Mistake

Sitting across from Hope, Gunner's knee bounces under the table. He wished the food would come so he'd have something to do with his hands, while at the same time, he wasn't so sure his stomach was ready for food at the moment.

Hope's question is heard, but it isn't enough to bring his eyes up from the table as he tries to ignore other people in the small restaurant. "I don't know," he admits. "Although the short ones wouldn't get the job done very well."

He takes a sip of water before clearing his throat. He really didn't know why he was even here or why he'd talked to Hope in the first place.

"Look, I'm...sorry. This was a mistake. I got enough going on in my head right now without somebody else tromping through it too. I'd rather work this out on my own than end up at Northside again, and that's what will happen if anybody else finds out I came to you."

"...So he's Rick's nephew?" Alec peers over Misty's shoulder at the kitchen counter, wondering what she was making for supper. He'd spent most of the day puttering in the shed, then fell asleep in the afternoon, but woke up about the same time Misty had gotten home and was more than willing to come to he house for supper with her and Jason. In his old jeans, t-shirt and bare feet, he was still just a little sleepy.

"Uh-huh." Jason sits at the table and takes a swig of Mountain Dew. "Guess he ran into some bad luck. Anyway, Misty invited him over, but he was gonna drop some stuff off at Rick's first."

"I see." 

"Yeah, apparently Misty convinced him we were all gonna play Pictionary tonight." 

Alec snickers before going to the fridge and hunting for something other than water to drink. "That should be good." 

Before Jason could respond, there was a knock at the door. Standing, he nods to Misty. "I'll get it." It was only a minute or two before he returned to the kitchen, joined by Clay. 

Clay gives Misty a little wave and eyes Alec warily, wondering if this was the brother-in-law. "Hey, sorry I'm kinda late. Got hung up at Rick's."