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by Captain Canada » 20 Oct 2025, 13:52
Season I | Chapter VI - People Get Ready
Fall had come and made way for a particularly ruthless winter. The leaves had changed its colors and inevitably fell to the ground - leaving carcases of trees to be encapsulated by heavy bogs of snow.
The city of Pittsburgh being such a metropolitan of a city, the snow didn't shutter the bustling streets like it did out in the outskirts. It reminded you of its presence with its bone-chilling winds, cascading and flowing mercilessly between the skyscraper buildings of downtown. Out in the suburbs of Upper St. Clair, the wind wasn't as rampant - being just far enough from the bridges to not come off the water.
The crisp air simply sat, allowing you to travel through it, and not the other way around.
Zane wasn't one for the winter. Living any place where simply existing in its air could cause pain wasn't for him. It must have been his Caribbean roots coursing through his blood from his father's side.
Mary had travelled from Jamaica as a teen as the youngest of five siblings. She initially settled in New York, finding work as a cleaner in one of the largest hospitals in Manhattan. She eventually met Zane's grandfather and moved to Pittsburgh - quiet enough to hear yourself think, but loud enough to be granted a distraction if you needed it. She worked in the city in a similar position for 40 years and raised two children before retiring to a quieter career of volunteering when they needed an extra hand.
Felix Jones came from St. Kitts & Nevis early in the 1970s, landing himself in Pittsburgh as an engineer just in time to see Terry Bradshaw, Mean Joe Greene, and the Steelers take over the city for the next decade. A coincidental trip to New York City for a convention, slipping on some ice, and landing himself in the hospital with a concussion had him running into his future in the form of a young woman working a double-shift because someone called in sick.
"Everything I have came from these two hands," Felix would say to a young Zane, holding up his rough and battered palms for him to look at, feeling the grizzled edges with his own, soft hands - too young to have been marked up by life quite yet. "That's what being a man is all about, grandson. Leaving your mark."
Tough but fair is how Zane would explain his grandfather now. Life had taken its pound of flesh from him. He would never say sorry - even when it was clear he was wrong - but he would show his love for his wife by bringing home a pint of Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream without her asking. He would give Zane a hard time anytime he wanted to take the car, but he would always ensure the gas tank was full.
He showed up. That's what always mattered to him. He was the father figure that had been so cruelly robbed from him before he was old enough to learn what was missing.
The three of them sat at the table early one morning. It was a crisp Tuesday morning, the snow falling quietly outside their kitchen window with such a grace that Zane would almost forget just how annoying it would be to get outside and clear the car off. Zane was up to get a lift in before class start, Felix up to get a head start on traffic before heading into the city to a car garage he tinkered at three times a week. Mary was up simply to enjoy time with her boys before they headed out.
Zane spoke up first. "Coach has been saying I might get an invite to some camps in the new year."
Felix peeked at him, eyes wary over glasses that constantly slipped down his nose when he looked down. "Where?"
"Mostly in state," Zane replied, feeling the need to sell something he wasn't even sure he wanted to buy in the first place. "I don't think I'm going to get a Rivals camp invite, but Coach seems pretty convinced I'm going to get an invite to Penn State's prospects game."
Felix leaned back in his chair, attention now fully on Zane as he dropped the newspaper he still got every morning despite most of the neighbors cancelling their subscriptions years ago.
"You have to pay?"
"Not usually, but I don't have a lot of information about it yet. I'm still trying to figure all that stuff out." Zane answered earnestly. He had never really heard about guys at his school having to pay, but he was aware that some of them had sponsors from the community that helped with boarding when they left the city.
"Just make sure you're keeping up with your studies," Felix said, backing his chair up and heaving his dense body up, both knees cracking under the pressure. "I want this for you, but I don't want this to be the only basket with some damn eggs inside them, yeah?"
Zane nodded, a breath caught in his chest. He scratched at his chin, as if he didn't know what to do with his hands. Approval from his grandfather wasn't something he often gotten. He would contest, and then eventually let go. Never direct approval.
Mary looked between the two of them, directing a look at Felix that only he caught. Felix looked back, studied and pondered for a moment before relenting. He walked over to Zane, almost as if he was merely going to pass him by. Zane felt the old, rugged hand plop onto his shoulder, the pressure causing him to look up.
"I'm .. uh.. I'm proud of you for trying. You're doing good, son." Zane was taken aback, leaking out a quiet nod that was enough permission for Felix to move on to the foyer, grabbing his coat and keys to go clear off the driveway. He contemplated for a moment, almost smiling to himself. He looked over to Mary, a proud look on her face as she hoisted her mug of green tea for a sip.
The snow continued to fall gently outside the window, on a day that already felt a little bit better.
Last edited by
Captain Canada on 29 Oct 2025, 13:54, edited 2 times in total.