"Would you go to Ayutla for dinner with me tomorrow, JG?"
Sam and his grandfather were alone in the living room of Jim's house. Sam had come over from Turing House to collect Jim so that they could join everyone in saying a final goodbye to three of the four visitors. Jim was at first suspicious — his grandson had never asked him to go out to dinner — and then was touched, thinking that perhaps the boy's brush with death had made him needy. "Just you and me? If it's a birthday dinner, we should ask your cousins."
Sam hesitated, a pause obvious to Jim. Sam hadn't lied to his grandfather before, but he decided that this lie was necessary for the greater good. "I forgot the birthdays. I'd like it to be just us. I have some questions for you." He knew that would persuade JG.
"Okay. What time?"
"We should be there by 6:30 … I mean, I think that would be a good time."
Jim, his suspicions returning, said, "Six-thirty, then. We should get going now; we don't want to miss the farewell."
Sam grabbed the older man's right hand with his left, and the two walked the ground between the Jim's place and Turing House. As they walked silently, Sam, looking down at the grass and stubble, thought about what it would be like to live here fulltime if OD and Dad chose the silly option that OD had proposed during their early-morning discussion. He didn't much like the idea. For one thing, he'd have no cousins in residence most of the time, and although he had acquaintances who lived in Goldendale, he had no real friends as he did in Pasadena — and then there was Markie.
Sam couldn't remember how he learned the story of his Uncle North's arrival here so many years ago, but he must have, because he had read it in his book in the dream (or whatever it was), and he knew that moving from Portland had been a struggle for North, having to leave Annie. His Uncle Jason's journey of coming out had been dangerous if he had the story straight. He had thought that the stupid prejudices that had occasioned his uncles' struggles were long evaporated, but the events of the summer had reminded the boy that they weren't. He certainly didn't want to live in a place where perhaps many people saw his family as perverse.
As he and JG rounded the side of Turing House from the rear, the scene was almost identical to the one days ago when this group of visitors had arrived. Jeff's van was ready to follow the Tribeca that would take Ahmed, Ray, and Vince back to the motel to join their parents for their trips home; the parents had joined them the previous evening for a Vi dinner. Everyone in the Goldendale family was milling around in front of the porch of Turing House, saying goodbyes. All the visitors wore their Outliers T-shirts.
Before they joined the crowd, Sam whispered to JG, "I need to talk with you about what happened to me after I was shot."
Jim thought, Now that's a statement no thirteen-year-old should have to make. "Sure, Sam. At dinner, or before if you need to."
Ahmed Mathew was giving out a Taqiyah, the rounded cap worn by many Muslim men, to each of the hosts, including Vi, Annie, and Vee, even though women didn't normally wear them. These were crocheted in white yarn and featured two thin bands of blood red encircling the hat. As he offered the cap, he told each of them, "This is a gift from my father, a sign of respect and gratitude." The last to receive the gifts were Sam and JG. Sam teared up because he thought he knew why the red bands had been placed on the caps.
Sam tried as best he could to hug Ahmed. "Thank you, and please thank your father. Maybe I can see him again someday. If your brother gives you too much shit, come and see us in California, okay?"
Ahmed smiled. "When he heard about the shooting, my father said that he prayed for your recovery and hoped that you wouldn't bend to persecution." The boys finished as much of a hug as Sam's injury would permit.
Then Vince and Ray, who had spoken with the others, said goodbye to Jim and Sam. Sam was surprised that he was as sad as he was at their departure — much more so than with visitors in previous years. He hadn't expected to have that reaction, particularly to Ray. Although they promised to keep in touch, the usual pattern for visitors had been to email or call monthly for a few months and then less frequently until finally they lost touch altogether. Some visitors were exceptions, though, and Sam hoped all of these would be. In the background, Jeff fully intended to make an effort to keep track of Ray.
At least Jamie's continuing presence made the leave-taking less sad, especially for Vee and JT.
Early on, when they had first begun to invite visitors, Lucas and Jerry had told Sam about the gifts they would give the visitors and impressed on him how impolite any mention of them would be. He had never told OD and Jerry how proud he was that they used their wealth in this way.
