Jake inhaled a short breath, his stomach sinking more.
And Rye continued.
“The man... he called me things, made me... believe things about myself. How I was a stupid child. How I was worthless. How no one... wanted me.”
An ache rattled Jake’s chest, and he shook his head slightly. “Rye...”
“It’s dumb. I know it’s dumb. I know he was wrong. I...knowthat. But I... I feel like I need to pass this exam. Or... or he’s right. He’s right and I am all those things and...” A sharp tremor seemed to race through Rye, and he sucked in a breath and then reached up, his hand shaking badly, and tucked that lock of hair back behind his ear.
Jake opened his mouth to say something—something he hoped could help combat all those awful words Rye was still fighting against, all those awful words that were so wrong—but before he could, the front door opened behind them. Rye flinched hard at the sound, twisting his head around as fear flashed in his eyes for half a second.
“Hi, sweetie, I’m home. Sorry I’m late,” Shirley said as the front door closed with a soft click.
Rye swallowed and seemed to force a smile. “Hi, Mom.”
Pushing away all of the worry he had about the conversation they didn’t get to finish, Jake swiveled around in his chair and gave Shirley a small wave in greeting. “Hi, Shirley. How are you?”
“Oh, you know, tired,” she said, and she smiled, too, but Jake could see the exhaustion in her eyes. “I’m glad you’re still here, Jake. And sorry again for being so late. You wouldn’t believe what happened!”
Shirley hung her purse and keys up on the hanger near the door. Then she headed over toward them as she started explaining how Mary Tilsdale’s three-year-old daughter had pulled away from her mom and begun running all around the store, knocking over a display of cereal and several cartons of milk just before the store had been about to close. She stopped talking abruptly, though, as her eyes landed on the still-open laptop in front of Rye. Immediately, all the tension and tiredness in her expression vanished, and her gaze shifted to her son.
“You finished all four?”
Rye nodded, and Jake smiled softly up at Shirley. “He just finished the math portion a few minutes ago, actually. Here.” Jake pushed his chair back and stood, giving Shirley room to join Rye at the table.
She stepped a little closer and leaned in, and her hand came up to cover her mouth. “Oh, my. ‘Likely to pass’ for all four. And... Oh, sweetie, this is just so wonderful.”
Jake stood back and watched the warm exchange as Shirley hugged her son and gushed over how proud she was. But she was swaying on her feet. He reached out and pushed the chair a little closer.
“Here, Shirley. Sit.”
She pulled herself away from Rye and glanced up at Jake with tired eyes. “Oh, thank you, Jake. That’s kind of you. It’s been a long day.”
“I bet. Did you eat? We’ve got leftovers from dinner. Rye made stuffed pepper soup. It’s amazing. He tried to teach me how to make it, but I think all I was really good for was chopping up the veggies.”
Shirley laughed a tired laugh but shook her head, and Jake chuckled too.
“How about some tea, then?” he suggested. “Chamomile?”
This time, Shirley hesitated before nodding. “That sounds lovely, dear, thank you.”
Jake glanced at Rye, but he was staring at his hands again, his jaw tight. “Hey, Rye? How about you?”
“Hmm?” Rye’s eyes darted up to meet his, full of mixed emotions Jake couldn’t quite decipher.
Jake just smiled as softly as he could. “Did you want some more tea?”
“Oh.” There was a hesitation, but then Rye managed a small smile. “Y-yeah. Yes, please. Thank you.”
Jake nodded. “Sure thing.”
Rye held his gaze for a moment, all of those emotions making his eyes look stormy, cloudy and unsure. But there was something else to them, too—something maybe not so dark, yet just as intense. Jake felt drawn in toward him, and he was unable to look away for several seconds, even as some of that pleasant warmth he’d felt earlier crept up into his cheeks. Finally, he managed to blink and nod and clear his throat.
“Chamomile, then,” he said with another nod. Shirley gave him a kind smile, and Rye lowered his eyes back to his hands. Then, Jake moved into the kitchen to start on their tea.
He half listened as Rye began talking quietly with his mom—most of his sentences somewhat stilted or incomplete—explaining that he had indeed finished all four of his practice exams and, he admitted, done much better than he’d expected. His mom was so, so proud of him. Jake couldfeelit, even from across the room. And when she said she wanted to celebrate—just a little party with them and Jon and Tanya, maybe Janice, too, since she’d also helped Rye so much—Jake watched as Rye didn’t hesitate.
He just nodded and said, “Okay, mama.” And Shirley wrapped him up in another hug.
