Chapter 3
Dakota
I spent the morning making calls to see where our things were. They were supposed to arrive early, but nothing about this move has happened the way it was supposed to. I was told the truck was still several hours away and would hopefully arrive in the evening. I called the cable company to get cable turned on for the next day, and I switched the power and water over to my name. The guesthouse was technically my father’s, but I was going to make monthly rent payments from what I earned as the new accountant. Dad had insisted that he pay me, so I compromised with a reduced rent. I know if I let him have things his way, I’d be living in the big house and following his rules like I was sixteen again.
I helped Mom clean up from breakfast, and then I got the water truck ready. It was a sweltering ninety-eight degrees today with high humidity. It felt like being wrapped in a hot, wet blanket when you went outdoors. I did not miss this heat one bit. I never really noticed how bad it was until I moved away to a cooler climate. “I’ll be back in a little bit. Gonna take water to the guys,” I called over my shoulder as I slipped on some boots and made my way down to the barn. The water truck was an old Ford pick-up that had been modified to hold a giant tank on the back. We didn’t fill it until we were ready to deliver the water so it would stay cold. I placed the water hose inside and turned it on. While the tank filled, I wandered around the barn. Not much had changed over the years. The office was still a cluttered mess, and tack hung on the far wall past the stables.
The horses stayed out in the fields in the summer, grazing. We only used the barn for birthing in the summer, otherwise it was used to store things like the water truck. Once cold weather moved in, the horses would too.
When the tank was finally filled, I climbed in and cranked the engine. I rolled down the windows since the AC didn’t work and attempted to turn the radio to something resembling music. The clutch stuck on this beast, so it jerked as I put it in gear and started to roll out of the barn. I bounced all the way down to the south field. I could hear the water sloshing in the back. When I crested the hill, I could see them in the distance. The tractor was inching along, two men were stacking bales on the trailer while the rest of the crew walked along tossing them up on the trailer. They were all glistening with sweat, their skin tanned from days in the sun. I paused for a moment to watch. I couldn’t help it. When I was younger, I’d come out here and stare at Hank. Watching his arms flex as he’d toss bales turned me on. When he’d finish for the day, I’d meet him on the edge of the woods, and we’d make out.
I shook myself out of the daydream and drove down to meet them. When Jeff saw me, he stopped the tractor and signaled for the guys to take a break. “Water time!” he yelled as he climbed down and came over behind me.
“Thought you guys might be a little warm.” I smiled as I pulled a sleeve of cups out of the cab. One by one, the guys filled cups of water and tossed them back, then Hank came over.
“Thanks,” He smiled softly. “You might want to back up a little,” He motioned to the spout on the tank. When I stepped back, he leaned forward, opened the spout and stuck his head underneath, letting water spill out over his head and neck. He released the spout, backed up, and flung his head back, sending water droplets flying through the air. “Much better.” He grinned as he helped himself to another cupful.
I don’t know how they did it. It was so hot out, and most of the guys were in jeans, a few even had on long sleeves. They stood around for a few minutes gulping down more water before Jeff signaled that it was time to get back to work. Some of the younger ones groaned, but the guys who had been doing this for years knew that when it was time to put up hay, they were grueling hours. You worked until it was finished because rain could ruin it all.
“Boss man will have my head if that storm that’s comin’ in gets here ‘for we’re done.” Jeff climbed back on the tractor.
“Get ‘er done, boys!” Hank hollered. A few grunts and groans filtered through the air, but they moved along. “Thanks for the water, Codie.” Hank tipped his hat like a true gentleman.
“You’re welcome.” I waved before climbing back in. I bounced my way back to the barn, daydreaming along the way about how things used to be. My face heated as visions of Hank fluttered through my mind. We were older now, supposed to be more mature, but I felt like a school girl.
*****
Hank
This was hard, harder than I ever thought it would be. She looked the same. Her blonde hair was tied back in a braid hanging down her back, a few wispy pieces loose by her face. She’d pulled a ball cap onto her head, partially shielding her eyes, but I knew the brown orbs hidden in the shadows would be smiling. A few more crinkles were visible along the sides due to the thirteen years that had passed, but still smiling as always.
When we were kids, she’d meet me after work, and we’d work ourselves into a frenzy before supper, but now, I just wanted to hug her. I wanted to tell her I was sorry to hear that her husband was gone. I wanted to ask if there was anything I could do to make things easier. I wanted to see if deep down we could be friends. I just wasn’t sure how to do this.
I watched her stand there awkwardly, watching as we all cooled ourselves with the water she’d brought down. I wondered what she was thinking when she climbed out of the truck. Was she bombarded with memories like I was?
“Let’s go, boys!” Jeff waved his arm to signal that break time was over. A few groans sounded, but I knew the sooner we got back to work, the sooner we’d finish. Stacking hay was my least favorite chore on the farm, mostly because it needed to be done during the hottest part of summer, but it also brought some of the best memories.
“Quit your bitchin’,” Andy called as he slipped his hat back on. We can cool off in the creek when we finish. Andy’s been here almost as long as I have. He understands what this life is like, whereas some of the younger ones are still learning what the expectations are and the difficulty in completing them.
Those of us who were walking in the field switched with those who were stacking. We finished the south field by late afternoon, and when we made our way back up to the big house, I was exhausted. Codie’s son was out in the yard tossing a baseball in the air and catching it. He paused and stared as we all hopped off the hay trailer. “Hey, little man,” Jeff called.
“I ain’t little. I’m ten.” He frowned.
“Ten is practically grown,” I scolded Jeff with a grin on my face.
