For the Love of the Broken Man (Love & Cowboys #3)

2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Hour one of Jase’s Journey to Freedom, as he was calling it in his head, was spent coming up with a title for the next phase of his life. He’d considered The Great Escape, but quickly discarded it because it wasn’t as if he was escaping prison or a POW camp, as the name implied. Steve McQueen from the movie of the same name, he was not.

Another title he’d considered as he ate his food at the Burger King before it closed was The Places I’ll Go Tour, which he quickly dismissed because he hoped he was only going to Virginia. He prayed he’d find happiness there, but it remained to be seen.

Jase looked at the blank page and released a sigh, jotting down his tentative title in the first page of a notebook he’d purchased for the journey, and after he finished his two Whoppers and a giant glass of sweet tea, he sought out a bench near the sliding doors where his bus was promised to arrive at eight the next morning.

Jase settled with his large rucksack on the floor under his legs and thought about the day—his graduation day. It was supposed to be the day when childhood was left behind, or so Jase believed. To him? It became the day he would seek his freedom and his chance to be his own man.

The graduation ceremony was as boring as those events tended to be, and Jase had dozed off for a short time. He was grateful Lizzy Langer had slapped him on the thigh when he started to snore. There was no love lost between the two, but if his father caught him sleeping, he’d have been pissed at the fact Jase was showing disrespect to the speakers. The wrath would have been more than Jase wanted to bear.

He remembered watching Savannah and Andy cross the stage to claim their diplomas and how much he’d cheered for them. He’d given them gift cards after the ceremony before he was forced to go to a late lunch with his parents, where he’d had to endure his father’s endless inquiries regarding his future plans.

Jase tried to explain to his father how he was prepared to move off-post and find a job and an apartment in El Paso he could afford on his own. James Langston totally dismissed it as stupidity, suggesting, once again, Jase should take a week off before he marched over to the enlistment office on post and signed his life away to Uncle Sam.

Thankfully, his mother had shut down all talk of the sort when the food arrived, and they changed the subject to the Langston grandparents in Syracuse and how they’d mentioned they might visit Texas over the summer. Jase was sorry he was going to miss seeing them, but it was for the best.

During hour two, Jase listened to a podcast about a town in Alabama where a murder had been committed and the authorities had botched the investigation due to the politics at the time. It made him sick to his stomach as he listened, but Jase had learned life wasn’t fair to anyone.

Jase was a newly minted voter, so he’d pledged to himself he’d be a good citizen and do his research regarding the candidates in the next election, and if he found a viable candidate, he’d be happy to volunteer for the cause. He wanted his rights to be respected on a state and national level, likely because there hadn’t been any respect for them in his parents’ home.

Maybe it was his pay-it-forward to his country because Jase didn’t want to serve in the military, and he had to learn to get over his guilt at not signing up as had been expected of him. It might take some time, but he was determined to make the most of his future—away from his demanding father and the man’s unrelenting expectations.

Hour three brought a nap as Jase stretched out over a bank of dark-blue, plastic chairs, thankful they were longer than his earlier roost. He had his head on the duffel and the gift from his girls in his hands where he could guard it with his life. He was waiting to open it because it was the only gift he’d received for his graduation—if he didn’t count the envelope his mother had given him, which he was hiding in his white briefs, rather uncomfortably. His best friends had asked him to wait until he was on the bus to open the box, and he planned to honor their request.

Jase slept through hours four, five, and six. He was pretty sure he could have slept until hour eight, but traffic seemed to have picked up in the bus terminal, and somebody kicked his legs. He opened his eyes to see a cop, so he sat up, wiping his eyes with his fists. “Sir?”

The cop saw the duffel and took in Jase’s haircut. “Sorry, soldier. Just checkin’ for vagrants. What bus you on?”

Jase was prepared for that question, should it arise. “I’m headed to Ft. Pickett in Blackstone, sir.”

“Oh, uh, okay, son. You doin’ okay? You got money for food and stuff?” Jase felt guilty about the lie he was going to tell the nice man.

“Oh, yes, sir. I’ll go wash up before I get something to eat.”

“Sure, son. Thank you for your service.” The cop patted his shoulder before he walked away.

Yes, Jase felt like shit for lying about his military status, or non-status, but he gave himself a little bit of a pass because his father had been in for more than twenty. He’d accept the thanks and send positive energy out into the universe for the soldiers who were working at home and abroad.

