Grayson Reid Jansen

At first, getting laid off sucked because, well, there was nothing to fucking do. Then, I realized I actually had a shit ton I could be doing. For example, my house needs to be furnished. I don't know shit about furniture, I'd fuck around and get a duck phone for all I care.

At first, I was going to call Leila and ask her to hang because we were doing so much better and I still felt like I needed to make it up to her. Then, I remembered I had a sister I didn't see much of anymore so I figured she'd do. Besides, once she started visiting me at my house I knew all she'd do is judge my decor anyway so why not have her pick it out herself?

Why not make it a siblings day, I thought in my head. That's when I texted Colson and told him I'd be picking him up to hang for the day, too. As much as we needed one-on-one time off the field, I thought the three of us spending time together was in order.

Colson didn't do much other than soccer and try to pick up girls. I guess you could say he was just like me when I was in high school. Or at least, that's what everyone says. And when I say everyone, I mean everyone, including the teachers who taught me when I was there who're still there and have Colson, dad, and Holland. Even Brea said he reminds her of me, but she only knew college me who wasn't nearly as bad as high school me and I hadn't even peaked, yet.

My iPhone quacked, which is the sound I set as a text tone rather than the traditional 'DING'.

I pressed the back of my head against the headrest with my arm over it and used my other hand to dig in the pocket of my joggers for my phone to see who was texting me.

LJ💪🏾: yooo

LJ💪🏾: I know you getting my messages bro hit me later

LJ💪🏾: link tonight, issa bad asian jawn im tryna put you on

Shaking my head, I swiped out of our thread without replying. It was nothing personal, I just didn't want any parts.

L had been hitting me up, trying to get me to go out with the guys again. I had no interest in seeing him for a while, we needed space. LJ was too drunk to remember that we got in a fight and I didn't bother refreshing his memory. Don't get me wrong, he's like a brother to me but he's a man-child; all the sleeping around was getting old. I just wished he'd see it that way, too, soon.

"Why don't you like LJ anymore, y'all haven't talked or hung out in, like, weeks?" Colson asked, all up in my phone.

I turned my body away from him and closer to the door with furrowed brows. "Let me see who you're texting-"

"No," he objected far too quickly, like he had something to hide as if I even cared.

"Exactly, mind your business."

1:08 PM. Holland met me at the Washington Square Mall since she had other stores she wanted to hit up for herself. Naturally, I had to complain; she knew I hated going in the mall with her because she takes literally for-fucking-ever! I couldn't blame her, though, most women did.

Colson and I continued to wait impatiently in the parking garage for Holland to pull up. When she struggled to back in her Prius, I laughed at her and got out of my gray Grand Cherokee to help, followed by my kid brother who was a slave to his new iPhone, courtesy of me.

"T-turn," I yelled at my sister, struggling to spit it out because I was laughing too hard. She couldn't drive for shit.

As Holland finally managed to park successfully, she gave me the finger while the passenger side window went up.

"Ha, ha. Come get your niece, she won't stop crying." Holland complained, as she put her dark sunglasses on the top of her head.

I immediately grinned as I chewed on my mint gum and walked over to the backseat to get Michelle.

Yeah, it was hard seeing my niece without thinking of you-know-who. She was practically named after her, after all. Well, kind of. What happened is, Mark and Holland had a few girl names and few boy names to choose from since they left the gender a surprise until delivery. The boy options were: Mark Jr. (MJ), Kadon, Anthony (Tony), and Shawn. I personally liked Shawn the most. Then, the girl names were: Kayla, Morgan, Sydney, and Michelle. So, Michelle was always a contender but when Brea came along and everyone thought we'd live happily ever after, they thought it'd be cute, I guess.

I scrunched my face as I opened the door and bent down to cheer my baby up. "I know, Ellie, Mommy can't drive. It's okay," I used an annoying baby voice.

Holland rolled her eyes as she waited for me to take little Michelle, who we often call Ellie, out of her carseat.

Carseats were like rocket science to me. "I can't get this shit, Holland-"

"No cussing in front of, Ellie! Move, ugh," She rushed me out of the way,"you just push the button, see? Jackass."

"Hey, no cussing in front of Ellie," I spat, taking the baby right out of her hands.

I bounced with Ellie in my arms, tickling her chubby neck to make her giggle as Holland got the stroller out of the trunk.

