14. Jax #2
“I won’t take no for an answer. Your cuts will get infected if I don’t clean them, and then you’ll be in all sorts of trouble.
” Passing him the hot coffee, I use my free hand to help him off the bench, and he groans as he stands.
Once he finds his feet I reach for his striped bag …
the one filled with his worldly possessions.
“Okay. You drive a hard bargain, young man.” I’m flabbergasted that someone has done this to him.
I open the shop and lead him straight into my studio. “Sit,” I say, guiding him to the seat in the corner.
I grab the first aid kit out of the cupboard, along with two towels.
Wetting one, I start wiping the dried blood off his face.
He’s a fucking mess. There’s so much dirt and grime on his skin, that I have to keep rinsing the towel as I go.
He winces a few times but doesn’t complain. He’s a tough old bugger.
“Tell me to mind my own business, but how did you end up on the streets anyway?”
He sighs. “It’s a long story.”
“We’re going to be here for a while. Those kids did a number on you.”
He remains quiet for a short time before beginning to speak. “My wife got sick about five years ago. She went through several tests, but they kept telling her she was fine when it was obvious she wasn’t. She couldn’t keep anything down … she’d lost so much weight.”
I pause and make eye contact with him.
“Months later we ended up going and getting a second opinion. I couldn’t bear to see her suffering.
That’s when we found out about the tumour.
By then the cancer had spread to her lungs and liver.
She was riddled with it. The doctors had lied.
Incompetent fools. She wasn’t fine, she had an aggressive tumour in her stomach.
If only she’d been diagnosed earlier …” There’s disdain in his voice as he speaks, and now I understand why he doesn’t like doctors.
He brings his dirty hand to his face, wiping a tear from under his eye.
“Shit, I’m sorry.” I don’t know what else to say.
“We didn’t have much money, but I used every cent I had trying to save my dear sweet May—she was my world.
We were high school sweethearts, you know.
I fell in love with her the moment I laid eyes on her.
” When he pauses and I see his lips curve into a smile, I know he’s thinking about her.
“She was wearing a pretty white dress the day I met her. She reminded me of an angel. When she got sick, it was hard to stand by and watch her suffering. I would’ve given anything to trade places with her.
By the time she passed, I had nothing left.
The house, our savings … it was all gone. ”
“That must’ve been a hard time for you.”
Silence falls over us as I continue to clean him up. He gave up everything to save his wife, and in the end, he lost her anyway. Life can be so cruel.
“The kids who did this,” he points to his face as he speaks, “stole the only thing of value I had left. May’s wedding ring.”
“What? Fuck.” He gives me a stern look when I swear, and I bow my head. I gather he isn’t impressed with my language. “I’m sorry.”
He kept her ring all this time when he didn’t even have money to eat. It’s a testament to how much he loved her. How could somebody steal from a homeless man?
I’m pulled from my thoughts when I hear a voice from behind me.
“Hey.” Candice is standing in the doorway of my studio. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t realise you had company.”
“Jax!” Maddie squeals, wiggling out of Candice’s arms and running over to me.
“Morning, Peanut.” Picking her up, I kiss the top of her head. She’s wearing the pink cap I bought her yesterday. “Candice, come meet Beau,” I say over Maddie’s head. She walks further into the room and stops beside me. “Candice, this is Beau. Beau, this is Candice.”
I smile when she extends her hand to him. He’s filthy and he doesn’t smell too good, but that doesn’t seem to bother her at all. Like me, she’s non-judgemental. Ninety-nine per cent of the people we grew up with wouldn’t even stand in the same room as him, let alone touch him.
“Nice to meet you, Beau.”
“Likewise, Miss Candice.”
“And this is Maddie.”
“Hello little one,” he says. Maddie smiles as she cowers into my chest.
“You look like you’ve been in the wars, Beau. Are you okay?” Candice asks. “You should get that cut seen too, it’s nasty.”
He looks a lot better than he did when I first brought him in here. Now that I’ve removed most of the blood and dirt from his face, you can see the bruises forming.
“He was beaten up by some kids last night.”
“Oh, my God.” Candice covers her mouth with her hand.
“He doesn’t want to see a doctor. If I watch Maddie, do you think you could run to the pharmacy and grab some butterfly stitches? I don’t have any in the first aid kit. Maybe another bottle of Betadine as well. I’m almost out.”
“Of course.”
Pulling my wallet out of my pocket, I hand it to her. “Use whatever you need.”
