After Death

Chapter Nineteen

Jacob stared at his daughter as she ravenously scoffed into her dinner. After reading Dr. Hill’s article he had gone to the grocery store and made her favorite; Philly cheesesteaks. She had beamed and hugged him, exceptionally excited, but now she was well entrenched in a relationship with the sopping sandwich. 

He hadn’t probed her directly as to what his thoughts were, but kept a watchful eye out. He wondered if anyone had brought up the contents of Dr. Hill’s article at school. She was only fifteen, after all. Did fifteen year olds understand complex physics and sciences? He hoped not. How was he supposed to bring this sort of thing up?

“Yo dad, did you hear?” Jasey broke the silence through a large mouthful. “Something about the fact that we, like, actually have a soul.”

Leave it to Jasey to boil probably the most significant discovery in human history down to a sentence. “Yeah, I heard about that,” Jacob said as smoothly as he could, not wanting to let on one way or another.

“Yeah, weird stuff,” she said, and then took another bite. She seemed unmoved. 

“Did you want to… talk about it?”

“Talk about what?”

“You know, the article. The things that were found out.”

“Uh, I mean you sound you want to talk about it.”

Jacob stopped up and grinned. She’d gotten him again. I just mean that I know a lot of this can be confusing.”

“I’m not confused. Are you?”

“Can you explain it all to me?”

Jasey swallowed and considered the challenge dramatically. “I mean, sounds like there’s just like a heaven or something, I don’t know.”

“Does that make you, um, feel a certain way?”

“Are you fishing for something?”

“No.”

“Sounds like you’re fishing for something”

“Well, I’m not.”

“Whatever you say, pop.” 

Jacob took another bite of his sandwich. He didn’t need to fish for anything. If there was anything going on with Jasey she would’ve told him by now. That’s just who she was. He hoped there wasn’t some other father figure in her life, because she sure didn’t learn that from him. 

“Did you hear?” she said, still with her mouth full of sandwich. 

“Hear what?”

“Some kid died over in Longview. Killed himself.”

“I didn’t hear about that.”

“Did you even leave the house today?”

“I got groceries.”

“I just sort of figured you didn’t hear.”

Jacob smiled and shook his head. “What kid?”

“Um, I don’t know him but I’ve heard about him. His name was Paul Schaffer.”

Jacob frowned. The name was familiar. “How’d you hear about him?”

“Big shot football kid with a face that looks like it was carved by the gods themselves. Girls hear about these things.”

“Of course they do.”

“Yeah,” she chewed and swallowed, for once. “Do you think ma’ knew about him?”

Jacob’s heart dropped. Even after all these years just the mention of his ex-wife brought him to a bad place. He was just grateful that Jasey understood that the situation. “She might. Maybe your sister too.”

“Maybe. Weird that it’s so close, I don’t know.”

“Want to talk about it?”

“Nope,” she smiled and took another bite. “I want to talk about this sando though. Grade A job over here.”

“Much appreciated.”

The two finished their meal in a pleasant silence.