Before Holland shut and locked the doors, I retrieved the baby bag from the floor of the backseat, and slung it over my shoulder.

I was too busy playing with Ellie to notice Holland staring at me in awe until she shook her head and said,"Don't get any ideas."

"Oh, you don't gotta worry about me for a long time. It's him we gotta watch," I said, referring to Colson who had wandered off to get some girls number.

"Uh-uh, Gray, she looks too grown-" Holland started to object and walk over to intervene but I stopped her.

"Hey, hey, let 'em do his thing," I insisted, my arm over her chest to stop her from embarrassing him in front of the blonde he was talking to and her ginger friend.

"Hm." Holland sounded, folding her arms.
"What?" I asked her what the noise was for.

"Oh, nothing, just that you two have a type," she observed and wasn't wrong.

"Stay away from the blondes, man," I said under my breath,"trust me."

"Speaking of blondes, Brea's back," Holland said.

My face curled. "So?"

"I heard you talked to her, how'd it go?"

I adjusted my stance and sighed, rolling my eyes. "By 'hear' you mean you asked Dad where I went last night?" Holland nodded and I just laughed at how nosy she was. "Yeah we talked," I admitted. "let's just say I didn't exactly get the outcome I wanted, alright. Now drop it."

"Fine, I'll just have to talk to Brea, then," Holland shrugged, walking around my body. I wanted to object but it was out of my hands.

Minutes later, Colson jogged back over to us with this goofy smirk on his face. He shook the long curls out of his face and wondered why Holland and I were looking at him so suspiciously.

"Well," Holland pried.

I finished what she wanted to say,"Did you get her number?"

Colson held up his unlocked phone, a contact on his screen when he said,"Yeah."

I grinned at him like a proud father and slapped his hand. "My boy," I beamed.

"You should ask her out," I suggested, elbowing him.

Holland didn't seem to like that idea and shot me a burning look.

"You think?"

"Yeah, ask her to lunch. Holland wants Cheesecake Factory, tell her to meet you there," I tried to sell it but Colson wasn't sure.

I adjusted my stance with a slobbering Ellie on my hip and said,"We'll sit a few tables away, come on."

"Fine, I'll ask her," he agreed and then walked away to text her.

Not too long later, he rejoined us with the same goofy smirk from before. "She said yes!"

"As she should," I hyped my brother up, our hands sliding again.

"Well, what're we waiting for?!"

======

A couple of hours passed by. In that time, Holland and I did manage to get some shopping done with no help from Colson who was too busy texting his date.

We told the girl where to meet us and when and honestly, I think Holland and I were more excited than Colson. It was his first real date. It wasn't the most romantic circumstances but they're Gen Z kids, what did romance mean to them, anyway?

After placing an order for a couch, Holland, Ellie, Colson, and I all went to The Cheesecake Factory in the mall.

We were waiting to be seated when Holland started giving Colson and I the third degree.

"How old is this girl even?"

Colson didn't lift his head up from his busy phone to answer her,"Seventeen," he said.

"You're sixteen," she nagged.

Colson snarled,"You're twenty-nine, Mark's twenty-six. Your point?"

"Touche." Holland grumbled, annoyed.

"This is happening so fast. I mean, a date, already? I remember having to wait for a guy to call me. And after a few days, if he did call, then we'd go on a date," Holland spoke anxiously,"Gray, how long do you wait to take a girl out?"

I vibrated my lips and then responded,"I dunno, I'm pretty generous." Which was a good way to say I really don't take girls out, we just meet and then end up fucking somewhere and even then, I don't have a grace period. It really just depended on the girl and what she wanted. Thinking back to college, I'd meet a girl online and then they'd ask to hang out so we would; and in the first few minutes I'd learn she was just as down as I was so it really didn't take longer than thirty minutes to an hour to score.

"Jansen" the hostess called out our party name.

"Oh, that's us," I sprung to my feet, in front of my siblings, with Ellie fast asleep in my arms.

"Right this way," the hostess grinned up at me, holding menus in her hands.

"Oh, hey" I heard Colson speak. When I turned, I saw him hug the girl from the parking garage who was no longer accompanied by her ginger friend. Good wing-woman, way to not thirdwheel, I thought.

"I almost forgot, can these two get a booth, a few tables down from our table?" I asked.

"Of course, follow me."