Seven

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June 22nd, 2020

Ever since I've been married to Jack, I've slowly been convincing him to buy junk food. He doesn't eat it, but Peyton and I do. As Peyton plays with a toy on his high chair, I grab an Oreo box from the pantry.

Jack comes down, tying his tie. I forgot. He had to make a weekly appearance, but it's only been two days since he's been at work. I grab an Oreo and hand it to Peyton, but Jack quickly stops me.

"Don't give him a full one. Break it in half." Jack tells me, grabbing it from my fingers.

He breaks it in half, giving a piece to Peyton and then holding out the other to me. I step back, watching the black and white cookie in his hand.

"You eat it." I grin.

"No, I don't want to." He retorts.

"Come on. Anyone would be ecstatic to have an Oreo."

Jack raise his eyebrows, a chuckle escaping his lips, "not me." He shakes his head, putting it back into the box.

The doorbell suddenly rings and Jack and I look at each other in confusion. We both saunter over to the door, leaving our little boy to eat his cookie. I open the door and my eyes widen at the person.

"Michael!" I scream, throwing my arms around his neck. "What are you doing here! Weren't you in New York just yesterday?"

"Hey, neighbor." He smiles at me and my jaw drops.

"What?" I ask.

"I bought the house next door." He nods his head in the direction.

That house has been for sale for months.

"You're moving to California?" I ask, still astonished and excited with the news.

"I've actually been working here, just staying in a hotel." He shrugs, still smiling. "I moved everything out of New York a few weeks ago."

"But this is a gated community... How?" Jack drifts off, looking down and playing with his tie.

Is he trying to say that he can't afford it?

"I'm a surgeon, Jack." Michael informs him, giving him a closed mouth smile and shoving his hand into his pant pockets.

This just got a whole lot more awkward.

"Right." Jack breaths, turning around and going back into the kitchen.

"What's wrong with him?" Michael quietly asks me.

"I'm not sure, to be honest." I reply, opening the door wider. "Come in."

"Okay, but only for a little because I have to move everything inside." He whines.

I lead him into the kitchen and Jack is cleaning up Oreo crumbs from the floor. Michael immediately looks at Peyton.

"Is this your boy?" He grins down down at me and I nod my head. "I've been wanting to meet him."

I laugh, "I'm still not over the fact that you didn't tell me you've been in California all this time."

"I've been busy." He shrugs, sitting on the chair next to Peyton's high chair.

"I have to go." Jack blurts, putting in his blazer.

He stalks over to me, giving me a kiss on the lips in a protective way before making brief eye contact with Michael and exiting out of the door. We hear a roar of a sports car and I knew he did that on purpose.

"Don't mind him." I inform Michael.

"I don't, but don't you think that he'd be over this by now?" Michaels brown eyebrows twitch together.

"Over what?"

"Being protective over you talking to other guys. You are married to him and you have a baby together. He should know already that you're not going anywhere."

Wow, he makes a good point which actually gets me thinking.

"He started being like that again after I left Sam to watch Peyton." I shrug. "Jack has... Issues." I sigh.

"So that's his name? Peyton." Michael smiles fondly. "My middle name. It's a nice name, I like it."

"It's your middle name?"

He nods, "yeah."

"Well, then we better not tell that to Jack." I let out a forced laugh, leaning against the counter.

He's going to yell at me and assume that I named our child after my friend I met the first year of college. Michael is a few years older than me and that's why he got out of college the same time I did.

"Let's not talk about Jack. I'm sorry." I shake my head. "How have you been?"

"You don't have to make small talk with me." Michael chuckles. "We talk like five times a week, we don't really have anything to catch up on-"

His phone bursts out loud playing a familiar ringtone and he takes it out of his pocket, excusing himself from the conversation and going to answer it. I can't hear him because he's so far down the hall. He shortly returns.

"I have to go. The guys who are helping me move are here, but I'll be seeing you around?"

"Of course!" I beam. "You live right next door to me."

"Maybe later tonight? You, me, Jack and Peyton can go grab dinner?"

"Sounds good. Bye, neighbor." I say to him and he smiles, waving me off.

What are the odds of one of my long distance best friends moving in next door to me. This might cause drama and problems with Jack, but I should just wait for that to unfold.

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