The Geek and His Artist (25 page)

“I… I hope so too.”

Jimmy couldn’t resist leaning in and kissing Simon lightly. When they pulled apart, he rested his forehead against Simon’s. “I love you. I know I’ve said it a lot, but I can’t seem to help it. I like to say it.”

“I like to hear it,” Simon murmured.

Jimmy leaned in to kiss Simon again, but at that precise moment, both their stomachs rumbled. He chuckled and sat back. “Well, I guess that’s our cue. Mom’s got breakfast going, I can smell it.”

Simon nodded. “Yeah. Uh… I’m afraid I have to ask for help.”

Jimmy touched Simon’s cheek. “Don’t be afraid. Don’t hesitate, okay? Mom says I can stay home a couple of days with you. I’m going to try to stick around until you go in for the permanent cast, okay?” Simon smiled and nodded. “Good. That way I can help take care of you until you can get around on your own more.”

“Thank you.”

“It’s my pleasure. I mean that. I like to.” Jimmy looked Simon in the eye and waited for another nod. “Good. How about this. I’ll get you into the bathroom—I’m guessing you need it, right?”

“Yes.” Simon blushed, not looking at him.

Jimmy didn’t react to that. He could imagine all too well how embarrassing it would be. “Good. While you do, I’ll get our coffee down to the table, then come back for you. Okay?”

“Don’t you need to go?” Simon asked, blush getting worse.

“I can hold it a few until you’re settled. No, don’t argue,” Jimmy said, kissing Simon to stop him from speaking.

Simon scowled. “That’s not fair.”

Jimmy grinned. “I don’t have to be fair.”

Simon grumbled under his breath, and Jimmy didn’t respond. He simply set their cups down, then picked Simon up.

A short while later, Simon sat on the couch with his leg propped up and a plate on his lap filled with bacon, eggs, and toast. Jimmy sat next to him, providing part of the support for the leg—well, both legs, not that he minded one bit—his own plate balanced carefully to keep from bumping Simon’s injury. Simon had protested sitting on the couch until the rest of the family joined him. Amy and Dirk sat on the floor at the coffee table, and his mom and dad took spots on the loveseat. Simon looked like he didn’t quite know what to make of it, but Jimmy kept his thoughts to himself, not wishing to draw attention to Simon’s confusion.

Amy spent the better part of the meal filling silence with chatter about work, school, playing games that afternoon, and a mess of other things. Jimmy didn’t interrupt, noticing the conversation—which pulled Simon in often—seemed to help Simon stay relaxed. He did look a bit shocked at all the things Amy wanted to include him on, but under the surprise, Jimmy saw relief and happiness too. Especially when she made tentative plans to come back for spring break and wanted to take a road trip with the two of them.

As they finished breakfast and were loading the dishwasher, the doorbell rang. Jimmy felt Simon tense and took his hand. “It’s just Mrs. Andrews, probably.”

Simon nodded without speaking.

Jimmy wondered briefly if he should get up and get ready, but decided to stay with Simon. He hadn’t had a chance to dress, though, so he knew he was going to have to leave Simon soon if he was going with Mrs. Andrews to clear out Simon’s things. In the meantime, he held his boyfriend’s hand, kissing it lightly as Mrs. Andrews greeted his parents and talked quietly in the entry.

Mrs. Andrews came in, smiling at the two of them. She wore khaki pants today, a blue button-down, and basic dress shoes, with her hair pulled up in a ponytail. Jimmy suspected she played the clothes down to help Simon feel more comfortable. “Good morning, Simon. How are you?”

Simon smiled, but it wasn’t as bright as Jimmy would have liked. He understood, though. There was still so much up in the air. “Um, pretty good.” He smiled again. “I… uh, well, the leg hurts, you know.”

She nodded. “And there’s a lot going on. Please try not to worry, though. This morning’s inspection and interviews are just a formality. I talked to my supervisor this morning about you, and he doesn’t think there’s anything to worry about. We have some paperwork to do, of course—a lot of it.” She chuckled, and when Simon did, Jimmy felt him relax a bit. “But really a lot of it is mostly just procedure. After we’re done here, I’ll take Jimmy to get your things. You might want to make a list for him to make sure he doesn’t miss anything.”

Simon nodded. “Okay. I can do that.” He swallowed. “Thank you.”

Her smile brightened. “You’re welcome. If you need anything else while we are out, let me know and we can get it for you.”

Simon glanced at Jimmy, then back. “I’m sure I’ll be okay. Thank you.”

