"Let me get this straight." Ally stated, sitting up straighter in one of Jack's many guest beds, pointing her cake-covered fork at me, "Your boyfriend drove all the way to San Francisco and back, each way being a six hour drive, just to get you this, admittedly, amazing cake?"

"Yes. Which is why the status has changed from 'almost in love with him' to 'madly in love with him'."

"Wow." Romi said, emerging from the bathroom, where she'd been putting on her dress, "Just, wow."

The three of us were in Jack and Charlie's house, getting ready for my birthday party. My present from Jack had, apparently, not just been the party but also a black knee-length Balmain dress, and an adorable outfit from Versace. My mother had handed me a diamond jewelry set and told me that I could wear it to the party and pretend that it had been my present from her, as long as I gave it back at the end of the night.

Unfortunately, the dress that Jack gave me, although it was beautiful, wasn't formal enough for the occasion, since my mother had invited almost a hundred people, none of whom I knew. So, I had to settle for a dark blue dress that went nicely with my pale hair.

"I wish Brad did things like that for me." Romi said wistfully, sifting through the first of her three makeup bags.

"Please," Ally scoffed, digging into her second slice of cake. Julio and I had demolished half of it together during lunch before I decided to save some for Ally and Romi. "Brad loves you. He looks at you like a blind man seeing the world for the first time every day."

It was the truth. Brad and Romi were the kind of couple that stayed together forever, despite it all. The kind of couple who'd never let the world separate them.

Romi blushed, murmuring something about how it wasn't like that. She tried playing it off, but it was the cutest thing I'd ever seen.

"Is Julio coming to the party tonight?" She asked, changing the subject. She pulled out a tube of bright red lipstick as hers had faded a little, and headed to the large dressing table and mirror. I couldn't believe that the guest room had all that stuff.

"I emotionally blackmailed him till he agreed to come." I informed them, as I pulled my dress out of the garment bag. "I'm meeting his family this weekend, by the way."

It was true. I was going to go meet his Uncle Matteo and his wife on Saturday, which was only a day away.

"You guys are so cute together." Ally smiled, before standing up with a groan, probably realizing that, while her hair was done, she still had to do her makeup and get her dress on and the party would begin in a half hour's time.

"Thanks." I acknowledged, my blush becoming more pronounced. "But can we talk about something that isn't my relationship right now?"

"Like what? How The Shape of Water didn't deserve an Oscar? Again?" Romi teased, because I'd been going on and on about how I wished Dunkirk had won because I thought The Shape of Water was creepy.

"There are a million conversations we could have right now, but I have no problem talking about that because I won't change my stance." I joked, watching as Romi put the cap on her lipstick back on, stepping aside so that Ally could take her place. All I had to do was put on my dress.

I slipped into the bathroom to put it on and, by the time I was out, the Golden Globes had become the topic of conversation, with Ally saying that Emilia Clarke needed to win next time because she was the fucking Khaleesi. Romi added that, since next season would be the last for Game of Thrones, most of them would win for that.

"I agree." I put in, smoothing down the dress and standing behind Ally in an attempt at seeing how it looked on me."We still haven't watched, like, half of the movies that were nominated this year, though." I noted.

"Looks like we have a movie marathon coming up then." Ally stepped back, pleased with her appearance. It stunned me that this girl could do her makeup in ten minutes and still look flawless.

I appraised myself in the mirror, liking how my hair was curled into gentle waves down my back, up till my shoulder blade. My makeup looked elegant, thanks to Romi, and the dress was perfect. It clung to my figure until my hips, where it flared out almost dramatically to my knees. I wore silver Jimmy Choo heels and the diamond jewelry that my mother gave me, which included a necklace, a tennis bracelet and earrings, stood out nicely against the dark material of my dress.

Suddenly, a knock resounded on the door, "Girls, come on, we're going to be late." My mother spoke gently, playing the part of caring parent perfectly.

"We're coming!" Ally called, and she and Romi opened the door. I waited for a while, not wanting to walk down with her.

"I'll be down in a minute." I told the two of them, my smile straining. This felt less like my birthday and more like a nightmare.

