Downplay| Jordan Clarkson & Quincy Brown

•t h i r t y t h r e e•

Yara was still putting all the pieces together. Everything had gone in a blur; she'd looked at the tickets and then her aunt had whisked her into her room where they selected a few outfits. They'd all but shoved her out of the door after she made sure to kiss and hug her baby boy tight. She didn't want to leave him but Aunt Denise assured her that he would be fine and Quincy had gone to so much trouble. Yara did need a break.

He'd sent Amari to pick her up. Her brother had spared no time in teasing her about the relationship that he knew was bound to happen. He also couldn't believe the lengths Quincy was going to but he was glad they'd found each other. Payton had softened him, Amari glowed in a way that Yara had never seen before. She'd queried if anything had changed, and he had dropped another bombshell on her, he'd bought Payton's engagement ring. Amari was ready to be a husband and even a father one day but Yara was trying to figure out if she was ready to see him start his own family, away from her. In a weird way, for once she'd felt she was protecting him. When he was at his lowest, she picked him up. She'd given him a place in her business, helped him get back on his feet and now Payton was coming in and taking over. She was happy for him but she hoped and prayed that Payton was the right one, and not just the one that came first.

It had stayed on her mind until she'd seen him. Quincy had that effect, he made speech difficult and he jumbled her thoughts all too easily. She rolled her suitcase behind her as she walked onto the jetway. They were flying in a private jet, she'd never experienced that before. A guy in a black uniform came out and took her bag for her as Quincy took her hand and kissed it. His smile took over his whole face, making it so bright and innocent that she couldn't look away.

Quincy made her feel like a feather in a world that had too often turned her to lead. She loved him, she was sure, but she didn't think the words could cross her lips.

"I'm sorry about the early flight, I just wanted us to have the day when we got there. It's an 18-hour flight after all."

Yara closed her eyes as she took that in. 18 hours on a plane...

"You're taking me to Greece Quincy, you have nothing to apologize for. I can't believe it's only four days though."

He took her hand and led her in as he thought about her statement.

"I mean, if you want to, we can stay another day or two but I didn't want to take you from Jahi for too long."

"Thank you, I don't think I'd want to be away from him for too long, but I appreciate the effort Q."

He squeezed her hand as he led her in. Yara was in awe at the interior, the cream seats and mahogany paneling that encompassed the main area. Quincy kept walking towards the back and opened a door that led to what looked like a bedroom.

"I'm just going to make sure that the bags and stuff are good. You should take a seat. We can't really move around until a bit after take-off."

"Got you."

She wasted no time. She settled into a seat after placing her bag in an overhead bin and took out her phone to scan through her socials and check her emails. Nothing was burning down at work and her friends all seemed fine. They were all probably asleep, it was 2 AM. Zolee had posted a photo of her boys and Yara's heart melted at their little faces, D'Angelo's genes had definitely won that battle. Kaia had also uploaded a photo of her and Kelly. It was interesting how they suited each other so well while being so different, Yara was glad that they were still together. Aya's socials were clear, an abnormal occurrence but Yara didn't think anything of it.

"We're all set." Quincy's voice took Yara's attention as he settled across from her and buckled himself in. The pilot peeked out and nodded at the sight of them in place before he went back into the cockpit and an attendant came out to give them the general safety spiel.