The look on her face told Jimmy she knew what Simon was thinking well enough—that he wasn’t likely to ask for a bottle of water if he was dying of thirst. Jimmy hoped he and his parents could help with that. “Again, you’re welcome.” She reached out to rest her hand lightly on Simon’s shoulder. “I’ll be back.” She hefted her briefcase and followed Jimmy’s parents into the dining room.

Amy stepped up with a deck of cards. “How about we play while they’re doing the boring stuff?”

Jimmy smiled, grateful for Amy’s attempt. He looked over at Simon and raised his eyebrows.

Simon’s tentative smile firmed. “Okay, sure.”

I
T
WAS
nerve-wracking; there were no two ways about it. Even with Mrs. Andrews’s words, Jimmy couldn’t help but worry. He finally had Simon safe, and the thought that it could get turned upside down freaked him out more than a little.

Part of it, of course, was because he couldn’t hear what was said, though the tone of voice he did catch sounded light, happy, amused. Not knowing always unnerved him. Jimmy turned on the couch, both to keep his cards hidden from Simon and to be able to see the dining room. All he saw were smiles and laughs, so he guessed he should just relax.

He was so preoccupied, Amy—who never beat him at cards—soundly trounced him more than once. She smirked. “Maybe I’ll challenge you more often when you’re distracted.”

Jimmy’s answer was to flip her off, sending Simon and Dirk into snorts of laughter.

Mrs. Andrews chose that moment to step up.

Jimmy’s cheeks heated. “Uh….”

She grinned and winked. “She deserved it.”

Amy laughed.

“So, we’ll be doing the inspection now, which shouldn’t take long. Are you ready?”

Jimmy carefully sat up and set the cards onto the table. “I can be in just a few minutes.”

She nodded. “Good. Simon? Did you make the list?”

“Oh, yeah, I’ll do that right now. Sorry,” he said, blushing.

“No problem. I’ll be back soon.”

Jimmy grabbed a pen from the basket his parents kept on the coffee table just as Amy brought a notepad over. “I’ll try to get pretty much everything but the furniture, anyway. But write down anything I might need to actually look for.”

Simon nodded. “There are a few things.”

Jimmy carefully moved out from under Simon’s leg, dropped a kiss on the top of Simon’s head, and ran for the stairs. He dressed quickly, not paying too much attention to his clothes except to make sure they were clean, then hurried into the bathroom to brush his teeth. Just as he was coming out, his parents and Mrs. Andrews were on the landing outside the rooms.

“Oh good. Jimmy, they said you’ve made space for Simon in your closet and dresser?” Mrs. Andrews asked.

Jimmy nodded, stepping back into his room. He opened the closet door and the now-empty drawers on the right half of his dresser. “I didn’t really need all the space, anyway. I have a habit of hanging on to T-shirts that don’t fit me anymore.” He chuckled.

She laughed. “I think we all have something like that.”

“We’ll get him a dresser of his own,” Jimmy’s mom said. “We’ll need to take him shopping too, if what Jimmy says is true. So he can actually fill it.”

Mrs. Andrews nodded, frowning. “I might be able to help with that. I know of a few places that could issue vouchers for clothes for him.”

“We don’t mind,” his mom said.

Mrs. Andrews held up a hand. “There will be plenty to pay for coming up. He’s a senior, right? And now you have two of them.”

Jimmy’s mom made a face. “Yeah, I didn’t think about that. Prom… graduation, pictures.”

Mrs. Andrews nodded. “Right. So take what help you can. He’ll have medical care through the state, and we’ll get the other paperwork taken care of for the rest.”

Jimmy had no idea what they were talking about there, but figured if they were doing it in code, he wasn’t supposed to know.

“Really, we’re fine as far as that goes. He barely eats and isn’t likely to cost us much more in utilities.” His mom shrugged a shoulder. “We’ll see about the clothes, but don’t worry about the rest.”

Mrs. Andrews smiled. “All right.” She glanced around the room, her gaze pausing on the double bed. She looked back at Jimmy, who tried everything within his power to keep from blushing. She winked at him, then left.

Jimmy blew out a breath and followed. He passed them when they were in his mom’s office and went back to see Simon for another moment. “Did you make a list?” he asked, sitting on the coffee table.

Simon handed him a piece of paper, and Jimmy read over it quickly. “I… had to get creative.”

“I can see,” Jimmy said, looking up. “But I’ll find them.”

Simon smiled. “Thank you.”

“Of course, baby.” Jimmy leaned forward and dropped a kiss on Simon’s forehead.

