Checkmate (Sequel to Game On)

Chapter 28: Happy Birthday

I steal a glance at the calendar Martha has hung beside the fridge and sigh as I notice there to be a big red circle around this day. It's been around a week since Nathaniel and I got together again, or whatever you can call it since no one knows, and today it's time for his next game since they won the previous one. I know there's no way my friend will let me stay home this day and I also know that even though Martha and Roland would like to have me home a day like this, they will practically push me out through the door and lock me outside if that's what it takes for me to join my friends at the game. There's no way around it.

Taking a deep breath, I force a smile onto my lips and wave goodbye at Martha and Roland, who decided to start work a little bit later today in order to eat breakfast with me on this special day and walk out through the door and to the bus stop.

When I arrive at school and reach my locker, I realize that my friends got here before me, judging by the balloons and decorations that are attached to my blue and normally boring locker door.

Before I have time to open it, shouts and high-pitched yelling surprise me and causes me to grimace and almost drop my phone.

"Congratulations, Celine!" Sabrina yells, practically into my ear, while attacking me with a bone-crushing hug.

"Yeah, finally you're a big girl", Carter teases before joining in on the hug. A few other friends of mine congratulates me and I just stay by my locker and force a broad smile onto my lips while feeling a blush spreading on my cheeks.

"I told you I didn't want to make a big deal out of it", I hiss to my closer friends while most of the crowd have walked away, "it's just... embarrassing."

"Oh, c'mon", Claire says, "you know we wouldn't pretend as if it was nothing. It's your birthday, it should be celebrated, not forgotten and ignored."

"Well", I sigh as I cautiously look around, "you surely have made sure of that now."

"You're welcome", she laughs before handing me a small box wrapped in baby blue paper.

"Claire! You shouldn't ha-"

"It's from all of us", she hurries to say, "it's just this, nothing else. Okay?"

I nod slowly before taking the small box and start unwrapping the paper. As I finally open it, I gasp and quickly glance up at my friends, telling them how beautiful it is, before carefully picking up the charm bracelet from the box.

It is silver, with four charms already attached to it.

"The shoe is from me", Sabrina says while smiling.

"And the cupcake from me", Claire chimes in.

"I guess you've already figured out who the football is from", Carter chuckles and I nod before looking back down at the bracelet.

"What about the flower?" I ask, examining the small, faded pink, flower.

"It's from Jamie", Sabrina tells me, "but he couldn't come today, he got the flu or something."

"Oh", is all I can manage to say. Throughout the week, I've been able to stand him but I still haven't forgiven him completely. The only reason to why I even talk to him and pretend like everything is fine is because I don't want my friends to worry.

"We better get going to class", Carter says as I put on the bracelet, "there's no point being late when we're actually in school in time."

With that, everyone walks in different directions towards their classroom.

Throughout the whole day, I receive a few congratulations every now and then, both from teachers and students, and Nick sat down with my friends and me at the lunch before practically dragging me away from them. All he wanted to do was congratulate me, which he apparently couldn't do with my friends watching, and he did actually also tell me he had a surprise for me but the way he said it on caused me to shiver and get an uneasy feeling in my stomach. Something tells me I won't like the surprise.