The twins turn eight (and a half) today. Since their birthday is in January, they wanted to have a half-birthday celebration so it can be summer themed. I agreed to it mainly because I still felt guilty for Rose's near-death experience.
I started planning just two days ago, only because that's when they told me about this half-birthday party. It hasn't been very easy. Their guest list originally consisted of 83 people, which, yes, is their entire class. Together, they narrowed it down to just 24 of their closest and most-loved friends.
Next, they had to decide on the theme. Crystal wanted Hawaiian, but Rose wanted tropical. Did I actually see any serious difference? No. But of course they did. It spent four hours being locked in their room for them to come to the decision of Hawaiian-Tropical-Ultimate-Pool Party.
To help make things easier on me, I assigned everyone a role for the party. Addison would order and design the cake, Jonas would be in charge of the games, Ethan would be my personal assistant, Elliott would get the decorations, and Bethany had to be quiet and not poop in her pants. So far, Bethany is horrible at her job.
The party starts at three and goes until eight-thirty. That's five and a half hours that I have to keep twenty-four eight-year-olds occupied and under control.
Luckily, I love birthday parties. I worked at nearly all of Mikey's parties, until he got too cool for the actually fun parties with games and piñatas and presents. The kids love them just as much, which makes it pretty easy on myself.
"Hey, Liott, have you gotten the decorations yet?" I ask, knocking on his open bedroom door.
He looks up from his phone, his lips puckered as he shakes his head. "About that...I kind of forgot."
"Elliott," I exclaim, "the party is in less than three hours!"
"Calm down," he says and gets out of his bed in just a t-shirt and boxers. "I'll go now."
"Okay. I have to go the store to get prizes for the games. I can drive," I say as he throws on a pair of basketball shorts.
He nods and follows me downstairs where the rest of the family is working diligently on their tasks. The twins are filling up the inflatable pool in the backyard, Addison is on the phone with the cake lady, Jonas is setting up a bucket game outside, and Ethan is cleaning up his toys that are all around the house.
"Hey, we're going to stop at the store to pick up some things," I say to the kids outside. "Don't leave the hose on."
"Got it!" The twins lift their thumbs in the air. "Oh! Make sure you get the little umbrellas for drinks. Those are a must have."
"I couldn't imagine having this party without the drink umbrellas," I say and go back inside to grab the keys off the ledge and head into the garage.
Elliott climbs in the passenger's seat when I unlock the car. I start the engine and back out of the driveway. The grocery store is only a few minutes away from the house, so it won't take too much time out of our hectic day.
"Is your mom back?" Elliott asks a bit randomly.
I shake my head and stop at the red light. "I don't think so. She hasn't called or texted."
He nods and lifts one foot up on the dashboard. "Sounds like my dad."
"Yeah? What's the story with him anyway?" I ask. "I don't mean to pry, but I'm just curious because the Kennedy's just seem to be so family oriented."
"I guess so," he laughs. "My dad isn't even a Kennedy though. He's a Cantoni."
"Right, your mom never married him, did she?"
"Nope. They just had sex and then unfortunately me," he says simply.
I roll my eyes. "I'd hardly call it unfortunate."
"Thanks for flattering me, Red," he says with a laugh. "However, my dad definitely didn't want a kid. He ended things as soon as she told him the test came out positive. He didn't come back into our lives until he found out about my mom's success in her charitable work."
"When was that?"
"After adopting Jonas," he answers. "Even then, he only showed up once every six months to ask for money. My mom would give him money to spend the day with me, as messed up as that may seem. I obviously didn't know that back then, so I actually thought my dad wanted to be with me." He sighs. "The only good thing that came out of my days with my dad was the passion for cliff diving. He'd take me to that beach every time."
My mind goes back to the day he took me to 'Elliott's Island' to dissipate my trust issues. He told me that his father had taken him there. What could've been a memorable spot for him to remember the relationship he once had with his father is now tarnished by the knowledge that his dad took him there just for money.
"And now the job?"
"Right. The job," he says. "Eventually, my dad got his shit together and started working at an insurance company. He's the regional manager now and said he can get me a position."
I nod. "So, you're fine with working at an insurance company for the rest of your life with your dad who left you before you were born?"
