I'm With the Band Ch. 08 + Epilogue

The days leading up to Thanksgiving flew by for Jess, Jordan, and Kyla. Between work, band rehearsals, shows, dates, overnight stays, and the occasional check-in over coffee, the three of them had little time for themselves. Thus, planning for the Thanksgiving holiday ended up being hectic and last-minute. It would be a potluck-style "Friendsgiving," where each invitee would be assigned a general food category, and it was up to them what to make of it. Jess was assigned potatoes, and she was conflicted: would she make the standard, boring mashed potato recipe she found online, or work up the courage to video call her mom for her legendary potato salad recipe?

"Hey, Mom," she said.

"Hey, Jessie! How ya doin'?" her mom said, holding the phone at an angle that only showed the upper half of her face.

"Mom. Mom! Lower the phone, we talked about this."

"Oh. Sorry, sweetheart. Want me to get your dad?"

"No no! It's fine. Just calling to say again, sorry I can't make it home this year."

"Oh, it's fine, it's fine. I mean sure, I'm disappointed, but I'm just happy you finally got yourself some friends to hang out with!"

Jess cringed. That's not the praise you think it is, Mom.

Her mom continued: "Besides, we can always get together next year. So whatcha need, sweetheart?"

Right, because I never call unless I need something. Way to go, Jess. Daughter of the Year material right here. "Actually, I was hopin' maybe you could send me your potato salad recipe?"

"What's his name?"

"W-what?"

"Baby," her mom said, giving her the look all moms give when they know their child is hiding something.

"Uh..." Jess tried to think of a fake name, as her mom continued giving her 'the look.' "Mike."

"Mike who?"

"Mike Rowe?"

"Baby, did you pick that 'cause you're looking at your microwave right now?"

"N-no?" Jess turned away from her microwave and rolled her eyes. "Fine. His name's Jordan."

"Okay, now we're getting' somewhere!" Her mom then lowered her voice, "And you love him?"

"What?! No! I mean-"

"Jessie, you called your momma for the first time in months to get a recipe I famously used to get your daddy to marry me. And you're gonna use it at his Thanksgiving. Tell me that ain't serious."

"We ain't talkin' about this right now, Mom. Can you please just send me the recipe?"

"Send me a pic of him, first."

"Ugh, fine. Thanks, Mom. Love you. Say hi to Dad for me."

"Love you too, Jessie. Will do."

Jess ended the call. She scrolled through her photo library and found one of the few pictures she had of Jordan fully clothed. It was from when she watched him practice at his place and snapped a pic of him in his trademark jeans and undershirt. She sent it.

A minute later, Jess received a reply from her mother: Damn, baby! It was followed by a wide-eyed emoji and several "water" emojis.

Jess shook her head and wrote back: Right?

The recipe came shortly after with a message wishing her luck. Jess thanked her mom, scheduled an appointment at the beauty shop, and went grocery shopping.

+++

Jordan and Kyla rarely had people over. Whenever they hosted events for friends and people from work, it was usually at restaurants, hotels, resorts, and other neutral locations. It wasn't until Thanksgiving Day that they realized they didn't have what they needed to host at home. Kyla rushed out to buy patio furniture and extra ashtrays, while Jordan raced to the grocery store to get a turkey and the ingredients for stuffing.

Jordan got to work on the food while Kyla started cleaning and organizing. The first and second floors were easy for her, as they usually kept them tidy. The basement, however, was a disaster area by comparison. Kyla had just about finished vacuuming the basement carpet when her phone buzzed. It was Jess in their group chat letting them know she was on the way.

"Babe?" Kyla called up to Jordan. "You see Jess's message?"

"Shit. Yeah. If she's leaving now, that means she's gonna be early, right?" Jordan guessed.

"Yep. I thought we had more time. Damn, I'm really regretting not hiring a cleaning service now."

"Sorry, I've been so busy, I kept forgetting about the basement."

"It's okay," she yelled back. "Just focus on not setting the house on fire!"

"Easier said than done," he retorted.

By the time their doorbell rang, the house and the turkey remained unburned, and Kyla had returned from the basement a sweaty mess. Jordan walked quickly to the front door and muttered, "Why is she ringing the doorbell? She could just walk in." He opened the door.

"Hey- woah," he stopped. Jess was wearing faux fur-lined boots, black jeans and a long, faux fur-lined black coat that was buttoned up with the hood back. Her outfit wasn't what short-circuited his brain -- it was her hair. Instead of her usual afro or twin puffs, it was now wavy and down just above her shoulders.

