Promises to Keep

Tayla was beyond excited. She found herself in front of multiple friends, who all chatted animatedly. The colors blue and pink were adorn every where around Tyler and Tayla's home; Justin truly went all out on the decorations.

"Tay!" Tayla heard her name and her head snapped up, her lips forming a big grin when she saw who it was. "You look fantastic!" she added, pulling her in for a long hug. "How's my future niece/nephew?" she then asked, talking directly to her stomach.

"Being a pain in my ass" Tayla confirmed with a laugh, rubbing her stomach.

"Sounds like it'll be a mini Tyler" Cassidy laughed, and Tayla couldn't help but sort of agree.

"I mean, he/she has been quite annoying, especially the past week or so I'd say..." Tayla trailed off with a slight smirk. "Did Justin tell you?"

"He made sure I flew up for this, but he wouldn't tell me what you're having, if that's what you mean" Cassidy laughed and Tayla sighed. At first, she was set on not finding out the gender, but since Justin decided to make a big deal out of the whole thing, it made her all the more curious. "Oh come on, I'm sure he won't make you wait all day! Besides, he did a really good job with this party" Cassidy pointed out, drinking from her pink cup.

"Pink?" Tayla questioned, and Cassidy nodded.

"Anybody who you see with a cup, is basically making a guess on what they think. By the looks of it, it seems like most people are thinking it's a girl" Cassidy gestured around them. The closer Tayla looked, the more she realized that Cassidy was right; it was like everyone was betting on what the gender would be.

"Justin really did a good job, didn't he?" Tayla smiled, her had resting on her stomach.

"He did. You've got some pretty amazing friends" Cassidy smiled at Tayla, who she knew was overcome with emotion at the reception the party was receiving. To say the past year had been tough would be an understatement; nobody, Tayla especially, thought this is where she would be.

"And I know it's been a tough year for you, but I think everything seems to have worked out" Cassidy tilted her head to the side, trying to gage her reaction.

"Wild isn't it?" Tayla asked, slightly lost in thought. "If it weren't for Justin, I probably wouldn't be back with Tyler. And if it weren't for Tyler-" she let the thought linger in the air. "It's funny the way the world works, isn't it?" she asked, more rhetorically than anything. The both stood in silence, admiring what was around them, thinking about how things could be completely different.

"Are you having fun?" Justin approached Tayla nervously, interrupting her train of thought. Tayla didn't say anything, she just immediately pulled Justin in for a hug. He was a little taken aback, but hugged her back, a little confused.

"This is more than anything I could have ever asked for" Tayla smiled, pulling away. "Thank you, Justin. For everything. For being so amazing, for being such a good friend, for helping me in so many ways, for being there for me throughout this entire pregnancy, and of course putting up with my crazy ass" she rambled, though she didn't let any tears of happiness fall.

"Tay..." Justin trailed off, unsure of where it was all coming from, but was grateful for the words nonetheless. "You deserve it. You helped me through one of the toughest times in my life. And though that experience sucked, I met you and I haven't had such a good friend in a long time. So thank you, for all that you do" he smiled back, having a hard time controlling his emotions.

"Don't you cry! If you cry, I'll cry" Tayla laughed, wiping the tears that began to form away. Cassidy smiled, walking away to let the two friends express their appreciation for one another. Wandering around for a bit, she finally found her brother, having a drink out of a blue cup, next to Jamie and Katie, who both had pink cups in hand.

"Two girls and one boy, eh?" Cassidy asked.

"Cass!" Tyler exclaimed, surprised. He pulled his little sister in for a quick hug. "What are you doing here?! Tayla didn't tell me you were coming" he then added, confused.

"Tay didn't know; Justin invited me" Cassidy confirmed, and she saw a flash of sadness in her brother's eye. "What's wrong?"

"What do you mean?" Tyler asked, taken aback.

"You had a weird look on your face when I said Justin's name" she pointed out. "And you just did it again" she added with concern.

"Get out of here with your being perceptive and shit" Tyler grumbled, Jamie and Katie snickering beside him.

"Talk to her" Cassidy pointed to Tayla, who was now talking to some of Tyler's teammate's girlfriends, though she didn't recognize them. "Doesn't have to be now, but it should be at some point. She'll want you to" she added the second bit, as if she could read Tyler's mind.

"Ok, that's not cool the way you do that" Tyler mumbled.

"Do what?" Cassidy asked, innocently.

"Read my damn mind" Tyler told her. "But yeah, I will" he added, a thankful look on his face. "Why do more people think girl? That's my question. Do y'all know something I don't?" he wondered aloud.

"I guess more people think it's a girl" Cassidy just shrugged, giggling as Tyler took a sip out of his blue cup. On the bottom of his and Tayla's cup, was the gender of the baby. Both holding a cup in their hands, they didn't realize throughout the day, they were holding the answer to their question in their hands. Cassidy realized as soon as Tayla was handed a cup and took a sip of water; Justin was clever.

"Why are you laughing?" Tyler asked, confused. Katie and Jamie both looked at Cassidy, and back to Tyler, who took the last sip of his beer. They, too, saw what was written on the bottom of the cup.

"Oh, my god!" Katie exclaimed excitedly.

"What!?" Tyler asked, exasperated.

"Welp. We're both wrong" Jamie sighed. "Congrats though, man" Jamie patted his friend on the shoulder. "We're happy for you both!" he exclaimed, laughing some more at Tyler's confusion.

"What on earth are you-"

"Tyler!" Tayla shrieked, finally realizing what was written on the bottom of her cup. Tyler's head shot up, looking to where Tayla was standing. "Did you see!?" she asked, wandering over to him.

"See what?" Tyler asked, even more confused. "Are you okay?" he asked, when he noticed her tears.

"Oh I'm great" Tayla smiled, holding the cup up to her lips, letting it linger there long enough for Tyler to read what was on the bottom.

CONGRATULATIONS! IT'S A BOY :)