"Josh."

  "Uh."

  "Josh..."
  "No."

  "Joshua..."

  "Too early, Kate."

  "No it's not, it's half past nine."

  "Too early, Kate."

  "Josh!  You can't be an ass hole today."

  He finally rolled over to see her bright eyes staring at him.  "Happy birthday, Kate."

  A satisfied grin danced upon her face.  "Thank you, Josh."

  "Uh huh.  Now go back to sleep."

  He tried to roll over, but she pulled him back.  "No way.  You're going to take a shower and then we are going to start my birthday celebration.  I want to make the most out of my day."

  JC contemplated going back to sleep despite her demands.  "I'm only doing this because it's your birthday."

  She turned on the television after he left the room and waited patiently for him to return.  After twenty minutes, he emerged from the bathroom, fully dressed and fully awake.

  "I've decided I'm not going to celebrate your birthday this year."  He announced.  "I'm just going to skip right over it and act like this day just never existed."

  "You do that and we'll never be friends again."

  "Yeah, right."  He chuckled and tossed a box her way.  "Happy birthday."

  She quickly tore into the paper and opened the box to find a set of keys lying neatly on a bed of cotton.  "Why are there keys here?"

  "Well, I figured you'd need those keys to start up the Cadillac Escalade that's sitting in your drive way at home."  Her eyes grew big and her jaw dropped to the floor.  She was speechless.  "You're welcome."

  Still speechless, she hugged him tight, trying to show her gratitude the best way she knew how.  "This is the best birthday present anyone has ever given me.  Hell, this is the best present I've ever received."

  He held her close, thankful for the moment.  He loved it when she smiled, but even more, he loved it when it was he who made her smile.  "You do so much for me, I just thought you deserved to have someone do something special for you."

  "Thank you, Josh."  She said, right before a knock at the door.  "I'll get that."

  "Happy birthday!"  The rest of the guys shouted when she opened the door.  Chris held out a large gift bag for her to take.

  "Thank you."  She let them into the room.  While JC joined them and chatted about the events for the day, Kate tore into her present.

  A high-pitched scream caused the boys' conversation to come to a halt.  They looked over at Kate who was hugging her Louis Vitton purse, wallet, and coin bag.

  "I guess girls really do love that stuff."  Joey shrugged.

  "Thank you so much guys!"  She raced over to kiss them.

  "Did you get JC's present yet?"  Lance eagerly asked.

  She beamed brightly, remembering again the wonderful gift that was given to her.  "Yes!  This is by far the best birthday ever.  So, what are we doing today?"

  "We aren't doing anything."  Justin circled his finger around everyone in the room.  "We have an interview."

  "Oh."

  "But it is LA.  I'm sure a girl like you would have no trouble finding a nice pimp to get you some work."

  "Shut up, fucker, it's my birthday."  Kate didn't feel up to thinking of a clever come back as she usually did.

  JC stepped in and handed her his credit card.  "I figured you could go shopping while we're at the interview, then we can all meet up for a late lunch."

  Upon saying her goodbyes, Kate was whisked away to downtown Los Angeles.  One of their bodyguards escorted her through each shop.  It was something that JC insisted on having and she knew there was no way around it.

  "Hello?"  She answered her ringing phone in the middle of the store.

  "Happy birthday, Katie!"  Madison's voice sang through.

  "Thank you."

  "How's it going so far?  Josh treating you right?"

  "Of course," she laughed.  "He got me a car!  And I'm on a little shopping spree right now, courtesy of him."

  "He always does know how to spoil you.  But hey, I just wanted to say happy birthday and I hope you have a great day.  I love you."

  "I love you too."  She hung up the phone and continued looking through the rack of clothes.

  The guys were already at the restaurant by the time Kate arrived.  They sat at a private table in the back, chatting away.

  "How did shopping go?"  JC slid over to make room for her in the booth.

  "It went well.  Thank you."  She handed over his credit card.

  Kate settled in and enjoyed the meal along with the company.  Although the main topic of the conversation was either about sex or cars, the atmosphere was something she missed since her brothers moved away for college.

  "Would you like separate checks?"  The server politely interrupted their conversation.

  "No, I'll take it."  JC handed her his card and everyone quickly thanked him.

