The Castaway Hotel: Next Generation - 2. A Brief Reunion

Sammy and Graham were the first to arrive, since they didn’t live as far away as the others. They are currently sharing an apartment in the York, PA area, where they were able to find jobs. We welcomed them warmly and then eagerly caught up on recent developments.

Pat showed up next, after making the drive from Pittsburgh, and was followed by Ricky, who arrived a short time later. As soon as Ricky walked through the door, he was immediately quizzed by some of the others.

“Where’s Jay?” Danny wanted to know. “I thought you guys were coming back together.”

“We did,” Ricky answered, “but Jay just dropped me off and then went to see his parents. He’s going to spend some time alone with them tonight, but they’ll all be coming over to join us for the cookout on Sunday.”

“So are you two living together?” Kevin followed.

“No, Jay lives in New York and I ended up working out of the Philadelphia office,” Ricky answered. “We have spent a few weekends at each other’s place though. We try to do that whenever we’re not busy and don’t have any other commitments.”

“So you two are still close?” Pat asked next.

“Yes, but I really wasn’t expecting him to call and offer to pick me up on his way home,” Ricky offered. “I mean, he knew I was going to come home for the holiday, but I didn’t know he was planning to come back too.”

“Maybe he didn’t decide to do it until after he knew you were coming here too,” Pat suggested. “No matter how it happened, it seems to have worked out well.”

“That’s true. At least this way, we didn’t both end up having to make the long drive by ourselves. We took turns behind the wheel and even managed to be a little green in the process. By coming together, we saved some gasoline and even eliminated the extra pollution from driving a second vehicle. Besides, I think Jay wanted my company during the trip.”

“I doubt it was your charming personality that motivated Jay to make the offer,” Brandon quipped, “but it was a good move to come in one car. Do either of you have a girlfriend at the moment?”

“Not really. I’ve dated a little, but not much, because I’ve been really busy at work,” Ricky admitted. “I’m not sure how often Jay gets out, but I know he complains about being overworked by his architectural firm.”

“Well, we’ll see to it that he relaxes and has a little fun while he’s here then,” I responded.

“How about you, Pat?” Danny interjected, changing the topic. “How’s your new job going?”

“It’s going terrific,” Pat replied. “I really like working for General Dynamics and I enjoy the job I’m currently doing. It’s actually pretty interesting, plus I’m also getting along fairly well with a couple of my co-workers.”

“In a romantic sense?” Brandon pressed.

“No, on a professional level,” Pat answered, “but I think we’re also becoming friends.”

“That’s fantastic. It’s always good when you’re tight with the people you’re working with,” Ricky agreed.

Dustin and Cole showed up a short time later, but we were a little curious as to why it took them so long to get here. They actually had the shortest trip, since they live locally, but we soon discovered this was because they had both stopped at their places after work, so they could clean up first. They also took a little more time to pick up their girlfriends, who arrived with them. Once the introductions were made, the boys had a great time catching up on what the others had been doing, over dinner.

“Dustin, how have you been?” Graham wanted to know.

“I’m fine,” Dustin responded, “and the business is doing great. In fact, it’s been going so well that I’ve been able to move into my own place. I now live a couple of blocks away from work, so I usually walk back and forth for the exercise.”

“So your old boss finally sold the place to you,” Ricky teased. “I guess that means you’ll finally be able to use that business degree after all, as well as all of the technical training you took after high school. I’m impressed. I wasn’t sure you had it in you.”

“Well, I do, and I’ve been on my own for nearly a year now,” Dustin replied.

“Maybe it’s time to fill them in about your other situation too,” I suggested, in a hushed tone.

“What situation is that?” Ricky wondered. “You haven’t gone and got your girlfriend pregnant, have you?”

“No, I haven’t done that, but I have asked Katie to marry me,” Dustin added, as he grinned at his fiance.

“And she accepted?” Ricky asked, feigning a shocked expression.

“Of course I did,” Katie answered, while showing them her ring.

“May I get a better look at it,” Cole’s girlfriend, Beth, asked, after only getting a quick glimpse.

Katie quickly agreed and held out her hand, so Beth could see her ring better. As Beth examined it closely, Katie made another comment.

“I couldn’t say no to Dustin, just because he has some weird brothers,” she added, while directing a cocky sneer at Ricky.

“Touche,” Brandon shouted. “Ricky, you’re definitely in trouble if she’s already learned not to take your crap.”

The rest of us were all giggling, because of Brandon’s comment, which earned us all some threatening glares from Ricky. Since ‘the look’ wasn’t working, he decided to divert our attention with another comment.

“Who’d have thunk that Dustin would be running his own business and able to talk a cute girl into marrying him?” Ricky teased.

“Not only that, but it also means that Dad may have a few more grandchildren to dote on soon,” Brandon added, tongue in cheek, while flashing me a wink.

