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III.

City To City Again

The next day, Thursday, Cody and Andrew waited for Bligh on the balcony of their apartment, seated in the two plastic patio chairs they had bought together some months before.

The evening was very slowly setting in, the Sun's glorious performance earlier that day beset with the climactic applause that was the oncoming dusk, in the ebullient spectacle that marks nearly all sunsets in Tampa Bay – fantastic hues of the first part of the rainbow mixed in with the crawling slate of the clouds.

Andrew was nervous, unable to hide it even in front of Cody – he would check his phone compulsively, reading over the texts Bligh had sent as he made the sojourn south from Tempest, trying to estimate in his head how much longer it would take.

"What's taking him?" Andrew murmured. "He said he was coming through Lakeland, that can't be…"

He did not finish the sentence, as Cody reached from his chair to put their hands together – he gave it a quick squeeze, before returning to the vigil of studying the parking lot for signs of that once-familiar blue pickup truck.

"I like that shirt," Cody said, trying to change the subject. "Where did you get it, again?"

"Burdines – it's Ralph Lauren, but I got it on sale."

"Ralph Lauren's the one with the guy on the horse, right?"

"Right."

"That's expensive, I remember that."

Andrew chuckled. "That's why I got it on sale."

"But you don't hafta worry about saving money!"

Andrew rolled his eyes gamely. "I'm not gonna blow it all, Baby, c'mon."

Cody giggled, apparently satisfied with his tease.

Back Andrew went to his phone – still no text from Bligh – so to ease his nerves he opened the Web browser on his phone to idly check the day's headlines.

Something caught his attention immediately.

"Holy shit…"

"What?"

Andrew held the phone up for Cody to see – Cody squinted to read what was on the screen.

"Apparent bear attack leaves nine dead at Slayton Work Camp, Mount Olive Correctional Complex," he read aloud, before shrinking back into his chair, horrified. "What the heck?!"

"That's what I said," Andrew affirmed. "The black bear is the state mammal of West Virginia, and they're usually – um, they don't like being around people."

"Yeah, we have black bears down here," said Cody. "When I was a kid I saw one – but it ran away."

"They usually do, unless it's a sow separated from her cubs…" He paused, thinking. "I did – lab work on rabies for Tampa General last Fall, USF had a joint thing with them—"

"I remember that."

Andrew looked away, a strange, cold feeling slithering through him. "It's – a terrible way to die. Its name is Latin for madness – you die crazy, basically…" He sighed. "Anyway – rabid bears are extremely, extremely rare, but they're mammals, so it happens."

"Bears are scary by themselves," said Cody, fidgeting. "But one that's – rabid?"

"Oh yeah," Andrew agreed. "Mount Olive, though – that's where Ricky Jack is…"

Cody cocked his head. "Who?"

"Ricky Jack," Andrew said. "Bligh's cousin."

"Wait, isn't he the one who's in jail?"

Andrew looked at him, surprised. "Did I tell you that?"

"You mentioned it once."

"Huh," Andrew answered, closing the news story's tab on his browser with his thumb. "But yeah he's in jail – there."

"Yeah, okay, makes sense. But do you think he's alright?"

Andrew shrugged. "Bligh didn't say anything, so, yeah, probably."

"What's he in jail for?"

"Uh, armed robbery," Andrew said, leaning toward his boyfriend with a knowing smile. "He was always up to some bullcrap – always getting in fights – yanno, he hated me, really hated me, growing up – he visited Bligh a lot up until we were about – uh – thirteen? Maybe? He used to – uh—" He paused. "Well, shit, I guess the only word is terrorize – he used to terrorize Stephen – pull all these mean tricks on him…" He smiled, a little wry. "You can imagine what my Pa did when he found that out…"

"Oh my gosh," Cody said.

"You know Stephen isn't scared of anything?"

"You've said that before."

"Because it was true—" Andrew shook his head slowly to put a final stamp of approval on the idea. "No fear in that kid at all. But bring up Ricky Jack and he'd just freeze."

"Really?!"

"Oh yep."

"That's nuts! Why the heck did he hate you two so much?"

