something serious. "We've been dating over five months now. Right?"He said. Vanessa nodded. "We've been through so much together. I've never met anyone like you before. You are the light in my life Vanessa. I wouldn't know what to do without you. I've never loved anybody as much as I love you."He said. Even the oblivious Vanessa could see where this was headed. "I know Adam's probably going ot kill me for this but I don't care."He continued. Vanessa gave a weak chuckle. Jeff reached in his pocket and pulled out a ring. The band was the traditional gold and it had a rather large diamond in the middle of the band. "Vanessa Isabelle Copeland, will you marry me?"Jeff asked. Vanessa's right hand flew to her mouth and covered the small sob that escaped. She managed to let out a weak "Yes!". Jeff slipped ring on her left hand and kissed her passionately. Everything had gone according to plan. This was turning out to be the best birthday he'd ever had.
*Gil's house*
Jeff dropped me off at his Dad's house unwillingly at 5 o'clock. I didn't want to leave him either. But I made a promise to his dad, my future father in law. I was going to honor it. So I walked up to the front door with all my ingredients and knocked on the door. Gil opened it quickly and grinned at me. "Well if it isn't the lil miss. How ya doing honey?"He asked me, letting me in the house. I smiled at his nickname for me. "I'm doing good Gil. How bout you?"I asked him. He grinned at me.
"Much better now that I get to see my future daughter in law."He said, pointing to my hand. I grinned at him and played with the ring. "Yeah. He totally took me by surprise on it."I said. Gil laughed. "That's how proposals go dear. You know that's the very ring I gave Ruby back when we got married."Gil said softly. I looked at him in surprise. "I had no idea..."I trailed off. Gil smiled. "Jeff came to me about 3 weeks ago and said 'Dad, I want to propose to Vanessa.' I immeadiately went to my room and got the ring. I handed it to him and I said to him 'Give this to her son.' He protested that he couldn't take his mother's ring, as it was one of the last things I have to remember her by, but I persisted."Gil looked me in the eyes. "I said 'Jeff I see the look in your eyes when you look at her. That's the same look I gave your mother. I can tell you love her much more than you've ever loved Beth. Take the ring son and propose to her.' And he did just that."Gil said. "Now let's get to cooking some steak. I'm hoping maybe I can learn a thing or two from you."
*Jeff's birthday dinner/cookout*
While everyone else ate, Jeff and I were busy cuddling and talking amonst our selves. Shannon finally had enough of it. "Alright I demand to know why you two are looking so cozy over there!"He said. I smiled at Jeff. "Should we tell them?"I asked. Jeff smiled back and shrugged. "I don't know. I kinda like torturing them."He said. "I DEMAND TO KNOW!"Shannon said loudly. Jeff and I laughed together. I held up my left hand. "We're engaged."Jeff said. There were a bunch of "Congratulations!"all at once. Jeff grasped my hand and kissed my temple softly. "I love you."He whispered. I snuggled closer to him. "I love you more."
Cue the awwwwwwwww's! So in case you were wondering...that was the big thing. :D. It really wasn't supposed to occur this early but it fit so WELL. I couldn't pass it up. Also I think Speechless fits them incredibly well. Next chapter contains Adam's and Mark's reactions, some more Jay, and of course humor and drama! Thank you for reviewing and please continue to do so!
P.S this is like the cheesiest thing I've ever written in my life haha but I love it :D