She smiles before turning her attention to Maddie. “Be a good girl for Uncle Jax, I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“Your niece has your eyes,” Beau says once Candice leaves.
I chuckle. “She’s technically not my niece. Candice and I have been friends for years, so she’s like family to me.” I look down at Maddie and smile.
“Hurt,” she says, pointing to him.
When Candice arrives with the supplies from the pharmacy, she sets Maddie up with a colouring book and pencils in the corner of my studio so she can help me with Beau. We work together in sync for the next twenty minutes.
“It’s almost nine, you better go get things ready for us to open,” I eventually say.
“Sure.”
“Leave Maddie here with me.” I glance over at her in the corner and she’s happily colouring.
“You like her, don’t you?” Beau says when Candice leaves the room.
“Candice?”
“Yeah.”
“Of course. As I said, we’ve been friends for years.”
“I’m talking about more than a friend. I see the way you look at her.
It’s the same way I used to look at my May.
” Bowing my head, I clear my throat. I can’t answer that question without lying, so I don’t.
Instead, I busy myself cleaning up the mess I made.
“A love like that doesn’t come around often you know. ”
“We’re friends. That’s all we’ll ever be.”
“Keep telling yourself that, Son.”
Is it that obvious? I thought I’d mastered hiding my true feelings for Candice. He’s the first person to ever call me out on it.
“Are there any shelters in the area you can stay at? It’s not safe for you to sleep in the park,” I say, trying to steer the conversation away from Candice and me.
“Occasionally they have a spare bed, but not often.”
“My spare room at home is full, but you’re welcome to use my sofa until you find somewhere safer to stay.” I barely know this man, but I can’t in good conscience send him back out there.
“Thank you for the offer. You’re a good kid, Jax, but I couldn’t do that to you. I refuse to be a burden to anyone.”
Sighing, I remove my cap and run my fingers through my hair.
“What about if I make a few calls and see if I can find a shelter that has room for you?”
“No. I appreciate it, but you’ve done enough.” He stands and shakes my hand. “I best be going, but thank you.”
“Listen,” I say as he picks up his striped bag and shuffles towards the door, “there’s a small garage at the back of the shop.
It’s not much, but I never use it.” I pull my keys out of my pocket, taking the two for the back gate and garage door off the ring.
“You can enter via the laneway out back. Sleep in there at night.” I can already tell he’s going to say no.
“Please, it will make me feel better knowing you’re safe. ”
Newtown is a great area, but like most places around the city, it’s not safe after dark.
He sighs as he considers my offer. “Okay. Thank you.” I smile when he takes the keys from me, shoving them into the pocket of his worn trousers. Tears are glistening in his eyes when they meet mine again. “I’ll never be able to repay you for your kindness.”
“There’s no need to repay me. Having you safe is reward enough.”
“Bye, little one,” he says as he shuffles passed Maddie.
“Nope, I think it will look better over there,” Candice says, pointing to the spot I just had it in. I tilt my head back and groan. Is she kidding? This is the fifth time she’s got me to move it.
“It’s just a place to sleep, not the Ritz Carlton.”
“I know, but I want him to be comfortable.”
“The position of the bed isn’t going to make a difference. Anything will be better than the park bench he’s been calling home for God knows how long.”
“I know,” she says with a grim expression. “I love that you’re doing this for him, Jax.”
I lift one shoulder. “You saw the condition he was in, I couldn’t just leave him on the streets.”
“I wonder how he ended up there? He doesn’t look like a drunk.”
“He’s not. He spent every penny he had trying to save his wife when she got sick, but she ended up dying anyway.”
“Really? Wow. That’s the sweetest and saddest story I’ve ever heard.” She places her hand over her heart and sighs, and I see tears in her eyes moments before she turns her face away. Fucking women . They’re always so emotional.
“Come here,” I say, closing the distance between us and wrapping her in my arms. Resting my chin on the top of her head, I hear her sniffle as she buries her face in my chest.
“Doesn’t he have any family he can stay with?”
“I don’t know, I didn’t ask. He mentioned something about not wanting to be a burden to anyone, so maybe. Then again, he could have a family like mine, one that doesn’t give a shit.”
“Ugh. Your parents suck.”
“Yes, they do. You can’t choose your family, so they say.”
“You’ll always have me, Sophia and Maddie. We adore you, Jax. You know that right?” She tilts her face back until her beautiful baby blues meet my eyes.
“I know. You girls are all I’ll ever need.”