“Hey, Little Man,” he said softly, squatting so he was at Cole’s level.
“Hey, Juthtin!” He was holding his mother’s hand, and he waved at Justin with the other, beaming a mile wide.
“You ready for some fun?”
“Yeth!”
Justin laughed softly. “Then let’s go.” He rose and took the boy’s other hand, smiling at Storm softly. They began to walk out to Justin’s car.
“Nice car,” Storm commented.
He shrugged. “Yeah. I like it. It gets me around.” He grinned as he opened the door for Storm to step inside. Cole sat on her lap and he closed the door softly.
Crossing to the driver’s side, the thought hopped through his mind that he really liked that kid. He shook his head at his absurdity and slipped into his seat. Falling in love with that kid was not an option. This was not something permanent. Or even semi-permanent. Or even . . . . He shook his head again.
“So where are we going?” Storm asked.
“It’s a secret.”
“Thecweths, thecweths awe no fun! Thecweths, thecweths hurt thomeone!”
Justin laughed softly. “Nah, you’ll like this secret, Little Man.”
Cole clapped his hands together happily. “Yay!”
Justin concentrated on maneuvering himself safely to their destination. For some reason, the kid made him want to drive more cautiously.
“Juthtin! Awe we goin’ to da fai’??” Cole asked excitedly as he saw the big Ferris Wheel in the distance.
Justin allowed a small smile onto his face, and he looked at Cole. “If that’s all right with you!”
“YAY!” Cole yelled, clapping his hands together.
Storm laughed softly. She had been promising to take Cole to the fair for days, but hadn’t found the time to do it yet. This was absolutely perfect. She glanced over at Justin, a soft expression resting on her features. He really was a good-looking guy. And sweet. And he seemed to get along well with Cole. And he had an impeccable body. Her eyes strayed down his muscular arms, to his hands resting on the steering wheel, straight down to his thighs . . . . She quickly averted her gaze. Wouldn’t be any good to get all hot and bothered this early in the evening, would it? She blushed lightly at her thoughts. She had only just met this man.
She had no idea.
Justin maneuvered the BMW safely into a parking spot and turned it off. He turned to the two sitting in the passenger seat. “I hope you’re prepared, Little Man,” he directed at Cole.
“Why?” Cole asked, grinning and tilting his head back to try and look at his mother.
“Because you are about to have the most fun night of your life!” And with that, he poked the boy in the stomach and got out of the car, crossing to the other side and opening the door for Storm to step out and place Cole on the ground.
She took Cole’s hand softly in hers, and Justin took his other hand. “Where to first, Little Man?”
“Mawwy-go-wound!” Cole exclaimed.
“Mawwy-go-wound it is,” he said quietly.
Two hours, three ice cream cones, a funnel cake, two Cokes, and countless rides later, they were headed out to the lawn to sit and watch the firework show. Justin laid his jacket on the ground, and motioned for Storm to sit. She smiled at him, and he dropped down next to her, Cole sitting, playing with the grass in front of them both.
They gazed at each other softly for a moment, then Justin reached over and took her hand. And explosion sounded overhead and they broke the gaze, listening to Cole yell out loud and clap his hands as the pinpoints of light danced across the sky.
“YAY!” he exclaimed. Justin laughed softly.
He leaned forward. “Hey, Little Man,” he whispered in Cole’s ear.
“Wat?” Cole replied, turning his face to Justin’s.
“Come here.” He let go of Storm’s hand with a small smile and pulled Cole into his lap. “See those?” he asked the little boy softly, pointing up at the explosions overhead.
Cole nodded. “Uh huh!”
“Know what they are?”
Cole shook his head. “Uh uh!”
“They’re God’s happiness.”
Cole stared up at them in wonder. “They’e in da heavens?”
Justin nodded. “Yeah, they’re in the heavens. And when God is really happy, he just explodes from excitement, and we get fireworks.”
Cole was mesmerized by them now. “Juthtin?”
“Yes, Cole?”
“W . . . will woo take me the’e one day? I wanna thee God make da fi’ewo’ks!”
Justin smiled so softly. “Yeah, Cole, I’ll take you there one day.” He lifted his head to look at Storm. She was leaning back on her arms and gazing at them, a smile on her lips.
“Sweet,” she mouthed to him.
“Just like you,” he whispered.
“Shame on you, Justin,” Storm said quietly.
“What?” He removed his eyes from the road long enough to glance at her.
“You kept him out past his bed time!”
They both chuckled softly at the comment. “Yeah, well, I didn’t wanna let his mother get away too soon.”
