But he won’t see that.Right.
Sometimes I forget Jabari is missing the specifics of certain things I take for granted. I turn and stare at him, hoping he can’t sense that’s exactly what I’m doing. His brown skin reminds me of the darkest honey. His dark brown eyes are focused on the screen before us. My head tilts as I look at his full lips. They’re in a flat line like he’s frustrated.
Duh.
“Jabari?”
His head bends toward me. “Hmm?”
“Why did you suggest a movie?”
He sighs. “Is it that obvious I can’t see the remote or the TV that well?”
“No, but if I hadn’t been zoned out, I would’ve figured it out sooner.”
“I just needed my mom to stop treating me like an invalid. She might smother me to death.”
Oh boy. I can’t say I understand the sentiment exactly. I’m often overlooked or forgotten and have longed for some attention at times. But I can imagine what it’s like for a very capable hockey player to suddenly be treated as less than by those around him.
So don’t treat him like hismom or teammates might.I push back my hair, tucking it behind my ear.
“You know we don’t have to watch a movie, right?”
“Nah. It’ll be fine. If we watch something I’ve seen before, I can keep up. I definitely don’t want to attempt anything new.”
“May I ask why?” I bite my lip.
He runs a hand through his black curls. “When you can’t see the tiny items in the background that clue the audience in or the subtleties of body language, it’s harder to understand what’s happening in the movie. I don’t get the context clues because I can’t see them. If I’ve already watched the movie, I remember what happened. If I’ve seen it often enough, I can even remember facial expressions. My brain fills in the gaps my vision isn’t able to.” He sighs. “That’s the best way I can think to explain it.”
Lord,this has to be so hard forhim. How can I share some of this burden? Hewon’t share the deep hurts with his mom,andthough we’ve touched on some,maybe we need togo deeper in the hidden pain I’m sure isthere.
“What’s your favorite movie?” I ask. With all the movies available to stream, there has to be some streaming app it’s playing on.
“I’m a huge fan of the Jurassic Park franchise. My mom had those on repeat for me growing up.”
“Did you have dinosaur action figures?” I can totally see ayounger Jabari roaring and smashing dinosaurs together. At least, my nephew’s a fan of roaring and smashing his toys together.
Jabari grins. “I did. Usually got one or two for my birthday.” He shifts on the cushion. “What about you? Favorite movie?”
“My Big Fat Greek Wedding. It makes me laugh no matter how many times I’ve seen it.”
“Pretty sure there are no action figures for that.”
“Nope.” I tilt my head, thinking of my favorite toy when I was growing up. “Jackie and Fran were really big into Barbies, but all I needed was my Pillow Pet and Baby Alive.” I cover up my face, as embarrassment takes over. Why did I have to admit that to him?
“You guys are stair-stepped three years apart, right?”
“Mm-hmm. There was always some kind of tug-of-war around our toys. When Jackie became a teenager, I became the moderator to try and keep Fran out of her stuff.”
“Which probably means you let Fran play with yours.”
I nod. He hit the nail on the head. “It was the only way I knew how to keep the peace.”
“Are you still keeping the peace?”
“Yes.” I think of the argument Jackie and Fran had the other day. “They still quarrel often.”
“Who do you argue with?”
