She had nearly forgotten. What an idiot! What kind of girlfriend forgets their girlfriend's birthday? Well, that kind of girlfriend just so happened to be Miss Weiss Schnee, who had only remembered Ruby's birthday when it came up in a conversation.

"Weiss? You listening?" Yang was waving her hands about an inch away from Weiss's face, which really displeased her once she was brought back from space.

"Yes, I am, and your dirty hands are not needed," Weiss sneered as she brushed away the large hands in front of her. "You said you got her a what?"

"Not got, I made her the biggest cookie cake she will ever see. What did you do?"

"Well, with one week left..." Weiss had to think really quickly. First thing that popped into her head: Ruby. Second: summer. Third: beach? What was the best beach in Vale? One that had beach houses to rent for a night or two...a light bulb went off in her mind. "I booked a weekend vacation for the four of us at The Eagle Point."

Yang visibly did a double take and squinted her eyes in focus. "C-Come again?"

Weiss would have to book the houses tonight. She quickly made a mental note before responding. "I booked a weekend vacation for you, me, Ruby, and Blake. We're staying at The Eagle Point."

"Weiss, are you serious right now? The beach itself could already be a great trip, but you went and booked some houses? Exactly how rich are you?"

"I can't tell you that. For many reasons."

The door to Weiss's office opened, and a certain bubbly paintballer came rushing through the large room and straight to Weiss. Yang watched the display of affection and leaned back in her chair. "Sure, find a girlfriend and completely forget about your big sis. I see, I get it."

"Sorry, Yang, I didn't mean it like that," Ruby chuckled as she moved to hug Yang next. "Just gotta give my girlfriend some love."

"And leave none for me?"

"You've had the past twenty years, and not once did I complain when you started dating Blake. Weiss deserves some too, ya know." The brunette pulled up a chair and sat at the desk with the two older women. "What've you guys been talking about?"

"Nothing much," Yang shrugged, "just about your embarrassing middle school life."

Weiss nodded as a smile curled onto her lips. "You never told me you were Little Red Riding Hood, Ruby."

The blush on her face could not be any more obvious. "Yang, you told her?!"

"Yep! Every juicy detail!" The blonde started to laugh, and as Ruby's face flared as red as her tips, Weiss quietly joined in.

"In Ruby's defense, you did burn down a club one time."

"Ruby, you told her?!" Now Yang's face was as red as Ruby's. "He had it coming..."

"That doesn't excuse the fact that you burned down his entire place!" Ruby squeaked. "You're lucky I told Weiss and not Dad!"

"Alright, you two, that's enough now. My office is not your household, so I don't need to hear your arguments here." Weiss attempt to settle the siblings down was a success, both of them remaining quiet with their arms crossed. "Honestly, you two are practically still children."

While the siblings sat in silence for whatever odd reason - though she wasn't complaining - Weiss continued to work, and by work, she was really booking those beach houses. They did cost quite a bit per night, especially considering the fact that she had to rent two for Yang and Blake. She and Ruby would most likely be getting intimate, and it wouldn't come as a surprise if Yang and Blake did too. Just an extra precaution.

"So Weiss," Ruby said, her tone switching from embarrassment to a sly, somewhat seductive voice. "Anything special you want to tell me regarding my special day coming up?"

"Perhaps the fact that you are very special to me."

"Is, um...is that all?"

Weiss looked up from her laptop. Ruby was really trying, but Weiss just would not let her know. "Is that not what you were looking for?"

"N-No...I mean, yes, but..." The brunette groaned and gave up. "I meant about my birthday! Did you get me anything?"

"Oh, your birthday? That's for me to know and you to find out."

Ruby's silver eyes suddenly lit up, despite the fact that she didn't get what she was looking for. "Are we gonna do what I think we're gonna do?"

"What are you implying?" Weiss queried, an amused smile on her face.

The young woman held up two fingers in a 'v' shape and wiggled her tongue between them. "Ya know?"

Now it was Weiss's turn to flush as red as Ruby's tips. "I really wish I didn't..."

Yang perked up and smirked. "Maybe you two want to have a fours—"

"You finish that sentence and you are out of this office." In all seriousness, Weiss glared at her like a dead man.

"Was just joking."

"I'd rather you not."

"Fine," the blonde grumbled. "You're no fun."

