Behind The Uniform

14 Years

I was awoken on the morning of my fourteenth birthday by Ross singing at the top of his lungs. I was bleary eyed when he sat on my bed holding out an envelope with his distinct messy handwriting on it. 

"Jamie would you just wake up?" He shouted bouncing on the end of the bed.

"I'm awake! Ross you can stop it!" I said after a massive yawn.

"Well you're late getting up for your birthday." Ross said passing me the envelope. 

"I can't decide when my body clock wants me to wake up."

"Actually you can if you set an alarm."

"Maybe it's just your Spanish blood that allows you to wake up early, it would explain why you're tired in the afternoon."

"Or you're just really lazy. Can you open your card?"

"Fine." I said with a smile. I opened the envelope and saw that Ross had gotten me a giant card with a birthday candle on it. I wanted to look at what he had wrote but as soon as I opened it, it started to play one of those recorded messages. It was Ross's voice singing the happy birthday song very loudly and very out of tune. He joined in with it and started to dance around my bedroom. I shut the card.

"That was rude." Ross said crossing his arms.

"Was the terrible singing you?" Teal popped her head around the door.

"It wasn't that terrible but yes." Ross replied.

"Well you can come and sing downstairs. Jamie needs to get dressed and then he can come and open the rest of his cards and presents."

I just laughed as the two left and Teal shut the door behind her.

Getting dressed, I pulled a pair of skinny jeans and a t-shirt that had some writing on. My hair was it's usual mess so I just went through it with a comb. I splashed some cold water on my face and then joined everyone downstairs.

"Oh my little baby's fourteen! Where have all the years gone?" My mother called out as I went over to her. 

"I'm not a little baby." I muttered going in for a hug.

"You are to me." She whispered into my ear as she wrapped her arms around me.

I pulled out of the hug and went over to the small pile of presents that Teal had likely set up. The cards were arranged neatly with both of them showing both Teal's and my mum's handwriting. Teal and Ross were both sitting on the sofa watching me.

Opening the presents took about ten minutes. Most of them were just clothes, a few pair of jeans and some socks. Ross had gotten me a bluetooth speaker which I later thanked him for. 

"Now you can be like all those chavs on the back of the bus and blast music non stop!" He said as I finished unwrapping the speaker. 

"So I'm being compared to a chav then?"

"No not really but you used to wear tracksuits all the time last year." 

"That was because it was cold and winter time. We've both made horrible fashion choices in the past." 

"I don't know if now is any better, at least you're wearing skinny jeans."

"You're also wearing skinny jeans Mr Spanish Boy." Teal chimed in. I expected Ross to be somewhat embarrassed but of course he just said.

 "Yes which are actually in fashion!" 

He was never embarrassed. Just as cocky as ever. Sometimes I wished that's the way he would have stayed but of course people change and Ross would change the most.