"Well, he—"

Andrew stopped as a familiar discomfort overtook him, the memories distant and yet fresh…there was Ricky Jack's long, Celtic-looking face, framed with his auburn shoulder-length hair that shimmered in the Sun, and a chinstrap beard to match – evidently growing a moustache was impossible to the Lynch men.

He had bright, virescent eyes that resembled Bligh's, but instead of the cold blue they were a terrible prismatic green, and they zeroed in on Andrew, on Stephen, like a falcon, targeted and predatory, always crackling with grim tenacity, mercilessness, the utter inability to be reasoned with.

He remembered, and then he was comforted by knowing that first, he was in jail – and second, he, Andrew was in Florida, far away, off his radar, safe.

"Whoa," he muttered, having to shake his head to literally shake out the discomfort the memories caused. "Uh – he – yanno I don't know why? But he did, a lot." He frowned. "He used to bully me, like, I remember we had to pick apples from Pappy's little orchard, right? And he just starts throwing apples at me—"

"What the heck?"

"Right? And think about it, apples are hard, and these were big—" Andrew held up his hands, as though he could summon an apple from memory and have it materialize in his fingers. "Big apples – those sons of bitches hurt."

"Oh, wow," Cody offered.

"Yeah – yeah. Pappy came down on him hard because Bligh hated seeing me like that…"

"Wow, good for Bligh!"

Andrew smiled. "Yeah – good for him…"

A moment of silence passed before Cody broke it:

"So…Bligh lives with his grandpa?"

Andrew nodded, sighing, trying to decompress. "Yeah. His parents died when he was really little – so Pappy raised him by himself – he…" He sighed, again, longer this time. "He's a Hell of a man." The phrasing betrayed his upbringing as he gave the old-timer perhaps the highest compliment his home region could afford. "He did everything for Bligh – and me, too – taught us how to shoot, how to fix a car…" He smiled, his gaze suddenly distant at the memory. "He was more of a dad than my dad ever was…"

"You know how to shoot?!"

Andrew's eyes snapped back to the present as he turned to Cody with a bemused smile. "What, that surprise you?"

"Ah, kinda."

The smile grew bigger. "Why? It's West Virginia—"

"Yeah, I know." Cody shrugged. "I guess we kinda had that in common, the way I grew up out there, everybody had a gun and everybody could hunt…" A flash of sadness marred his face. "Like – Aaron—"

"Oh – him – the one who went missing—"

"Yeah."

Andrew frowned, squeezing Cody's hand for reassurance."I'm sorry, Baby…"

"It's okay," Cody murmured. "Just – so weird – he was the best hunter I knew, it wouldn't be like him to…" He shook his head, not wanting to complete the thought, but now his eyes turned assertive. "I wish – I wish I'd gotten back in touch with him after I moved in with you…" His head came down to the patio floor. "That's kinda why I wanted you to see Bligh, same reason."

Andrew nodded, slowly. "Because if I never had the chance…" He sniffed. "That's really deep, Cody. I appreciate that."

"You get it, right?"

He stole a kiss, and Andrew gave him a small smile back. They let a small length of silence lapse before Andrew continued: "That – actually reminds me of something Pappy used to be say about being careful going into the wilderness, yanno – um…"

He felt Cody's eyes upon him, waiting for whatever mountain wisdom it was but – to Andrew's immediate dismay, he couldn't remember it.

"Uh…dammit…"

"Can't remember?" Cody said with a small giggle.

Andrew shook his head slowly. "Not – no, not the way he put it…" He shook his head again, quicker this time. "I'll ask Bligh. But basically – yeah, be careful in the woods, pretty much." Knowing he'd breached a sensitive topic about Cody's friend, he moved on quickly: "Yanno – though – I'd take Bligh with me if I ever went hunting."

"Oh yeah?"

"Dude, totally. Bligh can shoot way better than me. Always could…"

"I could see that."

"But…" Andrew frowned. "Last I heard Pappy wasn't doing too well. He's old, Cody – real old. Hard to believe that someone like him could ever pass on…" He looked down at the balcony's floor as the full weight of what he had said took effect.

