… Well, that seems appropriate…
Sitting in the pews, trying to get Jag to settle in as Ash and Khan stand in front of me.
“She, okay?” Ash asks.
“Yeah, she seemed oddly okay.” But I’m lying. I didn't tell them how she was hyperventilating this morning. I know she wouldn’t want them to know that.
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” I hear Khan and Ash both say simultaneously, as they’re looking past me at the doors.
“Shit.” Ash mumbles. “Get up. You’re involved in this, now.” He tells me as I stand moving with them towards the door.
Turning towards the door, I see the woman as she stands at the entryway as we approach. “Khan.” She smiles at him, but he doesn’t respond with the niceties. “Ash. Is that you?” She laughs as she looks him up and down. I’m slightly uncomfortable just seeing her looking at him that way. I can tell just from looking at her why they are so angry with her.
And she looks exactly what I imagine Ella will look like in 30 years.
“And who is this?” She looks at me up and down. I feel slightly disgusted as Ash and Khan both laugh out. “Why is that so funny?”
“The fact that you don’t even know who he is probably means that you need to leave.”
“She can stay.” I hear Ella call from behind me. “She can stay.” She says, stepping up next to me.
“Thank you, my baby—”
“There are rules. Do not speak to me like you know me. You will sit in the back.” She raises her hand to her mother. “You will not meet or speak to my child.” She nods her head.
“I’m a grandmother?” Her eyes mist over, and I almost want to hit her myself.
“No.” I hear the words coming out of my mouth. “You just heard her.” I glare at Ella’s mother as she continues to look at me. It makes me uncomfortable as I step in front of Ella. Her mother laughs, rolling her eyes.
“I knew it. I told him if he kept you around those types of people, what would happen?”
“Those types of people?” She asks, now pissed off, as she pushes me aside. “What would happen?”
“That growing up in that life would cause you to be promiscuous. That you would be knocked up before you graduated high school.”
“How old am I?” Her mother just stares at her. “Goddamnit, Tina.” She just shakes her head. “I’m 22. Which means when I had my son, I was 19. I was young, but I was an adult, and I definitely graduated from high school. But I can guarantee you that being young or not, my son will never question if I love him. I will never let him feel how you made me feel.”
“Daddy,” I hear Jag coming up and turn around, so he doesn’t overhear this conversation. Picking him up as we move back over to the pews.
The pew shifts next to me as I glance over and am nearly in shock as I see Trip sitting next to me. “Holy shit.” I mumble, hearing a similar gasp from behind me as they follow up to it.
“Trip.” Ash smacks his arm and I just shake my head, laughing. Jag kicks his feet in the pew at my side. Trip leans over and sees him playing on my phone and looks back up at me.
“See you’ve been busy.” He laughs.
“Oh no, apparently that was before.” I shrug as he laughs. Looking up, I see Ella walking towards us as we talk, laughing and she cocks her head.
“There’s my niece.” He laughs as he stands up and hugs her.
“How are you here right now?” She shakes her head, laughing.
“I got furloughed. Chik worked it out. Since I’m up for parole in a couple of years, I guess they thought I’d be an idiot if I tried to take off.”
“You would be.” Ella laughs as walks past and Jag scoots over. “Hey,” she laughs, and he just shakes his head.
Trip’s eyes widen as he mumbles out an, “I’ll be damned.”
“How do you two know each other?” Ella asks us as we laugh.
