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I check myself over once more in the mirror, making sure all is in place. My hair is cascading down my back, flowing down in long, wavy, silver waterfalls. I still hadn't really figured out how to do makeup all that well, so I just opted for some mascara and chapstick. I'm dressed clad in a purple, off the shoulder dress that reaches down to about mid thigh, accentuating my curves nicely.

I normally wouldn't go for purple, but it's Coco's favorite color. And I know he'd appreciate seeing me in it for his birthday... that just so happens to be today.

Sure, my surprise for him may not be that great, but it's the best I could do on such short notice or without leaving the house. I had to make due with what I had, which in my opinion wasn't enough. But it's better than nothing, I guess.

Besides, I have something else planned for later. Something I'm sure he's going to appreciate very much.

With that thought in mind, and a little mischievous smirk on my face, I turn my back to the mirror and face the door, making my way over to it to exit and bound down the stairs. I decide to ditch the shoes, though, because I really don't feel like wearing them. Honestly, shoes are a pain.

I follow their voices that lead me to the living room and I enter with a large grin. They all stop their conversing to look over at me, having heard the intrusion. They all smile largely when they see my attire, looking me up and down shamelessly, biting their lips.

"Oh, kitten," Cole speaks up. "I'd say my favorite color really does do you justice. You look lovely, Ava." His compliment has me blushing, losing my cool confidence for a short moment before I mentally slap it back into place.

"Thank, Coco. Happy birthday, by the way!"

"Awe, thanks, Ava. Now, are you gonna give the birthday boy a kiss?" He asks, wiggling his eyebrows. I roll my eyes, refraining from practically sprinting over there to jump on him. Instead, I walk slowly, trying to keep up my air of confidence. When I reach him, he scoops me into his arms, making me giggle as I wrap my arms around his neck, giving him a long, lingering kiss.

"I love you, kitten," he breathes against my lips; my smile grows impossibly wider.

"I love you too, Coco."

"Hey! Where's my kiss?" Ashton asks playfully, causing Cole to grumble against my lips, and I laugh loudly against his.

"Thanks for ruining the fucking moment, dick head," he growls, nipping at my bottom lip cheekily. Ash doesn't respond, though, snickering at Cole's expense instead. Coco finally allows me to leave his embrace, and I gradually slide down to touch my feet to the floor.

"So, what've you got planned today, princess?" Xavier asks.

"Well, it's actually a surprise, but I know it isn't much. It was the best I could do without leaving the house alone, or anything." I slump a little, embarrased at my lack of ability to get one of my boyfriends something for his birthday.

"Hey, don't worry about it, Avelyn. I'm sure whatever you have planned is going to be amazing. As long as I'm with you, I'm sure this birthday is going to be the best one yet." Cole is just too sweet for his own damn good. My smile immediately returns.

"Thanks, Coco."

"No, thank you, kitten."

"Alright, so are you ready for your surprise now? I set everything up while you were all sleeping," I inquiry, hands clasped behind my back nervously.

"Of course I am! She really is perfect, isn't she?" He asks Ash and Xavier, but his eyes stay trained on me. Okay, I'm pretty sure all of my confidence has disappeared at this point, the incoming blush on my cheeks taking its place.

"Well then let's go!" I call, already walking away towards the backdoor. I pay no mind when I hear them all following behind me, opening the door and walking into the huge backyard. I don't think I could ever get used to its immense size or how lovely the trees and the greenery of the woods look. "Come on, it's right this way!" I march my way into the woods, smiling like an idiot until I make it to the clearing that the boys took me to a couple days ago while we were playing outside.

My magic was already buzzing by the time I stepped foot into the clearing; it recognizes its beauty.

In the vast field of flowers that lay in this clearing, there also lay a blanket on top. And resting atop that blanket is a picnic basket. I thought it would be a good idea to do something for Cole where we'd all be outside; that way we could all play together afterward.

