The Big 40!

JC sat on the back deck of his rented beach house and watched the sun set. Tomorrow was his 40th birthday. Forty. 4-0. Where had the time gone? Wasn't he just 17 and singing on the MMC? Or 24 at the height of NSYNC? His mind continued to drift over all of the music he'd been a part of and all of the crazy shows with the guys.

Some days he wondered if they thought about him. They were all doing their own things;  Joey and Justin were dads. Everyone was married but him. They had been so close for so long that when they first took their break, it felt like his left arm was missing. Now, it was a way of life.

It had been super cool to run into Lance and Michael on New Year's but he didn't know how their adoption journey was going.

He'd made a point to see My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 to support Joe but hadn't seen him off the big screen. God, his girls were how old now? He couldn't even wrap his brain around it but he was almost certain that Bri would be driving soon. Wow. Talk about feeling old.

Of course, Justin was everywhere and JC really liked his newest song. It had been stuck in his head for days and he couldn't help bouncing to the beat. JC was sure Silas had changed a lot since he'd last seen the little guy and he knew Jessica was settling into motherhood.

Chris was the most estranged. They had just grown apart. They hadn’t seen each other much since Chris married Karly. She seemed like a cool person but JC didn't know her very well. He didn't even know where she was from.

“You're very quiet tonight.” Kay’s soft voice broke into his thoughts. “What are you thinking about?”

“The guys. It's been so long since we've all been together. We've celebrated so many things together.  It just feels different without them still.” JC forced a smile and threaded his fingers through hers. “But my girl is here by my side at the beach house she rented for us, so I'm definitely lucky.”

“Sweet talker. Keep it up and I might show you my birthday suit.”

“I happen to love your birthday suit. It's my favorite.” JC leaned over and kissed her softly then sighed. “Friday night was fun with our LA friends. That DJ was on fire!”

Kay nodded as she stood.  “Yes he was. We’ll have to hang with him again.”

“Agreed.”

“I getting hungry. I'm going to start the chicken. Do you want more wine?”

JC nodded and pulled her down for a long kiss after she'd refilled his glass then he sat back and enjoyed watching her walk away. Kay was pretty awesome. They'd been together several months now and she went with the flow. Except when he was dancing too close to another woman in the club. She made it crystal clear that he was expected to grind with her and her alone. He smiled at the memory of her dark, possessive eyes when he was dancing with their friend Candy on Friday. That look always made him hot and bothered.

*******

“Happy Birthday,  baby. “

JC opened his eyes and blinked several times before his very naked girlfriend came into focus. He enjoyed one of her awesome blow jobs before she presented him with breakfast in bed. They spent the morning and early afternoon enjoying each other physically before packing their bags to head back to LA.

Traffic was a little insane on the way back to his LA home but they passed the time talking and laughing. He received a few birthday wishes view phone calls and messages from family and friends. As they approached home, he noticed Kay squirming in her seat.

“Are you OK, babe?”

“Yeah.” She smiled and nodded, still looking nervous or antsy. “I’m just ready to be home.”

He shrugged, unsure of what to make of her nervous energy, and pulled into the garage. Once their bags were unloaded and they made it into the house, Kay disappeared out onto the patio. He grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and followed her outside.

“SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”

So many people were crowded on his back deck and yard. His family members were off to the left and Tony and Rachel Lucca stood to the right with their two kids, Liam and Sparrow. Eric stood behind Tony with some of their travel friends then Chris and Karly Kirkpatrick came into view as he scanned to the left. Lance and Michael then Joey, Kelly, Brianna and Kloey and finally Justin, Jessica and Silas. More friends from the studio, gym and LA filled out the rest of the crowd.

“Wow!” Words were difficult to form as he looked around at all of the people who meant something to him. “How did you do this?”

“It’s was Kay’s idea.” Eric grinned and hi-fived the grinning woman. “I hope you like cake, dude, because the one she picked out is HUGE.”

“The cars are all at our house.” His neighbor, Greg, grinned from beside the grill. “I shuttled folks over on my new golf cart.”

Everyone came and hugged him or shook his hand before settling into the food and drinks on tables just off the porch. The water bottle in his hand was quickly swapped out for a cold beer bottle. The weather was cooperating and the kids made quick work of jumping into his pool.

The rest of the evening and most of the night was spent reminiscing, laughing and enjoying being together. They sang a boisterous version of “Happy Birthday To You” as Kay and his sister Heather rolled out a cart topped with a gigantic cake on it. JC’s heart felt so full as he repeatedly looked around at this friends and family. First a loud, fun filled evening out before his big day then a weekend at the beach with his woman and a big, low key gathering at home. What a fantastic way to ring in the big 4-0! Who could ask for anything more?