"You're inappropriate. I'd much rather it be me and Ruby and no one else."

Ruby raised her hand. "I second that."

"And I highly doubt Blake would approve," Weiss turned back to her laptop and typed away.

As silence filled the room again, Ruby broke the silence and asked about Yang's day. Apparently, the blonde boxer/waitress was released early and went to Weiss's office because she was bored. When Ruby asked about Blake, Yang said she was busy at an interview with a publishing company.

"Why didn't you come to my work if that's the case?" Ruby swept away the hairs in her face that bothered her.

"As much as I love you, Ruby, all you talk about is either Weiss or paintball."

"How is that any different from before?"

Yang crossed her arms and stuck her tongue out. "It's weird to see my sister gush about an actual person and not just paintball guns."

Weiss tittered and winked at Ruby. "I don't mind."

Ruby got out of her seat and plopped herself down in Weiss's lap. "Good. I don't plan to ever stop."

"As long as it annoys Yang," the businesswoman smirked, "then by all means."

"God you two are something else," Yang muttered, rising from her chair. "Welp, I'm gonna go home and leave you two be."

"Bye Yang!" Ruby moved swiftly to give her a hug before returning to her seat beside Weiss. "So Weiss..."

"Yes, Ruby?" The busy CEO made no move to glance at the young girl, her eyes glued to her laptop monitor.

"Maybe—"

"If you're wanting to have sex on my desk, I'm afraid I'll have to decline despite how appealing that does sound right now."

"What? I wasn't gonna ask that..."

Now Weiss was looking up at her with a slightly impatient glance. "Then what is it?"

"I was thinking maybe we could get dinner when you get off? Then we could go back to my place and watch a movie or something?"

"Well," Weiss stretched and popped her back in her chair, "before you came today, I was planning to get takeout and go to your place."

"You sleep at my apartment so often, Weiss." Ruby rested her whole upper body on Weiss's desk. "You might as well just live with me."

The silver-haired businesswoman was speechless, seeming completely dumbfounded.

Ruby waved a hand in front of her girlfriend. "You alright, Weiss?"

"I-I'm..." She blinked a few times and did a double take. "A-Are you sure about that?"

"Yeah, why not? We've known each other for a good few months now, been dating for the same amount of time, and you practically already live with me." Sitting up, Ruby shrugged and crossed her arms. "I don't see why not."

"It would be nice...your home is much closer to my work than my own, and I do enjoy greeting Zwei every evening." Weiss sat back in her chair and stared at the ceiling in thought. "I'll admit that it will be nice to officially live with you and come home to you."

The brunette chuckled. "You do that anyway."

"I suppose I do." After a few more moments of thinking, Weiss came to her conclusion. "Let's do it. But when we have the time. We're currently in the middle of a seasonal shift, and there are a lot of things I need to review before the quarter ends. It's also your birthday week, and I wouldn't want to overwhelm you with moving my belongings in."

"Alright, sounds fair enough." Ruby then rested her chin on her hands as she gazed at her beautiful partner beside her. "Now for the important matter of business: where do you want to go for dinner?"

The day had come. Weiss was sure to fill in her weekly quota early to have the weekend off. And now the greatest weekend of Ruby's life was about to begin. Starting with waking up, Weiss gently wrapped her arms around the sleeping beauty beside her and made herself comfortable in the nook of her neck. She knew Ruby loved waking up like this, and she had to admit that she did as well.

A quiet mumble came from the younger woman, and Weiss was quick to react. She gently caressed Ruby's face in her hands and planted a soft kiss on the woman's lips.

"Mornin' Weiss," the brunette groggily murmured. She responded to Weiss's acts of affections and returned each kiss and touch.

"Good morning. Happy birthday, Ruby."

"Already?" Ruby tittered. "Man, I wanted to stay twenty. It's my favorite number."

"And why is that?" Weiss questioned with a smile.

Ruby shrugged. "No particular reason. Just one of those things where you gotta pick and it just sticks."

"I guess that's understandable. But you're twenty-one now," the silverette pressed another kiss to Ruby's lips. "How does it feel?"

"Not that different. Even if I'm now legally allowed to have alcohol, that doesn't mean I'll drink it. Beer tastes gross, wine is worse, and I don't think I could ever handle the strong stuff."