"Don't be so cynical, Ivy." He sucks in a deep breath before exhaling. "I don't have a lot of other options."
"I think you'd be a good calf model," I joke, hitting his leg that is perched up on the dashboard.
He laughs and drops his leg to the car floor. "Are my sculpted calves turning you on right now, Red?"
"There's a chance," I laugh. "But, in all seriousness, you have a lot more options than you think."
He nods, letting me know that he heard what I said, but not commenting on it to continue the conversation. I park in the front of the store and turn off the engine.
At the grocery store, there's a convenient area for all things party related. Elliott throws plates and cups, streamers and balloons, blow-up beach balls and mini Palm trees, and the drink umbrellas into his own basket. He goes a little crazy with the number of balloons. I find some little toys that could work as prizes, as well as a few more expensive prizes for the more difficult games.
"Ivy, you'll never believe what I found!"
I move to the next aisle to see Elliott holding up a coconut bra. "And who would be the one to wear that?"
"You, of course," he says with a smile. "Maybe Jonas."
I laugh and take the bra out of his hands to put back on the shelf. "Do you have everything you need?"
"I think so," he says and looks down at his basket.
"Okay, cool," I say and start walking towards the check-out area. "Let's go."
Grabbing my hand, Elliott tugs me back so I stumble against his chest. "I just remembered one other thing."
His lips meet mine in a passionate kiss before I can even react. Because he caught me so off guard, I drop the basket filled with prizes that scatter on the tile grocery store floor. But I'm not mad about it.
I could do one of two things in this situation. I could push him away and storm out of the store in an annoyed rage. It was just two days ago that this perv told me he purposely walked in on me in the shower. My other option is that I could kiss him back and finally get the taste of what I've been craving since that first night he kissed me.
I choose the latter.
When I do kiss back with a matched fury as his, Elliott grips my waist and pushes me against the shelves of obscure costumes. I bring my hands to his hair, running my fingers through the dark brown strands. This is everything I've been dreaming of and more. It's the rush I've been waiting for.
"Mommy, what are they doing?"
I pull away from the kiss, looking to my right to see a little girl in a tutu and pigtails. Elliott takes a step back, wiping his lips with his thumb and smiling awkwardly at the little girl's mother, who glares at us angrily and drags her daughter to a different aisle.
I breathe heavily, wiping my mouth before crawling on the floor to pick up all the dropped prizes. Elliott helps me pick up the toys, a grin on his face. I'm not sure what exactly we just did.
Once I have all the toys back in the basket, I stand up and walk towards the check-out with Elliott close behind. There's only one lane open: Yogi's.
"You have to be kidding me," I mutter before I unload the contents of my basket on the conveyer belt.
"Yogi!" Elliott greets his friend in excitement.
Yogi looks at us with an excited smile. "My favorite two people on the planet!" He starts checking our things out, going on to tell us this bizarre story about him and some friend breaking the law. Apparently the mini umbrellas reminded him of the story, even though there was no mention of umbrellas in the entire story.
"That was really something," I say at the end of the story I stopped listening to halfway through.
"Oh, definitely," he says and looks from me to Elliott. "Dude, do you have lipstick on?"
Elliott raises his eyebrows. "Uh, no. I-I just had some fruit punch before we left. My lips are a little pink from that."
Yogi smirks. "You two just hooked up, didn't you?"
"No!" we both yell at the same time.
"Come on, guys. There's no need to hide things from me," he says. "Yogi knows everything."
"Don't refer to yourself in third person," Elliott says. "How much do we owe you?"
"Nothing if you tell me the truth," he bribes with a cheeky smile.
I roll my eyes and hand him two twenties, assuming that'd be more than enough. "Keep the change."
"I see how it is," Yogi laughs.
I take the plastic bags and go to leave. "Have a nice day, Landon."
"I already know you will, Ivy," he says. "See you at the cliff tonight, El? We've missed you."
"Maybe," Elliott mumbles before taking one of the plastic bags from me. "Later, man."
We walk out of the store with an awkward tension between us. After putting the groceries in the trunk, we get into the front seats. I start the engine and Elliott puts on the radio immediately, insinuating that he too doesn't know what to say.
I glance in the mirror, seeing my puffy lips and messy hair. No wonder Yogi could tell. I sigh comb my hair with my fingers at the red light.
