I've said it once, I'll say it a million times; I have the most incredible girlfriend in the world. Every morning I wake up, I just wish it was Saturday night again. I loved the way she looked in that dress, how big her smile was, I've never seen anyone so happy.

The benefit of sticking with Sasha through so many hard times was that now I really got to see her at her best. I got to see her smile, eat a full meal, make friends. This girl was completely different from the one I knew several months ago, she was herself again. Bubbly, kind and full of laughter.

She beamed now when she walked into a room, she filled it with positivity and was truly radiant. Nobody could bring her down anymore, even at her worst Sasha seemed perfect on the outside, composed and put-together. But now that she felt good about herself, she had the ability to make anyone smile, and no matter where she went her smile and personality demanded attention.

But I've seen her that way for years, I knew it was underneath that hard exterior, I just had to have her let me in again. Now everyone knew, she seemed overwhelmed by the attention and the constant questions. I of course reminded her that she didn't have to befriend everyone, that she could make that decision herself.

I took her to a restaurant downtown on Saturday, one where I could watch her earrings sparkle in the candlelight and where the tables were close enough to hold hands. For the first time since we'd started dating I watched her clear her dinner plate and I even ordered a dessert to split. I've never seen her enjoy her food before, never watched her smile while finishing a dish. I quite preferred it to the look of usual panic that accompanied her pushing her food around.

After that I took her to the duck pond we used to go to all the time when we were little. I brought some stale bread and watched the look of sheer joy on her face as the ducks swam with their ducklings. I knew this was right around the time to expect new little ducklings and watching her beam over them made me happier than anything else.

"Look how cute they are." She whispered, holding onto my bicep. "They just swim close to their mom, and make those adorable little peeps."

"They're definitely cute." I admitted, watching them curl up close to their mother.

"We should get some." She whined and I laughed, kissing her temple.

"And what would we do with them?" I asked and she laughed with a simple shrug.

"Cuddle them." She mumbled and my heart melted, she was too cute.

"They belong here though." I reminded her. "Then they'd grow up and you'd just have a bunch of ducks."

"Then I'd just take them back to the pond and get new ducklings." She insisted and I laughed.

"You want to foster ducklings?" I asked and she laughed.

"We'd make pretty good duck parents, don't you think?" She asked and I immediately lost the breath in my throat. Even though she was teasing, she brought up the concept of being parents and I almost felt my soul leave my body. Not from stress but....because she implied a forever.

"Sorry, is duck parenthood too far?" She asked in a teasing voice and I laughed.

"Not at all." I whispered, pulling her closer and watching the ducks now swim in a perfect line. "There's nobody I'd rather kidnap ducklings from their pond with."

"I guess it would be wrong to steal them from their parents huh?" She sighed. "I'll just cuddle you then."

"Sounds perfect." I whispered back, watching the sunset and the small ducklings cling to their mother for dear life.

Then I took her to the planetarium at the museum of natural history. Watching the same show we watched at ten years old, when we came here the first time. Except this time we made-out in the back of the theatre without anyone noticing. Star-gazing was still too cold for this time of year so I settled for the next best thing. The only thing better than the intense lip-lock was walking out afterwards and watching her cheeks flush. She then pressed her lips together through the rest of the museum tour and caught my appreciative glances from the corner of her eye.

To finish the night I brought her to a diner where we shared a banana split. We used to do so frequently, we'd never get our own ice cream as little kids, always share it.

"I would like to once again repeat my statement that you're going to make me fat." She huffed and I smiled.

"Suit yourself, more ice cream for me." I said pulling it away and she frowned.

"I didn't say I didn't want any." She mumbled and I immediately gave-in, sliding the treat back into the middle. "This day has been incredible, thank you." She smiled, putting her hand in mine and I smiled, feeling undone by her easy compliment. "You've managed to pile all my favourite things we used to do into one great day."

"I tried my best to make it happen." I whispered back. "I wanted it to be fun."

"It was perfect....better than perfect." She told me and I just felt glad I could make this date amazing, even after the hangover detour previously in the day. "I used to hate this day." She mumbled. "You know, for the years we were apart. I used to throw myself into skating but that made it worse, because that was where we met." She said and then immediately shook her head, closing her eyes. "Sorry never mind I shouldn't have said that, this is a really amazing date-"

"I used to take the day to myself." I told her, cutting her off. "I'd spend the whole day in my room and lie that I was sick to keep everyone away." It was a half truth, I just felt sick with myself more than anything else. "But that's the past, we're together now and that's what's important."

"Exactly." She said quietly, taking another scoop of ice cream. "I love you, to the ends of the earth." I just smiled and gave her hand a squeeze.

"And I love you, always have, always will." Was what I told her, and of course it was true.

The perfect evening didn't stop there either, she informed me that her brothers had gone to some party for the evening and that her parents were going on their weekly Saturday night date. We had her house to ourselves.

Obviously anniversaries aren't about sex, but it certainly seems to accompany special occasions. Her room always felt more romantic, she had a larger bed and her room felt warmer, perhaps it was all the lamps and strings of Christmas lights.

