Labelled by Blood

      Jesse and I took a minute to talk about what my parents did. He seemed surprised, with a lot of 'huhs' and 'wows.' But he never interrupted me or asked me to say more until I finished telling him everything.       "Do you know why?" he asked.       I shook my head. "No."       "When?"       I nodded my head this time. "They got really weird this morning, actually. I left a note for them last night that the kitchen sink was leaking. Then Dad came into my room before they left for work. Then this happened. They got the call from the school."       "That's probably it," Jesse said."       "Right." But that probably wasn't it. Mom and Dad were definitely surprised to get that call. Who wouldn't be? But with previous calls, they usually just told me to 'stay in class.' So why was this one the one they changed with? Whatever the reason was, there was no point in dwelling on what's happened.       "Ready to go?" I asked Jesse.       He nodded. "Yeah. You have a place in mind?"       "I do, actually. Italian. You know which place, right?"       "Alex. It's impossible not to know."       I blushed. He ruffled my hair before leading the way. We left and my parents were reading their books some more. They had on a western film in the background, but neither of them were paying it any mind. As we left the house, the wind had gotten sharp and stung with a biting frost hinted at. The sun was gone, the moon starting its shift earlier and earlier with each passing day. The world felt dangerous, but it was hardly a quarter to six. We were fine, Alex.       The walk to the restaurant was filled with our scuffed footsteps, a bright moon, and glossed windows reflecting what was left of us in the dark. We had some stray bits of small talk throughout. People were still running around, but it was notably less than you would have in the hotter seasons. We passed by a few faces from school. They didn't seem to give pay us any attention and I was almost sad they didn't glance our way. We walked past the arcade, the library, the ice cream parlor. I stopped Jesse before we passed the latter.       "After?" I asked.       "After," he answered.       "Parker?"       "I don't think he'd want to go. But you can text him."       I did. Jesse was right.       We continued on towards my favorite Italian place: Esposito's. They had the best food and they didn't care if you never told them to stop when they gave you extra cheese. Jesse once had them shred for a few minutes straight. He only stopped because he was worried he ruined his dinner with too much cheese. As if that was possible.       We pushed past the sturdy, wooden double doors; their push-in handles were gleaming against the dimmed, almost gold, lights. The metal was cold, but the inside of the place made me feel right at home. Jesse took charge and put a request for a table for two. We were pulled away instantly and sat down. I was giddy and had to hold it in. Jesse was excited, too, but he never got too loud with it unless he was really proud in someone.       "What're you going to order? The usual?" Jesse ribbed me.       "Right. Yeah, no," I chuckled, looking over the menu. They were laminated cardstock and caught the light in an almost obnoxious way.       "Huh. Alex trying something new. Big day for you."       I smiled and swayed from left to right and hummed my favorite song. He tapped along to it and I heard a concert form in my head. Even after the hell I'd been through today, this past week, really, it was nice to get a moment where I could just enjoy being fifteen. My eyes circled back to my usual: their meatball sub with homemade red sauce that had just a little extra something. It was spicy, but not overbearing. Simple, but textured and still a little sweet from the sauce. The meatballs were always made from scratch, too.       No, Alex. Branch out. It'd be worth it.       Our waitress came by and asked if we were ready. Neither of us were, so we got some drinks instead. Jesse went with a water and tea. I wanted something fizzy. It was hard to be around exploding cans of soda nearly every day and not catch a craving. I went with a lemon-lime spritzer. I probed Jesse for his order, but he was at a loss. I combed over the menu again, for something new that would catch my attention. The waitress returned with our drinks and asked if we were ready to order.       We both ended up with our usuals.       After the waitress left, I looked at my spritzer. The bubbles were by the thousands, each in its own journey of rising and popping. I tried to cut their journey short, but, somehow, I kept ending up with ice cubes blocking my straw. At some point, I took a deep sip and got nothing. I choked a little on nothing.       Jesse patted my back and then we laughed about the whole thing. Imagine going out because some ice and air got the better of you. That'd be dumb.       Our food arrived faster than we expected and I had to fight the drool in my mouth as our waitress put down my sub. Jesse's eyes hungrily admired his penne. We ate. We laughed. We even almost cried.       It was the best date ever.       At some point, Jesse had finished his dinner and wiped his mouth clean. "You eat slow," he commented.       I shrugged. "Is that a bad thing?"       He shook his head. "No. I just can't afford to, I guess. Everyday I have to scarf down my food. Mom and Dad rush me at breakfast and dinner. Coach rushes us when we drink at training or games. I guess the only real time I can just sit and enjoy myself is during lunch."       