“We’ll keep him entertained,” Amy said, collecting the cards and shuffling as Mrs. Andrews reappeared at the bottom of the stairs.

Jimmy shot his sister a grateful look, kissed Simon again, and followed Mrs. Andrews to her car.

A
WKWARD
SILENCE
filled the car for the first few blocks. Jimmy had no idea what to say, the wink she’d given him in his room still playing over in his head. He couldn’t seem to stop thinking “She knows,” over and over.

“So…,” she started and Jimmy actually winced. She chuckled. “It’s nothing to worry about. I can’t officially tell you it’s okay. Technically speaking, you are underage, Simon is underage, and even if the law says that it’s legal, policy says I can’t encourage it.”

Jimmy cleared his throat, trying not to die of embarrassment. “Uh….”

She chuckled again. “But really… off the record? I’d have a hard time believing something
wouldn’t
happen. You’re both teenage boys. I can do the math.”

Jimmy was wondering if it might be possible for the bottom of the car to open up and swallow him.
What is it with parents and others talking about sex?
He kept silent, with no idea what to say.

“I won’t say any more, except to be safe.” Jimmy saw her hands tighten on the steering wheel. “And… um… I don’t know what all went on with them.”

He didn’t even pretend not to know what she was talking about. “He said The Bas—uh, his father never sexually abused him.”

She blew out a breath, looking thoughtful. “Do you believe him?”

Jimmy paused, not sure how much to say. “I’ve, uh, done some reading on abuse victims.” He cleared his throat. “My sister recommended a couple of books. And they had parts on sexual abuse.” He took a deep breath and willed his face to cool. “And I know that most of the time, sexual abuse victims behave a… certain way in, uh… certain situations.” Nope. Cheeks getting even redder. “And, uh, he… err… doesn’t. Oh God,” he muttered, burying his face in his hands.

He expected her to laugh. Instead, she touched his arm. “That’s encouraging. Even if they aren’t touched sexually, some abuse victims have a hard time in bed. They sometimes will do it even if they don’t want to because they fear recrimination.”

Jimmy shook his head. “No. I… uh… I’m not….” He stopped, closed his eyes, and took a few deep breaths. He could do this for Simon. He was an
adult
, for fuck’s sake. “I’m not experienced. But, um… he doesn’t act like that. He, uh… he wanted it. As much as I did.” Jimmy figured he was going to spontaneously combust if they didn’t finish this conversation soon.

She didn’t reply at first. “Good. That tells me a lot, actually. I won’t tell him you said anything, don’t worry about that. And I won’t ask him directly myself, except to verify his father didn’t touch him like that. That’s necessary for the reports.”

Jimmy nodded. “Okay.”

“He’ll need to talk to a counselor. The counselor will probably ask about that.”

“I… I actually figured he would.” Jimmy looked out the window, watching the stores pass by. The streets were wet, everyone indoors for the day. He didn’t blame them. He had places he’d rather be—like on the couch with Simon. Or, well, anywhere but talking about the ways Simon had been hurt. He cleared his throat. “Is there anything I… uh… shouldn’t do?”

She shook her head. “Not really. If he says no, of course—”

“I’d never force him.” He kept his voice quiet, but firm.

“I didn’t think you would.”

He glanced over at her, and she met his eyes briefly, then looked back at the road. Silence fell for a little while, and when Jimmy felt a little less crazy, he spoke again. “What are the chances he’ll be there?”

“Well, I checked with the police. According to the landlady, he hasn’t been back, but, well….”

“Yeah, she’s not watching all the time.”

“Exactly. They’ll be meeting us there. I called before we left.”

Jimmy nodded, taking a deep breath. “Okay.”

“I doubt he will be, though. Most of them are cowards. Especially if he sees the police.”

“He used weapons on Simon. Until this last time. Well, he did this time too, but also used his fists. He wouldn’t get close enough to where Simon might defend himself. I think he saw us kiss, though, and it… I don’t know.”

“Unbalanced him, maybe? It’s hard to know. Psychologists have analyzed abusers for years. There are a lot of unknowns and a lot of factors that go into it.”

She made the turn onto Simon’s street and pulled up behind a white car with a black-and-yellow stripe down the side and “Pittsburgh Police” across the back. A uniformed officer stepped out of the driver’s side, his coat unzipped and firearm visible on the belt. Jimmy had never paid much attention to all of the stuff a cop carried, but seeing the gun made him feel marginally better. Another cop got out of the passenger side and met Mrs. Andrews by her car as Jimmy climbed out.