My Brother's Son 2/13
Title: My Brother's Son
Chapter 2/13: Part II
Characters: Jean-Pierre, Vincent, Nathalie, Xavier,
Author: Orangepencils
Genre: Drama, romance
Rating for this chapter: T
Warnings: Human names used. AU
Pairings: Jean-PierrexVincent, eventually.
Summary: Vincent and Jean-Pierre grew up as quasi-brothers who never really got along. After not seeing each other for almost twenty years, can a little boy named Sébastien bring them together?
This chapter summary: A chance meeting with common friends might just get things started... if they can put their differences aside.
My Brother’s Son
Part II
And now we start the actual story.
My Brother’s Son
Part II
“T’aurais dû amener Sébastien avec toi; il s’entend super bien avec Christian.”/ “You should’ve brought Sébastien with you; he gets along so well with Christian.” Nathalie told the man in front of her.
“Ouais; pourquoi yé pas avec toi?”/ “Yeah; why isn’t he with you?” Xavier asked his friend. It was a sunny spring day and Jean-Pierre Tremblay, now thirty-five years old, was having lunch at his friends’ house.
“C’est pas comme si j’voulais pas, mais yé chez un copain d’classe pour une fête.”/ “It’s not like I didn’t want to, but he’s at a classmate’s house for a birthday.” He told them.
“Still. We haven’t seen him in ages, it’s not fair.” Nathalie half pouted, which caused Jean-Pierre to roll his eyes.
“J’ai des photos sur mon cell, si tu veux.”/ “I have pictures on my cell, if you want.” That seemed to cheer her up some. He took his phone out and found the album labelled “Sébastien”. He then handed the device to his friends, who immediately started looking at them.
“Shit, y’a dont ben grandit!”/ “Shit, he grew so much!” Xavier exclaimed. Jean-Pierre chuckled and made a comment, just as the doorbell rang.
“J’vais aller répondre.”/ “I’ll get it.” Nathalie excused herself and got up to answer.
On the other side of the door, there was Vincent Lambert, who happened to be Nathalie’s best friend. It was curious to note, despite Jean-Pierre being Xavier’s closest friend and Vincent being Nathalie’s, the two of them never crossed paths, since Jean-Pierre left, when he was sixteen.
Neither Nathalie, nor Xavier, knew the two men had a history together and the fact Vincent was at the door, while Jean-Pierre was over for lunch, truly was a coincidence.
The week prior, Vincent came over for supper and forgot his sweater at his friends’ house. Seeing as he was extremely busy at work that week, he had no time to come and pick it up, until now.
“Hey, I was starting to think you weren’t going to come.” Nathalie teased him. Vincent ignored the remark and removed his shoes. He noticed the other pair of shoes, right as he heard Xavier make a comment from the kitchen.
“Oh, d’you have guests over? Is this a bad time? I can come back if you’re busy…” Nathalie smiled and pulled him inside.
“Don’t worry, he’s a friend of Xavier’s and we were just talking. You can stay if you’d like or if you have the time.” Vincent was about to decline and make up some excuse as to why he had to leave, but then he heard Xavier’s friend speak. Something in him, perhaps recognition, maybe curiosity, or even longing, pushed him to walk past Nathalie and towards the source of the voice.
It almost seemed as though he was bewitched, or in a trance, and when he finally reached the kitchen table, where Xavier was chatting with his friend, his heart sped up and a dozen of different contrasting emotions rushed through him at the same time.
“Oh, salut Vincent! Ah, s’cuse, ch’te présente mon ami -”/ “Oh, hey Vincent! Ah, sorry, this is my friend -”
“Jean-Pierre…” Vincent murmured the name that slipped from hi slips, as water from a cup. His eyes were wide and fixed on the man he hadn’t seen in almost twenty years.
When Jean-Pierre heard his name, he turned in his seat and wondered if he wasn’t dreaming; if this wasn’t some sick, twisted nightmare of his. He was muted into shock, as he stared at the man before him.
“Vous… vous vous connaissez?”/ “You… you guys know each other?” Xavier asked, as Nathalie came back in. Neither of them answered for a moment. Vincent’s gaze became guarded and Jean-Pierre’s was a tad chagrined and a little angry.
“Guys?” Nathalie prompted.
