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“Ready?”
“Yeah.” They both headed to their respective cars. “Oh, are you…”
“Sorry, I…we can take your car.”
“Are you sure?”
“It’s fine, Milo.”
He continued to his car and opened the two doors for Wilda and Caleb. “In you go.”
They got into the car, and he went around it to get in behind the wheel. He looked in the mirror at Caleb. “Are you ready to go play some games?” Caleb shrugged, and Milo glanced at Wilda. “Still moping?”
“A little bit, yes.”
When they arrived at Rocco’s, Marti was already there with the boys. She sat in a booth near the arcade while the boys fed quarters into the machines. So close to the arcade games, the clatter of coins and the occasional bell or whistle drowned out the conversation from the nearby tables. Milo approached the table with Wilda and Caleb.
Marti smiled. “There you are.”
“Sorry, I lost track of the time.” He turned to Wilda. “This is Wilda and Caleb.”
“Hi. I’m Marti.”
Pickles was lying under the table, keeping an eye on Levi. Milo knelt beside her and rubbed her ears. “And this is Pickles.” Caleb stepped up beside Milo. “It’s okay. You can pet her. She’s super friendly. She gets to come to school with Levi every day.”
Caleb patted Pickles' head as Milo stood. “I’ll go introduce Caleb to the boys.” He looked at Wilda. “Do you want to have a seat or…”
“I’ll sit.”
He took Caleb’s hand. “Okay, let’s go meet the guys.” He went to Micah and Levi, who were playing a game together. “Hey, guys.”
Levi hugged him. “Uncle Milo!”
“I want you guys to meet Caleb. He’s in my class this year, so he’s a little younger than you, Levi.”
Caleb leaned against Milo’s leg. “Where’s Rylen?”
Micah pointed. “Over there shooting ducks.”
“Okay, I’ll be right back.” He took Caleb to Rylen. “Hey, Ry, this is Caleb.”
Rylen smiled. “Do you want to play this with me? We can do two-player.”
Caleb put an arm around Milo’s leg. “How about Caleb and I play on a team against you?”
“Okay.”
Milo stayed and played with the boys until Caleb felt more comfortable around them. When he left to return to the table, Caleb and Levi were giggling over a game.
Milo stood at the end of the table. “I think he has successfully integrated into the Buchanan brothers’ bro club.” Milo had two options. Sit next to Marti, which would be awkward, or sit next to Wilda, which, in some ways, would be even more so. He decided to delay the decision. “I’m going to talk to Gentry and Abe.”
He crossed the room and went behind the counter. Gentry closed the lids on two boxes and set them on the counter. “How are the boys getting along?”
“Great. Did you warn them about Caleb’s…situation?”
“Yes. I thought I should give them a heads-up. Levi had already heard about the boy in kindergarten who didn’t talk.”
“Well, they’re getting along fine without conversation.”