"Happy Thanksgiving," she said, looking up at him with her big eyes and devilish smile. She shook her head back and forth and asked, "You like it?"

"I, uh... yeah. Uh, come in, please!"

"Thanks," she said, then crossed the threshold and gave him a kiss. "Here!" she said, offering him the white covered casserole dish she brought with her. "It's potato salad. I know, it's not the traditional mashed potatoes and gravy, but-"

"No, that's awesome! Thanks!" he took the dish from her and led her to the kitchen. "The turkey's not quite done yet, sorry to say."

"Yeah, sorry I'm early. I tend to do that when I'm nervous."

"Glad I'm not the only one," he said quietly, remembering when he showed up early to the coffee shop. He set the dish down on the counter and turned to face her.

"So, about the hair," Jess said. "What do you think? It's not too...?"

"Whatever it is you're about to say, no. It's good. I love it."

"Glad to hear it. Now, what about the outfit?"

"What do you mean? It suits you."

"No," Jess said as she unbuttoned her coat. "I mean this part." She opened it up to reveal a fuzzy, gray crop-top sweater -- the same one Angela wore when they discussed Jordan being poly. "I borrowed it from a friend. Is it too much? I have a change of clothes in the truck, just in case."

Jess's midriff was completely exposed. Jordan couldn't pull his eyes away as he said, "I... could you wear this every time you come over?"

Jess let out a low laugh. "I'll have to ask if I can steal it first, but I think something could be arranged." She stood up on her toes and kissed him long and deep. "How much time do we have?"

"Oh, the turkey's got another hour or so. We got time."

"No, you don't," Kyla interjected. "More company's coming in 15... Oh my god, what'd you do to your hair, it's amazing!" She ran over and gave Jess a hug.

Jess hugged her back. "Thanks. Just thought I'd try something different."

"Well, it is working on you," Kyla said as she stepped back. "I mean, I liked what you had going on before, but yeah. Working. Definitely. And the shirt, damn! Could you wear that every time you come over here?"

Jess laughed. "Great minds, huh? Y'all need help with anything?"

Kyla hung up Jess's coat and went upstairs to quickly shower, and Jess helped Jordan set the table. She'd never had the chance to see the dining room of his house before. He led her past the grand piano to a large oak table with several chairs around it. As far as Jess could tell, it looked like it cost more than her truck. As she helped lay out the plates and silverware, the doorbell rang.

"Oh, would you mind getting that?" Jordan asked her.

"You sure I'm not, uh, underdressed?"

"Our friends are cool, don't worry. You're good."

Jess wasn't used to dressing like this for anyone other than Jordan -- and Kyla, by proximity. But she wanted to try something bold and daring and greeting strangers at the front door in Angie's sweater was certainly both. She was just grateful she wasn't going to see anybody she already knew.

She opened the door, and was greeted with the permanent, ebony scowl of Loretta. Jess wanted to crawl into a hole and die; Loretta was unfazed.

"You changed your hair. Looks good. Here: pumpkin pie," Loretta held out a glass pie dish covered in plastic wrap.

Jess silently took the pie and continued staring straight ahead out the door. I could just run. Leave the jacket, sprint to the truck. Shit, the keys are in the jacket. Okay, run back to the jacket, grab the keys... well, I could just grab the jacket, too, might as well. Doesn't matter if it was a thrift store buy, it's a good jacket.

"Is this Jess from work?" A head appeared from behind Loretta. It was the same beaming white face Jess had seen countless times behind Loretta's desk. The body attached to the head stepped around Loretta and held out a hand. "Hi, I'm Grace, her wife. Nice to meet you!"

Jess blinked and met Grace's eyes. "Oh, uh, yeah. Nice to finally meet you, too," she said, returning the handshake. "I'll just, uh, bring this inside. Come on in."

"Jordan! Kyla!" Grace shouted at the top of her lungs and bounced her way around Jess. Loretta slowly followed Grace as Jess closed the door.

Kyla came downstairs in short, black heels and a blue, ankle-length, silk dress. The side of the skirt was split all the way up to just below her hip. A diamond-shaped window had also been cut in the chest of the dress, revealing a small portion of her modest cleavage. "Grace!" she screamed as she made her way down. They both met at the bottom and hugged as though they hadn't met in years.

Jordan came out from the kitchen. "Hey Retta! How was the drive?"

"Good baby, how you been?" Loretta said as she and Jordan kissed each other on the cheek.

"Oh, you know. Surviving," he winked at her. "Retta, I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Jess."

