Before I Ever Met You

I didn’t even realize my eyes were watering. “I’m not, just tired.”


I can tell he doesn’t believe me.

I take his hand and we head out into the hall.

Dad and Will are still in the living room, my mother now setting the dining room table.

“Right on time,” she says to us, placing a roast on the center of the table. Man, she went all out. When I was younger roasts were for very special occasions. I guess the second coming of Jackie Phillips is a good enough excuse.

Will and my father get up, finishing their glasses of scotch before coming over. Tyson holds my hand tighter.

“You excited for dinner, Tyson?” my dad asks, smiling at him. “Or are you more excited about desert?”

Ty doesn’t say anything, just leans into me a little more.

“Ty,” I tell him, gesturing to Will. “This is my boss, Batman.”

Will breaks into a devastating smile. I swear I grip Ty’s hand tighter, as if to ground me. Will’s smile should be made illegal. Or at least taken with caution. Warning: may make you weak at the knees. Do not look at smile if operating heavy machinery.

“Well, you know the first rule of Batman is that you never talk about Batman,” Will says. He crouches down so he’s at Ty’s level, and I can’t help but marvel at the hard muscles of his back. “But I can tell you’re the type of guy who can keep a secret.”

Ty nods slowly.

“Atta boy,” Will says, patting him lightly on the arm and straightening up to look me in the eye. “Cute kid you got there, Just Jackie.”

“Thank you Mr. McAlister.” My lips twist into a smirk.

“Dinner is getting cold,” my father says, even though you can plainly see the steam rising up from the dishes.

I’m about to ask them where we should sit when Ty makes the decision for us. He heads straight over to his chair and pats the empty one beside him. “Mom, you’re sitting here.”

“As you wish,” I tell him, happily taking my place.

But that means Will is beside me at the head of the table.

I have to take extra care not to accidently play footsies with him.

Dinner ends up a lot less awkward than I had anticipated. It might be because my father and Will are loose with scotch, it could be because my mother and I have had nearly a whole bottle of red wine. Either way, it’s working.

Until Dad and Will start talking about work. Something to do with problems with the lead animator at our office.

“Must you two talk about this during dinner?” my mother scolds them.

“As you can see, dear,” my father says lazily, gesturing to his empty plate that he practically licked clean, “I’ve eaten my dinner like a good boy.”

“Well, I’m sure Will didn’t come here to talk about work.”

“Phfff,” my father says. “Work is all Will and I talk about.” Then my father looks to me. “And now we have another employee of Mad Men Studios at the table. What say you, Jackie. What do you have to say?”

I exchange a glance with my mom before nibbling on a carrot, fully aware that everyone is staring at me. “I, uh . . .”

“Ted, come on,” Will says. “Give the kid a break. She’s only been working a week. Let her have her weekend. It doesn’t help that her boss is here.”

My father makes a grumbling sound then looks to my mother. “Where’s the pie?”

“Grandpa Ted,” Ty says loudly, surprising everyone since he’s been silent the entire meal.

“Yes, my boy?” my father asks him, adjusting his glasses.

It’s not your glasses that’re the problem, it’s the scotch, I think to myself.

“I really like dinosaurs, as you know.”

My father grins at him. “I do know. I also hear you’re an expert.”

“Yeah, well,” Ty says, wobbling his head from side to side. “I saw this thing on TV today for the World of Science and they said they have dinosaurs and I was wondering if you could take me.”

This is the first I’m hearing of it. “What thing?” I ask him.

“I dunno,” he says with a shrug, shoving his vegetables to the corner of the plate. “After I was with Taffy I was watching TV. Grandma Diane let me. And I saw a commercial and it said it was here in Vancouver. A whole dinosaur exhibit.”

Oh. “Well, I’ll take you honey, you know I’m up for that,” I tell him.

He sucks on his teeth, looking down.

Fuck. This is definitely one of those cases where he doesn’t want his mom to take him, he wants a man. A dad. Someone who will appreciate the fine art of the prehistoric kind.

“I’d love to take you,” my father says. “But my week is pretty busy.”

“What about tomorrow? It’s Saturday. You don’t work Saturdays.”

My father sighs and I can tell it pains him. He glances at me briefly before looking back to Ty. “Maybe next week, okay? I’ve got a lot of work to do this weekend.”

I’m wondering if that’s true. My father is fifty-seven. He shouldn’t be working this much.

Ty goes back to looking crestfallen.

Will clears his throat. “I know you didn’t ask me, Ty,” he says, folding his hands in front of him. “But I would love to go.”

Everyone looks at Will in surprise.

“Really?” Ty asks quietly. Because he can’t believe Batman would volunteer for this.

And neither can I.

“Absolutely. We’ll go tomorrow. Make a whole day of it.” Will shoots me wink. “Just Jackie, you can come too.”

“Oh, well thank you.” Honestly I’m amazed Will is putting himself out there like this. Does he not realize how absolutely insane it will be on a Saturday? Does he not realize he’s going to be dragging a kid around? And me. Whom he considers a kid.

“Mommy doesn’t like dinosaurs,” Ty admits.

“Is that so?” Will asks.

“That is not true,” I say, strangely defensive as I stab a piece of broccoli with my fork. “I’m a big fan. I know almost as much about them as Ty does.”

“You know, Ty,” Will says to him, “when I was your age I went to Science World all the time.”

“Did your father take you?”

Loaded question. Everyone seems to stiffen.

Will just gives him an easy smile. “No. My father died when I was young. I went with my Uncle Pete. We had a great time. I haven’t been back since, but I can tell you’re going to love it.”

“How young were you when he died?” Ty asks, obviously fixated on this now. To be honest, I’m curious too, though I don’t want Will to be put on the spot.

“Ty, it’s personal,” I chide him softly.

“No, no,” Will says to me with warm eyes. “It’s quite alright.” He looks at Ty. “I was five years old. I grew up on Vancouver Island, in a small town called Tofino. Lot’s of surfing. Big waves. It’s very wild, very beautiful.”

“How did he die?”

“Ty,” my mother warns.

Will goes on. “He had an accident. So my mother raised me.”

“Is she still alive?”

“Yes she is,” he says. “She and her new husband run a campground. She loves it. Maybe you’ll get to visit one day.”