Elliott clears his throat and shifts in his seat. "I bought the coconut bra."
"And I wasted $7.99 on a coconut bra," I say with a small laugh.
He laughs and apologizes with a simple "sorry."
The conversation ends there.
The radio song changes to an overplayed song, one you can't help but sing along to. We both start quietly singing along in hushed singing voices.
I glance at Elliott, who is looking out the window at the ocean view and still singing along with a little head bop. Everything about him is making me a wreck. I want him.
Got everyone watchin' us, so, baby, let's keep it secret
I want him so badly, but there are too many reasons I shouldn't. Even so, a part of me desperately wants to pull over the car and kiss him again and again...and again.
He turns his head from the window to look at me. I keep my eyes on the road, but glance his way every once in awhile. I want to know what he's thinking, what that kiss meant to him.
"What if we kept it a secret?" he says randomly.
I raise my eyebrows. "What are you talking about?"
"Us. Our relationship. What if we kept it a secret from everyone? My mom wouldn't find out. We can tell everyone after you're done working here for the summer."
"Elliott, I don't want to keep my relationship secret from people," I say with a frown.
He sighs. "I know you like me, Ivy. What I'm feeling can't be this one-sided. We both said that our goal this summer was to fall in love. I sure as hell wasn't talking about Carter and I hope to God you didn't mean Jake Acker."
"I didn't," I admit and bite my lip. "But we've already talked about this. It can't work, even as a secret relationship. It's not just about me losing my job."
"You're not even going to give it a chance?"
I shrug, turning into our driveway. "I can't."
"Tell me why not."
"I don't want to," I say and shut off the engine.
He stops me from getting out of the car by gently taking my elbow. "What else is it about, if it's just not about you losing your job?"
"I'm not going to tell you that, Elliott," I say in a laugh.
He frowns and unbuckles before getting out of the car to grab the groceries from the back. I sigh and follow him to help carry the bags in.
"Jonas is always saying how he's jealous of Mike because of the baths and stuff," he says with a small laugh and closes the trunk. "I'm starting to get jealous of him too."
"Why's that?" I ask, leaning against the minivan.
"He's the only person you let in."
I open my mouth to object, but no words come to mind. I don't open up to people easily; that's who I am. My parents are the reason for my trust issues, their messed up relationship making me fear any open relationship with another person.
To open up to Elliott would leave me vulnerable for heartbreak. It is horrifying to allow myself to be so naked with my emotions for someone like Elliott. I've put up a wall, nearly impossible for anyone to breakdown. Mike hasn't even gotten close to opening me up completely; no one has.
"I can tell you're scared, Red. And if it makes you feel any better, I'm a little scared too." Elliott lets out a sigh and straightens up. "Now, I'm going to go inside and put on my coconut bra and be a man," he says before walking into the house.
I shut my eyes, hitting my head against the minivan in frustration with myself.
"Ivy!" Jett says excitedly when he walks over. "Are you ready to party?"
I down at his jaws-themed swim trunks. He wears goggles and a swim cap. I don't know what else I'd expect from Jett. "Sure am, kid."
The twenty-four eight-year olds gather in the backyard for the party. Our entire dining room table is covered with presents for both twins. One girl, Tami, only brought a present for Rose. Crystal asked me numerous times to kick her out of the party, but I made her suck it up and put on a smile for her party guests.
I wear my bikini under a beach coverup. Elliott bought these ridiculously large sunglasses for all of us to wear. He was a good sport about everything, allowing the little girls to use him as a human surfboard and play with his coconut bra.
Nora and Flynn come over to help with the party as well. Jonas assigns everyone to a certain game station. I don't work a station and instead stay inside to set up the table for dinner. I also take the duty of directing little kids to the bathroom.
After setting everything up for dinner, I go outside to check on things. The kids all seem to be having a blast in the water or at the game stations. I sit in a chair on the patio with a drink and watch everyone, mainly Elliott.
It's normal to be scared when starting a new relationship, isn't it? Nora has told me many times how worried she is about Flynn breaking her heart, yet she's allowing herself to be happy with him. I've just never thought about ever allowing myself to get to the point of being emotionally vulnerable with someone.