"Ohhh, we've met. She's my boss," Jess said, and approached them. "The question is, how do you two know each other?"

"Grace is one of his regulars," Loretta explained. "She used to drag me to her D&D sessions there," she turned towards Grace and continued, "as revenge for me trying to inject a little culture into her life!"

"First of all," Grace responded, shaking her wavy brown hair out of her face. "Seeing Rent for the fifth time in two years is not "culture." And secondly, you started to like D&D, and you know it!"

Loretta turned and smiled at Jess. "She's got me there. Anyway, we'll talk later. I'll go say hi to Kyla."

Once Loretta was out of earshot, Jordan whispered to Jess, "I'm so sorry, I didn't know!"

"How could you not?!" she whispered back. "You dropped me off at my office!"

"Retta and I never talked about work. We only ever talked about music and married life," said Jordan. The doorbell rang, and Kyla went to answer the door. "Like, I knew she worked in IT, but who the fuck doesn't these days?!"

Jess shook her head and started rubbing her temples. "This is gonna be so fucking awkward, I know it."

A chorus of 'Hey!' rang out from the doorway as Kyla greeted four people. Jess recognized the guitarist and drummer from Kuhani -- Zack and David. She didn't recognize the man standing at the end next to David, but she recognized the ageless, statuesque Marie holding a pecan pie; Zack's left arm was hooked around her waist. Kyla hugged them one at a time as they entered, then she took their prepared dishes to the kitchen.

Jordan said to Jess, "Here, I'll introduce you." He held her hand and led her to the group. "Jess, you've already met Marie. This is Zack, her husband I told you about. And this is David and his husband, Paul. Everyone, this is my girlfriend, Jess."

Jess waved and shook hands with them all. David held his hand out to Zack, palm up. Zack reached for his wallet and slapped a twenty-dollar bill in David's hand.

"What's this?" Jess asked with a nervous laugh. Jordan's eyes were half-closed and glaring in Zack and David's direction.

David looked at Jess and pointed at her and Jordan. "I said this would turn into something. Zack disagreed and put twenty on it." He turned to Jordan. "You're way too transparent, man."

"Anyways," Jordan interjected. "Get inside, ya assholes. It's butt-ass freezing out there."

The four of them filed in, with Paul earnestly complimenting Jess's sweater along the way.

"So," Jess turned to Jordan as he shut the door. "Did you invite Angie, too? Or Terry, the club bouncer? Anybody else I happened to meet since I met you?"

Jordan gave her a bemused look and asked, "Who? And who?" Jess gave him a flat stare. "No, we're just kinda... tight-knit, I guess. My group of miscreants and ne'er-do-wells who all love each other in our own ways. Like an Isle of Misfit Toys, kinda."

"They all seem pretty normal to me. Well, except Loretta. That shit still has me all messed up," Jess said, shaking her head in Loretta's direction.

"Don't worry about her. She's cool, trust me. You wanna help me finish setting the table?"

Jess arranged the food in the middle of the table and Kyla continued to entertain their guests with amusing anecdotes from work. Jordan pulled the turkey and stuffing out of the oven, called everyone to dinner, and he and Jess brought the last of the food to the table side-by-side. Kyla poured wine and other requested libations for everyone. Once everyone was seated, Jordan proposed a toast.

"Hi everyone," he started, coughing once. "Sorry, uh, believe it or not, I'm not much of a public speaker." This got an amused chuckle from the table. "I just wanted to tell y'all that I'm thankful to have my 'family' here with me today. I'm thankful to have so many wonderful, accepting people in my life who have welcomed me into theirs with open arms. And I'm thankful," he looked down to his left and right at Kyla and Jess, "to have the two most beautiful women in the world accept me as their partner."

Jess reached up and took his right hand, while Kyla caressed his left arm. Jordan squeezed Jess's hand back and raised his glass. "So, cheers, and let's dig in!" Everyone raised their glasses in response and started eating.

The dinner itself was quite uneventful, although Jess was the focus of everyone's curiosity. Most wanted to know the story of how they met. Loretta was especially curious but noted that she had seen a change in Jess's demeanor around the office.

"When I first hired you," Loretta said, "there was a light in your eyes; most people have it when they start out in IT. You know, like, 'I'm on the cutting-edge, and I'm gonna make so much money, and I'll be respected, blah blah blah.' But, over time, the light always starts to fade. And you," she pointed at Jess with a fork, "it didn't take long for you."

Jess offered a nervous half-smile in return but said nothing.

