Page 43 of Summer Breakdown
“Sure,” she replies with a shrug but she’s got the bird waking smile on. “That’s cute. Thanks.”
Mali squeals, immediately opening her phone.
Zach continues. “And Marc has been looking at my trainers.”
Jasmine laughs and Frankie wishes she was closer to she could feel it against her skin.
“Which ones? He showed me some the other day, but I swear he owns them already.”
“They’re 1G’s and I have 2G’s.” Frankie loves trainers and even she’s not sure there’s an actual difference.
“And that’s a different shoe?” Jasmine asks. She shuffles slightly, her thigh lightly pressing against Frankie’s. “To the naked eye?”
Zach smiles at the table. “If you’ve got great taste.”
Jasmine laughs again and Frankie feels it this time. She feels like she could take on a bear. Cam comes back to the table, and Frankie’s good mood drops the moment she realises Andrew is still with her. God, she loves Cam. That’s all that matters.
“What are we talking about?” Cam asks as she sits back down.
“Jas said we could buy Lani and Marcel gifts,” Mali says, her shoulders bopping up and down.
“Agift!“ Jasmine replies, her hands wide in front of her, and Frankie switches from sketching hair to fingers.
Mali sing songs. “Gifts plural!”
“Oh my god,” Cam replies. She pulls her phone out, spinning to show Jasmine. Frankie leans over to look at it too. They’re sandals, and cute. Lani would make anything cute, but they are yellow and have ruffles on the top. “So, I can get these?”
“How long have you had these waiting to go?” Jasmine asks.
Cam laughs. “Well, I asked Frank to ask you if we were allowed to buy stuff ages ago, but she got distracted by your face or whatever.”
Frankie blinks, and Jasmine turns to look at her. It’s quiet for a moment but Frankie can hear every thought she’s ever had vibrating through her bones. She doesn’t want to run though; she wants to be wherever Jasmine is. Especially if she’s looking right at her. But she’s taken away again from Andrew’s inability to shut up.
“Isn’t that the lazy one who can’t figure out how to walk?” Andrew asks, slurring while he sips his drink.
The table goes quiet. Jasmine grips the seats tightly. Frankie’s entire body tenses. She wonders if she could hit him square in the brain if she threw this pencil hard enough. Cam wouldn’t have said that. There’s no way she would have said that, but Jasmine might not know her well enough yet.
“What did you just say?” Ezra asks. Frankie can’t see him from here; she’s too busy watching every slight movement on Jasmine’s face – but he might kill him tonight. Frankie rests her hand on the bench next to Jasmine’s, and Jasmine hooks her pinkie over hers.
“If she can walk, she should walk,” Andrew says with a shrug. “My child would be crawling before they just admitted defeat and sat in a chair.”
“Get out,” Ezra says.
“What?”
“Get the fuck out.”
“I didn’t even-”
Ezra leans forwards slightly. “She is four,” he responds, his voice deathly low. “What type of man are you to punch that fucking low? Don’t answer me, bro, I don’t care. You have thirty seconds to leave, before I put your head through the table.”
Andrew scoffs. “I’m fine right here.”
Jasmine swallows, then, she grips Frankie’s hand. “Andrew.”
He looks over at her, somehow he’s smiling like he thinks Jasmine likes him now.
“You don’t know me,” she says and Frankie’s entire body comes alive with goose bumps. “Clearly, because you think you can say whatever you want, but if you talk about my children like that again, I will put you in the ground.” God, she’s so sexy.
