"I'm not here to appease your conscience," Chase muttered. It was more grumpy than truly bitter. Alex had been doing his job; it was just kind of an asshole job. "Just tell me if they're gone for good."
"I'll come see you this weekend – sooner if I find out that they're around."
"Okay. Bye."
Chase tucked his phone and the business card in his pocket next to the drawing and leaned heavily on the counter. It was odd not to have that fear in the back of his mind – the sickening worry that someone would come for him someday. Jerry was gone, Will wasn't the stalking type, and the rest of his family sounded like they were gone now, too.
He had nothing to run from. All he could do was move forward.
Maybe he'd go out for supper with Jackson tonight and treat him this time. Chase smiled, nibbling his thumbnail absently. Jackson might like that. Either way, he'd make Jackson let him pay. It was really the least he could do.
Chapter 31
Jackson
"Hey, good-looking."
"Hi," Chase grinned. The tattoo shop door swung shut behind him and he joined Jackson on the sidewalk. He slipped his hand into Jackson's and stretched up to kiss him.
Jackson loved that he was a couple inches shorter. Not short enough to be a hassle, but short enough that he could stretch up on his toes and tease Chase. He could make him work for a kiss now and then.
Not today, though. He wanted everything to come easy to Chase after the kind of day he'd had.
"Feel like going out for a meal?" Chase asked.
"Oh. Sure," Jackson nodded. He hadn't expected Chase to be up for going out, but then, he had no idea how that confrontation had gone earlier. "Where?"
"The fancy new place down the street?"
Jackson nodded. "What's the occasion? Other than... you know." Do I ask about it yet?
"Being free," Chase said. He took Jackson's hand and led him down the street. "How was your day?"
"Nowhere near as eventful as yours... as usual," Jackson chuckled. "It never seems to be. Er, there was an argument with a builder, but the paperwork's on my side so we settled it quickly."
"Over what?"
Jackson grimaced. "Money. It always gets ugly around that. I've never had trouble with him before, but I think he's getting forgetful... He wanted to pay me half what he agreed on upfront and the rest later, but I have bills from my suppliers to pay, too."
Chase frowned and squeezed his hand. "Yeah. And you took care of it?"
"Yep." Jackson bumped his hip lightly against Chase's to make him smile. "He remembered when we went over the paperwork we did last year for his first order and apologized a lot."
"Good." Chase laced his fingers with Jackson's. "So I might as well tell you how it went down..."
"If you want," Jackson nodded. "Not if it'll stress you out again, though."
When Chase looked at him, Jackson spotted something a little different in his eyes. His mood was light and cheery again. God, it had been weeks since he'd seen Chase look this carefree – if he ever had. "It won't stress me out."
"No? Okay. You look... good."
Chase smiled. "Thanks. So, Jerry came in and told me he wanted to talk to me, and I said he's not allowed to anymore. He gave me a note from my brother and I pretty much told him I'm out of the family for good. Or he told me. Either way, we agreed on that much."
Jackson couldn't imagine being told that and still being able to smile. Chase's family was so different. Shitty, he wanted to think. He winced and nodded.
"I got a little more Biblical than that on him, but it worked. I really think he's gone for good now."
Jackson nodded. "And that's what you wanted?"
Chase was silent for a minute as they walked – long enough that Jackson started to question whether he'd heard. Before he could repeat it, Chase swung their hands lightly and nodded. "I think so."
Jackson paused at the crosswalk when the green walking man turned red and leaned in to kiss Chase's lips in a little peck. "Okay."
Chase leaned into him and smiled, kissing him back before murmuring, "Thanks for asking."
"You wanna dance after dinner? Have a drink?" Jackson suggested. He could help Chase make this a celebration.
Chase lit up with a smile, those beautiful white teeth flashing as his eyes brightened. The light turned green. They pulled away from each other, still holding hands, to start walking. "Yeah. That sounds great."
"Okay, it's on," Jackson smiled, swinging their hands lightly. "Oh, there's the restaurant."
