Hooked Up

Chapter 16 - 20th Birthday

The next day we go sightseeing, Nate and I leading the way as we take our friends by St. James Church, Holetown Monument, and Sir Frank Hutson Sugar Museum, to name a few. Afterwards we head to Limegrove Lifestyle Centre to do some duty-free shopping.

"Ugh, you girls sure can shop" Landon groans as Sophie pulls us into yet another store.

"Suck it up," I swat at him. "We aren't coming here again so better buy what you want now."

"Come on, guys," he tells Nate, Mike, and Brett. "Let's go find a bar." They jump at the prospect and soon have disappeared from our sights.

We shop for another hour, after which we start searching for the boys.

"Just pick the closest bar" Sophie says. And we do. And what do you know? We find the guys there, sipping rum.

Brett pulls Miranda to his side by her waist, landing a big kiss on her cheek.

"'Aight, you guys ready to leave?" I ask, pointing to the numerous bags we're carrying.

"Yeah, my feet are killing me" Stella complains. "We've walked all day."

Nate sinks down his drink and gets up. "Sure."

Sophie drives the other car, following close behind me as Nate isn't fit to drive anymore. We dump our purchases to our rooms and start preparing dinner. We ate lunch in town, but we all were too tired to want to dine in a restaurant.

After dinner we scatter around the house, each doing our own thing. I plop down on my bed, closing my eyes for a second.

I wake up much later, my power nap having turned into a full-out sleeping session. I check my watch. It's two-thirty. I'm officially twenty years old. I don't feel any different. Well, I feel hungry but that's nothing new.

I roll out of bed and head downstairs to the kitchen. I'm surprised when I notice light coming from it. I walk through the doorway and spot Landon going through the fridge.

"Hey," I declare my presence and he jumps, hitting his head against a shelf.

"Owh!" he massages his head. "What are you doing awake?"

"Woke up hungry," I shrug, leaning against the table, still wearing the same jean shorts and white V-neck top as earlier, not having changed for bed as I hadn't planned on oversleeping.

"Yeah, me too," he says, going back to pulling things out of the fridge. "Care for a turkey sandwich?"

"Sure," I nod. I watch him fix the sandwiches. He offers me one and I take it, eating in silence.

"Oh, hey," he lifts up his head. "Today's your birthday, right?"

I nod, surprised he remembers.

"Wait a minute," he tells me and hurries out of the room. He returns a short while later, carrying a little satin box in his hand. "Here," he gives it to me. "Happy birthday."

"Thanks," I take the box. I'm reminded of Christmas. I open the lid carefully, feeling his eyes on me the whole time. My lips part as I let out a breath. It's a gold necklace with a delicate pear-shaped diamond pendant. It's exquisite. I brush my fingers over it. "Thank you," I say sincerely, looking up at him. "It's beautiful."