Tears in Vegas

"Happy birthday!" My dad exclaimed as he watched me walk down the stairs.

"Thanks dad," I said as he pulled me into a hug.

Today is finally my eighteenth birthday. It`s kind of strange, knowing I`m now a legal adult. Maybe now all the fighting will stop and I`ll be able to see the guys. I haven`t been able to see the guys since that time at the mall. Kate and my dad have been on high alert, I couldn`t risk sneaking out. I have been able to text the guys though. I`ll admit though, I was beginning to grow tired of sneaking out almost every night.

"I kind of have a surprise for you."

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you`re eighteen now. You`re an adult. In some countries you can even drink! What I`m trying to say is..I give you my permission to see those boys."

I froze with wide eyes, staring at my dad. "Are you serious?" I asked after I recovered.

"Yeah. I don`t think Iv`e ever seen you fight for something as much as you fight for those boys. I`m not happy you chose those boys as friends. But, if they honestly mean that much to you...I realized I can`t stop you from seeing them," My dad answered with a sigh.

"Thank you, daddy," I whispered as I hugged him tight. It felt like a weight had just been lifted off of my shoulders.

"You`re welcome, sweetie. Just try not to get hurt, okay?" He asked as he pulled away from the hug.

I nodded. "Of course. What made you decide this? You and Kate have been doing just about everything to keep me away from the guys. What changed?"

"You`re age. I woke up this morning and it suddenly hit me that you`re eighteen and that you can make your own decisions and I can`t make them for you anymore. Sure, there are times I would like to. But I can`t. You aren`t even in school anymore!" My dad explained.

"Thank you dad, really. You have no idea how much this means to me. Iv`e actually been thinking about something. Is there a chance I could go see the guys today?" I asked slowly, worried he might get upset.

"Do they want to throw you a birthday party or something?"

I nodded. "Yeah. It`ll probably just be the guys taking me to the beach and having a cake. Just something simple."

My dad let out a groan and ran a hand through his hair. "Is this really what you want?" When I nodded he groaned again. "Fine. But you can`t leave till five and you have to be home by midnight."

I grinned. "Thank you dad. But um, why can`t I leave till five?"

He grinned at me. "What, I can`t spend some time with my daughter before she goes out with her friends?"

I grinned and hugged him again. We then went into the kitchen to eat breakfast, of course Kate was there. And she looked very annoyed. I guess she didn`t like that I was getting all the attention for once. That or she knew my dad was letting me see the guys and she wasn`t happy about it. Ether way, she wasn`t happy. At all.

We ended up spending the rest of the morning and the afternoon together. Thankfully Kate didn`t complain or bitch the whole time. Breakfast and lunch were both two of my favorite foods: biscuits and gravy and and chicken alfredo. Of course my birthday cake was another favorite of mine, German chocolate.

By five I had called Mike and told him to come over with the guys. To say he was ecstatic was an understatement. The guys arrived at five thirty, claiming they were late because they had to grab a few extra things for the little party they were having for me.

"Thank you for letting us see her," Vic said as he looked over at my dad.

"Just don`t hurt her," My dad grumbled.

"We would never hurt her," Mike assured as he wrapped his arms around my waist from behind. He must of been feeling protective.

Kate glared at Mike, her eyes settling on his arms around me. "Are you sure about that?"

"We will never hurt her," Tony said, his tone hard and his eyes narrowed.

"We all love and care about Zhenya. You have nothing to worry about," Jamie said with a slight smile, though he was looking at my dad as he spoke instead of Kate.

My dad nodded and rubbed the back of his neck, seeming to accept Jamie`s words. "Good, good. Now what are you boys planning on doing for Zhenya`s birthday?"

"We were planning on taking her to the beach. And just lounge around there, give her presents and eat cake," Vic said.

"I told you," I said to my dad.

Of course he simply waved me off. "Alright. Just have her home by midnight. I don`t want her out any later than that. Especially if you`re going to the beach. I don`t want her to get sick."

Jamie nodded and smiled at my dad. "Midnight is completely reasonable."

"So, we get to see Ze whenever we want now?" Tony asked slowly.

"Yeah. I want to know when she`s leaving though and an estimate of when she`s coming home. Do you understand, Zhenya?" My dad asked, pointing a finger at me.

I nodded. "Of course dad. That`s fine with me."

I heard Kate scoff and roll her eyes. My dad quickly shot her a look before he spoke again. "Go, have fun. Just not too much fun, alright?"

"Thanks dad, really. You have no idea how much this means to me," I said as I moved away from Mike and gave my dad a hug. He nodded and tightly hugged me back. When we pulled away I went back over to the guys and climbed onto Mike`s back. "I`ll see you later, okay? I love you dad!" And with that we left my house and head to Vic and Mike`s.

"I can`t belive it! He actually let you go!" Jamie exclaimed as he pulled me into a hug after I climbed off Mike`s back.

"I know! It`s amazing."

"What happened? How did you reason with him?" Tony asked as Jamie let me go so he could pull me into a hug as well.

"That`s just it, I didn`t. He told me this morning I could see you guys. He realized I was an adult and he can`t make decisions for me anymore," I explained.

"Thank fuck for that," Mike grumbled as he and Vic pulled me away from Tony and into a hug. Of course, that led to Jamie and Tony hugging me as well, making it a big group hug.

"Now, how about that birthday party?" Vic asked as we all pulled away from the hug.

"I think that sounds lovely," I answered with a grin.

"To the beach!" Mike exclaimed as he struck a silly pose, making me laugh.