XXV.
After having been so unceremoniously dismissed upstairs by Ben and slamming the bedroom door behind himself, Jimmy paced relentlessly across the floor several times. How could Ben hold him back like that and then send him away? Wasn't it his right to rip that other boy's face off? What the fuck kind of person came to another's house, confessed his undying love and kissed that other person against his will, right in front of that other person's boyfriend? Didn't a person like that, with such a complete and utter lack of respect, deserve to have his ass thoroughly kicked by said boyfriend?
Jimmy certainly thought so. He faltered in his pacing and wondered painfully, so why didn't Ben. The possible answers ached through Jimmy.
Maybe because the kiss wasn't entirely against Ben's will. Maybe because Ben returned that undying love.
Jimmy shook his head and glared at the ground. He started straightening and re-straightening things around the room to occupy his mind. But eventually that wore on him, as he thought of the fight he and Ben had moments before Cole showed up.
Would it really have hurt so much to talk to Ben, Jimmy wondered, to confess everything about his family? Or was he right in assuming that someone who came from such a perfect family, where the love is unconditional, could never understand a home as broken as the Bolands'?
Jimmy sat on the edge of the bed and buried his head in his hands. Maybe Cole was right, Jimmy and Ben were wrong for each other.
The front door slammed downstairs and Jimmy moved across the bed to get a look outside the window. He saw Cole moving across the street, shaking his head at the ground. He unlocked a Volvo and climbed inside. Jimmy turned when the bedroom door creaked open, his wide, questioning eyes on the boy standing in its frame. Ben gave Jimmy a small smile, walked into the room a few paces, hung his head and sighed.
"What happened?" Jimmy asked.
"Uh…" Ben shrugged, and sheepishly murmured, "Well…I told him I'd run away with him, we're getting eloped."
"What?" Jimmy cried, starting up from the bed in anger but uncertain what he would do with all of his rage. Maybe if he hurried he could catch up to Cole and beat the shit out of him after all.
"Calm down, I'm just joking," Ben grinned at Jimmy, laughing, "I told him to get lost," he ran a hand over his face and groaned, "God, that was embarrassing. I can't believe he actually kissed me."
"I can't believe you didn't let me break his face," Jimmy seethed, settling back down on the bed and peering curiously at Ben, "You weren't tempted? To dump me, go with him?"
"Fuck no," Ben scoffed, crossing the room and dropping a kiss to the top of Jimmy's head, "I stopped wanting him the day I watched him making out with his new girlfriend, her leaned against my locker in the halls of our high school."
"Seriously?" Jimmy perked a brow, demanding, "And I wasn't allowed to hit him because…?"
Ben shrugged, "I didn't want you to get blood on the carpet, it might upset my parents, and I know how much you want them to like you."
Jimmy smirked distantly, lowering his eyes again.
"They do, like you, you know," Ben said, plopping on the bed beside Jimmy, "My family. They like you."
"They do?" Jimmy pressed, half-teasing, "You're not just saying that."
"Well, my mom is easy to win over, she likes anyone I tell her to, so, she's a definite. You fed Matt, so you've got his vote. You and Karen formed some unholy alliance yesterday at brunch, ganged up on me and Hal, so that's three. Hal doesn't challenge just anyone to eating contests, so you've got his thumbs up. And when my dad called me into his study at dinner the other night, the night that Cole swore he thought my family disapproved of you, well my dad gave me the wedding watch and told me to go ahead and let you know you had his approval," Ben told Jimmy, "That's the whole family. Except my nephew, but I don't think he'll be casting a vote until you stop calling him 'brat'."
Jimmy smiled, letting the knowledge that he'd somehow managed to gain every Masons' approval sink in a moment, before furrowing his brow and musing, "Wedding watch?"
"Uh…that's nothing. Forget it," Ben said hastily, laying back on the bed and sighing.
Jimmy turned to lean over Ben, relaxing a kiss against his mouth.
"The thing we were talking about…before Cole rudely interrupted," Ben started.
Jimmy pulled back abruptly, spinning round and glaring at the far wall.
"I thought we were done with that," he bit out.
Ben sat up, opening his mouth to say something, but the front door opening downstairs, the sounds of his family shuffling inside, cut him off.
"Boys, we're back," Tom called from downstairs.
"I guess we are done," Ben muttered, slumping back down on the bed again.
There was a sound of footsteps on the stairs and then Rebekah filled the doorframe.
"Hey, you two feeling any better?" she asked, entering the room and pressing a hand first to Jimmy's forehead and then to Ben's.
"A little," Ben said, pointing at the bathroom, murmuring, "I threw up a few minutes ago."
"That's good, baby, get it out of your system," Rebekah told him, pushing his hair back and smiling. She gently touched Jimmy's shoulder to get his attention, and he stirred slightly, glancing at her, "What about you, hon, you feeling better?"
"Yeah. Sure," Jimmy mumbled, "Thank you, Mrs. Mason."
"Karen was thinking about making dinner tonight, if you boys are feeling up to it," Rebekah said.
"Karen is going to cook?" Ben gaped, "She can do that?"
"Hal hasn't starved yet, so I believe she's capable," Rebekah chuckled, then explained, "I think Jimmy cooking the other night might have made her feel a little like she needed to do something."
"I'm sorry, I just wanted to do something nice, I didn't mean for anyone…" Jimmy began to stammer, but Rebekah shushed him, swatting a hand his direction.
"Don't worry about it," she clucked, "Anything that gets me out of the kitchen is perfectly fine by me…now if you could only motivate one of my boys or my husband to learn how to cook…I tell them if they aren't going to help, then they have no room to talk, but that doesn't stop the Peanut Gallery comments about my food. I'll let Karen know that you two are in, I'll start you boys some more tea also."
"Thanks, mom," Ben called as Jimmy said, "Thank you, Mrs. Mason."
Rebekah left back downstairs. Jimmy lay down on the bed beside Ben, folding his arms over his stomach and staring up at the ceiling.
"You know, we will have a problem if you decide to act jealous every time I talk to Ryan," Jimmy quietly noted, "His feelings for me aside, he's still my best friend."
"It won't be every time. Just the times you talk to him when you should be talking to me," Ben returned bitterly.
"And who gets to decide when those times are? You?" Jimmy challenged, pulling himself off the bed and heading for the door, "Because I'll talk to you when I feel like talking and right now, you know what? I really don't feel like talking."