Emma nods. “We have to work together to build it big.” She turns to me again. “Do you know where all the pillows and blankets are?”
“I do,” I answer eagerly. “I’ll go see what I can find. Then maybe we can meet in the den to build it?” I point to the next room over. “That way we’re out of the way of the grown-ups.”
“Hang on,” Cody interjects, standing up from the couch. “What are we trying to build?”
“A blanket fort,” I say. “You know, like, we get some blankets to prop up over some chairs to create?—”
“I know what a blanket fort is,” Cody snaps, narrowing his eyes at Oliver and me. “Let’s think of something else to do.”
Aiden frowns. “But Dad, we want to?—”
“You can build a blanket fort at home,” Cody interrupts.
“Hey, man,” Austin chimes in quietly. “Why not? That could be a fun thing for them to do.”
“Yeah, bud,” Uncle David interjects. “I don’t see a problem.”
Cody’s jaw flexes. “Let’s wait until after we eat.”
I squint, trying to figure out what Cody’s hesitation is. It’s a blanket fort. It’s safe, age-appropriate, and easy to clean up. It’s not something that could possibly be politicized. Right?
“Until then, how about y’all color or something?” He looks at me. “Don’t you have some paper, crayons, stuff like that somewhere?”
I nod. “Yeah, I’ve got some stuff in my room.” I give Emma and Aiden an apologetic smile. “We’ll be right back with some art supplies, okay?”
Both kids look distraught, so I rush to the basement stairs, pulling Oliver behind me.
As soon as I’m sure we’re out of earshot, I can no longer keep my composure. “Okay, did I miss something?” I whisper loudly. “What the hell is wrong with a blanket fort?”
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Jude grumbles. “That was weird.”
“Poor kiddos. I was excited, too.”
Jude leads me through the main room of the finished basement, which includes a pool table, a decent-sized television, two small recliners, and an unmade pull-out sofa bed. We wind down a strangely narrow hallway and into a bedroom. On its own, the room isn’t very large, but it has a door that leads outside, indicating that Jude is free to come and go as they please without having to navigate through the main house. The walls are mostly bare, but there’s one framed, movie-styleOur Flag Means Deathposter featuring most of the first-season cast hanging over the bed. I also notice another poster on the opposite wall from a Mitski concert. Otherwise, I can hardly tell someone lives here at all, let alone the person I care about more than anyone in the world.
“Wow, so is this your childhood bedroom?”
“Nah,” Jude replies. “I moved to the basement the summer before college. I wanted more space and privacy, so the whole basement is mine. Not right now, though. Taylor, Danny, Harper, and maybe some of the other kids have been sleeping down here for a few days.”
“Is your whole family staying here for the holiday?” I ask, incredulous.
Jude sighs. “Yep. I’ve never been more grateful to have my own space, which includes a door.”
Damn. I knew this house was big, but to have enough bedrooms for all twenty of these people to stay comfortably for several days, including a bunch of kids? It must be massive.
“Here we go,” Jude says with a grunt, pulling a plastic bin from under the bed. They pop it open, revealing several boxes of crayons, markers, and colored pencils, along with multicolored cardstock and spiral-bound notebooks. “Do you think this is enough?”
“Yeah, I would say so.” I study them for a moment, then ask, “Are you okay?”
Jude exhales a nervous laugh. “We’ve barely been here fifteen minutes, and I already feel like I’ve done something wrong, but I have no idea what.”
I shake my head. “Babe, you’ve done nothing wrong. Trust me.”
Jude glances up at me with a shy smile. “You don’t have to call me ‘babe’ when no one’s around.”
I shrug. “I think it’s best if I stay in character.”
They roll their eyes, but their smile stays put. “How are you feeling about everything?”
