the fourth roommate » alex ernst

THIRTY

"Haaaaaaaaaappy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Mason, happy birthday to you!" I was awoken by the loud singing (could you even call it that?) of all of my friends, standing around my tiny bed and looking down on me. I felt the smile growing on my face as my heart warmed at the sight. All of my friends singing me happy birthday, Kristen holding a giant chocolate cake in shaky arms.

"Guys..." I grinned, sitting up in my bed and brushing the stray hair out of my face. "Thank you!"

I blew the candles out and the group around me cheered. It felt warm, and not in a temperature way, in a this-room-is-filled-with-so-much-overwhelming-love-and-joy kind of way. Kristen sat the cake on my nightstand, shaking her arms out and I laughed and stood.

"Okay, promise I'm going to hug you all, but I'm going to go brush my teeth first, just in case," I saw their faces deflate, almost like they expected a completely different reaction than they got, but I shrugged it off and pushed my way to the bathroom.

I quickly brushed my hair and put my contacts in to make myself look the tiniest bit more presentable. I was halfway through brushing my teeth when I realized they were all wearing the same exact shirt.

I spit and rinsed my mouth out, heading back to my room to get a second look at the group's matching shirts. My eyes narrowed as I saw what it said.

There were probably fifteen people in that room, and every single person was wearing a black pocket tee with the words "holy guac!" embroidered in white and a little avocado underneath. I made the realization, and my eyes slowly travelled up to meet David's.

"You didn't," I gasped, eyes constantly switching between his face and the shirt. He finally began to smile and nod his head.

"We got you merch!" he yelled, lifting one hand up in the air but keeping his camera steady with the other. My jaw dropped and I looked around at everyone smiling at me, waiting for my reaction.

"David Dobrik, you're my hero," I half quoted Ferris Bueller, walking to him and wrapping my arms around his neck. He hugged me back, which I know he hated since he wasn't getting quality footage, and I kissed his cheek. "I love you so much. Thank you for being so welcoming to me when I could have lived here and never talked to you and never been a part of your group. It means so, so much to me. The merch is great too, I'm so in love with you guys. Okay, let's assembly line this bitch."

They lined up. First was Zane.

"Zane, you are the funniest person I think I've ever met and I'm so thankful that you've been there with me through so much. Love you," I hugged him and he kissed my cheek.

"Love you too, honey!"

Next was Liza. I said, "Liza, you've been the best friend I could ever ask for; you treat me like you've known me your entire life and that means so much to me. I love you, girl." She hugged me and moved on.

"Kwisten," I sighed, pulling her in for a hug. "You let me hang out with Scotty all the time, even though people say I flirt with him, and for that, I love and respect you."

Along came Wyatt and Charley. Oh boy. "You guys are like the younger siblings I never had. I'm so proud of you both and who you're growing up to be. You have amazing heads on your shoulders, and I'm so, so proud of you. I love you both."

"We love you, Aunt Masey. You're the best one of Daddy's friends," Charley said as she and Wyatt both wrapped their arms around my waist due to our significant height difference. A few heys were yelled from other people, which only made me laugh through my freeflowing tears.

Next came Gabbie. "Gabbie, you are an icon. I'm so fucking jealous of your body and your personality and your earrings, which look ridiculously good by the way. I love you with all my heart, babe."