Happy Birthday, Blue (Parker)

[Dextra Phillips]

What did a girl get for a boy that she was kind of sorta dating and that she really liked, but was afraid of losing because he didn't do relationships and she didn't do relationships and the whole thing was just super complicated and her brain always went on a ramble fit...? (inhales) Dextra had no idea. It'd been just a few months that her and Parker decided that they liked each other more than they disliked each other. She was just completely unsure of what to do for his birthday because she barely knew anything about him. All she knew was that he had an ex that was like his best friend in the whole world because there were pictures of her in his room (or there had been) and that he enjoyed working out. That wasn't much to go off of.

So what was a girl to do? Well from watching a few chick flicks (which she'll deny over and over again) she found out that for a guy's birthday, girls often dressed up in such a way that they accentuated their assets. Dex was a tiny thing, she was proportional the right amount of boobs with a nice ass to match, but comparatively, she wasn't busty. So when she went shopping (at a store that wasn't Hot Topic or Spencer's) she had to ask for help and boy oh boy had it been one big bag of awkward.

Overall, Dex was pleased with her new shirt that she bought and after taking the saleswoman's advice, she put on a pair of tight-fitting skinny jeans and a pair of black wool Ugg boots. It was one of those days, too, that she decided on no makeup. With her it was either no makeup or thick streaks of black around her eyes, there was no in between. Though her face was clean of makeup, she did make sure she had chapstick in case they kissed. Which she kind of hoped they would.

After gathering up all of the courage she could, she headed out of her dorm and made her way down to his, knocking gently on the door and waiting for someone to open up. It was kind of a surprise, so she hoped he was even there.

[Parker Matthews]

Birthdays had never been Parker's thing, and he'd rather forget all about it. After years of lame birthdays with parents that acted superior to everything, and all of their idiotic traditions, it was a safe bet that Parker had absolutely no plans for his birthday. Nope, he'd rather sit alone in his room and grumble the day away.

But could he? NOPE. His parents were obsessed with birthdays and anything that had something to do with traditions, so a neverending skype call from his parents had woken him up from his slumber and it had been going on for hours, and it didn't seem like it was ever ending either. Parker's parents kept talking, and talking, and talking, asking all kinds of questions: Where was Jacelynn? How was school, and more importantly; How was his grades? Did he have a new girlfriend? What was her name? How old was she? Was her parents rich? Were they planning on getting married? Mom was going to be in charge of the planning. She would order only the finest of the finest. He had to threat his new girlfriend properly and not lose her like he lost Jace. They missed Jace. They loved Jace. They had never met Jace. But she seemed nice. Parker needed someone to control him and make him behave. Did he have enough money? Yadda, yadda, yadda.

And luckily for Parker, there was a knock on the door. But oh no, he couldn't open it without bringing his phone so his parents could see. Nope. So, with a scowl on his face, Parker headed for the door with the phone in his hand and the camera pointing towards the door.

When Parker opened the door, his mouth dropped to his knees as he saw not only who was standing outside, but also what she had on. ''Wow.'', he managed to utter as his eyes dropped to Dex's body. ''You look-''

''What is she wearing?!'', his mother uttered in shock. ''DID YOU ORDER A HOOKER?!'', his father screamed furiously.

...Crap.

[Dextra Phillips]

Dextra was excited to see him, she missed him and she had been thinking about their little dance excursions constantly. He'd made quite the adorable Zorro, even if the mask and hat weren't her favorite things. In the end, she had been successful in their removal and had a picture to prove it. Her as peppy barbie doll cheerleader and him as a maskless, hatless Zorro. It was probably her favorite picture that had ever been taken of her because she was not a picture person. She hated them, but for Parker, she had willingly gotten it taken because it was part of the memory of the dance. Who'd have thought she'd get all sentimental?

