Page 97 of Absolutely Pucked
I stared down at his feet—where the bars of his prosthetic legs met his shoes. He had feet molds in there too. I’d seen them a couple of times, but everything about him was so different from the man he’d been.
This version of him was a stranger, getting more and more familiar each time he let me near him. But we had years to go. Decades, even.
“We need to talk,” he said, setting his canes down by the door. He dragged his fingers through his hair a few times, then looked up at me. “I’m gonna go steal some of Ford’s sweats. Will you be weird about it?”
“No,” I said slowly, “but wouldn’t it make sense to steal mine? We’re literally the exact same size.”
That wasn’t entirely true anymore. He had about two inches on me in his legs, which I knew he’d done on purpose. I hadn’t called him on it. Yet. Once the last tendrils of his hatred for me were gone, then I’d give him shit.
He pulled a face for a second, and then his shoulders sagged. “I guess you have a point. Where are your clothes?”
“I took the left side of the dresser.”
He grimaced again. “Uhg, thinking about you two living together gives me hives.” He took a step past me, then stopped. “Don’t move.”
I wasn’t about to take that literally. I went into the kitchen, got a couple of glasses of water, and set them in the center of the table before dropping down to the couch. I could hear him in the other room rummaging around, and I had half a mind to tell him not to go through all the drawers because…well.
Ford liked toys.
And I liked using them on him.
But Tucker probably knew that because there was no screaming and cursing. Just him appearing a few minutes later with a hand towel around his shoulders, in a pair of dark grey sweats and a T-shirt that I rarely ever wore.
He smiled—the same look he had when we were in high school. But it was kinder than it had been back then. He made his way over, then stopped and turned his head from side to side before taking the empty seat a cushion away from me.
Nugget, who was in her window perch, made a noise of curiosity but decided sleeping to the sound of rain was more important.
“So,” I started.
Tucker held up a hand and shook his head. “Me first.”
I reached for my water instead and pushed histoward him. “In case you’re thirsty. It’s right near the edge.”
“I can see it,” he said a little sharply, then sighed. “Actually, thanks.” He reached for it the same way Jonah and Micah did, by dragging the tips of his fingers over the table until his knuckles touched the glass. “Jonah’s teaching you well.”
“And Micah. They’re nice.”
Tucker snorted. “Just wait until you become afriendfriend. Then the goblin porn starts.”
I blinked. “I refuse to ask what that means.”
“Smart man.” He grinned, then took a long drink of his water before settling back with a sigh. “Before the whole, you know, bigthinghappened…”
“Which big thing?” There were a lot of them.
“Me realizing you were dicking Ford down and living with him?”
“Right.” My ears burned with lingering shame. It had been three months, but it still felt uncomfortable. “That thing.”
“I’m not trying to make this weird, okay? But Deo told me if I don’t have a talk with you and stop trauma dumping all over him, he’s going to make me sleep on the couch.”
“Oof.”
He scoffed. “He actually won’t, but the threat is mean, and it hurt my feelings.” He paused, then leaned forward to set his glass down before twisting to face me. “I told Ford about what a dick I was in high school. I think maybe I was feeling that twin thing”—he tapped his temple—“and knew you were nearby because Icouldn’t stop thinking about you. And when I think about you?—”
“You’re filled with an uncontrollable rage?”
“Will you shut up? I’m only pissed when you dothat,” he snapped, “and put words in my mouth.”
