November

Today was one of those rare days that Jeff had the apartment all to himself. Tyler was at a friend's house for the afternoon and Jeff was excited to watch something on TV other than Adventure Time.

He got the mail before unlocking the door and stepping into his blissfully empty apartment. He immediately grabbed a beer from the fridge and flopped himself down on the couch. He found the remote and put the TV on SportsCenter before going through his mail. He set the bills to the side and studied the Manilla envelop that had been at the bottom of the stack. It was from his mother.

He opened it and pulled out a small collection of photos. The first three were some of the posed pictures that Doreen had made them take on the couch that day they had visited her, but the last two were of Jeff and Tyler on the floor together playing with Jeff's old toys. She had taken them without him noticing. Jeff found himself smiling at the pictures, despite his remembered annoyance over the forced photo shoot.

An hour later Jeff stepped back to admire his handiwork. Two of the pictures, in brand new frames, now adorned the wall above his TV. He got out his phone, dialed the number, and pressed it to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Mom," He greeted. "Just calling to thank you for sending me those pictures. They turned out great."

"I'm so glad you like them!" Doreen replied.

"Speaking of pictures, did you get the ones I sent you of our Halloween costumes?"

"I did!" Doreen laughed. "I've been showing them off to all the ladies at work. You two looked so handsome."

"Well, I certainly thought so," Jeff agreed with a grin.


Jeff woke up to the sound of Tyler screaming. He sat straight up in bed and fumbled for the pull cord on his bedside lamp. "Tyler?" He called, hastily switching on the light and getting out of bed. He got to Tyler's room as quickly as he physically could.

When he opened the door, Tyler was sitting bolt upright in bed, eyes wide and terrified. "Tyler?" Jeff asked, approaching slowly. "What's wrong?"

Tyler's breath hitched in his throat.

"Did you have a bad dream?" Jeff asked, sitting down on the edge of his bed.

Tyler nodded silently a couple of times before the tears started. Suddenly he was sobbing and Jeff was momentarily taken aback. He started to panic before he found himself instinctively reaching for Tyler and pulling him into his lap. Tyler curled up against him, and buried his face in the front of Jeff's shirt.

"You're alright," Jeff whispered to him. "You're alright."

After a while, Tyler seemed to calm down. He stopped crying and his breathing slowed. Eventually he sat up and wiped his cheeks, avoiding Jeff's eyes.

"Do you think you can sleep now?" Jeff asked gently, trying to meet Tyler's eyes. Tyler didn't answer. Instead he reached out and grabbed onto Jeff's wrist tightly. He didn't want Jeff to leave.

Jeff had to swallow past a strange lump in his throat before he could speak. "Would you – Do you think you could sleep if you slept in my bed?"

Tyler nodded and climbed back into Jeff's lap, wrapping his little arms around Jeff's shoulders. Jeff lifted him up and carried him into his room, setting him down on the bed and turning off the light. When Jeff climbed into bed, Tyler rolled so that his forehead was pressed against Jeff's chest. Jeff was momentarily at a loss of what to do. Before, when Tyler was crying, he had just known how to comfort him. But now he wasn't sure what to do. He settled for resting his hand against Tyler's arm and using his thumb to rub back and forth in a way he hoped was soothing.

Soon Tyler was asleep, but no such luck for Jeff. He knew without even trying that he was going to be unable to fall back to sleep.


Jeff pulled into Shirley's driveway and yawned. He'd barely slept last night. Tyler had been able to go right back to sleep after the nightmare ordeal, but not Jeff. He just couldn't seem to shut his brain down enough to get any decent rest.

"Alright," Jeff said as he and Tyler got out of the car and made their way to the Bennett's front door. "Can we make this quick and painless? Eat, make polite conversation, and then get the Hell out of here. No begging to stay longer again, got it?"

"Got it," Tyler replied with a smile. Jeff eyed the boy, suspecting strongly that Tyler would not end up sticking to the plan.

He reached out to knock on the door, but before his knuckles could connect, the door sprang open revealing a crowd that seemingly contained everyone he knew. "Surprise!" They all shouted in unison.