Unfortunately, my mother ushered the girls down and waited until they were gone before turning to me and speaking, "Do you have to wear that dress if you can't pull it off?"

Up until right then, I'd felt beautiful. Then, she ruined whatever confidence I'd had in my appearance by reminding me with her gaze that, due to the way the dress stuck to my upper half, it drew attention to my far from flat stomach.

My eyes filled with tears, and the first thought that I'd had was to find another dress; anything would be better than how I looked now.

However, I remembered Julio's words and, hard as they were to believe, I chose to focus on them rather than on the bitch standing in the doorway.

"Taylor!" A voice interjected, and Jack came into view, his tone upbeat and his eyes bright, as he walked into the room. This man really did care about me, and I loved it. "You look beautiful!"

The apple really fell far from the tree, huh?

"Thanks." I smiled, and he reached out to hug me. "I really appreciate you going to all this trouble for me."

"You're basically my daughter, sweetheart, of course." He grinned happily, excited at the prospect of a party. I wondered how a man as nice as this succeeded in the business world. Although, his employees probably saw a very different side to him.

"Let me escort you downstairs." He offered, almost fully ignoring my mother, who looked slightly annoyed at this. "Almost all your guests are here, and I think it's time for you to make an entrance."

"Sure." I agreed, accepting his arm. As we left the room, Jack smiled softly at my mother, but she didn't pay him any heed. She was too pissed to even keep up her act, and I loved it.

When we went downstairs, it was a little nerve-wracking because all eyes were on us. Jack's house had a legitimate ballroom, the kind that looked like it was right out of The Great Gatsby or something, which meant that there was a long way for us to climb before we reached the bottom.

The room was decorated beautifully and tastefully. My favorite flowers, red roses, were everywhere, even intertwined with white orchids and pink peonies in the centerpieces. There was a table in the corner that was piled high with presents and the tables were covered in white tablecloths. The chairs were also covered in white cloth with red silk ribbons tied in bows across the backs. There was a band in the corner playing slow, soft songs and a few people were dancing.

There was a bar in the corner, too, as well as waiters in tuxes serving hors d'oeuvres and champagne.

"This is amazing." I breathed, and Jack chuckled. "How did you get this done in a day?"

"Ally is a taskmaster, that's for sure. This is all her. She planned everything by yesterday morning and made calls all day yesterday. Charlie told me she skipped three classes today, too."

"Wow."

"You don't have to stand here with me all night. Go on and talk to your friends." He ordered, and I glanced around to see them all awkwardly clumped together.

Chris and Ryo stood slightly to the side, away from Charlie. Ally stood between Chris and Charlie, to prevent any potential wars. Brad and Romi were already dancing, looking very much in love.

And, behind all of them, was Julio, making my breath catch in my throat because he was in a suit.

"Hey." Charlie said, as I approached them, "Do you like it?"

"I love it." I said, honestly, looking at Ally as I continued, "Jack told me it was all you. Thank you."

"Anything for my best girl." She promised, smiling broadly.

After a short conversation with Chris and Ryo, and even Tamsin and Millie, who wished me a happy birthday before disappearing, I finally made my way over to my amazing boyfriend.

"Hey, babe." I said, kissing him on the cheek as his arms encircled my waist, wrapping loosely around me.

"You look gorgeous." He stated, looking me up and down. A flash of doubt hit me, but I accepted his compliment with a small smile.

"And you look nice and dashing in a suit." I replied, bringing my hands to rest on his shoulders. We chatted a little longer, while I fixed his tie, before I realized I was expected to socialize.

"Come with me, will you?" I requested, pouting slightly. I wanted to spend all night with him, but talking to people wasn't really his forte.

"Sure." He agreed, being surprisingly nice to me.

"You're in a good mood today." I observed, accepting his proffered arm and letting my hand slip into the crook of his elbow.

"It's your birthday. I'm not allowed to be mean to you, so your wish is my command." If anyone else heard him talk like this, he definitely wouldn't be considered scary any longer.

"I think you're a closet sweetheart." I giggled, pulling him towards the middle of the milling crowd, where Jack stood with his business partner, whom I'd briefly met at the Christmas party.

