Attention


"So, did you hang out at these spots all the time as a kid?" Cassie asked, sitting across from Theo in the booth of a bar in the small town village in Mexicali where he grew up.

"Did I hang out in bars as a kid?" Theo questioned, sitting his beer down.

"No, well… in your latter years then." Cassie shrugged.

"Well I kinda stopped coming when I was like nineteen or something." Theo said, "Had a big bust up with my dad about being a cop and I barely came out here after that."

"Didn't you miss it?" She asked him.

"Yeah, but it was easier to be in Chicago. Plus they had a better policing program. I didn't wanna be a cop here." He widened his eyes and shook his head.

"Why not?" She asked him.

"It's just different." Theo shrugged, watching as Cassie looked around the bar. It was very obviously a local. Every place in the town was someone's local. It was a very quaint village where practically everyone knew everyone.

"Well you gotta show me everything." She smiled to him.

"You've been here before." Theo scoffed.

"Yeah, for a weekend that ended up a drag because of your dad." Cassie said, "I want the full Mexicali experience. You know everything about where I'm from. This is only fair." She smiled.

"It's really not that interesting." He chuckled.

"It is to me." Cassie nodded, "Did you get in touch with some of your old friends?"

"No." Theo shook his head, "It's been too long. It's awkward now. Some of them might not even remember me." He said.

"Oh, but how could you forget that face?" She smiled, reaching over and taking hold of his chin as he chuckled, "This place looks like it would have a newsletter. Charity dances in the town hall. Farmers market Sundays." She nodded.

"You're making this place out to be something it's not. Seriously." He nodded, amused.

"I like it." She shrugged, looking over at Chase who was giving the man behind the bar a high five after he'd been allowed to help unload the dishwasher, "Our son is making friends already." She nodded as Theo turned around, watching Chase fist bump with the barman.

"He free for a shift tonight?" The barman called over to them as Theo raised his beer.

"We'll drop him off." Theo nodded as Cassie smiled.

"Mommy, I took the glasses out!" Chase yelled, running over to their table.

"You're working hard." Cassie smiled.

"That's Don." Chase pointed to the barman he'd befriended, "This is his bar."

"And he's giving you a job?" Theo asked him as Chase nodded.

"But don't you want to be a police officer like mommy and daddy?" Cassie pouted, fixing her son's messy hair as he swatted her hand away from fussing.

"No, not right now." Chase explained.

"Oh, ok." Cassie smiled.

"Is this empty?" Chase asked, taking one of Theo's empty beer bottles, "You're finished?"

"Yeah." Theo laughed a little.

"Don, I have an empty bottle!" Chase yelled, running back over to the friendly barman who began showing Chase where to put the empty bottles.

"Doesn't take much to entertain him, does it?" Cassie smiled.

"Yeah, he's the best." Theo nodded, listening as he began to hear some stirring from Lena in her stroller, "Oh hey, you." He stood up, looking in the stroller where Lena was stirring, "And the socks are off."

"Of course." Cassie nodded, watching Theo lift her out of the stroller, smiling as she noticed her dark hair messy at the back, "Look at her hair."

"You sleeping rough, baby?" Theo smiled, melting at those sleepy tired eyes Lena had.

"Hi, sweetie." Cassie smiled, taking a hold of one of Lena's feet, wiggling it a little as Lena smiled, "Hi." Cassie said again.

"Oh girl, you stink." Theo nodded.

"Well I dealt with the one on the plane. This is all you." Cassie made clear.

"How can someone so little go so much?" Theo shook his head, reaching for the diaper bag sitting over the stroller, "You better not pee on me again. We're gonna start having problems, you and I." He spoke to her as she watched him closely, her little fingers digging into his shoulder.

"Front to back." Cassie reminded.

"Yeah, I got it, Cass." Theo scoffed, "She's five months old."

"I'm just reminding you." Cassie shrugged as Theo shook his head.

