Dreamchasers
by Grasshopper
Chapter 5
Cody had finally settled Davy down enough that the young boy could drift off to sleep. He had argued a bit when Cody insisted that he go back to his own bed and Cody would sleep on the sofa.
"Daddy will be mad."
"I'll handle your father," Cody had said quietly, knowing full well he hadn't the faintest idea how to 'handle' Jase McBride. The boy shouldn't be tossed out of his own room and besides, Cody had a lot of thinking to do and he was sure sleep wouldn't come easily tonight. "You just settle down now and dream sweet dreams," he soothed, brushing Davy's bangs out of his eyes. He watched as the boy cuddled his rabbit and tried to keep his eyes open.
"Night, sweet boy," Cody whispered, as he turned out the bedside lamp and flicked on the tiny nightlight on the wall. Closing the door softly, he retreated to the sofa to listen to the old house creak, the night wind sing and for the sounds of Jase coming home.
Jase lay still, quiet as the night, across the cold slab of desert granite. He hadn't cried tears for Tommy...not in a long time. He was 31 years old, not some moon-eyed 15 year old anymore. Love was something he never wanted to touch again. It just took your heart and ripped it open.
Sighing, he stood, knowing he needed to get back........to Davy.......to Cody. 'Cody'...........he said the name aloud. He knew they needed to talk. He knew Cody thought he was insane. Jase had never told anyone why he felt the way he did. He knew and yet, the thought of looking into those chocolate eyes, seeing the look of confusion, of hurt was more than he needed right now. The best thing to do was just be calm, get the property agreement figured out and get Cody out of his life, back to New York as quickly as possible.
Cody heard the kitchen door creak open and the soft shuffle of boots across the linoleum floor. He sat still, his eyes on the hall, straining to see through the darkness.
Jase walked quietly, planning to head straight for his room but he paused, his hand on the doorknob to Davy's bedroom. He'd just make sure everything was okay; that Cody was okay. His mind said that; his heart said 'Yeah, right'.
He pushed the door open slowly and blinked to accustom his eyes to the glowing of the nightlight. Too small, much too short to be his aggravating visitor. The raggety bunny ears said it all. Davy was sleeping deeply in his own bed. Jase froze. That meant Cody.................
"Looking for me?" a soft voice whispered in the darkness.
Caught, Jase turned slowly toward the living room. He could just make out the shape of Cody's body, stretched out along the sofa.
"I was just........," he trailed off.
"Just what?" Cody asked, his voice a blend of questions and laughter. "Seeing if I was tucked in?"
"Shut up!" Jace replied, the dark hiding the blush that rode high on his cheeks. Covering quickly, he growled, "We have to talk."
"Yes," Cody sighed, "We do."
Jase reached for the light switch. "No," Cody said softly, "Leave it off. In the dark, you can't see me. That's what you want, right?"
Jase cringed. "It isn't you."
"If you hate Indians, then it IS me," Cody sighed, sadness coating his words. "Without knowing what's inside me, what I think, how I feel; you're going to condemn me because of my hair, my skin, my eyes."
The darkness making him brave, the hot night air letting his emotions surface, even for an instant, Jase replied, "I don't want to."
Cody frowned, shifting on the sofa. "Then don't. I don't want to hate you. Right now, for just this moment in time, talk to me. I'm just Cody." He stood and walked quietly over to Jase, so close Jase could feel Cody's breath on his face, hear his soft breathing, feel the heat waving off his body.
"I.......I don't hate you," Jase sighed.
Cody ran the back of his hand gently across Jase's cheek. "I'm glad."
"I was okay til you came," Jase mumbled, turning his face into the gentle hand that cupped his cheek, "And when you're gone, I'll be okay again."
"Are you sure?" Cody whispered. He was so close he could feel Jase's pulse racing, could smell the aroma of sexual fear and excitement. He felt his body jerk. He wanted to press up against Jase and show this stubborn man exactly how he affected him.
Jase reached for Cody, for this man who seemed to come out of nowhere, blindsiding him. All the years of denying who he was; all the nights of relieving himself with his own hands. He wanted...God, he wanted.........his hands reached and tangled in the long hair, the long coarse shining hair. Tommy's hair........................
Jerking his hands back as if he'd touched a flame, Jase staggered back into the wall. "No! This will NOT happen. You're...........I..............I can't touch you."