“Let’s just hope that if they have children, all of the kids end up looking like their mother,” Ricky quipped, “and not their troll of a father.”

Katie laughed at Ricky’s snide comment, which earned her a quick glare from her future husband. However, most of Dustin’s evil eye was directed toward his impish brother.

“So when will this wedding take place?” Beth asked next.

“Katie has her heart set on a June wedding, so we were thinking next June,” Dustin confirmed, and all his brothers congratulated them.

“How about you Cole?” Sammy asked, as he directed the attention toward someone else. “What have you been up too?”

“Well, I got promoted, so now I’m the assistant manager of the automotive department,” he answered.

“Wow, you’re just flying up the old corporate ladder, aren’t you?” Sammy joked.

“Well, I couldn’t stay stuck at the bottom forever,” Cole responded.

“So you repair cars all day long?” Katie asked.

“We do mechanical and electrical repairs at the shop,” Cole confirmed, “but we also do bodywork too.”

That appeared to be more than enough information to satisfy his questioner.

“Are you still working at the dealership where Dad helped you get your first job?” Pat followed.

“Yep, the very same place,” Cole confirmed.

“So you still like doing that type of work?” Sammy pressed.

“Yes, I still enjoy it just as much as I did when Dad let me buy and fix up that old Mustang, back when I was still in high school,” Cole admitted.

“And winning all those awards had nothing to do with it?” Ricky prodded.

“The awards just proved to me that I could do the job,” Cole responded, “and helped convinced me I wasn’t dumb, even though I was still having trouble with some of my other classes.”

I could see Cole was still dealing with some bitter memories from his high school years, which had resulted in some bruised feelings. This was because some of the other kids had teased him, unmercifully, about his learning disability. Even though he worked hard to overcome his problem, his grades never truly reflected the effort he was putting into his studies. At least now he was successful, happy and working in his chosen field.

“I thought you were going to eventually take over the shop,” Graham stated, while looking quizzically at his brother.

“I still am,” Cole confirmed. “The owner is just about ready to retire, and when he does, he’s going to split the business. He’s promised to sell the new and used car part of the dealership to one of his best salesmen, but he is also preparing to separate the automotive department, so he can sell it to me.”

“What about the automotive manager?” Sammy asked. “Isn’t he interested in buying it, instead of you?”

“No, he says he’s too close to retirement to take that kind of a risk,” Cole answered. “He has even agreed to continue working for me after the split, until he is old enough to retire.”

“But how can the owner split the dealership like that?” Beth wondered.

“Fortunately, each part of the business is located in its own building and the two buildings are separated by a doublewide driveway,” Cole replied. “That’s how we can each own a part of the business.”

“But how will that work financially?” Ricky wanted to know. “The new cars will be covered by a warranty, so how will you get paid when they need to be repaired?”

“Under the terms the current owner said he was going to establish,” Cole began, “the automotive department will honor all of the service agreements for the dealership. In return, we will receive a lump sum cash payment when each vehicle is sold. This money will then be placed into an interest bearing escrow account, so it can be used to pay the cost of any repairs covered by those contracts. The cost of continuing any of the existing service agreements will be established and pro-rated, so an appropriate sum can also be placed in the account to cover each of those vehicles too. This arrangement will be finalized and put in writing before any sales contracts are signed.”

“Damn, so Cole is going to be an entrepreneur too?” Ricky teased. “It’s beginning to look as if I was the dummy in this family.”

Cole realized Ricky had just given him a compliment, so he smiled at his brother. Even though Ricky often pulled pranks on the others and gave everyone a rough time, he was also very supportive of his brothers.

“So, are you sharing a place with Dustin or have you moved in with your girlfriend,” Ricky quickly teased.

“I’ve got my own place,” Cole confirmed, “but Beth does spend a lot of time there with me.”

“So when are you two tying the knot,” Graham asked next.

“We’re not quite ready to do that yet,” Cole responded. “I’d really like to wait and make sure the repair and body shop business is going to be successful first, before we get married.”

“Yes, it’s probably wise to make certain you’ll be able to support a wife and family first, before you make such a permanent commitment,” Sammy concurred.

“I’ll give him some time to get his act together,” Beth teased, “but I’m not going to wait around forever.” She then gave Cole a light punch in the arm, to let him know she meant business.

Even though we were having a good time, we also began to feel badly that Duck and his girlfriend hadn’t shown up yet. We were planning to hold dinner until they got here, but Duck called and told us they’d be late and wanted us to go ahead and start eating without them. He apologized for not making it on time, but assured me they were fine. He said they would stop along the way to grab something to eat, so we didn’t need to keep dinner warm for them.

After we finished our meal, we moved into the family room and waited for Duck and his girlfriend to arrive. When we saw their car pulling into the driveway, the boys got up and raced outside to welcome them. After more than a few hugs and handshakes, they came inside and my sons began their friendly interrogation.