We were learning how to be with each other in this new way and it got a little bit better every time. It kept getting more intense and there were so many parts of it that I enjoyed.

I still remember what it was like to untie that dress, watch it fall to the floor and have my shirt accompany it not long after. Her straddling my lap and reaching behind her to unhook her bra. She was much faster at it, and having her do it was more of a turn on. I've never undone the buttons on my shirt or felt my pants fall around my ankles so quickly.

Every time I closed my eyes I could feel her running her finger nails over my back or hear soft moans and groans. I saw blue eyes locked with mine and blonde hair falling down over her face. I saw her closing her eyes or pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, I saw her earrings sparkle while she wrapped her arms around my shoulders.

"-Nathan, are you awake?" I hear someone call and I immediately feel my eyes shoot open. I can hear banging on the other side of my door, snapping me from my day dream. "I'm heading in late this morning and I didn't hear any moving around!" It's my mom and I groan, wishing I could have stayed in that dream just a few minutes longer.

"Yeah, I'm up!" I call back. "Have a good day mom!"

"You too honey!" She calls back and I hear her footsteps disappear down the hall and downstairs.

I sigh, sitting up on the edge of my bed and shake off the images that flowed through my brain just moments before. Before I do anything else I immediately grab my phone and send Sasha a good morning text, letting her know I'd be leaving in twenty minutes. Then I promptly headed to the washroom for a cold shower.

Then I get dressed seeing a text pop up on my screen from Sasha, saying good morning back and how much she missed me. Getting those sorts of messages really relaxed me, they made me feel less pathetic and let me know she cared about me just as much as I cared about her.

Then I get my things together and head out the door to grab her from her house. The drive feels longer every time, but I end up pulling up before I know it, watching a gorgeous blonde girl running down to my car.

"Hey baby." She says, sliding into the passenger seat.

"Hey gorgeous." I whisper, giving her a quick kiss. "You look nice today." I tell her, remarking her wonderful outfit.

"Thanks, I'm glad to see you." She mumbles, putting her hand in mine. "I missed you last night."

"I missed you too." I confirm, making the drive to school. "You went to your first practice for skating yesterday right?" I ask and she nods. "How did it go, how did it feel to be back?"

"Alright, we didn't do anything strenuous, just tested out some tricks and put my audition piece together." She says and I smile. "I have a few months to really focus on this and make it perfect."

"I'm glad, hopefully I won't be double-booked again." I tell her and she smiles.

"By the way, Kate wanted me to tell you she liked your choice of nail polish." She whispers as we park in the school lot, wiggling her red nails and I smile.

"Well tell I'll have to tell her thank you the next time I see her." I tell her, turning off the car and opening my door.

I take her hand and walk with her into school, feeling her fingers link through mine. I pull her closer, kissing her cheek and hearing her giggle like a five-year-old. I just found that adorable though, she was so sweet.

"There's the happy couple!" I hear and turn to see Rachel with Damien by the staircase. I take Sasha's hand and walk over guiltily to the small group of people.

"Hey Sasha." Irene says happily and I furrow my eyebrows. She was like night and day compared to how she was last week. Not upset anymore, not disconnected, whatever Sasha, Mel and Rachel had done with her clearly had worked.

The three girls get into a happy conversation and I start scanning the lobby, today marked the end of Jake and Sabrina's school suspension. I wasn't particularly clear on what was going on there anymore, just speculated rumours.

"She's not going to disappear you know." Damien says, breaking my train of thought. "You can let her go." He teases and I instantly let Sasha's hand go.

"Yeah, I'm just thinking about other things." I mumble pathetically, I didn't really want to let her hand go.

"Who said you could let go?" Sasha asks, taking my hand back and I feel mildly relieved.

"Sorry." I whisper, kissing her cheek before she returns her attention back to Irene and Rachel.

"You might as well change your last name now you wimp." Malcolm chimes in, walking over and I roll my eyes.

"That's big talk for someone who still hasn't asked out the girl he's been talking to for months." I remind him and he laughs.

"That's because I'm not a baby, asking my girlfriend if I can walk her to class or give her my jacket." He retorts.

"Oh give it a rest." Damien says. "There's something to be said for girlfriends, and Nate is in love with her."

"Yeah we know that." Adrian says, closing his hand over my shoulder. "How'd your date go on Saturday?"

"We had a nice time, it was great." I tell him and he nods.

"Was it great after the date too?" Malcolm asks and I sigh, shaking my head at him. I'd never make the mistake of sharing private details like that, Sasha put a lot of trust in me when we became intimate, the last thing I wanted to do was destroy it.

"Malcolm, you never learn. Nate doesn't kiss and tell." Adrian teases and I huff. Why is me caring about my girlfriend something to make fun of?

"I've got nothing to prove, we're happy." I tell them confidently, getting a few head nods and a slap on the back.

"There she is!" We all hear and turn to see Mel, pulling her sunglasses off of her eyes. "Hundred-shot-Sasha, I swear that was the most fun night I've had in a while."

"Now there's someone I wouldn't mind kissing-and-telling with." Malcolm mumbles, looking at Mel and I roll my eyes, chuckling a bit to myself.