He coughed abruptly, adjusting in his seat – Cody said nothing, but looked at him sympathetically.

"I hope he's okay," Cody offered.

"Me too, me too…" He paused, thoughtful, recalling his dream from the night before. "You've – you've never seen Fall, have you? Like, yanno, red and orange leaves and all that?"

Cody shrugged. "Ah…sort of? Once when I was little and my mom was still around we went to ah, Spartanburg I think it's called—"

"Carolina?"

"Yeah, South Carolina, that's where her family's from, and there was all the uh, whattya call it? Foliage – it was really pretty from what I remember."

"But you've never seen whole forests and mountains like that."

Cody shook his head. "Nah. Well—" He tilted his head to correct himself. "Forests, yeah, my family's house was near one. But –why? Are we going somewhere for Fall?"

Andrew chuckled. "I dunno, maybe. I had a dream last night I was back in Tempest – well, um, the area outside of it. And it's pretty weird because – usually when I have dreams, they're pretty, um, literal, like something is happening in them that's pretty believable, yanno? And – anyway, I haven't seen what it looks like in the Fall for – it feels like a long time…anyway, yeah. It was a really vivid dream."

"Wow," Cody said. "That's pretty cool…" A thought seemed to occur to him. "Well, maybe not – kinda scary if you usually dream like it's real though."

Andrew nodded. "Yeah. It used to really bother me when I was younger…" He chuckled softly to himself. "I used to talk to Bligh about them, actually…" He glanced to Cody with a raised eyebrow. "Haven't I ever told you that? About the super-real dreams?"

"Nope. You usually don't talk about your dreams at all."

"I don't?"

Cody shook his head. "The real ones, I mean." He smiled. "Not – grad school and stuff."

Andrew smiled back. "Right."

"And I usually don't have dreams."

"Well I knew that—" Andrew sniffed. "I always did find that weird."

"I'm just a weird guy," Cody with a playful smile.

Andrew rolled his eyes. "No – hush." Cody giggled. "Anyway – yeah, last night, um – I saw – well I guess I heard my dad…" He stopped, his tongue feeling along the back of his front teeth as his gaze grew distant at the memory.

Cody frowned as he saw Andrew so wistful. "You…you did?"

Andrew nodded, slowly. "My dad was standing in this field and waving goodbye to the geese as they flew south for the Winter. And he was saying, Goodbye! Goodbye geese! ­­– he always did that. I think he got it from a book…" He sighed heavily. "I miss him."

"Your dad?"

A sour look appeared on Andrew's face. "Not – I don't—"

The complications of the past choked out the words in the present, and all Andrew could do was fidget uncomfortably in his chair.

"Andy," Cody broke in gently. "I'm sorry – I – I miss mine too, sometimes…"

"I know, I – I know…" He paused, wondering if he should check his phone again. "I wonder if Bligh ever comes by the house, or if Stephen just goes over to Pappy's…"

"They hang out?"

"Yeah – my brother and Bligh do."

"Huh," said Cody. "So – I never asked you this because it might've been too weird, but—"

"Asked me what?"

"Did you ever have a crush on him?"

"Who?"

"Bligh."

Andrew studied Cody's face as he hesitated before answering. "Well – well, yeah, I did. He, actually, um – he was my first crush, and, um, we were never apart for – wait, no, we were never apart—"

"Aww."

"Stop," said Andrew, suddenly embarrassed but smiling anyway.

Cody giggled. "No, it's okay! Everybody has straight-guy crushes – I did." His face softened. "Aaron – I guess."

Andrew let a respectful length pass. "It's weird, ain't it? But – nothing I can do – he's straight, so…there you go. We're just friends – best friends."

"Which is still good!"

Andrew smiled. "Yeah – he was always sticking up for me – yanno – I got picked on a lot at school because I was the rich kid…pretty sure I've told you that."

"Well, once or twice."

"Even when I was on the football team I got shit for having money…people'll find anything to hold against you, I guess."

"Mmmhmm."

"But he—" Andrew sat up in the chair to get more comfortable. "—he was always sticking up for me even then. Thanks to him everybody left me alone…" His eyes turned distant for a moment as he thought it over. "I do – I owe him a lot…"

"Then I'm glad to meet him!"

