30

sunlight peaks through the blinds, casting golden rays on sierras brown skin. she squints as light hits her eyelids, and she rolls over to keep it out of her face. but when she rolls over, she rolls into an empty space, prompting her to open her eyes.

sierra pats the space next to her, as if jack is her phone and she lost it between the sheets. she sits up and looks around the room; his shoes are still there, as well as a few other telling items. she knows he couldn't have gone far, maybe back to his place, but he had no reason to leave her here all alone.

before she lets herself go into panic mode, she slips out of bed and puts on a pair of slippers and her robe before heading out into the living room.

a gasp escapes her lips the moment her eyes register what she's seeing in her living room; flowers, balloons, and tons of bags litter the area, covering every inch of floor space. her rug is barely visible beneath everything, as well as her furniture. sierra puts a hand on her forehead and blinks a few times before turning around to go back into her bedroom to grab her phone.

her fingers fly across the number pad at the speed of light as she types his phone number from memory, and puts the phone on speaker. she paces her room as she waits, and finally he picks up the phone. "jack," she says definitively once he picks up.

"happy birthday, baby. you like it?" jack asks, and she can hear the smile in his voice.

"where are you?" she asks, touching her fingers to her lips.

"come outside," he says. sierra lets out a small squeal at his words and runs out of her room and through her apartment. her heart beats excitedly in her chest, and she can't ignore the lump forming in her throat as she pulls the front door open and sees jack sitting outside.

it's the complete opposite of her 21st birthday, and maybe that's why she feels emotional. last year, he wasn't even in the state and only called her, but sent a lot of gifts. sierra doesn't care about gifts—his presence is enough.

"happy birthday, sierra," he says again and she throws herself into his arms, slightly knocking him backwards into his car. jack chuckles and holds onto her tightly, grabbing a fistful or her silk robe. sierra wraps her legs around his own, clinging to him like a koala.

"thank you," she mumbles into his neck, placing a kiss on his throat. "i love you." sierra says, kissing his jaw, not caring about his facial hair. jack rubs circles into her back, and smiles above her head. while it might seem like a lot, he wanted to make up for what he missed in the past. 

"im glad you like it. you deserve it, girl," he says, looking down at her. sierra meets his eye, unable to hold back her smile. jacks eyes trail down her body, stopping at her exposed chest due to her robe slipping open. "you deserve a few things." he mumbles, starting to pull her robe open.

sierra yelps and pushes his hands away, immediately pulling her robe tighter around her body. "we're outside!" she shrieks, but jack only gives her a lopsided.

"lets go inside, then," he grabs her hand and leads her from outside back into her apartment. the moment the door is closed, he has her pressed against it and her robe open to reveal her tiny silk shorts and matching tank top. jack kisses down her neck and to her chest, pressing his knee in between her thighs in the process. 

"jack," sierra sighs, running her hands up his back and tangling them in his hair. "cmon, i need you." she says, eagerly pulling at his hair. though its only been a few days since they last had sex, the extravagant gesture and the way he's grabbing her ass has her feeling extra needy.

jack lifts sierra up and she wraps her legs around his waist. he walks them quickly to her room and tosses her onto the bed, chest heaving up and down as he stands over her. "im about to tear you up," he mumbles, mostly to himself. sierra palms her breast and he tosses off his shirt before crawling on top of her and attaching their lips again. he pushes her silk shorts down and drags two fingers across her underwear-covered slit, the moisture gathering on his fingers. "all for me?" he asks, looking down at her.

"no."

he only chuckles and abruptly inserts to fingers into her, sliding in and out with ease. sierra gasps and her legs bend, one hooking onto his lower back. she makes the sounds that he likes to hear, the ones that tell him that he's doing his job right. "p-please," she cries, her head thrown back as he presses on her clit.

"what?" he asks, sloppily kissing her jaw.

"i need you," sierra says, desperation in her voice. jack kisses her neck, not missing an inch of skin before kissing down her chest, moving her silky tank top out of the way.

"where? here?" he pushes her shirt up, exposing her breasts. "here?" jack starts sucking on one while his free hand messes with the others.

"please, jack!" sierra whines, her stomach coiling. 

"use your words, sierra," jack taunts, curling his fingers inside of her. sierra only pushes his head down, too embarrassed to ask him to go down on her.

"fu-fuck," she whispers. 

