Chapter Fourteen
Jacks Becomes Anger
Jacks was back again, playing cards with Ardley. His hair was bright red now, he said it was temporary hair dye, it’d wash off the second he washed his hair. So, of course I made a bet with him, he won a round and I’d get him whatever it was his heart desired, and if he lost he has to wash his hair.
Ardley thought it was cruel, but the decision was up to Jacks and he agreed.
I even brought a witness, Seba.
After making the bet I heard his voice down the hall and dragged him into this. And as expected, he was all in.
He stood behind Jacks with a stupid grin on his face.
I sat in the chair next to Ardley, occasionally peeking at his cards every now and then. Seba and I weren’t playing, we were just watchers.
Jacks however, somehow got better at playing, so I guessed he’d been visiting Ardley more often than I thought.
“You visiting someone?”
Seba asked Jacks.
It was an odd question to ask a kid, but Seba didn’t seem to care about that part.
Ardley’s eyes slice to Seba’s before he looks at Jacks apologetically.
I guess he already knew the answer to that question.
I hadn’t said a word yet, I just crossed my arms over my chest with my brows furrowed, waiting for Jack’s answer—I was also curious. For the time I’d known Jacks I’d never gotten around to the part where I asked him what he was doing here. Was he a patient or a visitor?
He didn’t really look sick—being tall and skinny couldn’t count—so I never thought to ask. I just assumed.
Was he visiting a loved one? A family friend?
“I’m a patient,”
he admitted.
I exchanged a quick look with Ardley. He pulled his lips into a thin line and dropped his eyes to his cards again—then drew a card, laid it flat on the bed table.
“I have osteosarcoma,”
Jacks said quietly.
The room fell silent, and Ardley sighed under his breath as he squeezed his eyes shut.
I sucked in a breath, breaking my composure as my hand clenched into a fist until my knuckles turned white. A part of me was permanently shattered.
Jacks was only ten years old—his whole life was ahead of him, and he might never make it far. It wasn’t fair, I thought, but the universe didn’t care about that part. You just had to be lucky. And some people had to be unlucky. It was all that counted. Everything good, or bad had to go somewhere.
How healthy you might be was spontaneous..
The tragedies that happened to people were spontaneous.
If I could just give this kid half of my life I would.
Seba cleared his throat in the silent room. Even Jacks was quiet, looking down at his cards. I ran a hand through my hair as I looked at Seba who seemed confused—an expression that was not shared around the room.
“What’s osteosarcoma?”
he asked quietly as he glanced at us for answers.
Jacks smiled, it was faint and it remained.
“Bone cancer,”
I replied.
“Early stage…”
Ardley quickly added, “right Jacks?”
“Yeah, my mom says it’ll get better.”
I nodded as I tried to hold onto the hope as well in a word full of deception.
Hope was a traitorous thing.
“It will,”
I added with a stern head nod. If I ever was serious about anything in my entire life this would have been the moment.
Seba scratched the back of his head—Jacks dropped a card on the table and chuckled.
And just like that the sad moment was gone.
Only the ellipses of it remained.
“You better be ready to wash that hair.”
Ardley grinned as he flung another card on the table.
Jacks mouth dropped open and Seba nudged his shoulder and leaned down to whisper something to him. From my side, Ardley’s cards were great, there was a good chance he would win. But it looked like Seba was going to be helping Jacks win.
“You’re cheating, but I’ll allow it,”
Ardley said.
“How generous of you.”
Jacks replied back with a snarky tone.
I chuckled under my breath trying to contain my entertainment.
Seba pointed at a card and Jacks dropped it.
Ardley bit his lips and raised his eyebrows as he looked at the remaining cards in his hands. With Seba on Jacks’ side, things weren’t looking so good with the few cards he had left.
He turned to look at me.
“Don’t look at me,”
I mumbled, “you know I suck at this game.”
“You used to beat Dad all the time, what are you talking—”
“No cheating,”
I cut him off.
His brows furrowed as his eyes widened and he pointed in Jacks’ direction.
“He’s like ten years old, add Seba’s age on top of his, that makes him a full person, he’s a fair opponent.”
“Yeah, right,”
Ardley deadpanned as he slowly dropped another card on the table.
With Seba helping Jacks, he could really win—it was making Ardley sweat.
Losing wasn’t fun for us Oakes.
Unfortunately, we were sore losers.
Jacks dropped his final card on the table and cheered, and I mean screamed, almost leaping out of his chair to cheer. Seba jumped up and down and I laughed.
Adley looked like a sourpuss.
He seemed absolutely miserable, like he was pissing himself.
It brought me indescribable joy watching a ten year old terrorize my precious little brother who always got his way with everything.
“Aren’t you supposed to be less excited?”
He glared at me. “You lost a bet.”
I nodded as I stood up. “Yeah but I got to see you lose to a ten year old, that’s a win,”
I chuckled as I teased.
He rolled his eyes as he fixed himself in the bed. “He only won because Seba helped,”
he said as he glared at Seba who was high-fiving Jacks.
“I’m not upset though,”
Ardley said quietly, “I’m glad he won.”
I nodded.
Shortly after I said bye to Ardley, and parted ways with Seba, who was just now realizing he was late for work.
I checked the time on my Rolex as I walked Jacks down the hall to his room—it was getting pretty late. The game took longer than expected.
I glanced at Jacks. “Have you thought about what you want yet?
He looked up at me with his lips parted. “I dunno, were you for real?”
I nodded. “Yeah, anything.”
I chuckled as I ruffled his hair, “you won, kid.”
He smiled. “I want to see Inside Out 2.”
“Done,”
I said as we came to a halt in front of his room.
