77 - Just Call Me Aesop

Jon sighed as he waited for his eldest son to emerge from the school.  The dull winter daylight was reflected and brightened by the still-shiny surface of his new wedding band.

He and Sheridan had hit the ground running in New York about two hours ago.  After a fortifying kiss, she’d gotten out of the car in Tribeca to pack enough for a couple days, after which she would head to SoHo for a nap and more phone calls. 

Following the suggestion of Dr. Rennicke, Jon was going to talk to his older children one-on-one and then bring Dorothea in the loop before talking to the younger boys.  He always was one to take the bull by the horns and tackle a project head-on, so he didn’t waste any time in doing just that.  When he ran by his apartment to drop his bag and grab his car keys, he took the time to call his darling daughter. 

Fucking college kids think they know everything.

The young woman had basically chewed his ass for running off and getting married without a word to anyone – without even hinting that he and Sheridan might get married.  Lack of respect, yadda, yadda, yadda.  The baby hadn’t fazed her one way or the other.  She really didn’t even acknowledge it.  Her only response had been to lambast him again for not showing his own children common courtesy of a phone call before he brought another person permanently into his life. 

She was at least polite enough to assure him it had nothing to do with Sheridan, whom she liked well enough.  No, this one was all on dear old dad’s shoulders.  When was he going to stop treating them – or at least her – like children?  How could he expect her to trust and respect him when he didn’t show her the slightest bit of trust or respect?

What the hell did she call turning her loose in a college dorm without a damn bodyguard?  That’s what Jon wanted to know.  If it wasn’t trust, then he personally thought there was no such thing.

He’d taken all of her condescending lecture he could stand before snapping that he was “the goddamn parent here”, not her.  What was done was done and it was her prerogative to think he had royally fucked it up.  Regardless, there was nothing to be done now but to accept it and move on.

With a deceptively docile “fine”, she then coolly informed him she had plans for the weekend and wouldn’t be coming home. 

Tremendous.

As a result, he was dreading a possible repeat of the same conversation with his son.

Guess I’m about to find out, he thought, spying the boy walking in his direction.  The car door opened and Jesse climbed in and threw his book bag the back seat. 

“Hey, kid.  How was school this week?” Jon asked with a smile as the door shut. 

“Was okay.”  The boy immediately gravitated to the satellite radio, changing it to one of the more popular stations.  “So what’s up?  Why did you want to pick me up from school?”

He put the car into gear and pulled out of the parking lot.  “Your mom had to take your brothers into the city for a doctor’s appointment, so I told her I’d run you by the house to get your stuff for the weekend and take you to my place.”

“Okay.  Mandi asked me to go to the movies tonight.  That okay?”

“Yeah, I don’t see why not.” 

The two rode in a companionable silence with music the only noise in the vehicle until they navigated the car into the driveway at the house. 

Before his son had a chance to reach for the door handle, Jon turned with a subtle deep breath.  He’d spent the drive time weighing the best approach for this potentially sensitive news before finally coming to the conclusion that there was nothing better than the straight-forward truth.

“Jess, you and I need to talk.  Man to man.”

Immediately wary and no doubt thinking this was about him, the younger Bongiovi’s response was wary.  “Okay.  What?”

“Get that look off your face,” Jon instructed him with a smirk.  “You didn’t get busted for anything.  I just have a couple things to tell you.”

“Oh.”  Relief was palpable in the blue eyes that so strongly resembled his own.  He was a little too relieved, in fact.  Jon was going to have to see what the kid had been up to.  “Is something wrong with Grandma and Grandpa?”

“No!  No, they’re both fine as far as I know.  I just wanted to let you know why I was out of town the last couple of days.”

The teen shrugged with disinterest.  “I figured it was work.  It usually is.”

“It usually is,” he agreed, meeting Jesse’s eyes.   “But this time it wasn’t.  Sheridan and I went to Jamaica and we got married.”

“Holy shit!  Uh... I mean, okay.  That’s kinda sudden isn’t it?  No offense to Sheridan,” he was quick to add.  “I like her fine and all that, I’m just surprised.”

Intentionally overlooking the colorful language considering the bomb that had been dropped on the kid, Jon nodded his head slowly.  “It is kind of sudden, which brings me to my other news.  Sheridan and I are having a baby.”

