I picked up Jake late today because he wasn’t in school and I had a lot of work to catch up on. He had put on a red shirt especially for me and had put on his Hot Wheels underwear for me too. He was SOOO excited to see me that he just swelled my heart. We went and bought pumpkins at Whole Food uptown and after picking out five big pumpkins for the LaLa and three carving pumpkins for his house as well as little pumpkins for all sorts of purposes – “to set the big one on, Ocho” – we were walking out of the store when I ran smack into the guy who K was going to have come to my dinner party. He was buying flowers with his daughter. It all looked so innocent. He looked at me and did a double take – so I’m not sure if he ever learned my name or not – but I’m SOOO happy that M warned me about him before that went anywhere – and so happy I Googled him and saw the Domestic Violence arrests – sheesh – a lot of drama I don’t need in my life.
We then went to the bookstore and hung out and played leggos and read a pirate book – and bought that book and two others – Bad Kitty and Poor Puppy – and then we came home because he has not been feeling all that well. I put him no the sofa, got him chocolate milk and put in a movie and then scratched his back.
Then he wanted to scratch my back. But he tickled me instead which made me scream like a bird of prey.
Then he wanted me to scratch his stomach.
And then he wanted to scratch mine – so with my shirt up and him scratching me – everyone in the neighborhood happened to pass at that moment and who knows what they thought.
When L came to get him – I took him by the canoe to show him that the rain had filled it with water and as we were peering in – he said, “Ocho” in that sing songy questioning way – yes Jake? – “I love you.”
For that you walk a million miles.