Strength Of The World

For a few days after the pumpkin patch, Peyton was on edge. The slightest noise made her jump, and she panicked if she was left in a room by herself. Zack had taken her to the police station to issue a restraining order, and that had made her feel a little better. Day after day her anxiety was less and less, until she was pretty much back to normal, just in time for her birthday. When she woke up she was alone in bed, and looked around confused. On the nightstand was a huge vase, full of purple roses and big white hydrangeas. Beside it was a card that had her name scrawled out in Zack's messy handwriting, and a medium sized square jewelry box. She read the card, smiling softly at the sweet words her boyfriend wrote. Just as she was reaching for the box, the bedroom door opened and Zack appeared, carrying a tray of food. "Happy birthday baby. I got your favorite." He smiled at her, showing her the red velvet pancakes and bacon, then placing the tray down on the dresser and walking over to give her a kiss. "Did you open it yet?" He asked, noticing the box in her hand. "Nope, I was just about to when you opened the door." She said with a smile. "Well, go ahead. Open it." He said, wrapping his arm around her and kissing her head. Peyton opened the box and gasped at what she saw. Inside there were three silver bracelets, each one a thin cuff-style with a stone on each end. One had her birthstone, another had Zack's and the third one had a Ruby, which would be the baby's birthstone. "Zack, they're beautiful." Peyton whispered, picking up the one with the rubies on it. "That one is for the little dude, since he or she will be born in July." He explained, pointing to the bracelet. "Then obviously one is your birthstone, and one is mine." "I love it. Thanks babe." She said, kissing him softly. "That's just the beginning. You've got a full day of being showered with gifts." He grinned. "I hope you didn't go overboard this year." She sighed. "It's not even that big of a deal." "I don't know why you hate birthdays," he said with a laugh, "but I promise you'll love this one." He got up and gave her the tray of food. "Hurry up and eat, Val and the girls will be here in about an hour and a half to take you shopping." "What?!" She exclaimed, "I can't even wear half my clothes right now, there's no point!" "Peyton, you wear like everything in your closet." He laughed, "You'll be fine." Peyton grumbled and started digging into her breakfast, eating until she was sure she would explode. "Oh my god that was so good." "You're welcome, now go get your butt in the shower." Zack said, smacking her butt when she got out of the bed. "Hey! Hands off Baker!" She laughed, walking into the bathroom.

After a quick shower Peyton dressed in a tight fitting leopard print dress that stopped mid-thigh and put her black leather jacket with 3/4 sleeves over it. She left her hair in its natural waves, did a quick smoky eye with red lipstick and put on her black wedge boots. The doorbell was ringing as she was walking out of her "babe cave" putting her new bracelets on her arm. She heard them squeaking before she saw them running up the stairs, carrying gift bags and balloons. "Happy birthday Peyton!" Leana shouted as all the girls swarmed her in a group hug. "Thanks guys!" She laughed. Once they broke from their hug they all walked into her bedroom and sat on the bed. "Okay okay present time!" Lacey said, handing her a gift bag. "Aw, you guys didn't have to do this." Peyton smiled at her friends. "Shut up. You're our best friend. You deserve it!" Val said. "Besides this isn't all we've got planned today." Michelle spoke up. One by one Peyton opened the gifts from the girls, most of which were new clothes, shoes, or jewelry. "Why are we going shopping if you guys just bought me all this stuff?" Peyton asked confused. "Because we can!" Leana said with a laugh. They all gathered their things and headed downstairs, Peyton kissing Zack goodbye before walking out the door.

At the mall, the girls went crazy buying Peyton new things. She got at least 3 pairs of pants, some shirts, a few dresses, and a new pair of converse. They were sitting at their favorite Italian place almost finished with their lunch when Brian showed up. "There's my birthday girl!" He grinned, pulling Peyton out of her seat and giving her a huge hug. "Happy birthday little sister." "Thanks Bri, what the hell are you doing here?" She asked him. "Well, you're mine next. Our yearly birthday date, just the two of us." Every year since he had been old enough to drive, Brian had always picked Peyton up on her birthday and they did something together, even when she lived in LA. It was one of the things she looked forward to most. "Well, they've already taken me shopping and stuffed me full of food, what do you have in mind?" She asked. "That's for me to know, and you to find out." He grinned. He paid for everyone's lunch, helped Peyton get her things out of the back of Val's car, and they headed off down the road, toward whatever Brian had planned.

When they pulled up at the park, Peyton had a huge grin on her face. "We're going to the spot." She stated, looking over at the older man. "Yup. There's a few surprises there." He said, getting out of the car. They walked through the park to their spot from high school, where there was a blanket laid out with three grinning men sitting on it. "Happy birthday Peanut!" Jimmy shouted as they walked into the clearing. "Thanks Jim!" She grinned at the tall man. "I figured we could do something a little different this year, so we're gonna hang out here for a bit." Brian explained. "But don't worry, we still got you presents." He said as he pointed to a pile of presents she could tell were wrapped by the guys. Peyton laughed as she sat down, and Johnny gave her a blanket to put over her legs. "Gotta stay warm out here." Was all he said. She rolled her eyes playfully and was handed a gift from each guy. They had gotten her movies, gift cards, random band tees, and a few bottles of liquor. "Those are for after the baby, of course." Johnny said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. When she opened the gift from Brian her eyes filled with tears. He had gotten her a few tshirts, a gift card to her favorite makeup store, and underneath all of that was a framed picture. It was of her, Brian, and Jimmy from the early days of the band. They were all super skinny and looked like they hadn't slept in days. It was sometime during their first Warped Tour, and they were all covered in sweat, Peyton sandwiched between the two men, all three of them with huge smiles on their faces. It was one of Peyton's favorite pictures of them. She had a copy of it in her dorm at college, and on her dresser in her bedroom when she lived with Jason until he threw it and shattered he frame. She looked at the picture for the longest time, remembering every detail of that moment. "Pey, you okay?" Brian asked concerned. She looked up at her big brother with tears in her eyes. "Yeah, I was just reminiscing." She smiled. "I remember everything about this day. I love this picture so much. Thanks Bri." She pulled him into a hug and she felt him kiss her head. "You're welcome kid. It's one of my favorites too." They sat around and talked for a little while, until Peyton was dozing off against Matt's shoulder. "Okay, come on Peanut. Looks like you need a nap before the party tonight." Jimmy said, pulling her up off the grass. They all cleaned up their mess and walked together back to their vehicles, Peyton hugging and saying goodbye to the three other men, and Brian drove her home. When she walked through the door to find Zack, she definitely was not expecting what she saw.

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