“That’s okay, we don’t want to be late,” Parker tells me, scrambling to his feet amid the piles of ripped-up wrapping paper. Before he can pick up the computer monitor, I do it myself, images of him dropping it flashing before my eyes. “We can do it later, right?”
“Right.” I put the box in his room, proud of myself when I catch him smiling happily at it. “Should we go pick up Jack?”
The tears of this morning are a thing of the past when we pull up to the footpath near the bench Jack is waiting on. Parker, grinning, leans forward over the center console as he gets into the car.
“Happy birthday, Parker,” Jack greets him. Parker somehow manages to smile wider. Jack, blushing sweetly, hands a package wrapped in newspaper back to him. “This is for you.”
“No way, you got me a present?” Parker asks, snatching it away and glancing over at me for approval. I nod, and he rips into it. When I look at Jack, he’s already watching me, cheeks pink.
“It’s his birthday,” he mumbles, before he’s cut off by an audible gasp from the back of the car. We both turn around to see Parker clutching a navy-blue shirt.
“It’s not anything spec—” Jack starts, but is cut off by Parker.
“I love it! Look, Des”—he turns it around to show me the front—“it’s a Minecraft shirt! IloveMinecraft.”
I laugh. “I know you do, bud. That’s awesome.”
“It’s probably too big. I found it at the thrift store, andthey didn’t have any size options,” Jack puts in sadly, looking apologetic.
“That just means he can grow into it,” I tell him gently. “He can wear it forever.”
“This issocool,” Parker says, smiling at Jack. “Thank you so much.”
“You’re welcome,” Jack responds, pleasure making itself known in the form of a flush trailing down his neck. He grins at me, a touch shyly, and I smile back. He’s ridiculously cute for someone so big.
“You didn’t have to do that, Jacko.” Glancing up to make sure Parker is still seat-belted in and sitting back, I get us back on the road. Jack, big hands clasped loosely in his lap, nods.
“I know. I wanted to though. I like getting people presents,” he admits. The words make me sad, knowing how little money he has and the fact that he chose to spend some of it on my kid. He glances up in the rearview at Parker. “So, laser tag?”
“Yeah! Have you played before?”
“Nope, this will be my first time. My friend Nate said it’s a lot of fun, though. He was jealous.” Jack laughs, and I join in. It comes as no surprise to me that Nate enjoys laser tag.
“It’s a blast. Uncle Des hasn’t gone before either, right?”
“Right,” I confirm.
“I’m going to smoke you guys,” Parker says, smirking happily at the prospect.
Parker does, in fact, smoke us. Halfway through our fourth round of laser tag, hunched behind a glow-in-the-dark structure, I adjust the strap on the vest covering my chest. Ahead of me, I see Jack crouched behind a wall.
“I think we need to team up,” I whisper to Jack, whostartles as though he hadn’t realized I was there. I have to swallow back a laugh. “Don’t shoot me! I come in peace.”
“Sorry,” he says in a whisper-shout. “I thought you were Parker. He’s weirdly good at this.”
I shuffle closer to him, once more having to fight back a laugh. Jack is huddled down, trying to scrunch his wide 6’5” frame down far enough to keep out of sight. His eyes track around rapidly, as though expecting Parker to pop up out of nowhere and blast him with his laser.
“I think we need to form a coalition,” I tell him.
“You can’t hide forever!” Parker shouts, and I clap a hand over my mouth, nearly losing the battle with laughter. Jack’s eyes are wide and he’s smiling at me, laser clutched in his hands.
“Jesus!” he says.
“You go that way”—I up-nod to indicate the course behind him—“and I’ll go this way. One of us can act as bait, and the other can take Parker out.”
“I’ll be the decoy,” he offers. “I’m so fucking pale, I couldn’t hide in here even if I wanted to.”
“Thank you for your sacrifice,” I whisper seriously, and he snorts loudly. Parker whoops, and Jack wastes no time standing up and jogging off in the direction I sent him.
