"High school rough for her?" I assume.
"Yeah, but having the hockey star younger brother helped her street cred."
"I bet."
When I hand his phone back he shares the photo to a WhatsApp group chat and then sticks his phone back in his pocket.
"What did your parents do for work?"
"Dad was an engineer. He designed stadium escalators, you know the ones that change direction."
"Interesting." I never thought about someone having to engineer those things.
"Not really, but it kept him busy, and we’d get random tickets to events as a benefit." He shrugs. "My mom was a special education teacher."
"What are they doing now, if they’re only semi-retired?"
"My dad jokes he’s my mom’s business manager. But she whipped up this online community for teachers, helping them with like monthly trainings and stuff."
"Cool."
"I guess. And Delilah is in the marketing department of a medical devices company outside of Boston. Whatever the fuck that means."
I laugh. "Yeah, it sounds like such a normal job but I have no idea what it would be like."
"All I know are hand jobs and blow jobs."
I snort a laugh. "Seriously?"
He tilts his face up to mine. "You heard my dad’s mother fucker joke…yes I’m serious."
"I suppose I did. He whipped that one out less than an hour after I met him."
"I know. I’ve learned all my joke telling skills from him."
We settle into thought for a minute. The memory of hanging out with The Paisleys is vivid in my mind. And I want more of it. I want Duncan to get to know my family too.
I’ll have to teach him the right sign forthank you.
Or maybe not.
Duncan breaks my train of thought. "So since I’m too sore to Hulu and Do You, are we just watching something together?"
"Hulu and Do You?"
"HBO Max and Climax?" He offers and I burst out laughing.
"Really?"
"Amazon Prime and Naughty Time?"
"Stop it."
"Fine, just put something on TV so we don’t keep baring our souls to each other."
"Fine."
After I scroll too slowly through the streaming options Duncan sits up, with great effort and theatrics, to take over. He finally starts a Titanium Person World Championship documentary. He lays back down on my leg and we keep touching each other at small points as he provides amateur commentary throughout the entire episode.