I took a bite of my sandwich, the soft meatball gave way and a heavenly taste came with it.       "Parker and you take it slow. Take it easy."       "Mmhmm," I hummed.       "How?"       "How? What do mean 'how?'"       "Like, how do you two eat to enjoy?"       I had to pause and really think about it. Its not like I ate things that tasted this good every day. But I did eat slow. Was it to enjoy? Whenever I ate waffles, I did enjoy them. In the mornings, I ate a little faster, but I wouldn't say I 'wolfed' food down. I had no idea how.       "I just eat," I sighed. "I don't think it's anything more than that."       Jesse nodded, but he seemed frustrated. I shifted uncomfortably. He stared at me.       "Jess?" I asked.       "Hm?" he answered, but he didn't actually register it.       "Jess."       This got him out of it. "What?"       "You're staring at me."       He gazed at me again, but it was a lot less scary this time. "Sorry. You ready to go?"       I looked down at my half-eaten sub and nodded with a shrug. "Right. I guess so."       Jesse paid and we put our food in to-go boxes. We walked out of Esposito's, the funny and cute Italian music fading out along with the warm lights. The cold came for us with a vengeance that I didn't really care for. Jesse led the way, and I had no idea where we were heading. i figured ice cream, but he never mentioned it.       "Jess?" I asked.       "Hm?"       This, again.       "Jess.."       "What? Why do you keep repeating yourself like that?"       I winced a little. Why was he being a jerk? "I just. I don't know You seem different."       He didn't answer. I got worried. It's funny how that worked. Jesse was my partner. My life. Yet, he was hiding something from me. Parker was a mystery wrapped in flannel and topped with a bow. I had no idea what is deal really was. But, recently, it's been like Parker was an open book while Jesse was tucked away in the "restricted" part of the library. And something was overdue. I wanted so badly to ask him about what was wrong. But I knew when he answered without one, it was better left unsaid.       Jesse led us to the parlor; the lights shone on us and my heart lit up with it. I immediately snuffed it out. Jesse wasn't happy. I needed him to be. Until then, I didn't know if I could enjoy myself. He was always quiet, sure, but this wasn't like always.       When we walked in, there were only a handful of people. The twins were here with Toby, though. They were too engrossed in their own shenanigans to notice us. Ava stole a bite from the boys' ice creams, I thought, and Evan stewed without taking one back. Toby stole one from hers, though. Parker, Jesse, and I would never do that. We respected each other too much. Loved each other too much. Or maybe it was the exact opposite. Maybe you only stole bites from those you loved and trusted most.       "Good night," the clerk beamed. His hat was slightly askew, and his apron was covered in little splotches of pink, brown, and a few specks of blue. In a way, he looked like an artist having fun with color theory. His face lit up in recognition. "You here to hangout with the twins? You and your friends always come around the time they do."       My smile went from happy to forced real fast. "No," I answered. "Just coincidence."       The clerk backpedaled, Jesse cut to the chase. "Can we order, please?"       The clerk immediately fixed his posture and went full customer service with a smile. Fake and rehearsed. "Right, sorry about that. What will you have?"       We ordered, the air hung like Jesse's strim smoke. And it was choking me. I ordered a banana split, Neapolitan. Jesse ordered a strawberry cheesecake something or other. We found some seats near the twins. They had moved on to talk about a project Ms. Rohd assigned to them today. I guess I was going to hear about it tomorrow.       "My mom's just really into the stuff," Toby said. "I don't know why, but that's just Moms, I guess."       "It's kinda cute," Ava giggled. I smiled. It was.       "How is that cute?" Toby asked, dumbfounded.       "Your mom has a hobby," Evan butt in. "How's it not cute that she's excited for something, I mean."       He took the words right out of my mouth. I didn't think Evan would ever actually talk about me. Though he probably didn't know I was here.       "I didn't ask," Toby growled.       "I don't need your permission to answer a dumb question," Evan said.       Ava played mediator after that. It was funnier to me that he didn't even sound nervous or upset by their bickering. Just done with it.       Our order was called out and we went to grab it. When we went to sit back down, Ava caught my eye and gave her a smile where her cheek and shoulder met. I gave a wry smile back. Ava frowned, but then Toby asked her something and she was pulled from the moment.       Jesse and I ate with little to say. I tried to steal a bite of his ice cream, but he didn't really react. This was a big shift from the man who asked me out to dinner earlier. What happened?       "Jess?" I asked.       "Hm?"       "Never mind."       The twins, and Toby, left a little while later. I had finished my ice cream and Jesse's was starting to pool into cold soup. I checked the time. it was nearly seven, now. I reached out my hands and took Jesse's in mine. This snapped him out of his funk and he looked at me with a smile that rivaled Ava's. I mustered up the strength and finally just asked him.       "What's wrong?"       "Hm? What do you mean?"       "Never mind."