"You know how to fix stuff?"
"Not really, but I figured it out."
Knowing he can fix stuff is impressive. My dad couldn't fix anything. His handyman skills were limited to changing light bulbs and that was it. Anything else, he'd make my mom call someone to fix it.
A tall skinny kid with blond hair appears. "Hey.
I stand up and smile. "Hi. Are you Jacob?"
He nods, his hair falling over his face.
Dean gets up. "This is Brook," he says to Jacob. He puts his hand out. "Give me your phone."
"Why?"
"Because you won't focus if you have your phone."
"I'm not giving you my phone," he says. "No fucking way."
Dean gets up in his face. "I'm not joking around. Give me your damn phone."
Dean's voice is loud and deep, and the way he's looking at his brother is kind of scary. I don't think he means it to be. He's just big and intimidating.
"Whatever," Jacob says with a sigh, giving Dean his phone.
"Sit at the counter," Dean commands. "And don't give her shit. She's not coming back if you waste her time."
"Oh, I um—"
"He needs to pay attention," Dean says, interrupting me. "If he doesn't, he'll pay for it later."
What does that mean? I hope it doesn't mean he'll hurt him. I don't think Dean would hurt his brother, but what do I know? I just met the guy.
Jacob walks over to the counter and slumps down on the barstool, looking like he's already bored.
"Are you going to wait somewhere?" I ask Dean.
"Yeah. Right here." He points to the couch.
I glance over at Jacob, lowering my voice as I talk to Dean. "I think it'd be better if you let me be with him alone, at least for this first session."
"No. I need to keep him in line."
I step up to Dean, lowering my voice even more. "Trust me. He'll do better if you're not sitting here watching him."
Dean takes a moment to think about it, then nods. "I'll be in the bedroom."
When he's gone, I go over to Jacob. "I hear you're really good at math."
He shrugs. "I like programming."
"Like video games or what?"
"Anything. I just like it. I like it better than math but I'm good at math. It's easy."
"But English isn’t.”
"I don't like reading. And I hate writing stuff, like papers. I never know what to write."