"hold it."

jack removes his fingers and quickly replaces them with mouth, sucking on her most sensitive part. sierra screams and tightens her legs around his head, but he forces them back open and keeps them there. "shit, jack!" she moans, her chest moving up and down rapidly. that coil in her stomach tightens, threatening to break. sierras toes curl and she grabs at the sheets before that coil snaps and she releases all over jacks face and beard. she expects him to stop, but he keeps licking and sucking, causing her to beg him to stop and scoot away from him.

he finally relents after what feels like an eternity to sierra. jack sits up and looks down at sierra who struggles on the bed--her eyes screwed shut. "baby," he says, resting his hands on her thighs. his beard glistens with her juices so he wipes his lower face a bit. "cmon, baby. look at me." jack says when she doesn't open her eyes.

sierra shakes her head, feeling too shy to look at him. "quit with all that shy shit. gimme a kiss," he says, leaning down to her face.

"no!" she says, pushing his face away, her fingers on his lips. jack kisses her fingers and she opens her eyes to look at him. sierra's cheeks blaze and she quickly looks down, her eyes landing on the hard on in his sweats. biting her lip, sierra pulls him toward her by his waistband and stretches out her hand to palm him through his pants. 

"you want it?" she only nods, and he gives it all to her, just how she likes.

-

jack leads sierra through the restaurant, checking his watch discretely to make sure that they're not too early. he rented out a section of a restaurant so her friends and family could surprise her on her 23rd birthday. he is really trying to make up for what he ruined and missed. "alright, close your eyes," he instructs. sierra does so without comment, a small smile on her face.

they get to the room he reserved and jack checks to make sure that sierras eyes are still closed. jack waves at urban through the window and gives him a thumbs up to signal that he is there with sierra. when urban gathers everybody, jack opens the door and pulls sierra inside.

"surprise!"

"happy birthday!"

sierra opens her eyes and looks at all of her friends and family in awe. her sister and mother sit huddled with her grandparents and her friends, as well as a few of jacks friends. she is so glad that her family is here and that ever since her graduation, things with jack and her mother and sister have been less rocky and more cordial.

tears spring to sierras eyes and she turns around and covers her face so nobody can see her. "aw! don't cry, baby!" her mother says. moments later, arms wrap around her shoulders and a kiss is placed on her cheek. "happy birthday, honey." her mom whispers, rubbing her arm soothingly. sierra lets out a breath, just incredibly happy to be surrounded by the people that she loves most. 

"thanks, mommy," sierra gives her mom a proper hug before turning back around to her friends. "thanks y'all for being here tonight... thanks for putting this together, baby." she says, turning to jack on the last part. he only smiles at her and pulls out her chair to sit down. 

everyone engages in conversation the moment she sits down. her grandparents and deja start talking about post-graduation plans, while jasmine, druski, and her sister debate about whats better: mac and cheese or collard greens. sierra takes the time to relax and take in all of the people around her, feeling eternally grateful for those in her life. her and jack have been doing well ever since she got out of school and have had more time to see each other. she is still debating on whether she wants to move in, and now that school ended, living close to campus doesn't make as much. 

"you alright?" a large hand is placed on her knee, and she looks over to her left at jack who is already looking at her. she gives him a small smile and leans over to kiss him. 

"im good, real good," she replies. a full smile takes over jacks features and he squeezes her knee before going back to his conversation with urban and a few other guys from private garden. 

a few minutes later, their food is brought out and the room gets really silent besides forks scraping plates. "sierra, jack, what are your plans?" her grandfather asks, breaking the silence. 

sierra looks up at her grandfather, food stuffed in her cheeks, and then looks at jack who is mid bite. they share a look and sierra finishes chewing and swallowing her food before answering. "well, we're about to move in together," she admits, her mind finally being made up. in her opinion, there is no reason to skirt around this anymore--they are grown, and if he is as serious as she thinks he is, this is another step in the right direction for them. 

jacks jaw drops slightly and his eyes widen, as if to say are you serious? sierra only nods, and he clears his throat, a smile on his lips. "yes, sir, we are," jack confirms, glancing over at sierra again. her grandfather nods in approval and goes back to eating.

if things continue to be as good as she feels in this very moment, their future seems bright. but because she cannot predict the future, sierra decides to relish in how she's feeling and live in the moment with the people she loves.

--

A/N: omg...... its been awhile. 

sorry if this is so shitty i genuinely just wanted to finish it and wrap it up.

thank you for all of the support on this book. truly i wrote this kind of for myself at the beginning (a whole year ago), and it was really supposed to be for fun but it became more than that. thank you for your patience and kind words. i love and appreciate you all. 

the end.