Always

Chapter 81

 "You'll probably need the liquid courage anyways, since you have to run around naked." His body slouched, and he looked to the ceiling groaning. "Oh Jesus..." I couldn't help but laugh at his expression. "At least it's just your friends that'll be there." "True. Okay, you got anything to do before we leave then? He told us to head out whenever we were ready." I looked down at my XPLR shirt and basic ripped black jeans. "Nah, I'm ready. Are we getting in the water at the lake?" He scrunched his eyebrows, and twisted his lips. "Well, I am." I giggled, imagine what this was going to be like. "Is anyone else going to get in the water?" He shrugged. "I don't know. This is the first time we've done this, but we would go there to swim all the time and use the rope swing, so probably. Wear your suit, just in case, if you wanna get in." I nodded. "Okay, let me change again really quick then." Colby didn't bother changing since he wouldn't be in a suit anyways. I put my swimsuit on, then threw my clothes back on over it, fixed my hair, then looked over to him. He was lying back against the headboard of the bed watching me. "What?" I asked, smiling. He shook his head. "Nothing. Just enjoying the show." He winked at me and stood up, grabbing his keys from the bedside table. "You ready now? So I can go see what this 'surprise' is?" He actually sound worried about. "Are they like, Elton bad on pranks?" I asked, getting worried myself. He sighed, letting his shoulders relax, standing in front of me. "Sometimes. I'm hoping they take a break on me, considering what I have to do, and it's supposed to be a celebration for me. You know losing my freedom and all." He wrapped his arms around my waist, letting his hands rest on my lower back. "Losing your freedom?" I raised one eyebrow at him. "You can have it back." I joked. He smiled and shook his head. "Nope. I'll take being chained down with you anyday." I smiled and lowered my lashes, looking up at him. "I love you." "I love you too y/n." He leaned down and pressed his lips against mine, rubbing his hands up my back. "Okay, let's go." We made our way to Colby's car (RIP Corolla), climbed in, and heading towards the barn. I was proud of myself. My anxiety was not acting up. My breathing was regular, and my hands were still. When Colby had asked me about it possibly being a trigger, I assumed he was right. I just didn't want to mess up his night, plus I wanted to freaking enjoy myself. I didn't understand it, but I wasn't going to question it. I was just glad that it was staying away from me for now. Colby rested his hand against my thigh for most of the ride, occasionally bringing his hand up to my stomach, looking over to me and catching my eye. He would let his hand press there for a moment, and smile at me, before moving it back to my thigh. At first, I wasn't ready for this. I was freaking out, worried that Colby might resent me for choosing to keep it. I should've known better than that. He's always been great with kids. I noticed that with some of his fans, the younger ones, plus when they would have the rest of their families with them. It was really quite adorable, when I saw him holding a little kid, his smile pulling one from the insecure child, making them giggle. The more I thought about it, the more that I saw Colby being amazed by the thought, or saying those cute little things...The more excited I got. I didn't know anything about kids...but we would learn together. People do it every day. I would learn. I didn't even notice when he pulled onto the grassy area near the barn, until he put the car in park and killed the engine. The music died and that brought me back to reality. I looked around, expecting to be apprehensive about seeing the barn but I felt nothing. I couldn't see the back room from where I was and that's where I wanted to avoid. Dylan came out of the front of the barn, walking towards the car. We unbuckled and got out, meeting him halfway. He and Colby greeted each other, before he turned to me. "You doing okay sweetheart?" I noticed that he had gotten into a habit of calling me that. I was okay with it. I tilted my head towards him. "Yeah, I'm doing good." "You gonna party with us tonight?" He did a little roll with his narrow hips, and I laughed, while Colby covered his eyes. "I'm not gonna drink, but I'm definitely ready to have fun." "Dylan!" We looked towards the barn and saw Derek poking his head out of the wide, sliding wooden door. Dylan lifted his head at him, and yelled "What?" "The surprise is getting...the surprise is ready." He yelled back, looking behind him into the barn, and then looking back at us. Dylan laughed. "I bet he- it is. We'll be there in a minutes. Hang tight." Derek nodded and ducked back inside. "Is it gonna hurt?" Colby asked, looking at Dylan warily. Dylan put a fake shocked expression on his face. "Brother, who do you think I am?" He put his hand to his chest dramatically, making me laugh again. "I would never do anything like that." "Oh God" Colby groaned, but a smile was on his face. "Let's get this over with then." Dylan nodded and winked at me. "Hold up, where's your usual bottle of Jack?" Colby held up a finger and jogged back to the trunk of the car. He pulled a bottle out and jogged back over. "Had this in the trunk for a minute." He held it out and Dylan grabbed it. "Okay, we have plenty more inside. I was just wondering if you brought any."