Page 44 of Fly

“Yeah, I like things simple,” I said into my cup, the steam rising to tickle my nostrils. “Sorry to pull you in so early.”

“You’re very apologetic this morning, Cam.” He watched me with big brown eyes, just waiting and sipping as he was wont to do.

“Sorry. Shit.” I sighed so hard I made ripples in my coffee. “I’m having trouble avoiding phone booths this morning,” I confessed. He nodded. He knew what that meant. He’d been my therapist for years now. I held nothing back in therapy. What the hell was the point of coming to counseling if you weren’t honest?

“And what do you think has nudged you into superhero mode?”

My coffee was boring, so I glanced over his shoulder at a painting of a botanical garden he had visited in Japan, a few years ago. He’d painted it from memory. It was stunning.

“I have a new houseguest,” I said, then let the rest flow out like the water at the fountain pond in the oil painting. Everything rolled out of me as I explained about Jari, my feelings for him, and my realization that I had not only tied on my cape, but I had leapt into the air faster than a speeding bullet. “So, I called the PI last night around midnight. Caught him at the airport about to board his flight. He was not pleased to be called off such a lucrative case. I felt bad about that, so I paid him extra for the time he wasted. Then I felt bad for feeling bad.”

“You’ve had quite the time of things since we last talked,” Doc said, to which I bobbed my head. “What do you think spurred you into leaping in to help Jari when he never asked for your help?”

“Oh, you know, the whole childhood trauma of losing my parents, then moving in with my uncle and Kirby, who was weaker than me, so I always stood up for my cousin, saving him from the bullshit his father flung at him. I couldn’t save my folks, but I could save Kirby and anyone else whom I care about, even if I burn myself mentally into a cinder to do so, even if they don’t ask for help, even if the other person should learn to handle life on their own.” I pulled my attention from the fountain in the painting to find Doc G smiling that therapist smile at me. “Did that cover it all?”

“Quite succinctly. I’m proud of the work that you’ve put in and how far you’ve come, Cam. You realized you were slipping back into old habits and stopped yourself before it consumed you. That’s incredible.”

“I don’t feel incredible. I feel like I should have seen it coming sooner or something.”

“What matters is that you saw your behavior and changed it as we’ve been working on.”

“Yeah, I guess. Kirby reminds me that whenever I bake a cake for someone else I should bake one for myself.” That made me smile just a little.

“Kirby is a very smart man. As are you. So, Jari? You speak very fondly of him.”

“Yeah, Jari. Where do I start?”

“I find that the beginning is the very best place.”

Couldn’t argue that. So, I began there…

Two hours later, I was home trying to figure out a recipe for a chocolate layer cake for myself when a gentle rap at the back door pulled me from baking. Padding to the door as I wiped my hands on my little checkered apron, I saw Jari standing out in the snow.

“Come in,” I said as I hurried to open the door. “Man, that came on fast.”

“Yeah, like in the last ten minutes.” He stepped in, flakes clinging to his cheeks and lashes. I reached up to dust them off. “You smell like chocolate. Can I kiss you?”

“Please.” He stole a peck, a soft little touch of his lips to mine, and then slid into my arms, brow resting on my shoulder. “Everything okay?”

“It is now.”

I melted. My arms went around him. We hugged it out for a few minutes then had to break apart as my oven chimed that it was plenty warm already.

“Come in, I’m making a layer cake.” I offered him my hand, which he took. When we arrived at the counter, which was a fright of flour, eggs, and cocoa powder, I looked him right in his pretty eyes. “How do you fold something into a batter?”

A twitch of a smile pulled up his lips. “You just fold it in, David.”

“Sure, but how… wait a second. Is this a Schitt’s Creek moment? Are we having a Schitt’s Creek moment?” He nodded. “Oh hell, that is… I am totally besotted with you now that I know you’ve watched Schitt’s Creek. I have the entire series on DVD.”

“We have to watch them. Together.” He seemed so genuinely pleased my heart did a triple flip in my breast. “I have a day off today. Well, after morning skate. How about we get your cake in, then when skate is over, we spend the day eating cake and watching the Rose family find a new life?”

“That sounds amazing.” We both smiled like dorks at each other. “So how do you fold buttermilk into a batter?”

He shrugged. I stole a kiss. We Googled it.