I lean against Nate's locker with a stupid grin on my face as Nate tells me once again to not make a big deal out of his birthday. I promise him that I won't but we both know that that is a lie.

"If I did happen to make a big deal out of your birthday," I say as I crane my neck around to see his face, "what exactly would be considered too over the top?"

Nate shuts his locker and leans against it with his shoulder, facing me. "Singing. Definitely singing."

My mouth pops open. "You can't be serious."

"I'm being very serious."

"Why?" I ask grinning up at him. I didn't have anything planned per say but I did have something in mind. I already talked to his small group of friends about surprising him at my house for a surprise party and they were all for it. It would be kept small and comfortable. Like a normal night out with his friends plus me.

"Because." Nate swoops down and kisses my forehead. "You are a terrible singer, love."

My skin warms at his endearment. "I am not."

His fingers tickle against mine before boldly intertwining them together. He's become more complacent about showing people that we are an actual couple now. Before, he would about jump out of his skin if I tried to hold his hand as we walked down the hall but now, he is the first one to reach for mine as we navigate through the crowds of people.

Don't even get me started on me attempting to kiss him at school. I swear, I about gave him a heart attack once. Now, it was like we are in our own little bubble and no one else mattered when we are together. Everything else disappeared except me and him.

Just to prove my point, I bring our grasping hands to my mouth as a microphone and begin to sing the first song that comes to my head. It so happens to be Cotton Eye Joe which makes Nate throw his head back in laughter and foreign covering his ear with his now free hand.

Just as I am finishing the chorus while openly gawking at Nate as he laughs, I feel a tap on my shoulder. I spin around and my face heats at being caught making a complete fool of myself but when I see who it is, my face heats in anger.

"Hi," Mariah greets in a cautious tone. She shifts awkwardly beside my best friend who tries to catch my eye with a overly friendly smile. I ignore them both and stretch my neck to see the rest of my former friends standing behind them, all looking equally uncomfortable.

"Hey, Kelly," Alyssa adds. Her eyes roam to Nate and her smile turns polite. "Hi, Nate."

I don't like her calling him Nate and I feel even more irked.

"Hello," Nate politely responds and my annoyance dulls. Only slightly.

"To what do I owe this pleasure, ladies." I move closer to Nate, who has stepped back at the sound of their voices. I cross my arms over my chest and I brace myself against his chest.

"Listen," Alyssa says with apprehensive eyes. "We wanted to apologize in person for the way we have been acting. We think it's totally cool that you two are dating and we, as a whole, want you to know that we are behind it one hundred percent."

I am too stunned for words. Did they honestly think I needed their permission?

"Okay," is all I say and turn back around to face Nate, dismissing them.

"Kelly," Nate utters in a shushed tone. "Maybe you should hear them out."

"No. We don't need their okay to be accepted, Nate. That's ridiculous." Leave it to Nate to want me to forgive all the mean stuff they have said to both me and him.

"They are your friends. They're important to you," he implies with his head close to mine.

His eyes are a rich caramel brown as he gazes somewhere close to my nose. Those eyes draw me in like the moon pulls the ocean tide.

"You are more important."

I can feel the attention of the subject burning into the back of my head as they listen, me not keeping my voice down like Nate is trying to do with his. Let them hear me. I don't care about anything but Nate any more. So what if it offends them.

Nate runs a hand down my shoulder and his fingers tickle the inside of my elbow. "Please. Hear them out."

Why does he have to be so darn cute and tempting?

Dramatically rolling my head, I turn back around to see a swarm of inspired faces watching this interaction. They straighten their shoulders when my eyes land on them.

"Did any of you know about Danny's plan on hurting, Nate? Because if you did, then there's no way in hell I am ever speaking to any of you again."

"Well... There was talk but we didn't think he would actually go through with it," Mariah confirms, wringing her hands in front of her. "I mean, he's completely lost it."

My blood boils at the confirmation of it all and my mind turns a corner to Alyssa and when she told me she knew nothing about it. Did she lie?

"Have a good life," I snap and turn back around.

"That's in the past, Kel." Nate is the first one to speak and I have to bite my tongue at telling him to stop talking. He just simply doesn't understand. He doesn't know the information that I know.

"It doesn't change anything, Nathaniel." My voice is harsher than I intend it to be and when Nate inches back at the low tone of it, I instantly feel guilty for taking my anger out on him when I should be barking up the trees behind me.

"We really are sorry, Kell Bell," this, of course, because of the stupid nickname she has pinned on me since grade school, comes from Alyssa who looks slightly bored as she leans against the wall indicating she has already been through this with me.

I have decided then and there that I am mad and have been mad at her for a long time.

"Save it." I push away from Nate's locker and grab his hand to yank him away but he holds his ground. I grind my teeth together in frustration. "Nate, let's go."

"No," he surprises me by saying. "I know you don't want this."

He is right. Like always. I don't want this. I don't like having bad blood with anyone but what Danny did to Nate is unforgivable. Yes, my friends had no actual partake in it but they still know about it. It reminds me too much of another situation that should have been talked down.

I want my friends back but I am not willing to put up with this anymore.

I sigh in defeat and hold myself back from wacking my head of the metal lockers. "Fine. You're forgiven."

"Really?" Mariah says with a giant grin on her face. "We can all be friends again?"

I look again at Nate, putting off answering her as long as I can. Nate is right. This should be forgiven and put behind us. Darn him and his beautiful mind.

"Whatever. But under one circumstance." My old cheer squad nods their heads in unison. "No more secrets."

Alyssa's eyes flash to mine and I know she understands what I'm referring too. Her brown eyes turn sad, then frightened all in a nanosecond, before she slowly nods her head.