The boys are still right behind me, but I soon hear a halt in their movements. And a pair of large hands circle my waist, pulling me back into a hard chest--one I instantly recognize to be Cole's. The pulsing of my magic every time we touch is distinctive to each boy, I've realized. But the pulse I feel when I touch each of the boys is all equally thrilling and electrifying.

"Do you like it? I know it isn't much, but it was the best I could do," I ask, my hands wringing together in front of me.

"Of course I love it, kitten! It's amazing! Thank you. I love you so fucking much." I can't see it, but I can hear the smile in his voice. And all my worries and insecurities suddenly float away, as if they were never even there in the first place.

He places a chaste kiss on the back of my neck, making me shiver in delight. By the chuckle that's drawn from him, I can tell he felt it.

I swiftly turn around, my air of confidence having returned for a moment, and come face to face with Cole. Well, face to chest.

He's still way taller than me.

I bring my hand up to rest on the back of his neck, a mischievous smirk on my lips--one I'm not too used to wearing but I am used to seeing on the boys' faces. I stand on my toes to bring my face closer to his, like I'm about to kiss him, but I don't. Instead, I bring my mouth to his ear and whisper, "That isn't the only thing I have planned for us." He shivers, and my grin only grows. I nibble on his earlobe for a brief moment, earning yet another shiver from him and a low grumble before I pull back and strut away, bounding over to the picnic I have set up for us.

I plop down on the blanket, my flowy purple dress spreading out around me like a budding flower. Turning to face the boys, I see they're all standing there, mouths slightly slacked. It's only then do I realize that they all heard what I said to Cole, and just like that, my confidence sinks down into my toes once again. A blush forms on my cheeks as I hastily try to unpack the picnic basket in an attempt to shield away the sudden shyness that has washed over me.

"Well, are you guys coming or not? I can't very well eat all this food myself," I call, making my voice as strong as possible. I give myself a mental pat on the back for achieving just that. I turn back to face them to see all of their mouths snapping closed as they make their way over to me.

'God, they're so beautiful.'

The way the sun is beaming down on each of them only enhances their too-handsome faces, making my heart flutter in my chest. And even from here, I can see the fire in Cole's eyes crackling and spitting, rivaling that of the sun that's currently beaming down on them. They all sit down on the blanket, too, spreading out evenly to give each other more space.

Ash clears his throat, seemingly collecting his bearings. "So, babygirl, you made all of this?" He quizzes, a smile on his face. I internally swoon for a quick moment before I nod in response.

"Yeah, I did it while you were all sleeping. For all of you being werewolves and having amazing hearing, none you seemed to hear me sneak out of the bed at six in the morning," I giggle.

"You're just full of surprises, aren't you, princess?" Xavier chuckles.

Shrugging with a smile, I say, "If the shoe fits. Now come on, I'm hungry and I haven't eaten breakfast. So this is my lunch considering its 12 in the afternoon."

Xavier rolls his eyes and opens his mouth like he's about to say something, but he sees the look on my face and snaps it closed just as quickly, beaming at me instead.

"So, what did you pack, kitten?" Cole asks, leaning over on the blanket to see all that I've pulled out.

"Nothing too crazy. Mostly just things that would be okay in the sun for a little while. Even though there was a cooler in the basket, I wanted to make sure nothing would go bad," I shrug. "I made you a cake, too. But that's at the house."

"I thought I smelled something sweet this morning in my sleep. I guess that's what it was," Coco says thoughtfully, nodding to himself as if he agrees. I giggle at that.

"Alright, anyone want a sandwich? I have like six different kinds. One of which being a PB&J," I ask, pulling out said sandwiches. I'll admit, I probably went a little overboard with all the food, but I really do wanna make Cole's birthday special. Plus, I know they'll eat all of it, anyway.

"Wow, Ava," Ashton snickers. "Packing for an army?"

"Nope, just a bunch of hungry wolves with too-big appetites."

"That's fair. I want a ham sandwich, please," he grins, and I hand it to him.

"All of this must've been hard to carry, especially with the blanket. Did you have to make two trips?" Xavier asks, and I smirk.

