When the table's been prepared, Zach goes over to gather Cody and receives a hug from Elisabeth. The three of them come over and we all settle around the table with Gabe. Cody is excited with his Trix, and I see there's also a mouse pancake next to his bowl. He inspects my plate and appears quite happy there's not an omelet filled with dreaded vegetables sitting in front of him too.
We start digging in and the first couple minutes are quiet as everyone enjoys the meal. I mentally pat myself on the back for finding a partner that can cook. Looking across the table at him, I smile. He must feel my eyes on him, because he looks up from his plate with an equally-content smile on his face. I mouth "I love you," to him and he reciprocates with "Love you, too."
Gabe pauses from shoveling food into his mouth. "So what's the plan dudes? You gonna start shacking up then? Staying here? San Pedro? Back to LA or what?" he elaborates as he grabs a piece of toast.
I look from my brother to my boyfriend, who swallows his bite and begins to answer. "We're all three gonna move to the new place Shaun got in Hollywood. We're gonna head home to San Pedro after this and pack up stuff. Then I have my last shift at the diner this afternoon. So, yeah we'll be heading to LA pretty soon." I nod in agreement.
"And the king of scholarships will finally get to show those rich fucks at CalArts what a real artist looks like," Gabe boasts. "I'm so happy for you man," he continues. The best friends share a look that feels meaningful; it's obvious through Gabe's bluster that he is proud of his blood-brother's accomplishment. "I'll be sure to buy a piece of your work for my office when I am sitting pretty bringing in the fat cash."
"Thanks man," Zach drawls. I know he's not always comfortable accepting compliments so even as I expect him to change the subject, I am joyfully surprised on how he accomplishes the task. "But, you know, you'll have to fight your brother for my work. He's uh, got first rights on my stuff for a while." His eyebrows go up and down a few times and he winks at me, making it feel a bit more, sexual than the promises we made to each other. I decide to go all in.
"True story, Gabe," I confirm. And uh, fair warning: a lot of his future work will probably be focused on life drawing and the like. I imagine I'll get wrangled into doing some modeling for some of his assignments. I won't want those, probably so you could get one at a good price," I deadpan, pretending to pose while biting the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing as my brother tries to scrub the idea of his oldest friend drawing naked pictures of his big brother. Zach covers his face but I can see his shoulders bobbing up and down laughing so I think he's pleased I caught on.
I see Gabe mentally calculating how to respond in kind. "Absolutely dude, you know I support your big gay lifestyle. In fact, I'll buy a couple so Larry can have one for his office too." Zach exhales and shakes his head. Luckily for everyone, before this turns into a verbal bloodbath Cody saves the day.
"Uncle Zach draws pictures of me too sometimes," he innocently chimes in. "Maybe you can buy one of those too!" His earnestness is adorable and performs a proper checkmate concluding our game of one-upping.
"I would wanna buy all of those Codes…" I begin as my words mingle with Zach's.
"Oh I couldn't sell my drawings of you, buddy," he assures his nephew.
"But if you sold my pictures, then I would have some money, right? I got some stuff I wanna buy," Cody explains. The entire table explodes in laughter.
"Cody, out of curiosity, what would you want to buy?" Elisabeth chimes in, and I am glad she does because I fully intend to take note of his shopping list so we can start spoiling him (a little bit!) as soon as possible.
"Well, I'm gonna have my own room when we move so I gotta decorate that," he begins, clearly thinking hard as he grabs his chin. "And I wanna get some new sneakers. And I wanna send Mommy a card and I wanna take some pictures of my bedroom to send to her so I need a 'sposable camera like Uncle Zach has. And some new Sharpies and a puppy."
"That's quite a list, little man!" Elisabeth exclaims, and she begins telling Cody about her dog while I commit his list to memory.
The meal wraps up and Elisabeth and (realistically, a probably-reluctant-but-still-on-good-behavior) Gabe insist on handling clean-up so we can go get started packing up in San Pedro.
Since Cody's car seat is still in my car, he insists on riding with me. My heart cheers and I am honestly glad that I don't have to struggle to change out the safety seat. Zach gives me a kiss before he climbs into his vehicle which no longer reeks of our sexcapades yesterday, and my cheering heart feels like it will burst from all the love I am being shown by these guys. The animosity I was feeling regarding his vehicle seems to have died. Grinning at my boyfriend's newfound comfort with PDA, I click the Half-Pint into his seat, hop into the V70 and follow him.