“My mistake.” He laughed. “Where is everyone?”
“Mom is helping Grandma cook dinner. I didn’t want to do that, being a girlie job and all.” He scrunched his nose as if cooking was the worst thing in the world.
I couldn’t help it. I started laughing. “We’re going swimming at the creek. Wanna come with us?”
“I gotta ask my mom.” He stood there as if he was thinking about it, and then turned to run inside. “Mooommm!” I heard his voice trail off as the screen door slammed. I watched through the window as he animatedly talked to her. She was frowning, but he kept pushing. Then he smiled, hugged her around the middle and came rushing back out. “She said yes, but I have to be back for supper.” He grinned proudly.
“We’ll be back by then. We want to eat, too.” I was confused. I wondered if she just didn’t know what to say, or thought we’d stay late for some unknown reason. I mean, she knew me. She knew she could trust me. It was then that I looked up to see her coming outside. She had a towel in her hands and was wiping them as she stepped outside.
“Can I talk to you?” She refused to look me in the eyes as she moved closer to the group. “Alone?” A few of the guys made noises as Johney knocked against my shoulder.
“Sure.” I stepped away from the group a few feet. “If you’re going to take him, you have to watch him closely,” she warned. Her voice was almost a whisper, and all happiness from earlier today had disappeared. “I mean it.”
“Codie, it’s me you’re talking to.”
“Hank, he can’t swim.” She crossed her arms across her chest. “You have to watch him.” The look on her face said that part of her really thought I’d let something happen. “He’s all I have left of Alex.”
Those words right there were like a knife to the heart. I knew she loved him. I knew that she was still grieving but hearing her actually voice that loss was the hardest thing I’d heard, probably ever.
Her lip quivered and then she pushed it away. Her face went blank again as she wrung her hands in front of her.
“I’ll watch him as if he were mine.” I squeezed her elbow. She nodded, then turned to go back inside.
When she opened the screen door, she turned to look at Jack, narrowed her eyes like all mothers do when they mean business, and then ordered him to listen to me. Jack grinned as he agreed, and then fist- pumped.
“Let me grab some towels and then we’ll start the walk.” I lumbered toward the bunkhouse. I was tired, but a cool soak in the creek was so refreshing after days like this. One by one, we all grabbed a towel, except Jeff. He never came swimming. I sometimes wondered if he just wanted a quiet place to relax after a long day.
*****
The walk to the creek only took a few minutes. It ran along the east side of the farm and wrapped around a few fields before going under a bridge and onto the next farm. Jack walked along beside me chattering away about baseball, and how he had to leave his team when they moved. He claimed he wasn’t sad, but I could hear it in his voice. He missed home, but he loved his mom more and was trying to give farm life a go. “How deep is it?” He swallowed when the cool water came into view.
“It depends on where you get in. It’s about knee deep right here, but over under those branches, it’s deep. We have a rope up there, and we swing out over the water.”
“I don’t think I can do that.” Jack swallowed again. I could feel the nerves radiating off him.
“How about we start here, and by the end of the summer I’ll have you going after that swing?” I ripped my shirt off over my head and tossed it on a nearby bush.
“I guess.” Jack shrugged.
I squatted down so we were eye level. “Your mom told me you don’t know how to swim. It’s cool. I can teach you.” I patted his shoulder.
“I don’t think you can. My dad tried. My mom tried. They even got me lessons. I panic when it’s deep.” He stared out at the creek.
“I promise that by the end of the summer, I’ll have you swimming.” I held my hand out to shake.
He stared at it for a minute before grabbing it. “Ok.”
“Now, let’s cool off. It’s hot.” I shoved my jeans down, and rushed into the water in my boxers. As I flopped down and let the water envelop me, I sighed in relief. It felt heavenly, and I could have stayed there all day. “You coming?” I motioned to Jack as the other hands all took turns wading into the water. Jack stripped out of his clothes and rushed in, squealing in the process. When he reached me, he was smiling.
“This isn’t so bad.” He grinned as water sloshed around his waist. “Are there fish in here?”
“Probably, but they are more afraid of you than you are of them. They won’t bother you.” I laughed as I flopped back again, submerging my head in the process. “Don’t you want to get the rest of you wet?” I splashed a little in his direction.
“No.” Jack backed up slightly. “I told you, I don’t like it when it’s deep.”
“It’s not deep.” I stood up, water trailing down my body as I shook my hair. “Come here.” I motioned and he moved closer. “We’ll do it together.” I held my hand out and he took it. “Ready? One, two, three.” I sat down and he did too, letting the water come up to his neck. His eyes widened and then he relaxed. “Doesn’t it feel good?” I coaxed. He nodded and then pressed his lips together as if he were working up the courage for more. I felt him squeeze my hand harder and then he did it. He dunked his head under for a few seconds. When he came back to the surface, he had a giant grin on his face.
“I did it! Did you see that? I did it!” His lifted our joined hands. “Don’t tell Mom. I want to surprise her,” he begged.
“How about we keep working on swimming, and then surprise her?” I laughed. I didn’t want to keep things from Codie, but I thought this would probably be ok.
“Yeah. I want to show her the swing.” He kinda bounced in the water before dunking his head under. At the time I didn’t realize what a big deal this was, but seeing the excitement on his face told me this was huge.
“You think we can come here tomorrow?” He glanced up at me as we toweled off.
“If we finish early enough and your mom says it’s ok, then yeah. We can come back.” I ruffled his hair. I’d bring him every day if he smiled like this. It felt good knowing I could provide some carefree fun in his life. He’d lost his dad, and if I could give him a little of that back, then I would.