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Zane’s eyes widen for a moment before he bursts into laughter.
Ray looks between me and Zane. “Are you a prince too?” he asks my brother.
“You t-told him, you ar-re a prince?” Zane arches an eyebrow at me.
“I said Ithinkof myself as one.” My nerves settle down and it feels like I’m smiling from the inside or something similar to that corny shit.
“Yeah, he did say that,” Ray adds in an excited voice.
“No, R-ray, I’m not a pr-rince.” Zane sits on his haunches and shakes Ray’s hand. He observes Ray carefully, head to toe, and I know he can’t ignore it. In broad daylight, Ray appears more like me, if it’s at all possible.
“What do you think?” I ask as my muscles twitch. I don’t even know what I want to hear.
Zane gets up and pulls out his wallet. He then takes out a photograph of us with Beast, aka Ashcroft Miller. A man who is my role model, my guardian, who saw three lost boys and took them in and made us what we are today.
“It’s-s from the d-day Beast adopted us.” Zane hands me the photograph.
I’m a few years older than Ray in this picture, but this kid is a fucking carbon copy of me.
My stomach tightens when Zane’s confused gaze meets mine. My brother then turns his attention to the kid. “C-can we ask you a few ques-stions?”
“Um, yes,” Ray replies hesitantly, shuffling on his feet.
“What-t’s his name?” Zane points to the pup who is now absently running around the pile of cardboard. His big ears are pulled back as his tongue hangs out of his mouth. He’s a happy dog for sure.
“This is Mr. Stanley.” Ray smiles, his white teeth shining bright.
“Nice name.” My brother winks, causing Ray’s smile to turn into giggles.
My feelings about this kid are all over the place, going from one extreme to another. One minute I’m so anxious for his safety that I can’t breathe, and then the other I’m fucking beyond happy at his adorable acts.
“Gigi also says so.”
“Your gigi is a s-smart woman.”
“Yes, and so is my ma.” Ray opens the door for Zane to ask more personal questions. This is the second time Ray has mentioned his mother in our short interactions. They must be close, and my chest unclenches in relief at that information.
“You live w-with your gigi, ma, and of course, Mr. St-stanley and…”
“And…” Ray thinks for a second before replying. “No one.”
“Your d-dad?” Zane asks and I twist my watch, eagerly waiting to know about his dad. Where the fuck was he last night? I really hope he pulled a night shift and isn’t a negligent parent.
I notice as Ray lowers his head and pulls his chin to his chest. “He doesn’t live with us.”
What the fuck?
“What do you mean?” Their heads jerk up to me when I interrupt.
But when Ray doesn’t reply to my question, Zane asks, “But he vis-sits you?”
Ray shakes his head.
The absent dad doesn’t help my concern. If anything, it has made me more anxious for Ray’s safety. He should have a father, or a father figure. Like I had Beast.
Zane finally stands up and looks at something far away. He often does this when he’s thinking about something. After a while he directs his attention back to Ray.
“How old ar-re you, buddy?”
