DIRTY LAUNDRY

23

Dedication takes a lifetime but
dreams only last for a night •

"Why did you come to the restaurant so early?" I asked Jack on our walk back to the dorm.

"Well, I had a really weird feeling in my gut, like something wasn't right, so I just went there, figured I could have some dinner as well." He replied, grinning.

"Wow, talk about intuition." I chuckled. He's pretty amazing, I was certain.

"So, you told him about us, how did he react?" He asked.

"He was pretty shocked, but I guess he remembered that he has no power over me, so he quickly accepted it." I explained.

"Yeah, he seemed pretty chill when he introduced himself. So what about the other thing? What did he say?" He asked.

"He said he needed to take a break from my mom, take care of something. God, I wanted to slap him when he told me that." I spat.

"Jesus! That's awful." He replied.

"That's not even it, he told me I have to sign a couple of things, inheritance related, I couldn't believe him. It was typical, trying to buy his way in." I scoffed.

"Holy shit." Jack looked at me. "But maybe things will change. You never know." He said and squeezed my hand. I smiled and hoped he's right. I wasn't ecstatic that my dad was trying to get back into my life, throwing money at me in exchange. But I did want to forget about it for a while. Christmas was around the corner and I was looking forward to spending it with my family and Jack.

🌹

"Merry Christmas!" Mom exclaimed as we were sitting on the couch on Christmas morning. Oli's head was resting on my leg and it was time to open the presents. I couldn't wait to give Oli his present. He learned how to open it himself; it results in a mess but no one cares.

"Here, this one's yours." Jack said and handed mom the gift we got for her.

"Oh, thank you boys, you shouldn't have." She smiled and started removing the wrapping carefully.

"Mom, please, just tear it off, no need to be polite." I said. She chuckled and gave me the look, then continued opening it her way.

"Oh my god, you two are insane!" She shouted with the biggest smile plastered on her face. "I always wanted one of these but never got to it. Oh, thank you sweethearts." She walked up, pulling us into a hug. Jack was struggling with the colors, so we got her the classic black rumba.

"A little birdie gave us a clue, I'm glad you like it." Jack replied. "Now this, this is for Oli." When his name was said, Oli's ears went up like two antennas and he jumped to the floor, taking a seat next to Jack.
"Here boy, Merry Christmas fluffball." Jack put the present on the floor and pet him. Oli looked at me for approval.

"Go on." I said and then he went right to it, he tore the wrapping off, piece by piece, revealing the present.

"Oh my gosh, Oli! Look what you got, a new squeaky toy, and ohhh." Mom gasped. "Look at this collar! Wow, now you're a superhero." She said and put it on him. "This is beautiful, thank you again. I don't think Oli ever got this many presents before." She looked like she was going to cry.

"Oh, mom. I see them eyes tearing up. Don't." I grinned.

"I'm sorry, I'm such a party pooper." She apologized and looked at us. "I guess I'm just very proud of you and your life choices." She chuckled. I knew she was referring to Jack.

"Don't worry, he's even better than it seems." Jack winked and started laughing.

"Well, Merry Christmas again, here's a little something Santa left for you." She said, handing us gifts.