"Wow, that's a lot to take in." Asuka observed quietly, after having listened to Jackson talk about Raymond, his family, and Skye.
"It is, right?" He was uncertain. He needed to unpack and work through everything that happened, especially that kiss. Besides the fact that it blew his socks off, there was no way that Raymond could ignore the attraction between them.
"And, you're still interested in seeing him, knowing that you'll play second fiddle to Skye? A lot of guys can't handle that." She prodded.
"Don't be stupid, he's a cute kid, of course, I don't mind playing second fiddle to him." He frowned. "And anyway, it's a package deal, including that crazy family of his."
"Who'd have thought that the Priestleys were regular folk as well." She grinned.
"I'm telling you, there wasn't a moment of peace and quiet in that house. The cook even started throwing things at them to get them out of his kitchen!" He said incredulously.
"So what's next?" She leaned forward. "I'm surprised that you didn't pull out all the guns for this yet." She knew how overbearing he could be if he wanted something.
"He likes it romantic, so I've been making some notes. Apparently, it must all end in a grand gesture that would make him swoon."
"And how's that going?" She was surprised that Jackson was taking a different tack this time.
"Well, barring the two first dates, the third went quite well." He grinned again, thinking about that kiss. "I only have to think of what to do next."
Maybe you should do something that includes Skye." She suggested. "If you're okay with having him in your life, then you should hang out with him a bit as well."
"Great thinking! I knew there was a reason we were friends!"
"Piss off you arrogant moron!" She laughed at him. "Go and plan your next date with the family."
--
"Cook?" Jackson was standing in front of Raymond's desk, watching as he looked up, his fingers still gliding over the keyboard as if he wasn't interrupted at all.
"Hmm?" he asked, still typing away furiously, a faraway look in his eyes.
"Do you want to go out this weekend?" With Cook, you never knew. He could get all excited and say yes, or he'd become the voice of reason and scupper any plans that one might have.
"We need to go to Skye's football game on Saturday and have a family lunch on Sunday with my dad." He responded without stopping what he was doing.
"Oh..." He was a bit disappointed, but then, he should have thought that they may have other plans over weekends.
"Yeah, sorry." He smiled and turned his eyes back to the monitor, the conversation over from him.
"Eh, do you think you can stop what you're doing and give me your full attention?" He asked morosely. Surely he could tag along. It was only one day after all.
"I can do more than one thing at a time, you know." He reminded Jackson but stopped typing anyway. "So, now that you know we are busy, what else can I do for you?" He'd decided to keep things as professional as possible. Anything to stop him from pulling Jackson into the supply closet and kissing all sense out of him.
"I could tag along to the football game." He started hopefully.
"It's kids playing and a bunch of parents shouting from the sidelines. I don't think you'll be much interested in that.
"How do you know I'm not interested? I'll only be tagging along and then we can decide what we'll do from there. What do you say, Cook?" He watched as Raymond thought things over.
"Okay," he sighed. "If it will make you happy, then you can tag along."
"Excellent! What time do I pick you up?" His excitement was clear on his face.
---
Hey mister!" Skye called out excitedly when he opened the door to Jackson.
"Skye, shoes!" he could hear Raymond calling from inside. Skye immediately turned around and rushed to his room, leaving Jackson standing in the doorway. Deciding to let himself in, he went to sit in the living room.
"Got them, Papa!" Skye called from his bedroom, as Raymond entered the living room.
"Hey, Jackson." He smiled, dumping a duffel bag on a chair. "We're running a bit late. Someone spent most of the night running around like a headless chicken."
"Ready Papa!" Skye called, coming to a sliding halt in front of his dad, his shoes hanging around his neck by their laces.
They left the house, Skye walking between them, toward his car. Raymond looked at him in surprise as he opened the back door.
"How come you're driving an SUV? Where's your car?" Surely Jackson didn't rent a car just to cart him and Skye around.
"I didn't think the sports car would be very comfortable, so I bought an SUV for occasions like this." His grin was back in place. This was romantic, wasn't it?
"You didn't have to buy a new car for this you know. How many times do you think you'll be driving us around?" He shook his head as Jackson strapped Skye in, before getting behind the wheel.
Once they got to the football pitch, Skye grabbed his shoes, sprinting toward the field with Raymond and Jackson following close behind. There were already quite a few kids doing warmup exercises, with their parents milling about.