They didn't discuss Chase's family again. Instead, Jackson asked Chase about his clients that day, what tattoos he was drawing or planning, and about his fencing classes. Chase even managed to sneak to the bar and pay before Jackson could even ask for the bill.
After supper, they ambled back down the street to the gay club. Chase stood tall as he led Jackson inside and paid their cover.
Chase and Jackson stood at one of a few small tables around the edge of the dance floor to watch people for a bit. They had to stand close together to hear each other, but Jackson wasn't complaining. He liked having an arm around Chase's shoulders anyway, and Chase seemed to find it amusing.
"Have you been here a lot?" Chase asked, turning his lips to Jackson's ear.
Jackson shook his head. "Not in months. Maybe a year...?"
Chase's eyebrows shot up. "Ah. Wow."
"I'm not sure I remember how to dance," Jackson laughed.
Chase winked and sidled closer to kiss his jaw. "I'll remind you."
Jackson finished his drink and waited for Chase to finish his. He led him to the dance floor to sidle close under the lights, his arms around Chase's waist.
They spent hours on the dance floor without having another drink, just losing themselves in movement and music. They could grind and dance dirty for some songs and act silly other times without judgment. If they were being judged, neither of them noticed or cared.
Only when Jackson's feet started to hurt did he nudge Chase, leaning down to his ear. "You wanna go home?"
"I've been waiting for you to ask for hours," Chase teased, kissing his neck and slinging an arm around his shoulders. They tried to slip through the small crowd in the even smaller club. At coat check, Chase gave a startled glance to a tall, curly-haired man nearby.
"Oh, hi."
"Hello..." The stranger eyed Jackson for a moment before looking back at Chase. "How are you?"
"Good," Chase answered, leaning on the counter and handing over his ticket to the attendant. "You? Settling in well?"
"Yes, thank you." He sounded Italian.
Chase waved between them. "Antonio, this is my boyfriend Jackson. Jackson, Antonio."
Antonio gave Chase another moment's surprised glance. He smiled at Jackson and reaching out to awkwardly shake hands.
Another man slipped in beside them and rested a hand on Antonio's shoulder. He was short and round and had an adorable smile and a bright pink shirt. He was the kind of gay man Jackson saw coming from across the city, let alone the room. "Got our coats, Tony?"
"They found yours without trouble. Mine is less distinctive."
Jackson grinned at the bright purple jacket that Antonio handed over to the newcomer. He glanced at Chase, who was smiling without a hint of discomfort.
"Here you are. Sorry for the wait." The attendant handed over Antonio's coat first, then Chase's and Jackson's.
Chase slid a bill into the jar and nodded. "See you around, I'm sure," he told Antonio with a wave, then nodded at Antonio's partner.
"Bye," Antonio bade them, and Jackson followed his lover out to the street.
"Who were they?" Jackson asked.
Chase just smiled at him, buttoning up his jacket before taking Jackson's hand again. "Doesn't matter anymore. Let's go home."
Jackson was happy to fulfill Chase's request.
"Oh man, I'm gonna hurt tomorrow," Chase lamented. "I haven't been there in... weeks now."
"Weeks?" Jackson laughed, slipping his shirt off and tossing it into the laundry basket. "What, like a week or two? Try months and months. Years."
"It's not my fault you're antisocial," Chase smirked.
Jackson laughed. "I'm not, you know that. I'm just... anti-stranger-social."
"True. That's different," Chase agreed. He tossed his own clothes in the basket. As he turned his back to approach the bed, Jackson stared. Somehow, he hadn't seen Chase's bare back before.
"Oh..."
Chase paused and looked over his shoulder, holding still so Jackson could look. "Yeah?"
A gnarled tree ran up one side of his back, across his shoulder blade, its branches stretching up towards his shoulder and neck. The leaves were thick, starting in pale pastels and brightening up towards the top of the tree. A kite, caught in the uppermost branches amongst the balloons, stretched up towards his opposite shoulder. In script was written, Kites rise highest against the wind.