˗ˏˋOur Differencesˊˎ˗

-13-

January 28th is my birthday — the best day of the entire year. No lie.

"Happy birthday, sweet girl." Mom and Dad greeted me when I got up for school that morning.

Mom makes me a special birthday breakfast every single year — pink velvet pancakes with strawberries and sprinkles. It never misses.

Dylan always gets a plate too, you know, because equality and all. I used to make him wear a tiara on my birthday when I was really little, so now he does it every single year. It's a tradition.

"Are you wearing that to school?" I laughed, while he ate his pink pancakes with a sparkly tiara on his head.

"Course I am." he mumbled with his mouth full.

Mom grabbed her phone and took a picture of us, which I predicted would be posted on her Facebook at some point today. She's so extra, but it's really wholesome sometimes.

We finished breakfast and Dad walked outside with us. I knew exactly what was about to happen, since I'm really good at picking up on vibes. He had been acting weird all morning, like he had some secret up his sleeve.

I wanted to laugh.

"16 year olds drive, don't they?" Dad joked, while opening the garage door.

I giggled in excitement as the large door slowly lifted, revealing the gorgeous white Range Rover parked in the driveway like it was in a car commercial.

I gasped and slapped my hand over my mouth.

"No fucking way." I gaped, while staring at the car in complete awe. It was the most glorious thing I've ever seen in my entire life.

Mom was filming my reaction, and Dad and Dylan were both watching in amusement.

I ran over to examine it up close, almost scared to touch it. This is not a cheap car.

"Holy shit." I cursed, at a loss of words.

Everyone came over to examine it with me, and Dad tossed me the keys.

"Crank her up."

I stared at the expensive key fob in my hands and pressed the unlock button. It made a lovely beeping sound and I opened the door. My jaw dropped at the gorgeous, sleek, white interior.

"Oh my god, it's so pretty!" I gasped again, before climbing into the drivers seat.

Pressing the start button was life changing, truly. Dylan kept laughing at how excited I was, but he behaved the exact same way when Mom and Dad got him his first Jeep when he turned 16.

The only reason he has a Tesla now is because he totaled his Jeep last year in a car wreck. And Mom and Dad trust a robotic car's driving more than their own son's.

I drove around our loop driveway to give the car a test run and then parked it again. Then, I jumped out of the car to give my parents a hug. Sometimes they're way too generous with us, and we don't always appreciate it enough.

"Thank you so much." I hugged them. "This is so cool. I love you guys."

"Love you too, sweetie. Happy birthday." Dad smiled warmly, which was a rare sight.

I'm gonna look so cool driving to school in a brand new Range Rover.

Mom took some more pictures of me with the new car, and then she took a few of me with Dylan, who was barely cooperating for the pictures.