(Alex's POV)
"Fuck, Jack. Come on, man. You can drive faster than this!" I said when I noticed he was going 50 down the highway.
"I'm a horrible driver, Alex. Do you want to die?" Jack said.
"Stop the car." I said. "Stop the car and we will switch and I will fucking drive."
Jack pulled over and we switched seats.
I put on my seatbelt and punched the gas.
"Jesus, Alex." Jack held the edges of the seat.
I rolled my eyes as the spedometer edged towards 75.
I made the three hour drive home in 73 minutes, yes, I paid that close of attention to the time.
We stopped at Jack's house, he went inside, and I took my car home.
I grabbed my backpack out of the backseat and slung it over my shoulder and went in the house.
Annabeth ran into the room to see who was here.
"Alex!" She jumped into my waiting arms. "Thank god you're home."
"I missed you." I whispered and kissed her.
"I missed you too." She muttered.
I took a minute to look at her. There were bags under her eyes, her hair was disheveled, she had no make-up, and she was wearing sweats that were at least 3 sizes too big for her. "You look exhausted."
She nodded. "I am."
"Go to bed." I whispered. "I'll take care of Sydney, you get some rest, alright?"
"Are you sure?" She asked.
I nodded. "Of course, I have three days of being gone to make up for."
She smiled and kissed my cheek. "I love you."
"I love you too." I called as she hurried into the bedroom.
I walked in behind her to put my backpack in the closet and she was already asleep. I tucked the blankets around her and shut the door softly.
Sydney was asleep in the nursery so I sat down in the living room, waiting for the inevitable cries of my daughter.
I opened the calendar on my phone and looked at it, only ten more days until Annabeth's 18th birthday.
Only ten more days.
I closed the calendar and texted Rian, "Thanks so much for holding onto that ring for me, man. Only ten more days till she's 18 and I can ask her."
He texted back a minute later. "You're really serious about this, Alex? I know you, you said you would never settle down."
I sighed and replied, "That was before I met her."
Rian sent back a smiley face and I laughed.
So far, Rian was the only person who knew about my plans to propose to Annie.
He was the person I trusted the most. Jack wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut about this and Annie would probably be able to get it out of Zack with a little bit of begging and puppy dog eyes. But, Rian... Rian knew how to keep a secret.
But, whether or not it was kept quiet, I was still going to propose to her.
~!Author'sNote!~ I am so, so, so, so sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. Seriously, I took way too long with this one. It won't happen again, pinkie promises. Review please! xoxo, Aly.