"If you lay a finger on his pretty little head while I'm gone... If you even so much as breathe offensively in his general direction... You remember the time I broke your hands? I'll break your face." She made her point by pressing her finger to Roman's forehead and forcing his entire head backward.
Roman laughed and raised a playful eyebrow to her. "Is that a threat?"
"Bet your fucking ass it is." Her eye contact ensured he understood that she'd accept no tricks from him while she was in the bathroom.
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"It's smart to do what she says, you know. I won't save you when she comes back—I won't. She'll put your head in the toilet and I won't have anything to do with it," Freddie pretended to wash his hands of the situation.
"Yeah, I'm not in the mood right now for a repeat of what happens when I don't." Roman rubbed his hands together and chuckled, a memory passing by of Lucy nearly smashing them to smithereens. He lifted his head to address Freddie. "You're really big, you know,"
Freddie bit his finger. "That's what Lucy tells me."
Taking his coat that was draped over the back of his chair and swinging it over his shoulders as they prepared to leave, Roman shook his head. "I mean your songs. They're really popular."
"You've heard them?"
"Everyone sings along at the games. The Jets. The Knicks. The Yankees... I go to all their games and watch all of Eljah's favorite teams play. I like to remember how much he liked them. But he's gone now." Roman lowered his eyes and straightened the collar on his coat. "But they play your songs at the games, everyone is so present and involved. It does feel like he and I are still making new memories. The power of music I guess."
"Is that—is that what you want with Lucy too? Is that what you came here?"
"Lucky to have made it to 30 running this life. How much would I regret it if I didn't try to connect with my sister? I do want a relationship with her."
"Well did you decide that before or after you stabbed her?"
"After. Admittedly." Roman answered quickly without reserve. "Because I want us to find our parents."
Pupils widening, Freddie's hand covered his mouth. "They're alive?"
"I don't know."
"You know who they are?!"
"I don't know."
"Oh well you don't seem to know much of anything!"
"I have a lead on our original birth certificates and someone who can run our DNA. We'll start there together."
"No no no... " Freddie flicked his scarf around his neck while making mental plans to cuddle with Lucy later after they'd enjoyed the rest of their evening. "You're not going to take my Lucy away on some wild goose chase—what's with that? No no, don't waste her time."
