Sofia agrees to go out for his birthday

Over the next couple of weeks, our conversations and texts become a near-nightly routine. It starts with the little things from before, but grows fast. She never really does give details when she vents about Carlos’s latest “work trip,” but it’s enough I can read between the lines.

When I ask about my birthday again, she immediately jumps at it. She says she’s been waiting for me to bring it up again, just in case I was only being nice the first time. She’s happy to go, but with conditions. There’d be no bar crawl to the same three places my friends and I already frequent, unless I absolutely insisted. But if we’re just doing that out of a lack of imagination, then she’ll handle everything from the ride to the festivities for the night, and that she’ll make it a birthday I won’t forget.

All I have to do is tell her how many people to plan for, dress nice, and have everyone together and ready at 8.

Her sister Marisol insisted on watching the boys when Sofia brought it up. “If anyone deserves a night out after all these years of putting everyone else first,” Marisol told her, “it’s you.” Sofia laughs when she tells me about it, and I can hear the energy in her voice.

I tell her there will be seven of us. Me, Dan, three other guys we’ve known since school, and two girlfriends who sound like they’re gonna make it.

“Perfect. See you Saturday,” she says, not offering any other hints.

As Saturday night arrives, I’m pacing the apartment in a black button-down and black slacks. I hope it’s nice enough, because it’s the nicest outfit I own. I don’t have a suit or even a tie. Dan’s already here along with the rest of my friends, sipping a beer and giving me shit about how I’m acting like I’m a girl about to get picked up for prom.

At just before 8:00, I kick everyone out of the apartment. We head down to wait at the entrance of the community, and we stand there waiting for a couple of cars or minivans to pick us up.

A couple of minutes go by without anybody stopping, and when I see the next vehicle start to round the corner, I’m blown away. There’s a long, black stretched SUV limo pulling up, with the dark tinted windows, chrome accents, the works. This one isn’t some party bus knockoff, but a real luxury limo.

A second later, Sofia pops up, spreading her arms out. She’s in a silver sequined dress with a plunging neckline that’s showing a significant amount of cleavage, catching every bit of streetlight and sparkling. Her hair is down in loose waves, and as she gets closer, her makeup is done to perfection, reminding me of the first time I saw her. She’s grinning like she just pulled off the best surprise ever.

“Happy birthday, Jay!” she calls out, following it with a whoop.

Before anyone can react, the driver hits the brakes a little harder than expected when the back door is roughly in front of us. Sofia squeals, loses her balance, and tumbles back inside with a muffled “Eep!” and a burst of laughter.

The driver steps out of the front and heads back to get the door, but Sofia beats him to it. When she comes stumbling out, she’s still laughing, and fixing her sparkling dress back into place halfway down her thighs, then making sure her chest hasn’t spilled out.

“Hi,” she says, when she finally looks up at me with the driver holding the door now. “I’m so embarrassed. I guess that’s probably why they don’t let you stand out of the sunroof.”

Dan’s mouth is hanging open, and the other guys are staring. Even the two girlfriends are whispering and smiling.

I step forward, still stunned. “Sofia… you’re… wow. I mean, you’re beautiful. Like, holy shit beautiful,” I babble, then realize what I’m saying and try to shift gears. “I never would’ve expected a limo, that’s awesome. I didn’t even know people still did this. I thought they all got replaced by party buses.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see the driver smirking and shaking his head. I’m not sure if it’s a response to my blubbering, or what I said about limos, but either way, it prompted me to shut up for a second.

She tsks playfully, gazing at me with her sparkling eyes. “Of course people still do limos! A party bus is cool, but after the way Carlos treated you when he called? I figured he owes you a proper birthday, whether he wants to apologize or not. So… consider this his apology. On his dime.”

“I’ll take it,” I laugh, looking her over once again. “You seem like you’re ready to have some fun.” She seems looser than I’ve seen her before, and her cheeks are slightly flushed.

“I may… or may not have had a couple of drinks,” she whispers loud enough for everyone to hear.

She doesn’t seem drunk, just… free. I climb up into the SUV first, and as I duck inside, she reaches up behind me and gives my ass a smack.

“I don’t know, I think guys can have a cute butt too,” she says teasingly, referencing the delivery story that quickly turned into a joke about just what kind of asses I like.

I nearly trip getting in at the shock of the fact she’s just smacked my ass and we’ve never even shook hands. Everybody else behind me bursts out laughing, even though they don’t know the full reference. Sofia slides in after me, grinning unapologetically.

As the driver closes the door and everyone gets settled, I’m checking everything out when I hear Sofia whisper to me. “I had a couple of drinks before I left the house,” she confesses. “I started to feel nervous about going out with a bunch of people I don’t know, after years of never doing anything. I hope that’s ok.”

“I get it,” I whisper back in shock of how quickly the night became far more than I expected. “I’m still trying to believe this is real, so you can do whatever you want!”

After the driver tells us how to connect to the stereo, and a few other random details as the limo pulls away smoothly.

I’m sitting in the seat at the back, and Dan leans over from the seat running the length right in front of me, shaking his head. “Bro. Your birthday just went from ‘bar crawl’ to ‘main character energy.’”

Getting out onto the main road, Sofia adjusts, settling next to me with her thigh brushing mine. “Buckle up, boys and girls. I think this is going to be a good night.”

As the city lights slide past the tinted windows, and Eddie chooses a playlist on his phone that he connected to the stereo, I realize she’s right. This is the best birthday I’ve ever had and it’s barely started. And mainly it’s just because she’s here.

The bass from Eddie’s playlist starts thumping through the high-end speakers. Everyone’s settled in and starting to calm down after the initial shock of the ride. Dan, being Dan, sprawls across the bench seat, crowding everyone else until Pete pushes him back upright. Next to Pete is his girlfriend Jess, with Lauren next to her, and her boyfriend, my friend since freshman year, Eddie. Mike is the last of us, and he’s sitting on the other side of Sofia along the back bench. Looking around, I catch each of them stealing glances at Sofia during the ride. I think the girls keep checking her out, awestruck, and wondering how the hell she pulled this off and why she’d be hanging out with the lot of us. And at the same time, I think the guys are checking her out, just wondering what the hell she’d be wasting her time with me for.

After a few minutes, Jess leans over to Pete, elbowing him in the ribs. “You couldn’t even get me a decent Uber for my birthday last year, and we ended up at Chili’s. Why the hell didn’t I get a limo?”

Pete throws his hands up, laughing. “Hey, maybe if you brought me food all the time, I’d have done better, like the delivery guy here. He’s clearly got the secret formula.”

The whole group cracks up, Dan slaps Pete’s knee, and Mike snorts, mid-sip on a beer he had in his coat through his nose. Even Sofia lets out a bright, surprised laugh.

I feel the heat instantly crawl up my neck. I know it’s just a harmless joke, but everything around us makes me feel a bit self-conscious, like someone is pointing out the obvious gap between my world and hers. I turn to her quickly, feeling suddenly tense.

“Sorry about that,” I mutter. “They’re idiots. I didn’t-”

She shakes her head, reaching over to give my hand a gentle squeeze. Her smile comes across a little restrained, but she doesn’t seem upset at all. “It’s fine. It was funny. Don’t apologize for your friends, I know they didn’t mean anything.”

I exhale, nodding. “Still. Didn’t want it to feel… weird.”

“All of this is weird, but who cares,” she says softly, meeting my eyes while we smile at each other for a moment, appreciating what each of us has done for the other. “Stop worrying, and enjoy your night. I’m here because I want to be, and I’m glad you invited me.”

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