Rivals 🌈 ✔

28 - Fatal

Deep down, Juice knew he should have told Chibs. Not only because it was his duty to report whatever lead, also because it might have created some peace in his mind. Right now he did not only worry about Raine, Sammy and their father, but he also feared the response of the others when he would tell them — and the conclusions one would draw. Would they believe him if he still claimed that Raine was Skye's boyfriend? Chibs hadn't believed him, not for a moment. The others might be a little slow on the uptake, but he was no stranger to them. Sooner or later they would find out. 

Juice tried to push these thoughts away. There was nothing he could do about it now anyway. Furthermore Oakland wasn't exactly around the corner and he didn't want to let little Sasha wait. Whatever the consequences for him personally would be; he'd have to deal with it later. It was better to focus his attention on the road now, before he would crash Skye's car. She had offered to come with him, but Juice didn't want her to cancel work for this. The only thing he had to do, was pick up a two year old from daycare. He could do that. He wouldn't attract attention now he was driving a car, so there was no reason to worry. 

Nevertheless, Juice felt tense. He drove faster than was allowed, arriving at the daycare a little too early. He identified himself; apparently Raine had already called to the daycare to tell them who would pick up his niece. A young woman disappeared through a door and returned with a little girl, holding her hand. 

"Juan!" Sasha exclaimed happily, and her face lit up. Pulling her hand away from her attendant, she ran towards him, her small backpack thumping against her back. The moment she stood before him, she raised her arms so he would pick her up. 

It had been a while since Juice had seen her and he was a little overwhelmed by her enthusiasm. He lifted her from the floor and she wrapped her arms around his neck, giggling as he teased her by squeezing her side. For a moment he slipped away from the reality in which her grandpa was missing. Instead, he saw a house with a large garden in which the girl was running around. She turned around and waved at him. Juice was standing in the doorway and wanted to wave back, but he noticed he was already holding someone's hand. He looked aside and got warm as he saw Raine, who smiled at him before he dropped his head on Juice's shoulder. Neither of them was wearing a kutte, neither of them had tucked a gun behind their waistband. The man raised his head a little, kissed him close to his ear and whispered in Spanish how happy he felt. 

The image faded, and he returned to the daycare where he was alone with Sasha. He felt a dull sadness in his chest at the thought that Raine didn't feel happy at all right now. Taking a deep breath, Juice manned up. He couldn't help him right now. Once Raine was back in Oakland and Sasha was asleep, he could try to find Raine's father. The thought that he might never meet the man caused a pit in his stomach. 

"Buying ice cream?" The child voice pulled him out of his thoughts and helped him to focus. 

"Yeah, we can do that," he said. "And then we're gonna look for a playground." He had no key of Raine's house, so he had to find a way to kill time. If it would become really late, he would book a hotel so the kid could at least sleep. He put the girl down on the floor and grabbed her hand as they left the building, afraid he would stumble and drop her otherwise. There hadn't been many children he'd held in his arms and he didn't exactly trust himself around them. 

"The lady said that auntie Sammy is a little sick," Sasha said. "And grandpa couldn't pick me up either. We're going to them? After eating ice cream and the playground?" Enthusiastically, she swung his hand back and forth while she jumped from stone to stone. 

"Raine is on his way to us," he told her. "He'll call me once he's here."

"He is?" With a wide smile she looked up to him. "That's so cool! I missed him. And I missed you too. Did you miss uncle Raine too? For he is your best friend, right?"