He heard a door slam, then voices coming from downstairs. Roan, his twin, and his nephew Marcus were home.
Jason swung his legs off the bed and stood, stretching. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror on the closet door. Wrinkled shirt and his hair was sticking up on one side. He looked like a guy who’d been at a season finale cast party and then on a plane all night. He probably smelled like one too. Before he went downstairs, he decided to take a shower. Hedidn’t linger long under the hot water, though, as he was excited to see Roan, Cody, and Marcus. When he was clean and smelling much better, he dressed in a clean henley and a pair of jeans and headed downstairs to the kitchen. However, no one was there. A note rested on the counter.
J-
Headed in to town for groceries. Be back soon.
-R
He wandered into the living room, where a Christmas tree stood in the corner, decorated with ornaments Jason recognized from childhood. They were his mother’s ornaments, the ones from the storage bin Uncle Walter had brought over last year. Glass angels. Painted wooden stars. A lopsided snowman he and Roan had made in second grade, their names written on the bottom in their mother’s handwriting. There were new ones too, probably chosen by Reese and the boys.
He stood for a moment, taking in the past and the present displayed on a tree in what had once been the home they’d been raised in by their single mother. A sudden wave of grief hit him. Even after all these years, he missed his mother. What he would give to have her walk into this house right now.
He went back into the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water, standing at the sink to drink it, just like he had as a teenager. His mother had always been on him about sitting at the table instead of doing everything standing up. But he’d been busy back then. School dances and the lead in the spring play and homework and crushes on girls. Too busy to slow down to spend time with his mother. How he regretted not just sitting at the table and talking with her like she’d wanted when he still could. It was an ache that lived inside him permanently.
His brother and the boys arrived, discarding boots and jackets in the mud room before coming all the way into thekitchen. They each had a bag of groceries in hand, setting them aside to greet Jason.
“Welcome home, brother,” Roan said, hugging him.
“Glad to be here,” Jason said before turning to greet Cody and Marcus.
Cody had grown since the last time he’d seen him, both in height and girth. He’d just finished his first semester at the University of Vermont on a cross-country scholarship.
Jason gave him a quick hug. “You’re looking buff.”
“I’ve been strength-training,” Cody said, with a bashful duck of his chin. “Working on improving my running times.”
“He’s done it too,” Roan said, pride in his voice. “Two minutes faster, right?”
“Just under, but close,” Cody said.
“Congratulations, that’s amazing.” Jason turned to greet the younger of the boys. Marcus had also grown since he saw him last. He’d filled out too, probably from Reese’s good cooking and having a warm bed to sleep in every night.
“Hey, Marcus, how’s it going?” Jason asked.
“Emma and I got the leads inFootloose,” Marcus said. “We already started rehearsals. Reese is doing the choreography.” The pride in his voice about his adopted mother was more than evident. “It’s been really fun.”
“I’m thrilled for you,” Jason said. “I started acting on that stage back when I was your age.”
“I know. It’s so cool,” Marcus said. “My acting teacher’s always talking about you.”
“Is it still Mr. Wilson?” Jason asked.
“No, Mr. Dansen now,” Marcus said. “I think Wilson retired like a decade ago.”
Ten years ago? How was it possible?
“We’re leaving in an hour for dinner with the ladies,” Roan said. “The boys are staying in and ordering a pizza.”
“Sorry about deserting you,” Jason said to Marcus and Cody.
“We don’t mind,” Marcus said. “Grown-ups gotta do their grown-up thing.”
“I’m here all month, so we’ll have a lot of time together,” Jason said.
“Cool,” Cody said. “You want to hit the gym with Pop and me?”
Pop. That was new. His brother was a father to two teenage boys. It was hard to fathom.