"Um, what?" Jeff stood there in shocked confusion.

"Happy Birthday!" Shirley and Annie cheered from the front of the group.

"Why?" Jeff complained, letting his shoulders droop.

"Could you just pretend to enjoy your birthday for once and let us celebrate?" Annie chastised, reaching out and grabbing the front of his shirt, dragging him across the threshold where he was immediately assaulted by people hugging him and wishing him a happy birthday.

He looked around to find Tyler grinning at him from Shirley's arms. He handed Jeff a handmade card covered in his half-legible scrawl then leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Jeff's neck, "I knew the whole time!" He laughed. "Happy Birthday, Jeff!"

Jeff rolled his eyes but couldn't hold back his smile. Okay, maybe this wasn't all bad.

Jeff must have been much more tired than he'd thought he was. As consciousness returned to him, he realized he must have fallen asleep on Shirley's couch. His first concern upon waking was stretching his stiff neck. Getting old was Hell. His second concern quickly became his primary one when he heard Pierce's voice telling a story. He realized with horror which story he was telling and who exactly he was telling it to.

"… And that's when I realized that the woman who had me pinned to the wall of this tiny airplane bathroom was none other than the great Eartha Kitt!" Pierce was saying to Tyler, who was sitting in his lap and listening closely. "So then I -"

"Oh, no." Jeff said, jumping to his feet. "No, nope." He snatched Tyler off of the older man's lap, "And then he gave her a polite handshake and they never saw each other again. The end." He tucked the boy under his arm like a football and strode out of the room.

"What?" Pierce shouted as they left. "It came up organically!"

Jeff marched into the kitchen where the rest of his friends were gathered together, talking. "Who let Pierce babysit?" He demanded.

"Well, I -" Shirley began.

"Well, don't." Jeff interrupted. He set Tyler down, "Go play," He said, gently pushing him towards the dining room where Jordan and Elijah were.

Jeff straightened and turned to his friends, "I just woke up to Pierce telling my kid the Eartha Kitt story."

"Oh," Everyone flinched.

"Exactly."

"Maybe that's what you get for falling asleep. Serious party foul, Winger," Britta teased.

"A." Jeff said, turning to her. "It's my party. B. Shut up."

"Grouchy today, aren't we?"

Jeff sighed and leaned against the nearest wall, "Yeah, sorry. I didn't get a lot of sleep last night." An unplanned yawn punctuated his sentence nicely.

A loud bang emanated from the dining room and the sounds of children playing stuttered to a halt. Shirley turned towards the noise. "Do not make me come in there," She threatened.

"Sorry, Momma!" Her two boys called in unison.

"Sorry, Shirley!" Tyler echoed.

"Maybe we should go check on them," Abed said, pointing in the direction of the dining room.

"Yes, maybe we should," Troy agreed. "Excuse us." They both disappeared through the doorway, clearly just going to join in on the fun they had been missing out on.

Shirley turned to Jeff, her voice back to its normal, sweet intonation, "I'm sorry. I wouldn't have made you stay this long if I'd known you were so tired."

Jeff waved it off, "It's fine. It's a great party. Actually," He leaned towards her and dropped his voice, "I'm glad I'm here. I was kind of hoping to talk to you." He nodded towards the hallway to indicate that she should follow him.

They stepped into the hallway and Jeff leaned against the wall with a sigh. Shirley moved so that she was across from him, leaning against the opposite wall.

"I couldn't sleep because Tyler had a nightmare last night," Jeff stated, avoiding Shirley's gaze by focusing on the floor.

"Aw, poor thing," Shirley said, sympathetically.

Jeff shook his head. "It was awful. He woke up screaming. I don't even know what he was dreaming about. I was afraid to ask. I didn't want to, I don't know, make it worse or something." Jeff ran his hands over his face. "This is hard, Shirley. How do you do it? How do you take care of a little person? I just thought it was keeping a kid alive, but it's not. It's more than that. It's caring for a little person that has his own personality and history and… He was so upset. And I didn't know what to do. I never know what I'm doing. And I never know if what I end up doing is right!"

