Page 121 of The Same Flesh
That actually sounded badass, especially if they put a mattress at the bottom.But then again, maybe that wasn’t what responsible uncles did.Even if theydiddrive a motorcycle.
“Go get dressed!”Tinajas shouted.“Tony!”
With a grin, the big man hustled Dionica and Guillo out of the kitchen.As he passed Jem, he mouthed,Good luck.
As soon as the kids were gone, Tinajas said, “What the fuck is wrong with you?”
“Rough night.”
“No shit rough night.You smell like you passed out in a urinal.”
“I do not.”
“In an ashtray, then.”
“Hey, I’m going through something.Can I get a little sympathy?”
Tinajas threw down the scrub brush and grabbed a towel.She marched across the kitchen, drying her hands.Jem tried to sink down in his seat, but she grabbed his head and thumbed back his eyelids.Those razor blades stabbed the back of Jem’s eyes again, but when he tried to pull away, Tinajas didn’t let go.Finally, she said, “What the fuck were you on?”
“Nothing, God.”But she had some crazy mom-slash-big sister energy going right then, and he heard himself mumble, “It was just some weed.And a few drinks.And I think it was oxy, but he definitely cut it with some bad shit—”
She released him with a shove, and his head cracked against the chair.“You’re an idiot.”
Jem decided not to argue.Mostly because she was still close enough to grab him again.
But she went back to the dishes in the sink.Apparently, their family used a million cups, and she was going to squeeze them all into the dishwasher whether they fit or not.The water was still running.And Jem was starting to feel like maybe his stomach wasn’t going to snake away.He gave the pancakes an experimental poke.
“Did you break up with him?”Tinajas asked.
“What?Oh.No.”
“Did he break up with you?”
“I don’t think so.I hope not.”He dropped the fork again.“I guess I don’t know.”
“What happened?”
He told her.Not all of it.Not everything with the wolves.Not finding Wendell.Not the gut-wrenching panic of realizing, too late, what he’d done—almost gotten Tean killed.But most of it.Enough of it.
When he finished, Tinajas said, “Heshouldbreak up with you.”
“God damn it.”
“You’re a piece of shit.”
“I’m not a piece of shit.I made, like, one mistake—”
That, it turned out, was a mistake of its own, because she rounded on him, a dripping cup in one hand.“One mistake?One?”
“I—”
“You disappeared, dumbshit.You turned your phone off and disappeared.And when you showed up again, you were high as a motherfucking kite, and you picked a fight with him because you are a fucking mess.”
“In my defense, I was having this really weird mix of weed rage and paranoia.Like, the scaries, but times ten.”
“Oh yeah?Here’s a genius idea: don’t blaze up before you go crawling back to your boyfriend.”
“Fiancé,” Jem said without really thinking about it.
