Chapter 31
31
J J and Cass are busy arguing over how to properly fold laundry when Cass’s phone chimes with an incoming text message. “Hold that thought,” Cass orders, snagging it off the end table. “Do not attempt to fold anything else, lackey. I’m serious. I despise the way you fold clothes.”
JJ scoffs, grabbing his next shirt out of the laundry basket and deftly rolling it into a neat cylinder. Right now, he and Cass are sitting on the couch with their freshly washed and dried clothes on the floor between them, making neat piles on the middle cushion. Desi is curled up on the adjacent loveseat with Kira the Wyvern tucked safely in her arms, taking her customary mid-morning nap while JJ and Cass do chores.
And JJ adores Desi, but he really likes these quiet moments of downtime with Cass, too. He likes the soft domesticity of them, the casual intimacy of them.
He likes having Cass all to himself, even just for a few minutes.
Except, of course, when Cass sees fit to insult JJ’s admittedly lackluster household skills. Granted, Cass’s traditional clothes-folding method does create less wrinkles, but JJ’s roll-it-up strategy is infinitely more economical. “Not my fault you hate efficiency and saving space, Chin.”
“You know what, Jackson? You?—?” Cass swipes into his cell phone screen, squinting down at the message. Unexpectedly, his eyes light up. “Finally.”
JJ raises his eyebrows. “What? Did something good happen?”
“Anything is better than your pitiful attempts at laundry duty,” Cass says loftily, and before JJ can argue, Cass snaps open a pocket dimension and pulls out his laptop. “But yes. Your new identity is finally ready for showtime.”
The words promptly derail JJ’s retort. “Really?” he asks, leaning over. “Can I see?”
“Of course. It’s yours, after all,” Cass says, and he pulls a manila envelope out of the pocket dimension, passing it to JJ. “These are all your official documents?—passport, driver’s license, credit cards, you name it. I’ve had them for a few days now, courtesy of Gregorio Ricci, but I wanted to wait for the full package before giving them to you.”
Intrigued, JJ flips open the passport. The photo is a surprisingly nice one Cass took the week after JJ left the Sanctum, and as far as the name??—
“James Washington?” he reads, shooting Cass a look.
“What? He was the only good U.S. president!” Cass says, and he tilts his laptop in JJ’s direction. “I opened a bank account for you, too. That way, you won’t have to ask me every time you want something.”
JJ winces. “Sorry. About that.”
Cass rolls his eyes. “Jackson, I will buy you literally anything you want. The money itself isn’t the problem. But I?—I don’t want you to feel like you need permission to get nice things for yourself.” He taps the screen. “Now, you don’t have to. And I had Gregorio pull some strings to give you a good credit score, so you won’t have any issues getting loans. The world is yours.”
JJ’s stomach churns. He forces a smile. “That’s great, Cass. Thank you. And I?—I guess the money in my bank account is also from you?”
Cass waves a hand vaguely. “Like I said, money isn’t an object. I won’t even miss it.”
JJ takes a deep breath, trying to force down the ever-present drumbeat of guilt. Guilt that Cass takes such good care of him, guilt that Cass lets JJ live in his house and eat his food and spend his money without asking for anything in return??—
Guilt that JJ didn’t earn any of it.
He knows it’s a toxic attitude. Cass has called him out on it more than once. But after twelve years of fighting tooth and nail to get even the barest scrap of respect at the Sanctum, having someone else provide for him is still distinctly uncomfortable.
But Cass likes having JJ around, he reminds himself firmly. There’s no reason to feel insecure about it. And it’s actually really sweet that Cass gave JJ a few thousand dollars of spending money?—after all, that’s basically pocket change to him.
JJ can wrap his head around it. “All right. Thanks,” he says, taking the proffered laptop from Cass. “So I just need to make an online account?”
“Already set up. You should probably change your password, though.”
“Cool,” JJ says, and he scrolls down the page, checks his balance??—
All the blood rushes from his head at once.
No. That’s not right. That’s definitely a mistake. That can’t be?— “Uh. Cass?”
“Yeah?”
“You, um.” Nervously, JJ points at the screen. “I think you messed up the transfer. That’s?—that’s too many zeroes.”
Cass squints at the offending number. “Mm, nope,” he says, infuriatingly casual. “That’s correct. There are six zeroes in four million.”
“Four million?—??” JJ could deal with four thousand. If pressed, he could even find a way to be okay with forty thousand. But four goddamn million? “Cass, I?—I can’t accept this.”
Cass raises his eyebrows. “It’s right there, JJ,” he says, pointing at it. “Technically, it’s already been accepted.”
JJ’s chest is squeezing. “It’s too much. I know you throw fifties around like they’re singles, but for a human, this is too much.”
Cass sets his jaw. “Actually, I did the math. You’re twenty-two years old, right? Hypothetically, you could live to be one hundred, which is seventy-eight more years. I rounded up to eighty for convenience. Four million dollars is fifty thousand every year for eighty years.” He nods at the screen. “And it doesn’t even keep up with inflation. Honestly, it should probably be more.”
