Page 119 of My Family

"Call me Be," she says, shaking my dad's hand. "Jack talks about Liam all the time."

Jack's sister steps forward, shifting the toddler to her other hip.

"I'm Maggie," she says. "And this little monster is Theo."

Theo buries his face in his mother's neck, suddenly shy, but peeks out at us with one eye.

"He's usually not this quiet," Jack says, reaching over to ruffle the kid's hair. "Usually he's running around screaming about dinosaurs."

"Dinosaurs are cool," my dad says seriously to Theo, who peeks out a little more. "Which one's your favorite?"

"T-Rex," Theo whispers, then immediately hides his face again.

"Good choice," my dad says with a nod.

It's strange seeing him interact with a little kid, being gentle and interested. It's like watching a version of my father I never got to see.

"So, what's this about saving a shop?" I ask, turning to Jack and Maggie.

Jack's face lights up again.

"Tell him, Mags!"

Maggie shifts Theo higher on her hip.

"We found a business partner. Someone to invest in the tattoo shop. New equipment, renovations, the works."

"That's amazing," I say, and I mean it. Jack's been worried sick about the shop closing.

"It's going to be better than before," Berenice adds, reaching over to squeeze Jack's shoulder. "And this one is going to have his own station when he comes home."

"My own station," Jack repeats, like he can't quite believe it. "With my designs on the wall and everything."

"You deserve it," Maggie says. "Your work is good. Really good."

Jack blushes and looks down at his feet, but I can see how much the praise means to him. Theo starts squirming in Maggie's arms, and she sets him down.

He immediately grabs Jack's hand.

"Run," he demands.

"You want to run around?" Jack asks, crouching down to Theo's level.

Theo nods enthusiastically.

"We'll be right back," Jack tells us, letting Theo pull him toward the playground.

"He's so good with him," Berenice says, watching them go. "Always has been."

"Jack's a good kid," I say, which sounds weird because it makes me sound like an adult.

Which I guess I am.

"Come on, Dad, let's go find Ethan," I tell him. "See you all later," I say to the others, and they wave us off.

Chapter 36. Liam

I scan the crowd for Ethan, pulling my dad along with me through the maze of families and residents.