Looking at the Tribeca and Jeff's government van turning up dust on the dry driveway as they departed, Sam wondered if Vince would become a great chef and if Ray would become anything at all. He knew that Mathew Ahmed would become a bright star.
JT was holding Jamie's hand as they both waved to the departing cars. Markie walked over to Sam and JG, and Jim promptly released his grandson's hand so that Markie could take it. Marshall and Vee were the only cousins now without romantic partners, and Jim worried about Marshall. Vee, just turned twelve, had no interest yet in a romantic partner. After talking with her mother, she'd already decided that when she was ready, she'd find someone she liked and learn about sex. She knew in her own time that she'd have to stumble upon the kind of love her parents knew.
#
Jamie had moved from Jim's place to Vi's but had separate quarters from JT. Markie remained at Turing House, and although Vee missed their talks in her bedroom at Jim's, she was happy about the possibilities for Sam and Markie.
The evening after the departure of the summer's visitors found Marshall alone at his grandfather's place, lounging on a sofa in the living room and reading, for the second time, Shadow and Claw by Gene Wolfe. He was deep in the story when a description of the long executioner's sword, Terminus Est, and its use brought the scene of the shooting to mind. In the seconds after the shot, he clearly remembered seeing Agent Chertov standing tall and wielding his knife among the cowering spectators, slicing into the shooter's wrist. Marshall wondered if the Department of Homeland Security was anything like the Seekers for Truth and Penitence, the Guild of Torturers, in the book he was reading.
His parents interrupted his musings as they plopped down on the sofa across from him. He looked up and waited. His father began, "Sam and JT otherwise occupied?"
"Suppose so. I'm a little jealous."
His mother picked up the thread, "We thought you might be. Now that the excitement is over — at least we hope it is — we want to propose a small get-together."
Marshall put the book on the low table in front of his sofa and sat up. "Okay. Who's getting together?"
"You and the original humans."
"What?"
Annie smiled. "Adam and Eve and three other people and you — maybe for dinner and an evening discussion."
Marshall leaned forward with more than normal animation and brushed his blond curls from his forehead. "Is this what we talked about before?"
North and Annie nodded. North explained, "We knew you wanted to talk with Brian and Cassie again, and we talked with two guys and a woman a little older than those two who have a stable if unconventional relationship."
With all the turmoil, Marshall had almost forgotten his parents' promise to find some people who identified as bisexual to talk with him, but he knew that they didn't promise lightly. "Where do you find these people?"
"Oh," North said, "we're the token straights in a lot of sexual-minority groups."
Now Marshall laughed. "Thanks. Are you planning to be there?"
Annie looked to North and answered, "No. You need to feel free to ask what you want to ask without censoring yourself because your parents are in the room. We trust these people, and we trust you. We can talk about what you learn afterward — but only if you want to."
Marshall walked over to the sofa his parents occupied and sat between them. He sighed before saying, "How weird is it that you ended up with a biological kid who's not straight and the others ended up with adopted kids who are straight?"
North laughed. "You're an outlier, I suppose, but you're also just such a great kid. If it's all right with you, we'll set it up for this weekend. We thought you all could talk here."
Marshall took his parents' hands in his and squeezed. "Thanks."
#
JT made sure that the door to the bedroom remained open. The room where Jamie was staying wasn't used very much. Vi sewed there occasionally, and although as clean and free of dust as every other room in the house, this room didn't have the imprint of a regular occupant. The rooms where his fathers and he stayed when visiting his grandmother in Goldendale had been personalized over the years to the point that anyone who knew JT would have known that his room here belonged to him. He had been more than a little surprised when Jamie had agreed to ask her parents if she could extend her visit but not as surprised as when her father, after hearing her out, had agreed.
Jamie's chosen room had twin beds aligned in a ninety-degree angle along two walls, with a square wood table at the vertex. A coarse woven rug that left only a two-foot margin at the walls covered the hardwood floor. Jamie had already placed her clothing in the closet and in a chest of drawers that had a freestanding mirror on its top. Her earrings and a necklace rested in front of the mirror. Jamie and JT were stretched out supine on the beds with their heads toward the table so that they couldn't see each other's faces.
