We were all hanging out by the pool in our swimwear, some of the guys were horsing around in the pool. Matt was manning the grill and talking to Brian, who would occasionally glance over and smirk at me. “He’s been staring at you all afternoon. The kid’s in love.” Lily said from her spot next to me. “He better be. I’m living in his house, sharing pretty much everything with him.” I joked, looking over at her, “how are things living with Zack? He still Prince Charming?” I asked with a smile. Lily and Zack had been dating since the beginning of our senior year, and I thought Matt was going to blow a fuse when he found out Zack wanted to date his sister. But they had been going strong for almost a year now, and I was so happy for her. “We’re great B. He’s still the same Zack I fell in love with. How are things at casa de Haner?” she joked, “They’re good. Bri isn’t very hard to live with, and there’s two bathrooms and a vanity so we can do our hair at the same time.” I joked, sipping on my rum and Coke, “he likes to help out with dinner, and the other night we moved the coffee table in the living room and turned on the music and danced for hours. It was so romantic and sweet after the day of hell I had.” “I’m glad you’re finally happy Brook, after what Jamie did to you I didn’t think you would ever love anyone again, but then again it’s always been Bri. Even before you guys were close I knew you’d be together.” Lily said, grabbing my hand and squeezing it. “Thanks Lil. It’s really going to suck when we start school, I’ll never get to see you,” I pouted, “we’re going to have to get together at least once a week for lunch and gossip.” “It’s a date, I’m always down for food and gossip.” she said with a laugh. We turned our attention to the pool, where Jimmy, Johnny, Zack, and Jason Berry were all trying to play chicken, Johnny on Zack’s shoulders and Jason on Jimmy’s. “How is this fair?!” Johnny shouted. “You guys have a height advantage!” “Maybe you should grow a few more inches, short shit!” Jimmy said laughing, “stop making excuses, and get on Zee’s shoulders. It’s time to battle!” Johnny and Jason pushed against each other for a while, until Jimmy gave some sort of battle cry, and ran toward Zack and Johnny, whose eyes widened as they realized what was happening. “Holy shit! Abandon ship!” Zack shouted. As Johnny went to leap off Zack’s shoulders, Jim and Jason crashed into them, all four of the guys going straight underwater. The girls and I were practically crying we were laughing so hard. We could always count on Jimmy and Jason to entertain us at any family function. “Holy shit. I have to go pee before I wet my pants.” I said, getting up to go to the bathroom.

Once I was finished in the bathroom and had washed my hands, I helped Val set all the food on the tables the guys had set up earlier in the day. We had a ton of food: grilled chicken, hot dogs, hamburgers, wings, potato salad, chips, cole slaw, baked beans, salad, and a ton of fresh fruit and veggies. Matt was getting the rest of the food off the grill, and we all sat down around the table. Matt was at the head of the table, with Val to his left. Next to Valary were Jason and Matt Berry, with Lacey and Johnny next to them. Zack was at the other end of the table, with Lily to his right. I sat next to Lil, with Brian next to me. Jimmy and Leana completed the table. I looked around the table and grinned to myself. This was my family. My friends. The only people in life I need. They’ve all been there for me no matter what, through all my ups and downs. I owe it to all of them to become a successful businesswoman. We passed around the food and had a nice dinner full of hearty laughs and fun conversation. After dinner we all sat around a bonfire, curled up next to our spouses or boyfriends. Lacey brought out the marshmallows, and we all made s’mores. We hung out until the early morning hours, then one by one we made our way to our respective houses. Brian and I went straight to bed once we got home, with me curled up in his arms, where I fell fast asleep.

