31. Chapter 31

A couple of days after that shitshow with my mother , I sat across from Nacho at a diner. I’d called to meet up with him, but I didn’t explain why, and he showed up, no questions asked. I berated myself for being such an ass to Ajax and his friends for so long.

“Well, hello, Nate. How are you and Sam doing?” our server asked, pouring us two glasses of water.

Nacho looked up and smiled at the pretty woman with dark brown hair and kind dark eyes. “Hey, Ms. J! We’re really good.” He looked at me and smiled softly. “This is Aiden. He’s… new to our family. He’s also dating Ajax now.”

She beamed and took my hand to shake. “What a pleasure, Aiden. I’m glad Ajax has found someone in his life. I’m Stix’s mother, but you boys usually just call me Ms. J.”

I sat up straight, suddenly seeing the resemblance, which wasn’t easy with Stix bleaching his hair all the time. “Oh, uh, hello. Nice to meet you.”

“And it’s nice to meet you. You’re going to love hanging around these boys, and Jazz, too. She’s a wild one, but a sweetie,” she chuckled. “I better get back to my other tables. What can I get you, boys?”

“I’ll have the pancakes and a coffee,” I said, even though it was afternoon.

“Guess what I want?” Nacho said, smiling.

“A pile of nachos with extra cheese, coming right up.”

She walked off, leaving Nacho and me alone.

His dark curls were getting long and falling into his face. He brushed them back with his fingers in irritation.

“So, I’m here,” he said.

“Thanks, man.” I took a sip of water and set down my glass. “So, uhm, I called because I need some advice.”

“Sure, about what?”

“Taking care of someone.”

“Ajax, you mean?”

I nodded. “He’s getting better, but he won’t always be that way. His doctor said he could slip again. We’re preparing for it all, but… I’ve never taken care of anyone before, let alone myself.”

“You seem to be doing okay. Ajax is happy-ish—as happy as someone dealing with depression can be. You keep him company, show him love, and feed him.”

“Yeah, but you’ve taken care of Pippin for a long time. At least, that’s what Ajax told me. Do you have any advice? I want to make sure I take good care of him whenever he needs it. He won’t always, but I want to be prepared, as I said.”

Nacho huffed a laugh and sipped his water. Before he could speak, Ms. J brought us our lunch.

“There you boys are. I’m off, but flag me down if you need anything.”

We nodded, and she ran off.

I poured some syrup over my pancakes as Nacho looked away thoughtfully.

“I was a little controlling, Aiden, at least until recently. I worried so much about him and was too afraid he’d leave me if I didn’t do my best in his care and keep him protected. It all backfired epically, of course. ”

I nodded, having heard snippets of their story.

“One thing I’ve learned is that you can’t control everything, no matter how hard you try,” he said.

“Yeah, I’ve recently learned that.” Not that I ever had control in my life, but I didn’t tell him that.

He smiled. “Then you know. You just have to take it one day at a time. Let Ajax figure things out. If he wants to take steps alone, let him. Just make sure he knows you’ll always be there waiting when he returns.”

“What if he… what if…” I couldn’t say the words, but my face must have said it all.

“We always have to stay vigilant and prepared. If someone is determined to die, they’ll do their best to. If they succeed, it won’t be your fault. Sam’s had suicidal ideations himself. All you can do is do the best that you can while letting them breathe, too. You can’t watch them twenty-four-seven.”

As much as I wanted to protect Jaxon like that, Nacho was right.

“Sam really likes you and Cueball. You took care of him when he needed someone.”

I picked at my food, unable to look at him. “I didn’t do shit. That was all Cueball.”

Nacho shrugged. “That’s not how Sam sees it. Anyway, he likes you, and that means I like you. We all hated you for a while, but you’ve eased into our hearts. We’ll protect you with everything we have. That’s a promise.”

My eyes watered, not from hurt, but from realizing that love didn’t have to come through what my stepfather gave me. It came from friendship, healthy relationships, and family who didn’t have to be related to you. Nacho’s words were strangely healing. They helped stitch my black and broken soul back together. It still wasn’t perfect, and it probably never would be, but it was enough.

“Thanks. I’ll… do the same for you.”

We ate our lunch and chatted a bit longer about our friends, and he prattled on about skating. When we finished up, we even hugged.

After we parted ways, I headed toward Storm’s apartment because we had unfinished business .

When I reached his building, he buzzed me in. By the time I stepped up to his apartment, I found his door ajar, waiting for me. I pushed my way inside and found Storm on the couch, counting some pills and putting them in baggies.

“Change your mind?” he asked, looking over at me.

I’d called him a week ago to explain I wouldn’t sell anymore. He was chill about it, but he was disappointed at having to find someone new he could trust.

“No,” I said, sitting next to him.

“Finally got a job, eh?”

“Yeah. I, ah… saw my mom, got my ID and shit.”

“No shit? Well, good on you then, man. You two work your shit out? She forgive you?”

I sighed. “No. Turns out she’s… not my bio mom.”