"Why'd you agree to stay on? Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that you did."
The girl thought a bit before answering and appreciated that JT didn't press her. When JT had asked if she would stay after the others left, her initial reaction had been to say no, but then she realized that her heart was telling her to say yes. "You're the first boy I've known who treated me like a girl. Most boys my age can't get past my plumbing, as if my dick settles the question of my gender. When we were practicing in the barn before the show and I kissed you, do you remember what you said?"
"Yes."
"Well, that was the moment when I finally felt like just a girl with a boy. The plumbing didn't matter to either of us. It's stupid, I know, but you made me feel I was just a girl with a boy, and I think I will always love you for doing that."
"Love me?"
"JT, I'm not asking you to return the feeling. I'm saying that what you've done, how you've acted around me, is enough. I didn't want to leave yet."
"So, would you be upset if I did return the feeling? And if you aren't, what does that mean?"
"I honestly don't know, but I think I want a friend — a boyfriend. How about a lot of hand-holding and maybe some making out?"
"That's good, if you'll tell me if something feels wrong."
"Promise." She stood and smoothed her T-shirt over her torso. JT watched her walk slowly over to the bed he was on. He scooted over closer to the wall, and she lay down facing him. "Should we close the door?"
"No one will bother us." He wanted her to have a clear way out if she needed one.
After a few minutes, Jamie told him, "You're a good kisser."
He giggled and said, "I actually learned with Marshall." When he saw the surprise on her face, he quickly added, "But, I've practiced with other girls, too."
#
At Turing House, the door to Markie's bedroom was closed. Sam thought Markie would be more comfortable with it closed, and he was going to let her decide how far to go, knowing that he was limited by the injury. When Jerry and Lucas saw them coming downstairs for dinner, they both noticed calm smiles on the kids' faces. While Markie and Sam were setting the table, Jerry whispered to Luke, "I guess it's good that we gave Sam some condoms."
Lucas laughed quietly and pointing to his shoulder whispered back, "I'm not thinking they used them." Jerry shrugged.
At the table as they ate, Lucas asked, "Are you up for a birthday celebration tomorrow?"
Sam scrambled mentally to find a way out. "I forgot about our birthdays and asked JG to go with me to dinner at Ayutla tomorrow."
His fathers looked at one another. Jerry, with a small frown, reminded his son how important the common celebration for the cousins was to the family. "We could do it Sunday," Sam suggested with a smile, trying to be enthusiastic.
Lucas knew something was up, so he just agreed that Sunday would work.
#
Marshall and JT walked to the restaurant, arriving a little after six. They looked through the crowd in the main room, trying to spot David Masters. He wasn't there, and they worried that he might have gotten cold feet. They needed some time to talk to him before Sam brought JG over at 6:30. They talked briefly to the owner's son, Ramon, explaining that they were expecting Dr. Masters, and that when he asked for Dr. Underhill, they wanted Ramon to seat him in a booth away from the other diners. Then they sat in a separate booth and munched on chips and salsa while waiting.
"What are we going to do if JG and Sam show up before he does?"
Marshall seemed rattled by the thought. "I hadn't thought about that. This is a very bad idea, and JG is going to kill us."
"You are so pessimistic. This is going to be great. You'll see."
After a couple of minutes, Marshall felt the need to fill the silence. "I'm going to see Adam and Eve again."
JT stopped chewing and swallowed his mouthful of chips with a gulp. "Aren't they a little old for you?"
Marsh rolled his eyes. "We're having dinner, not doing the nasty, and Mom and Dad arranged it."
"That's great. Maybe you'll get some answers and have some fun." The last he said with a mischievous smile.
"Speaking of which, what's with you and Jamie?"
JT decided to try not to answer the question. "She thinks I'm a good kisser." He watched his cousin blush. "I told her that I learned with you."
"You asshole! I'm going to pound you."
"What? It was a compliment. She thinks you did a nice job."