The next few weeks flew by. Living with Brian seemed to work out really well. The guys were starting to go back to the studio, which meant I didn’t see much of him, but I made sure that we spent at least a few hours together every night. I had just gotten back home from a day of lunch and shopping with Lily and Lacey. I was putting away my new purchases when I heard the front door open. “Babe?” Brian called, walking up the stairs. “I’m in the closet baby,” I shouted back. “Have a successful shopping trip?” He asked, walking into the closet to give me a kiss. “I did. I found an amazing pair of heels, and got more skinny jeans. I even went to Victoria’s Secret.” I joked. “Oh, I can’t wait to see those items.” he joked, wiggling his eyebrows. “How was your day baby? You guys finish any songs?” I asked him, wrapping my arms around his neck. “We worked on a few, one might be completely finished. We’re going to decide tomorrow. But I don’t want to talk about that. I want to spend time with my girl before her first big day of college tomorrow.” he said, kissing me soundly. “I can deal with that. You hungry?” “Starving. What did you have in mind?” he asked, kissing my neck. “well, how about some pan seared steaks, broccoli, salad, and roasted vegetables?” “That sounds delicious baby. I’m going to take a shower, then I’ll help you.” he said, kissing me. “Take your time and relax, I’ve got it. You had a long day.” I told him, walking toward the kitchen. Once I was downstairs I let Pinkly out to potty, turned on some music, and got started on dinner. I grabbed the potatoes, carrots, onion, grape tomatoes, and mushrooms out of the fridge so I could start chopping them. Once I had them all chopped I coated them in olive oil, seasoned them up, and popped them into the oven to roast. I set a timer, then put on a pot of water to boil. I grabbed the griddle pan, and placed it on the stove, letting it heat up. I grabbed our steaks out of the fridge, coating them with olive oil and seasoning. Once the steaks were in the pan I put the broccoli in the water to steam. I poured myself a glass of wine and grabbed the plates and utensils. I quickly sat two places at the table, making sure to add a napkin to each place. I flipped the steaks and mixed the veggies around. I got to work on the salad, chopping lettuce and veggies, putting it all into a big bowl. I sat the bowl on the table, along with our favorite dressings - house Italian for me, balsamic vinaigrette for him. I quickly got the veggies out of the oven, took the pan of steaks off the burner, and turned off the broccoli. Brian was walking down the stairs as I mixed the vegetables around one last time. “That smells amazing baby.” he said, wrapping his arms around my waist. “I can’t wait to eat, is it ready?” “Yeah babe, go ahead and sit down, I got it.” I said, turning around to kiss him. I grabbed a beer out of the fridge, opened it, and handed it to him. I pushed him toward the table with a quick kiss on his cheek and put all the food on serving platters. I carried all the platters to the table, where we sat and ate in comfortable silence. After dinner Brian helped me clean up the dishes and load the dishwasher. “That was great babe, I really liked those vegetables.” he said, placing the last plate on the rack and closing the dishwasher, turning it on. “Thanks babe, now it’s time for dessert.” I said, grinning and pulling him upstairs. “I was thinking about a bubble bath. Care to join me?” I asked seductively. “Of course I want to join you.” he chuckled. “You go relax, I’ll get it ready.” he said, pushing me toward the bed. I laid there and listened to the water fill up the tub, thinking about how happy I was in my life. Brian was so great to me, and things were going great in all the other areas of my life as well. Everything finally seemed to fall into place. Once Brian was finished filling the tub we both got in and talked softly about our days, and the future. “One day you’re going to be my wife. I’m not saying it’s going to be soon, and I’m not saying I’m going to wait five years to ask you, but it’s gonna happen. Then you’re going to have at least two kids. I want babies.” he said, making me laugh. “Your plans are so definite, I like that.” “Well, I’m a man who knows what he wants. And that’s you, as my wife, with two kids.” he said, kissing my shoulder. Once the water was cold and all the bubbles had disappeared, we both got out and toweled off. Once we were dry we skipped clothes and went straight to bed and fell asleep wrapped up in each other’s arms. Tomorrow is my first day of college, and as excited as I was, I was hoping it would go by fast so I could come back home to Brian.