Dex's ability was pushing up against the door annoyingly and she tried to reign it in. The last thing she needed was her ability pushing someone down because they opened the door. That would be kind of funny though, Happy birthday, Park on the ground. But it was unlikely that it would happen because for some reason, her ability was always nice to him. Heaven forbid it behave anywhere else besides around him, but that was another reason she kind of loved being around him. The entire time, she had control over her ability and it did what she wanted it to.

There was rustling behind the door and her ability shrank back to herself. She found herself getting a little more excited and when the door opened to reveal Parker, she almost smiled...until there were voices coming from his phone accusing her of being a hooker. Her eyes were wide and she felt like she'd been kicked in the stomach...was that what she looked like? God, how stupid was she?! "S-sorry...wrong room," She muttered before ducking out of the door and walking a little further down the hall, only to slump against it and pull her knees up to her chest.

Well that had been a disaster. Happy Birthday, Parker. Your girlfriend looks like a prostitute.

[Parker Matthews]

Dex's reaction said it all. Once again, his parents had managed to screw everything up. Damn them to hell. They were so insanely judgmental and vain, which was one of many reason as to why he never spent any time with them or even bothered to keep in touch with them. Without wasting another second, Parker closed the call with his parents, not even bothering to tell them goodbye or even yelling at them. They weren't worth it, and Dextra's feelings meant a whole lot more to him than his parents opinion.

After all, she didn't look like a hooker. She looked gorgeous as ever!

Parker tossed his phone away, not even caring if it broke or not, and then he chased after Dextra down the hall where he found her sitting against the wall, looking all sorts of sad. ''Dex..'', he began softly and sat down in front of her. ''Don't listen to them. They're judgmental fools. You look really beautiful.'' He wasn't even sure if it was helping or not. This was the reason he never introduced his girlfriend to his parents. They ruined everything.

He put his hands on her shoulders and leaned his forehead against hers. ''Hey, don't be sad.'', he whispered. ''I personally think you look amazing. Who cares what those people think, right?'' She really did look amazing. Then again, Dextra always looked beautiful, no matter what she wore or how she did her make-up.

He flicked her chin up and placed a kiss on the tip of her nose. ''I love you just the way you are.''

[Dextra Phillips]

Dextra's ability was coiled around her, now that she was hurt, it was ready to snap at anyone. She hoped that no innocent bystanders tried to make her feel better because more than likely, they'd end up flat on their backs because they'd be seen as a threat. Dextra was just trying to keep herself calm and relaxed. What did she care if his parents didn't like her? Her own father didn't even like her. It was times like this that she missed her mother the most. She was the only person that ever favored her over anyone else even if she often denied it. She cared so much about the little goth girl that always got judged and ever since she died, Dex hadn't felt accepted by anyone.

She heard the footsteps and then the voice and her ability went slack around her when she noticed that it was him. He sat down in front of her and her eyes lifted to his. What did he see in her? Why wasn't he with the perfect ex girlfriend that he clearly loved so much? His parents probably liked her more, too. She clearly didn't dress like a skank. Her mind was beating her down further and she just wanted to hit something or scream because she knew that it was all true. Even if he didn't believe his parents, she did.

His hands fell upon her shoulders and she could have just crumbled beneath the pressure. Her chest ached and she could have sworn that someone was trying to rip out her heart. She wanted to believe him. She wanted to believe that she was pretty and that she deserved his attention. But she'd never been given attention before unless it was negative, so it all just didn't make sense to her. "I do," She whispered in response to his probably rhetorical question. Since when did she care? Since she started dating him. It was only a matter of time before he found someone better. Someone his parents would approve of.

He lifted her chin and pecked her nose, but it was his words that had her jaw dropping. He said he loved her.... Dex recovered quickly as she threw her arms around his neck. She hugged him tight and buried her face in his neck. She hadn't heard words like those in five years...and he had no idea what it meant to her. "I just wanted to do something for your birthday...and I didn't know what," She said softly against his shoulder.