Marshall was about to complain a bit more when he saw David Masters arrive and talk to Luis's son, but he was accompanied by a boy about their age who was, to Marshall's eyes, spectacularly beautiful. It looked as if David Masters was a reluctant participant in the date. The boy was almost pushing the older man along as Ramon seated him. When he was seated, Dr. Masters scanned the restaurant looking for JG.
The boy spoke with Ramon briefly, and Ramon laughed, bringing the boy to the booth directly in front of the one occupied by JT and Marshall. Marshall and JT looked at each other, thoroughly confused by the extra participant. Then, a possible reason for the boy's presence dawned on Marshall, who leaned forward and whispered to JT.
"I think maybe he's doing what we are."
"What?" JT almost shouted.
The boy turned in his seat and looked at them for a moment. Marshall caught his eye and held it briefly before the boy turned back around. "Would you keep it down?" he huffed at his cousin.
"Sorry," JT said in a stage whisper.
Marshall glared at JT and said at normal conversational volume, "Why don't you just string a banner across the room?"
The boy turned again and said, "Mind if I join you?" Neither JT nor Sam replied. "I'll take that as a yes." He left his booth and sat next to JT and across from Marshall in theirs. "I'm David. I have a feeling we're playing the same roles here."
Marshall swallowed and finally asked, "You're his grandson?"
"Guilty. And, you're Dr. Underhill's grandsons?"
"Two-thirds of them. I'm Marshall; he's JT. The third should be here with Grampa any minute."
David looked at the other two in the booth carefully. "You're not brothers."
Marshall found his tongue. "No, cousins." Oh, very eloquent, Marsh, he thought.
JT, glancing sideways at David, realized that, although he was used to Marshall being the most physically attractive boy in any room he occupied, David might edge his cousin out. The stranger now sitting with them was as tall as Marsh, but in contrast to Marshall's relentless blondness, David was dark, darker than Ahmed, and possessed delicate Eurasian features. His voice was startlingly rich and deep, and his dark, almost black, eyes were playfully alive. Where he and Marshall were in standard cargo shorts and loose T-shirts, David was wearing tight jeans and a pale green T-shirt that clung tightly to his upper body. When JT turned from admiring David, he found Marshall staring at the boy, seemingly unable to look away. JT thought, Uh-oh.
Glancing at the older David Masters, JT asked, "Did you write his ad?"
"You wrote your grandfather's ad. Did he see it before you posted it?" The cousins shook their heads. "Oh, I can't wait to see this develop. I just helped mine with his." Looking at Marshall, David concluded, "You're my kind of people."
JT was laughing inwardly at Marshall's newly developed awkwardness when he saw Sam and JG walk into the restaurant. He tried to gently nudge his cousin under the table, but David said, "Ow." Marshall glared at JT, who gesticulated toward the newly arrived pair.
While talking with Ramon, Sam glanced over and was surprised by the sight of his cousins with a stranger sitting next to JT. What the fuck's that about?
Meanwhile, JG seemed thoroughly confused by the delay. The other party to the date had seen Jim walk in and moved off his seat, standing by his booth expectantly. Sam spotted Dr. Masters and, pointing to the man, said to his grandfather, "I know that guy. Let's say hello."
Jim looked across the room at a man close to his own age. "What's going on, Sam?"
"Nothing, JG. Let's just say hello." Sam grabbed JG's hand and began to drag him toward the booth where David Masters stood expectantly.
At the booth with the other cousins, young David said, "That's my cue," and walked toward his grandfather.
"JG, this is Professor Masters. Mr. Masters, this is my grandfather, Jim."
Masters said, "I see you needed moral support, as well."
Shaking the man's hand, Jim was now thoroughly confused. "Why don't we sit so I can figure out what's going on here?"
Once Jim and David took their seats, Sam tried to sit beside his grandfather. Jim shook his head and directed, "You! Go sit with your cousins. I'll talk to you later."
As he turned around and somewhat sheepishly began the long walk to the other booth with his head down, Sam heard Mr. Masters say to his grandson in a way that brooked no discussion, "You, too."
