the ordeal of being known
: Chapter 28

Layla

Let me in!! I have a surprise.”

“I am also here,” Kione called out.

There was a sound of the door opening and then Celia’s squeaking followed by a bark.

Both Layla and Jess left the room and went out to be welcomed with the sight of a golden retriever wagging its tail happily at the attention it was getting.

“Good, you’re here! I got us a dog.” Mateo gestured at the dog.

“I can see that, where did you replace him?”

“He was a stray. Can you believe that? I found him and took him to the vet and then they cleaned him up and look at him now. He’s so cute.”

Layla’s cat had made her way out of her hiding place and was watching the dog with clear distaste, when Layla reached out to pet the dog her cat sprinted for the dog, hissing at him, Celia immediately picked the cat up and then with the experience of someone who had worked with dogs before—Layla remembered handling easily scared dogs—she took the collar and made a very familiar gesture with her hand that resulted in pulling the dog back from trying to make a run for the cat.

Jess and Mateo both stood, their brains taking a few more seconds to connect the dots.

Mateo to the audience: wait a fucking minute.

Jess to the audience in a very sheepish way: I think it’s a little sexy.

Mateo gasped. “You! You were… this is what you do? This?”

“What is going on?” Celia looked between her brother and friend with a little confusion.

“Layla has been mentally pulling our leashes all this time, and we had no idea.” Jess signed. He was grinning. He explained the whole thing to Celia and Kione. Kione spent quite some time howling with laughter at Mateo’s apparent annoyance.

“So as soon as she made that gesture, both of you did whatever she wanted?” Kione asked, still laughing.

“I thought it was like something she did when she was triggered or her anxiety was too high. I was being a good friend, okay?”

“In my defense, it was advised to me during therapy a few years back to replace a way to imagine holding control in my hands. I would picture it to calm my nerves. The only thing on my mind at the time was that gesture because I handled dogs all the time, so in my head I was picturing holding back my wild nervousness, you know?”

Layla was smiling. It was the first time she smiled with no hesitation in front of more than one person. Kione stopped his laughing to stare at her. She was beautiful. He could picture the exact moment Jess fell in love with her was probably a moment where she had smiled at him. It really made her face glow.

Kione looked across the room at Jess to replace him staring back. They shared a look of understanding; it was a look that told Jess his best friend knew that woman is the one for him, that she’ll always be a part of their lives. Jess had known for quite some time and he didn’t need to say to words for Kione. Now it was time for Jess’s smile to turn binding.

“That makes a lot of sense actually,” Celia said.

“Are we allowed pets in the building?” Jess asked, petting the dog. “What will we name him?”

“Yes, and I was thinking maybe Kyle?”

“You’re not giving the dog a frat boy’s name.”

“Esteban?”

“No,” Layla and Celia said in union.

“You aren’t allowed to pipe in. You girls have a black cat called Salem. Do you even know how basic that is?”

“I got it! We play True Americans and whoever wins gets to name the dog.”

“Oh, yes, yes.”

“I’ll make some snacks,” Jess said. “Set the place up, call Onika, and tell her to get lots of beer on her way.”

During the game—which Layla was not sure any of them understood it the same way as the others since it was never really explained to the new girl—sometimes they mirrored scenes and then mixed their personalities in with made up rules. There was usually a lot of yelling. Somehow Onika won. She decided to name the dog Blondie, which made Mateo fume.

While everyone was cleaning up, Jess lifted his arm to reach an empty beer can that had somehow made its way to the top of the bookshelf. His shirt rode up a little and then Onika gasped like she hadn’t been breathing this whole time.

When everyone stopped what they’re doing to look at her, she pointed at Jess again and then gasped again.

“What?” Layla asked. Jess also looked confused by the way everyone is staring at them.

“Alright everyone, hand over the money.” Kione puts his hand out.

They had glimpsed Jess’s tattoo. It was really reckless, Layla had told him, but he was happy with it, so happy he kept offering his body for her to tattoo again.

Layla’s majnun, that’s what it said.

Everyone was handing the money to Kione, he was mumbling something about Amir also being involved and owing him money.

“You bet on what exactly?” Jess asked.

“How many months it’ll take for you guys to head into something serious,” Kione replied, counting the money.

“I thought it was just sex,” Mateo said.

“You could not be more wrong. Celia already calls them mom and dad,” Onika told him. They were talking like Jess and Layla weren’t there, setting up the dinner table.

“Is that why you were groaning out loud yesterday?”

“Yea, what did you think it was?”

“Not this.”

Layla to the audience: I really thought we did a good job hiding it.

“Okay, but Kione knew from the beginning, so why does he get the money? Jess told him months ago,” Layla said as she sat next to Jess and began to eat.

Onika to the audience: I always had a feeling he was cheating us, justice will always come through.

“This is why I don’t like you.” Kione pointed at her with a fork. “You’re just a—”

“Watch your mouth,” Jess warned.

“A brother stealer,” he continued, ignoring Jess’s glare.

“I think the money should go to me now that we know Kio is a filthy cheater.” Celia snatched the money pile.

“It wasn’t that obvious!” Layla defended.

“It was. You guys grew a little co-dependent, if I’m being honest,” Kione told them.

“That’s not true.”

“You’ve been eating with one hand and holding each other’s other hand under the table.”

Layla to the audience: oh.