Page 19 of Thrust Me Daddy

I lived with Uncle Peter and his girlfriend Clarissa for a couple of years in my teens and it was very much the case that we just butted heads for pretty much every single day over those two years.

It wasn’t that Uncle Peter was cruel or violent or anything like that, but he had such a stick up his ass. In the end, he decided that my rebellious ways were just too much for him and I ended up being passed on to another Uncle and Aunt across on the East Coast.

Since then, our contact has been sporadic emails and the occasional text at Thanksgiving or Christmas – and even those have dried up in recent years.

So to say I’m surprised to see his email is an understatement.

But before I can get too involved in my feelings, I know that I need to read what he has to say…

Dear Trent,

I hope life is treating you well. I’m emailing to say that my wife, Clarissa, died last month. I know that you and I never got on all that well – and we’re probably both responsible for that to some degree, although I take the most responsibility as I was the adult at the time – but I always remember you andClarissa having a great relationship. Now, as per Clarissa’s instructions, she didn’t want a funeral. But she did request that I arrange a gathering where friends and family could celebrate her life. It would have meant the world to Clarissa for you to be there, so it’s only right that I get in touch and make the invitation to you. Please see the attachment for the logistics. Best regards, Uncle Peter.

I can’t quite believe what I’m reading. Uncle Peter is right, me and Clarissa did always get on pretty well – and it was certainly a welcome break from the endless lectures that Peter would give me.

I suppose it’s good to read that Peter is showing a degree of regret for how mine and his relationship played out too. That takes a lot, and I respect him for it.

But…

The prospect of going to a family event really isn’t something that appeals to me. I spent my life not fitting in with any of them, and some harsh words were exchanged fairly regularly over the years.

I’m so happy in my life now that I don’t know what I would gain by going to an event that might bring back a lot of pain and bad memories from my childhood.

It doesn’t feel like the right thing for me to do.

But on the other hand, it makes no sense to flat out refuse right now in the heat of the moment.

Even though I know that the answer will almost certainly still be no, I think the best move for me is to let the invitation sit therefor a moment and then get back to Uncle Peter when I’m ready to make a clear, well-thought out decision.

‘Some coffee this turned out to be,’ I sigh, the enjoyment of my sea-salt extravaganza of a coffee disappearing into thin air.

I need something to cheer me up.

And it’s at times like these that there’s only one answer.

It’s time to grab my board, hit my favorite cove, and ride some gnarly waves.

‘You should have seen the waves,’ I say to Ranger as he hands me a cool beer. ‘Honestly, I might even be about to say the unsayable… I think Midnight Cove might be even better than Chase Cove right now.’

Ranger gasps and shakes his head.

‘Noooooope,’ Ranger says, holding his ground. ‘Chase Cove is the number one spot in Los Torros, and I won’t hear a single other word on the matter.’

‘We might have to agree to disagree on this one brother,’ I laugh, the pair of us toasting our beers.

We’re at an evening event atMorning Milk, the Little-friendly café that often runs fun party nights.

Reece is over in the corner giving his baby boy Xander some milk from a bottle and there are plenty of cute boys running and crawling around the play area in their onesies.

I haven’t spotted Mikey yet, but Xander mentioned that Mikey had said he was coming down once he was all showered and freshened up after work.

In the meantime, I think it’s way beyond due that I find out exactly what Ranger got up to with the barista fromDark Beans.

‘So… the barista boy,’ I say, a wicked smile on my face. ‘Are you going to spill the coffee beans or…’

‘Okay, first off: that’s a terrible pun,’ Ranger says. ‘And second… yes, I will spill the beans, but you might want to first turn around and check out the big bundle of baby boy that’s right behind you.’

With that, I turn and see a glorious sight.

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