Shirley gave him a loving smile, "Jeff, you're doing fine. The truth is, no one ever knows what they're doing. Andre and I surely don't. You just have to trust your instincts. Go with your gut. It's not easy, but I've found that the things in life most worth doing rarely are."

"That was just vague enough to be frustrating."

Shirley laughed. "I'm sorry. I wish I could give you the Magic Book of Parenting, but it hasn't been written yet."

"That's okay. I probably wouldn't have read it anyway," Jeff said with a grin.

"Ow! Stop hitting so hard!" Jordan's muffled voice shouted from the other room.

"You hit first!" Tyler's voice shouted back.

There was another loud bang followed by children yelling in unison:

"Momma!"

"Jeff!"

Jeff closed his eyes and turned his body towards the kitchen door, taking a dramatically deep, steadying breath.

"Go on Papa Winger. You got this," Shirley said, giving him a little push.


Jeff knelt in front of Tyler and adjusted his jacket. They'd gone out and bought him a nice new shirt to wear to Thanksgiving dinner, and Jeff just wanted to make sure it looked alright with the jacket he already owned. He wished Tyler would let him dress him more often. The clothes Jeff picked out made him look like a little model.

"We're going to see your dad tomorrow, right?" Tyler asked.

"That is correct," Jeff responded, Tyler's clothes still capturing most of his attention.

"What do I call him? Grandpa?"

"No. Probably not. Call him William, I guess. That's what I'm going to call him." Jeff looked him over once more and clapped him on both arms. "That jacket is perfect with this shirt. We'll have to remember to take a picture for Grandma tomorrow or she'll kill me." Jeff nodded to himself, "Alright, go get changed."

Jeff stood up and got out his phone to check his notifications, but Tyler stayed where he was.

"Are you nervous?" Tyler asked.

"Why would I be nervous?" Jeff asked without looking up from his phone.

"Britta said you hadn't seen your dad in a long time."

"I haven't seen him since I was eight."

"Why?"

Jeff huffed, and turned away, pretending to go through some mail that was piled on the bar's counter behind him. "Uh, he, uh, left. He went away and didn't come back." Jeff explained uncomfortably.

"Like my dad," Tyler stated simply. "He didn't want to be my dad anymore."

Jeff spun around in surprise and locked eyes with Tyler. "Right. Like your dad."

Tyler nodded once and then turned to head for his room and get changed like he was asked.

"Hey, Tyler…" Jeff said suddenly, his voice surprising him. He wasn't aware that he had even decided to speak until the words were at his lips. "You know that has nothing to do with you, right? Your father's choice was because of him. Not you."

Tyler turned around and met Jeff's eyes. They stood there like that, watching each other from across the room for a long time until the spell was broken by Jeff's ringing phone. He looked down to check the number and when he looked back up, Tyler had already disappeared into his room.


Jeff pulled into the Buck Hill Townhomes parking lot, and parked next to shiny classic car. It was a beige Mercedes convertible that was very well taken care of. The front license plate read "winginit", which made Jeff scoff. He helped Tyler out of the backseat and they made their way to the correct apartment.

Jeff reached out to knock on the door and completely froze. He had been so confident. And now all he could think about was what Britta had said in school on Friday and how much he did not want to have to deal with any of that. He did not want things to get weird and emotional. He didn't do emotional. So, he did the only sane thing he could think to do. He ran.

Jeff spun around and snatched Tyler up, placing him against his hip, and hightailed it back to his car.

"Where are we going?" Tyler asked as he squirmed to get down.

Jeff opened the back door of his car and set Tyler in the backseat, buckling him up. "I can do that by myself," Tyler complained. "Where are we going?" He asked again.

"I realized that I forgot something. We have to go back home."

"But we just got here!" Tyler whined as Jeff shut the door.

"I know," Jeff said, climbing into the front seat and starting the engine.