When he and young David reached their booth, they both scooted onto the benches, and David put his hand on Sam's good shoulder to let him know that he wanted to sit opposite Marshall. "This isn't going quite the way I thought it would," Sam said quietly.
"Gee," replied Marshall, "who would have thought there would be problems. Oh, that's right — me."
JT took up for Sam. "Give us a break, Marsh. We all agreed."
David interrupted the discussion among the cousins. Looking at Marshall, he said, "You guys have big, brass balls; I'll give you that."
JT replied, "You'd have to know JG to understand why we did it."
"Okay, give me the short course."
The three cousins managed in ten minutes an explanation of JG's life with Tom and their families and why they were concerned about their grandfather. David was quiet for a minute, then said, "Holy shit. How the fuck did you all end up in Goldendale?"
Separately, they each had been glancing over to their grandfathers' booth. The two older guys seemed to bounce between serious conversation and laughter and head shaking, usually preceded by glances toward the young ones. David told them that his grandfather had been married thirty years until his grandmother died. Then, he came out. His parents were still angry and resentful, but he thought his grandfather courageous. He had told him, "Better late than never."
"So, the ad was a first step for your grandfather?"
"Pretty much. After just keeping to himself for a year."
The boys noticed that their grandfathers had ordered and were being served. As Ramon came by the booth, David said, "That's a good sign."
"You guys going to order?"
"Thanks, Ramon. I'm going to check with Jim; we'll let you know."
Sam walked back to the other booth and stood while the men finished a bit of discussion. Finally, Mr. Masters acknowledged the boy. "What's up, Sam?"
"We're just wondering if you're super-pissed or what."
"We're having a delightful talk. Why don't you boys head to your house, Sam? I know David would love to see it."
"Oh, sure. We could eat over there. You sure you don't want us to stay, JG?"
"Go, Sam!"
#
As the boys walked across the highway and up toward Turing House, David asked many questions about how JT's and Sam's families worked. He wasn't uninterested in Marshall's situation, but he had experience with straight parents. When Sam mentioned that he lived in Pasadena most of the time, David observed, "Caltech. Do you ever hang out on the campus?"
"Other Dad works there, so I'm there a lot."
"He works there? What's he do?"
"Math."
"He's on the faculty?"
"Yeah."
"That is so cool. He must be a genius."
Sam was now a little uncomfortable. The answer to the question was, of course, yes, but for the whole picture of his father that Sam held in his heart, genius didn't quite do. "He's smart in lot of ways, I guess. He's just my dad, my Other Dad or OD, as I call him."
David pressed a bit. "I like math a lot. Is your dad going to be there when we get to your house?"
"In all probability."
"I'd really like to meet him."
For the first time since Marshall had seen David in the restaurant, the stranger's attention wasn't on him. Marsh didn't quite know what to make of the change in the boy's focus. He hadn't thought the attention David had paid him particularly subtle and assumed that David was gay, although he had never said so. Now, instead of the very cool and collected young man Marshall had first seen, there was a kid behaving as if we were going to meet some big-time athlete or musician. Marshall was definitely less enthralled.
Twenty minutes after they left their grandfathers at the restaurant, the boys walked past the plaque on the front door and into Turing House. David immediately saw the portrait of Turing and looked at it closely, smiling. "Who did this?"
"My dad. He's a pretty good artist — mostly sculpture, but 2-D stuff as well."
"This is amazing." David looked at Marshall. "Turing's one of my heroes."
There it was again — the frank appraisal, flirting, really. Marshall felt warm and replied, "He's pretty much a family hero."
Their conversation halted when Lucas came in from putting his work clothes in the washer and washing his hands thoroughly. As always when returning from a solitary horseback ride he was content. He stopped when he saw the little crowd near the front door. "A new face."
Sam introduced his father to David simply as Lucas Jansen, obliquely alluding to the date that Luke's father was on. "That doesn't sound like something Jim would arrange on his own, Sam."
"Well, we sort of helped arrange it."
"I don't need to know any more. I'm sure I'll hear the story from Jim. So, David, I take it that you're the matchmaker on the other side of the date."