Once they'd found a good spot, Raymond looked back surprised when Jackson jogged back to the car, to bring them camping chairs to sit on.
"You seemed to have thought of everything!" He smiled, as Jackson offered him a coffee out of the basket that he dropped next to the chairs.
"Well, when it comes to you, it's best to have all my basis covered, in case I get a bollocking." His eyes creased in humor.
"Ray!" A muscled, dark-haired man came walking toward them. From what Jackson could tell, he seemed to be the coach of the team. He could also tell that the guy's intention was much more than a coach greeting a parent.
"Tony, nice to see you again." He smiled warmly at the man, who pulled him into a tight hug. A little bit too tight for Jackson's liking, but he couldn't really say or do anything.
"We haven't seen you here in a while, I almost thought you were trying to avoid me." His laughter rang out, still keeping his arm around Raymond's shoulders.
"Hi, I'm Jackson." He decided to introduce himself since Cook wasn't doing much other than squirming in Tony's hug.
"Jackson?" He looked at Raymond in confusion. "Which one is yours?" He asked, looking at the children kicking around a ball before the start of the game.
"I'm here with Cook, actually." He clarified with a wide grin, putting his arm around Raymond's waist, tugging his from under Tony's arm.
"He's a friend from work," Raymond said, pushing Jackson away from him, having had enough. "What are our chances of winning?" He asked to steer the conversation away from himself.
"Well, they're good I think." His smile was back. "We can always discuss Skye's playing later, once the kids are done. I'm sure he'd be happy if we went to get some pizza."
Jackson was getting irritated by this pretty boy who was starting to interfere with his perfectly laid-out plans. Plans he had worked damned hard on if truth be told. There was no time for trying to get rid of this peacock.
"Okay, I've got to go coaching." He grinned at Raymond. "Wish me luck!" He leaned in for another hug before running toward his team.
"Got to go coaching." Jackson mimicked him like a child.
"Shut it, or go home," Raymond said, irritated by their little display. "I'm already taking care of one child, I don't need another."
Jackson decided not to say anything. So far the romance was spread a bit thin, which wasn't his plan at all. By now they should have been deep in conversation about the two of them dating.
As the game progressed, Jackson became more and more irritated by the referee and what he saw as incorrect calls. He became more vociferous and animated as the game progressed, often the loudest among all the parents. Raymond noticed the scandalous looks that were thrown their way by some of the parents.
"Jackson, reign it in, won't you? It's just a kids' soccer game." He reasoned as Jackson exploded once again after the ref called a foul.
"What?! Are you serious? How can you call that a foul?!! Don't you have eyes in your head?!!!" Jackson berated the ref. "Can you believe that asshole?!" He asked Raymond loudly, throwing himself into a camping chair while the team regrouped.
"It's just a kids' football game, you don't have to get so worked up, you know." Raymond reasoned. He could imagine what Jackson would be like at all of Skye's games. That overbearing parent who's always shouting and screaming. He mentally shook himself from those thoughts
Instead of answering, Jackson was out of his seat again, cheering the boys on, while still calling shots that he saw that the ref got wrong. At the end of the game, he grinned widely at Raymond.
"That was exhilarating, wasn't it?" He grabbed a drink from the basket, with a contented sigh. He hadn't had as much fun in a long time and he could definitely see himself as one of those reasonable soccer dads who everybody loved. Pulling Raymond along, they went to the group of boys and parents jumping for joy at having won the game.
While the group was celebrating, Tony pulled Raymond to the side.
"How about the three of us go for pizza or ice cream to celebrate?" He had a confident grin on his face, his hand resting lightly on Raymond's shoulder.
"Hey everybody!" Jackson called out above the cheering children. "How about I take all of you out for pizza and ice cream, my treat?" He smiled at Tony as the group jumped up and down in excitement, the parents looking shocked and surprised.
"Come on Cook." He grabbed Raymond's hand once he'd picked up an excited Skye, who immediately wanted to sit on his shoulders. With a laugh, Jackson obliged as they collected their things and left for the restaurant.
"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Raymond asked while they were driving.
"What do you mean?" He frowned. "I thought it would be great to celebrate the win with the whole team." ... and stick it to Tony, but he didn't say this.
Raymond wasn't convinced, as he saw a smile lingering on Jackson's lips.