Blade groaned. "You know what, I don't even care." He leaned in and started kissing me again, making me smile.

"It's okay. I'll see you tomorrow." I gave him one last kiss and climbed off the bed.

"Stay here." Blade looked pleadingly at me.

I laughed. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Positive." He was grinning ear to ear. His smile was contagious. How could I tell this beautiful man no? I'd never spent the night with a guy before and I was nervous, but I trusted Blade with my life. I chuckle remembering our first kiss, how I told myself I would never fall sleep around Blade. Now, I was going to be sharing a bed with him and happy about it.

He had just opened up to me, the least I could do was give him one night. "Okay." I laid back down. "I have to warn you, I'm a roller." I shifted to my side of the bed. He grabbed me and pulled me near him. My back was right against his stomach.

"Oh, so I might wake up with you laying on top of me?" I could feel his breath against the back of my neck. I was a little unsure of what this night could bring, how heated things may get. I wanted Blade so much, but I was afraid. I gave myself a pep talk in my head, it could be amazing. I decided whatever happens, happens. I was going to let myself worry about it.

"Maybe. You still think I should stay here?" I nuzzled myself in closer. I felt small against him.

"I do." He started playing with my hair. "You have beautiful hair, you know that?"

"Thank you." I moved my head to meet his gaze. I wanted to see his eyes. When I did, the desire boiled up inside me. My eyes stayed unmoving on his.

"Goodnight Amaya." He kissed me on the forehead. It felt strangely more intimate than a kiss on the lips. I realized then that it tonight wasn't the night no matter how badly I wanted it to be. We would have our night and it would be worth the wait. I was exhausted anyways, we both needed to rest after today's craziness.

"Goodnight." I said softly. I closed my eyes and felt myself drifting off. That night I had a lucid dream about Blade I didn't want to wake up from.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I woke up to the smell of pancakes. My stomach yelled at me to get up and I obeyed. I looked around and realized Blade wasn't next to me. I got up and went to the bathroom to freshen up then I moved to the door. I walked out to the kitchen and found Blade. He was flipping pancakes shirtless. I smiled, it was such a beautiful view.

I walked up behind him. "Morning."

He tossed the pancakes onto a plate. "Morning." He spun around to look at me. "Hungry?"

I nodded. "Famished."

Blade went to the fridge and returned with some whipped cream and strawberries. "Open." He ordered me, holding up the whipped cream bottle.

I smiled. "Don't mind if I do." I opened my mouth.

Once I finished with the whipped cream, he took my face into his hands. "You've got a little something."

I wiped my face. "Where?"

He poured the whipped cream all over my lips. "Right there." He smirked, leaning in, kissing me. I wrapped my arms around him, deepening the kiss.

"Isn't it a little early for this?" Smasher yawned, entering the kitchen.

Blade leaned back. "I'm surprised you're up considering your late night yesterday."

"I smelt pancakes." Smasher pointed at the pancakes as he stretched.

Blade handed Smasher. "We need to get you a bell to wear around your neck."

"Don't worry, I'm not going to be home much today, so you guys can do whatever you want." He sat down at the kitchen bar.

"Oh yeah? Big plans?" Blade teased him.

"Nikayla's taking me on a tour of the city." He took a huge bite of his pancakes.

I looked over at Smasher, grinning. "You two seem to be getting pretty close." I tried not to sound too enthusiastic. The idea of Niki and Smasher was thrilling. Two best friends, dating two best friends, it sounded like a dream. More and more things seemed like a dream in my life these days. I was mentally planning double dates and imagining late night girl talks.

Smasher nodded in agreement. "She's great." His eyes lit up when he said this. It was nice to see Smasher so excited about life.

Blade patted him on the shoulder, thinking the same thing I was. "I'm happy for you bro."

Smasher looked over at me, then back at Blade. "You too man." I blushed.

The three of us finished our breakfast together, then Nikki came over to get Smasher. Leaving Blade and I alone in the apartment together.

"I'll see you later." I walked up and kissed him.

He grabbed my waist and looked at me skeptically. "Where do you think you're going?"

"My friend's throwing this party for her 21st." I moved my hand along his abs. "Wanna come?"

"I don't know how your friend would feel about me crashing her big birthday bash." He took the dishes to the sink. "She doesn't even know me."

"I'll just tell her you're with me." I said, following him to the sink.

"With you, huh?" He smirked. "I like how that sounds."

I realized we never had the 'what are we' conversation. It was time. "What are we?"

He paused a moment. "What are we?"

"Yeah, we've never talked about where we stand." I felt nervous. I was afraid of what he might say. "It's no pressure or anything, I just wanted to know where you stand." I hoped he didn't say he wanted a good time and nothing more. Before, that's exactly what I would've wanted, but now that I've gotten to know him I want more. So much more.

He sat the dishes down. "I'd like to consider us dating. Maybe you think differently, but I felt like the car karaoke was a date."

I agreed that night seemed like a date to me too. I went to tell him that when he spoke up. "Wait here." He headed down the hallway to his room. He emerged a moment later holding a little box. "I wasn't sure when to give it to you, but now that we're talking about this." He handed me the box.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Open it." He motioned towards the box.

I untied the bow on the top of the little red box and lifted the lid. When I saw what was inside, I was speechless. It was a replica of the bracelet I was wearing the day I had met Blade all those years ago. It was a heavy rose gold chain. My parents bought me it the day before my surgery as a good luck charm. It had worked. I was completely devastated when I lost it 2 years ago. I'd been looking for it ever since.

"I wasn't sure if you still had your original or not, but I put something on the back of this one." He seemed nervous. I lifted the bracelet out of its box and examined the back of it. Engraved on it was A&Z 5/8/2005. I had no idea what the initial stood for, but the date looked super familiar to me.

"What's it stand for?" I looked up at him.

"It's our initials and the day we met." His yellow eyes glimmered in the light.

"So, your name starts with a Z?" I asked, my mind running through all the names I knew that started with a Z.

"It does." He said, smirking.

"Zander?" He didn't look like a Zander to me though. He laughed and shook his head. "Zayne?" I tried. He shook his head again.

"You're cute." He smiled at me.

"You think so?" I looked at him skeptically. He nodded.

"Thanks Zeke?" I observed his face.

"Not even close." He laughed.

I took a second look at the bracelet. "This is the best gift I have ever been given. I lost my other one a few years ago." I smiled and he smiled back. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." He watched me. "I was hoping that you wearing it meant we were making things official between us."

  I clipped it on my wrist and peered up at him. "I'd really like that."

He lifted me up onto the kitchen counter and pressed his lips to mine. We kept on like that for awhile.

He carried me to the bedroom. He put me down in the doorway, "We have a party to go to."

"Oh yeah! I should go change." The party had totally slipped my mind.

"I'll meet you in twenty." He walked me to the door and kissed me goodbye. I was on cloud-nine. Tonight would be a night for the books, I could feel it.