Always Cas | ✔

CHAPTER SIX; part one

     I'm sick.

     That has to be explanation for everything. I'm depraved, really.

     After the night's events, I can't imagine showing up to my gym or facing Jack. Jack was right. When Cas and I had dated, the sex was new but even more new for Cas and so we did it everywhere and all the time. But never that public. Never that debauched.

     I suppose I should't be all that surprised when Jack shows up at my door after I cancel on him. He holds up a brown bag. "I come bearing breakfast," he says so I have to let him in.

     Jack is dressed like a weekend dad. He's made it a thing. Like dad off-duty style. Dark jeans cuffed at his ankles, a flannel over a beige crew neck, and boots, which I point to so he begrudgingly slips out of them. Old Jack would've shown up to my place at this hour, sunglasses on to shield his hangover, in as much leather as he could possibly wear.

     He comes into the kitchen once he's parted ways with his boots and sets the bag on the bar, hopping up on a stool. "D'you want coffee or juice?" I ask as I open the fridge and pull out the bottle of grapefruit juice I'd picked up. There's a farmer's market just a few blocks down from here that I frequent. Ms. Vivvie, as she likes to be called, makes a variety of squeezed and pressed juices. She insisted I have the grapefruit, saying it would ward off bad news.

     "Coffee, yes, please," Jack says with a nod. I set the juice down before turning to fill the French press. "So what's up?" he asks as I grab a mug. "Also, here's your bland ass breakfast."

     "It's not bland," I gripe as I wait for the electric kettle to boil.

     "It's blasphemy is what it is," Jack responds. "Bagels are supposed to have the greasiest meat, cheesiest cheese, heartiest egg patty on it and you've got some weird egg white, spinach, turkey combo."

     "I sincerely hope Jasmine decides what the kids eat," I respond lightly.

     "Atlas is barely on solids, actually, but she loves a cheese doodle. Glad to know some things do prevail in the gene pool."

    I walk around the bar taking a seat as I pass Jack his coffee. For all his crap diet, he does take his coffee the way he should — black. "Alright but really, pulled a muscle? What kind of BS is that?"

     I grimace like the reminder has triggered some pain. "I did pull something."

     Jack rolls his eyes. "So what? The kid show up here last night or something?"

      I busy myself with the bagel, taking an over-exaggerated bite.

     "I'm just gonna keep guessing," he says with a shrug. "You guys fucked. You told him you love him. You proposed. He proposed. You're adopting a child."

     Sighing, I tell him, "We hooked up in the sauna at the gym."

      "No!" Jack grunts. "Thats our sauna. Come on, man. I nap in there."

     "I didn't even — why is he even a member there? You know, that was my place. Like he's everywhere but the gym was my place where I could go to get him out of my head."

     Jack nods and then shrugs his shoulders. "Okay, so we'll switch gyms?"

     "I don't want to switch gyms."

     "This is a very simple, easy solution to your problem."

     "It's my gym. I was there first. He should have to switch gyms."

     "Well he's clearly not going to do that when his whole vendetta is getting under your skin."

     I stop eating to glare at Jack. "Cas doesn't have a vendetta."