More? He’s going to give JJ a heart attack. “Cass, fifty thousand a year is great for someone with actual living expenses, like?—like a house or an apartment. I don’t spend anything here. Unless you’re going to let me start paying rent?”
Cass scoffs. “I’m not going to hand you money just to make you give it back to me. That’s stupid.”
“Then it’s too much,” JJ repeats emphatically. “My living expenses are literally zero. Just?—just tacos from Tacos Near Me and dragon plushies for Desi. That’s all I would ever want?—or need?— money for.”
“But what if?—??” Cass hesitates. “What if you weren’t living here, though?”
All at once, the world goes quiet around JJ. “Oh,” he says faintly, dread curdling through him. “You, um. You think I should move out?”
He should’ve known. He should’ve seen this coming.
Of course Cass doesn’t want JJ here long term. He’s lived alone for centuries, after all. He probably wants his house back, wants his solitude back, wants his life back.
Wants that spare bedroom?—the one JJ was starting to think of as his own?—back.
JJ can’t begrudge him for it, really. After all, Cass has been irrationally kind to JJ already. And with this amount of money, JJ will be set for life?—he can buy a house, pick up some hobbies, not worry about a job.
Frankly, it’s the nicest possible way Cass could kick him out.
So why does it suddenly feel like JJ is drowning? Why does his heart feel raw and his skin feel clammy? Why??—??
“JJ?—Julian, look at me,” Cass says sharply. Startled, JJ meets his eyes. “JJ, I want you to live here with me and Desi for the rest of your life, okay? I will always want you here. That bedroom belongs to you, and this house is your house, and?—?” He cuts himself off, looking away. “You’re Desi’s other dad. You’re my co-parent. That’s important to me. You’re… important to me.”
JJ’s heart flutters. He desperately hopes Cass can’t hear it. “Then I don’t understand.”
“Well…” Cass looks like he’s choosing his words with care. “I’ll always want you here, but that doesn’t mean you’ll always want to be here. Especially if Desi eventually decides to move out, or get married, or even just go away for college. If?— when that day comes, you might not want to live here anymore. Because Desi won’t be here.”
But you’ll still be here. JJ swallows the words down. He’s not quite sure he’s ready to say them out loud yet, and he’s definitely not ready to hear Cass’s reaction to them. “Oh.”
“Yeah.” Cass sits up straighter, not dropping JJ’s gaze. “I hope that never happens. I hope you always want to stay here, and?—and that you always feel welcome here. But I never want you to feel trapped, okay? I never want you to feel like you can’t leave.” He taps the laptop screen lightly. “The choice is always yours, JJ. And this can help you make that choice.”
JJ’s throat feels tight. Taking a deep breath, he focuses his eyes back on the numbers in front of him, trying to calm his roaring emotions.
Because of course that’s what Cass is doing. Of course he’s trying to take care of JJ, just like he always does.
Of course he wants to acknowledge that power imbalance between them and give JJ as much independence as he can. JJ meets Cass’s eyes. “I’m never going to use this,” he says firmly.
A smile tugs on Cass’s lips. “Of course you are. Tacos and dragon plushies, remember? Maybe even some churros con chocolate for dessert.”
Slowly, the tension in JJ’s chest starts to ease. “And maybe a college fund for Desi?” he blurts out. “It’s never too early to start saving.”
And the demon who just handed JJ four million dollars without blinking clearly doesn’t need to worry about paying for their daughter’s education, but Cass just nods seriously. “That’s a great idea. We’ll both put in equal amounts, yeah? You can look up what kind of account to start and tell me how much to contribute.” He smiles. “And that means you’ll need to buy yourself a laptop, too. A nice one. So you can do research and watch workout videos and listen to music. Anything you want.”
“And?—?” Inspiration strikes. “And when’s your birthday? I can get you a birthday gift now, too.”
Surprise flashes across Cass’s face. “Demons don’t usually do birthdays,” he says, looking both a little embarrassed and a little pleased, “but I think we can make an exception. I don’t know the exact day I was summoned, but I’ve always used July 4 on legal documents.”
JJ grins. “Easy way to get fireworks on your birthday.”
Cass snorts. “All part of my master plan,” he says, and he raises his eyebrows. “So we’re good?”
Tentatively, JJ smiles back. “Yeah. Yeah, we’re good. Thank you, Cass.”
Cass’s eyes are soft. “Entirely my pleasure,” he says, and abruptly, he pushes himself to his feet, grabbing his and Desi’s piles of clothes. “I’ll, um, put these away. You’ll handle yours?”
Fighting down a twinge of disappointment, JJ nods. “Yeah, I’ve got them.”
“Cool,” Cass says, and with one last smile, he disappears down the hall.
Leaving JJ alone with a small pile of clothes, a large bank account, and the nagging sensation that his relationship with Cass just shifted on its axis.