[Parker Matthews]

Parker completely understood how she felt. Well, he could imagine anyways. He knew that his parents could be ruthless and horrible. He had been there too, for 18 years now. Always being talked down upon, always told he wasn't good enough. They were horrible people, and Parker couldn't be happier to live this far away from them.

''Well, don't. They're not worth it.'', he responded. It pissed him off that he parents could say things like that, and to someone they didn't even know.... ''Well, to hell with them. If they don't want to pull that stick out of their asses and make an attempt to getting to know you before judging, it's their loss.'' And he wouldn't hesitate with picking Dex over them. Not even for a second.

Parker knew that this was how he felt, he just hadn't imagined he'd say it so soon. Or even like that. It surprised him as much as it had surprised her, but at least he was happy to see that she took it well. More than well actually. Even if she didn't say it back, it felt nice to finally saying it out loud.

''As long as you're here, that's enough.'', he whispered and pulled her closer. It was really nice, seeing her this affectionate. It made him feel lucky. Lucky for finally finding someone that wanted him, needed him and cared about him. Parker pulled them both up into a standing position and ruffled Dextra's hair. ''But seriously... You look... Wow. Just wow.'', he said with a chuckle and pulled away enough to take another glance at her outfit.

Clearly, her evil masterplan was to blueball him forever until he couldn't handle it anymore and had to beg.

''Wanna go inside? We can watch a movie and laugh at how stupid people are.'', he said, and before he gave her the chance to reply, he pressed his lips softly against hers. ''I do love you though. Just so you know. I don't want you to think I only said it to make you feel better.''

[Dextra Phillips]

"I guess I'm just sick of everyone not liking me, not that I'm much of a pleasant person, but still," She frowned. This was why people liked Izzy over her. She dressed like a normal human being, she was nice to everyone, she didn't enjoy throwing rocks at unsuspecting people. Maybe she should set Parker up with her sister, that would make his parents happy. The idea had her stomach twisting and she frowned deeper. That was the last thing she wanted was for Izzy to end up with Parker. She wasn't sure she could handle it if it happened. His ex was one thing, her sister, was a whole different thing.

In all of her shock, Dex hadn't even thought of saying it back. Wasn't that what she was supposed to do? If someone said they loved you, didn't you say it back? Now she felt bad because it had been a missed opportunity. She was pretty sure she loved him. At least, she'd never had feelings like this for anyone else and it was a nagging, fluttery, annoying feeling in her stomach and chest that kind of reacted together at the same things. She didn't know what love felt like, but she was so sure that she did love him because when he said it, she felt that tightening in her chest and her stomach along with her throat and she felt all happy and light-headed. It was confusing trying to explain it, but she would be sure to say it when given the chance next time.

Dextra smiled against his skin and gave him another tight squeeze. How did everything he said get to her so much? It was like he knew exactly what to say to get a positive (and sometimes negative) reaction out of her. She wasn't an affectionate person by any means, but with him, she wanted to be all the time. It didn't matter to her in what form the affection came, she just needed to be near him, her ability constantly reached out for him and as long as she felt close to him, she was content. Right now, she was even more than content. She was really happy to be in his arms.

He stood up and helped her to her feet as well, but before she could hide herself by bolting to get a hoody, he got another good look and she could feel her cheeks heating up at the way he looked at her. Her skin was crawling and she was on fire. "I'm glad you like it, the lady that helped me at the store probably thought I was a moron that had never dressed myself before," She snorted and rolled her eyes. With a smirk she gave him a twirl to show every angle, "I'd like to think I did pretty well though."

Dextra was just about to answer enthusiastically to his question, but he cut her off with his lips before she could get the words out. Her hand cupped his jaw and she smiled when he pulled back. Her whole body was thrumming with excitement and she bit her lip shyly, "I know you weren't just saying it, Park. I...I love you, too. Like a lot." She laughed at how ridiculous she sounded and nudged him, "Okay, sappy stuff overrr, now let's go watch some ridiculous movie." And not pay any attention to it *hint hint.*