Luca snuck Chris into the apartment- as planned- when he arrived at 7:21AM on a Friday morning, just in time for Denise's twentieth birthday. He had a bouquet of red roses, two envelopes, and a little gift bag from Thomas Sabo with him, as he quietly made his way down the hall and into his fiancée's bedroom. He smiled when he saw her sleeping peacefully.

For the first time, she looked like she didn't have a care in the world, and she didn't because it was summer holidays and she had the day off. Chris knew about the rule she'd developed over years of working on her birthday and having her day ruined by rude customers; she would always ask for a day off on her birthday if she could afford it. And she could afford it, especially now that Chris was her overbearing fiancé who no longer took 'no' for an answer when he wanted to financially support her. She was only still working because- one: she wanted to still have some independence, and two: her mom told Chris she wanted Denise to have a part time job- even if she only worked thrice a week- just to remain grounded. Who was Chris to argue with his future mother-in-law?

Denise's plans had been to: sleep till 9AM, go to brunch at her favorite bistro with her best friend, shop till she dropped, eat ice-cream cake over FaceTime with her fiancé, then head back to her family home to have a home cooked birthday dinner with her parents and older brother- whose birthday was a day before hers. That was before Chris changed it without her knowledge, she was now to spend the day with him.

Chris chuckled as he lowered items he had in his hand on Denise's desk beside her MacBook, where he'd FaceTime her last night while he was packing his bags to surprise her. It was only fair, she'd spent a weekend with him on his birthday- belated, but it still counted, so obviously he couldn't let her spend her birthday without him. That, and he would've given any excuse to come see her even though the last time they were together wasn't that long ago. Independence Day with his family at their holiday cabin, he remembered. What could he say, other than he missed his beloved fiancée? If he could have her with him every day of every second, he would. They'd both probably get annoyed by the lack of space if that actually happened, but it was the thought that counted, and that thought was incredibly sweet and romantic.

Chris carefully crawled into Denise's bed as he didn't want to startle her, he wanted her to wake peacefully knowing it was him and not a murderer. He shuffled his body closer to hers and did what he always did when he wanted her to roll over and enfold herself into his arms. She must've forgotten her fiancé was still away and acted subconsciously because she did as he'd orchestrated, snuggling close to him with her arm draped over his stomach. He smiled and kissed the top of her head, holding her as close as he could. He took a moment to appreciate the bliss coming from the simplicity of the situation before he whispered in a sing song voice, "good morning, sunshine."

Denise stirred. For a second, she forgot it was only August and Chris was still meant to be away filming. She also forgot it was her birthday because all she could think about was Chris' comforting and loving arms around her. She smiled as her eyelids fluttered open, she tipped her head and kissed his jawline, "good morning." It wasn't until he was leaning in to give her a quick peck on her lips that she remembered what day it was. "Holy crap!" She pushed herself away from him and fell out of her bed before he could catch her wrist and pull her back in.

"Shit, Denise," Chris cussed as he leaned over the edge to look at her, laughing when she did. She rubbed her elbow then the back of her head which she may have clipped on the corner of her bedside table on her way down. "Are you okay, baby?" He chuckled, resting his chin on the top of his hands which were placed one above the other. "I tried hard not to scare you, but clearly I needed to try harder."

"Clearly," she giggled as she got to your feet. Chris moved back to his original position when she climbed back into her bed, resting her head against his chest as his arm wrapped around her. "It is so good to see you," she hugged him tightly and he chuckled, rubbing her back. "I thought you said you couldn't come because of filming."

"It's called a lie, sweetheart," he murmured into her hair as he planted another kiss on the top of her head. "Of course I was coming," he told her as she pulled away and sat up, turning to face him. "How can I not? You're my fiancée and it's your birthday, not even hellfire would've kept me away from seeing you."

"I'd kiss you, but I haven't brushed my teeth yet."

"I don't care, so c'mere." He grabbed her wrist and tugged her towards him, but she pressed her hand over her mouth just as he leaned forward with closed eyes. His lips landed on the back of her hand instead and he fought the urge to smile. "Seriously?" He quizzed with a raised brow. "Aren't we past that by now?"

"You are, but I am not and I never will be." She pulled her wrist out of his grip and hopped out of bed. "Just give me a second, I'll be back with minty fresh breath and then we can make out like a couple of teenagers." He chuckled, shaking his head. "Which-" she glanced back at him with her hand on her doorknob, "I am no longer because I am in fact twenty years old today." Her adorable grin brought his smile to his eyes.