Cody's head arched back as if he'd been struck. He heard the pain in Jase's voice, felt the almost tangible wall rise up. He held his hands in the air in front of him, palms up. "Okay. Fine. Sorry. I misunderstood." He turned to walk back to the sofa and almost lost his breath as Jase grabbed his arm and swung him around.
Yanked into the older man's embrace, Cody had no time to prepare. No time to guard himself from the feelings that shot through his body as Jase's mouth claimed his. It was almost a struggle for control. Jase wanted to feel again. He wanted to taste and touch and suck the sweetness from Cody's lips. Cody wanted to show Jase he was different, that he cared, that he wouldn't hurt him.
Cody licked at that pouting bottom lip and carved his way into Jase's mouth. It wasn't a sweet kiss. It wasn't gentle or shy. Tongues dueling for control, grinding bodies pressed together, arms tangled. 'I hate you'...'No'...'I want you'...'Yes'.
Jase reached for Cody's zipper, wanting to have him, taste him, devour him right here on the floor, right now. All those years of wanting........He wanted it all........Now! His hands roughly massaged Cody's swelling balls through the denim, hearing low guttural sounds coming from the younger man's throat.
Cody's mind was spinning, his body already gone. He felt Jase yank his zipper down and felt the rough hands on his jeans, one diving into the front, taking hold of his pulsing erection. He wanted this.........he wanted this man, right here, right now. He felt the whoosh of air as Jase fell to his knees.
"Cody!" a soft voice called his name.
Cody sprang back, his jeans gapping open, his face shiny with spit from both their mouths. "Oh God."
Jase just knelt, slack and breathing hard, his hands dangling at his sides, his body trembling.
Cody sucked in a deep breath, shivering with the feeling of loss and denial, shoving at his dick, trying to close his jeans. He eased carefully around Jase and walked unsteadily into the hall.
"Yes, Sweetie?" he said, his voice shaky, his breath coming out in little puffs.
"I got scared, Cody. Is Daddy home yet?"
"Yes, he's home. Everything's fine."
Jase could hear the soft murmurs as Cody talked his son back to sleep. It should be him in there but he couldn't move. He was so exquisitely in pain that to move was too much.
Cody found him there, still on his knees as if praying to some unknown god. He reached out and touched Jase's shoulder and bit back a moan as Jase jerked away from his touch.
"That was a mistake," Jase growled.
There was nothing more to say. Cody turned and walked out the front door, sitting down heavily on the front step, his mind still churning over what had almost happened. What if it had? What then? He heard the floorboards squeak and then the snick of the lock on Jase's bedroom door. 'Fuck, if he thinks I'm gonna chase him in there', Cody sighed. He sat and listened to the coyotes talking across the empty air and felt a great sadness for the demons that were eating away at Jase McBride.
Cody woke early with about 3 hours sleep. He stood up stiffly, rolling his neck, one hand to his aching back. 'That couch is a piece of crap', he groaned.
Hearing sounds in the kitchen, he found Jase making coffee and Davy pouring Count Chocula into a bowl.
"Hey, Cody," Davy smiled. "Want some cereal?"
"Nah, I'm not awake yet," he answered, avoiding looking over toward the tall dark haired man leaning against the counter.
"I have to run out to Brad Framer's place this morning to check on his bull, Geronimo. I should be back by 11. I've gotta ride the fence line in the north pasture this afternoon. You can come with me and we can talk," Jase said, all in one long breath, his voice dry and emotionless.
"Yes," Cody answered, "I need to be thinking of going home, so we need to talk." The air in the room seemed filled with a strange static.
Davy looked from one to the other, his face drawing into a frown. The daddy from yesterday was gone and his new friend Cody wasn't smiling either. Davy sighed. Nothing ever worked out right. He climbed off the chair and slipped out of the kitchen quietly, grabbing his backpack and heading for the door. Just as he pushed his bike out of the barn and swung his leg over the bar, Cody came out the screen door.
"Davy," he called. Davy looked up, his eyes shimmering with old familiar tears. "I made these for you yesterday to take to school."
Davy watched as Cody offered him a Tupperware container filled with cookies. "I thought maybe you'd like to give your class a treat."
Davy's hands shook as he reached for the plastic box. "Thank you, Cody," he said softly, sniffing back his feelings.
