Presley

"What if the chocolate doesn't come out nicely like in those ads and stuff?" My palms are sweating and I rub them on my denim shorts.

"It'll be fine, Elle. Stop worrying," Maddy says as she helps me finish decorating the cake.

"What if something happens to it? What if it breaks apart in two and half of it falls off?" My mind is going bonkers with possible bad things that can happen to the cake.

"You're just being paranoid, Presley," Jay says as he leans against the kitchen counter with his hands crossed, smirking. "I'll take good care of it until Deon cuts it."

I sigh and add the finishing touches before taking a step back from the kitchen counter to admire my work.

"God, it looks so good. I don't know if I can wait to taste it until Deon cuts it," Jay drawls.

"This is my present to him, so please don't ruin it, Jayden," I say, wiping my hands on my apron.

"Okay, fine," he replies. "Are you done now? Can I take it home?"

"Yep. All done." I sigh. "Oh, hide it from Deon. Take it inside your house through a back door or something."

"Don't worry, brother's not home. He's out on a date."

At that, my legs falter a little and my mouth gapes open as my heart starts pounding against my chest. "What?" I'm at a loss of words and my breath comes out in short puffs. I clear my throat and try to act neutral, but I guess my face says it all. "With whom?"

Maybe he was playing with me after all.

Jay smirks. "Gotcha!"

"Wait." Maddy says. "You knew about this?"

"Duh! I'm not blind." He grins widely as Maddy high fives him. "Oh, um, Presley? He really does like you. A lot," he adds, laughing.

My cheeks heat up and I blush furiously.

Jay chuckles before lifting the cake gently and disappearing out the front door.

"It's about damn time, Elle," Maddy says. "You need to woman up and ask him out."

"Nope, I'm good. I'll just wait until he does."

Deon

I know it's my birthday today, but it doesn't feel like it. I really want to ask Pres out and maybe even ask her to be my girlfriend, although I don't know if it's too early. What if she's not that interested in me?

My phone pings with the hundredth 'Happy Birthday, Deon!' for the day, and I just reply with a simple 'thanks'

"Ty, stop stalling me, and let's go home. I need to change," I tell Tyler as we walk into the tenth clothing store at the shopping outlet in Leamington.

He wanted to look for a shirt that would go with my party's theme; floral, beach-type.

"I'm not— Oh! This is a nice one. I think I'll buy this. Then we can leave."

"Yes, finally! Go try it and see if it fits, I'll pay for it at the cashier until then."

"What the actual fuck, Dee?" Tyler gapes at me as if he's seen a ghost. "You're not paying for my shirt on your birthday. Get lost, man."

"Okay, fine. But, please hurry."

My phone starts vibrating in my hand. I swipe my thumb across the screen and put it to my ear. "Deon, love, where are you?"

"Mom, I'm still at the shopping outlet with Tyler. I'll be home soon."

"You need to hurry. Your friends will be arriving any time now."

"Okay, Mom."

* * *

When we finally get home, it's half past six, and everyone's all dressed up except for me. I hurry upstairs to my room, shower and get dressed.

Walking out of the bathroom, I look at myself one final time in the mirror. Black jeans, check. Blue, green and white floral beach shirt, check. Leather Hush Puppies, check. Silver Rolex, check. Hair, gelled up, check.

My eyes land on my watch which shows it's seven o' clock.

'Taste' by Tyga pumps through the house as I go down the stairs. I catch sight of my old friends from Nashville and my legs carry me towards them before my thoughts process.

Brian, Tristan and—fuck!

I turn back around the moment I see Genevieve, but I'm a little too late. Who the fuck invited her?

"Hey, man!" I hear Brian's voice behind me and I turn back towards them. "How the fuck have you been?"

"Hey, guys. Trist, Bri, Gen." I barely look at Gen as I acknowledge her. "I've been great, bruh. How have you guys been?"

"Same old, Dee," Trist replies. "Drinking, clubbing, girls." He winks at Gen and I feel like I want to hurl right here.

Genevieve who's dressed in a really short sleeveless black dress with her tits practically hanging out ignores him and faces me. She's just a few inches away from my face, so I take a step back. I don't even know how she moved this close to me without me noticing.

"Dee?" She purrs, running a perfectly manicured nail up my arm slowly. "Wanna catch up from where we left off last time before I leave for the night?"

I take another step back from her. "Uhm..." I clear my throat. "No—"

Her lips smack against mine, which catches me off guard. The usual taste of her grape lip balm hits my tongue as my hands automatically move to her waist without thought. She puts her arms around my neck and kisses me harder, moaning into my mouth.

I see movement near the front door from the corner of my eye, which brings me back to the now. I harshly push Gen away and hold her at an arm's length as I turn to see Maddy and Presley staring at me.

Fuck! Pres looks like a goddess.

She's wearing a long white maxi dress with spaghetti straps. It has blue, green and yellow flowers and leaves on it. A slit runs up the right side of her dress that stops mid-thigh, showing a bit of her perfectly toned, flawless legs. Her arms are bare except for the glint of a silver bracelet on her left wrist. She has white sandals on her feet and her beautiful brunette hair is tied up in a cute high ponytail.

She looks so...sexy. And hot.