"Yes, sir. Although I wasn't behind the scenes as much as these three."
JT quickly added, "You know that JG would never see anyone without some prodding."
Sam tried to change the subject. "David's into math. He was interested in hearing about what you do at Caltech."
Lucas hesitated a moment before deciding to allow the change in subject. "Mostly, number theory and topology. My mentor was Lita Koresh, so I inherited an interest in the math of M-theory." This was usually enough to numb the minds of most casual inquirers.
David was obviously excited by the news. "I've read a couple of her papers. I had thought you were all named Underhill. You won a Millenium Prize, right?"
If the kid was truthful and had read Lita's papers, he must have at least some talent. "Well, that was a while ago."
Without understanding why, Sam blurted out, "He developed an algorithm they're using at CERN to search for the Higgs." Lucas's eyes widened because Sam sounded as if he didn't want David to think that things went downhill for his father after the prize. He had never heard Sam voice that kind of filial pride in his work.
"Just a little tool. The physicists are carrying most of the water on that one."
Jerry came out of the hall leading to his studio. He looked as he had when they started this trip to Goldendale: clay-spotted jeans and black T-shirt. He was barefoot. Before he took notice of the extra boy in the room, he walked to Lucas and hugged and kissed him. He turned toward the boys and said, "You guys must be hungry." Then he saw David, and his first thought was I'd like him to model for me. "Oh, sorry, I'm Jerry, variously uncle and father." He shook David's hand.
"Your drawing of Turing is unbelievable. Excuse me, but if I told my friends that people like you were living in Goldendale, they'd have me put away."
Jerry frowned; he had no idea how David had appeared here. "Things are generally quiet here, and we get to see our whole extended family. The place suits us." No one intended to mention the attacks, and so far David hadn't asked about Sam's injury. "Why don't I get cleaned up and we can go to Ayutla for dinner."
Lucas laughed and said, "Ayutla's off limits tonight. Jim's on a date there."
Jerry was stunned. "A date? Jim?"
Lucas smiled. "Long story, which I'm sure we'll hear eventually."
Marshall suggested, "We could go for mediocre pizza downtown."
Lucas didn't really want to go, but didn't want to disappoint Sam and his cousins. They wandered over to Jim's house to borrow the Tribeca for the trip. On the walk to Jim's place, David hung back a bit to walk with Marshall. With some distance between the two boys and the others, David whispered to Marshall, "Please, tell me you're gay."
Marshall stopped in his tracks. "Well, no. I mean, I'm bisexual and not too comfortable with that label. I'm attracted to men and women, anyway."
David smiled and before moving ahead to catch up with the others said, "I'd love to talk more with you, alone. You're very attractive."
Marshall watched the boy move ahead gracefully to catch the others and begin chatting with Lucas. He was aware of a lovely blossoming in his chest and between his legs at the thought of spending time with David alone.
#
"You must feel as if you've been ambushed."
Jim remembered the conversation he'd had with Sam at the beginning of the boy's summer stay when Sam had brought Markie over to see him. "I think I may have primed the pump a bit. My grandsons can't possibly understand age and loss. Actually, although I won't let on to them, I'm not as outraged as I might have been."
David smiled broadly. "I hid for so long. I'm just trying to figure out how to negotiate a world where I'm honest. I'm envious of your life and your marriage. You obviously raised an exceptional family."
Jim and David traded stories not about their pasts but about the present. Jim was still doing volunteer work in clinical oncology both at MCMC and at OHSU, and David, a scholar in Asian history and culture, was in semi-retirement but teaching part-time at Portland State. David was surprised to discover that the other Dr. Underhill he knew, North Underhill, was Jim's son. Before he had accepted emeritus status, David had worked on a faculty committee with North and vaguely remembered North's wife, Annie.
He regularly travelled to China and Japan and occasionally to Southeast Asia. Jim enjoyed David's descriptions of his travels and found the man neither too assertive nor too quiet. He began to think that his grandsons' concerns might be founded and that he should develop a fuller social life.