Cody understood. "Davy, I'm going to talk to him today. I promise. I haven't forgotten."
"Please, Cody," the little boy pleaded. "I'm counting on you."
Cody watched as the boy opened his backpack and carefully slid the cookies inside. He reached over and helped him adjust the pack on his shoulders and stood watching as Davy pedaled down the long driveway toward the main road. He waved as Davy turned his head one last time and smiled sadly as the boy raised his hand to return the wave. Turning, he walked back toward the house and the enigmatic man who lived there.
Jase was just rinsing out his coffee cup as Cody came back into the kitchen. The silence was thundering in the quiet house.
"Jase.........," Cody began.
"Not now. Later. I have to go."
Cody watched as slammed out the back door. He stood, looking through the screen as Jase opened the side compartments of his black truck, checking to make sure he had all his supplies, then swing up into the driver's seat and turn the key in the ignition. Their eyes met and locked. Cody opened the screen door and stepped out onto the back porch. Jase had his hand on the truck door handle. Just this look and Cody was hard, pulsing tightly against the rough denim of his jeans. He knew Jase was the same. The air was already heating up for the day and Cody felt sweat trickle down the small of his back, whether from the sun's heat or the heat coming from Jase's eyes, he didn't know or even care.
'This isn't over', his eyes yelled at Jase.
Jase moved his hand from the door handle as if he was covered in thick molasses, every move slow and languid. He gripped the steering wheel and tore his eyes from the younger man. 'This has to be over,' he cursed to himself. 'I can't do this.......not again'. The sound of the truck tearing up the gravel drive shook Cody enough to make him pull out of the thickness of want.
'God damn', he sighed. 'What have I fallen into?' He watched the truck make a right turn, opposite from the direction Davy had taken. He stood still until the clouds of dust settled back onto the hot sandy ground.
Cody knew he had to go home. He had his return ticket in his coat pocket. He was supposed to leave tomorrow night. When he'd made the reservations, he'd really thought he'd fly out, make some kind of arrangements with the lawyer or Jase McBride and go right back to his life in New York. Now, here he was, mired in a mystery, caught up in the love of a young boy for his father and strangely feeling more at home in this old rambling house than he'd ever felt at home in New England. The heat, the dust, the sand, the endless azure sky...everything seemed to be calling his name.
'You did this on purpose, you old scoundrel', Cody sighed, shaking his head at the thought of his grandpa sitting up there in heaven rubbing his hands together gleefully while down here on earth three people struggled to make sense of feelings they couldn't control. 'I wish you could tell me, explain to me what happened ten years ago. I have so many questions, Grandpa. You have all the answers, don't you? I need to know so I can help. I need to know so I can go home'. Unbidden, a voice whispered, "You are home, Dakota."
Shaking his head, Cody stretched and walked back in to fix himself some eggs and toast. He sat tapping his fork against his coffee cup. Mr. Schneider had told him the bare bones of what happened four years ago, but Grandpa had been here after Charity had been killed. He must have tried to help Jase in his grief. Jase must have told him something. Punching in the lawyer's office number, Cody smiled to hear Bessie's loud friendly voice.
"Alan Schneider's office. What can we do for ya?"
"Hi Bessie. Cody Taylor here."
"Well, hi yourself cutie," she laughed into the phone. "It was a pleasure meetin' you yesterday."
"Likewise," Cody answered. "Bessie, is Mr. Schneider in? I'd like to talk to him."
"Sure, sugar." He grinned as she used her own form of intercom. He heard her yell, 'Alan...............Cody Taylor on the phone'. "He'll be right with you. How's life out there with the McBrides?"
"Interesting," Cody replied.
"I'll bet," Bessie chuckled. "He's a piece of work, and I don't mean Davy."
"I didn't think you did," Cody laughed.
He heard a click and Alan Schneider's voice, "Bye Bessie."
"Morning Mr. Schneider," Cody said.
"Alan, please."
"Sure....Alan."
"How can I help you?"
"I was wondering if Grandpa left any papers or had a safe deposit box or anything."
"Your grandpa didn't reckon much with banks for his personal things." Alan thought for a minute. "He did write in a journal. I used to see it lying on the table in the living room by his chair."
Cody walked to the living room doorway, cringing at the image of Jase on his knees last night. Rubbing his eyes, he spoke into the phone, "No journal there anymore. Do you have any idea where it might be now?"