"But outta nowhere, she comes in smiling, with a bounce in her step, just on top of the world. I knew somethin' was up. Didn't think it was you, though," Loretta said, looking at Jordan. "If I ever hear you did her wrong..."

"I'll be good, I promise," Jordan held up his hands in protest, palms out.

"Mm-hmm," she responded while skeptically looking him up and down.

"Look," Kyla offered, "there's no such thing as a smooth, easy poly relationship. They all have issues, speed bumps, all that shit."

"Too true," Grace agreed. Loretta turned and looked at her wife. "Remember Harold? He said he was poly, but he had an OPP. Major red flag."

Jess gave Jordan a puzzled look. He explained, "One-Penis Policy. It's super-shitty and toxic."

"Exactly," Grace said. "Came back to bite him in the ass, though. Dated this lovely lady with his go-ahead, and eventually dumped his sorry ass. And I never looked back." She grabbed Loretta's hand and smiled. Loretta smiled back.

Jordan looked over at Kyla and said to the whole table, "Well, I think we're ready for dessert. Babe, are the refreshments ready downstairs?" She nodded. "Alright! Everyone go grab a plate. We'll see you down in the basement!"

Kyla stood up and walked over to Jess to take her hand. "Come on." Jess followed her to the kitchen, bewildered. Loretta shot Jordan a surprised look.

"Oh, are they a thing, too?" she asked him.

"Meh," he responded, tilting a hand from side to side. "They haven't put a label on it, so I'm not about to. They both seem happy, so I ain't complainin'."

The rest of the group got up from the table and followed Jess and Kyla into the kitchen. They each put a piece of pie on a plate -- some with ice cream, some without -- and made their way down to the basement.

Kyla, still holding Jess's hand, led Jess down a soft, carpeted staircase. Halfway down, the stairway made a 90-degree right-turn, descended a few more steps, then turned right again before reaching the bottom. When they reached the end of the stairs, Jess first noticed a dark mahogany bar replete with barstools, and seemingly stocked with liquor. A familiar lacquered box was resting on top of the bar, alongside several glass pipes and metal grinders.

To the right of the bar was a U-shaped black leather couch in front of a large, wall-mounted, flat-screen TV and several videogame consoles. The room continued around to the right, with the staircase in the center of the basement. At the end was a massive wooden table with a dozen chairs placed around it. Behind the table was a shelf overflowing with board games and books, like the ones Jess saw in Jordan's store. She observed that the whole basement was tastefully lit with concealed LED lighting. It was large, but somehow felt cozy to her; it was the first time she'd been down here. And yet, Jess wasn't even phased by the room -- nothing about Jordan's life surprised her anymore.

Jordan came down behind them, put his hand on Kyla's back, and kissed her on the cheek. "Thank you for getting this all set up, babe."

Kyla smiled with pride and gave him a sidelong glance. "Of course. Love you, too."

The rest of the group filed in, plates in hand. They all took seats around the table while Jordan picked out a few board games. As they started eating, he set up the first game. It was a relatively simple party game meant to serve as an icebreaker. By the time they had finished their second round of it, people had already started digging into the contents of Kyla's lacquered box, and Jordan had started making drinks upon request. The second game was a social deduction game. As most of the attendees were high, almost none of the guesses during the game were correct, and no one seemed bothered by it in the least. By the time the third game was finished -- a fantasy cooperative RPG with light sexual overtones -- everyone at the table was sufficiently altered and flirty.

"So, Loretta..." Jess started, giggled, then started again, "So, I've gotta ask: why are you so fuckin' different here?"

With one hand cupping Loretta's breast, Grace leaned forward and asked, "Oh, does she look like someone killed her dog at work, too?" Grace and Jess started laughing hysterically. David was seated to their right, with Paul resting his head on David's right shoulder, softly snoozing. Zack sat across the table from them gently stroking Marie's hair while Marie stroked his chest. Kyla sat between Marie and Jess, joyfully taking in the flirty vibes all around her.

From the head of the table, Jordan asked Jess, "Wait, she's really that different at work?"

"Oh, baby," Loretta turned to him and said, "you have no idea." She started giggling through pursed lips.

"Yeah, but why though?" Jess asked again between fits of laughter.

Once Loretta finished giggling, she tilted her head back and kept her eyes on Jess. "You know those assholes we always have to walk by in our office?" Jess nodded. "I'm a gay black woman. If you had to put up with the bullshit I've dealt with for 15 years, you'd have a stick up your ass every day, too!" The table erupted in laughter.