Jeff didn't want to wake up. He was too content to watch Micah sleep with half his face buried in a pillow and his dark black hair sticking up in a few odd directions. He slept on his side with the covers pulled up tightly over his shoulder as if he was cold. Jeff was prepared to snuggle down with him and warm him up, but if he wasn't at work that morning, El would be calling him.
With a sigh, Jeff swung his legs out of bed and shuffled into the bathroom. He brushed his teeth and took another quick shower, just to make sure he looked presentable. He tried not to think too much about the night before in the shower—he didn't have time for those kinds of problems. Still, he couldn't help grinning over it.
He snuck a kiss on Micah's shoulder before leaving the room, buttoning up the front of his tan work shirt. At the bottom of the stairs, Sasha was already in the kitchen, making Jeff pause and wonder how well they had covered their tracks. Did Sasha know that Micah was upstairs in Jeff's bed?
"Morning," Sasha greeted over the sound of something sizzling on the stove.
"Mornin'," Jeff replied, going to hover over the teen's shoulder and see what it was he was making. It looked like steak and eggs, made from left overs, with bell peppers. Sasha had some tortillas set to the side, and Jeff grinned again. "Breakfast burritos," he cheered.
Sasha hummed and began to dish some of the fixings out of the pan and onto a tortilla. "Is Micah up yet, either? I want to talk to him about school."
Jeff tried not to look too awkward. "Uh, I'm not sure about that," he muttered. He was pretty terrible liar, he was sure—except when it came to dodging questions about why he didn't date girls. He figured that one fell more under a matter of survival rather than actual lying. "What do you want to know about school?"
"It starts in a few weeks, right? Am I registered? Am I going to the same school as Zach? Do I get to pick my classes?"
Jeff whistled and held up his hands. "I'm not sure even Micah has those answers, much less me. We might need to call Kate. I don't know that your records are transferred or anything yet. Then we can see about registration. You could ask Zach about how the class selection works."
Sasha huffed. "Do they have a music class?" He held a breakfast burrito hostage in his hand, looking at Jeff for an answer.
"I think every school has a music program, right?" Jeff tried, though he wasn't sure of that either. It had been years since high school, and he didn't know what got the axe with budget cuts. "Besides, do you still like the piano?"
Sasha deflated and he looked to the side. "I don't know. I think I do? I just..." he trailed off and didn't finish. He slowly handed over a breakfast burrito.
Jeff suddenly felt like he wanted to go back to trying to answer questions about school. At least Sasha had seemed excited about that, and they could banter back and forth about it. He could see a switch in Sasha at the talk of the piano and the implications it had with his father.
Jeff took a too-big bite of the burrito to give himself time to think of what to say. "Have they talked to you about counseling?"
Sasha scowled at him. "I'm here now, I don't need that."
"Doesn't mean there won't be some lasting effects," Jeff pointed out. "post-traumatic stress disorder, that kind of stuff, you know. Trust issues or something."
Sasha shrugged and shook his head at the same time. "No. I just feel like, if he comes around, I wouldn't know what to do. I wouldn't know how to protect myself."
"Well I can help you with that," Jeff straightened up with purpose. "A few basic defense moves here, teach you how to fire a gun—"
"Fire what?" Sasha cut in.

YOU ARE READING
Our Little Nowhere [mxm]
RomanceMicah has not had an easy life. Being raised by adoptive parents and having a criminal record are bad enough in a small town that talks, but Sheriff Jeff Rolland also keeps a close eye on him. As Micah's life gets complicated in a custody battle, it...