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Izzy gets to live in this universe.
He shares a flat just outside of London with John Feeney, where they wake up with the sun and bicker like a married couple. Their cat— a ragdoll called ‘Calypso’, the spoiled thing —loves them (and the furniture) to pieces.
Frenchie swears the thing’s a demon, even as she sits purring in his lap.
Izzy gets to live in this universe. And he always gets his morning coffee for free.
Ever the stubborn man, he insists on paying each time.
“For family,” Roach says, shoving a pastry Izzy hadn’t ordered into a paper bag, “it’s on the house.”
Izzy gets to live in this universe. And if you ask him, he’s “getting too old for going out.” Still, Lucius always extends an invitation.
He and his husband, Pete, shout exaggerated hoots and hollers when Izzy walks through the door, a cane in one hand and a middle finger on the other.
Made pretty or not, he’s beloved by the local scene.
Izzy gets to live in this universe. And every so often Jim and their partners will stop by for dinner.
He spends the day cooking for six, Calypso offering little help from her perch on the counter. Sometimes he’s still in his apron— an old Christmas gift from Jim, with ‘World’s Best Mom’ printed on the front —when the front door swings open.
Jim and Archie pull him into a hug, as though it hadn’t been less than a week since they’d seen one another. Olu and Zheng follow close behind.
Izzy gets to live in this universe. And Ed apologizes, too.
Growth is never painless, and their fractured relationship was no different, but eventually they make it to the other side.
They still see each other in passing, Ed, Stede and Izzy, but with the shared knowledge that that chapter of their lives has come to a close. Ed and Stede are happy. They seem happy.
From a distance, Izzy’s happy for them, too.
Izzy gets to live in this universe. And live he certainly does.
Whether it’s Sunday mornings walking the neighborhood with Fang and his small army of dogs, or Friday nights reminiscing in the bed of Jack’s pickup, he lives.
And it’s funny, how easy it all comes to him these days.
It’s easier now, waking up every morning.
Easier now that he doesn’t have to strain his eyes to see he’s surrounded by family.