"How would you know what beer and wine taste like?" A white eyebrow arched in question.

The paintballer giggled. "Well, as a kid, have either of your parents let you try wine?"

"My father did when I was around six."

"And did you like it?"

"Not in the slightest."

"Exactly." Ruby nodded to further prove her point. "Then I was hanging out with Uncle Qrow one evening. I think I was sixteen, he let me try a bottle of beer."

"Did you enjoy it?"

Ruby laughed. "Why do you think I said beer tasted gross?"

"Alright, point proven," Weiss chuckled. "Are you ready for your birthday weekend to get started?"

"If it includes more of this and a lot more of you, then hell yeah! But can I get a bit of dessert before breakfast?" Ruby's sly smirk only brought a grin to Weiss's face as the younger woman started on her neck.

As much as Weiss did want to take Ruby for all she was worth, those activities were meant for tonight and the rest of their weekend. So as kindly as she could, she kept her grin and gently pried Ruby's head from her chest. "You're not getting dessert until you're all partied out. Besides, you've got the whole weekend to feast."

"All partied out? What're you up to, Weiss Schnee?"

"Things that you'll find out once we get there. Now get dressed, we're going to the diner for breakfast." Weiss sat up and immediately gasped as the cold air hit her bare skin. "Why's it always so damn cold in the morning?"

"It can get pretty hot in here when—" a pillow suddenly interrupted Ruby and knocked her back down on the bed. As quickly as she fell, Ruby rose back up to protest. "Hey, you didn't let me finish!"

"I know what you were going to say!"

"I wasn't going to say when we make love, I meant because it's summer! It gets so freaking hot in here without the AC!" Ruby crossed her arms and smirked. "Who's the dolt now?"

Weiss didn't say anything, continuing to the bathroom nude with a very red face. "Keep that up and you get none of Yang's cake."

The brunette gasped loudly and ran to Weiss. "She's not making her famous cookie cake, is she?"

"In her words, it will be 'the biggest cookie cake she will ever see.'"

Now Ruby's mouth was watering. "I'll behave! I promise!"

"Good, now go get changed! We're both still very naked!" Weiss barked, shoving Ruby into the closet.

As the two were changing, Weiss quickly grabbed a large suitcase filled with enough clothes for the two of them this weekend. She had packed it while Ruby was at work the other day. It took her a quite a bit to find Ruby's swimsuit, and her nosebleed upon finding it lasted even longer. Her imagination had never run so wild.

"What's the suitcase for?" Ruby arched an eyebrow and caressed her chin, seeming to completely forget about the unbuttoned jeans around her waist. "You're not trying to send me to some obscure country with all of my belongings, are you?"

"I can assure you that nothing of the sort will happen. However, we will be going somewhere to spend the weekend. I'll give you that much."

"Hmm, I wonder where..." As the birthday girl started to guess in her mind, she buttoned her jeans and threw on a red and black flannel.

"You don't need to worry about that right now," Weiss said just after spitting out some mouthwash. She quickly did her hair in her usual side ponytail, brushing out all of the knots and tangles that remained in her mane of white. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeap! Lemme just brush my hair real quick and then we'll get going!"

Ruby took at least two minutes to brush her hair in a very frantic fashion, tying it up in a messy ponytail. Weiss couldn't help but smile upon seeing it. "I like the ponytail. Suits you quite nicely."

"It's my birthday after all, thought I'd change it up a bit."

Weiss reached up to what Ruby thought would be her face. Instead, the CEO reached to grab the ponytail and yank it, though not hard enough to hurt too much.

"Hey, what was that for?"

"You're a dolt." The businesswoman gently caressed her girlfriend's face and kissed her lips. "My silly, talented, and incredible dolt."

The trip to the diner was harmonious to say the least. The two sang each song on the radio without a single care in the entire world, harmonizing and taking turns to solo. Ruby wanted to drive, but knowing how distracted Ruby would've been with her birthday and all, Ruby being distracted and driving was out of the question.

Distracted driving is out of the question period. Stay off of your phones while driving, peeps. ;)

With the expensive VMW parked in the parking lot, Weiss led Ruby into the diner, and as soon as they entered, the entire staff came out to surprise her.

"Happy birthday, Ruby!"

