Coda 05 -Paris a to Z

unravel that when Matt said, “George, youre a Cardinals fan?” George turned to him in surprise. I wondered how Matt had known. It took me a second to realize the little logo on Georges polo shirt was a red bird head.
“I am!”
“Tough break in that divisional playoff,” Matt said.
“Everybody knows the Rams cheat,” George said, obviously delighted to have somebody he could complain to about it. “Now the bastards are in the damn Super Bowl.” He raised his eyebrows at Matt. “Not a Rams fan, are you?”
“No, sir. Im a Chiefs fan.”
“So am I, this week,” George said, grinning.
Jared jumped in then, saying something about pass rushing that went right over my head, and the three of them quickly devolved into footballspeak.
“Well,” Jon said under his breath, “at least I dont have to worry about him having nobody to talk to.”
That day we saw the Sacré Coeur Basilica. It sat on Montmartre, the highest point in the city. It was a huge white building, monstrously elaborate. It had one giant dome—too long to be called onion-shaped, but too curved to be called conical—and two smaller domes on each side. There were several smaller ones on spires around it and arched windows absolutely everywhere. Inside were more arches than I could count and an elaborately painted ceiling showing Christ surrounded by what appeared to be hoards of angels.
“The guy that wrote A to Z didnt like this place,” Angelo said. “The only thing he liked bout it was the view from the terrace.”
“What do you think?” I asked him.
He turned to me, his eyes full of excitement. “I think its amazing.”
“I find it rather garish, myself,” Cole said to him. “Ill take you to Sainte-Chapelle tomorrow.”
“Really?” Angelo asked, with his usual wide-eyed enthusiasm. “Thats one of the places I marked in the book. It said Sainte-Chapelle had the best stained glass windows in Paris. Maybe all of Europe.”
“Thats true, doll. When you get inside, youll wonder how it even stands.”
After that, we wandered around the streets of Montmartre for a while. We saw the Moulin Rouge and the Chat Noir, and visited the small vineyard on the Rue Saint Vincent. Angelo was amazed by it all, but to me, everything looked the same. Flat-faced white buildings, gray brick sidewalks and narrow streets. It was like a maze. I never knew which way to turn, and I found it terribly disconcerting.
Cole took us to another fantastic restaurant for lunch, which once again took nearly three hours and left me with a pretty spectacular buzz. “Cole,” Matt said as we were finishing our meal, “is there any chance of finding a place to watch the Super Bowl on Sunday night?” He, Jared, and George had obviously been discussing this possibility all morning because they leaned forward on the table and looked over at Cole expectantly.
“Im sure I dont know, buttercup.”
Matts smile was a bit too tightlipped to be genuine. “You might at least know where to check, which is more than any of the rest of us know. Vanderbilt .”
“Thats not my name.”
Matts grin became a bit more smart-assed. “I know. But since you wont call any of us by our names—”
“Thats not true at all,” Cole said. “I call George by his name.”
“And Zach,” Angelo said.
Every single person at the table turned to look at him, and he seemed uncomfortable to suddenly find himself the center of attention. “What?” he asked. “Its true.”
Now everybodys gaze swung back to Cole. Cole was grinning at Angelo as if Ang had just discovered some deep dark secret.
It hadnt occurred to me that Cole referred to me by name, when everybody else had pet names. It apparently hadnt occurred to Jon either. “Angelos right,” Jon said. “You dont even call me by my name half the time. Whys Zach so special?”
Cole turned to Jon with wide-eyed mock innocence. “I dont know, love,” he said. “ Does it bother you ?”
It took Jon a second to digest that. At first I thought he was going to be angry, but then he sighed and shook his head in exasperation.
Jared was looking at Jon with obvious sympathy. “Youre either a saint or a glutton for punishment,” he said.
Jon laughed. “It does feel like a fine line sometimes.”
Cole didnt respond at all, but after everybody else had looked away, going back to their own meals and their own conversations, I saw him look over at Jon. He put his hand on Jons thigh. He looked up at Jon through his bangs and smiled.
Jon practically