In the car, Cody is chipper. He plays with the dials on one of the walkie-talkies he brought along as he goes in for the kill. "Shaun, will our new house have a yard for a puppy?" he asks, his face the picture of innocence. I snort.
"That's a good question, Ankle-Biter," I muse. There is some yard space where we will live, but I think this is a conversation we should have with your uncle too, dontcha think?" He sighs.
"Uncle Zach will prolly say we can't 'cause they're lots of work, but I think since you do work on your 'puter and don't have to go to school like me and him, that we can maybe get one?" Clever boy!
"That is something we'd have to think about and consider, little man. It's good to be responsible for pets." I try to change the subject before this boy with me wrapped around his pinky convinces me to promise him a puppy by the time we hit the Vincent Thomas Bridge. "But uh, hey, the puppy was the last thing on your list. Let's chat about what else you wanna buy. I think we can work on that disposable camera and card for your mom."
"Yay!" the small boy cheers, with a fistpump. I laugh.
"And we will definitely wanna decorate your room so it's perfect for you and you feel comfortable there, and you have good pictures to send to her," I include. This seems to satisfy him and I am relieved he doesn't press me on the puppy without his uncle here for backup. We fall into a comfortable silence as we get closer to San Pedro.
We arrive at their place and start assessing. As Zach had assumed, things like their TV, recliner, everyday kitchen stuff, dinner table, and other smaller pieces of furniture are missing. Zach and Cody's room is the only one that still looks like a proper living space that hasn't been raided. Luckily, Jeanne and Alan had left several cardboard grocery boxes scored from the Oceanette so we can start packing up stuff pretty immediately. I look to Zach for guidance on what to start with.
"Uh, let's set stuff we're keeping to take along in the living room. Stuff to toss or donate, let's set in the kitchen," he instructs, and I nod. "Codes," he continues, "Your job is to pack up your toys and stuff from our room and anywhere else you have them, buddy. If there is something you don't want, set it in the pile in the kitchen, okay?" Cody responds with the hang-loose sign as Zach hands him a box emblazoned with a logo for fish sticks. Cody takes off for the bulk of his stuff in his room.
"What do you want me to start with?" I ask, trying to be respectful of how draining it must be to sort through and pack up what's been left.
"I mean, honestly, except for my canvases in the living room, most of the other stuff was stuff Jeanne picked out so I don't feel like we need to keep it," he explains, gesturing to a macrame plant holder hanging behind the door. "The couch is super old, so maybe a new one is better…" he trails off.
"I hear ya, dude. I mean, I do have a very fond memory of this couch from when I came over to watch Toy Story, but I also remember leaving not fully satisfied so I don't have a huge emotional attachment to it, babe." A small smile lights his face.
"New couch, new memories, eh?"
"Oh, we'll be making them!" I promise, kissing his jaw. He nods and his face looks more confident.
"So, my artwork, anything that looks like Cody's, any art supplies you see," he says, pointing to a few Sharpies and cans of spray paint set on a crate in the corner.
We make short work of the room. I set the couple of boxes for keeping along the wall by the door. Finding Zach in the kitchen, I see the toss or donate corner already filling up with things like chipped mugs, an old bong, and a pot missing one handle. The cardboard box to keep has some small canvases of Zach's work, a cast iron skillet, and some vintage-looking spoons and forks featuring Disney characters. I remember them from when he was a kid and smile. Zach gives me a sheepish grin.
"They were my mom's and Codes loves 'em," he explains.
"Oh, I remember those from back in the day; I get it, man," I confirm and grab him in a hug.
"Wanna start on the bathroom?" he asks. I nod, grab a box that once transported packages of flour, and head there.
The bathroom is tiny and since Jeanne's stuff is already gone, there isn't too much to pull out from the medicine cabinet and elsewhere. There are some of Cody's toys as well in the bathtub I stash in the box. In the trash can, there are an almost-alarming amount of empty prescription bottles in Jeanne's name and in her and Zach's dad John's name that could be concerning. I am relieved that Jeanne has agreed to letting Cody stay with us rather than foisting him on his grandfather who's been dealing with chronic pain for years or being dragged to Oregon with asshole Alan. I take the box to keep and set it with the others in the living room, grab some cleaner, and start wiping down everything.
Just as I am finishing up, I hear the doorbell ring.