I looked at the glass door and tried not to focus on the voices on the other side of the door.
I pushed my hands into my pockets as I rocked forward on my heels. “I just have to talk to you parents about it first.”
Jacks blinked, “okay,”
he said as he slid the door open.
I was in a rush to get to Juliette’s building, afraid that I might miss her. Talking to Jacks’s parents took longer than I anticipated—I mean I’m surprised they didn’t make me pee in a cup. Though, I respect them for being cautious.
I would be too.
In the end they took one look at Jacks’s face and agreed.
I bought the tickets online after they gave me a date that would work for them—then they took my house address, my phone number, even my email.
I parked and slammed the door shut, quick to make it inside the building. I noticed the coming soon sign behind the glass—it was new, before all the windows were only covered with newspapers. Now there was a coming soon sign added.
I pulled the door open and walked inside, it just hit six O’clock so the building should be empty, everyone should be gone and here I am inside of the building looking for Juliette when her car wasn’t even outside.
“Juliette?”
I called out. “Juliette?”
I heard something move. “In here.”
Her voice sounded muffled, coming from a different room.
My shoulders relaxed. “Where?”
I shouted as I walked into the empty kitchen.
“The office.”
I walked into the room, and there she was, Juliette Rhodes. She looked different today, her hair was different. It was unbraided and into two space buns. She had her natural brown curly hair spilling out from the sides and a few curly strands fell on her forehead like curtain bangs.
I walked slowly towards her—she sat on the floor with her iPad on her lap with a few take-out boxes in front of her. It looked like she was on Pinterest. I’d just now started to get familiar with the app after she shared her board with me a few days ago.
“Hi, Juliette,”
I mumbled.
“Hi, Callum.”
By now she was probably the only person who still called me Callum, yet she was the only one who deserved to call me Cal so far.
“What are you working on?”
I asked as I took a seat on the floor in front of her.
I looked around the finished room. The floors were done, and the room was freshly painted. Rice grain was the color Juliette went ahead with.
“Just looking for final touches. I ordered most of the furniture last night from IKEA, the shipping’s fast.”
I nodded. “That’s good.”
Then my eyes dropped on the takeout bags.
We’ve done this many times now, staying back after work to talk more about work or the baby. Eating together, sitting in silence together.
We were pretty familiar with each other.
“You didn’t work today,”
she mumbled, “I didn’t think you’d come.”
“I was pretty hungry.” I smiled.
She laughed, and it felt so fucking familiar my chest felt like bursting.
Kaput. With just one smile from Juliette.
“I got us Chinese today.”
I pouted. “No Bailey signature sandwich?”
“I didn’t work today either,”
she said as her eyes dropped to her iPad screen.
I didn’t work today either.
The words echoed in the back of my head—that would explain why she was in sweats.
I didn’t work today either.
But she was here, right in front of me.
“You were hungry too?”
She pulled her lips into a thin line, then nodded.
“I also wanted to talk to you about the construction so far—”
She looked up at me.
“We’re on schedule,”
I quickly said, “we just need to hook up all the appliances in the kitchen, and do a walk—”
“No,”
Juliette cut me off, “I meant like paying you.”
My brows furrowed. “Paying me?”
She nodded.
“For what?”
She looked at me dumbfounded, like I was an idiot who fell headfirst.
“I don’t know Callum, maybe for all the work you’ve been doing?”
I chuckled. “For putting a wall on your property?”
“And for doing the floors, the roof, the painting, everything else—”
“I wanted to do those things—I offered, Juliette, remember?”
Her eyebrows pulled together. “I didn’t assume it was for free, I just thought we’d work together.”
“We are working together,”
I rushed out, “and you’re carrying my brother’s child.”
She frowned. “That wasn’t for free either.”
I sighed as I grabbed one of the bags of food. “I’m hungry.”
“I got you chow mein,”
she whispered, it seemed like she was still trying to adjust with the change of topic, “and spring rolls,” she said as she grabbed the other bag and opened it to reveal the bowl of spring rolls.
I grabbed a pair of chopsticks and started on my chow mein. “Thank you,”
I whispered.
“What did you get?”
I asked after a beat.
“Mapo tofu.”
I nodded.
We started eating in silence. I watched Juliette scroll away on her iPad screen probably looking at various décor, because that was what she was currently focusing on. The place would be ready to open in less than two weeks—we were on time with our schedule, but we were also in a time crunch.
“Callum?”
“Yes, Juliette?”
“What about the guys?”
she asked.
I blinked. “What guys?”
“The ones that works here, I have to at least pay them—”
“Juliette,”
I chuckled, “they’re my employees.”
Her eyes dropped on her tofu, “oh.”
I nodded. “Listen, I got three tickets for Inside Out 2.”
My eyes dropped to my plate of food as I played with my chopsticks. “This kid, Jacks, wanted to see the movie.” I finally looked up again.
She looked at me like I grew three heads. “So you got three tickets?”
“There was a sale.”
Her gaze was challenging. “Aren’t you rich or something?”
I chuckled nervously. “That’s how people stay rich, Juliette.”
“Okay, why are you telling me this?”
I sighed as I looked at my plate of food. It was so difficult to have any sort of courage around Juliette.
“The movies this Saturday,”
I looked up at her, “at the drive-in.”
She blinked.
“Would you be…opposed to the idea of accompanying us?”
She remained silent for long, too long. So long that I felt like I had to talk again.
“Extra ticket and all, popcorn and any other treats you’d want would be on me of course.”
“Would you mind making me a fruit salad?”
I nodded. “Just send me a list of the fruits you want.”
She smiled as she leaned back against the wall. “Well, I can’t exactly pass that up, can I?”
I shrugged.
“Deal.”