"You are indeed," he nodded. "Happy birthday, baby."

"Thank you," she chimed then opened the door. "I'll be right back."

Chris got off Denise's bed as she disappeared to the bathroom, walking back over to his gifts so he could give them to her as soon as she returned. He smiled because he believed he nailed it this time, though he was afraid he wouldn't be able to top it years after. He sat down on the edge of her bed, facing the door as he fiddled with the envelopes. Which one was he to give her first? Perhaps the smaller notion, that way she'd have a bigger high to end on. He pressed his nose into the roses and chuckled because he loved how traditional she was. Other girls thought roses were overrated clichés, but not Denise- she could get a rose everyday and still swoon at the sight of another tomorrow. One of the many, many things he loved about her.

The door opened moments later and she returned, flashing her perfect teeth at him. He smiled and got to his feet, passing her the bouquet of roses first. Her face lit up as she took it from him, pressing her whole face into the bouquet which made him laugh. "Here, a little something to add to your collection." He held out the little bag from Thomas Sabo and she took it as she lowered the bouquet. "It seems like every other significant person in your life has contributed to it, thought I'd hop on the bandwagon too."

"You've contributed." She lifted her wrist, fingers searching for the silver diamond ring charm; the one she had bought to represent their engagement. "I wouldn't have this charm," she pointed at it, "if you didn't propose. And I wouldn't have..." She trailed off, searching for the gold letter 'C' charm that she bought to represent him. "This charm." She pointed at it and he chuckled, nodding in acknowledgement. "If you didn't fall in-love with me."

"I meant-"

"I know," she giggled.

Denise opened the little bag and pulled out the little box, unveiling the charm Chris gotten to add to the charm bracelet she'd had since she was sixteen years old. He'd designed it himself and sent it to the company, asking if they would custom-make it for him. Their answer returned in the mail not long after; a globe that had 'my world' engraved across the axis. Denise's heart melted the second she laid eyes on the charm. She often browsed the online catalog so she knew without asking the charm he'd given her was custom-made.

"Chris!" She squealed his name as she held up the charm for a closer observation. "This is so sweet, I love it!" He laughed as he took the charm from her, and her wrist to help clip it on. She didn't usually wear her bracelet to sleep but she'd clearly forgotten to take it off last night. "Ugh," the words barely escaped her tightly gritted teeth, "I love you so, so much." His laughter increased as she cupped his face in her hands, kissing his cheek in a playfully aggressive manner.

"You'll love me more when you see these other gifts," he held out the first envelope with a smirk.

"Did you write me another story?" She asked as she started to carefully rip open the paper seal.

"No," he chuckled with a shake of his head. "I think I'll leave the writing to your brilliant mind." She rolled her eyes with a smile; the man was twice as brilliant as she was. "It's got nothing to do with your career, it's got more to do with mine."

Denise's jaw dropped as she pulled out two plane tickets to Salt Lake City, as well as two VIP passes to the Comic-Con there. She was so distracted by the Comic-Con passes that she didn't notice one of the plane tickets was from Boston to Salt Lake City, and not Los Angeles.

"I'm schedule to speak at a panel in September, I thought you'd like to join me." Chris said then quickly added, "I've already checked your schedules online! It's during the beginning of your fall quarter and you don't have any classes, so you can go without worrying about school."

"You are nailing this birthday." She gave his hand a quick squeeze before she returned her touch to the tickets. "Wait-" Her eyes narrowed when she realized there were two tickets and two passes. "Why are there two? Aren't you just going to fly from wherever you're filming in September? I didn't even think you needed a pass considering you're a panelist."

"The second set is for Luca," he told her with a chuckle and she felt her lips part with a gasp of realization. "I don't know if she'll be able to make it, but I think it's nice to let her have the option of going. I know it's not San Diego's Comic-Con, but the two of you have always talked about attending a Comic-Con of some sort, so. Also I figured she'd like to meet Sebastian in person, she's a fan of him, right?"

"I think she's going to be a bigger fan of you when she hears about this." She said and Chris chuckled. "I'm going to need you to stop being so sweet to her, 'cause one day she's going to fall in-love with you, kill me, and steal you." She joked then laughed when he did. "I'm serious," she giggled when he pulled her into his chest for a tight hug.

