If he doesn't, we're both fucked.
I call him later at exactly our agreed upon time.
"Hey. Long day?"
"Yeah. Lots of overtime. Frank had me staying late." I take a breath, steeling myself. "How was your first shift at the diner? How did it go?"
"Really busy. My hands are completely pruned from dishwater." He laughs a little. "Betty's nice though. She snuck me a piece of apple pie during my break. Said I looked like I needed sugar."
"I'm glad she's being good to you."
"Are you okay? You sound weird. Did something happen?"
I close my eyes. Here goes nothing. "I did something today. Something you might be angry about."
Silence on the other end for a beat. "Oh, god. What did you do?"
"I called a lawyer in Macon. A criminal defense attorney who specifically handles assault cases. Her name is Patricia Hendricks."
More silence. Longer this time. I can hear him breathing, slow and controlled.
"Ivan, we talked about this."
"Just hear me out. Please. Let me explain before you get angry."
"You went behind my back. We specifically talked about this."
"I know. And I'm sorry. But Jay, listen to me, please. You have a court date in two weeks. And every time I ask you about it, you say you'll figureit out eventually. But you're not figuring it out. You're avoiding it. You're running out of time."
"I've been busy. I just started a new job two days ago."
"I know you're working hard. But this isn't something you can work your way out of. This requires money you don't have and legal expertise you don't have. And if you show up to that courtroom without a lawyer, you could end up with a conviction that follows you for the rest of your life."
"You don't know that for sure."
"Are you willing to take that chance? I talked to the lawyer for twenty minutes today. I asked her specifically about outcomes. Without representation, you're completely at the mercy of whatever the prosecutor decides to push for. With representation, she thinks she can get the charges reduced to something minor or even dismissed entirely. This is your future, Jay. Our future. I'm not going to sit back and watch you gamble with it because you're too proud to accept help."
"So you just decided to fix it for me? Without even consulting me first?"
"I'm asking right now. I found a lawyer who's experienced and willing to take your case on short notice which is something. I called three lawyers before I found her. The retainer is fifteen hundred dollars. I have the money sitting in my checking account. I want to pay it. I want to hire her for you."
"No."
"Why?"
"I said no. I told you I don't want your money. And the first chance you get, you go behind my back and try to buy your way into fixing my problems for me."
"That's not what this is."
"Then what is it? Explain it to me."
"It's me refusing to watch the person I care about most in the world destroy his future because he's too proud to accept help when he desperately needs it. You think I want to fight about this? I hate it. I hate that we're fighting. But I'd rather have you angry at me and free thanwatch you end up with a criminal record because I was too scared to have a conflict with you."
Jay is quiet. Long enough that I start to worry he's hung up on me.
"What's your plan?" I ask. "Honestly. Tell me what you were going to do."
"I don't know." He lets out a long sigh. "Show up to court. Tell them exactly what happened. Plead my case. Hope they believe me."
