Chapter 26 Black Friday
Black Friday
Eve
Eve awoke the next morning naked in Jamie’s bed—a scenario she was all too familiar with at this point in their relationship, yet it couldn’t have felt more foreign.
The sun was beaming past his sheer white curtains to brighten the already vivid turquoise room.
His cabin in Gatlinburg was dark—in a good way—and they lived among trees, where sunlight had to sneak through the forest to reach them.
Even Jamie’s bed back there was simple, close to the floor; this bed sat high, with a colorful duvet that complemented the walls.
She felt like she was in some stylish boutique hotel as opposed to her friend’s home.
She scanned the vast room for any sign of Jamie, but the silence answered her question.
If he’d disappeared somewhere into his massive apartment, she wasn’t going to venture to find him, lest she cross paths with Jack.
She sat up with a sigh and immediately lay back down, laden with the very idea of his son.
She’d had a restless night, lying awake thinking about it.
Because it was one thing to say she would do this, but now that she was there, Jamie’s kid a few mere feet away, her resolve had been replaced by sheer terror.
That was when she noticed the note sitting atop Jamie’s pillow, his neat, almost effete penmanship bidding her:
Evie,
I’m glad you’re here. Went to get breakfast. I’ll also stop by your car to get your things. Take a shower. Take your time. You can meet Jack at breakfast. We’ll go slow.
See you soon,
Jamie
She instinctively smiled at the message—the fact that it would’ve been easier to send her a text, but that wasn’t Jamie’s way.
She wasn’t sure what compelled her—maybe it was as simple as being there in Jamie’s home with his family—but in the moment, she suddenly felt the need to reach out to her own.
Fri, Nov 28 8:01AM
Eve Ambroise: Hi. I hope you’re both well. And that you had a good Thanksgiving. Would love to catch up soon. xo
She sent the text with no expectation of a response after she’d ignored her parents for so long.
She decided to mind Jamie’s advice and rolled out of bed to start on her shower.
She did take her time, exploring the full size and scope of the bathroom since she had the opportunity.
The two sinks evoked a strange flutter in her stomach as she daydreamed about one becoming hers at some point in the distant future.
It also made her think of Leo and the home she left behind, and her giddiness faded.
Eve went through Jamie’s things, noting how little of the broad counter space he occupied. His toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss. Shaving supplies. Soap, deodorant, and some Q-tips. She adored how simple he was—not in a pejorative way, but that it didn’t take much to satisfy him; she admired it.
In her exploration, she even debated taking a bath instead of a shower.
The tub sat just behind the vanity, a deep rectangular basin, big enough for Jamie to join her if they wanted.
She was running her fingers along the gold-plated faucet when there was a knock at the bedroom door, and she froze in place, praying it was the older Gallagher.
“Dad?” a little voice called out. It was somehow confident and commanding, as if he knew his father was in there and should’ve been up by then.
Eve told herself not to move or even breathe too hard.
Be cool and he’ll go on his way . But if he didn’t, she was standing butt naked in the middle of the bathroom with no cover.
Shit . She quickly but carefully tiptoed into the bedroom to retrieve last night’s clothes, inwardly cursing Jamie for leaving them clear on the other side of the room.
She made her way back into the bathroom, closing the door behind her just as he knocked again.
“Dad, are you up?” Jack asked.
Stumbling into her underwear as she moved toward the shower, she desperately hoped the kid would just assume his father was still asleep and let it go.
But no. Seconds later, Jack’s little footsteps were in the bedroom and he was knocking on the closed bathroom door, thereby reducing Eve to a human form of that Michael Scott GIF: No. God. Please. No .
“Dad, are you gonna make breakfast, or do I have to eat cereal?”
Eve had no intention of answering, figuring—or rather, hoping—Jamie would show up and get his son before she had to reveal herself. But when Jack tried the door, finding it locked, she knew she would have to either respond or leave this child thinking his father was possibly in danger.
“Your dad…went out for a minute,” she said from behind the door. “He’ll be right back.”
Jack paused before asking, “Evie?”
Eve squeezed her eyes shut, the awkwardness of it all making her want to disappear. Her heart started to race, and she worried that a panic attack was on its way, which only made her panic more. She exhaled hard and nodded as if Jack could see her, before eventually replying, “Yes…”
“I’m Jack,” he said brightly.
She grinned, his sweetness having an immediate calming effect. “Hi…”
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“Yeah…” She fumbled to get back into the rest of her clothes without making too much obvious noise, and soon enough, with another big deep breath, she opened the door. “Hi,” she said again, offering a strained smile.
Beaming, Jack waved at her. “Do you live here now?”
Eve laughed, the innocence of his question immediately disarming her.