Two miles away from Buck Hill, Jeff started to feel weak. He pulled up Britta's phone number on the screen in his car and hit 'Call'. The sound of ringing came through the speakers.

Britta answered on the second ring. "Hey, Jeff. What's up?"

"What's up is closure," He said in the cockiest voice he could muster. "I met my dad and we talked things out as men. I think I'm ready to move on."

"Really? In twenty minutes?" Came Britta's disbelieving reply.

Jeff groaned inwardly, "Fine. Look, I couldn't do it. I was at the front door, totally in control, and then I started thinking about all that stuff you said about messiness and… It threw me off my game. You know, the irony is after all your pestering that I deal with my daddy issues, you're the reason I'm not meeting my father."

"Or maybe I'm the reason you'll come here after all."

Jeff grinned. He loved putting her in her place. "Britta, I -" Suddenly his face fell. "Wait. What do you mean by 'here'?"

"Your dad's house," She said nervously. "Where I kinda sorta am…"

Jeff's whole brain was screaming. He opened his mouth and nothing came out.

"Jeff?" Britta asked.

"I guess I'm coming back," Jeff finally said, frustration coloring his voice. "See you in a few."

Jeff hung up the phone and inhaled deeply through his nose. He gripped the steering wheel tightly with both hands, and then turned around.

"We're going back?" Tyler asked from the backseat.

"Yep," Jeff answered stiffly. "Britta is there. So we have to."

"Okay. That's good. I like Britta."

"That makes one of us," Jeff muttered under his breath.

When Jeff pulled back into his previously vacated parking spot, Britta was already standing outside waiting for him. He glared at her.

"Happy Thanksgiving?" She said it like a question.

"Happy Thanksgiving!" Tyler shouted, bounding over to her and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Hey, kiddo. Glad someone's happy to see me."

Jeff ignored the exchange and strode right past them, headed for the door. "You really you'd this one, huh?" He shot at Britta as he passed.

"Okay, yes, I meddled against your wishes," She admitted as she and Tyler followed him, "And yes, I got this address from the Dean. But, hey! You had a moment of doubt, and here I am to help you through it. Psychology tells us there are no accidents."

He angrily turned to her, "Oh, really? What about car accidents, Tara Reid, or the Hindenburg?"

He turned back to the door and took a steadying breath. "Here goes nothing." He whispered and brought his fist up to knock on the door, his heart in his throat.

When the door opened, there was his father, in the flesh. He was older than the way Jeff remembered him. He had wrinkles and grey hair, but it was definitely him. "Hello, William," He greeted.

"Jeff," William responded with a curt nod.

Jeff cleared his throat, "Oh, um, this is Tyler." Jeff put his hand on Tyler's shoulder, moving him to where William could see him. William's eyebrows shot up in surprise but he made no comment. "And I guess you already met Britta," Jeff said, by way of introduction, unable to keep his tone free of annoyance.

"Yes, well, come in," William said, standing aside to let them pass.

The three of them walked into the townhome awkwardly. An uncomfortable silence stretched between them. Jeff stood in the foyer and looked around. The house was decorated with a very western feel. Lots of wood and earth tones. The shelves were packed with knick-knacks.

William closed the door behind them and turned around, walking straight up to Jeff. Britta took Tyler by the hand and led him off to the side, presumably to give Jeff and William space to talk. "So, uh, how about we make a couple of ground rules?" William suggested.

"Actually, that sounds good," Jeff agreed. "Okay. No hugs."

"Wouldn't want one," William replied easily. "No apologies."

"Wouldn't accept one. No calling you 'dad.'"

"No expectations."

"No BS," Jeff finished. Looks like they were on the same page. Turns out he'd had nothing to be worried about in the first place. That's what he got for letting other people get involved.

"Drink?" William offered.

Oh, what the hell. It was a holiday. "Scotch," Jeff answered with a smile.

"Eighteen?" William was smiling, too.

"Neat."

But of course, Britta was still there, so: "I just want to acknowledge there are a lot of emotions flowing right now." She interjected, taking a step towards them, clearly not satisfied with the exchange she had just witnessed. "And You two are probably feeling a strong impulse to sleep with each other, and hey, that's normal."