Andrew returned to the present, nodding with a soft smile. "Yeah. I hope he likes Florida. Tempest's kinda shitty, maybe he'd wanna move down here."

"From what you've said it's gotta be – you've always acted real glad to be away from there."

Andrew smiled at him. "Well if I hadn't, I wouldn't have met you…"

Cody beamed, warm as the Florida Sun.

Only seconds after he finished, a well-kept Ford Ranger turned the corner to growl into their apartment's parking lot.

"That's him…" Andrew said.

His chest swelled with an excitement twisted by the familiar dread of the threshold crossed – he took a deep breath, shooting Cody one last look of resignation.

"You can do this," Cody said in a low voice.

Andrew smiled at him, nodding. "Yeah."

Out he came from the balcony, shooting through the apartment and dashing down the stairs, Cody right behind him.

"Heeey!" he called out, with a big wave to get the vehicle's attention.

He came out to the parking lot, but he couldn't see Bligh in the truck – when it parked, there was a fumbling in the front seat, and in the aching space of impatience Andrew held his breath.

He heard the door slam shut, and the crunch of footsteps, boot on asphalt.

And then there he was: lean, wiry, black-haired, slightly taller than Andrew, that strange half-smile, a smirk, crossing his face from one end of his thick chinstrap beard to the other.

"Well if it ain't Richie Rich," Bligh greeted him.

Andrew's face burst into a smile. "Wolfman!" He exclaimed back. "You son of a whore!"

Bligh gave one of his peculiar high-pitched laughs, a cackle, thrusting out his hand to have Andrew shake it.

"I'm here, man. I made it,"

Andrew banished his hesitations as he stepped forward – he second-guessed himself about hugging him, taking Bligh's extended hand. Bligh clasped it tightly – Andrew tried not to show how taken aback he was at Bligh's strong grip. He held onto Bligh's hand until he felt his friend give way.

"Look like I changed any?" Bligh said to Andrew.

Bligh had indeed changed – he looked older, rougher, than last Andrew had seen him.

He was ruggedly handsome, even his most casual gestures full of masculine confidence and assertive action – he was thin, scrawny, but still toned, so like a greyhound all his power was bound in taut, sinewy muscles. A little taller than Andrew, his eyes always had a strange color to them, an intense icy-blue that speared everything they saw – they would behold something in their vision entirely, so that they really did give the appearance of seeing everything.

For many years Bligh had been growing into his grandfather, whose peculiar eye color he shared, so that now, with his effortless poise, it was though he was seeing Pappy Lynch in his younger days, a picture of generational reincarnation…Bligh was, and would always be, very much his grandfather's child.

The chinstrap beard he had grown, without a moustache, was dense, coal-black, like his long, messily layered feather-like hair – which, spilling out from under a dirty Baltimore Ravens cap that Andrew recognized from high school, totally hid his ears. A blue flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up, from which strands of sable chest-hair spilled forth, and well-worn jeans completed the look of a handy, self-reliant blue-collar boy.

"You look good," Andrew finally said – if nothing else simply overwhelmed that his long-lost best friend now stood before him after both miles and years. "But – now hey, aren't you hot though, in those jeans? It's Florida!"

Bligh shrugged, and smirked again. "Ain't no thang, man, shit I ain't changed since Tempest – straight shot."

"Traffic alright?"

Bligh shut his eyes and stretched. "Ain't drivin no I-95 again, that's fer damn sure – shit."

"Yeah, 95's murder…"

"But I'm here now, man." He smirked. "Can't even believe it."

Andrew swallowed back a sudden, powerful surge of emotion. "Shit – neither can I, dude. Neither can I."

Cody came from behind Andrew. "Hey – Bligh? I'm Cody!" He, too, shot out his hand. "I've heard a lot about you – glad we can finally meet." He smiled. "Welcome to Florida!"

Bligh looked down at him, seeming to study him before looking up to Andrew.

"So this be the Pup?" he asked, motioning with his head.

