| September 1 | Friday |

I woke to the sound of someone in the kitchen and glanced over at the clock. It was nearly time for me to get up but I still had five minutes till my alarm. I smiled and rolled over.

Then before I knew it the lamp flickered on, forcing my eyes to open.

"Happy birthday," Megan said with a smile. "I made you breakfast."

I stretched. "You didn't have to do that."

"But I did," she challenged.

My eyes peered at her through the dimly lit room. She must want me to get up now.

"Fine I'll get up," I caved.

She just smiled and followed me into the kitchen.

The smell of coffee and cinnamon filled my nose as I saw the set up at the dining room table. Suddenly I felt like the most special person in the world.

"French toast and coffee," she said. "Your favorite."

I shook my head. "How did I get so lucky?"

"I'm still unsure."

I scoffed as she leaned down and kissed me.

"So what are your plans tonight?" she asked.

I shrugged. "I mean, I still have to train with Danna so I'm not sure."

"Wow."

"What?" I questioned.

"You're finally twenty-one and instead of wanting to go out you'd rather train," she informed. "That's dedication."

I just smirked. "Believe it or not, I've slowed down quite a bit."

Megan just gave me a weird look.

"I have!" I defended. "I barely even drink."

She sighed. "I guess that's kind of true."

I just laughed a little and enjoyed my morning with Megan. Of course I was excited to be twenty-one, but for reasons other than finally being legal. For one, I could now bartend and manage at Jinx 2, which was something I had looked forward to for a while.

After breakfast I dressed for work and parted from Megan who kissed me just a little longer than normal. The fact that she could make me feel even more special was a surprise, but I enjoyed every second.

Once I got to the shop I settled into work and began riding out my shift. As much as I loved Buddy's, I knew my time here was coming to an end and I was more than ready to move past it.

After a few hours and Blair calling me to wish me a happy birthday I felt like today would only get better. That was until a familiar face walked through the door.

"Well," Andy started. "It seems like you're haunting me."

"I have better things to do," I retorted.

He just raised his brow.

I decided to move things along. "What can I do for you?"

"I need new tires."

"Why? Did someone finally slash them?"

He folded his arms. "No. But I'm guessing if that does happen I'll know who to come to."

I left him in the waiting area and found Buddy who was finishing up with another customer's car.

"I have someone in the lobby for a full tire replacement," I informed.

"Great," he said. "Make sure you mention the free oil change."

"Would you be able to take him now?"

Buddy looked up at me. "Why?"

I shrugged. "I don't like looking at him."

That's when he peered inside and spotted the man, assessing him from afar.

"Jake!" Buddy called. "Go get that man's truck and bring it around back."

Jake disappeared.

"What's goin' on?"

"He's a bit of an ass," I confessed. "Actually, he's a really big ass. The other day he walked in on me and my friends at the bar we're opening and basically announced his distaste for the LGBT community."

"You're right. He's a big ass."

"I know!"

"While me and Jake change his tires someone's gotta watch the front, but once we're done with that you can come back here. I'll make Jake answer the phones for you till he leaves."

"Deal."

I walked back into the shop and Andy wasted no time ruining more of my mood.

"No girls allowed in the back?"

I rolled my eyes. "You get a free oil change with your tires."

He sat in the chair across from my desk. "Guess you'll have to put up with me for a while."

I shook my head and looked down.

"Happy birthday to me," I mumbled.

* * *

"And you're telling me you didn't kill him?" Megan asked.

"No," I answered. "But I thought about it."

"Of course you did."

"He's an ass."

"A big ass."

At this I couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm sorry that happened on your big day."

I sighed. "It seems I have bad luck on birthdays."

"No offense, but you have bad luck on a lot of days."

"You're not making this better," I challenged.

"Maybe I can make it better when I get back from grocery shopping," she flirted. "When's training with Danna?"

"Not until seven," I said. "Apparently she had stuff to do back in Baldwin."

"Well if I don't make it home before you leave I hope your day gets better."

"It's already better now that I've talked to you."

"I'm so glad you're comfortable with being cheesy."

I smiled. "Only with you."

"Better only be with me."

"I love you," I finished.

"I love you too."

Then we hung up as I arrived at our apartment. Since I had a few hours before training I decided to take a nap, and when I woke Megan still wasn't home. I figured she had gotten stuck in traffic, which was normal around this time. Although, I really wanted to see her before I had to leave.

But unfortunately that didn't happen, forcing me to leave without seeing my girlfriend. Hopefully Danna didn't have much on her agenda today. Even though I was twenty-one and it was Friday I really wouldn't mind an evening in with Megan. That seemed to be one of my biggest pleasures nowadays. Everything else came in second.

I parked on the street and spotted Jas and Danna's cars. Guess it was time to get this over with.

My hand fell on the door and tugged it open but I was greeted with an empty bar. Where the hell was everyone at?

"Hello?" I called.

That's when a million people jumped up from behind the bar all shouting "surprise!" in unison.

