"I can see you're going to be a hands-on department chair, Tor," Dave says when we arrive at the institute Friday afternoon.
"Why?"
"I don't think Langford ever made more than about four trips down here in all his years as department head, and none after you guys took over."
"I thought it wouldn't hurt to check on the new guys and the grad assistant."
Dave grins. "Think I wouldn't let you know if things weren't going well?"
"Not at all."
"Believe me, Gary keeps them in line when they're out. He's already complained that Jervis thinks he's boss when they're out, so I had talk with Jervis. Things have gone fine ever since."
Tor laughs. "He'll learn. Gary doesn't put up with any shit on the boat."
"Making him captain was the best day's work I've done," Dave agrees. "Oh, he told me you're still competent, too."
"I try. We all had a grand time when he took us along on the trial run, the boys especially."
"Can we go again, Uncle Dave?" Andy asks.
"Maybe some time, but not this weekend. Gary has to get the boat ready to take the students out next week."
"Aw…"
"Sorry, guy, but did you know Tor's old skiff is still here? Johnny can put it in the water for you."
"I thought that thing was long gone. It's been three or four years since we used it." I say.
"I had Gary put it in the shed. It's still in good condition because I used it last spring to take a friend flounder gigging."
"Please, Tor." Andy begs.
"It's time you guys learned to handle a small boat and motor, so okay, but no going out without me or Drew."
"We promise," Sergei yells.
"Let's go find Johnny, then."
We seldom see Johnny, so I'm surprised at how husky he's grown when we find him helping Gary. He looks at me without speaking or changing his expression when I ask him to put the skiff in.
"He'll do it before we go home," Gary tells me. "Go get them new lines, Johnny."
"He pissed at me for something," I ask after Johnny's moved off.
Gary grins. "Naw, that's just Johnny. He never did have much to say, but now he don't hardly say nothin'. Ain't surprisin'; his wife don't never shut up."
I laugh. "That why you're not married?"
Gary laughs. "Guess so. Can't take all that yammerin'. 'Sides, workin' here and helpin' dad on weekends keeps me busy."
"Don't wait too long, Well, it's time to go find something to eat. Thank Johnny for us."
The next morning Tor tells Deke to leave his hook off and not wear it in the sand and salt water.
"Why?"
"Because it won't last six months if you do. If you don't believe me, I've got an old one at the house. It's beat up as hell, but I had to use it because of the type of work Drew and I were doing then. You don't, so there's no need for you to screw up a nice new hook."
We take the boys out in the skiff, Tor teaching them how to use it safely. Typical of an outboard, it stops dead as we're coming back in. Sergei who is steering at the time says "Shit!" I don't bother to correct him even though I should, because Tor said the same thing. When he realizes the oars aren't in the skiff, he says several other words kids that age shouldn't hear, but probably already know. Fortunately, the sound is shallow enough that given his height, Tor can jump over the side and push us in with no difficulty.
"Well, boys, see why we don't want you going out alone?" He says.
Andy splashes him. "Yeah. We might get wet."
Tor finally laughs. "Yeah."
He leaves a note on the motor asking Gary to take it to a repair shop and have it checked out completely. The rest of the weekend the boys are content on the beach, and we show Deke several places of interest. He's disbelieving of the duplicate of the Wright brothers' plane in the museum.
"They actually flew in something like this?" Deke asks.
"They had a strong wind to help, and it was just a few hundred feet," the park interpreter tells him.
In the museum shop, Deke asks me to help him pick out several books on North Carolina, because he says he will have North Carolina History in school. I find three that will be useful, and pick up a handful of pamphlets for him. He pays for them himself.
Since we're that far up the beach, we go back to the pier to eat. It's a total surprise when Deke picks up the check and lays a hundred-dollar bill on it. When we try to refuse, he says, "Dad told me to take you all out to eat while we were here. He'll be mad if I don't."
"That's very kind of him, but we didn't expect it," Tor says.
"I have a lot of fun being with you. I wish dad could spend more time with me like you do with Andy and Sergei."
"Only because it's summer and Drew and I have light loads at the U. It'll be different in the fall when we go into full sessions."
"But he only takes two weeks of vacation and goes to these dental conventions. They get some college guy to organize these weird things for guys my age to do, but I don't like that stuff and I don't know anybody."
"Your father has to keep up with the advances in dentistry, that's one of the problems with being a doctor."
"I guess, but I like being with Sergei and Andy, and you all do cool things together, like when we all came down here before."
"We're glad you enjoy being with us, but you must have some friends at home."
He shakes his head. "Not many since my accident. Kyle's cool about it, but he's about the only one."
"Give 'em a chance, Deke. They'll figure out you're the same guy as before, then your hook won't make any difference, just like it didn't with Jeff."
He looks forlorn. "I hope."
That night after we're in bed, Tor says "I'd thought Deke had accepted his loss pretty well, but apparently he hasn't."
"Could be just one of those days all teens have. You know how they're up and down emotionally."
I can feel Tor smiling in the darkness. "I had a few myself. I'm just glad Mike didn't have many of them."
"How could he? He stayed on the go, and when he was home he was practicing or doing things for us."
"Yeah. I never dreamed the poor abused kid we picked up that day would turn out so well."
"Any more than you figured I might when Vince brought me home?" I tease.
He hugs me tightly. "You could have been the village idiot for all I cared after I got you cleaned up. I fell in love with you right then."
I laugh softly. "You scared the hell out of me, because you looked like a giant to me then. When you hoisted me up by my jeans, I figured I was done for, for sure."
"You were, babe. I'd never have let you get away from me."
"I'm glad you didn't. You've given me the best years of my life."
"And you've given me mine." He kisses me hard. "I love you, Drew Torrence."
"Not a damn bit more than I love you, Greg Torrence."