“We grew up together, for a while. At least, until this jackass decided to flush everything my father did for him down the drain and run away.” Vincent spat out. Xavier and Nathalie looked from Vincent to Jean-Pierre, wondering if it was true. They had never seen Vincent so angry and upset.
“Ça fait longtemps de ça; r’viens-en…”/ “That was a long time ago; get over it…” Jean-Pierre countered.
“Get over it? Get over it?! After everything you did to my father, let alone me, you expect me to put it aside? Christ, you could have at least left a fucking note or something. You’re just like your father; good for nothing.” Those last words hung heavy in the air, long enough for Vincent to look smug and for Jean-Pierre to snap and jump to his feet, before pushing Vincent against the nearby wall.
Nathalie let out a surprised and scared yelp, as Xavier tried to pry his friend’s hands off of Vincent’s neck.
“Lâche-le!”/ “Let him go!”
“Non. Retire c’que t’as dit.”/ “No. Take back what you said.” He yelled at Vincent.
“Why should I? That’s exactly what you are!” Jean-Pierre slapped him hard across the face.
“You’ve grown soft.” Jean-Pierre glared at him and slammed the younger man against the wall, before Xavier managed to pull them apart.
“What the hell is wrong with you two?!” He asked, infuriated.
“He started it!”
“You did, Vincent…” Nathalie told him. Vincent said nothing and massaged his neck, as he seethed in Jean-Pierre’s direction.
“He started it.” He repeated. “When we were younger. He started it. It’s his fault.” Vincent clarified.
“J’avais besoin de partir.”/ “I had to leave.” Jean-Pierre snapped.
“To do what? Fuck your life? Waste your life? Spend my parents’ money on drugs?” Jean-Pierre made an attempt to get up, but Xavier restrained him from doing so.
“Seriously guys, you can’t just let it go?” Xavier tried to ask them, but he was completely ignored.
“Ch’pense j’devrais partir. J’dois aller chercher Sébastien.”/ “I think I should go. I need to pick up Sébastien.” Jean-Pierre replied coolly after a moment. He took his phone and Vincent saw the background, if briefly, of Jean-Pierre, smiling, holding a small boy, no older than eight, who looked a lot like him. His curiosity got the best of him.
“Who’s Sébastien?”
“Ça t’concerne pas, mais c’est mon fils.”/ “It’s none of your business, but he’s my son.” Vincent was shocked by the news.
“Fils? Qu’ess tu veux dire, fils? T’es marié? Ch’avais pas qu’t’étais marié.”/ “Son? What do you mean, son? You’re married? I didn’t know you were married.” He answered dumbly. Then again, it was almost twenty years. A lot could have happened.
“J’le suis pas non plus.”/ “I’m not.”
“Bon, oké, so t’as une blonde or something then.”/ “Okay, so you have a girlfriend, or something.” Vincent corrected himself, a little annoyed by now.
“J’ai pas d’blonde non plus.”/ “I don’t have a girlfriend either.” The urge to hit Jean-Pierre was strong.
“C’est mon fils de moi et mon ex-blonde.”/ “He’s my son from my ex-girlfriend.” Jean-Pierre finally clarified. Vincent wanted to hit himself now. Of course it would be from an ex. How stupid was he?
“That’s so like you. To get some girl pregnant and then having to raise the child when you feel like it.” The words stung Jean-Pierre and both Nathalie and Xavier winced, knowing exactly what truly happened.
“Pour ton information, sa mère est morte y’a quatre ans.”/ “For your information, his mother died when he was four.” Jean-Pierre spat out.
“Oh, how convenient. Seems you really did take after your father. Not only did you get rid of the mother, but on top of that, you’re a pathetic, good for nothing druggie. I pity the boy.” Vincent retorted without really realising what he was saying. One thing was for certain, he never saw Jean-Pierre so hurt.
“T’as aucune idée de quoi tu parles, crisse, ferme-là! J’ai arrêté c’te marde là y’a longtemps. Tu penses-tu vraiment qu’y m’auraient laissé m’occuper d’Sébastien si j’étais comme avant? Je sais que j’ai fait des choses pas correct dans l’temps qu’on était jeune, mais tourne la page, bâtard!”/ “You have no idea what you’re talking about, Christ, shut up! I quit that shit a long time ago. D’you really think they would’ve let me take care of Sébastien if I was the same way as before? I know I did some bad things when we were younger, but move on, Christ!” This time, Xavier was not able to hold his friend back and Jean-Pierre quickly left the apartment. Vincent was muted in place. It seemed every time he wanted to talk to Jean-Pierre, he always ended up provoking him, even when that wasn’t his intention.