"Alright, let's go, sweet pea." Theo smiled as Cassie chuckled, "What?" He turned to her.

"Oh, nothing. Just… hearing things like sweet pea come out of your mouth is just… it's great for your image." Cassie nodded as he rolled her eyes.

"Come on, my little potato cake." Theo hummed, deliberately looking back at Cassie who gave him a sarcastic thumbs up, watching him disappear into the bathroom with Lena as she smiled to herself.

"Hey, you guys good for drinks over here?" Don approached the table as Cassie looked up.

"All good." Cassie smiled, "Thank you for entertaining my son. He's having a lot of fun." Cassie nodded.

"Oh, he's great." Don nodded, looking over at Chase who was filling up the napkin dispenser, "Forgive me for being nosey but… your husband, is that… is his name Theo?" He wondered as Cassie nodded.

"It is." Cassie smiled, "Sanchez." She added, "You know him?"

"Way back when." Don nodded, slinging his towel over his shoulder, "I knew his dad. Knew the boys from kicking around the streets. I haven't seen him in years."

"We're here for the month." Cassie nodded, "Theo rarely comes here any more. We're in Chicago." She said.

"I see." Don nodded, "When I saw the little guy walk through the door when you guys came in, that was my first thought. How much he looked like little Theo."

"Yeah, they're very much a double act." Cassie nodded as Don chuckled

"Every Saturday night here we do Karaoke and Quiz night." Don said, "If you guys fancy it whilst you're here. I could use the staff." He pointed over to Chase as Cassie smiled.

"Sounds like our kind of thing." Cassie smiled, "Thanks." She nodded, watching as he tipped his cap to her, walking off back to the bar.


"My daughter painted that." Punk nodded proudly to the couple in front of him at the coffee shop he was standing in line at. The couple had a local newspaper in front of them, which he could see a picture of Jude's mural with a piece written about it underneath.

"She painted this?" The woman asked, pointing to the picture on the newspaper.

"Yeah." Punk nodded, "Jude Brooks." He pointed to the name written in the article of his talented daughter, "That's my daughter."

"You have a very talented daughter." The man nodded to him as Punk folded his arms with a smile.

"I do." Punk agreed, "Thank you." He nodded to them as they smiled, turning back around and moving forward to place their order.

"Did you order?" AJ asked, showing up beside him.

"No, I'm still in the line." Punk told her, "Hey, that couple over there were looking at the article on Jude's mural in the paper." He pointed as AJ looked over.

"I just walked past and people are taking pictures in front of it. I saw a mom and her little girl taking a picture in front of it." AJ smiled, "I can't get over it."

"I think it's going to be on the local news, you know." Punk nodded to her as AJ smiled, hugging into his arm.

"I'm so glad she's showing off her talents. I know she loved being a teacher but… I mean, this is what she's always wanted. To be an artist. To show people what she can do." AJ said.

"Well, she's shown it alright." Punk nodded.

"Next." The barista called behind the counter as Punk and AJ moved over.

"A cold brew and flat white, please." Punk said.

"Cake pop." AJ whispered.

"Oh and a cake pop." Punk added, taking his wallet out, "Hey, do you know the mural painted on the abortion clinic?" He asked the young girl behind the counter who was taking their order.

"Yeah?" She nodded.

"Phil." AJ scoffed, nudging him.

"Our daughter painted it." Punk nodded with a smile as the girl smiled.

"Really?" She said, "I took a picture of it yesterday on my way here. I put it on Instagram." She smiled happily as Punk just nodded, realising he was too old to wonder why she would do that.

"Well that's our daughter." Punk nodded.

"Ok well I think I'm giving you guys two free cake pops." She waved her hand, wandering off to fetch their order as AJ raised her eyebrows.

"We're famous." Punk whispered to her as she shook her head, shoving him a little as he chuckled, wrapping his arm around her and kissing her head.