"It's going to be hard for her to kill you when your fiancé is Captain America," he quipped. "And it's also hard to steal someone that can't be stolen." She looked up as he dipped his head, kissing her. They both smiled as they kissed before Chris broke away. "I only paid for the air ticket. Her celebrity crush is the one that got her the pass, as panelist we only get one extra. Mine was for you. Seb offered his to Luca 'cause it would've gone to waste if he didn't, y'know considering..." He trailed off, knowing he didn't need to finish his sentence because Denise already knew what he was talking about.

"How's he doing with the breakup?" She asked. "He hasn't said much about it, has he?" Chris shook his head and she sighed, feeling bad for Sebastian. "Was it bad?" She quizzed, wincing. "I know it's been months, but they were together for quite some time."

"It was amicable, they're still friends." Chris told her. "But it's still a breakup, y'know?" She nodded at his rhetorical question. "Jenny and I had an amicable one, we're still friends but- it definitely stung when it ended. So I don't know, I think he just needs time. And-" he smiled at her, poking her in the cheek, "the perfect girl to fall in-love with."

"You're going to give me diabetes with all this sugar you're showering me in," she giggled and he chuckled, kissing her forehead before he released her to give her her last gift; the second envelope. "Another one?" She took it from him. "Chris, you do realize I've got more birthdays. I'm not dying tomorrow, you can save some of these amazing gifts for next year."

"I'd save this for next year if it weren't constricted by the concept of time." She raised a brow, wondering if it was another convention. "No," he shook his head, it was as if he'd read her mind. "It's not another convention," he told her. "I think you'd be bored attending all those events with me, it's fairly repetitive."

"And I think we've established that I'd never be bored with you," she told him with a smile that he mirrored with a wink. She opened the envelope and immediately, caught sight of a familiar bright blue that increased her heart rate. She held her breath as she looked up with wide eyes to meet Chris' gaze. They couldn't have been what she thought they were, but from the way he was wiggling his brows- it was hard for it not to be. "No," she breathed.

"Yes," he whispered, nodding.

"Ed Sheeran?!" She screamed as she pulled the tickets from the envelope. Her scream was so loud that Luca heard her from the other room and laughed. "Ed Sheeran, Chris? Ed Sheeran?" She asked in disbelief, making Chris laugh and nod. "Oh my God!" She screamed, jumping up and down. He smiled because he was very proud of himself to have given her something capable of drawing that reaction from her, it was the same reaction he had when The Patriots won the Super Bowl. "Ed Sheeran, Ed Sheeran!" She cheered, throwing her arms around him as she continued to jump up and down.

Denise was a huge fan of Ed Sheeran, and even in saying that- it seemed like an understatement. She loved his music to the point where she owned every album of his- both digital and vinyl. To her, his music was inspiring; she'd often used his songs as prompts to write. He was one of the few artists that had albums she could listen to without feeling the need to skip over any songs, and to be able to listen to him live- it had been the absolute dream. On her bucket list was attending an Ed Sheeran concert, she just didn't think it'd be that soon.

She'd tried to get tickets when he announced his 'Divide' world tour. She'd personally saved a sum with her part time job and was going to treat herself. She'd tried and failed despite how much time she'd invested in the purchasing of the tickets, spending a whole day by her MacBook, iPad, and iPhone. She refreshed the page so many times, she swore she was going to break the internet. When she finally got a hold of some tickets, they were way out of her price range. Her heart sunk and she turned off all her devices.

By the time Chris had heard about it and offered her his credit card, the tickets had sold out. There were other venues in other states she could've flown to and attended, but she didn't want to spend unnecessary money when it wasn't her money she was spending. She may have agreed to let Chris take care of her, but it didn't stop her from feeling bad whenever he whipped out his credit card for her. It didn't matter if he could afford it, she wanted to make her own way in the world. That was how her parents raised her, to be rich and not marry rich. But this was different, this was him giving her an incredibly thoughtful birthday present. She could accept a present without guilt, it would've been rude of her to decline something so well thought out.

"Yes, Ed Sheeran," Chris chuckled, wrapping his arms around Denise so she'd stop jumping. She drew back slightly and cupped his face in her hands, smiling with tears of joy in the corners of her eyes. "We're going to his Boston show. You'll meet me there, we'll attend the concert, then fly to Salt Lake City together." She raised a brow then quickly diverted her attention back to the Salt Lake City plane tickets, one was indeed from Boston. "I was a little worried you'd notice that."

"It wouldn't have spoiled the surprise," she assured him. "You are honestly the best fiancé." She hugged him again, making him smile. "By the way, I'm retiring Fan fic Chris," she joked and he chuckled. "Real life Chris is a thousand times better."