Confetti was thrown all over, party horns were blown about, and Yang snuck up on her sister to place a party hat on her head. They all cheered and clapped, and in the matter of seconds, everyone was chanting for a speech.

Ruby dramatically brought her fist to her heart and sniffled. "This very day is not about my birthday or another year of me being closer to death, but simply a reminder of how precious time is and how quickly it can slip away. I remember just yesterday I was off to my first day of kindergarten and now here I am. All grown, not alone, and a working champion."

No one spoke nor reacted, and Weiss was confused for a moment.

"Nah, I'm just joking! You guys are the greatest!"

And at that final statement, they all cheered once more. Pyrrha clapped her hands loudly to gather the attention of her coworkers. "Alright, back to work guys! Thank you!"

Yang wrapped her arms tightly around the white and red couple, leading them to a booth by a window. "A very good morning to you two! And a happy fan-freaking-tastic birthday to the best sister in the world!"

"Thanks, Yang." Ruby smiled as she hugged her sister in return.

"I hope I'm not getting ahead of myself for saying, but no snarky comment about me for a whole eight minutes?" Weiss smirked. "Someone's in a really good mood today."

"Don't get cocky, Ice Queen. I'm just glad that I can now drag my sister to a bar and drink with her whenever I want!"

"Hey, twenty-one years doesn't mean I want to drink, Yang," the younger sibling whined. "I don't need alcohol. I drink milk."

"Whose milk? Snow Cone's?"

Both Ruby and Weiss flushed and looked anywhere that wasn't at the giant bimbo in front of them. Weiss sighed, still refusing to look at the blonde. "Just...get me and Ruby some breakfast..."

To make matters worse, Yang started cackling like a hyena. "As you wish, Ice Queen." The blonde idiot curtsied while snickering.

"I love her but I hate her." Ruby rested her chin on her palm, which was propped up by her elbow.

Weiss tittered. "Would you be offended if I agreed?"

"Not at all." The smile Ruby had never ceased to make Weiss's heart flutter. "Just as long as you don't actually hate her. You...you don't actually hate her, do you?"

"No, of course not. I could never," Weiss looked away for a slight moment, "though she makes it very hard."

"You'll get used to it." Ruby sighed and stretched her back. "What's your plan for today, Weiss?"

"The plan is to grab everyone else at the paintball shop. Sun will take us to the final destination in his truck."

"We're riding in Sun's truck?! Do you have any idea how filthy that rust bucket is?"

The businesswoman smirked as if she had just finished signing a contract (she gets really excited and kinda smug about signing good contracts, Ruby considered herself lucky to witness it once). "Worry not, for I have forced him against his own will to scrub that vehicle up to my own personal standards."

Ruby's silver orbs twinkled brightly like stars. "Wow, I didn't think that was even possible! I don't know how many you've invited to whatever it is you've planned, but that truck only fits two people. Wouldn't it be better to take a van or something?"

"We're all sitting in the back." Weiss pulled out her scroll and started to review it. "I've checked every law in Vale and found nothing against it, so I think we should be fine. We're not going on the main highways either, so it should be fine."

"I've never ridden in the back of a truck before, this is gonna be so fun!" Her excitement and enthusiasm was nothing like Weiss had ever seen before. "God, I'm so excited!"

"I knew you would be."

"Hey, you two! Breakfast is ready!" Yang placed two plates of waffles in front of them. "All on the house in honor of the birthday girl!"

"Aw, thanks Yang!"

"Not a problem, Rubes! And Pyrrha, Ren, Nora and I will be joining you in the truck!"

"You guys too? But don't you have work?"

Yang waved it off with a bright smile. "Pyrrha's putting someone else in charge, we've had others fill in for us today. Now just enjoy your breakfast!"

With breakfast finished, Weiss drove Ruby and her sister - and her three coworkers - to the paintball shop. Yang complained about Ruby's pop station, Pyrrha and Nora defended the younger woman by singing along, and Ren was silent. Weiss pulled into the parking lot of the shop, right next to Sun's white truck. Sun was sitting on the hood, waving at the bunch with Jaune and Neptune leaning against the side.

As soon as Ruby got out of Weiss's car, she gave the three boys a huge hug. When she pulled away, she crossed her arms and smirked. "Trying to look cool for me by leaning against the truck like badasses?"

