“Well,lookwhoknowshow to use a phone.” Marcus says, as I’m sitting at Ink Me waiting for my next client.
I roll my eyes at the funny man whose sense of humor is the equivalent of dad jokes and Laffy Taffy wrappers.
The memory of Matthew and Jacob patting Marcus’s shoulder and telling him he was the funniest man alive before silently rolling their eyes springs to the forefront of my mind.
“What’s so funny?”
“I’m just remembering how Matthew and Jacob would pretend your jokes were hilarious.”
“Hey, my jokes are on point. Jacob still tells me so every day.”
“That’s because he’s still madly in love with you after all these years.”
Marcus sighs heavily into the phone. “He’s pretty amazing, that man. I don’t think I could even dress myself correctly if it wasn’t for him.”
“Oh, my God. Now you’re just being dramatic. You’re in your, like, early fifties.”
“Yes, well, having to keep up with a man in his thirties would make anyone feel like they’re eighty.”
Touché.
“Someone is going to call you to confirm your appointment.”
“Ok, I told you I would go.”
“I know, but can you blame me for being slightly surprised?”
No, I can’t. I’ve always been one to shy away from any kind of responsibility.
You spend years in the foster care system being told you’re worthless and you start wondering what the point is. If everyone already thinks I’m wild and irresponsible, is there any reason I should spend all my energy trying to change people’s minds?
I met Marcus, Jacob, and Matthew when I was sixteen and they made it their life’s mission to make me learn to see my self-worth.
It’s a hard one to shake, especially now that I’m trying to do this without having to rely on them to pull me out of the gutter when I fail.
Lately, I’ve been trying to do better, even if it scares the ever-loving shit out of me. I’m tired of constantly moving, and frankly, I’m lonely.
I blame Jaxon and Finn.
“How are the meds working out? Have you been monitoring it?” Marcus asks in his Dr. Withermore voice.
“They seem fine, I guess. I don’t really notice anything. When I took my blood pressure, it was in the range you wrote down.”
“That’s good. Listen…” He softens his tone back to just Marcus, and I know it’s no longer Dr. Withermore. “Jacob has been dying to get you over for dinner one night soon. He says you haven’t been returning his messages either.”
The sound of disappointment in his tone makes me feel like shit. Marcus and Jacob have always had my back since they took me in.Fuck, I really need to do better.
“I’m sorry. I promise to message him back and we can make plans for dinner soon.”
“Please do, Jasper. You know he’s not happy unless he’s fussing over something or someone. And don’t forget we have the kids’ carnival coming up. Jacob is stressing because the person he hired to make the cupcakes broke her arm and now he has to find someone, and on short notice.”
“I’ll call him, I promise.”
“Great. So, how’s Olly?”
My stomach swoops and my heart beats against my chest. “Pshh, why would I know how Olly is doing?”
“Because I met with Alex today for coffee at Dragonfly and overheard two interesting old ladies talking about the latest scandal.”
