Page 45 of A Better Place

“Gross. Shut up. Shut up now,” he says, growling, his whole body shuddering, making me laugh.

“Alright. I get it. Just know this, okay, bud? When I say that I am okay with it, I am. I don’t know what happened to bring you guys here to Liberty. But I do know it was something big. Something that shook y’all up enough to relocate and never look back. I also know that’s your story to tell, and if you guys want to share? I’m all ears. If she wants something more with me someday down the road, I’m not going anywhere. But if neither of you want to share, and she just wants to stay friends, I’m okay with that. I mean that,” I tell him and roll the chair closer to the bed and spit in my hand and stick it out to him.

“Seriously?” he asks with a disgusted look on his face.

This kid. He cracks me up. He can be so strong and tough when he’s in the boxing ring, but something as simple as a spit-shake that I mastered when I was ten? He’s about ready to throw up on my shoes.

I shrug. “Why not?”

“Uh, because that’s nasty.”

“Nasty? Nah. I’m just showing you how real I am.”

He sighs heavily and spits into his right hand then slowly sticks it out to me. His lip curls up, and nose scrunches as he cringes a little when I slap my palm against his.

“Oh, don’t be such a girl,” I tease him.

“Hey! I’m not girly! That’s just freakin’ gross, man!” he defends as he wipes his hand on his jeans-clad leg.

“Ha! You obviously didn’t have brothers.”

“This is true. And does my mom look like the type of person who would spit-shake on anything?”

“No, no she does not,” I say as my mind drifts back to the way her soft hands felt underneath mine after I threw her onto the couch. I don’t even let it get caught up on the way her body felt. I’d surely end up embarrassing myself in front of her teenage son.

“Dude!” Jack says loudly.

“Sorry.”

“Not even gonna ask.”

“Probably best,” I say, smirking.

“Gross,” he whispers.

“So, I don’t think this is what you had planned on talking to me about, even though I’m glad we cleared the air. Wanna tell me why you wanted me to stop by tonight?”

“Oh, um…” He hesitates.

“Hey. Kiddo. It’s me. You can tell me anything. I won’t judge, and I won’t say anything. I mean, unless it’s illegal, then I’ll tattle to your mom like one of her students.”

He laughs nervously. “Alright, so um, yeah, can you just pretend that Maggie isn’t your niece for a minute?”

Well shit.

“Depends.”

“On?”

“On what you’re about to say. But I’ll do my best.”

“Well, it’s not like pervy or anything.” His eyes widen, and he rushes on, waving his hands in front of him frantically. “Not that I even have pervy thoughts or think of her that way…”

God bless teenage awkwardness. “Jack.” I laugh. “Just spit it out. I know what you mean.”

“I like her. Like — a lot. Way more than I think I should when I’m only sixteen. But she’s fifteen. And I’m turning seventeen in less than a month.”

“And?”

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