"I think you may have forgotten what I can do, Xavier," I say, lifting my hand up with my palm out, facing him. "Do you want to test the theory of how I got it all out here. Because if I recall correctly, last time I showed the three of you, Cole was about ten feet in the air screaming bloddy murder."

He blanches and shakes his head quickly, arms out in surrender. "Okay, okay, I get it. No need for the visual."

I snort, but it soon turns into a full-on cackle; Cole and Ashton both join me.

"You should show him, Ava. I'm sure he'll love every second of it. It's only fair considering you did it to me," Cole suggests, wiggling his eyebrows cheekily.

"I'll think about it," I reply, making Xavier pale even more. I hit him on his knee soft- and teasingly. "I'm just kidding, dude. Lighten up, will ya?" He breathes out a sigh of relief, his stiff posture slumping a little.

"Good." Is all he says, making me roll my eyes.

"Such a drama queen," I mumble, low enough so I know they won't be able to hear me.

Suddenly, the bright light from the sun seems to fade, and I look up to see dark clouds beginning to cover the skies. Then the smell of rain hits my nose, and I already know it's about to storm.

"Damn it, I checked the weather this morning, and it said that it was going to be warm and sunny with no rain showers. Fuckin' liars. Now the picnic's gonna be ruined. I'm so sorry, Coco," I sigh, looking up at the man in question.

He just shakes his head and waves it off like it's no big deal. "It's no problem, Avelyn. I happen to love the rain," he grins.

It's as if the skies themselves heard his proclamation and started crying. His grin grows into a magnificent beam, almost as bright as the fire in his eyes. I can't help the crazed giggle that escapes me, and I stand, leaving the food forgotten and soaked by the rain.

I look at all of my boys, as soaked as me at this point. I lift my hands high in the air and twirl around with my eyes closed, still giggling like mad as the rain pelts my skin. My magic buzzes within me once again, and I can't think of anything else I'd rather do in this moment. When I finally let my hands fall and I stop spinning, I shake away the dizziness with a dopey smile on my face. Opening my eyes, I see three dazed faces staring back at me, all seemingly entranced by something.

I don't mind, though, and instead of focusing on that, I skip over to Cole and grab his hands, pulling him backwards with me. This seems to snap him out of his trance and he smiles at me like he never has before. I gaze over his large shoulder over to the other boys and gesture them over with my hands. They, too, seem to snap out of their reveries and bound over to Coco and I, smiles matching that of Cole's.

"Wanna play?" I ask, lifting a brow at the three of them. They all nod enthusiastically, like that's what they were thinking too. They don't even bother to undress before shifting, tearing their clothes to shreds in the process.

I squeal as Comet, Cole's wolf, runs toward me and picks me up off the ground. I land on his back with my legs straddling his large body and latch onto his soft, thick fur as he takes off into a sprint out of the clearing. Dusk and Crimson--Ashton and Xavier--follow along happily.

And for hours--much longer than we'd anticipated--we play. I laugh while the wolves yip, letting my magic run free while the wolves run and jump and tackle each other playfully.

I don't think this day could be any more perfect, and Cole seems to really be enjoying himself, which makes me overwhelmingly proud. But he still has another surprise waiting for him when he gets home. My confident and mischievous smirk returns once again.

______________________________________

Okay, I wanna start off by saying I'm really sorry for not updating sooner! I'd say I was busy, which I still kind of was, but that wasn't the only reason for my lack of updating. I also just felt like taking a little break to clear my head. I was lacking motivation to write, but now it's returned and I'll try updating more often.

Also, thank you all soo much for reading! I just hit twenty thousand reads when I never even expected to get ten! It really does mean so much to me that you all take time out of your day to read my book, even if it isn't very good.

Lastly, I just published a new book. It's another reverse harem, and it's an Academy fanfic. You can find it on my account . So, if you like this book, you'll probably like that one, too. I love the Academy so much, so I finally decided to write a fanfiction about it. It would mean so much to me if you read that as well!

Okay, I'm done now. Thank you guys again for reading!

As always, until next time...

Sincerely,

The Annoying Author Lady