"Well I hope it doesn't just turn into the latest Instagram trend." Jude scoffed, standing outside her mural with Thea who was posing in front of the painting, "Like those wings in LA that everyone stands in front of."

"Quit complaining." Thea scoffed, doing a star jump as Jude continued to snap shots of her, "I think it's great. I mean… mom's are bringing their little girls down here. Men are noticing. It's a good thing. And it's beautiful. A little scary but beautiful." Thea nodded as Jude smiled, looking up at her painting. Part of her couldn't believe she had finally finished it, and that it was really there for the whole world to see. A weird part of her felt naked.

The painting was of a woman with her mouth half sewn shut, the thread from the stitches carrying over in loops to the writing which said 'her body, no choice?' beside. The colours were bright and vibrant around it whilst the area the of the woman was only darker shades. The woman in the painting held her hand up with a needle to the stitches half-way across her mouth. Either unstitching or stitching. She figured she'd leave that to people's imagination. And on the hand of the woman, a dragon tattoo.

"It's so real looking." Thea shook her head, standing back and taking it in again, "I mean I just… I can't wrap my head around how you do it." She said as Jude just smiled.

"Can we go now?" James scoffed, "We've been here for a while."

"I haven't had my picture yet." Sam marched over to the side of the building, "Mommy, take a picture of me."

"Oh, ok." Thea nodded, taking a picture of Sam who put her hands behind her back and grinned. She had no idea what she was posing for or what the painting was, she just wanted to feel included.

"There's actually a line now." James rolled his eyes, noticing people standing from afar, waiting to get a closer look, "Let's go." He looked at his mother and aunt who just chuckled at his annoyance.

"Hey, how cool is this, right?" Jess crept up behind him as he jumped and looked at her.

"Uh… where did… I didn't know you were there." James shook his head as she nodded.

"Yeah I came with the girls from school." She pointed over to her friends, "You got a picture?" She smiled.

"No." James scoffed as she frowned a little, "I mean… I think it's cool and… you know, go women." He nodded awkwardly as Jess smiled a little, "But I don't need a picture."

"Oh." Jess smiled, "I think that's the woman over there who painted it, actually." She noticed, looking over at Jude and Thea.

"Yeah, it is." James nodded, "That's my aunt." He explained as Jess looked at him.

"No way." She said.

"Yeah." James shrugged, "That's my mom standing with her. That's her little sister."

"Your aunt did this?" Jess asked, amazed, "Can you paint like that?"

"No." James scoffed, "I just know how to play soccer." He shrugged awkwardly as she smiled.

"Well that's cool too." Jess nodded.

"Hey." Thea crept up on them, recognising the girl from the grocery store when James bumped into her, "Jess, right?" She remembered.

"Uh… yeah." Jess nodded, "Hi, Ms Castillo. James was just telling me his aunt did this."

"Yeah, she did." Thea nodded, "We're just about to take off so… you can get a little closer to it. Do you need me to take a picture of you?"

"Oh, no. I'm with my friends." She pointed behind her.

"Ok." Thea smiled.

"James I think it's really cool your aunt did this." Jess nodded to James who just smiled, "Like it's… totally badass." She said.

"It's cool." James agreed briefly, trying hard to act cool which Thea was very amused by.

"Ok, well I'll see you at school." Jess smiled, running back over to her friends whilst Thea chuckled and looked at James.

"Shut up." James shook his head.

"What? I never said anything?" Thea chuckled.

"Who were you guys talking to there?" Jude asked, walking over to them with Sam, making their way down the street.

"Oh just James' girlfriend." Thea nodded.

"She's not my girlfriend." James bit back.

"She loves the painting." Thea told Jude, "She thinks it's so cool that James' aunt did it. Badass, actually." Thea remembered, smirking to Jude who looked at James.

"Oh, am I helping you get girls attention?" Jude wrapped her arm around James teasingly, "This is every aunt's dream." She kissed his cheek.

"Stop." James moaned, trying to push her away as they chuckled.