He was quite cute, his wide smile a mixture of primary and permanent teeth.
His dark hair was a mess after a night of sleep, but she could tell it was one of those stylish tapered haircuts.
He was very much an amalgam of his parents, favoring Lucy—based on her limited knowledge of what the woman looked like anyway—but had Jamie’s eyes.
She wished she knew what her son looked like.
“No, I’m just visiting,” she answered politely. She was wary of being cold toward him, but she also didn’t want to be too warm, for fear of him getting too comfortable.
“Cool. You wanna see my room?”
She chuckled again, finding the random request amusing, while also knowing she couldn’t decline.
“Um…sure.” Eve was surprised when Jack took her hand, and by some miracle, she didn’t collapse at his very touch.
But seeing his little hand in hers, that ache in the pit of her stomach seemed to take hold, insistent on reminding her of what she didn’t have.
But she would ignore it for Jack. For Jamie.
And for herself, because she simply could not be crippled by this any longer. There was too much at stake now.
—
A few hours later, Jamie, Eve, and Jack were sitting down to lunch in front of an assortment of leftovers from the night before, which Eve couldn’t wait to dive into. But Jack was more interested in getting to know his dad’s friend and what she was all about.
Despite their strange start, he seemed to like her—even if she didn’t know much about Marvel or Twitch streamers or anything about karate, but she’d done her best to be honest and give him her undivided attention.
Over breakfast, he’d educated her on all the different Avengers and why the DC characters couldn’t compare, and she asked questions and took actual notes. She could tell he appreciated that.
“All right, so here’s the deal,” Eve said as she filled herself up with macaroni and cheese, which—based solely on the crust—she’d surmised was made by someone Black. “I’ll answer a question for every forkful of vegetables you eat.”
Jack looked at his plate with small portions of cabbage, brussels sprouts, and corn pudding. “Do sweet potatoes count?”
“Of course. But your fork has to be full .”
“Well, wait,” Jamie chimed in, “what happens if you don’t wanna answer something?”
Eve looked at Jack, the two of them shrugging in unison as if they’d discussed it beforehand. “That’s not the deal,” she said. “If he eats, I have to answer.”
“All right,” Jamie said. “Wish I’d known to try this a few months ago.”
They began before their food could get cold, Jack settling on a series of generic getting-to-know-you questions as a warm-up.
Eve’s favorite sports: tennis and soccer, though she also liked to swim.
Her favorite television show of all time: She said Abbott Elementary because she doubted he’d ever heard of The Leftovers .
He asked whether she used social media, and she informed him that she had Facebook and Instagram, but only used them sporadically for work.
Her favorite song—the truth being Al Jarreau’s version of “Look to the Rainbow,” but again, for Jack’s sake, she picked something more popular: “For Good” from Wicked .
It led to Jack touting the merits of his own favorite song, “Defying Gravity,” and spirited discourse about the musical, which was a genuine thrill for a theater girl like Eve.
All in all, the questions were simple, sweet, easy.
She should’ve known that one would eventually come and throw her for a loop.
And it did, in the form of a twofer, as he gobbled up the last of his cabbage.
“So do you have any kids?” Jack asked evenly, as he had no way of knowing the subject was Eve’s Achilles’ heel. “And were you married before you met my dad?”
Eve felt like the wind had been knocked out of her, and she had to take a deep breath as she was suddenly forced to think about her real life again.
Jack had her mind so filled with superheroes and silliness, it hadn’t crossed her mind in hours, much to her surprise, and now, she was struggling not to burst. She swallowed hard and visibly before softly answering, “No.”
“No to both questions?” Jack pressed, oblivious to her turmoil.
“No to both.”
“Do you want to?”
Eve inhaled again, the word no burning her tongue once again, but she exhaled with the realization that his plate was empty. Thank god . “You’re out of questions,” she said, smiling with relief.
“Oh man!” Jack sat back in his chair with a groan.
Jamie laughed at their exchange as he cut back into their conversation. “It’s gettin’ late anyway,” he said, checking his watch. “You should get upstairs and pack for your grandparents’. Your uncles will be here soon.”
“Can Evie help me?”
“Well, that would be up to her.”
Jack immediately turned to Eve. “I know I’m out of veggies, so I probably can’t even ask this. But would you be okay with helping me pack?”
She laughed at him and his wit, enjoying that he anticipated her response before she could give it. “We can finish the game while you pack,” she agreed.
The two of them descended from the high-top table, all too happy to leave Jamie to clean up after them.
But before they could disappear, Eve gave Jamie a small smile and a look—one that said, Thank you for trusting me with your son .
Because after the way she’d acted, she would’ve understood him being cautious.
But no, he gave her free rein to be with Jack however she needed.
And that meant something. It meant everything, actually.