A Favor

"So I need a favor."

Anna pulled her hair behind her ear but didn't say anything. She didn't like conversations that started like this. She knew she owed Jason for everything that he did for her, but that didn't mean she should let him walk all over her. Of course he didn't, and sometimes, Anna felt like that was part of the problem. She did look at him to show she was listening.

"I need you to bake a chocolate cake." He bit his lip and looked at her. "Please?"

Anna leaned back in her chair, the aging wicker creaking ever so slightly. It was starting to get dark, and if they stayed out much longer, the mosquitos would start coming out in full force. Idley, she wished that the screen wasn't busted. She turned her head toward Jason. "Why do you need a chocolate cake?" It wasn't that she was opposed to baking one, per se, and as favors went, it seemed easy enough, but it also seemed like an odd request. Especially since she knew that Jason wasn't much of a cake person. He preferred ice cream.

Jason ran his hand through his hair. "I don't need, exactly, but homemade cake tastes better..."

"And you'd rather get ice cream any day, so who is this cake for?" Anna figured that the best way to figure this out was just to ask. Jason didn't usually keep secrets from her, and he never lied. He might weasel word around the truth, but she knew enough to spot that and not press.

Jason fiddled with the third button of his shirt, the top two being unbuttoned completely. He kept doing and undoing the button, shoving the off-white button through the rough denim fabric over and over, fingers moving unconsciously. "It's for Jamie's last day at work."

Anna raised her eye brows. "The cute enby you're too scared to make a move on?"

"I'm not too scared," Jason countered. "I just...yes. That Jamie. It's their last day at work on Friday, and they deserve...I thought it would be nice to do something for them."

Anna smoothed her skirt down. "Why are they leaving?"

Jason glared at her. "You know why."

"I know why they'd be inclined to leave," Anna countered. "But I also know that any job they get, it's going to be the same and you guys make good money."

"Not good enough," Jason said. "Every month we're struggling to make ends meet."

"We live in a nice area. Rent's expensive. And given our history, there's slim pickings out there."

"Yeah but Jamie has a college degree and never went to jail. They..." Jason hesitated. "They deserve better than this."

"So do you," Anna pointed out. "You deserve much better."

"And you..."

"I am a fuck up," Anna cut in. "You know that as well as I do."

"Don't say that," Jason took a step forward and grabbed her shoulder. "Your brain is..."

"Fucked up." Anna finished. "Just because it's a brain defect and not a failing of moral character doesn't mean that it isn't real, that it isn't stopping me from doing anything useful with my life, that I'm not..." She trailed off, gripping her own wrist so tightly that the skin was turning red. She took a deep breath in. "Let's not talk about this."

Jason sighed. "It's not...if that's what you want." He let go of her shoulder and took a step back. "So that cake?"

Anna snorted a laugh. "Yes, I can back a chocolate cake for Jamie." She let go of her wrist and smoothed out her skirt. "Do they have a plan or are they just...winging it?"

Jason frowned. "I think they said something about a fellowship? I wanted to ask them more but..." He looked down at the ground.

"You don't want them to know that you like them because you haven't come out of the closet yet and they aren't AFAB?"

Jason turned to glare at Anna. She kept his gaze for a moment, then looked away. They were silent for a moment, then Jason said, "You're right."

"If they asked, would you say yes?" Anna didn't look at him exactly, but she did half look in his general direction.

"I should do something about the screen," Jason said, instead of answering, looking at said screen.

"I should do something about the screen," Anna corrected him. "I can after the session tomorrow."

"Then we should head inside," Jason said. "Mosquitos and all. Plus, Mr. Stillden will be home soon and it's not worth dealing with him."

"You didn't answer my question," Anna pointed out, though she stood to follow him back in.

"Would it matter the answer is? They aren't going to ask." Jason didn't look at her, instead moving into the small house. She followed him, more out of force of habit than any real desire to go inside. He held the door to the back stairs open for her and they made their way up to the attic apartment they rented. She began to move about in the small kitchen area, and he went and sat down on the bed, with his feet pressing up against the mattress on the floor where she usually slept.

They could plainly see each other, but they were well adept at pretending they couldn't as a coping mechanism to shared space. The sound of a car pulling into the driveway came from down below and Jason moved over to the window, looking down. "He parked me in again."

"He should know better...does he not even think?" Anna said. "I know he doesn't...He likes that we pay rent but he...if he could kick us out without it seeming like he were kicking us out because we were us he'd do it in a heartbeat. I know it's not like we have..." She kicked at the cabinet door as hard as she could.

Jason stifled his jumpiness at the loud noise and instead asked, "So you'll make the cake?"

Anna wasn't stupid. She knew what he was doing, but she was too tired to care. "Yeah, I'll make the cake. Chocolate, you said, right? Any particular type of chocolate cake?"

"That one you made that year for my dad's 50th," Jason said. "That was really good."

"I think I can manage that." She took a deep breath in.

"And the answer..." He hesitated for a moment. "The answer is maybe."

"I better make this cake good them."