"You got it," Lydia says from behind Alyssa, her large blue eyes twinkling with relief. "I really hate fighting with you. We all do. We really missed hanging out with you."

The strange thing is, I've been so caught up on Nate that I haven't missed interacting with anyone but him.

"Me too," I partially lie just for Nate's sake. I would do anything just to see him happy. His arm came up around my shoulder and I lace my finger through his as it draped over me.

"You guys are so damn cute I want to spoon my eyes out," Alyssa says with a curious grin on her face. The rest of the girls agree boldly and I can't help but smile.

I look up at Nate to see his cheeks pink and neck splotchy with nervous hives at my best friend's opinion.

"Yeah," I replay with my head tilted up towards his. "We are, aren't we." I kiss his jawline and his face turns even redder but that doesn't stop him from returning my kiss with one of his own on my shoulder.

The girls awe. Realizing that I am now as uncomfortable as Nate, I quickly wave goodbye and finally, he allows me to yank him down the hall.

"Happy?" I pout as we walk away.

"Very." He tightens his grip on my hand and brings it to his mouth to brush his lips lightly over my knuckles. "You don't know it yet but you're going to be glad you did that. Even if you think you don't mean it, right now."

"Oh yeah, oh wise one? And why is that?"

"Because pretty soon the school year is going to be over and we're going to graduate and someday you're going to look back at you senior year of high school and wonder where things went wrong and why you never tried to fix things while you could. I don't want you to regret anything for the sake of my feelings."

I can't keep the longing and wonder out of my voice. He is something completely out of this world. "You're simply amazing, you know that?"

"I know," he answers with a cheeky grin.

The bell ringing is the only thing that keeps me from pulling him into the janitors closet and jumping his bones. Now that I've had a taste of him, I don't think the cravings will ever be sated.

"I gotta get going to class," he says. He places a quick kiss on my cheek and extends his walking stick. "I'll see you for lunch?"

"Yup."

"Great. I love you."

"I love you, too."

I watch him turn the corner and walk into the classroom before I heave a giant exhale and make my way up to the second floor to my own class.

* * * * *

Molly is practically bouncing on the cafeteria table as I am explaining the details for Nate's surprise party. The weather has turned colder and the grass is mushy from the constant rain we seem to be getting so we had to move our lunch plans inside. Nate has yet to join us and I wanted to get this all mapped out so it would be a surprise and not just in the name of the party.

"You all should come to my house an hour early to get everything situated," I explain as Gavin and Trent gather around my notebook. "I'll get the decorations and music if you guys would help with food and drinks. Actually," I say scratching that out with my pen and rewriting it, "I'll get the drinks. I know someone who can buy us alcohol."

"Sweet," Trent says and holds his hands up for Molly to high five but she ignores him with a roll of her eyes. He brings up his other hand and high fives himself then sticks his tongue out immaturely at Molly.

"Are you sure Nate isn't expecting this?" Molly asks, her eyes roaming the room on lookout. "I mean, you aren't exactly subtle with things, Kelly. No offense."

I playfully roll my eyes and recap my pen. "He doesn't expect a thing."

Molly and I have seemed to reach a common ground. I have made it very clear that I don't plan on leaving Nate's life any time soon and I think Molly finally understands that. She continues to be her blunt, crude, self to me and I dish it back the best way I can to even the playing field. We are not friends, but for Nate's sake, we are friendly.

She really isn't that bad.

Just as I am closing my planner, Nate pops up behind me. I guide him to sit beside me and Trent, all while eyeing his friends to not say anything.

As Nate sits, we all become undoubtedly quiet and right away my ears prick. Nate is too smart to not grasp that something is off.

"Why are you guys so quiet?" He asks with a mischievous grin on his face. "Should I be worried?"

"Very," I answer, trying to cover it up with sarcasm. He smiles at me answering his questions as he answers mine. One worded.

"Okay," Nate says dropping it. We all look at each other in surprise that he would let it go so easily. Picking up his plastic fork, he spears his salad.

"So, Nathaniel," Molly starts after swallowing a bite of her lunch. "Kelly invited us to a movie night at her place for your birthday. Are you okay with that?"

Nate shrugs while eating lettuce. "I suppose."

"You suppose? What? You don't want to spend some quality time with us too as you emerge into adulthood? Thanks for that, friend." Trent lays down his gamer cards and Gavin snorts.

"No, it's not that." Nate adjusts his glasses over the bridge of his nose.

I place my hand on Nate's thigh and lean in close to him when his friends go back to talking amongst themselves. "What is it?"

"I thought it was just going to be me and you spending time together on my birthday."

Oh. I try to stop the selfish grin from over taking my face but I can't, the pull too tempting to hold back. I would love more than anything to keep Nate all to myself and I love that he would like that too but I really wanted to give this to him.

"We will," I say giving his thigh a gentle squeeze. "But I can't be selfish and keep you all to myself when you have people who want a piece of you too."

Nate shakes his head, a slow grin pulling up on the end of his mouth as he leans forward to kiss me. Trent makes a gagging sound in the back of his throat and Gavin's chicken nugget falls from his gawking mouth.

I roll my eyes at his friends. "My place. Seven o'clock, tomorrow. Be there."

"I'll bring Star Wars, the original," Trent states with a wink and Molly gives him her signature smack on the back of the head. He mouths an 'ow' and gives her a dirty look which she returns with a smirk.

"Sounds like a wild night," Nate replies while looking down at his tray.

I remove my hand from Nate's thigh and hold my fingers up to indicate that they must be at my place at six to set things up.

We have one hour to make everything perfect for Nate's birthday celebration.

And I'll be darned if anything makes his birthday any less perfect than him.