I jumped back but a smile stretched across my face.

"Oh I got the best picture," Blair bragged. "Sam, you need to see this."

"I do not," I protested as the door closed behind me. "I can't believe this."

Megan walked up to me. "Believe it because this took a lot of planning."

She grabbed my face and planted a nice kiss on my lips. I closed my eyes and savored every second of it.

"Happy birthday," Danna said with a pat on the back. "Hope you're as ready as I am for you to be of-age now."

"Oh I've been ready," I answered.

Shawn emerged from the crowd of people and pulled me in for a hug.

"Your face was priceless," he claimed. "Happy birthday."

"Thanks." I released him from the hug. "So this is where it gets fun, right?"

"Oh it gets so fun."

"Is that sarcasm?"

"Yes."

I groaned. "It's all downhill from here, isn't it?"

"Exactly," Shawn answered.

Megan shoved him. "No it isn't."

For a moment I felt a small bubble of anxiety. This was it. I was legally an adult and now I would have the responsibility of managing this bar alongside Jas in a few weeks. That was a serious jump.

Instead of torturing myself with my thoughts I mingled. Buddy and Jake had come as well, which was nice because I really wanted them to see the bar.

Then Jas approached me while I poured a drink.

"Happy birthday," she said. "You know I totally didn't know you weren't twenty-one already."

"I look older?" I asked.

"Yeah you do," she admitted.

I sipped from my cup. "How old are you anyway? Twenty-eight?"

She frowned. "Try twenty-four."

"I was close."

She laughed. "Not even."

That's when Megan was at my side again, hugging my body to hers. "I think I'm ready to beat you at pool."

I smirked. "Oh yeah? I think you let that foosball game get to your head. Pools my thing, babe."

"We'll see."

She grabbed my hand and led me away from Jas. For a moment I considered the situation and realized she had definitely done that on purpose. And although I found it kind of adorable, she couldn't honestly feel threatened by Jas, right?

I mean, don't get me wrong. Jas was extremely attractive, but I knew little to nothing about her. And I knew, along with everyone here, that I was head-over-heels for Megan. So what was the deal? I decided not to look into it too much.

"I hope this is better than training," Megan stated. "I just figured you'd want a little something on your twenty-first."

"It's much better than training," I responded. "I get to spend the night with my favorite people."

She beamed from across the pool table. "I'll let you break."

"You sure you don't want a head start?" I teased.

"You're the birthday girl."

"Yeah but I'm also much better at this than you are."

She leaned on the table. "Sam."

I raised one brow. Okay, she looked really hot right now.

"Fine," I caved.

I lined up the cue ball and took the first shot, feeling Megan's presence next to me. Even though I was the most competitive between us Megan put up a pretty good fight. But I believed a little competition was healthy.

"You know," I paused. "You're pretty good at keeping secrets."

"You think so?"

I watched her lean over the table for a shot.

"Yeah." I moved closer. "Makes me kinda nervous how convincing you can be."

After her missed shot she popped back up. "I use my powers for good."

"I don't know about that," I mumbled.

Our faces were close, and in all actuality I was just trying to distract her from the game. But before I could succeed she pulled out of our moment.

"It's your turn." She moved away from me. "And don't think I don't know what you're doing."

I assessed the table. "What am I doing?"

"Trying to distract me."

"Am not."

"Yes, you are."

I just gave her a wink before attempting another shot.

I ended up winning the game against Megan, which wasn't a surprise, and enjoyed a few more hours of music and drinks. And eventually I was in a conversation with Megan, Danna and Blair about how my day went. Which inevitably led to Megan spilling the beans about Andy.

"I totally can't believe he of all people walked into Buddy's on your birthday," Megan joked. "I mean, how unfortunate."

"That man really is an ass."

"Yeah," she agreed. "A big ass."

"That's what I'll call him from now on."

Everyone just laughed as I sipped from my drink.

Even though most of his antics were to antagonize me I knew he wouldn't physically harm anyone. He was all talk, like most of them were, but that didn't mean it wasn't bothersome. Especially when he owned the bar across the street.

What if he decided one day to take a shot at the bar?

The thought managed to dim my mood and Megan noticed.

"What are you thinking?" she asked.

"Just how nasty Andy is," I answered. "And the worst part is I don't even think he knows."

"That he's an ass?"

"Right."

Danna joined in on the conversation. "There's always gonna be a group of them wherever you go."

"That doesn't make it okay," I defended.

"No it doesn't," Danna included. "But it's reality."

"Well it sucks."

"It does."

A small moment of silence settled between us. In the moment I thought of a perfect end to my birthday.

"I have an idea," I expressed.

"Last time you had one of those we got kicked out of AJ's," Blair countered.

"And I don't feel like bailing you out of jail on your birthday," Megan said.

"You guys have no faith in me," I complained.

"No, we just know most of your ideas aren't thought out."

"This one doesn't need to be." I looked at Danna. "Do you still have that window paint for opening day?"

