AllFreeNovel
Share Us
CHAPTER18
Gabe
Iwasn’t sure exactly what it was about that kids’ day at the baseball diamond, if it was the fuss Logan Hastings had made about his shirt, or hanging out with kids his own age, or talking with Ally, but I was pretty sure we’d made a breakthrough. For the next week, Jesse allowed me to pack his lunch, accepted that I would be there to pick him up from school, and started hanging out in the various rooms in the house, instead of staying in his bedroom all the time. I liked having him around. Loved it, in fact. Tonight, he was in the living room with me, sitting on the couch, playing with the tablet Ally had given him on a quiet Friday night in. It was great.
“Okay, bud, I think that’s enough screen time.”
He dropped the tablet on the sofa cushion and shot me a cheeky look. “You’re still on your screen.”
I was sitting at the table, putting together a jobs list for the following week. “Yup, you’ve got me there.” Putting the work stuff away, I said, “It’s not too long till bedtime, what do you want to do instead of screens?”
Glancing at the bookshelves at the back of the living room, he gave a nonchalant shrug.
“You can read a book, if you want. There are a few there that I used to read when I was your age.”
“That’s okay.”
I watched him for a moment, a suspicion growing in my mind. “I might have some old comics there. I used to collect them.” That got his attention. The next step felt pretty big. I knew he struggled reading on anything that wasn’t a screen, because he couldn’t enlarge the text. It gave him headaches after a while. We’d had his eyes tested, and yes, his eyesight was pretty poor, but it was taking a while to get his glasses made, so we were going to have to wing it for a bit longer. “I could probably read one to you, if you’d like.”
I was starting to adore that little, nonchalant shrug, because it usually meant he really,reallywanted to take me up on whatever offer I was making.
“How about you see what’s there, while I pack all this up?”
“If you want.”
“I do.”
He bounced off the sofa with a speed that belied his uncaring shrug, and I had to hide a grin.
“They’re probably at the other end, in a box on the bottom shelf.” After a minute, I heard him gasp. “What have you found? I can’t remember if there are any Spiderman ones left, because most of those were Jake’s.”
“I’ve got Thor. And Hulk.” He held both up, the agonized expression on his face letting me know that making a choice was impossible.
“I think we’ve got time to read both.”
There was that look again, like he’d just been given the most amazing treat in the world. They were all such small things for me, things my mother would do all the time, but for Jesse, it was always such a big deal. There were times I had to remind myself not to overdo it, to spoil him too much.
We sat on the sofa and I rested my arm along the back of it, holding the comic so Jesse could see it. “You can turn the pages.”
“Okay.” He moved closer, so he was pressed against my side and could see the pictures properly.
“You ready?”
“Yep.”
I read to him for nearly an hour, until he was so relaxed against me, I thought maybe he’d gone to sleep. There was something so inherently parental about the whole thing that maybe I was making a bigger deal of it than was necessary, but although it was well past his bedtime, I didn’t want this moment to end. Still, it was nine o’clock and, reminding myself that we would have plenty more opportunities like this, I said, “Jesse? You still awake?”
“Mmm.”
“It’s bedtime. Up you get.”
He got to his feet without complaint, brushing his fingers through his hair.Pointless gesture, little buddy, I wanted to tell him, because he’d inherited my hair, and it never would stay straight. “Brush your teeth, I’ll be in in a minute.”
“M’kay.”
I’d had something weighing on my mind and hadn’t been quite sure how to broach it with him, but I figured after tonight, Jesse might be happy to talk about it. Hearing him come out of the bathroom and move into his bedroom, I felt a little nervous as I got up from the couch.
“All good?”
