Velvet

Chapter Ten

Velvet's POV

“Haaapppyyy biiirrrthdaaayyy toooo yooooouuu, haaapppyyy biiirrrthdaaayyy toooo yooooouuu, haaapppyyy biiirrrthdaaayy deeeaaarrr Veeelllvvveeett, haaapppyyy biiirrrthdaaayyy toooo yooooouuu!”

My eyes fluttered open to the loud singing echoing down the hallway.

Groggily opening my eyes, I realized today was indeed my 19th birthday. I recognized the voices of my friends Lucas, Sarah, and Sophie as they burst into my bedroom.

Shifting up in bed, I couldn't help but smile at their smiling faces and the delicious smelling breakfast tray piled high with pancakes and strawberries with an orange juice that Lucas carried.

“Rise and shine, birthday girl!” Sarah said cheerfully.

Sophie laughed, “Yeah, we know how much you love to sleep in.”

Lucas placed the tray across my lap. The pancakes and strawberries smelled heavenly.

“Thanks, guys,” I said with a yawn. Their effort and thoughtfulness warmed my heart.

My friends gathered round on the bed, chatting excitedly about the day's plans

As I cut into the fluffy pancakes, Sarah asked, “So what do you want to do first, open presents or cake?”

Sophie gasped, “Oh, the cake, your mom made the triple chocolate fudge you love!”

I couldn't help but giggle at their energies, still feeling a warmth spread through me at being surrounded by such wonderful company.

Scooping up the last juicy strawberries, my eyes met Lucas's.

“Thank you guys, it means everything to have my best friends here on my morning.”

They beamed at that, and Sarah nudged me playfully. “Well hurry up birthday girl, the day's a-wasting!”

Laughing, I finished the last few bites and quickly polished off the rest of the breakfast. I got out of bed feeling ready to dive into this milestone birthday with my favorite people by my side every step.

I slipped out of bed and grabbed my towel. “I'm going to shower real quick. Don't you dare eat that cake before I'm done!” I teased on my way out.

When I got downstairs, the heavenly scents of chocolate and baking pastries filled the air.

I found my mom in the kitchen, putting final touches on my favorite—triple chocolate fudge cake.

“Oh Velvet, happy birthday sweetheart!” She

pulled me in for a tight hug.

I spotted Sophie and Sarah sneaking bites of frosting while hiding evidence behind their backs.

“We saw nothing!” Sarah declared with a full mouth.

Shaking my head, I turned to my mom. “Everything looks incredible, thank you.”

“You're so welcome, darling. I wanted to make all your favorites for your special day.” She explained, gesturing to the assortment of pastries, quiches, and fresh squeezed juice.

“Thank you for the thought and effort, it means the world, but Mom, you really didn't need to go through so much trouble,” I said. I said sincerely, giving her another hug.

Just then, Lucas called that Operation: Birthday Cake was a go, and we sat down together to celebrate the start of my last year as a teenager.

But before Mom could respond, Sarah chimed in mischievously, “Oh there's no trouble at all! I may have invited Nate…"

My stomach dropped as I shot her a look, knowing full well what that meant.

Sophie caught my eye too, trying to subtly hold back a laugh. We both remembered all too well the awkward run-in in the park, where I stumbled upon Nathan—wrapped in an embrace with another girl. The memory still stung.

My mother turned to us with curiosity. “Who is Nathan?” she asked Sarah.

In unison, my so-called friends declared smugly, “Her crush!” I glared at them, cheeks flaming red, as my mom's interest was clearly piqued. “And what this crush look like?” she pried.

I couldn't believe they were ganging up on me like this.

“Nathan is... was just a boy from school. It doesn’t matter, really.” Trying to change the subject, I asked how I could help with preparations.

But my mom wouldn’t let it go that easily. “Come now Velvet, tell me about this Nathan.”

“It's not relevant, Mom” I said softly, hoping to brush past this embarrassment. But she wasn’t done teasing yet.