Andrew cleared his throat, suddenly awkward – he watched Cody's face blush with what looked like confused embarrassment…he retreated his outstretched hand into his arms, folded at his chest.

"W-well actually my name's Cody."

He was trying to recover – Andrew fleetingly worried Cody was trying to keep on being polite in the face of Bligh's rudeness only for Andrew's sake.

"Yeah," Andrew said. "That's my boyfriend, Cody."

Bligh eyed him again – Cody was offguard.

"Right! And um, well, actually, my mom gave me that name, see Andy probably told you, my real name is—"

Now Bligh nodded at Cody, acknowledging him no further, moving his head back to Andrew.

"Reckon we oughta – go someplace n'catch up?"

Andrew let out a hesitant cluster of words: "Y-yeah – uh – well, uh, actually, well do you want to come in? You must've been on the road—"

"I'll be honest with ya man, I'm feelin kinda rough," Bligh interrupted. "Can we grab a beer?"

Andrew lowered his head, his voice with it: "Bligh – you know – I don't really drink—"

"Oh shit, sorry, my bad." Bligh shrugged. "Well aight then, we can jest chill somewhere."

"Um…" Andrew considered it. "Sure, yeah okay! You and me and Cody can go someplace, probably get a bite to eat while—"

He stopped as he saw Bligh glanced away to the ground, and face draw into something grim.

"Drew, man – I – uh, I gotta tell ya, I kinda really need it ta jest be us. I mean I know I jest got here but there's some stuff we gotta talk bout – yanno, Tempest stuff."

"Just – just us? You and me?"

Bligh nodded. "Yessir."

"W-well, I – I dunno…" Andrew frowned deeply in thought, turning to look back at Cody. "Is – is that cool with you, Baby?"

Cody, who had watched the conversation in increasing discomfort, now shrugged, failing to hide his indifference. "I…I guess."

Andrew gave him a hearty hug. "Hey…it's okay, me and him just gotta lotta things to discuss. You wouldn't have fun with all the inside jokes, anyway." He looked into Cody's eyes in affirmation. "Okay?"

Cody nodded slowly. "Okay…just feel left out is all…"

Andrew smiled reassuringly. "Don't. Like I said, you won't know half the stuff we'd be talking about. Besides, we'll be back before ya know it."

His boyfriend smiled back reluctantly and nodded back. "Alright – if you say so. I'll just chill here."

Andrew kissed his forehead. "Good. I love you."

"Love you too…"

Bligh, who had taken out a cigarette from the shirt pocket of his flannel, nodded at him, a little unsubtly, as he turned to leave.

"See ya soon," he muttered, cigarette in the corner of his mouth.

Cody nodded back, no longer willing to hide his discomfort. "Uh, yeah. See ya soon."

Andrew jerked his head askance at Bligh as Cody made his way to the apartment. "What the heck was that? See ya soon?"

Bligh made a slight headshake, as though dismissing it. "Nuthin."

"Bligh—" Andrew sighed. "Dude, are you okay?" A thought occurred to him. "Did the drive take it outta you?"

Bligh's lips closed around the cigarette, still unlit, with a shrug. "Sumthin like that." He smirked. "I'm just – can't believe I'm seein y'again, man." The smirk replaced by a twinge. "It's been – too long—"

Andrew nodded tactfully, still unsure how to navigate this. "Y-yeah, it—" He sighed, summoning some confidence he wasn't sure he had. "But hey, listen, if you want it to be just us, then it'll be just us! Let's go down to the beach, I'll put some gas in your car – that cool?"

"Sure thing. I'm sick o' drivin – ye can drive me round …"

His icy eyes drifted from Andrew to somewhere above him, and as Andrew turned around he saw that Cody had come inside the apartment, shutting the door. And then – as though satisfied he was finally gone – he threw out his arms and pulled Andrew into a tremendous, crushing bear hug.

Andrew was startled at first, but he quickly returned the embrace.

"God dammit I missed ye, Drew," Bligh whispered wetly. "I missed ye so fuckin much."

Andrew felt his heart melt, and gave a hearty laugh to hold back the happy tears. "Aww, Bligh – I missed you, too. I'm so glad – so glad you're here."