December 20th, 1912

Rose yawned and stretched out her arms as she woke up, still sleepy even though she had slept in until ten o'clock. The baby had spent all night kicking, which constantly woke Rose up and sometimes kept her awake for quite awhile. Rose turned over in bed and was surprised to find that Jack was no longer sleeping beside her. Where could he be? She got her answer as the smell of food cooking in the kitchen crept into the bedroom, making Rose get out of bed, suddenly hungry. She went to the bathroom that was connected to their bedroom to freshen up before changing from her nightgown to a dress she could wear for the day. Taking a quick glance in the mirror, she hurried downstairs to where her husband seemed to be cooking breakfast.

Rose walked into the kitchen, surprised to see that breakfast was cooked, the dining room table was set, but Jack was nowhere to be found. He had clearly just finished cooking breakfast, because the food was still hot. Where could he have gone?

"Jack?" Rose asked loudly as she walked from the kitchen to the living room. She was so far along in her pregnancy that her walk had become more of a waddle, and she was slightly annoyed that she had to spend her morning searching for Jack. "Jack, sweetie? Where are you?" Rose asked again as she walked into the living room, which seemed to be empty.

As Rose turned around to leave the living room and continue her search, she heard such a loud scream from behind her that she almost jumped, shocked at the sudden noise. "SURPRISE!"

Rose quickly turned back around, to see the living room full with her family and friends. Jack, Charlie, Lilly, Paul, and Anna all stood from behind couches and chairs, wearing huge smiles on their faces. Rose was confused – what were they all doing here? What was the surprise?

"Jack, what's going on?" Rose asked.

Jack chuckled. Had his wife forgotten her own birthday? He walked forward to where Rose stood and put his arms around her, pulling her into a tight embrace. "Happy birthday, sweetheart."

Rose smiled. She had forgotten her own birthday. With everything she had been doing to get ready for the baby, she had totally forgotten that today was the day that she turned eighteen. Of course, Jack hadn't forgotten and had gotten their friends over to surprise her. For the millionth time, Rose thanked God for giving her someone as wonderful as Jack. Cal would never have done something like this for her birthday – hell, he might not have even acknowledged her special day. Jack was always thinking of ways to make her happy. "Oh, Jack. You did this for me?"

"Yes, sweetheart. We're all here to celebrate your birthday. I made a huge brunch for us, with Lilly's help."

"Jack, you didn't have to.."

Jack put a finger to his wife's lips, not letting her finish her sentence. "Rose, it's your eighteenth birthday. Such a big day requires a big celebration."

Rose smiled and gave Jack a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, Jack."

"Anything for my Rosebud. Now, how about we go enjoy that brunch I cooked for you?"

Rose nodded and let Jack lead her to the dining room, where there were six plates set up. Jack, Rose, Lilly, Charlie, Anna and Paul all sat around the table and began to serve themselves food. The brunch was full of all kinds of chatter and laughter between the six friends, and Rose couldn't have been happier. What better way to spend her birthday than with all of the wonderful people she loved dearly? She couldn't believe how lucky she was. Eight months ago, she was ready to commit suicide. Now, she had a wonderful husband and some amazing friends to share her life with.

When everyone had finished eating, Jack stood up from the table to make an announcement. "Well, I have a surprise for my lovely wife. Lilly, could you go get it please?"

Lilly nodded and ran off to the kitchen, where she was going to retrieve Rose's surprise. Rose looked at Jack, confused. What else could he have done? Knowing Jack, her birthday was going to be full of surprises. Lilly walked back in shortly after she left, with a large birthday cake in her hands. On it were eighteen candles, which lit up the dim dining room once Jack turned the lights off.

"Oh my goodness! You guys shouldn't have!" Rose exclaimed. Jack smiled and walked over to his wife, putting his arm around her. "We wanted to, sweetheart. It's your birthday, and you get a cake. How about you blow out those candles and make a wish?"

Rose nodded and quickly made a wish to herself. "I hope our baby is born healthy and grows up to be a wonderful human being," Rose thought as she blew the candles on her cake out.