"Talk about out of your league dude." Adrian teases and the four of us laugh quietly.

"I swear, I've never seen anyone take shots like that!" Mel insists walking over next to Sasha and elbowing her. "Plus you have this hilarious accent, it's like you're a different person."

I get some weird side-eyes from my friends that seem to say 'little five-foot-five Sasha was drinking back vodka?'. I just shrug and nod, my girlfriend was capable of more than people gave her credit for.

"But that's not the news, guess what?!" She asks excitedly and we all shrug or shake our heads in confusion.

"What is it?" Sasha asks and Mel gets a devious smile.

"Well I heard some news on our good friends Sabrina and Jake." She says and my ears perk up, fearing the worst. "Turns out they've settled everything with the police station, the two of them have to finish the year remotely."

"You mean, not in school?" I clarify and Mel nods.

"Yeah but it gets better, they both have to do two-hundred hours of community service, make a formal apology to Sasha and the school. But the best part is that Sabrina's being sent to a boarding school in Switzerland." She says excitedly. "Apparently her parents want her to make better decisions so they're removing her from this school all-together!"

"I'm sure she'll get treated really horribly in a private European school." Damien mutters under his breath.

"Well it's thousands of miles away from here." Sasha says, sounding relieved.

"She wouldn't be allowed near you even if she stayed here, there's a restraining order in place. She'll never bother you again Sasha, now as for Jake....." She says. "He's also gone for good, his father shipped him off last night to live with his aunt in Montana."

"How did you find all this out?" Adrian asks and she rolls her eyes.

"Adrian when you've been mixed up in the elitist popular kids for long enough, you learn to watch your back and be five steps ahead." She explains sweetly. "Flip on them before they flip on you."

"Well you're the scariest but most amazing person I know right now." Sasha says giving her a hug. "Good riddance, I won't miss them at all."

"I figured you'd be happy about the news." Mel says and she nods. "How about we go out and celebrate this afternoon? You know, a good-riddance-fair-well sort of deal?"

"I'd really like that but I'm actually really busy today, I have ballet, a family thing after that and now that hockey season's over my ice time is at six-thirty instead. But I'm free after that at like eight-thirty, could we make it a fair-well soiree instead?" She asks and Mel furrows her eyebrows.

"Sure....I don't mind I just I thought your season ended for figure skating? You know, national title?" She says sounding confused.

"Well yeah that's all true but.....well I wasn't going to say anything until it happened but I guess I'll just tell you." Sasha says.

"Tell us what?" Rachel asks and Sasha takes a deep breath.

"I-um.....I have an Olympic tryout lined up for later this year, if I nail it I could be on the U.S women's team for next year's winter Olympics-"

"Woah, woah, woah, the Olympics?!" Mel asks and Sasha nods.

"Well maybe, it depends on how the try-out goes." Sasha says quietly.

"Are kidding? You'll be great!" Rachel says.

"I can't believe we had an Olympic athlete right under our noses." Damien says.

"Not yet, you guys are going to jinx me." Sasha pretends to whine and everyone laughs.

"Well then we'll definitely have to go out and celebrate this evening." Mel insists. "You're an amazing skater, you've got this one." She assures Sasha.

"I guess we'll see." Sasha says with a shrug. "But thanks you guys, I'll just do my best. Please don't spread it around, just keep it quiet for now."

"You've got it Sash." Irene says.

"Who's coming with you to the Olympics?" Damien asks and she leans up to kiss my cheek.

"This one right here." She says quietly. "He's been asking to go since we were six years old." I feel her slide in close to my side and I wrap my arm around her waist.

"Typical, I shouldn't have asked." Damien says raising his hands.

Just then the bell rings and I sigh, taking her hand and kissing the back of it.

"Catch up at lunch guys!" Mel calls, pulling her sunglasses back down and walking away.

"Let's go beautiful, first period awaits." I whisper, waving goodbye to everyone and pulling her close. "So I'm your choice for she extra airplane seat huh?" I ask and she nods.

"Of course you are, we made that deal on your bedroom floor remember? Sealed with a kiss." She says and I laugh.

"I couldn't forget if I tried." I tell her and she smiles. "But I do like reminders." I whisper, pulling her down another hallway and into an old classroom.

"Nathan." She hisses as I close the door behind us. "We have class." She laughs and I shrug, locking the door and lifting her onto a desk.

"I don't care." I whisper, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. "The two worst people I've ever met are gone for good and you have an amazing tryout lined up. I love you." I tell her, pressing my lips to her and she smiles, wrapping her arms around the back of my neck.

"I love you more." She whispers. "I've never been happier than I am with you."

"Well we have three minutes until class starts......" I tell her and she smiles. "Wanna make-out until then?"

"I thought you'd never ask." She whispers, leaning in and sliding her fingers through my hair.

No matter where our lives took us over the next few years, I knew we'd always come back to each other. I knew there wasn't anyone who made my pulse quicken this way, I hoped there'd be more practices I could watch, meals I could cook her and dates I could take her on.

We were perfect together, I'm hers and she's mine. We have the bracelets to prove it.