"Not really. Ask Jase."
Cody was silent so long that Alan said, "That bad, huh?"
"I want to help, Alan. I just don't know where to start. I thought maybe Grandpa had written something somewhere that could help me. Are you sure you don't know anything else that can help?"
"I wish I did, Cody. Your grandpa was a quiet man, not speaking unless he had something to say and well, you've met Jase. He isn't exactly a fount of information." He heard Cody snort his agreement.
"Well, thank you. I was just hoping............," Cody trailed off.
"Tell him to check in the attic." Bessie's voice rang through the receiver.
"Did you hear Bessie?" Alan laughed.
"Ayup," Cody smiled. "Why the attic?"
"Men!!" Bessie sniffed. "Everyone knows that you cram everything you don't know what to do with in the attic. When Edgar died, I'll be willing to bet ya, Jase just gathered up stuff and shoved it upstairs."
"Oh," Cody and Alan said at the same time, then laughed.
"Okay, the attic it is. And it's not exactly snooping because it was my grandfather's house."
"Cody," Alan said seriously, "You do what you need to out there. Those two McBride men need all the help they can get."
Thanking Bessie and Alan, Cody washed up the dishes and headed for the door that led to the attic. Trying the knob, he found it locked. Not to be stopped now, Cody looked through the kitchen drawers but found no keys. It would have to be one of those big old fashioned ones with the single tooth and there were none like that in the kitchen. Sighing, Cody knew of only one other place to try.
He walked slowly down the hallway and stopped at the closed door, remembering how Jase had locked it last night as if he were afraid of Cody, afraid to feel what he had felt. Turning the knob, he looked in and thought he would just check the top drawer. Not touch anything, just look for the key. He tugged the drawer open, staring at the photo sitting in his line of vision. Three children, laughing, one so much like him. One with long black hair.........one that Cody was sure now Jase had loved.
He tore his eyes from the unidentified boy and looked down into the drawer. He saw a jumble of things: a rolled up necktie, some dark colored socks, a postcard with 'Hello from California' written on it, Davy's old report cards, a length of sky blue velvet ribbon, some desert sage in an old baby food jar, a pile of change, a manilla clasp envelope and three old books.
Cody stood very still. He knew he shouldn't. He could feel the envelope, the books crying to be opened. He could almost hear Charity whispering for him to take them out, open them. He lifted the blue ribbon in his fingers.
"Charity," he murmured. "This was yours. He loved you. Can you help me?" Letting the ribbon slide through his fingers, he touched the books, touched the envelope. His hand went to the envelope. It was slim, nothing bulky in it. God, he felt like a thief. But, he wasn't stealing anything. What he was looking for had already been stolen. He wanted to get it back.
Pulling the envelope from the drawer, he sat in the middle of the bare floor and pinched the little metal clasps up to slip the flap open. Upending the holder, he carefully let the contents slide out onto the wood floor.
Three photographs, two letters tied together with another piece of blue ribbon, a faded handmade red valentine and sprinkled all through, dried desert wild flowers, their aroma opening and filling the room with the scent of the sand and the heat.
Cody knew, without understanding why, that he was about to learn who the boy in the photo was. He knew he was intruding; he had to know. He picked up the photographs.
The first was a school photo, the boy, all stiff and uncomfortable, no sign of a smile on his beautiful face. His long black hair defiantly plaited into two thick braids lying down across his chest. It was his eyes that told the story; clouded and angry. Turning the photo over, Cody saw, scribbled in fading black ink:
Quiet Water 15 10th grade 1988
Cody stared at his eyes. They were so angry. What an odd name for an Indian boy. Cody knew that they were named after animals and usually with some sweeping adjective in front like Soaring Eagle or Runaway Hawk. He had never been given an Indian name but his grandpa had called him things like: He Who Eats Like Pig or Boy Who Makes Much Noise or Giggling Chicken.
His grandmother had called him Helaku, always touching his cheek with her soft fingertips and saying. "You are my Sunny Day, Dakota. You are my Helaku."
She had never left Elijah out. She had called him Halona and would tell him that he was a happy fortune for the whole family. But he knew, everyone knew that Cody was her favorite, with his thick black hair and dancing native eyes.
Quiet water. Cody turned the old photo over and over in his fingers, wishing this sad angry boy could talk. 'Where are you now'? Cody wondered. 'What happened that so many lives are ruined'?