Jeff widened his eyes are her. What the actual Hell was her problem?

"Wow," William sighed, shooting Jeff a look. "I'll get the drinks."

Jeff stepped towards Britta and smirked, "So, how about that?" He asked quietly. "No muss, no fuss."

"Jeff, I urge you not to run from the muss and fuss," Britta pleaded.

Out of the corner of his eye, Jeff saw someone seated on the staircase off to his right. "Hi," The figure said.

"Hi," Jeff responded, stepping towards the man. He was younger and heavier set than Jeff, but they had the same brown hair. "You must be my half-brother."

Jeff politely extended his hand and the other man nervously stepped up to shake it. "Your hands are so much bigger than mine," He commented. "Your nail beds are perfect." The man stepped away and threw his hands up in defeat, "I can't do it. I can't. Oh, God. Oh, it's coming up." His face grew red and Jeff backed away from him, eyebrows creeping towards his hairline. "When I get upset, I vomit," The red-faced man explained.

"Oh, I see you've met Willy, Jr.," William said as he stepped back into the room, holding two glasses of amber liquid.

"You said he wasn't gonna replace me," Willy, Jr. shouted accusatorily at William. Jeff stood there between them, unsure of what else to do but watch. "He's the Schwarzenegger. I'm the DeVito. I get it," Willy said with a laugh, and turned to head up the stairs, away from everyone else.

"Okay, fellas, let's get right into it," Britta said, hopping right on in. "I think the big question on everyone's mind is…" She hesitated at their expressions. "Why don't I go help Willy, Jr., hm?" She finished and bounded up the stairs after Jeff's half-brother.

William handed Jeff his glass, and Jeff took it gratefully. He waited until Britta was gone before speaking, "Sorry about her. She just… Sorry about her."

William waved it off and gestured for Jeff to have a seat on the couch.

Jeff looked around for Tyler. "Hey, buddy," He called to him. Tyler had apparently been watching the whole exchange from somewhere near the door. Jeff inclined his head in the direction of the couch, "Why don't you come sit with us." Tyler slowly moved around the back of the couch and sat next to Jeff. "Did you bring your Game Boy thing?" Jeff asked him, when he nodded, Jeff continued, "You can play it if want. It's gonna be pretty boring until we eat."

Tyler quietly got out his DS and powered it up, slipping a pair of headphones over his ears. Within seconds he was completely immersed.

"Is he yours?" William asked, nodding at Tyler.

Jeff sat back on the couch and brought his glass to his lips, "In the legal sense, yes." Jeff answered. He hated questions like that. The expected answer was too black and white. He and Tyler were complicated.

"Hm." Was William's only response to that.

An awkward moment of silence passed between them, during which Britta and Willy came back downstairs. They talked in hushed tones and got to work setting the table for dinner. Jeff finally broke the silence. If he was going be here, he might as well get some use out of it. "So, how are you doing?" He asked. "You know, medically. It'd be nice to have a heads up on any potential health issues in my future."

"I'm fit as a fiddle," William chuckled. "No cancer or anything in the family, not that I know of anyway. Both of my parents had arthritis, though. Let's see, what else? You've got some diabetes on my mother's side."

"Good to know," Jeff said with a nod. "I like your hair. The presence of it, I mean."

William smiled and brushed at his hair proudly.

Jeff leaned forward and set his glass down. "So, I have a question. It's been weighing on me pretty heavily." William leaned in to, matching his pose and looking worried.

Jeff glanced over at Tyler to make sure he wasn't listening in and lowered his voice, "At your age, in the bedroom…"

"Oh, yeah. It's – It's all good. Yeah, real good."

Jeff let out a small breath of relief and they both sat back again.

They took a few silent sips of scotch before William asked, "So, what do you do?"

Jeff smiled proudly. He enjoyed telling this story. "I'm a lawyer who faked a bachelor's degree and practiced law for seven years before I got caught."

