Chapter 42: Jealousy

ZEKE:

I flip the last batch of pancakes over in the frying pan. They're looking good, even though it's been a while since I've tried anything in the kitchen. But I'm babysitting. Drusila is far away and no one's here to look after Marelyn except me. Over the inside burner on the cooker, all the water in the non-stick pan has simmered away and the bacon for breakfast's looking crispy and delicious.

I put the extra effort into this morning's meal because I can't get her cries out of my head. When I left her bathroom yesterday, I didn't exactly leave. I sat down at a corner in her room and was there throughout, listening in on her cries. I didn't expect her to cry, but she had just lost Jai-Blynn, and as much as I hated it, he was important to her.

Marelyn ate these on her first day here. She liked fruit as toppings. I stack them onto a plate, pancake first, then a crispy bacon and in that order. I finish my dish with grapes as Marelyn walks into the kitchen already dressed up. She slips