A successful surprise

By the time she and Jason's grandfather were done with their back and forth, Jenny had undone most of the wrapping and the beautiful, delicate box underneath was revealed. Jenny gasped. If the box was already this beautiful, what was inside could be no less. The box was made of glass and had a detailed painting of the Big Ben etched onto it. Jason's grandfather showed her that the box could be opened by turning the hands of the clock till they pointed at the twelve and the six, which would be 18 on a 24 hour digital clock. Another detail that added to it's charm. Without even seeing the actual gift, Jenny's expectations were already met. With an excitedly pounding heart, she opened the glass frame and what was lying inside was a beautiful and delicate looking watch. It was made up out of three separate strings encrusted with diamonds, the middle one made room for the dial as the outer two framed it. Hesitantly the elder explained, "I did cheat a bit, because I didn't buy that watch. It is one of the Westwood family heirlooms. I came across it when I went to place your gift there for safe keeping, when my eye fell on it. So, instead I bought the box holding the watch. I hope you like it. If not, you can come by and pick whatever else is to your liking."

Jenny turned around with a big smile. "No need at all. This is wonderful. Thank you so much. You blew my expectations out of the water." She responded before she leaned over to give him a big hug, warming the old man's heart. "But grandfather, why did you put your chess game away? I bought it for you to use." To this he shook his head and said, "No, that board is just for you and me. So, whenever you come visit, I will take it out and we will play." Jenny chuckled and replied, "Well in that case I will have to make time soon to come and visit. It would be a waste to let it collect dust." "Come whenever you feel like it. Don't worry about that Jason brat. Our doors are always open for you." Jenny smiled gently. "Thank you. I will visit. Be it with or without Jason. I promise." With that Jason's grandfather felt reassured and got up to make room for his grandson, who had been staring at him from the moment he sat down.

However, almost immediately the seat next to Jenny was taken by Jenny's mother. Making Jason unable to do anything about as the place where he wanted to be, was stolen right before his eyes. As he pushed away his feeling of disappointment, he shifted his attention to his brothers-in-law who were talking with some of the guys. He decided that he should go over to them instead to catch up with them and leave Jenny to spend some more time with her mother. During his last visit they had started getting along and after he had left, he hadn't really stayed in touch. Except during the occasional video-calls when Jenny called home and they would show themselves as well. Now that they were here, he should go and spend some time with them to make sure that what he had painstakingly built up during the summer wouldn't be washed away by their time apart. It would be killing two birds in one stone, they could help him take his mind off of Jenny and he could work on his bond with her brothers.

The rest of the evening the seat next to Jenny didn't become empty once as one person after another took a chance to have some private time with her. Most of them would be leaving later that evening or early the next morning and wouldn't be able to see her for a couple of weeks or months. So, they needed to make the most of the time they got to spend with her now. Knowing this, Jason gave up his attempts to sit next to Jenny for the rest of the party. He told himself that he could spend every day with her and they couldn't because she had moved to England to be with him. So, he should be more understanding of them. No matter till what time they would stay, in the end he would be the one who would end up sleeping next to her. So, his time for a spot next to her would come sooner or later.

This spot came at two o'clock in the morning when the final guests left and they were finally able to head for bed. Despite it being so late, Jenny didn't feel tired at all. Or maybe she had surpassed the tired stage and had now entered in the hyperactive stage. As she dropped herself on the bed, her eyes were wide open and she was filled with a happy and content feeling. Jason didn't have the same rush and was exhausted. He had gotten up even earlier than Jenny and had been running around all day to get everything done. So, while Jenny was going through the pictures on her phone with a big smile on her face, Jason was changing his clothes as he got ready for bed. But he was happy to see that Jenny had apparently enjoyed herself. Feeling that her excitement was contagious, he asked with a hidden laughter, "Did you have fun? Was it a successful surprise?"

Jenny pushed her body up on her elbows to look at Jason and replied without any hesitation. "This was the best birthday ever. I had more fun than I could have ever imagined I would have today. I am glad that your eighteenth birthday is already being planned by the main family, because there was no way that I could match or top today. I am counting on you forgetting how awesome today was, to give me a fighting chance for the birthday after that." Jason let out the laugh that he had held back and shook his head as he took off his shirt. With a playful smile he came up to Jenny and flirtingly said, "Well, you are eighteen now. In the eyes of the law you are now an adult, meaning that we could get married whenever you want now. So, if you want to top this party, you can marry me. Even if it is on the day of my birthday, you will win by a mile."