Jaune chuckled. "Well, sort of. Sun wouldn't let us sit on the hood or the back yet, so we resorted to the side."

"Ha ha ha," Ruby laughed. "You guys are such losers. The greatest losers around."

"We couldn't be the greatest without the leader of the losers, could we?" Neptune shook his head and laughed with her. "It's good to see you again, Ruby. Happy birthday."

"Thanks, Neptune."

Sun and Jaune both wished her right after Neptune did, seeming to forget the reason of them being there.

Yang got out of the vehicle with Weiss and the rest, immediately wondering where her girlfriend was. "Where's Blake? She was supposed to be here with you guys, right?"

Both of the blonde men nodded, Sun answering before Jaune could. "She's just inside with Velvet and Coco."

The two siblings went inside to greet them, though Yang went mainly for Blake.

"You guys came too?" Ruby gave both of the brunettes a hug after embracing Blake.

Coco nodded and smiled. "Weiss invited us. Well, I'm technically still on call for her today, but she still let me come."

"Thanks for coming."

"Of course," Velvet spoke. "Happy birthday, Ruby."

Minutes later, luggage was shoved and secured onto the top rack of the truck bed, everybody clambered into the bed, and Sun turned on the ignition. Sun was sure to open the back window and blast Ruby's favorite pop station, everyone singing along as they went down the roads. Yang and Nora nearly fell out as they both attempted to stand and spar each other at a red light. Definitely not the brightest idea, and thank goodness nobody died or was injured for the entire trip. It wasn't that long of a drive, about 45 minutes to an hour before they reached their destination.

"No freaking way." Ruby couldn't help but stare in awe of the shoreline they passed by before making their way to the beach entrance. "Is this The Eagle Point?"

Weiss nodded her head with a smile. "The one and only. And we'll be staying for the entire weekend."

If there were any walls around, Ruby would be bouncing around hard enough to break them. Blake giggled as she tapped Ruby's shoulder, which quickly earned the girl's attention. "Yang and I will be staying the weekend with you two."

Hearing that gave her all the more reason to be exuberant. Weiss grasped her girlfriend's shoulders tightly and pulled her close. "We should probably stop giving her more reasons to explode."

Yang laughed heartily. "You could drop her from a plane and she'd be able to wipe out all of Remnant, probably."

"That's not right," Ren spoke out. "You're talking about Nora, not Ruby. Ruby could only take out Mistral at the most."

"Good point," Yang agreed.

Sun stopped in a secluded area near the two houses Weiss rented. He turned down the radio and slapped the side of his truck to get the occupants' attention. "Alright, all of y'all get your asses out of my truck! We're here!"

The first ones to not-so-gracefully fall out of the truck were Nora and Ruby, who started racing each other in the sand while the others carefully climbed out. Sun and Yang helped Weiss and Blake bring down the luggage from the top, bringing the two large bags to the houses. While those four brought the luggage to their weekend homes, Ren, Jaune, and Pyrrha unpacked the rest of the things above the rack. They had brought a grill top, enough charcoal and firewood to last a whole week, a volleyball set, and your typical beach ball.

Among those things were Ren's cooking supplies. He was prepared to cook up an entire feast for tonight. Jaune and Pyrrha would help him later on, and Nora would most likely be swatted away at least two dozen times before noon.

"Ruby! Come inside and get changed if you want to swim!" Weiss called from the porch. "You need to put on sunscreen!"

Just as a dog would, Ruby came running to Weiss eagerly with a bright smile. "Will you put the sunscreen on me?"

The blush on Weiss's cheeks could not have been any more obvious. "O-Only if you return the favor."

"Done deal! Lemme get changed real quick!" Before Ruby had the chance to dash for anywhere to change, she realized she needed to know where the luggage was. "Umm, Weiss? Where's, um...where's our stuff?"

"The bedroom is upstairs, our luggage is by the bed." Weiss pointed up the stairs, Ruby's gaze following the direction.

"Okay, thanks!" The young woman took this chance to admire how cool this place looked. It had a simple look to it, but it felt so homey and...beach-y. White walls with the occasional beach photo, modern-looking lights and staircase, high hardwood ceilings, white tiled floors, the features go on. And the best part - the best part had to be the fantastic view of the beach. The porch entrance was surrounded by glass panes that revealed the magnificent display of the beach.

