Page 6 of Hometown Harbor 4
“I’m on my way, but you owe me one for sure,” Kylen joked.
It sounded like Deenie’s father wanted to help, too, but Kylen urged him to stay behind. Greg came to the edge of the stairs to say hello.
“You must be Dalton, the man my little girl can’t stop talking about,” Greg called down.
“That’s me, sir, and it’s a little awkward meeting you like this. I’ll shake your hand when I get up there,” Dalton said.
“I’ll hold you to that. Do you want a burger, a veggie kebab, or a hotdog? Don't say you're not hungry since that won't help with your first impression," Greg said jokingly.
“One of each, please,” Dalton said. “Provided your nephew can figure a way to get me up there.”
Deenie was laughing as she watched them try to figure out how best to carry Dalton up the stairs. Kylen finally grabbed Dalton and lifted him over his shoulder. It looked a lot like a firefighter carry, and both of them were laughing. Deenie couldn’t help but take a few pics for posterity. They might be good to use as blackmail at a later date.
Dalton carried through on his promise and shook hands with Greg. He had nothing to be worried about because Greg’s life wasn’t something to brag about in recent years. He knew what it was like to be judged. Deenie realized he would be liked by her father because he was clean-cut, had a job, and was college-bound.
“Why Florida State?” Greg asked Dalton. “Not that there’s anything wrong with that. It was one of the schools I looked at.”
"It's in the state, which makes tuition somewhat more affordable, and it’s big enough for me. I have no idea what I want to do with the rest of my life, so I don’t want a school that’s too specialized,” Dalton said.
Greg laughed. “Not a lot of eighteen-year-olds know what direction they want to go. Most lie, so I appreciate your honesty. I went to North Carolina with my eye on the law, which wasn’t true. I wanted to meet women and drink beer, which I did.”
“Dad, don’t forget I’m here. Don’t say gross stuff,” Deenie said.
“I wasn’t married, and all young men have that in mind when they go away to school,” Greg said. “I figured it out, and it didn’t take four years. I met an aerospace engineer, and my life changed. I would never have met him if I wasn’t on campus, so it’s not bad to go to college with your options open. The girls are not definitely a bonus, though.” He laughed.
“Not for Dalton, right?” she nudged her boyfriend.
“No, babe. I only have eyes for you. I’m going to be so busy calling you often that I won’t have time for anyone else.”
Greg sighed heavily, and it seemed like he was about to give a lecture about long-distance and young love. That was something Deenie knew both of her parents were thinking about, but she didn’t want to hear. It was clear she and Dalton would be facing long odds, but they wanted to give it a shot.
She touched her father’s arm. “Today is about meeting Dalton and not about discouraging our plans. We’re just stupid young kids, but let us make our own mistakes and learn from them.”
“That was well said, sweetie,” Greg said. “You’re young, but I never said stupid.”
“I know. I knew either you or Mom were going to press me on that issue, so I prepared what I was going to say. I love you, and so much valuable advice has come my way that I’d be lost without. Dalton and I are grounded in reality, and we know tears will be shed at some point. If there’s a shot that we can make it, though, we’re going to try.”
“Wow, when did you grow up?” April asked as she wandered out onto the deck. She hugged her brother as if they had never been estranged.
Deenie felt warm inside seeing her dad and his sister getting along. Her family was small, and they couldn’t afford to be fractured. Kylen thought of Greg as a father figure, so their quarrel affected him the most. Deenie talked to Kylen a lot about what it was like not to have a father, and while there were definite drawbacks, it was good he wasn’t around. Knowing that he hurt his mother made it so he never wanted to find the guy. Things might change when he got older, but he couldn’t imagine not wanting to hit the guy.
Deenie chatted with April and Kylen while Dalton got to know her father. They were laughing and smiling, which was a positive sign.
“You are revered in Dalton’s house. If you hadn’t called Dr. Santorini, he would have lost his leg, and then we’d be in a much different. Keeping Dalton’s spirits up is hard and would have been doubly so if he had lost a limb. At least he has hope for the future, and I don’t think a limp will ruin his life.”
"We were lucky, and I also hear he's refusing painkillers. I wouldn’t recommend that to just anyone, but he is strong enough to do it,” April said. “Dr. Santorini is the real hero. He's a microsurgeon and an orthopedic specialist. Bones are not the problem in a case like Dalton’s. It’s reconnecting the veins and vessels. You have to get blood back to the limb to save it.”
“You did it again,” Kylen said. “You gave us way more information than we needed to know.”
“I miss work, which I thought I’d never hear myself say. Vacation is necessary, and I think it will make me a better doctor when all is said and done.”
“It doesn’t work the same way with school because I don’t see myself becoming a better student anytime soon,” Deenie said.
“Senior year will be fun for the both of you. Enjoy it because then you enter the realm of adulthood with responsibilities. Seriously, be careful what you wish for."
Deenie and Dalton left the same way they came when it was time to go. He couldn’t stay long because he had limits. Dalton had far surpassed them already, and it was past time to elevate his leg and pop a few Tylenol.
He and Deenie’s father embraced before he left, and things couldn’t have gone better.