Page 84 of Go the Long Way

She cradled the tiny vaquera figurine he'd painted of her in her palm, her grin practically splitting her face.

"OMG, yes — I will, I promise. Thank you, Alex, I love it," she said, dropping a kiss on his cheek before bouncing over to show the figure to her mom.

"This… is the view from the back porch, right?" Nash asked, and Alex tried not to wince, not for the first time wondering if it hadn't been too much of an ego trip, giving his little paintings and miniatures as gifts.

After everything Jakob and Ethan had done for him, he knew there was no way he could show his face this morning empty-handed. The thing was, he didn't have much else on him to make presents for everyone. Nor had he known enough about the eclectic group to know what each person coming would like. So…

He'd tried his best, and that had to count for something, right?

Mr. Hillsman had been easy. Sometimes he would come by the library where Alex and his friends would be playing a game of Towers & Terrors, bringing along his paladin character as a temporary support boost. Alex had bought the little knight figure months ago with this in mind, but hadn’t been sure how to paint him until last week. The red hair and scruff of a beard had been an obvious choice. Changing the sword he leaned on to a cane had been a last-minute adjustment, but still quick enough. The emblem on the shield had been the bit Alex had been stuck on, though. Right up until last night, in a fit of inspiration, he'd painted it in a wash of bright blue, a seagull soaring across its face.

He wasn't sure Mr. Hillsman would get it. To be honest, he had butterflies squirming around in his belly at the prospect of having to explain, but… Alex thought Ethan might appreciate it all the same.

And really, wasn't that the important thing?

Jakob had been somewhat harder. But after spending the last few days riding with him back and forth to the hospital to visit Mr. Hillsman, Alex had noticed the way that the little lines around his eyes had relaxed just as soon as his ranch came into view. Alex thought he could sort of understand the feeling. That first glimpse the day Jakob and Ethan arrived to rescue him was still pretty fresh in his mind.

So Alex had painted that onto one of the blank hex cards he had in his miniatures kit; the ones he and his friends sometimes used in their games as spare land pieces, or points of power. The curve of the glittering ocean, the open blue sky above, the lip of the ridge with the road winding up to draw the eye to the ranch itself; sitting pride of place by the old red barn, horses grazing around it as seabirds flew above.

Vincent had approved, at least, when Alex had sent him a photo of the piece when he was done. Still, Alex's friend had never laid eyes on the ranch before. The real question was, wouldJakoblike it… ?

Frank and Reed and Cassie's mom he didn't know well enough to personalize their gifts. But it was their family Christmas he was crashing, which meant he neededsomething.Alex figured they must all be coming back to the island for a reason though, so he decided paintings of different views around the property were probably a safe enough bet. Maybe it was a little trite, but — Who didn't enjoy a scene with a glimpse of an ocean or the beach? It seemed good enough for a last-minute Christmas gift, at least.

After all that, Cassie's vaquera had been the present he'd been the least anxious about gifting, all told.

"Look, he caught that gleam she gets when she's focused," Cassie's mom said, smiling as she gently held the vaquera out for Jakob to examine.

"Is yours from the barn, looking back at the house?" Reed asked a nodding Frank, peering at his miniature painting and then down at his own. "Then… I think mine's from the opposite direction; from the upper deck and out across the bay towards San Morado, right?"

"OMG,Ethan— Your paladin even has a little white stripe in his beard just like Dad's got!" Cassie giggled excitedly.

"Told you he was good," Alex heard Ethan murmur to Jakob as he held out the red-headed paladin for inspection.

"Good?" Nash huffed. "If soccer doesn't work out, you've got a solid fallback here, Alex. This detail is amazing."

"You said you paint too, right Ethan?" Cassie's mom asked. "Your kid seems to be a regular chip off the ol' block. You must be very proud."

The rebuttal prickled in the back of Alex's throat almost instantly. But then he heard Mr. Hillsman's quiet, "I am," along with the grin beaming like a lighthouse on his face, and…

Alex flushed, swallowing the words down and allowing himself to simply enjoy the glowing feeling spreading through his chestthathad sparked, unwilling to spoil it by correcting them both. Maybe… maybe he could pretend, for just a while then. Surely that couldn't do any harm? Spend the morning imagining what it would be like to really be a part ofthisfamily, instead of…

"Thank you, son," Frank said, his voice low and raspy as he threw an arm around Alex's shoulders; nodding at the miniature painting in his hand. "The seagull's a nice touch."

"It's not too much? I — I added it last night. Was afraid the paint might not dry, but…"

"It's perfect," Frank assured him, a twinkle in the corner of his eye.

"It's so good!" Cassie chirped, coming up behind them to peer over Frank's shoulder at the painting. "And now everyone can have a little piece of the ranch with them, even when they're away!"

"An Alex original, too," Reed said, examining the back. "Don't let me leave here before you've signed this. These are really fantastic. You be sure and tell me if you ever take commissions, all right? This would make a great album cover…IfI was willing to let loose the social media mob on Jakob's horses, that was; trampling over everything all trying to take the perfect selfie, which —no."

"Much appreciated," Jakob muttered, looking grim just at the prospect.

"But thestyle…" Reed glanced up, the little painting held gently between his fingertips. "Do you think you could paint a scene of the boardwalk downtown, or the docks over by Chance's Beach?"

"I… could try, Mr. Reed," Alex told him. "I'd have to see it first."

"Oh, of course!" he said, his eyes widening in surprise. "You haven't been over there yet? It's usually the first place people go when they come to the island. There's a fantastic little cafe down by the statue of Captain Chance. Does these soft-shelled crab po'boys that are just todiefor."

---