And to think that Weiss rented two of these houses for the entire weekend. All for her. All because a crazy, wild, reckless paintballer with no other achievement or title to her name turned 21. And just as Ruby, with swimsuit in hand, ended up in their bathroom, she could only stare at herself in the mirror.

Weiss did all of this - spent an unthinkable amount of money, gathered up all of her friends and loved ones in the area that she knew of, and forced a messy blonde to scrub his truck devoid of germs - for Ruby. Was she really worth that much?

No, that can't be possible. Ruby was nothing more than a paintballer that worked full at a paintball shop with nothing more than a few plastic trophies, some medals, and a useless art degree. She didn't deserve someone like Weiss.

She was worth nothing more than the mud she slipped on in the forest. Weiss was such an accomplished woman, being the CEO of the leading company of the entire world at 23! Ruby couldn't possibly repay Weiss for this. Weiss was worth more than her own life.

"Ruby? You alright up there?"

It wasn't until she heard Weiss's voice that she noticed tears running down her cheeks. She heard footsteps. Weiss was coming upstairs.

"Ruby, are you alri—" Weiss immediately noticed the tears and wasted no time in engulfing her girlfriend in a warm embrace. "What's the matter?"

Ruby didn't speak. She couldn't speak. She was in complete debt.

"What's the matter, Ruby?" Weiss gripped tighter. "Did someone say something? Did Coco do something? Is it..."

Shit. Anything but that. She's—

"Is it something I did?"

Blaming herself.

"Weiss, why?" Ruby sniffled, refusing to look Weiss in the eye.

"Why what?"

"Why me? I can't give you anything you could already get for yourself at no cost, I'm a lousy paintballer with no actual career, and I'm most definitely not worth two beach houses for a weekend."

In that moment, Weiss did the only thing she could think of and wrapped her arms around the taller woman's neck, pressing her own lips onto her partner's. She was slow and tender with each kiss, murmuring quiet words of kindness in between each one. Ruby couldn't help but break down and cry, and Weiss was sure to be with her all the way through.

It made sense to Weiss why Ruby would think this way. If she were to put herself in Ruby's shoes, dating the CEO of the world's leading company can be pretty intimidating. She could already feel stress just by thinking about how she was making Ruby feel.

So to put her girlfriend at ease, she said the three words that meant nothing but the absolute truth.

"I love you."

As quiet as it was, it was louder and clearer than anything Ruby had ever heard.

"I love you, Ruby. I love you."

Weiss could feel Ruby's grip tighten around her waist, and she adjusted to bring Ruby as close as possible. She could hear her slowing heartbeat, her breathing settling, and the quiet whimpers that refused to make themselves known.

"It's okay to cry, Ruby. I'm here." Weiss cooed, stroking Ruby's back gently.

The floodgates broke wide open, and Ruby was nothing but a sobbing mess on Weiss's shoulder. And Weiss did her best to support the younger girl and help her through this.

"I-I love you too, Weiss," Ruby finally let out. "I really love you."

"And I really love you too." Weiss smiled and wiped Ruby's tears away. "Don't think you're not enough for me. You're everything I could ever want and more. I love you, Ruby, and I really want you to know that. I mean it."

"Th-Thank y-you, Weiss," Ruby stuttered, her breath hitching every so often due to her outburst of sobs.

"Of course. Now then, would you like to go swim now? I can get you a glass of water while you change, then I can rub the sunscreen on you if you still want me to."

The brunette nodded and gave a small smile. "That'd b-be nice."

As Weiss turned to leave, Ruby looked at herself in the mirror one last time. She was a mess, her eyes were red, her ponytail was super loose, and yet Weiss still loved her for all of it. Weiss loved her. She didn't care about her titles, her slightly lower-than-average income, or even the fact that she never ate her vegetables.

"Well, the last one might be a bit of a stretch," she mumbled to herself.

But the point was that Weiss didn't care if she was rich or poor, muddy or spotless, or even famous or not. She loved her, and Ruby loved her back.

After changing into the swimsuit, Ruby washed her face and redid her ponytail. Weiss came in moments later with a glass of water, grabbing her own swimsuit shortly after.

"Are you feeling better, Ruby?"

Ruby nodded and smiled, pressing a quick kiss to Weiss's cheek in response. "Thank you, Weiss."