“Vincent, you should go and apologise. That was uncalled for.” Nathalie told him, after she heard the front door slam closed.
“Whatever happened between the two of you happened a long time ago. You might just find out he’s changed; if you give him the chance.” Xavier added. Vincent remained stubbornly rooted to his spot and refused to move.
The fact and truth was Jean-Pierre Tremblay confused him, from the moment he was a teenager, until now. The older man made him live through a plethora of emotions that were all so contrasting from one to another and as much as he wanted nothing to do with him, the fact remained some part of him, deep down, came to fancy Jean-Pierre. Even though he knew a relationship with him would never work, on the accounts of many different things.
“Come on, act your age and apologise; or else you will not be allowed back here.” Nathalie threatened. Xavier said nothing. He knew his wife would likely do something so drastic.
“Give me a break, Nat, what’s it to you?”
“No. You will go and apologise to him, because that’s the proper thing to do!”
“He’s probably gone by now, anyways.”
“If you know him as much as you claim you do, then you’ll know he’s moping in his car.” Vincent knew Nathalie was right. It was such a typical Jean-Pierre thing to do. He sighed and finally headed out. As much as he made a show of looking upset, deep inside, he wanted things between him and Jean-Pierre to be normal.
He found the other man sitting at the bottom of the steps with his head on his knees. He looked tired and worn out and Vincent realised there was so much about his old friend he didn’t know. He had to try hard not to throw an insult at him and finally opted to sit next to him. It took Jean-Pierre a few minutes before he realised he had company.
“Qu’ess tu veux?”/ “What do you want?” He asked.
“I just - I just wanted to… apologise.” He finally said. Jean-Pierre looked at him funny.
“Pour?”/ “For?”
“Pour tantôt. I didn’t mean to snap…”/ “For earlier…”
“Ben tu l’as fait.”/ “Well you did.” They were both silent for a while.
“Écoute, ça fait longtemps qu’on s’est pas vu; j’ai changé, t’as changé, on peut tu juste être civile?”/ “Listen, it’s been a while since we’ve seen each other; I’ve changed, you’ve changed. Can we just be civil? ”
“Yeah, I guess we could.” They were quiet yet again.
“So, eum, how old is your son?” Vincent asked, for a lack of something to say.
“Y vient d’avoir six ans.”/ “He just turned six.”
“Oh.” He wanted to ask what happened to the mother, but he felt out of place doing so. Perhaps later would be better.
“D’you - d’you want to go back in? I’m sure Nathalie and Xavier are wondering whether or not we’ve killed each other yet.” He gave a small smile. Jean-Pierre nodded and got up. Vincent followed close behind him.
--
They spent a couple of more hours with their friends and it was nice not having anyone throw insults at each other. Vincent couldn’t remember the last time he spent such a long time with Jean-Pierre without fighting him. They even exchanged furtive glances between each other, which didn’t go unnoticed by their friends.
“Bon, j’dois y aller pour de vrai là; j’dois aller chercher Sébastien.”/ “Well, I have to go for real now; I have to pick up Sébastien.”
“I’ll walk you to the door - I mean, I should go too. I have work to do at home.” Vincent blurted out. Xavier gave him an amused glance and Vincent glared at him. They put their shoes back on and once they said their goodbyes, they walked to their cars in silent.
“C’tait bien de te revoir. J’m’ennuyais de toi.”/ “It was nice to see you. I missed you.” Vincent was surprised by the confession and turned his head back to look at him.
“If you missed me so much, you could’ve come back home; you know where I live.” He replied flatly.
“Je sais, mais j’étais pas prêt. Et quand je l’étais, j’avais peur, donc, j’étais pas encore prêt. J’pense c’est mieux qu’on ce soit rencontré d’même. Je sais que ni moi, ni toi on aurait fait l’effort de se retrouver.”/ “I know, but I wasn’t ready. And when I was, I was afraid, so I still wasn’t ready. I think it’s better we met this way. I know neither of us would have made the effort to find each other.” Vincent wanted to argue the point, but he knew the older man was right. Just as much as Jean-Pierre could have gone looking for him, he could have done the same.
