Shoe Strings

a scholarship had taken some of the fun out of playing.  
    It had meant so much to Cal and Ellie to see Jesse
excel.   He’d wanted to please
them.   Hell, he mused, pleasing them
was half the reason he and Kerri Ann continued to date into his senior
year.   They’d both grown apart, were
growing up enough to want to experience something else, someone outside their
comfort zone.   Ty changed all that,
for everyone.
    “Hey, Dad.”   Ty
hopped into the Scout and buckled his seat belt.   “Sorry about that.”   He motioned with his head to where the
girls, all three of them, watched the jeep pull away from the curb.
    Jesse laughed.   “Don’t be sorry, son.    Even a mutt like you can get a little attention every now and
again.”   He reached over and mussed
the thick brown hair on Ty’s head.   The ends were touched with gold, both from the sun and his mother’s Nordic
genes.   “Good day at school?”
    “As good as any day at school can be.”   Ty tossed his bulging backpack toward
the rear and stretched out his considerable legs.   “We going home or to the shop?”
    “Up to you.   I’ve
got a few things to do around the shop if you don’t mind.”   Jesse maneuvered the roads and adjusted
the volume of his voice over the rushing of the wind.   “Ought to be a nice night.   We could float some, maybe throw a line
or two in the water?”
    The quick smile that lit Ty’s face told Jesse they’d be on
the water within the hour.   It meant
something to Jesse for Ty to share and appreciate one of his most important
pastimes.   He and Cal had always had
sports and, in Jesse’s absence, he’d found Cal sharing that love with Ty.   Maybe that’s why Jesse never coaxed him
into passing the pigskin or throwing pitches when they had time together.   It would feel like an infringement on
Cal’s territory.   He’d already taken
enough from Cal, of that he was now certain.
    “You have homework?” Jesse asked.
    “Nothing that can’t wait until Sunday night.”
    “Your mom hates it when I send you home with all the work
for her to oversee.   Why don’t you
knock at least some of it out before we hit the water?”
    “I’m headed home tomorrow morning, remember?   When you hit the water with the
beautiful Lita.”
    “If it makes you feel any better, I’ll trudge through some
paperwork I’ve put off while you get a good start on expanding your
brain.”   He swung into the gravel
parking lot and waited for the cloud of dust to pass before jumping out.   The wooden boards of the shop’s porch
creaked as it took their weight.   He’d have to replace it in a few years, maybe sooner.  
    Jesse threw his keys in a coffee mug Ty had painted for
Father’s Day years ago and sank into his old leather chair.   The size of his desk allowed Ty to pull
up one of the metal chairs Jesse kept leaning against the wall and spread his
books and notepad out on an end.   Without another complaint or cross word, Ty dove into what looked to
Jesse like geometry.   Thank goodness
he didn’t need any help.   The
invoices and paperwork from his summer help were enough of a headache.  
    An hour later, when they’d both had put a good dent in their
work, they settled into a two-man raft, the fishing rods and a cooler at their
feet between them.   The air was
cooling and the rocks and boulders sat in relief behind them as their shadows
cast patterns on the water.   These
were Jesse’s favorite times, dusk floats with Ty, where they could talk and
just hang out like pals.
    “So,” Jesse broke the peaceful silence.   The lapping of the lazy water had held
them both captive with their own thoughts for awhile.   “Lita mentioned your mom and Bryce went
on a date.”   He scratched at what
felt like a mosquito bite on his neck.   Damn bugs.   “How’d it go?”
    “You jealous, Dad?”  
    Ty’s teasing tone made the muscles in Jesse’s shoulders
relax.   He found it extremely
uncomfortable to talk about Kerri Ann with Ty and did so as little as
possible.   “Just curious.”
    “I’m only kidding.”   Ty flipped the ball cap around so the bill rested against the back of
his head.   “She didn’t say and I
didn’t ask.   She seemed a little
weird this morning, though.”
    “Weird how?”
    “Well, she put creamer on my cereal and milk in her coffee,
which was fine for her and not so great for me.   Then when I got to school, she’d packed
me an apple and her cell