Page 94 of Finding Us
“Fuck, Red,” he mumbles, grasping hold of my hips. He slowly withdraws right to the tip, and when he drives straight back in, we both moan in unison.
He does this a few more times before he completely lets loose. The room is suddenly filled with our cries of pleasure mixed with the sound of our bodies slapping together as he pistons into me at a frantic pace. One of his hands leaves my hip, moving back between my legs. It only takes a few skilful swipes of his fingers to send me over the edge.
He stills for a moment, grating out the word, “Fuck.” I’m still coming when his hips start to jerk forward, and he releases himself inside me with a loud and powerful roar. And all I can think is, thank God Connor isn’t home.
It’s birthday eve, and I think I’m just as excited as Blake. We’ve been doing a daily countdown for the past week. I’ve bought some balloons and a happy 6thbirthday sign to decorate the lounge room tonight once he’s gone to bed. I hope it’s a nice surprise for him when he gets up tomorrow morning.
The party is all organised for this coming weekend; I’m making up lolly bags for all the kids to take home, and I have a huge jar full of jellybeans for the guessing competition. I had to put that together at my apartment, so Mason didn’t steal all the red ones. All I need to do now is order the cake, which I plan on doing after picking Blake up today.
All has been good at school since I approached his teacher, and she’s been awfully sweet to me on the days I go there. I’d like to think it’s because she’s seen the error of her ways, but I’m leaning more towards the principal’s involvement. Tristan even apologised, and Blake ended up inviting him to the party, which I’m happy about. I’d hate if the entire class was invited somewhere and Blake was the only one left out. It was the right thing to do.
“Jazzie,” Blake yells when he spots me waiting outside his classroom with the other parents. I love the way his little face lights up whenever he sees me; it’s a look I’ll never tire of. I bend down and open my arms, which he runs straight in to. “I drew you a picture today.”
When I release him, he drops his backpack on the ground, unzipping it. He’s beaming when he holds it up to me. “Wow.”
“It’s you, me and dad.”
“I can see that.” There are three stick figures on the page; I’m presuming the one with the long yellow hair is me. We all have circles for hands, and three tiny lines for fingers. It’s the sweetest thing ever, but what has me choking back the tears is what he’s written underneath. The letters may be askew, and the ‘F’ is back-to-front, but it’s still legible.My Family. “I love it so much,” I say, leaning down to place a kiss on top of his head. “Thank you. I’m going to put it on the fridge as soon as we get home.”
His little hand is wrapped in mine as he happily chats about his day on the way to the car. It’s kind of scary how fast things have transitioned. In a matter of months, that’s exactly what we’ve become …somewhat of a family. We’re even planning to fly down to Melbourne in the school holidays so the boys can meet my parents. Flights are already booked. A part of me worries that things are moving too fast, but I also feel like I’m exactly where I need to be. There’s no set protocol … sometimes people just fit.
Once Blake is strapped into the back seat, I round the vehicle and climb into the driver’s side. Before I pull into traffic, I glance at Blake in the rearview mirror. “Have you decided what kind of cake you want for your party?”
“A dinosaur one.”
“We’re going to head to the bakery now so you can pick out your cake.”
“I want it to look like my Rex.”
“I think I have a picture of you and Rex on my phone, so we can show them.”
“Okay.”
“Are you excited about your party?”
He lifts one shoulder, looking down at his lap. “I don’t know, I’ve never been to a party before.”
“Ah, sweetie.” I turn in my seat, reaching into the back to place my hand on his leg. I know exactly how he feels, I was thirteen when I attended my first birthday party …it was my own.“You’re going to have the best day.”
His big brown eyes move back to mine, and he gives me a small smile. I swear this kid melts my heart … he has the sweetest little face, with cheeks I just want to squish.
“Are you hungry?” I ask Blake, which is a silly question … when isn’t he hungry? “Would you like a milkshake before we leave?”
“Can I get a donut too?”
“A milkshake and a donut?”
“Please.”
“Of course.”
“Thanks, Jazzie.”
The cake is ordered, and I even got some individual boxed cupcakes for the kids to take home, with dinosaur toppers on them. Since this is his first ever party, I want it to be special … one that he’ll remember. We’ve received an RSVP from all but two of the kids in his class, so there’ll be almost thirty people attending.
I spy some decorative place cards in a window display as we pass a stationery shop, “I just want to duck in here and grab something,” I tell Blake.
He has his donut in one hand and the milkshake in the other. When we enter the store, the lady behind the counter looks from me to Blake. “We don’t allow food and drink in here,” she says.