Storm blushed softly. He removed his hand from the wheel in order to grab ahold of her hand and squeeze it softly. She raised it to her lips and kissed his fingers softly.
“Thank you, Justin.”
He smiled sadly, staring out at the road. “You’re welcome, Storm. You’re welcome.”
“Yeah, I had a good time with him. I think he’s the most adorable thing on the planet.”
“What about the girl?” He could hear her sigh heavily and shift in her seat.
“What about her?”
“Any progress there?” She brushed off her jacket.
“I don’t know. I don’t even know if I like her anymore. I mean, whenever I think about her, I’m thinking about Cole. Like, when I think about making plans to do something with her, I always plan so that Cole can be there.” He raised his hands to his head and pressed on his temples softly. “I don’t know. I think I like him more than I like her. I mean, I feel alive around the kid. He makes me feel alive.”
“That’s nice. You’re making progress.” Off with the glasses.
Getting to that time again, huh?
People were using him.
He was just realizing this.
Jasmine was using him. Nenette was using him. Every single girl he had banged in his life had been using him.
He was just realizing this.
And it pissed him off.
His fist slammed into the dashboard again.
Calisto was using him.
Fuck Calisto. He could give two shits about her. She was only there so that the neighbors didn’t ask any questions. Along with his mother, and his father, and his friends, and everyone else whose business it was not.
The only person that crossed his mind that he truly believed was not using him was Jackie. Jackie was the only woman in his life that was not a total bitch.
And that’s where he was headed, his foot heavy on the pedal.
He was standing outside the BMW, his arms crossed across his chest, his eyes trained on the cracks in the sidewalk, his legs crossed at the ankles. He clicked his teeth together softly. Hurry UP, Jackie.
“Been waiting long?” Her voice reached his ears, and he looked up, not moving the rest of his body.
“About 20 minutes.”
She nodded. He still didn’t move.
“So are we going to go somewhere, or are we just gonna hang out here all night?”
“What do you want to do?”
She smiled and ran her fingers through her hair. “I think we should go somewhere.”
He pushed off the car and opened the door for her. She slipped inside silently, and he closed the door behind her, crossing to his side of the car and slipping into his seat just as silently.
The hotel room, once again, was covered in lit candles, and they were the only light in the room. The moment Justin closed the door, he whirled around and started babbling.
“Jay, we have to talk. See, I met this girl, and she has this son. His name is Cole. And we went to the fair yesterday and I was sitting there with . . . .”
“Ahh, a girl,” Jackie interrupted. She shrugged off her jacket and placed it gently over a chair. “What kind of girl?” she shot him an amused glance.
“A girl, Jay. She’s just a girl. But she’s got a kid.”
“Ahh, a kid.” She sat on the bed. “Is getting involved with a girl with a kid such a good idea?”
He shook his head, going to her and kneeling on the floor in front of her. “That’s just the point. I don’t think I’m even interested in her. But I am in love with her kid.”
Jackie nodded. “What’s his name?”
“Cole. I call him Little Man.”
“Cute.”
“I know.” He sighed gently and laid his head in her lap. She began running her fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp lightly. “I met her when I saved Cole from running across the street and getting hit by a car.”
He could feel her laugh softly. “Justin the hero.”
He laughed, too. “Yeah, that’s me.” He paused. “At first I was interested in her. Like, I wanted to get her in bed, Jackie, I really did, which I know is totally out of character for me, but I really wanted to. Then, last night, we went to the fair . . . .”
“Did you ride the Merry-Go-Round?”
He smiled, his eyes closed. “Three times.”
“Awwwww.”
He sighed. “I love this kid, Jackie. Like, I really like this kid. He is the cutest thing on earth, and he reminds me of me when I was his age.”
“You remember yourself at his age?”
He shrugged. “No.”
She giggled softly again, and slid out from underneath him to lie on the bed. He rolled onto the bed next to her, and they both stared at the ceiling, their hands clasped over their stomachs.
“Jackie, I’m changing,” he whispered.
He could feel her nod. “I know. You’ve been changing.”
They were both silent for a long time before Justin took a deep breath and held it. Slowly, he blew it out. “I’m scared,” he whispered.
Jackie turned her face to look at him, and she could tell even by a glance at his profile, that he really was scared. She reached up and brushed the back of her hand against his cheek and he closed his eyes, bringing his hand to hold hers. “Don’t be afraid,” she whispered. “You’re going to be a beautiful person.”
“You are a beautiful person,” he whispered.
She just smiled. “We could be beautiful together.”
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