“It was a nice afternoon, yes.” He chose to say, instead.
“Tu retournes chez vous là?”/ “You’re going back home?”
“Ouais. I have a lot of work to do.”/ “Yeah…”
“Tu travailles où?”/ “Where do you work?”
“Pour le gouvernement, toi?”/ “For the government, you?”
“Chuis pas surpris.”/ “I’m not surprised.” He chuckled. “J’me suis ouvert un restaurant.”/ “I opened myself a restaurant.”
“Really? Wow! How’s it going?”
“Bien; ch’peux pas m’plaindre. C’est beaucoup de travail par contre, des fois j’aimerais que y’en aille moins pour que j’puisse être à la maison plus souvent.”/ “Good; I can’t complain. It’s a lot of work, though, sometimes I wish there was less to be home more often.” He sighed.
“To be with your son?”
“Ouais, mais bon, on a tous nos sacrifices à faire, non?”/ “Yeah, but we all have our sacrifices to make, no?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“Au fait, eum, t’as sûrement un cell, mais, tu veux échanger nos numéros? Juste pour ce parler ou quoi qu’ce soit.”/ “Hey, eum, you probably have a cell, but d’you wanna exchange numbers? Just to talk or something like that.” Vincent didn’t comment on Jean-Pierre’s flushed cheeks, because he could feel his own heat up slightly.
“Oh, sure, give me your phone, I’ll put mine in.” Jean-Pierre took it out and handed it to the younger man and Vincent did the same. Once that was done, he promised he’d keep in touch and with one final goodbye; he went to his car and drove off.
It would be another two weeks before they saw each other again.
OWARI II
TO BE CONTINUED
Christian is Nathalie’s and Xavier’s son from an AU that will one day be written as well. Everything will be written one day.
I do accept anonymous reviews.
Started writing: January 29th 2012, 9:47pm
Finished writing: March 31st 2012, 8:10pm
Started typing: April 30th 2012, 12:54pm
Finished typing: May 4th 2012, 11:22am
Chapter 2/13: Part II
Characters: Jean-Pierre, Vincent, Nathalie, Xavier,
Author: Orangepencils
Genre: Drama, romance
Rating for this chapter: T
Warnings: Human names used. AU
Pairings: Jean-PierrexVincent, eventually.
Summary: Vincent and Jean-Pierre grew up as quasi-brothers who never really got along. After not seeing each other for almost twenty years, can a little boy named Sébastien bring them together?
This chapter summary: A chance meeting with common friends might just get things started... if they can put their differences aside.
My Brother’s Son
Part II
And now we start the actual story.
My Brother’s Son
Part II
“T’aurais dû amener Sébastien avec toi; il s’entend super bien avec Christian.”/ “You should’ve brought Sébastien with you; he gets along so well with Christian.” Nathalie told the man in front of her.
“Ouais; pourquoi yé pas avec toi?”/ “Yeah; why isn’t he with you?” Xavier asked his friend. It was a sunny spring day and Jean-Pierre Tremblay, now thirty-five years old, was having lunch at his friends’ house.
“C’est pas comme si j’voulais pas, mais yé chez un copain d’classe pour une fête.”/ “It’s not like I didn’t want to, but he’s at a classmate’s house for a birthday.” He told them.
“Still. We haven’t seen him in ages, it’s not fair.” Nathalie half pouted, which caused Jean-Pierre to roll his eyes.
“J’ai des photos sur mon cell, si tu veux.”/ “I have pictures on my cell, if you want.” That seemed to cheer her up some. He took his phone out and found the album labelled “Sébastien”. He then handed the device to his friends, who immediately started looking at them.
“Shit, y’a dont ben grandit!”/ “Shit, he grew so much!” Xavier exclaimed. Jean-Pierre chuckled and made a comment, just as the doorbell rang.
“J’vais aller répondre.”/ “I’ll get it.” Nathalie excused herself and got up to answer.
On the other side of the door, there was Vincent Lambert, who happened to be Nathalie’s best friend. It was curious to note, despite Jean-Pierre being Xavier’s closest friend and Vincent being Nathalie’s, the two of them never crossed paths, since Jean-Pierre left, when he was sixteen.
