The Best Thing

by Mariana Zapata

But that didn’t mean that I couldn’t picture him buckling Mo into her car seat soon and saying in a baby voice, “Grandpa Gus is gonna go kill somebody. You wanna come with me? You wanna help bury your daddy?”

She passed out in Jonah’s arms. I wasn’t overthinking it. Mo didn’t know a stranger. She loved being fawned over and didn’t give much of a fuck who paid her attention as long as someone did, which according to Grandpa Gus was exactly the opposite of how I’d been. He claimed I came out of the womb bitch-facing people and had clung to him for dear life like someone was going to try and steal me away. It was only Peter that I had taken to immediately.

“I love you. I’ll be right back, booger. Be good.” Her answering babble probably claimed she was always good. That, or she was telling me to fuck off because she knew what she was doing.

“I can keep a secret,” she kept going. “I’ll only tell Rip. Promise.”

Do what you have to do to be happy, okay? No one else is going to do it for you.”