Maddy leans in and whispers something in her ear as she stares at me and I'm brought back to reality. The music pumping through the house is almost deafening. She grabs Pres by the arm and drags her away from my sight, right after I see a hint of sadness in her eyes.

Without an explanation, I shove Gen aside before hurrying after them.

Goddammit! I can't believe I let that woman put her traitorous mouth on me.

I look for Pres all over the living room, she's not here. The dining area is crowded when I walk in. "Happy birthday, dude," someone says, and I mumble a 'thanks' before scanning the area. I spot her in a corner. Her back is to me so I can't see her face. Maddy has her serious face on, which doesn't seem very good. For me.

She looks over Presley's shoulder and spots me as I walk towards them. Clearing her throat, she steps away from her, smiling icily at me.

"Happy birthday, Deon." Thrusting a gift card in my hand, she hugs me before hissing, "Fix this" in my ear. I nod, swallowing hard.

Letting go of me, she turns to Pres. "Elle, I'm gonna go look for Ty and get us some to drink. Cool?"

Pres nods. Her eyes are a little glossy and she looks as if she's been crying.

Did I make her cry?

"What do you think?" Maddy hisses, making me realize I've said it out loud. I swallow the bile rising in my throat.

Once Maddy leaves, Pres clears her throat.

"Uh...happy birthday, Deon." She's hesitant for a while before she hugs me awkwardly, placing something that feels like paper in my hand. "You'll uh...get my present later."

"I don't need one. I'm glad you came," I say, letting her go and taking a look at what she placed in my hand. It's a small white envelope that is sealed with a tiny pink heart sticker. In front it says, 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEON!' "What's this?"

"It's a little something I made for you," she says, clearly avoiding my eyes. "Um...I'm gonna look for Maddy."

Just as she starts to leave, I grab her wrist and pull her back towards me.

"Hey," I say softly, tilting her chin up with my index finger while she still tries to avoid eye contact with me. "Please talk to me."

"There's nothing to say," she says, monotonously.

"Yes, there is. Is it about the kiss?" I say, acknowledging the biggest elephant in the room.

A look of hurt flashes across her face and she closes her eyes for a moment. Bingo! When she opens them, they're filled with unshed tears.

"It was nothing. It was just a mistake I would never make again. Gen...she kissed me. We broke up a while ago. She's just a nuisance in my life I would love to forget. I'm so sorry you saw that—"

"You don't need to apologize for anything. It's your party. Shouldn't you go and enjoy it?" She smiles, but it doesn't reach her eyes. I start to protest, but she frees her wrist from my hold and walks away.

Sighing, I slowly peel off the sticker holding together the envelope Pres gave me. Prying it open, I reach inside and grap a small card decorated with shades of pastel blue and purple watercolors. Right in the middle, in huge white calligraphy lettering it reads, "Happy Birthday, Deon! I hope you have a great one - Presley. P.S. My present awaits you."

When I finish reading the card, I still feel something heavy in the envelope, so I reach inside again to feel something small and hard against my fingertips. I grab it to find out that it's a small key tag. It's one of those transparent key tags where you can write and insert whatever you want in a tiny white piece of paper. Both sides are shaded with dark blue and purple purple watercolors, and on one side my name is written in neat white Serif lettering and on the other side has a bit of silver dust sprinkled all over. A few tiny white stars are drawn around the words 'Under Ontario Skies' written in white calligraphy lettering, the same as the card.

This is the best gift I've gotten so far, and it's not even close to the not-very-necessary bedroom automation and entertainment system my parents installed in my room as a birthday gift or the expensive black Mont Blanc wallet Dan gifted me because they don't warm my heart the same way this little key tag does.

I have no idea for how long I just stand there and stare into nothing before someone taps on my shoulder. "Dude, what the fuck? Your party's swinging and you're just standing here moping?" Tyler yells over the loud music.

I carefully put the card and the key tag back inside the envelope before opening the kitchen island drawer next to the fridge and placing the envelope inside it making a metal note to retrieve it after the party.

"I fucked up, Ty. Real bad."

Tyler rolls his eyes, and puts an arm around my shoulder. I feel like he has had a drink or two even though he doesn't seem too drunk. "Buddy, tomorrow's your mope-all-you-want day. For now, just have fun. It's your party!"

"You remember Gen, right? My ex?"

He nods.

"I've no idea who invited her, but I swear it wasn't me. When Presley walked into my house with Maddy, Gen was kissing me...and she saw that. She looked...I don't know...hurt? God, I'm a dick."

"That, you are. She's obviously into you, you dumb fuck. Don't you get it?"

"You think I don't know that?" I raise my voice a little then lower it, feeling bad.

"You seriously need to apologize to her and make a move on her. Ask her out."

"But—"

"I dare you to ask her out. Doesn't have to be tonight, but soon..."

I sigh. "I was going to ask her out anyway, you doofus. Regardless of whether you dared me to or not."

"Good. Where's your little sis, by the way? She shouldn't be around all this." Ty gestures around the place with his hand. "Drinks and groping couples."

"Oh, don't worry. She's upstairs in her nursery with a few of her friends. Mom got her a sitter too."

"Okay. Now, let's go cut your cake, birthday boy," Tyler says as I take the bottle of beer in his hand and gulp it down.

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