Chapter 190
A few days have passed since Pippa and I split up
I was resting my head in my mom's lap while she was gently running her fingers through my hair, and putting my feet on Paige's lap. Loki was resting on my chest.
"This is life," I murmured.
"You really are a laz—" Paige started mocking.
"Is that the nice coat I bought for you?" I asked without even looking.
"A handsome guy," Paige completed.
The doorbell rang and a high-pitched voice was heard, "We are here!"
"Cam is here," Mom said, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah, we kinda heard it..." I said, then muttered, "Probably even our neighbor heard it, and that says something, because we bought all the adjacent properties"
"Be nice," Mom said.
"Hey, I'm always nice," I protested.
I liked Mitchell and Cam, I just thought Cam was a bit too much of a Drama Queen sometimes.
Mom got up to greet them, leaving me without my headrest.
Soon after, Paige also stood up, saying she had plans to study with a friend and would stay in the dorm tonight.
"Sorry, pal, I think we need to get up too," I patted Loki's head.
I headed toward the commotion.
"What is all about it?" I asked, hearing Judith and Paige's delighted voices as I approached, drawing closer to the lively scene.
"Lilly is so cute, guys," Judith was saying with a baby in her arms, while Paige was smiling and gently poking the baby.
I greeted Cam and Mitchell.
"Seems you got it," I said, smiling at them.
"Thank you, Jake!" they both hugged me.
At Gloria and Jay's wedding, I overheard them confiding to my mom about having already started an adoption process. But it was complicated (even though in California, despite no formal law, there were favorable court rulings allowing same-sex couples to adopt jointly in some cases).
So, in my drunken state (the same as theirs), I said I would help them.
And I did (or Harvey did). I would have helped even without promising it. I never saw a problem with gay marriage or adoption.
But I never was a Democratic Party supporter. Same as today. Pepper and I are the same, we favor the ones who give us more benefits. We don't care which color the politician wears, we care that they are on our side (JD side). So our lobbying is broad.
That reminds me, this year there's an election, and the state will have Gray Davis (Democrat) vs. Bill Simon (Republican), one of the most unpopular races in history. With a recall next year, leading to Arnold Schwarzenegger taking office. I should probably warn Pepper about it...
I walked over to see the baby. "You are really cute, Lilly," I said, then murmured, "Politicians are just like your diapers, Lilly. We need to change them from time to time, and for the same reason."
Cam suddenly pulled me out of my political thoughts. "Jake, you and your mom are coming over for family dinner tonight," he said cheerfully, "I invited Mitchell's whole family over for dinner."
"What?" Mitchell reacted instantly.
"I had to!" Cam replied, throwing his hands up. "This would have gone on forever. You're an avoider."
"No, no! Cam, I'm calling them now, I'm cancelling," Mitchell protested, already reaching for his phone.
"Mitch, you should tell them," Judith reasoned. "And are you sure we can go? Isn't this a family thing?" my mom added.
Mitchell and Cam immediately protested, both saying we were more than family, with Mitchell muttering under his breath, "And one that didn't say something judgmentally."
I thought to myself: huh, there is an irony in there, isn't it?
Two years ago, I would never have said Judith Harper wasn't a judgmental person. But Mom and Dad changed a lot for the better.
Money helped a lot, but probably having a very delightful son... I got bonked.
"What was that for, Mom?" I asked, rubbing my head.
"You were making a very pompous face. I just assumed you were thinking something rude," Mom said deadpan.
"Heyy!" I exclaimed, making Mom and Paige laugh. Soon after, Paige said she wouldn't be able to join and waved goodbye.
---
Cut to Mitchell and Cam's house. Judith and I were 'admiring' the painting in Lilly's room.
"That is a nice painting," Judith said with a forced smile.
"Yeah... hum... I'll comment after Jay says something," I stated, staring at the painting on the wall that depicted Mitchell and Cam as angels.
Mitchell murmured to me, "Don't worry, even I wanted something less gay..."
The doorbell rang.
"I still can't believe you did this to me!" Mitchell exclaimed.
"Would you get in the spirit of things! It's a celebration!" Cam replied.
"Oh God," Mitchell groaned.
"Okay, I'm gonna go get Lily ready, and I want you to just come straight out with it," Cam instructed.
"Alright," Mitchell sighed.
"You can do this!" Cam encouraged, going for a sportsguy chest bump.
"No," Mitchell flatly refused.
"Sportsguy chest bump!" Cam insisted.
Before Mitchell could protest again, Cam bumped into him anyway, grinning as he said, "Do it!"
Mitchell groaned but walked toward the door to answer it, with Mom and me following right behind him.
He took a deep breath, opened the door with a smile, and greeted, "Heey, how are you?" to Claire, giving her a hug.
"Hi guys!" he said next, spotting Alex, Luke, and Haley.
"Well, thank you, thanks," Mitchell added politely as Phil handed him a bottle of wine.
Claire said "Oh, don't thank us. Open it! Dad is coming right behind"
Phil grinned and greeted me, "Jake, J-Money, Jakester!" as we bumped fists, laughing.
Alex looked at me strangely and asked, "What are you doing here?"
"Good to see you too, Alex," I replied smirking as we greeted each other.
"Hey, Jake," Haley said, giving me a hug, though this time her greeting was more restrained than usual.
Claire turned to greet us, pulling both me and my mom into a quick hug. "Hi, Jake. Hi, Judith. It's really great to see you both here."
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