After their dinner, Jim smiled and asked David, "So, what exactly are you looking for in someone who would answer your ad – other than unexpected thirteen-year-olds?"
David briefly laughed and seemed to struggle to formulate what he wanted to tell Jim. He ended the short silence, "I feel as if I've just been born — that I've missed a proper adolescence. I think my grandson describes what I want as a 'friend with benefits,' but I don't want a series of one-night stands. At my age and after a long marriage, I don't know how to contemplate another relationship of that kind."
Jim wasn't surprised. "Thanks for being clear and honest. I'll be equally honest. Sex can really fuck things up, and I'm not sure I want to start a friendship with sex. I was fortunate to have a long time with a remarkable man. I have no desire to put that relationship behind me, but, as my grandsons suspect, I need to develop a few more social outlets. You and I are starting from very different places."
"I like you. Whether we become more than friends or not, I'd like to see you again."
"Me, too. I have a condo in Portland, and it wouldn't hurt to spend a little more time there than I have recently."
"Good, then. By the way, I couldn't help but notice that my grandson is taken with Marshall. I hope that's not a problem."
"Marshall is his father's son, though perhaps not entirely straight. I think they might enjoy each other."
#
When Vee, whose reading was interrupted by the appearance of the delegation from Turing House, saw David, she was speechless, a condition almost never afflicting her. She was used to people reacting to Marshall the way she was reacting to David. Recovering before she was introduced to the new boy, she thought, Shit, Marsh, where did you pick that up?
"David, this is my sister, Vee. We're going for pizza. Do you want to go?"
Vee replied, "I think I would."
David walked to Vee, who was in a chair in the living room, and held out his hand. "Very nice to meet you, Vee."
"You, too. You are spectacular. How did you and this rabble find each other?"
"Vee!" Marshall almost squeaked.
"Why don't you find Mom and Dad so they can meet David?"
As Marshall walked upstairs, David's eyes widened at Vee's comment, which had thrown him off his game for a moment. "I like you. It seems we were playing matchmaker for our respective grandfathers."
Vee said to Sam and JT, "You idiots. How did it work out?"
JT beamed, "They're still over at Ayutla having dinner. Mission accomplished."
"You'll be lucky if JG doesn't disinherit you. Even for you three, this was bizarre."
Annie and North came downstairs to meet David. "What's bizarre?" Annie asked.
Marshall and his male cousins were at a bit of a loss as to how to explain; Vee wasn't. "They set JG up on a blind date he didn't know about."
Marshall's parents both tried to keep from laughing. Vee was surprised when her father said, "I wish I'd thought of that."
JT and Sam looked at Vee with undisguised pleasure while the girl scowled. Marshall introduced David to his parents and explained that his grandfather worked at PSU. Annie said, "I know your grandfather. I think North was on a faculty committee with him a couple of years ago."
"I can see the source of Marshall's good looks," David said. Annie tried to find something disingenuous in David's comment but couldn't. She thought: Be careful, Marsh.
Marshall saw his father slowly shake his head and quickly told his parents, "We're off for pizza."
North just said, "Have fun, and watch your uncle's driving." With a laugh, Lucas raised his middle finger to his brother at this long-time family joke.
The drive over to the pizza place was raucous, and Jerry was wistful as he saw Sam and his cousins paired up and charging hard into adolescence. He knew that Lucas had cherished Sam's childhood, a treasure his husband had never known, but he also knew that Lucas didn't have much, if any, nostalgia in him. This worried Jerry because nostalgia has its uses. Jerry looked at Lucas to his left in the driver's seat. Lucas turned his head briefly as if he could feel Jerry's gaze and smiled. Lucas was still, as Samuel Marshall had described him years earlier, 'interesting'.
Sometimes Lucas was so turned inward that Jerry had to reach in and pull him outward — a function that was an integral part of their relationship. Yet, Lucas didn't have the slightest selfish inclination. Jerry knew that Lucas had learned to concentrate on math problems as a way of living through assaults on his childhood person. Now, he couldn't tell all that was going on with his husband, but he saw that the attack on their son had knocked him askew in a way he thought that Lucas probably couldn't yet define.