"No need. Now allow me to get changed and then we can get started."

Weiss was struggling to keep her cool. Ruby was just way too distracting. It took every nerve in her entire body to keep her from tearing that bikini right off of her girlfriend.

Thankfully she managed. The most challenging part was the sunscreen.

The day went on with games and races, Ruby and Yang wrestling Nora and Jaune in the water, Pyrrha and Ren cooking away, and Weiss sitting under a beach umbrella with Neptune and Blake. Sun was out with Coco and Velvet to retrieve a few ingredients Ren had not been able to bring on the trip.

"C'mon, five out of six? Rubes and I got plenty of energy to spare, we should bump it up to nine out of ten!" Yang declared as she carried Ruby on her shoulders.

Nora smirked, lightning surging in her eyes. "You're on!"

"Nora, please be sensible!"

"I am! And I believe the wisest action is to take on their challenge and beat them!"

Jaune shrugged and allowed the ginger onto his shoulders. "Okay."

Needless to say, the challenge resulted with Ruby and Yang being the victors with a close score of 5-4.

Yang set her sister down and came up with a devious plan. "Hey Rubes, wanna gawk at our amazing girlfriends and convince them to come into the water with us?"

"Ooh, are we gonna use the secret weapon?"

"You know it."

"Are you sure it'll work this time?"

"We've got our abs out, there's no way it won't."

Ruby's silver eyes lit up with excitement. "Let's do it!"

The two sisters walked up to their partners beneath the umbrella with stupid-looking grins on their faces. Yang nearly broke character before speaking in a ridiculously low and 'manly' voice. "It's real hot out here, wouldn't you say, Sis?"

The brunette did her best to imitate her sister's tone. "Yeap, it's really blazing out here."

Weiss arched an eyebrow in amusement. "What're you two playing at?"

"It sure is a great thing we're at the beach, ey? With all the water and stuff?" Yang nudged her sister who had forgotten her cue.

"Oh! Oh, yeah, totally! Ya know," Ruby smirked and waggled her eyebrows at the two ladies sitting down, "it'd be real nice if two lovely and gorgeous young ladies could join us."

Blake looked at Weiss and crossed her arms with a sly smile. "Hmm, I wonder where you could possibly find two ladies that fit your description."

"I don't think I have to walk that far," Yang grinned as she winked at her girlfriend.

"Hey Sis, look at what time it is! I believe it's time to show off some guns," Ruby said as she started flexing her arms.

Yang was quick to join in and play along. "Oh, right you are, Sis!"

The two dolts flexed and posed in positions that best exhibited their muscles. They could tell it was working on their girlfriends. Weiss was trying to avoid eye contact with Ruby's body, but failed miserably while Blake just took it all in.

"And now for the final move!" The red and yellow duo posed in such a way that showed off their entire bodies, exclaiming: "Double stud sister attack!"

It was super effective! Both Weiss and Blake were now practically brain-dead as small trickles of blood flowed from their noses.

"We did it!" They both exclaimed as they high-fived each other. Then they both picked up their respective girlfriends and started bringing them to the water.

"Let's go swim!" Ruby shouted, sprinting towards the ocean with Weiss in her arms.

Weiss started squirming in Ruby's arms. "Ruby Rose, you put me down this instant!"

Ruby grinned, for she had reached the water. "If you insist!"

The sun had done down, a bonfire was started, and the real party began. Apparently Sun had the great idea to purchase tiki torches while grocery shopping for Ren. When he brought them out and lit them, they actually looked really nice and added to the beach-y atmosphere. When Ren said he would prepare a feast, he sure as hell prepared a feast. And a fine feast it was, the main course featuring a whole roast pig. Just when they thought they couldn't get any more stuffed, Yang brought out her giant cookie cake with 21 candles. Ruby and Nora were the only ones who were able to finish their portion of cookie, everyone else being too bloated and full to even manage a crumb. There was no doubt that the giant cookie cake was good, but a huge amount still remained.

Over the next couple of hours, Yang brought out champagne and wine, Sun brought beer, and Nora had vodka. The majority of them were sober or drunk, and that definitely made for a great spectacle. Yang got completely wasted and tried to bend fire while skinny dipping, Nora blacked out, Sun was laughing for no reason at all, and Neptune forgot he was gay and tried flirting with Pyrrha. Coco tried the hardest she could to resist drinking, she and Velvet both had work tomorrow. They ended up leaving early for that same reason.

