Chapter Five
The party was set for July 22, five days after Tom's birthday and five days before mine. Tom and I didn't mind that it was only a small party. We liked our little group; it was nice only having a few people. Too many people can get disruptive and crazy. We liked it simple.
We were all meeting at our apartment so we could head over together. As I was getting ready, Ashly poke her head in my room. "Hey birthday girl," she leaned against the door pane like usual.
"It's not my birthday yet. What's up?" I rummaged through my closet to find the right top to wear.
"I know it's not your birthday yet, I got you something that I think you'll want." I turned my head to see what she was talking about. She pulled out a black tank top with a blue and pink star on the back. I had seen the shirt in the window of the QuikSilver store. I was going to buy it but didn't have the money.
"Ash, you shouldn't have. How did you pay for it?" She handed the shirt to me. I switched from my Vans t-shirt to my new top.
"Don't worry about it. I just knew you wanted it. But I got you these too." Ashly pulled a tiny box out of her front jean pocket. She placed the box in my hand. I took off the lid to see matching earrings. I hugged her close. "Happy birthday."
"Thanks, Ash." I took the earrings out of the box and put them in my ears. "I guess we should get going."
Ash and I headed to the door when the guys came in. "Hey everybody," I greeted them.
"Hey," Tom said giving me the usual hello. "Ready to party?"
Ash wrapped her arm around my shoulder and said, "Of course she is, it's her birthday. Let's go party!"
Ashly, Harry, Dougie and Danny started walking out. Tom and I hung back for a moment. "Happy birthday, baby," Tom said. He wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed the corner of my lips and my cheek. He hadn't done that before nor had he called me baby. Maybe he was being this way because it was my birthday.
"Happy birthday, Tom."
"We should probably catch up to them." Tom took my hand in his as we started toward the bar.
I was having a great time dancing with my friends. True, we all had a buzz on, but none of us were out of control. About two hours after we arrived all of us headed into the VIP lounge. Tom and I cuddled together at the one end of the couch. He was whispering in my ear about how beautiful I looked. A smile was stuck on my face for good.
"Hey, we've got a surprise for you two," Harry announced.
Tom and I sat up to see Dougie and Ashly carrying over a cake for us. The cake was covered in shooting stars and said in script, 'Happy Birthday Audrey and Tom!' I'm surprised the cake wasn't on fire because of all the candles.
"Before you count, there are 46 candles. 2 for each of you and one for good luck for the both of you," Harry explained.
Ashly and Dougie placed the cake on the table in front of us. Tom had his arm around my waist as we waited to blow out the candles. The others started to sing the Birthday song. It sounded great except for Ash, who I think is tone-deaf. When they finished singing, Tom and I looked at each other before blowing the candles out. I knew what my wish was.
"Tom I hope you don't mind but I got you a little something," Ashly said digging through her purse. She pulled out a tiny book and had another square wrapped present. "Here you go." She handed them both to Tom. He looked at the small one first: a little green journal. "For you to write you lyrics." He opened the wrapped present to reveal a black notebook with a blue eighth note on the cover. He looked inside to see sheet paper. "To write the music to your lyrics."
He stood up and hugged her. "Thanks I know I'll use these." He came back by me. He leaned close to me and whispered to me, "I'm going to use the loo. I'll be right back." He kissed my cheek before leaving.
"Don't think we didn't get you anything Audrey," Dougie said. Each guy handed me a little white box.
I opened Danny's first. It was a black leather bracelet with stars all around it. It looked like one of the bracelets that they sold in a set of two. I opened Harry's next. It was the other bracelet: a light brown leather bracelet with one gold star on it. "Aren't these two supposed to be in a set, together?" I asked jokingly.
"I knew she would notice," Harry said hitting Danny's arm. Danny fell onto the couch because of it.
"I got you something for you that I didn't get with these two idiots." Dougie handed me a medium sized box. I opened it to see a new star strap for my guitar, purple picks and a metallic purple pick guard. "Ashly and I got you the pick guard together."
I got up to give everyone hugs, "Thanks guys. You are the best."
When Tom came back, he linked his hand with mine. "Lets go back on to the dance floor," he pulled me into the middle of the floor when the DJ made an announcement.
"This song goes out to a special Jersey girl. Happy birthday." The DJ switched tracks and I instantly recognized the song: Bon Jovi's, 'Living on a Prayer.' This was the song all Jersey girls knew. I had mention to Tom that this was one of they songs that got me into music. If it weren't for this song I might not have met Tom.
Tom leaned close and said, "Happy birthday, baby." He took my arms and put them around his neck. He wrapped his arms around my waist. We swayed back and forth. Everyone around us was grinding. We were slow dancing in the middle of the floor.
I looked up to him. "Thanks. This has been one of my best birthdays. I'm glad that I got to spent it with you."
"I'm happy you had such a good time. Thank you for giving me such a great birthday too."
"No problem," I said still looking in his eyes. I watched him as he moved a strand of hair out of my eyes. He put his hand on my neck and moved toward me. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before his lips met mine. It was a great first kiss to have with him. I'm sure it's the one first kiss with someone that I would remember until the day I die. His lips were soft and he was gentle. It was just like the movies. When we finally separated, he kissed my forehead and held me close. My wish came true.