But as I watch Elliott, I think that he is worth it. He is worth taking the risk of possibly drowning in the depths of our relationship. As scared as I am, I'm also excited by the thought of us together, as if under an adrenaline rush.
If you jump tonight, you'll feel something you've never felt before. Your heart races when you look over the edge, at the giant waves and pointy rocks. There's a thrill unlike anything else when you take that leap and fear everything going wrong, but then you crash into the water and know you'll be okay
I think of those words Elliott said to me when we were standing near the edge of the cliff, waters rushing beneath us, relating it to my situation now. Maybe all I need to do is just take that leap of faith and trust that when I crash into Elliott's arms, I'll be okay.
"What are you thinking about, Red?" Elliott asks, sitting on the patio chair next to me.
"Nothing." I take a sip of my fruit punch. "You know, it's offensive that you nicknamed me after a super villain."
"And you nicknamed me after pastry."
"I'd rather be a delicious pastry than an evil super villain," I say.
"Touché." He stands up from his chair and sticks out his hand for me to take. "Look, I say we forget who's a pastry and who's a villain and have some fun at this once in a lifetime Hawaiian-Tropical-Ultimate-Pool Party."
I sigh and take his hand, setting my cup down on the table. "I couldn't dream of missing out on this party, Cream Puff."
Before I have a chance to argue, Elliott lifts me up and throws me into the inflatable pool. I scream as the cold water hits me, contrasting with my burning skin from the hot sun. He jumps in after me in a cannon ball form. I laugh and hit him for throwing me in with my beach cover-up still on.
"You're such an idiot," I laugh and look down at my cover-up that sticks tightly against my skin.
He takes the huge sunglasses off one of the little girls that swims by and puts them on his face. "Blocking out the haters."
I shake my head and splash him forcefully. The little girls catch on and start to splash one another as well. Caught in the crossfire, I watch Elliott as he enjoys himself completely, splashing his little sisters and teaming up with others. It's something so beautiful to see.
"Ivy, the pizza is here," Flynn says, calling me from inside the house.
I nod and climb out of the pool. I take a towel to dry myself off before going inside. "Hey, Flynn, can you help me carry some of the boxes?" I ask while crossing the house to go to the front.
Flynn follows me to help carry the boxes. I pay the pizza boy, who happens to be Addison's very tall friend who hid behind the tapestry from the 'illegal' party. Flynn and I place the pizza in the kitchen before setting a slice on each plate.
"So," Flynn starts as he puts a pizza on a plate with a palm tree design, "can I give you some advice?"
"On what?"
"Your painful-for-everyone-in-the-room-to-watch-relationship with Elliott."
I frown. "Excuse me?"
"Ivy, I don't understand how stupid you think we all are. It's obvious you both like each other!" he exclaims. "Abraham said that he felt like he was third-wheeling more with you two than with Nora and me."
"Abraham is just a human tricycle," I say with a shrug. "He's always third-wheeling."
"Don't call my friends human tricycles!"
I laugh and hold my hands up in defense. "Okay, don't accuse me of liking Elliott more than just a friend when I don't!"
"You're not fooling me, Lynch," Flynn says with squinted eyes. "I am not a man to be fooled with."
"I know."
He nods. "Now, whether you want to hear it or not, I'm going to give you some advice. We- me, Addison, Jonas, the twins, Ethan, and Bethany- will always be Team Elliott. No questions. You can't expect things to go the other way around now that you've formed bonds with all of us."
"Flynn, I-"
"With that being said, I still think you would be good for Elliott, as he would be for you." He smiles softly. "You have my blessing."
I laugh. "I can't take you seriously while you're wearing that grass skirt," I say, thinking of a way to change the subject. "Want to tell everyone it's time for dinner?"
The thirty sunburnt eight-year-old girls circle around the large folding table set up outside to eat their Hawaiian pizza. The rest of us eat at the kitchen table inside and out of the hot sun.
Nora and Flynn are deeply engaged in a conversation, as they always seem to be. Elliott is doing a horrible job explaining to Ethan how to speak Spanish. Bethany is probably pooping her pants.
"Did you know I can drink an entire jug of Hawaiian Punch in one chug?" Jett asks with a sly grin.
"Prove it!" Jonas yells, his mouth stuffed with pizza.