Jase went to the men’s room with his duffel and dug out his Dopp kit to brush his teeth. He washed up and applied more deodorant, knowing he was going to be on a bus for about twenty-four hours. He knew there were stops along the way where he’d have a chance to half-ass clean up before he arrived at his destination, so he’d save his other clean clothes for the trip.

After he felt somewhat human, Jase went to the Starbucks wannabe and bought himself a coffee and a muffin. He sat at a table and watched the activity around him. There most definitely was a large contingent of homeless people who seemed to have invaded the station, so he had a lot of gratitude for the cop who woke him when he did. He could see various nefarious characters walking around, waiting for people to leave their bags unattended, and Jase was guessing many a traveler had dropped their guard and lost their belongings to one of them.

Yes, he was grateful the cop had awakened him, and he was no longer feeling guilty about the lie. He needed to learn how to care for himself, and lesson one had been not to fall asleep in a bus station. Thankfully, it wasn’t a hard lesson learned.

Standing in line for the bus at hour eight, he looked around to consider who he wanted to be stuck next to for twenty-four hours. He saw a few, very questionable characters, and he saw a few mothers with children, so he quickly ruled out both groups. There was a group of four kids about his age who looked like they’d be a pain in the ass, so he switched attention to the other group—the grandmas. Jase counted eight women as he stood to the side of the passenger entrance.

Four of the older women appeared happy and eager for the trip together, so he decided to steer clear of them because they’d be talkative, all of them chattering about their upcoming vacation. Two were non-English speakers but they were only speaking to each other, so they’d definitely want to sit together.

The other two women stood off to the side, one black and one white. Neither looked any-too-happy to be riding a bus for a full day, so he decided he’d sit next to either of them. They appeared to have things with them to occupy their time, so they’d likely leave him to his own devices.

When it was his turn to board the bus, he sought out the two women, seeing both sitting in window seats, which gave him options. Before he could get to the seat next to the sour-looking white grandma in a row toward the front, a young girl of about fifteen sat down.

He made his way to the back, seeing a scowling African American woman with short, gray curls, giving him the evil eye. “Pardon me, ma’am. Is anyone sitting here?” Jase knew there were three men behind him who looked surly as hell. He didn’t hesitate to give his best innocent smile.

He watched as the lady glanced behind him at the next passengers before she moved her purse from the seat. “It’s open.”

He settled his duffel in the overhead bin and took a seat next to her with the box from the girls settled in his lap, still intact. Once everyone was seated, the driver stepped onto the bus and announced the few stops along the way. After everyone determined they were on the right bus, the trip began.

Jase was excited because it was the first thing he’d ever done alone, and he thanked the universe for the foresight to get out of El Paso as soon as possible. He turned to see the lady next to him had her eyes closed, so he quietly opened the box the girls had given him.

There were several items inside, but the condoms and lube made him chuckle. He’d never had any kind of an encounter with another guy, so why they thought he’d need condoms was a mystery. He was heading to Southern Virginia, and while Matt Collins and his partner were gay, Jase doubted Holloway was a hotbed of gay culture.

There was a cheap cell phone with a charger. He turned it on to see both of their numbers, along with the numbers for the Circle C Ranch and Katydid Farm in his contact list. There was a crossword puzzle book, a few candy bars, breath mints, and an envelope inside. He pulled out the envelope before he put the lid on the box and placed it on the floor between his feet. He opened the envelope to find a card inside.

On the cover was a guy in a cap and gown with a bright smile. When he opened it, he could see the guy tossing the mortar board in the air. The sentiment read, “You did the hard part. Enjoy the rest of it.”

As he grazed his fingers over it, Jase felt the raised ink, making him take a better look. It was hand-drawn, likely by Andy, and as he looked at the guy on the front, he saw his own dark hair and dark-blue eyes, along with a big smile. He took it in again, seeing it was a cartoon of himself, and he was touched Andy had made a rendering of his graduation because it would be the only image of the day he’d ever have.

Tears fell without his consent, so he quickly turned to see the lady next to him was sound asleep. He used the sleeves of his hoodie to dry his eyes before he closed the card and inserted it into the envelope. He tucked it into his jacket and leaned his seat back a little.

Jase closed his eyes and reminisced about the good times he’d had in high school with his small group of friends, blocking out the bad shit about his dad. His high school experience didn’t totally suck, so it didn’t hurt to think about it. For that, Jase would always be grateful.