For the next thirty to forty-five minutes I hand pattied and lightly seasoned the burgers. When I was done with that, I cut up potatoes and had Ethan help me blanch them. I knew at some point those cooking videos I watched would come in handy. Even though I never knew what I was doing, I most nearly always watched a video and learned things that way.
Ethan ditched me for my TV when it was time for me to cook everything. I wasn’t tripping though, it gave me time to ponder the last few hours. I hadn’t expected to be offered a job while wondering who I was. Then, to make matters worse, I wanted to take it. But how could I take a job here when I hadn’t quit the one back home? I shook my head at the thought, because I remembered my high school football days. That was when I met Coach Bridges, whose coaching took my game to the next level and made the league possible for me. I could never forget that man and I could only imagine the countless other players who had a coach like that. Coaches like that made a huge impact on the game.
I was in the middle of flipping a burger as well as a set of intense thoughts when there was a knock at the door. “It’s open,” I called out, then looked up.
Jonas entered with a bottle in hand and a smile. “Feels like I’ve only seen you the night you came in.”
“I’ve been moving around, old man, and you’ve been working. I’m shocked you aren’t there right now.”
He laughed. “Gotta stay busy, son. When you’re my age, idle time still hurts in a couple of hours.”
I laughed, watching him take a seat at the island.
“I hear you met Daniel over at the high school.”
“Yeah. He offered me a job.” I began plating Ethan’s food while cutting my eyes in my father’s direction. He was too quiet, and one thing about Jonas I remembered was even when he was quiet he had something to say.
“Were you looking for that job?”
I shook my head. “Nah, I wasn’t. I’ve been looking for a lot, but then again, since I got here, I’ve been finding a lot that I wasn’t looking for.”
“Ahh, the doc.” He tapped his tongue against the roof of his mouth.
“Here you go.” I laughed, grabbing the plate I made for Ethan and taking it into the living room where lil homie was. Once I had him set up at the coffee table, I rejoined Jonas in the kitchen. “You want a burger, Pops?”
“Nah. I’m going to eat at the lounge tonight.” He waved me off then made sure to pour himself a glass of brown liquor.
I nodded and began making my own burger.
“So, you gonna take the job?”
“I already have one.”
He waved me off. “So you say, but son, you’ve outgrown what doesn’t feed you. Money’s good, shit it’s great, but your heart ain’t in it. Hasn’t been for a while, even before you collapsed on that field. It’s up to you to figure that out though.”
He and I talked for a while longer before he headed out and I decided to watch TV with Ethan. He babbled for a while, telling me about his presumed Christmas gift, how he liked my food, and spending time with his grandfather. After a while he fell asleep and it was just me watching TV. Instead of leaving him on the couch, I took him to the let out in the spare bedroom and left the light dimmed. For a moment I watched him sleep, his little chest heaving up and down as he rested peacefully. Looking at him made me think of my own childhood, or lack thereof. Just by hearing him speak and seeing that light in his eyes, I knew Greene was doing a good job with him. She was not only giving him a childhood but allowing him to be a kid surrounded by love.
A knock at the door had me walking toward the front of the house. I opened the door and there she was, exhaustion evident in her features.
“Thank you so much for taking him. He wasn’t too much of a bother, was he?”
“Not one at all. He did some eating, talking, and fell asleep.” I stepped to the side, allowing her in.
“Then can you help me get him to the car? It’s late and I just want a shower.” She stretched, looking around.
“Nope, but you can go in there and get in the shower. He’s sleeping good. I’m boutta go find him another blanket and I’ll see you back there.”
“Hudson, I need to g?—”
“Nah, what you need to be doing is getting the horse pussy off of you so I can feed you and we can get some rest.”
She giggled. “Horse pussy? Really, Hudson?”
“Yeah, now go on, man.” I didn’t give her a chance to tell me no. I was already moving toward the closet I’d stumbled on earlier. I found a cover and took it into the room. I set it down next to Ethan before leaning down to remove his shoes. Once he seemed comfortable, I tucked him in and made sure he was good. When I was sure he was, I went toward the master bedroom and first grabbed a t-shirt for Greene, then what I needed for myself before I stepped into the washroom.
She had already stepped in, and probably had the water on hell, because the steam had already taken over the bathroom. Once I was stripped down, I opened the glass shower door and joined her. By the shower lights being on, I could see everything about her I was about to appreciate.
“How exactly did I know you’d be joining me?”