"I don't think so," I say and take the jug of punch away from Jett. "Jonas, you're asking to get grounded again."
"Ivy!" he whines. "Why is it always me?"
"I'm going to turn things around and ask you that same question," I say.
"I love when you keep things fresh, Ives."
I laugh and ruffle his hair. "I do it just for you, Jo."
"Ivy, Elliott told me to tell you that you're bonita," Ethan says, a little giggle after saying the Spanish word.
I look to Elliott, a small smile on my face. "Well, E, you can tell Elliott that I think he's muy caliente."
"Elliott, Ivy told me to tell you that you're muy caliente."
"What does that mean?" Elliott asks in confusion. "Are you seriously mocking me in another language, Red?"
I laugh. "How did you pass summer school again?"
"My teacher rounded my grade up."
Addison walks into the kitchen with the birthday cake in a box, Mikey right behind her. "Hey, guys! You would not believe the line at the cake store! We waited over twenty minutes."
"And they spelled Crystal's name wrong," Mikey says. "You think she'll notice?"
We all look at the pink writing on the top of the cake.
Happy half birthday, Carlos and Rosie!
"Eh, I doubt it," Elliott answers Mike's question.
"How did that even happen?" I exasperate.
"I guess they misheard me," Addison says. "I asked if they could fix it, but they said I'd have to wait in the line all over again."
I sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose. "She's going to be so upset. I'll just go back to the store."
"No, Ivy, I feel bad. I should've stayed to have them change it," Addison says. "Mike just said that if he didn't have any pizza than he'd pass out and possibly go into a three year coma."
I look to Mike with a flat face.
He smiles innocently and takes a slice of pizza. After shoving nearly the whole thing in his mouth, he drops the rest of it and fans his mouth. "¡Muy caliente!"
Elliott frowns. "You called me cheesy?"
I roll my eyes and check the cabinets for frosting. Luckily, we have vanilla frosting. "We can dye this and try to rewrite her name correctly."
Addison swipes off the name Carlos on the cake as I dye the frosting red. Jett volunteers to write her name and Nora confirms that he has the best cursive in the state. We're able to salvage the cake in a shabby attempt. Crystal's name is messier than Rosie's, but Jett's cursive skills really save the day.
The party goes on. After cake, the girls open their presents in front of everyone. It takes almost an hour just for the presents, considering each girl got twenty-eight presents. Well, except Crystal got one less because Tami is a little jerk (I decided this when she told me I shouldn't go into the party planning business). Finally, the girls all go home and all that's left is some cleaning up before this insanely long day can be over.
Everyone is worn out from the day, so the kids go to bed pretty easily. The twins take just a little bit longer to get to bed because of the excitement of all their new toys. Addison and Jonas go to bed around ten, leaving just Elliott and me downstairs alone.
"My mother just texted me to tell me that she built a house for a family of thirty kids. Meanwhile, I wore coconut bra to entertain twenty-eight eight-year-olds," Elliott says and plops down next to me on the couch.
I laugh and tip my head back to look up at the ceiling. "What's new?"
"Exactly." He places his arm over the back of the couch, his hand falling near my face. "So, Google translate tells me that you think I'm hot. Is this reliable?"
I shrug. "I have to be careful answering that one. We don't want your ego to explode."
"Right." He smiles and looks at me carefully, his clear eyes bright with youthfulness.
I get butterflies in my stomach when he looks at me this way, as if I'm an artwork on display in a museum, or an artist performing on stage at a concert. My heart wants to jump out of my chest and just scream, "kiss me!" But my head knows better. It knows that I can't be this indecisive. Do I take the leap of faith or stay safe in what I've always done?
With that adrenaline rush as I jump off the cliff, I ask, "how good are you at keeping secrets?"
~~
AN:
oo boy Iviott is full steam ahead
translation with the author:
bonita - pretty
caliente - hot
guys I just realized I babysit a kid named Ethan and I lolled. but he's nothing like this Ethan. tragically.
but wow can you believe it an update on a Thursday I'm so on time and everything even with school look at me go go me I rock
lol I included into you last minute just because it so fit the moment and it is a bop and if you disagree than you just don't know how to bop you gotta bop to the top people
I'm perfecting my playlist for next chapter so leave those suggestions hit me up I'm all ears
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