Neither Nathalie, nor Xavier, knew the two men had a history together and the fact Vincent was at the door, while Jean-Pierre was over for lunch, truly was a coincidence.
The week prior, Vincent came over for supper and forgot his sweater at his friends’ house. Seeing as he was extremely busy at work that week, he had no time to come and pick it up, until now.
“Hey, I was starting to think you weren’t going to come.” Nathalie teased him. Vincent ignored the remark and removed his shoes. He noticed the other pair of shoes, right as he heard Xavier make a comment from the kitchen.
“Oh, d’you have guests over? Is this a bad time? I can come back if you’re busy…” Nathalie smiled and pulled him inside.
“Don’t worry, he’s a friend of Xavier’s and we were just talking. You can stay if you’d like or if you have the time.” Vincent was about to decline and make up some excuse as to why he had to leave, but then he heard Xavier’s friend speak. Something in him, perhaps recognition, maybe curiosity, or even longing, pushed him to walk past Nathalie and towards the source of the voice.
It almost seemed as though he was bewitched, or in a trance, and when he finally reached the kitchen table, where Xavier was chatting with his friend, his heart sped up and a dozen of different contrasting emotions rushed through him at the same time.
“Oh, salut Vincent! Ah, s’cuse, ch’te présente mon ami -”/ “Oh, hey Vincent! Ah, sorry, this is my friend -”
“Jean-Pierre…” Vincent murmured the name that slipped from hi slips, as water from a cup. His eyes were wide and fixed on the man he hadn’t seen in almost twenty years.
When Jean-Pierre heard his name, he turned in his seat and wondered if he wasn’t dreaming; if this wasn’t some sick, twisted nightmare of his. He was muted into shock, as he stared at the man before him.
“Vous… vous vous connaissez?”/ “You… you guys know each other?” Xavier asked, as Nathalie came back in. Neither of them answered for a moment. Vincent’s gaze became guarded and Jean-Pierre’s was a tad chagrined and a little angry.
“Guys?” Nathalie prompted.
“We grew up together, for a while. At least, until this jackass decided to flush everything my father did for him down the drain and run away.” Vincent spat out. Xavier and Nathalie looked from Vincent to Jean-Pierre, wondering if it was true. They had never seen Vincent so angry and upset.
“Ça fait longtemps de ça; r’viens-en…”/ “That was a long time ago; get over it…” Jean-Pierre countered.
“Get over it? Get over it?! After everything you did to my father, let alone me, you expect me to put it aside? Christ, you could have at least left a fucking note or something. You’re just like your father; good for nothing.” Those last words hung heavy in the air, long enough for Vincent to look smug and for Jean-Pierre to snap and jump to his feet, before pushing Vincent against the nearby wall.
Nathalie let out a surprised and scared yelp, as Xavier tried to pry his friend’s hands off of Vincent’s neck.
“Lâche-le!”/ “Let him go!”
“Non. Retire c’que t’as dit.”/ “No. Take back what you said.” He yelled at Vincent.
“Why should I? That’s exactly what you are!” Jean-Pierre slapped him hard across the face.
“You’ve grown soft.” Jean-Pierre glared at him and slammed the younger man against the wall, before Xavier managed to pull them apart.
“What the hell is wrong with you two?!” He asked, infuriated.
“He started it!”
“You did, Vincent…” Nathalie told him. Vincent said nothing and massaged his neck, as he seethed in Jean-Pierre’s direction.
“He started it.” He repeated. “When we were younger. He started it. It’s his fault.” Vincent clarified.
“J’avais besoin de partir.”/ “I had to leave.” Jean-Pierre snapped.
“To do what? Fuck your life? Waste your life? Spend my parents’ money on drugs?” Jean-Pierre made an attempt to get up, but Xavier restrained him from doing so.
“Seriously guys, you can’t just let it go?” Xavier tried to ask them, but he was completely ignored.
“Ch’pense j’devrais partir. J’dois aller chercher Sébastien.”/ “I think I should go. I need to pick up Sébastien.” Jean-Pierre replied coolly after a moment. He took his phone and Vincent saw the background, if briefly, of Jean-Pierre, smiling, holding a small boy, no older than eight, who looked a lot like him. His curiosity got the best of him.