Everyone clapped and gave their birthday wishes after Rose blew out the candles and sat back down in her seat. Jack served up the cake, which was white with chocolate frosting, to everyone at the table.

"Jack, this is the best birthday cake I have ever had," Rose said as she looked lovingly at her husband, who was sitting right next to her. Jack took her free hand in his and smiled back at her, silently admiring how beautiful she looked when she was so happy. "Anything for you, my love."

After eating cake and spending some time talking, the six friends went into the living room to open gifts. When Rose sat down on the couch, she was shocked to see a small stack of wrapped gifts in front of her on the coffee table. "This is too much, you guys. You really didn't have to get me anything," Rose said.

Lilly laughed. "Rose, you're our friend, and it's your birthday. You deserve a few gifts," Lilly said as she picked one up and handed it to Rose. "Here, this one is from Charlie and me."

Rose looked at the wrapped gift and began ripping the paper off, revealing a white box. Removing the lid, she gasped, lifting a small pair of pearl earrings from the box. A smile crossed her face as she looked at Charlie and Lilly.

"Oh, Lilly, Charlie," Rose said, admiring the earrings. "These are absolutely beautiful. Thank you so much."

"You're welcome, Rose. Lilly picked them out. I'm not quite an expert when it comes to jewelry," Charlie said, making everyone laugh. "But we both thought that they would look nice on you."

"I think they will look wonderful. I'll be sure to wear them often. Thank you both," Rose said sincerely. She was so lucky to have such wonderful friends.

Lilly and Charlie both smiled, glad that their friend liked her birthday gift so much. Anna picked up another box off of the table and handed it to her friend. "This one is from Paul and me. Go ahead, open it."

Rose tore the paper off of the wrapped gift, which revealed a white box that was a bit larger than the one she had just opened. She gasped as she removed the lid from the box and started to lift out several clothing items for the baby. Rose's face broke out in a huge smile as she admired the beautiful clothing.

"Oh, my goodness.." Rose whispered as she ran her hand over one of the baby dresses. "They're beautiful. Thank you both."

"Not a problem," Paul said, happy to see that Rose enjoyed the gift that he and his wife had picked out. "We know you're going to need them."

Rose nodded. She hadn't bought many clothes for the baby yet, as she had been so busy setting up the nursery and buying other things. "Our baby is going to love these, right Jack?"

Jack nodded. "Paul, Anna, thank you. We really appreciate it."

"You're welcome," Anna smiled.

Rose couldn't believe how wonderful her friends were, spending their hard-earned money to give her a birthday celebration. She truly was so lucky. The six friends spent the rest of the afternoon talking and celebrating Rose's birthday, with Jack promising that he would give Rose her gift later, in private. She wondered what it could be – with Jack, it could be anything.

Later that afternoon, Lilly, Charlie, Anna, and Paul all went back to their respective homes for dinner after wishing Rose one last happy birthday. Jack had cooked Rose a delicious birthday dinner, and they were now sitting at the table, enjoying each other's company.

"So, Rosebud. I told you that I would give you your gift once our friends left," Jack said as he held his wife's hand from across the dining room table.

"Oh, Jack. You really have done so much for me today. You didn't have to get me anything."

"Nonsense. You just wait here one moment, and I'll go get it," Jack said as he hurried out of the dining room.

Rose shook her head, wondering to herself what on earth Jack could have gotten her. He returned to the room a few minutes later, with a small box that was wrapped up. "Here," Jack said as he handed the box to his wife. "Open it."

Rose slowly torn the wrapping paper away, only to reveal a small black box. She gasped as she lifted the lid of the box, revealing Jack's birthday gift to her. "Oh, Jack…" Rose whispered as she lifted a silver necklace with a heart-shaped locket from the box. "This is absolutely beautiful..."

"Look at the inside of the locket, Rose."

Rose opened up the locket, where she saw that one side had a J engraved and the other had an R engraved. "Oh, Jack. I love it, and I love you. This is gorgeous."