William laughed, "I like your hustle. Reminds me of the summer I was Ralph Lauren." Jeff's eyebrows shot up in interest. "Now, Saint-Tropez, '83. I'm on a boat with -" Suddenly a dinner roll came flying from the direction of the table and pegged him right in the back of the head. "Damn it, Willy." William growled, twisting around to look at his son.

"I'm expressing!" Willy explained heatedly.

"Knock it off. Why can't you just swallow it like any normal person?" William shot back.

Jeff glanced over towards the table and caught Britta's eye. Her whole expression said, 'yikes'. Jeff couldn't agree more. He looked over at Tyler who had taken off his headphones and was watching the commotion with wide, curious eyes.

"Oh! Right, like your new son," Willy shouted, gesturing to Jeff, "Like Mr. - Mr. I've-Got-My-Shirt –" He stuttered for a moment before looking at Jeff. "I don't know any personal details about you yet." He explained, still angry.

"Well, my name's Jeff."

"Don't help me! Mr. Helper-Guy. First Mom dies, now this?"

"Hey, she died twenty years ago, Willy," William argued back, looking apologetically at Jeff. "He keeps singing the same old song."

"Oh. She died on you," Jeff said, suddenly understanding their dynamic. "Here I thought you'd become Father-of-the-Year, but you just got stuck."

"Yeah, well, look, I don't have to tell you, I'm not a natural caretaker," William explained, "But with Willy, you know, I checked all the boxes and he still turned out softer than wet cheese. I don't get it. He keeps saying he's gonna move out next week since '03."

"Oh, man, I couldn't wait to get out. I got my own place when I was eighteen." Jeff said.

William smiled in response, "I was the same way."

They shared a strange moment. Despite having had zero contact for the past thirty-one years, they had a surprising number of similarities.

"So, who's ready to eat," William announced standing up. "Jeff, you care to carve the turkey?"

Jeff took one last sip of his drink and stood up, too, but before they could move to the table, Willy was shouting again. "I knew it! You love him more than me. I'll show you. I'll run away."

William marched over to where Willy stood, "Oh, please. Hey, be my guest. You run away, and I'm gonna sleep like a baby tonight!"

Willy whimpered and stomped away, heading upstairs and shooting Jeff one last dirty look as he went.

"Oh, now, I'm sorry you guys had to see that," William apologized. He turned to Britta with a shrug, "But maybe you could shrink his head, since you're here, for some reason." William disappeared into the kitchen leaving Jeff and Britta face to face.

"Yes," Britta nodded and looked at Jeff with confidence. "I can do this." She snatched a piece of bread from the table and took off up the stairs after Willy. "Show me on the dinner roll where you're hurt!"

Jeff took a moment to feel sorry for Willy then let it pass. Willy didn't seem to find her as annoying as he did. Maybe he just didn't know her well enough yet.

Jeff looked over at Tyler, who was still sitting on the couch with his headphones around his neck, watching the proceedings with cautious curiosity. Jeff made his way over to the kid and crouched down next to him. "Sorry about all the yelling. Family, huh?" Jeff grinned jokingly, but Tyler didn't smile back. "I promise next year won't be like this. Ready to eat?"

Tyler quietly put away his DS and followed Jeff to the table.

Britta and Willy didn't come back downstairs for dinner, so it was just the three of them at the table. Conversation stayed light. William got to finish his Ralph Lauren anecdote and Jeff got to recount the story putting Alan Connor in his place during summer session.

"And that's when I told my old firm to shove it," He finished. "I've always been more of a free agent anyway."

"Yeah, I can see that about you. You seem like a self-made man," William said.

Jeff played with the rim of his wine glass, "Well, I kind of had to be."

"Look, if it's okay with you, I'd like to break a rule. I know we said no mushy stuff," Jeff dropped his gaze to the table, "But for what it's worth, I'm proud of you."

Jeff raised his eyes to meet William's, "Wow, thanks." His appreciation of the compliment was genuine, but it still made him uncomfortable.

"Makes you think, huh?"

"Wait, what do you mean?"