The second photo was of the two of them, Cody's breath caught in his chest as he looked at the two boys, Jase's arm slung over Quiet Water's shoulders and his arm snugged tight around Jase's waist. Their mouths open in happy laughter; their hips too close; their shirts hanging open in the hot desert sun. It was an innocent picture of two friends but Cody knew better and he could see past the obvious down to the real. He flipped the picture over to find that Charity had written on the back. The dots were little hearts and the curliques were very girly:
Jase and Tommy 1990 The day we went skinny dippin out at Mr. Cathcart's pond
1990.....Cody flipped the school photo over......That would have made them 17 in this picture. They were in love at 17. A white boy and an Indian boy.....prejudice heaped upon prejudice. Cody felt his heart breaking for these two faces, so much in love, so doomed in the future.
He had a name now.........Tommy.
The third picture was the three of them again, a little older, but all still beautiful, Jase and Charity dressed in long maroon gowns. Charity's hair was long and blonde and curling around her face; her mortarboard perched precariously. Jase was long and lean and so happy, laughing for the camera. Charity was in the middle, being hugged madly by both young men, but her eyes didn't seem to hold their usual sparkle as she leaned toward Tommy. But it was Tommy that Cody saw. His head was turned, looking at Charity. The look caught in his eyes was painful. 'Oh Lord', Cody struggled to 'read' the photo.
C, T and me 1994 after graduation
So............three old photos. Being raised by two archeologists, Cody had visited enough digs to know that you look for clues. Jase had loved Quiet Water when they were 15. They were still in love at 17 and Tommy was still close when Charity and Jase graduated from college. What had happened?
He hated the thoughts running amuck in his head. Had Charity and Tommy been lovers behind Jase's back? Was Davy Tommy's son? Where was Tommy?
That would explain Davy and Jase's aversion to him but that wouldn't explain who killed Charity. If this was the case, why had Jase married Charity?
Rubbing his eyes, he heard the truck pull up in the barn yard. OMG!! Cody jumped up and with fumbling fingers, crammed the photos, the letters, the valentine and the dried flowers back in the envelope. Oh shit....Oh shit!! He tried to remember exactly how the envelope had been lying and then pushed the drawer shut to run quickly down the hall to the kitchen. Falling into the closest chair, he laid his hands on the table top just as Jase walked in the back door. Keeping his eyes down, guilt flashing awkwardly, he waited for Jase to speak.
"I'll just grab some lunch and we'll head out."
"K," Cody breathed. "I'll make you a sandwich."
"No," Jase replied, "You won't. I'm quite capable."
"I didn't say you weren't," Cody sighed.
He sat still, catching his breath while Jase banged around in the fridge and slopped together a bologna and cheese sandwich.
"Want me to heat it for you?"
"No.......what I want is you to NOT wait on me."
Cody didn't respond. He watched Jase. How could this man have been that open eyed boy with all that love shimmering out of his eyes? Cody was beginning to understand his pain. If what he thought was true.....there was no way he'd ever get close to Jase McBride.
Jase dumped his plate in the sink and started for the barn. " I need a fresh shirt and some clean water. C'mon when you're ready."
"Yes sir!" Cody grumbled. He washed up the plate, grabbed a leftover chicken drumstick and headed for the barn.
The barn was empty. Cody peered through the dim light but no Jase. He heard the sound of running water and headed toward the back door. He stepped out, wanting to ask which horse and called, "Jase, whi.........................," and his voice stuck in his throat. He was washing up all right. Jase had stripped off his shirt and was standing there, gloriously naked from the waist up, his belt unbuckled and his jeans undone. He had wet his hair and face and the water was running in rivlets down his shoulders and across his back. Just as Cody felt his body begin to react, Jase shook his head, drops of water flying. The image was incredible. His body was golden from days working in the hot sun, his hair glistening with water, all spikey and wild. His hands leaving his hips to grope for the blue towel, Cody wanted to run over and hand it to him or better yet dry him. His breath coming in tiny spurts, Cody's body ached.
Jase toweled himself off, raising his arms, the tufts of chocolate brown hair under his arms making Cody's body tighten. His jeans slid down and Cody was presented with a view of his lower belly and the matching curls. "Breathe," Cody moaned to himself. His jeans were molded to his body like a second skin and Cody could see the bulge of his sex, the bulge that was turning into a full out erection as Jase watched Cody watching him.
