ʏᴇʟʟᴏᴡ ∆ ᴄᴀᴇsᴀʀ ᴢᴇᴘᴘᴇʟɪ x ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ ∆

∆ᴛʜʀᴇᴇ∆

I nervously shifted on my feet, switching my purse from one hand to the other as I glanced at my watch. I tucked a strand of hair away from my face and looked around. A few days had passed since I met with Aaron and found out about my forgotten side of my family. I was scared to call at first, always putting it to the side and telling myself I was too busy when in reality I had absolutely nothing to do. I was honestly very afraid to meet Joseph and I had no idea why. I assume it was just my nerves because I didn’t know how he would react to me. I don’t know. But, nonetheless, I called the number and talked with him on the phone. He seemed very enthusiastic about wanting to finally meet in person after talking practically the whole day. We talked again the next day, and the day after that, and then agreed to meet on the following Saturday.

At the sound of my name, I jumped and turned, seeing someone jogging towards me. He was tall, with unkempt dark hair that shot out every which way. He had light green eyes and wore a nervous grin.

“You’re Y/n, right?” He asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Y-yeah,” I smiled.

“Good,” He sighed. “I thought I just yelled at some random person!” We both laughed, the tension in the air being loosened.

“It’s nice to actually meet you,” I said, shifting my purse onto my shoulder.

“Likewise,” He said. “Granny Erina couldn’t believe it when I told her.”

“I hope I didn’t cause any trouble in your family,” I said, walking beside him as he motioned for us to begin our day.

“Nah, don’t worry,” He smiled reassuringly. “She just didn’t know that my grandfather had any family. Apparently, neither did you.”

“Yeah, I was worried when a lawyer called me at first. I thought someone had sued me because of an article I wrote,” I muttered with a nervous chuckle.

“You’re a reporter?” He asked, turning to look down at me as he put his hands in his pockets. Joseph was freakishly tall, standing at least at 6’5. I felt like a flea under him.

“Yeah! I work for the Queen’s Chronicle,” I replied.

“Do you live in Queens?” He asked.

I nodded. “But I travel everywhere. I’m mostly in Brooklyn or Manhattan to get stories.”

“That sounds neat,” He said, leaving us in an awkward silence for a moment. Before I could say anything, Joseph broke the silence. “Hey, look over there!” He pointed to a store ahead of us.

“Caleb’s? Oh, the candy store!” I said, a smile crawling on my face. “Have you ever been in?”

He shook his head. “Nope. Have you?”

“All the time! My dad used to always take me and my little brother to get salt-water taffy,” I said, glancing up at him. “Want to go inside?”

“Absolutely!” He said in excitement, already grabbing my wrist and dragging me inside. I laughed, following after him as he bounced around the store like a little kid. I decided I would get some taffy and drop some off at my dad’s while I was here. As I stopped to get some, I hadn’t realized that Joseph had wandered off. I was only aware when he shouted my name. I peered over the stand in front of me and saw him standing there, balancing a piece of licorice on his lips.

“I got a mustache!” He said, trying not to drop the piece of candy. I covered my mouth and giggled. He smiled widely and took the licorice and stuck it in his mouth as he walked over. “Whatcha got?” He asked, peering over my shoulder in the bag.

“Taffy! Here, try a piece,” I said, handing him a piece. He took it and popped it in his mouth as I added some more into the bag.

“Holy shit!” He exclaimed. “What is that? It’s good!”

I laughed. “It’s peach. It was my mom’s favorite flavor, and mine.” I said.

“I can see why! Your mom has good taste!” He said, grabbing another piece. I laughed harder.

…

“Hey,” Joseph said, making me look over at him. We were at the park, and I was sitting on the swing while he was above me on the metal platform, looking down at me.

“Yeah?” I hummed in question. Joseph let one of his arms dangle over the edge.

“I had fun today. I’m really glad Granny went through the wills,” He said, smiling gently.

I smiled back. “Me too. I guess it was just a really weird coincidence, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah...a coincidence…” He said.

“I should get going,” I said, standing up from the swing and grabbed the bags we had collected over the day. “My dog has probably torn something up by now.”

Joseph gasped. “You have a dog?!”

“Yeah. She’s a black lab,” I said. “Her name is Dixie.”

“You should definitely bring her next time,” He said, hopping onto the ground and walking with me out of the park.

“I take it you're a dog person?” I asked, laughing slightly.

“I love dogs,” He said, raising his arm out to hail a cab.

“I’ll note that,” I said.

“Y/n can I ask you something? It might seem a little personal, and I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable when we first met but I can’t wait any longer,” Joseph said, looking down at me. I could see the hesitance in his eyes.

“Of course!” I smiled, trying to reassure him. He shifted his weight as he put his hands in his pockets.

“Are...are you okay with all of this? I know your grandmother and my grandfather were cousins, and I know you really didn’t get to know a lot about our side of the family. I just don’t want you to get wrapped up in something that could potentially hurt you. Not saying that I would hurt you!” He added quickly. “But...we’re always seeming to get trapped in some kind of trouble. I don’t want you to get involved if you don’t want to. I completely understand everything, so be honest with me. I know you wanted to meet because you felt guilty for taking your share of the inheritance when you didn’t know us.”

“Relax, Jojo,” I said, grinning at him as a cab stopped beside us. “We’re family, after all, so your trouble is my trouble.”

Joseph visibly relaxed and smiled at me. “Your trouble is my trouble.” He said, opening the cab door for me.

“I expect a phone call from you tomorrow,” I said as I slipped inside.

“Count on it, Tootsie.”