"Well, look, I mean, you've seen how Willy turned out. I mean, I haven't done that kid any favors," William explained. "And so I look at you, so self-reliant and well-adjusted, and I think maybe I did something right."

Jeff set his jaw, "You? Did something right?"

William smiled, "Well, let me say that different." He cast around for inspiration, "Uh, the universe is a constantly expanding –"

"Stop," Jeff cut him off. "I get the impulse, but that's not gonna work here." He said with a shake of his head.

"No, I just mean that we are defined by what happens to us," William said, sitting forward in his chair. "And me leaving seems to have made you independent, made you strong."

Jeff's voice was low and cold when he responded, "With all due respect, which is none, go to Hell." He stood up roughly from the table, "Come on, Tyler. We're going."

Tyler ran to grab his stuff and then hurried ahead of Jeff into the parking lot. Jeff shut the door firmly behind them and stomped to the car. He was distracted enough that he didn't notice Willy in the backseat of his Lexus until he'd already opened the door.

"Gah! What are you doing in my car?" He shouted in surprise, tugging Tyler away from the vehicle, just in case his half-brother turned out to be a touch psychotic.

"Take me with you," Willy pleaded. "Teach me what you know."

"What in the Cat's Cradle is happening?"

"Dad hates me!" Willy's shouted explanation made Jeff clench his fists.

"Why do you care what that guy thinks?" Jeff growled. "He's a dick."

"See? That's what I need to learn. How to be all dead inside with muscles on top, not all emotional and flabby." Willy dropped his gaze and poked out his lip, looking as pathetic as he sounded.

Jeff closed his eyes in frustration. "Yeah, but you are emotional. If you pretend you're not, you're letting him off the hook for being a terrible father, which he is and always has been. I mean, he meant the world to you, and you meant nothing to him, and if you run away now, he'll never know." At some point that had stopped being about Willy and had started being about Jeff. "He should know. Britta's the worst."

Jeff groaned loudly and spun around, marching back up to William's door.

"Jeff?" Tyler called, running after him. "We're going back again?"

Jeff didn't answer. He just strode into his father's house without knocking. Tyler stayed close on his heels. Willy stepped in behind them and shut the door.

"You came back!" Britta called with relief.

Jeff ignored her and walked right up to William who stood outside the kitchen, holding the empty wine glasses from the dining room table. "I'm sorry. You should take some credit for who I've become."

"Okay," William responded hesitantly.

"So, let me tell you how I turned out just so you're crystal clear on your impact. I am not well-adjusted. More often than not, I am barely keeping it together. Your impact was a hole through the center of me and I filled it so full of sarcasm and ego that there's barely room for anything else. There are people in my life now that love me. And no matter how many times I push them away, they just keep hugging me. And instead of letting them love me and instead of letting them get close, I argue and I roll my eyes, or I just stare at my phone. I'm constantly texting, and there's no one at the other end. I'm just a grown man who can't even look his own friends in the eye for too long because I'm afraid that they'll see that I am broken, and empty, and sad. That they'll see how much I need them. So, you get credit for that."

"Oh, come on, now -" William started to argue, but Jeff just kept going.

"One time, when I was in seventh grade, I told everybody at school that I had appendicitis. I wanted someone to worry about me. But when Beth Brannon asked to see the scar, I didn't wanna get found out, so I took Mom's scissors, and I made one. It hurt like Hell, but it was worth it, because I got seventeen cards. And I still keep them in a box underneath my bed twenty-two years later because it proves that someone, at some point, cared about me even if I had to lie and cut myself to prove it. You wanna see the scar?" Jeff lifted the right hem of his shirt to reveal the short, raised scar just above his hip bone. "So, you get credit for that, too. This is me. This is your legacy." He gestured to Willy, Jr. behind him and then to himself. "Two lost sons who wanted your love so badly that they forgot how to love themselves or anyone else. This is my legacy." Jeff pointed to Tyler. "I have a son, too. And I refuse to make your mistakes. I love him and I will make sure he knows that. I will make sure he feels that every day for the rest of my life. I will make sure that I don't leave behind a broken shell of a person like you did."