"It would most definitely not be safe to have Sun drive us back. Pyrrha, Jaune, do you two think you could help get these three into the truck?" Ren asked, already starting with Nora on his back. "I can drive us back, I've had nothing to drink at all tonight."

"Good idea, Ren," Jaune said, struggling to carry Sun alone.

"Hey, let me help out," Ruby offered, picking up the blonde's feet.

Weiss trotted over to help Ren clean up. "Are you going to be okay driving back? Will Nora be okay?"

Ren nodded and gave a small smile. "She'll be fine, she just needs to be in bed. And I'll be alright. I have Pyrrha and Jaune should I need any help, but thank you, Weiss. And thank you for inviting us. This has been very fun and relaxing."

"Do I need to pay you anything? You did just cook an entire feast to feed at least ten families."

"No need, I enjoy cooking quite a bit." Ren looked to Ruby who was help Jaune set the drunk blonde in the back of the truck. "Besides, I'd do anything for a friend. Have a good night, Weiss."

"You too, Ren." Weiss smiled as the raven-haired cook walked off.

Ruby jogged up to Weiss and sighed as she rested her chin on the shorter woman's shoulder. They both watched as the truck drove away in the distance while to bonfire died down. The tiki torches were put out, and the only artificial light came from within the houses behind them. Footprints were sprawled out in the sand, just as the stars were in the dark sky.

"This had to be the best birthday ever."

Weiss looked up at Ruby, noticing how different she was compared to a few hours ago. She was relaxed, calm, and happy. "I'm glad, Ruby."

"And Weiss, um," Ruby scratched the back of her head, leaning on the railing of the front porch. "I'm really sorry about earlier. It was kinda dumb of me to act that way, and I guess I just thought about this relationship too much. Like, I have no idea if we're moving too fast or something, I've never been in one before. All I know is that I really like you and I want to stay with you for as long possible."

"Don't be sorry, Ruby. I think we're moving at a reasonable rate, and any choices we make together feel more natural than anything else. I don't know what our future will hold, but staying with you seems like the only thing I can imagine." Weiss wrapped her arms around Ruby's waist and pulled her closer.

"Wanna go inside now?"

"That would be very much appreciated considering that my skin is very itchy from the saltwater you dunked me in."

Ruby giggled as she led her girlfriend inside. "You're welcome for that."

Once the two were inside, they immediately jumped into the shower to wash all of the saltwater from their bodies. As they washed their bodies, a few kisses were exchanged as well as the occasional pinch to the side which caused Weiss to squeak each time. The couple then dried off and got to bed, basking in each other's presence in the dark.

"Ruby, do you want to do it tonight or are you tired?"

"Is it okay if it waits until morning?" Ruby tittered. "I didn't realize how active we've been today until now. I'm, like, super sleepy now."

Weiss kissed Ruby's forehead and nodded. "I'll admit that I'm pretty spent today as well."

"So we'll call it a night then, huh?"

"If that's what you wish."

Ruby moved her head forward and kissed Weiss's lips, holding them there for at least a good few seconds before reaching for Weiss's hair to pull in for another. Weiss reciprocated quickly and wrapped her arms around Ruby's neck, moaning quietly when Ruby moved down to her neck. And then...

She stopped. She stayed there, her head resting in the nook of Weiss's neck.

"Is something wrong, Ruby?"

She shook her head, her arms wrapping around her girlfriend's waist. "No, nothing's wrong. I just love you so much. Thank you, Weiss."

"It's nothing, really. And I love you so much too. Happy birthday, Ruby."

Ruby smiled as she close her eyes.

"Goodnight, Weiss."

"Goodnight, Ruby."

Helloooooo again! Another chapter just you, my valued readers! Please do leave a review if you have something to share, I love reading all of your comments, and I'd love to know how I'm doing and if there's anything you would like to see!

Also thank you all so much for over a little over 100 followers within the first 5 chapters! I'm glad so many people enjoy this story as much as I love writing it!

fun fact: i forgot what a party horn was so i looked up 'the party thing that goes dooooooooo' and got my result. the height of technology, ladies and gentlemen.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Reviews and thoughts are always appreciated!