Written in the Stars

Endlessly

                  

Parents loved Jamie Brewer, a fact he had used in his favor more than once over the course of his life. It was because he knew exactly how to talk to them; how to be honest and genuine without seeming arrogant and how to be sweet and charming without coming off as fake. Despite the fact that many people assumed it was all natural, he had actually spent many years perfecting the art of winning over people who intimidated him.

Yet, he never thought he'd end up needing to use any of those tactics on his Uncle Ethan. Mostly because he knew Ethan's love for him was unconditional; it had been since the day Jamie was born twenty-five years ago. As the oldest of the Vertical Limit children, he held a special place in the hearts of all the band boys because it was his birth that made them realize it was time to grow up.

Still, despite the fact that Ethan had never been anything but loving towards Jamie, Jack's son couldn't help but wonder if that opinion would change after today's interaction.

None of the kids ever felt the need to call ahead when visiting one of their uncles' houses because they knew they were always welcome, but Jamie wanted to make sure everything when smoothly, so he texted Ethan and told him he was going to stop by in the afternoon. Ethan figured it was perfect because he was going to be home alone anyway and he'd always thought of Jamie as a son.

Following the instructions he'd received in the text message, Jamie pushed open the Saxtons' unlocked front door without knocking. Kira had left their shared apartment that morning to spend the day with her mother and Lucy, which meant Ethan was most likely spending the day in his basement studio, either working on new music or playing video games.

Taking the complete silence on the main floor as indication that his assumption was correct, Jamie closed the front door behind him as he entered and made his way to the staircase which led to the basement, entering the bunker to find Ethan stretched out on the couch, his tongue poking out in focus as he played a video game.

Knowing better than to interrupt at what could be a critical moment, Jamie waited until the action died down to make his presence known. "Hey, Uncle Ethan."

Ethan glanced up, his expression immediately lighting with a wide grin as he paused his game and set his controller aside, pushing himself into a standing position. "Jamie! I'm glad you stopped by."

Stepping forward, Ethan pulled Jack's son into a tight embrace, gesturing towards the couch when they pulled apart. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Jamie was meticulous and organized, which meant that he had approached this conversation exactly how he had approached all things which made him nervous over the course of his life: by being well prepared. He had typed out a speech on his laptop and practiced it as he paced the kitchen while Kira was asleep or in the bathroom during his lunch break at work.

But it wasn't until he parked his car outside of the Saxton house five minutes ago that he realized it was unnecessary. Because this was Ethan, a man who loved all his band mate's kids unconditionally, and felt no differently about Jamie, even if the Brewer boy was dating his oldest daughter.

"I know the girls are out for the day," Jamie shrugged, wondering how he was managing to sound so casual as he settled into the worn leather couch beside his uncle. "So I figured I'd drop by. There's actually something I want to ask you."

Ethan's eyebrows lifted briefly in surprise as he stretched out his legs and crossed his ankles atop the table to his front, folding his arms behind his head and leaning back into the couch. "Shoot."

The original plan had been to begin a speech on how much he loved Kira, but Ethan already knew that; because for the past five years, Ethan had watched Jamie make Kira unbelievably happy.