Storm’s eyes blew wide. “What the fuck?”

“Yeah, my dad cheated, got another woman pregnant… with me. She died having me, so he brought me home, and my mom… fuck, I don’t know what to call her now. Anyway, he brought me home, and then, you know, they eventually divorced. Instead of taking me with him, he left me with her and paid her a lot for it. He didn’t want me, either. So, yeah… you can just feel the fucking love. I have no idea why I wasn’t put up for adoption or why my bio mom even had me. Maybe my dad didn’t find out about me until too late.”

Storm scoffed and shook his head. “What a fucking mess. Jesus, man. I’m sorry. That’s seriously fucked up.”

He eyed me for a minute before going back to his pills. “You seem… awfully calm about all this. Usually, you’re… volatile, no offense.”

“Trust me, I had my moment, along with emptying my lunch into her bushes. Anyway, I’ve found someone, and I’m happy. It’s why I’m not selling. He hates it.”

Storm shrugged. “I get it. That’s cool you found someone, though. You’ve been pretty lonely, I know.”

That Storm noticed reminded me of why we’d been close friends once upon a time.

“Hey, uhm, I’m sorry I’d been such a dickhead for so long. I’ve been apologizing a lot lately. It’s a wonder anyone puts up with me. It was hard growing up, even with all that money. I never understood why… she didn’t take care of me, love me, or barely acknowledge me. I’d been so fucking angry.”

He shrugged. “It’s all good, man.”

“Thanks.”

We sat in silence for a while, thinking about shit, I supposed.

“Uhm, Storm?”

“Yeah?”

“Can we try to be friends again? I mean, we are, but not like how we used to be. I’m doing my best to repair shit with people.”

He sat back and ran long fingers through his golden curls. “Yeah, okay. I always liked you, Aid. You’re a cool dude, even if you were a pain in the ass.”

I laughed. “That’s fair. I may still be a pain in the ass from time to time, but… I’m trying. Anyway, I’m going to head out.”

I stood and paused. “Listen, I have this sort of new crew… family. It’s been pretty great. They’re all skaters. Not me, but it’s fun hanging around them. They skate all the time, but Sundays are like a big day when we all meet up at the skatepark. Since it’s summer, they go to the Skatepark of Baltimore. I’m just sayin’ in case you ever want to swing by. There’s usually some sort of booze.”

Storm stood with me and shoved his hands into his jeans pockets. “Sure, sounds cool. Thanks, man.”

I nodded and pulled him into a quick bro hug before things got awkward and took off.

And then there were eleven of us.

I smiled when I saw Storm approaching our group, looking out of sorts, but I knew he was outgoing enough to lighten up.

To be honest, I doubted he’d come or if he even liked me enough for that, but fuck was I glad he did. He was the only person from my past who hadn’t turned his back on me, and he’d helped me make some money to live on. Even if it’d been illegal, I was forever grateful to him.

Of course, everyone was fucking awesome to him as I introduced him around—except for Jaxon. He knew everything about Storm, including his pinching drugs for me to sell. While my boyfriend was polite, he was wary of Storm, but in time, Ajax would come to like my old friend.

Blondie popped a fireball candy into his mouth, his lips and tongue bright red after eating several earlier. “Is Storm your real name or nickname?” he asked.

“Uh, real. I know it’s weird, but I was born in 1999 During Hurricane Floyd, which hit the East Coast. We’d been living in North Carolina at the time, which was hit hard by flooding because Hurricane Dennis had been there the week before. So, that’s my name. We moved up north to Maryland after that. My parents were sick of hurricanes.”

“Can’t blame them,” Blondie said, taking long licks on his fireball like he was literally licking some dude’s balls. Ugh, gross. “I’m Christopher, but everyone calls me Blondie ’cause of my hair. I’m already blond, but I bleach it, too.” He fingered back the long bangs, showing off his eyes, which fluttered.

God, was he flirting with my friend? Blondie and his twin, Jazz, had just turned nineteen. He was way too young for Storm. Storm liked girls, anyway.

“Knock it off!” Jazz hissed.

Blondie huffed. “What? I’m just being polite.”

She rolled her eyes, stood, grabbed her board, and tugged her brother to stand. “We’re skating.”

Jaxon whispered in my ear. “What’s that all about?”

“Fuck if I know. Jazz is a wild card, man.”

The day progressed with Stix and Stone showing Storm how to do basic skateboarding, and I laughed my ass off every time he fell. That was the main reason I didn’t skate. The only ass bruising I wanted was from Jaxon.

I turned to face my guy and kissed him. “Well, our family is growing.”

He smiled. “It is. I’m glad you’ve finally accepted them as your family, too.”

I shook my head and watched all our friends skate. “Nah, they accepted me. I’ve always secretly liked being with you all.”

He kissed my nose. “Good to know.”

“Let’s get out of here.”

Speaking of ass bruising, I’d been dying for sex, but Jaxon hadn’t been ready yet. It wasn’t hard to be patient, though. I had his love, which was all that mattered.

“Sounds good.”