Golden ✓

Chapter 27

Happy birthday! Zac's text comes at exactly midnight and is quickly followed up with another one. Can I come over?

"Grace, is it cool if Zac stops by?"

Grace is busy frantically typing out an essay that is due at nine a.m. tomorrow—or I guess today. She looks up from her computer screen for just long enough to say, "Yes," and then puts her head back down and continues tapping on her keyboard at a record pace.

Yes, I reply. Immediately, there's a knock on the door. I look through the peephole and see that it's Zac. He must have been waiting outside when he sent the text.

"Happy birthday!" he says again as he enters, holding a small box wrapped in evergreen paper in his hands.

"Thank you." I lift onto my toes and kiss him, then look quickly over at Grace who is still too absorbed in her writing to take any notice.

"For you," he says, handing me the box. I accept it and begin to slowly peel apart the tape and remove the paper. "I should have guessed you were one of those people," he laughs.

I grasp the paper in the middle of the box and tear it in a quick motion. "Better?" I ask.

"Yes," he responds in a mock-sincere voice.

Smiling, I pull off the rest of the paper and lift off the top of the box. Inside, a glistening gold watch with embedded crystals sits on some foam. It's dainty; a small, practical accessory, one that's meant for function, not to stand out. It's also gorgeous. The face of the watch is pearly and shines beautifully even with the harsh overhead lights.

"Do you like it?" Zac asks, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"I love it," I respond, kissing him again.

This time it's him who pulls away and looks over at Grace, who has apparently stopped typing to watch us. "I wasn't sure whether to go with silver or gold, so I asked Grace to help me choose," Zac states.

Grace smiles proudly. "I did your whole color analysis. You're welcome." I laugh at this. "You're totally an autumn, by the way," she continues. "You should wear more orange."

I turn back to Zac who smiles at Grace and gives her a high five. Then, he looks at me. "I've cleared my evening and we're going to go out to dinner. But for now, I need to go study. Have a good night!" With one final kiss, he leaves just as quickly as he came.

Grace stands up from her desk and stretches. "Put it on!" she encourages.

I gently lift the watch from the box and clasp it on my wrist. "Grace, you definitely made the right call."

"I know," she says as she sits down, beginning to type once again.