“Who’s Sébastien?”
“Ça t’concerne pas, mais c’est mon fils.”/ “It’s none of your business, but he’s my son.” Vincent was shocked by the news.
“Fils? Qu’ess tu veux dire, fils? T’es marié? Ch’avais pas qu’t’étais marié.”/ “Son? What do you mean, son? You’re married? I didn’t know you were married.” He answered dumbly. Then again, it was almost twenty years. A lot could have happened.
“J’le suis pas non plus.”/ “I’m not.”
“Bon, oké, so t’as une blonde or something then.”/ “Okay, so you have a girlfriend, or something.” Vincent corrected himself, a little annoyed by now.
“J’ai pas d’blonde non plus.”/ “I don’t have a girlfriend either.” The urge to hit Jean-Pierre was strong.
“C’est mon fils de moi et mon ex-blonde.”/ “He’s my son from my ex-girlfriend.” Jean-Pierre finally clarified. Vincent wanted to hit himself now. Of course it would be from an ex. How stupid was he?
“That’s so like you. To get some girl pregnant and then having to raise the child when you feel like it.” The words stung Jean-Pierre and both Nathalie and Xavier winced, knowing exactly what truly happened.
“Pour ton information, sa mère est morte y’a quatre ans.”/ “For your information, his mother died when he was four.” Jean-Pierre spat out.
“Oh, how convenient. Seems you really did take after your father. Not only did you get rid of the mother, but on top of that, you’re a pathetic, good for nothing druggie. I pity the boy.” Vincent retorted without really realising what he was saying. One thing was for certain, he never saw Jean-Pierre so hurt.
“T’as aucune idée de quoi tu parles, crisse, ferme-là! J’ai arrêté c’te marde là y’a longtemps. Tu penses-tu vraiment qu’y m’auraient laissé m’occuper d’Sébastien si j’étais comme avant? Je sais que j’ai fait des choses pas correct dans l’temps qu’on était jeune, mais tourne la page, bâtard!”/ “You have no idea what you’re talking about, Christ, shut up! I quit that shit a long time ago. D’you really think they would’ve let me take care of Sébastien if I was the same way as before? I know I did some bad things when we were younger, but move on, Christ!” This time, Xavier was not able to hold his friend back and Jean-Pierre quickly left the apartment. Vincent was muted in place. It seemed every time he wanted to talk to Jean-Pierre, he always ended up provoking him, even when that wasn’t his intention.
“Vincent, you should go and apologise. That was uncalled for.” Nathalie told him, after she heard the front door slam closed.
“Whatever happened between the two of you happened a long time ago. You might just find out he’s changed; if you give him the chance.” Xavier added. Vincent remained stubbornly rooted to his spot and refused to move.
The fact and truth was Jean-Pierre Tremblay confused him, from the moment he was a teenager, until now. The older man made him live through a plethora of emotions that were all so contrasting from one to another and as much as he wanted nothing to do with him, the fact remained some part of him, deep down, came to fancy Jean-Pierre. Even though he knew a relationship with him would never work, on the accounts of many different things.
“Come on, act your age and apologise; or else you will not be allowed back here.” Nathalie threatened. Xavier said nothing. He knew his wife would likely do something so drastic.
“Give me a break, Nat, what’s it to you?”
“No. You will go and apologise to him, because that’s the proper thing to do!”
“He’s probably gone by now, anyways.”
“If you know him as much as you claim you do, then you’ll know he’s moping in his car.” Vincent knew Nathalie was right. It was such a typical Jean-Pierre thing to do. He sighed and finally headed out. As much as he made a show of looking upset, deep inside, he wanted things between him and Jean-Pierre to be normal.
He found the other man sitting at the bottom of the steps with his head on his knees. He looked tired and worn out and Vincent realised there was so much about his old friend he didn’t know. He had to try hard not to throw an insult at him and finally opted to sit next to him. It took Jean-Pierre a few minutes before he realised he had company.
“Qu’ess tu veux?”/ “What do you want?” He asked.
“I just - I just wanted to… apologise.” He finally said. Jean-Pierre looked at him funny.
“Pour?”/ “For?”
“Pour tantôt. I didn’t mean to snap…”/ “For earlier…”
“Ben tu l’as fait.”/ “Well you did.” They were both silent for a while.