William shifted uncomfortably, "Look, Jeff, I, uh -" He made a pained noise and doubled over, the wine glasses slipping from his grip and crashing to the floor, shattering to pieces.

"Daddy!" Willy called in a panic, but Jeff stood there watching the display with a humorless expression.

"Are you faking a heart attack?" Jeff asked in frustrated disbelief.

William stood up and shrugged. "Kind of a Hail Mary."

Jeff sighed, "Happy Thanksgiving, Dad." He turned and scooped Tyler into his arms and calmly left the house. Britta said a quick goodbye to Willy and followed him out the door. The two of them stopped in front of his car and looked at each other for a long moment before speaking.

"Look, you're probably feeling a very strong urge to sleep with me right now, and that is normal," Jeff teased.

"Ch-yah," Britta said, glancing away.

"Britta," Jeff pulled her attention back to him. "Thank you. You were right." He paused. "You're not gonna get all Jock Jams on me, are you?"

"No, of course not," Britta replied as if it were a ridiculous notion, then muttered, "I left my boom box at school."

Jeff rolled his eyes. After a slight pause, he shifted Tyler in his arms. "Do you, uh, do you mind giving me a moment alone with Tyler?"

Britta gave him a very meaningful smile, "No, of course not. I'll just wait in the car." She climbed into the passenger seat and settled back, closing her eyes to give them privacy.

Jeff took a steadying breath and leaned back against the hood of his car, setting Tyler on his knee so they'd be eye to eye. The boy was unusually still. Not once did he try to squirm away or ask to be let down. Jeff looked at him for a long moment before speaking, "I'm sorry today was so hectic." He began. "Believe me when I say, this is not what I intended to happen when I came here."

Tyler didn't respond. He just blinked patiently up at Jeff.

"Look, I don't know how much of all of that you understood… And maybe one day I'll explain it, but for right now, all you need to know is that I grew up feeling like nobody cared about me. My father wasn't there for me and it messed with my head so much that I couldn't see all the special people in my life." Jeff took a deep breath. "So, what I need you to understand is this: You are wanted. And you are loved. By Britta, and Abed, and Troy, and Pierce, and Shirley, and Andre, and Annie. By Grandma. And most importantly, by me. I know I don't ever say it. I promise I'll get better about that. But it's true. I chose you. I wanted you. You are my son and I love you."

Tyler stared at him with wide, innocent eyes before reaching out and winding his arms around his neck. Jeff inhaled shakily and wrapped his arms around his son, holding him against his chest. Inside his ribcage, his heart hurt in the best way possible. He hadn't realized that he'd been keeping his emotions buried like that until he'd been forced to confront his own issues. It felt good to just feel for once instead of keeping it bottled up.

After a few moments, he regretfully broke up their embrace. "What do you say we go home now?" Jeff said.

Tyler gave him a skeptical look which made Jeff laugh out loud. "For real this time, I promise."

Jeff loaded Tyler into the back, ensuring that he was safely strapped in, and got into the front seat. He started up the car and went to buckle his own seatbelt. He was looking down when a knock on the driver's side window startled him. He looked up to find Willy practically pressed up against the glass and jumped.

"Geez." He rolled down the window and looked over at the younger man, "You gotta stop doing that."

Willy smiled. "Thanks," He said with sincerity. "Come here, brother." He leaned his entire torso into the car to get his arms around Jeff's shoulders. "Come here, brother!"

"Wow. Why don't you save some for Christmas, buddy?" Jeff said, leaning away from the hug and patting him on the back.

Willy eventually extracted himself from Jeff's car and waved them away. It was a quiet car ride back into town. Jeff dropped Britta off at her place and then continued on to his apartment. By the time they'd pulled into the parking lot, Tyler was fast asleep. Jeff carefully unbuckled him and carried him up to his bed. He made sure the nightlight was on before he tucked him in. Jeff watched him sleep for just a moment before he kissed him on the forehead and silently exited the room, clicking the door shut behind him.