Jase looked at Cody and for a fleeting moment, it was all there; the want, the need. He stood still and let Cody devour him, his eyes black with desire. Then it was gone. The walls slammed up.
"What?"
Cody stammered. "I......which horse?"
"Take the pinto," Jase said tightly, "He never does what I say either."
"Mark of intelligence," Cody mumbled.
They rode out to the marker boundaries near Kachina Creek, Jase checking the fence line. The ride was taken in total silence; Cody unable to think of a single thing to say, playing those photos over and over in his mind and Jase, trying not to acknowledge the man riding beside him; impossible, but he was trying.
"Hold up a minute," Jase said, his leather gloved hand stretched out to slow Cody's ride. He stopped and slid off Sazi to look over a breech in the barbed wire. "I've gotta mend this."
Cody climbed down and watched as Jase opened his saddlebag to pull out wirecutters and needlenose pliers.
"We have to settle the land, Cody," Jase said as he clipped the rusted broken piece away.
"I know. I've been thinking about it." Cody saw Jase straining to pull the barbed wire taut across the fence.
"I could," he said through gritted teeth, his muscles bulging, "Pay you a little every month." The wire was tight.
"I want you to run it for me," Cody said softly. "I want you to use it any way you need to."
Jase's head jerked up, his hands tight on the wire. "I can't do that."
"But I want you to." Cody stepped toward him to touch his shoulder.
It all happened in a flash. Cody moved; Jase relaxed; the wire bucked and flew back. It jumped and caught him in the thigh. It was barbed wire and it lodged itself in his flesh tightly.
"Jesus!!" he yelled.
Cody fell to his knees and watched as the blood started to pour from the tear in Jase's jeans. Jase sat heavily down on the ground and his face showed his pain. Cody grabbed Jase's knife and cut his pantsleg away from the wire. The puncture was spouting blood and Cody knew it had to be stopped. He jerked off his shirt and tore a long strip, tying it just above the hole and tightening it to slow the bleeding, Then he gently took hold of the wire to see where it had gone in.
Cody heard Jase groan and looked quickly at his face. His tan had turned a sickly gray and his beautiful eyes were wide. Cody put his hand on Jase's cheek and said, "Hold on. I'll get it out. I'll try not to hurt you. Be brave for just a minute." He knew he sounded like he was talking to Davy but Jase sighed and leaned into his hand.
Then to take Jase's mind off what he was about to do, Cody leaned in and kissed him solidly on the lips. As Jase began to return the kiss and Cody felt the older man's body begin to relax, he twisted quickly with his free hand and pulled the deep barb out.
Jase's mouth jerked away and he let out string of cuss words all ending in 'Fuck!!'. Cody waited patiently till he was done and then held up the long barb for him to see. He had his hand pressed solidly on the hole to stop the bleeding and found that he was trapped in Jase's arms.
"God..........," Jase murmured.
"Nah, just Cody," he grinned.
Jase tried to stand up but he felt dizzy and plopped back down.
"We need to get you back to the house."
"I can ride."
"Well, yeah but it's still pumping blood out. Give me your cell." Jase handed over his phone and Cody hit #1 assuming that would be Davy. He heard the soft little voice answer, "McBride Residence'.
"Davy, we need your help. Your dad caught some barbed wire in his leg and you need to bring the wagon."
"K."
"Out by the old windmill on the creek."
"Yeah."
He handed the phone back to Jase and sat down to rest his back against the fencepost. "Here," he said. "Put your head here." patting his lap.
"I'm fine," Jase grumbled, his leg burning fire, his head aching and his stomach about to lose that bologna sandwich.
"God, you are the stubbornest man." Cody reached over and tugged on Jase's shirt. "Here. Now."
Jase settled his head on Cody's lap and tried to not think about it. Right!
"You think Davy can handle the wagon?"
"I think Davy can do a lot more than you give him credit for, Jase."
"About the land."
"Yes?"
"I can't just use it and you get nothing."
"Yep. It's what I want and it's yours to work."
"Why, Cody?"
"Let's just say I want to bring about peace between the Indian and the white man."
"It's not as easy as land and water for me."
"I know," Cody sighed, "But it's a beginning." He ran his fingers through Jase's honey colored hair and thought, 'Please let it be the beginning'.
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