“Oh, and you really should invite that nice Darren boy too! The new neighbor. Quite the charmer, that one,” she said with a wink.

My friends all swiveled towards me with amused looks, evidently interested to hear more about this cocky “Darren.”

I shot my mother a glare. “We’re not inviting the whole neighborhood, jeez.”

Just then, a knock sounded at the front door, cutting the tension.

Sarah leapt up excitedly. “That must be Nathan!” She swung the door open with a flourish. “Hi... hello handsome—oh.”

It wasn’t Nathan after all.

“Um, hi. Is Velvet home?” I recognized the voice. It was Darren.

Then, recognition dawned on Sarah’s face as she glanced back at me with new intrigue. “Why yes, I believe this strapping young man must be Darren!” She shouted louder than necessary.

My cheeks flamed once more as my mom smiled knowingly. Lucas and Sophie just looked confused.

Darren stepped inside, waving hello to the rest of us. “I, uh, brought these for you,” he said, holding out a bouquet for me.

I stared wide-eyed at the bouquet in Darren's hand, internally feeling annoyed and all eyes in the room upon me.

Clearing my throat, I flashed Darren a fake appreciative smile.

“Thank you, that's very kind. These are lovely.” Taking the flowers, I tried to ignore the chorus of amused whispers from my friends.

“Let me find a vase to put these in,” offered Mom, promptly scooping up the bouquet with a grin shot in my direction. I sent back a look pleading for help that went ignored.

“So, Darren, tell me how are you settling into the new place?” asked Mom from the kitchen, clearly intrigued by our neighbor.

“It's going alright so far, still getting used to the area.” He said, a bit of cockiness in his voice.

His eyes found mine. My stomach flipped in an unpleasant way.

Sarah interrupted before I could respond. “What made you decide to stop by today?” she inquired, waggling her eyebrows at me.

“I, uh, wanted to come and greet Velvet and Mom," replied Darren.

Lucas snorted. “More like you wanted an excuse to see Velvet again.”

My cheeks flamed as I shot Lucas a murderous look. But Darren just laughed it off like it did not mean anything.

“Guilty as charged. Though hopefully, I'm not interrupting anything special planned for today?”

Clearly this was dragging on, so I spoke up. “We were actually just about to head out. Thanks again for the flowers, Darren, they're beautiful. Maybe I'll see you later?”

Just then, after I finished my sentence, Sophie spoke.”Oh about that, we will schedule it for another time. Darren, feel free to join us”

Before I could talk, there was another knock at the door.

“I'll get it,” I said, dodging the uncomfortable conversation they had going on with Darren.

Wiping my hands on my jeans, I pulled open the door…and came face to face with none other than him.

Nathan stood there, hands shoved in his letterman jacket pockets, a shy half-smile playing on his lips. “Hey Velvet. Happy birthday.”

My mind went blank, eyes wide as I drank in the sight of him. How effortlessly handsome he looked, even in just a t-shirt and jeans.

My mind went blank, eyes wide as I drank in the sight of him. How effortlessly handsome he looked, even in just a t-shirt and jeans. “N-Nathan. Hi. I, um, wasn't expecting…"

He scratched his neck, gaze dropping to the floor. “Yeah, Sarah may have ambushed me with an invitation earlier. I know that we haven't really spoken much, but I wanted to see you.”

My heart swelled with hope and questions. I wanted to ask him who the girl at the park was? What did she mean to him? But before I could respond, Sarah appeared at my shoulder with a cheshire grin.

“Well don't just stand there, come on in! " she urged, shoving past us into the entryway. Nathan laughed and stepped inside, hands finding his pockets again. Our eyes met, and the flutter returned full-force.

As Nathan stepped through the door, a hush fell over the room. All eyes were on us. I noticed his fall upon Darren, who met his gaze head on from across the way.

My gaze shifted between Nathan and Darren cautiously as their eyes remained locked in a wordless showdown.

An unfamiliar tension hung in the air as the two young men took measure of one another.