Finding Jaime

Chapter 73

I went downstairs into the TV room. Bronx was in the kitchen making popcorn. Dad was turning on the TV and putting on the channel the game was on.

"You're joining?" He asked, a smile on his face.

"I don't have to," I pretended to be insulted. "I can go lock myself in my room being quiet and pretending I don't exist."

I was smirking.

"Yeah. You probably should," Dad deadpanned at me. "I mean, who'd want you all hairless?"

"Hey, I'm streamlined!" I said, pulling my beanie off my head. "No hair slowing me down!"

"For all the swim races you're, uh, swimming?"

He pulled me into a hug and slapped my shoulder lightly. I grinned back at him.

"How're you feeling?" He asked.

"Okay," I said. "I have a question for you, though."

"Shoot," Dad said, frowning at a text message that just came in and then putting his phone down and looking at me.

"I dunno. It's kinda dumb but..." I stopped. I didn't know how to ask this.

"What's up?"  Dad sat forward to she he was listening.

I took a deep breath and just said what I was thinking.

"DoyouthinkMeaganwouldbeokaywithmecallinghermom?"

Dad stared at me.

"Could you repeat that slower?  And in English?"

I took another deep breath.

"Do you think Meagan would be okay with me calling her Mom?"

"I thought that's what you said. That's up to you. Do you want to call her that?"

I looked at my feet. How do I explain this? 

I nodded. For some stupid reason, tears came to my eyes.

"She reminds me of Mom - Tanya.  In all the good ways. You know?  She does a lot of things Mom used to do. She makes me feel safe. And... loved," I said quietly.

"I don't?" Dad asked. It was his turn to pretend to be hurt.

"Obviously not.  Sheesh. I meet you and I wind up falling in a canyon, trying to kill myself and then I get cancer?  Nah. Meagan's cool. You're a disaster."

Dad laughed.

"I think you should ask her, but I think Meagan would be okay with it," a voice behind me said. I turned around and Bronx was standing there with a big bowl of popcorn on a tray with three sodas.

I felt my cheeks redden.

"Don't be embarrassed," Bronx said, coming into the living room. "Honestly, the only reason I don't call her 'Mom' is because I still have my mom around. But you don't, and Meagan really cares about you. She was a basket case when you were in the hospital last week. Well, the week before that. When you were in a coma and might have..."

I nodded. I knew what he meant.

"In all honesty, Jaime, I think Meagan would be honoured. I mean, you already called her Mom once."

"That doesn't count. I had a tumour in my head messing up my words," I snarked.

"In all seriousness though, you should ask her," Dad said.

"Ask who, what?" Meagan said coming through the living room and picking up a few stray toys Marvel must have left out.

"Jaime has sometimes he wants to ask you," Dad said.

"I'm all ears," Meagan smiled at me. My cheeks burned.

"It sounds so dumb," I mumbled as I frowned.

"I doubt that. Go ahead," Meagan said, sitting beside Dad on the couch.

"I have to go to the bathroom," Bronx said suddenly and, smirking at me, left the room. I sighed and thanked him silently.

I took a deep breath and asked.

"IsitokayifIcallyouMom?" I blurted out.

Meagan looked at me, and the at Dad and then back at me. Dad was smiling at her.

"What? You said that too fast. What did you want to ask me?" Meagan asked.

I drew in another deep breath and then, not looking at her, I tried again.

"I-is it okay, if I c-call you 'M-mom'?" Dammit. My stutter.

"Jaime, are you okay?" Dad asked. I looked up at him and at Meagan. She had tears in her eyes and her hands clasped in front of her mouth. I nodded.

"Really? Do you really want to call me Mom?" Meagan asked. I nodded. She came over and wrapped her arms around me.

"Jaime, I'd be honoured. Of course you can. If you're comfortable calling me Mom, I'm happy for you to," she said through tears. I felt weird asking her if I could call her Mom. And I wondered what Tanya would think.

Dad was sitting forward and scrutinizing me.

"Jaime, are you sure you're okay?"

"I th-think so," I said.

"You're stuttering," he said.

"I'm aware of that," I responded.

"It could just be because he was embarrassed, Pete. We know his stutter comes back when he's stressed. And that couldn't have been easy to ask. Jaime, I'm honoured. I really am," Meagan said. I sighed.

Bronx came back into the room then. He looked at me, and he looked at Meagan sitting beside me with her arms around my shoulders. He smiled at me. I smiled back.

Meagan went back to sit with Dad and we waited for the game to start. Bronx and I talked about the Lakers chances against the Raptors, which we felt were good.

"Toronto's got a good team, but they're not the Lakers," Bronx said.

"Exactly. Lakers are gonna crush them," Dad said.

"It'd be so cool to be there," I said. "I've never been to a Lakers game."

"Dad takes us. Maybe when you're back from tour, Dad'll take you, too," Bronx said.

"We'll see," Dad said, in a non-committal tone.

I didn't think much of it. He was taking me on tour. That would be cool enough. We were also stopping at my school tomorrow since even though I'm taking the semester off, I'm going to try to at least get a couple credits. I'm taking History and English while we're on the road. It's online, but since it's only October, I can probably catch up.

We sat and ate popcorn and watched the game. The Lakers won. I helped Bronx bring stuff back into the kitchen, washed the popcorn bowl, and put it away while Bronx loaded out glasses into the dishwasher.

"You're gonna have a lot of fun on tour," he said. "There's a lot of boring parts, like when Dad has to do press and stuff, and when you're on the bus, but mostly, it's a lot of fun."

"Thanks," I smiled at Bronx, as we headed upstairs.

"See you in the morning," he said as he went into his room.

""See ya," I said going into mine and getting ready for bed. I changed into pyjamas, got into bed and fell asleep.