"Yeah?" she answered.

"Can I use it?"

"No."

"Why?" I whined.

"Depends on what you plan on using it for."

I rolled my eyes. "I wanna leave a little message on Andy's truck."

At this all three of them just gave me an unsure look.

I stood from the pool table. "It's washable, right?"

"Well yeah, but-"

"Then there's no harm," I defended. "C'mon, it's my birthday."

"That gives you an excuse to vandalize?" Blair questioned.

"Vandalism is a little harsh."

"That's technically what it is."

I looked at Danna. "Please?"

She looked at me really hard before throwing up her hands. "Fine, but I swear if you get caught I knew nothing about it."

Megan followed me to the storage room where I knew the supplies was and retrieved the car chalk. Even though this probably was a bad idea, I knew it would only fail if we got caught. Which we wouldn't.

"Are you sure this is worth it?" Megan wondered.

"Oh it's so worth it."

We escaped through the back door and into the summer night. Andy's bar was pretty busy, but that meant everyone was inside and nowhere near the parking lot, which is where we were going.

"I feel like a criminal," Megan claimed. "Is this what it felt like when you broke into that man's house?"

"I thought we agreed we wouldn't talk about that anymore?"

"And I thought we agreed no more criminal activity."

I rolled my eyes. "This isn't criminal activity."

"It's so criminal activity."

I found his truck and shook the marker, readying it for use. I could feel the excitement in my veins at what I was about to do.

"So what are you gonna write?" Megan asked.

"Just wait and see," I ordered.

I climbed into the bed of his truck and knelt near the back window. Then I popped the cap off of the marker and got to work.

Once I was finished I smiled to myself and stepped back and inspected my artwork.

Megan on the other hand couldn't stop laughing.

"I'm a big ass and I cannot lie," she read. "Okay that's funny."

"I told you," I beamed. "And it's true."

I hopped out of the bed of his truck and rejoined Megan on the ground.

"I hate admitting this, but you're really hot when you do illegal things," she admitted.

"Once again, this isn't illegal."

She moved closer to me. "Whatever you say."

Her hands moved up my neck and into my hair. She wasted no time pulling me into her for a kiss and I willingly accepted. There was no birthday present better than this in my opinion. Not even the note on Andy's truck.

I pulled back. "I think I'm ready to go home."

She blushed. "Already? It's only ten."

"I told Buddy I would go in early tomorrow since we have a few morning appointments," I informed. "But I also think I'd have a better time at home with you."

She bit her lip. "Fine, but we have to get rid of the weapon."

I furrowed my brow in confusion.

She grabbed the marker from my hand. "This, silly."

I nodded. "You're right."

So we returned the marker to the storage room and closed up the bar before going home. Even though I loved hanging with my friends, some things just couldn't top curling up in bed with the woman I loved the most.

* * *

Saturday morning at the shop passed slow, and even when it had been hard waking up I was glad to be here. I would miss this place once I quit.

Around twelve was when things slowed down and Buddy and Jake joined me in the lobby.

"Looks like those are the last of the appointments," Buddy claimed. "Sam you can head out if you want."

I grabbed my keys. "You don't have to tell me twice."

That's when I familiar truck pulled up outside, and I already knew who it was.

Andy slammed his door and stalked into the shop with an annoyed look on his face. When he made it to the desk I addressed him.

I played dumb. "Hi, what can I do for you?"

"You can wash that bullshit off my window, that's what," he fumed.

Me, Buddy and Jake looked at each other in confusion.

Buddy moved forward. "What exactly are you talking about?"

He pointed his finger. "She thought vandalizing my truck would be funny."

"What makes you think it was me?" I asked.

He just gave me an unconvinced look.

"What did they do?" Jake asked.

At this Andy hesitated, knowing he didn't want to reveal the damage. I had to admit, it was pretty embarrassing.

"I'm goin' see," Buddy said. We all followed outside. I smirked with anticipation.

When we got outside Jake read the words aloud.

"I'm a big ass and I cannot lie." He let out a loud laugh. "Oh man that's fun-"

Buddy threw him a glare.

"That's horrible," Jake corrected.

Buddy faced Andy. "I'm sorry that this happened but, in all do respect, I was with Sam last night. So she didn't do this."

My devious smile had to be glowing by now.

"I know she did it," Andy defended. "Look at her smiling!"

I threw my hands up. "I just think it's really funny."

"The most I can do is give you some window cleaner," Buddy advised. "But Sam's off the clock."

I could see the anger radiating from Andy knowing he had lost, but I just found that even funnier. Guess karma had a funny way of coming back around just in time.

I twirled my keys. "I'm sorry that happened. Really. It's a shame," I lied. "But maybe you'll remember not to be such a meanie head now."

His eyes narrowed as I walked backwards towards my car.

I waved. "Bye!"

Then I hopped into my car and sped off, laughing to myself all the way home. I think the year of being twenty-one would be interesting, to say the least.