“Écoute, ça fait longtemps qu’on s’est pas vu; j’ai changé, t’as changé, on peut tu juste être civile?”/ “Listen, it’s been a while since we’ve seen each other; I’ve changed, you’ve changed. Can we just be civil? ”
“Yeah, I guess we could.” They were quiet yet again.
“So, eum, how old is your son?” Vincent asked, for a lack of something to say.
“Y vient d’avoir six ans.”/ “He just turned six.”
“Oh.” He wanted to ask what happened to the mother, but he felt out of place doing so. Perhaps later would be better.
“D’you - d’you want to go back in? I’m sure Nathalie and Xavier are wondering whether or not we’ve killed each other yet.” He gave a small smile. Jean-Pierre nodded and got up. Vincent followed close behind him.
--
They spent a couple of more hours with their friends and it was nice not having anyone throw insults at each other. Vincent couldn’t remember the last time he spent such a long time with Jean-Pierre without fighting him. They even exchanged furtive glances between each other, which didn’t go unnoticed by their friends.
“Bon, j’dois y aller pour de vrai là; j’dois aller chercher Sébastien.”/ “Well, I have to go for real now; I have to pick up Sébastien.”
“I’ll walk you to the door - I mean, I should go too. I have work to do at home.” Vincent blurted out. Xavier gave him an amused glance and Vincent glared at him. They put their shoes back on and once they said their goodbyes, they walked to their cars in silent.
“C’tait bien de te revoir. J’m’ennuyais de toi.”/ “It was nice to see you. I missed you.” Vincent was surprised by the confession and turned his head back to look at him.
“If you missed me so much, you could’ve come back home; you know where I live.” He replied flatly.
“Je sais, mais j’étais pas prêt. Et quand je l’étais, j’avais peur, donc, j’étais pas encore prêt. J’pense c’est mieux qu’on ce soit rencontré d’même. Je sais que ni moi, ni toi on aurait fait l’effort de se retrouver.”/ “I know, but I wasn’t ready. And when I was, I was afraid, so I still wasn’t ready. I think it’s better we met this way. I know neither of us would have made the effort to find each other.” Vincent wanted to argue the point, but he knew the older man was right. Just as much as Jean-Pierre could have gone looking for him, he could have done the same.
“It was a nice afternoon, yes.” He chose to say, instead.
“Tu retournes chez vous là?”/ “You’re going back home?”
“Ouais. I have a lot of work to do.”/ “Yeah…”
“Tu travailles où?”/ “Where do you work?”
“Pour le gouvernement, toi?”/ “For the government, you?”
“Chuis pas surpris.”/ “I’m not surprised.” He chuckled. “J’me suis ouvert un restaurant.”/ “I opened myself a restaurant.”
“Really? Wow! How’s it going?”
“Bien; ch’peux pas m’plaindre. C’est beaucoup de travail par contre, des fois j’aimerais que y’en aille moins pour que j’puisse être à la maison plus souvent.”/ “Good; I can’t complain. It’s a lot of work, though, sometimes I wish there was less to be home more often.” He sighed.
“To be with your son?”
“Ouais, mais bon, on a tous nos sacrifices à faire, non?”/ “Yeah, but we all have our sacrifices to make, no?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“Au fait, eum, t’as sûrement un cell, mais, tu veux échanger nos numéros? Juste pour ce parler ou quoi qu’ce soit.”/ “Hey, eum, you probably have a cell, but d’you wanna exchange numbers? Just to talk or something like that.” Vincent didn’t comment on Jean-Pierre’s flushed cheeks, because he could feel his own heat up slightly.
“Oh, sure, give me your phone, I’ll put mine in.” Jean-Pierre took it out and handed it to the younger man and Vincent did the same. Once that was done, he promised he’d keep in touch and with one final goodbye; he went to his car and drove off.
It would be another two weeks before they saw each other again.
OWARI II
TO BE CONTINUED
Christian is Nathalie’s and Xavier’s son from an AU that will one day be written as well. Everything will be written one day.
I do accept anonymous reviews.
Started writing: January 29th 2012, 9:47pm
Finished writing: March 31st 2012, 8:10pm
Started typing: April 30th 2012, 12:54pm
Finished typing: May 4th 2012, 11:22am