  Moments later, the server returned to the table and whispered to JC, "I'm sorry, but your card has been denied."

  Although she said the words quietly, a hush flew over the table.  Everyone's eyes were on JC as he gave her a different card.  Kate watched as his expression quickly changed.

  "How the fuck did you max out my credit card?"  And there it was; the explosion she knew was coming.

  She tried to keep her cool since she knew that he wouldn't keep his.  "Josh, I didn't buy that much, I swear."

  "Enough to fucking max out my card.  What the fuck were you thinking?"

  "Okay, we should probably leave."  Justin intervened, not wanting to cause a scene that would probably be splashed in next week's gossip column.

  JC angrily stormed out the restaurant after signing for his card.  Justin and Chris rode in a car with JC ahead of Kate, Joey, and Lance.

  "Are you okay, Kate?"  Lance asked while she stared out the window.  She simply nodded without looking back.  "JC can be a-"

  "Prick, ass hole, bastard?"  She filled in the line for him.  The two sat dumbfound and then remembered that she knew JC better than anyone did.  "I swear I didn't buy too much.  I mean, not enough to max out his card...but this may not have been the first time I've done that."

  Joey and Lance busted up laughing at the innocent look she portrayed.  They wondered how anyone could ever be angry with her with a look like that.

  The house was finally quiet.  Everyone was sleeping except for Kate.  She had volunteered to clean up the kitchen since her mother wasn't feeling well.  She wiped down the last of the countertops, straightened the dishtowels, and turned off all the lights.  Her hand reached out to lock the front door, but instead, the door opened.

  She stood outside in the cold.  Her lungs began to tighten as the chilled air raced through her body.  She glanced down the street and her feet began running in the familiar direction.  She didn't know what she was doing or why, but suddenly she found herself pushing open the door that she knew was always unlocked.

  She tried to quiet her breathing as to not wake the family.  Her hand gripped the banister, but she quickly turned around at the sound of the refrigerator opening.

  "Kate?"  JC was shocked to see her there when he closed the door.  "What are you doing here?"

  It was the question she herself was trying to answer.  "I-I don't know."

  "You know why you're here, Kate."

  She tilted her head to the side.  "I do?"

  "Yes.  You know and I know.  You can't sleep and you want to talk about something.  What you want to talk about, I don't know."  He took a drink of his fresh beer.

  She knew he was right.  She just hated that after six years, he was still right about her.  "I'm not even sure I know what I want to talk about.  Or maybe I just wanna be with you."

  He displayed a goofy grin as he shifted his weight to one side.  "You seem lonely, Kate.  You haven't been happy like you were six years ago."

  If it were anyone else speaking to her, she would have brushed the comment off, but she knew that JC wouldn't accept that.  "I love being a mother, especially to a girl as special as Kendra.  But that's all my life is now; being a mother.  I want to go to clubs and dance on the tables.  I want to get shit-faced and then get high the next day."  She laughed as she listened to her own words.  "I want to go on dates.  I want that male companionship in my life."

  "Kate, mother's date too."  He was fed up with her excuses of being lonely.  "Stop using your daughter as a crutch.  It's not her fault that you don't go out on dates.  If you really wanted it, you would do it.  At least the Kate that I used to know would.  It's you own fault that you're so fucking lonely."

  She was about ready to cry at the harshness of his voice, but she tried to hold it together.  "Do you know why I don't date, Josh?"  He stood silent, awaiting her answer.  "I don't date because I do feel it's useless.  No, it may not be because of Kendra, but I have to keep convincing myself that it is because the thing is; every guy I go out with is genuinely nice.  The standard gentleman; hold the door open and stand when you leave the table." 

  Kate felt all her emotion suddenly rush to the surface.  As hard she tried, the tears found their way down her cheeks.  JC stared intently, hanging on to every word.  Every word that she wanted to say to him since the day he left her life.

  "Most women would think I was absolutely crazy for letting some of these men go.  Crazy for thinking...knowing...that there's something better out there.  All those guys were great, but they weren't the man that I had already fallen in love with.  And as much as I tried to make myself love them, I just couldn't."  She took a breath and wiped away a few tears.  "I couldn't make them be you."