"Hi, Jack. Mr. Johnson, it's nice to see you again." I greeted.

"Taylor!" Mr. Johnson said, his face red and his eyes all lit up, which indicated that he was pretty drunk. "Happy birthday, my dear girl."

"Thank you, Mr. Johnson." I hid my smile and I sensed Julio was struggling to the same.

"Who's this young man?" Jack questioned, albeit warmly.

"This is Julio Hernandez." I introduced, before adding, "My boyfriend."

"Oh, yes, Charlie said something about you having a boyfriend now." His tone held none of his son's disapproval, and he even smiled and shook Julio's hand. My boyfriend's surprise reflected my own.

"So someone already stole you off, huh?" Mr. Johnson asked, his voice slurred, "I was wondering just earlier if you'd date my son, but that doesn't look like it's happening."

I couldn't help but giggle at Mr. Johnson's disgruntled persona. The alcohol really had gotten to him.

"I think you have a lot of people to meet, so I'll catch up with you later, Taylor, alright? I'd like to talk to you about something."

"Oh, okay." I agreed, slightly shocked. What could Jack possibly have to talk to me about?

"Great." His smile broadened amenably, as he led Mr. Johnson somewhere else, probably to find him some food to soak up the alcohol.

"What do you think he wants to talk to me about?" I asked curiously, looking up at Julio, as he gladly took the glass of champagne offered to him.

"I don't know. It might have something to do with her." He used the hands holding the glass to gesture towards my mother. His voice held malice as he referred to The Bitch and I giggled. He'd never had a conversation with her and he still didn't like her— this was loyalty at it's height.

"Do you think he wants to marry her?" I gasped suddenly, thinking the horrors of that situation. Charlie and my mother would probably get along, but poor Jack would be doomed to a life of acute torture.

"That's a pleasant thought." Julio shuddered, looking distastefully at my mother, who had somehow ensnared Jack in her clutches and was laughing loudly at something a friend said, her red-stained nails almost digging into Jack's arm.

"How I pity that poor man." I stated, shaking my head sadly, causing Julio to laugh.

"Dance with me?" He asked, dead serious.

"I don't know about you, but I can't dance like this." I gestured to the couples who were currently doing some kind of ballroom dance.

"Lucky for you, my mom taught me when I was younger." He said, smirking, "And I'm a great leader."

"Well, then, lead the way." I told him, and he did.

He wasn't exaggerating when he said he knew how to dance. He was amazing. He led me around the dance floor with practiced ease, keeping pace with all the other couples, too.

"You're great at this, you know." I commented, as he twirled me around and brought me back to original position.

"Oh, I know." He was still the same cocky bastard as always, but that was the reason I loved him, wasn't it?

We danced for at least another half an hour, after which I had to talk to more people, all the while ignoring my mother's glare.

More than anything else, we were complimented on our dancing. A few people even told us that we were a 'striking couple'.

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Rhoden." I said gracefully for what felt like the thousandth time, smiling at Julio as he proudly let his hand rest on the small of my back.

"You two seem in love, too. It reminds me of my husband and I when we were younger." Mrs. Rhoden added, looking across the room at a silver fox I assumed was her husband. She herself looked like she'd been gorgeous when she was younger, and both of them had aged very well.

"Oh, we are." Julio agreed, speaking to her for the first time instead of just standing aloofly.

She was distracted soon after by someone else, and I was done with talking to her anymore, so we slipped off to the food table. The heels that had earlier seemed like a good idea, didn't right now, after all that dancing.

"Come on, after all that you've got to be hungry." He said, offering me some kind of fancy cheese thing on a skewer. I let him pop it into my mouth, moaning the second it hit my tongue. Ally had great taste in food, too, it seemed.

"This is so good." I spoke with my mouth full, taking another one. Julio looked at me with a wide grin on his face, the kind that automatically made my heart stop for a second.

"God, I love you." He informed me, his eyes promising.

"I love you, too." I agreed, not bothering to swallow before speaking this time, either and he looked oddly proud.

We were together, we were in love, and today had been much, much better than I'd anticipated.