Sophomore Year || Parenthood Series, Book One || WATTYS 2018

Chapter Six

SOUNDTRACK: "Cough Syrup" by Young the Giant

Three days later, Jared was back in San Diego. He had hoped that Kate might reach out to him after their meeting, but it had been radio silence on her end. He couldn't really blame her; she had a life and he was essentially barging into it on a court order. Still, he hoped that this meeting might be slightly more productive than their last. Ryan had invited him over to their house and Jared had happily accepted. The less time they spent in public, the better at this point.

He parked on the street in front of a four story townhouse in a row of matching properties. He could smell the salt on the air as he walked up the sidewalk and rapped his knuckles on the front door. A second later, he literally fell backwards as a large dog jumped against the window next to the door, barking loudly.

"Jesus fucking Christ!" he swore loudly, putting his hand to his heart in an attempt to slow it down.

"Vedder, down!" Kate bellowed on the other side of the door. Instantly, the dog settled down and a second later she opened the door. "Hi," she said. "Sorry about that."

Jared stood up and brushed himself off. "Its fine. You didn't tell me you had a dog."

"He's Ryan's," she explained. "Come on in. Just take your shoes off."

He walked into the entryway and shut the door behind himself. Reluctantly, he kicked his shoes off, conscious of the fact that his socks didn't match. When he turned to face Kate, he smiled slightly as he saw that her own socks were mismatched as well. The dog was seated next to her, a low growl emanating from his chest. The Great Dane's massive head came level with Kate's elbow and his large brown eyes tracked Jared's every move.

"What did you say his name was?" he asked.

"Vedder," she answered. "Come on upstairs."

He followed her up the wooden staircase cautiously, aware that the dog was plodding along behind him. "Like after Eddie Vedder? From Pearl Jam?" he asked.

Kate shrugged. "I don't know. Ryan named him."

Jared stopped at the top of the stairs. The room opened up to a large living area with two sofas and a big set of bookshelves lining the wall. A large contemporary fireplace commanded one wall, its mantelpiece decorated with a few family photos. A dog bed the size of a crib mattress took up one corner and he could see a formal dining room through a set of open French doors.

"Where's your dad?" he asked, looking around.

"He's upstairs in his office," Kate explained. "Do you want something to drink?"

He followed her through the French doors and into the dining room. He paused for a minute, taking in the extravagant wedding china on display in a built-in cabinet along the wall. It was very obvious from the decor that Kate had not gone wanting in her childhood.

"Oh - uh, just water is fine for me," he said, coming back to himself. "What does Ryan do?" he asked. "You know, for work."

"He's an investment banker for a big company based in San Diego," she called from the kitchen. "His hours can be kind of weird."

Jared walked through a short hallway and found Kate in a modern kitchen, pouring water into two glasses. Vedder was slumped across the floor, taking up a large portion of it. He carefully stepped over the large animal and seated himself at the kitchen island.

"You don't like dogs?" she asked in reference to his reaction to the dog.

"I love dogs," Jared replied. "That's just...a lot to take in at once. I've had a husky before, years ago. How do you manage such a big dog in a small house?"