Jesse tipped his head ever-so-slightly to the side and blinked his eyes repeatedly, as though he didn’t understand what had just been said.  “You got married because she got pregnant?”

“We would have ended up married anyway.”  Probably.  There was no point in making that qualification.  He needed to appear in control and confident that things had gone exactly according to plan.  “This just stepped things up a little.”

The boy snorted with derision.  “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

“Watch your mouth.”

“No, you watch your mouth,” his typically agreeable son countered heatedly, a thundercloud of anger parked over his features.  “You’re the one who’s been talking out your butt.  Ever hear of birth control, Dad?  God knows you’ve preached it to me often enough that I thought you wouldn’t get somebody knocked up.  Fucking hypocrite.”

Do not get pissed off.  Be the grownup here.  Let him say what he needs to say, but keep the upper hand.

“We used birth control.  If you remember, I’ve also preached that abstinence is the only foolproof method.  This just goes to prove my point, and at least I’m in a position to provide for a child.  You aren’t, so keep it in your pants.”

“Oh God.”  Jesse’s eyes rolled to the ceiling of the car with a groan and he jerked the door handle open with a flick of his wrist.  “Thank you, Aesop, for making your screw-up a life lesson for me!  I really appreciate that.  What-the-fuck-ever.”

When he couldn’t get a grip on the boy’s arm before he bounded away, Jon leapt out of the car and strode around the hood and toward the front door.  “Jesse!  Goddammit, stop!”

The meaty part of his palm caught the heavy door before it slammed in his face and he barreled through it.  One quick lunge had the neckline of his son’s jacket wadded in Jon’s palm, jerking the child that was more man than boy to a halt. 

“We aren’t finished.” 

“What else is there?” the hotheaded teen demanded furiously, swinging around and jerking his arms free of the coat.  “I already know there’s no Santa Claus, so you wanna tell me you didn’t graduate high school now?”

Jon let the coat drop to the ground and planted his fists on his hips in a confrontational stance.  It was everything he could do not to snatch the kid up off the ground and demand obedience and respect.

Do not kill him.  He’s confused and angry, so it’s your job to be rational and calm. 

“Don’t be a jerk.  You know I graduated high school.  You’ve seen the pictures.”

A million curses and something that looked suspiciously like hatred washed through the Bongiovi blue eyes that shot lethally poison darts in Jon’s direction.  He just didn’t get why the kid was so damn furious with him.  Mad he understood, but not this thing that felt a lot like rage. 

“Jess, what the hell is the deal?  Talk to me, kid.”

He remained silent, even though Jon could practically hear the thoughts screaming through his mind.  Unable to make out the actual words, he knew things were flying fast and furious around that teenage brain.

“I always believed you wouldn’t blow smoke at me.  You’ve always been so... so honest where other parents would lie just because it was easier.  I just got through telling Mandi the other day that you weren’t a hypocrite.”  His voice lost some of its heat, replaced by disappointment.  “I trusted you.”

Mother...fucker.  Diplomatic skills don’t fail me now.

He took a tentative step toward his son, who immediately took a step back.  “Jess, buddy, this is all the more reason to trust me.  I just proved that I was right, and I owned up to my mistake.  You know how hard it is to own up to your faults, knowing that it will take you from hero to villain in a single breath?”

This time when he stepped forward, Jesse stood his ground. 

“You’re my son.  My oldest son.  If I want anybody to benefit from the error of my ways, it’s you.  Use me as an example of what not to do if you have to, but don’t be pissed at me for being human.”

There was only one last step that separated two generations of hard-headed, willful, surprisingly sensitive Bongiovis, but Jon couldn’t close the gap alone.  Jesse was going to have to take that final step and bend just a little if they were going to work through this. 

Come on, kid.  Throw me a bone here.  Show me that I haven’t totally fucked up as a parent.

“Don’t get pissed at you for being human?”  The sad ghost of a smile flickered on his son’s face.  “I hope you know that line is going to come back to haunt you every time I screw up, old man.”

That was close enough to the last step for Jon.  He reached forward and hooked an arm around the boy’s neck, hauling him close for a hug that he was relieved to find Jesse returned. 

“Twice.  You use it more than twice and you deserve to have your ass kicked.  Now go get your stuff.  You’ve got a date and I need to get home to Sheridan and your brothers.”

And your mother.  Jesus H. Christ, this is going to be the longest day of my life.