"I know it's no Heart of the Ocean, but.."

Rose immediately put a finger to her husband's lips, quieting him. "Jack, this is so much better, because it came from you. I love it. Will you put it on me, please?"

Jack smiled and walked behind his wife, putting the necklace around her neck. It fit perfectly, and it looked absolutely beautiful on Rose. "I love you, Rosebud."

Jack walked back in front of his wife and kneeled down next to her, giving her a kiss on the lips. The kiss grew deeper and Rose wrapped her arms around her husband, pulling him closer. Jack, remembering that he still had one more surprise for his wife, pulled away. "Rose, there's one more thing I still have to give you."

"Jack, what else could you possibly have gotten me? The surprise party..dinner..cake..this beautiful locket..you've gotten me too much already!" Rose exclaimed, laughing.

"Well, there's one more thing I need to give my beautiful wife. Wait right here, because I have to run next door to Charlie and Lilly's to get it." Jack gave Rose a quick kiss on the lips before running out the door, not offering an explanation to his confused wife.

Rose sat in the kitchen, running her fingers over the beautiful locket that Jack had given her that was now around her neck. She was totally confused. What else could Jack have gotten her, and why would it be at Charlie and Lilly's house instead of their own? Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard the front door open and Jack's voice come from the foyer. "Rose, close your eyes."

Rose closed her eyes, still confused at what Jack's gift was. "Okay, they're closed."

"Keep them closed until I say." Rose heard Jack's footsteps coming closer to the dining room. "Okay, Rosie, you can look now."

Rose opened her eyes and saw that sitting in the middle of the entryway was the cutest puppy she had ever seen. It was a small black dog with some white spots mixed in. The puppy happily wagged her furry tail, waiting for Rose to come give her some attention.

"Oh, Jack!" Rose exclaimed as she ran over to the small puppy, who licked her hand.

"Do you like her?" Jack asked as he sat down next to Rose and the puppy.

"Like her? I love her! She is the cutest thing I've ever seen!" Rose exclaimed as she scratched the small dog behind her ears. "What kind of dog is this? Her coloring is beautiful."

Jack smiled and rubbed the puppy's belly as she rolled over. "She's a collie. A guy who works with Paul had a dog who was having a litter. They didn't have room on their farm to keep all of the puppies, so they needed to find homes for some of them."

"Oh, Jack! I wanted a puppy so bad! Our baby is going to love her."

"I know," Jack said, smiling. "I remembered when you asked me in Central Park if we could get a dog someday. When Paul mentioned his friend, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for us to get a dog. Great timing, too, since I surprise you with her for her birthday."

"Jack! You remembered me wanting a dog?" Rose whispered, shocked that her husband would remember such a thing. It was Jack, though. He always listened intently to anything Rose had to say, taking it in and remembering it all.

"Of course I did, Rosebud," Jack said as he scooped the small dog into his arms, scratching its ears.

"Thank you, Jack, thank you! This is the most wonderful surprise you could have given me!" Rose exclaimed as she took the puppy from Jack's arms. "Does she have a name?" she asked as she held the puppy against her body.

"No," Jack said. "Why don't you pick one?"

Rose thought for a minute, contemplating what to name the cute little puppy. Finally, she thought of a name. "What about Daisy? I had a doll named Daisy when I was little, and I've always thought it was a cute name."

Jack smiled. "I like that, Rose."

"Little Daisy," Rose whispered, kissing the puppy's small head.

"Rose?" Jack asked as he watched in awe as his wife cradled the small dog.

"Yes, Jack?"

"I love you so much. Happy birthday, sweetheart."

"I love you, too, Jack. Thank you for giving me the best birthday I could have asked for."

Jack smiled and kissed his wife on the forehead. He had never been more content than he was right now.

A/N: Sorry that it took me longer than usual to update, everyone! I've been SO busy lately with work. I hope you liked this chapter! Rose is eight months pregnant.. so that means that the baby will be born soon! Yay! Please review!