“Hey, man,” Dustin began, once we were all in the family room. “Are you slowing down a little as you’re getting older?”

“Um, not exactly,” Duck answered, while looking slightly embarrassed. “It was just that there was a problem at Jen’s job and she ended up working a little later than we’d planned.”

Duck stopped at this point and looked over at his girlfriend, Jennifer. She appeared slightly uncomfortable about having arrived late too, which was not really that big of a deal for the rest of us. However, Jennifer seemed to feel that she needed to clarify the situation further, so she spoke up.

“I’m sorry. Not only did I end up working later, but I also had to go home first,” she admitted, “so I could change my clothes and put the rest of my things in the suitcase. I had taken a little break while I was packing last night and kinda fell asleep before I was done.” Her face began to turn a lovely shade of crimson, as she was saying this.

“That’s why I had to finish my packing before we could leave,” she added, a few seconds later.

“We’re just happy you made it,” I stated calmly, hoping this might sufficiently take her off the hook.

“Where’s Mark? Isn’t he here?” Duck asked, coyly changing the subject and shifting the attention away from Jennifer.

Mark, like Duck, is another honorary son and the two have become very close. Mark also takes care of the family’s personal financial investments, as well as those of the Castaway Foundation. It is a charity the family founded, so they could continue helping other young people.

“No, he’s staying in New York for the holiday,” I answered. “His girlfriend and her parents are going there to be with him, so they’ll be celebrating together and attending the big fireworks display there.”

“Damn! I was looking forward to seeing him again,” Duck responded, dejectedly.

“I think Mark was a little disappointed that he wouldn’t be here with the rest of us too,” I advised him. “I know his mother is also crushed that he won’t be joining us, but I do understand the reason. His girlfriend wanted him to spend a little more time with her parents.”

“And they didn’t invite Susan to join them?” Duck asked, amazed.

“Mark invited his mother, but she and Mark’s future in-laws don’t get along very well,” I replied. “I’ve been told that Amy’s parents act and treat Susan as if she’s beneath them. For that reason, Susan opted to stay here and will be joining us on Sunday instead.”

While we had been talking about Mark, Jennifer went over and began chatting with Katie and Beth. The three of them were getting along quite well and eventually their boyfriends went over to join them. It was nice to see the three girls and the guys hitting it off, so the rest of us didn’t disturb them.

When it started to get late, Dustin, Cole and their girlfriends bid us farewell and returned to their homes. After they departed, the rest of us began to turn in too. Duck and his girlfriend said good night and then disappeared into the guestroom. Shortly thereafter, the rest of the boys headed off to their rooms as well.

As Jake and I entered our bedroom and prepared to turn in, I spent a few moments lost in my thoughts. I was happily reflecting on how nice it was to have so many at home with us again, even if it was only for a brief time. While I was finishing up my thoughts, I noticed Jake staring at me and suspected he was wondering if everything was all right. Immediately, I smiled to reassure him, and then I closed the door to our room, so I could put the last of his concerns to rest.

The night passed quickly and Jake and I awoke early, as we normally do. Since many of the boys had driven home yesterday, after putting in a full day’s work, we agreed they probably needed their rest. For this reason, we let them sleep in much later than we normally would have on a Saturday. We also didn’t plan any activities for the morning, so they could continue to take it easy. However, that afternoon the guys suddenly announced that they wanted to go to the high school, so they could play softball. They knew it was something the girls would also be interested in doing and would enjoy too, so we all headed down to the athletic field and chose up teams.

I wouldn’t say it was the best display of athleticism I’d ever seen, but they definitely had fun. The first time Joshie was up, he hit the ball in the infield and the boys threw it wildly about, until Joshie had time to race around all of the bases and score. He was extremely proud of his accomplishment and it helped earn the guys some points too. The girls thought it was nice that their boyfriends and the others had done this and were willing put their own competitive natures aside for Joshie’s benefit. I was fairly certain their boyfriends would try to cash in these brownie points later, when they were alone with their girlfriends.

After the softball game ended, we returned home and the softball players decided they needed to cool down, so they agreed to hit the pool. Since this was a co-ed activity, everyone was on their best behavior and wore swimsuits. Other than on the few occasions when we had company or if my older children and their families were visiting, it was rare to see the appropriate swimwear worn in our pool.

That evening, I took everyone out to eat and then we all went over to the cinema complex to catch a flick. Since we couldn’t all agree on one movie we wanted to see, we split up and went in various directions. The girls dragged their boyfriends off to see a chick flick they had heard was quite good and which they were determined to see. The guys didn’t appear as if it would have been their first choice, but they went along with their girlfriends anyway, to keep the peace and maintain the good will they had chalked up earlier.

After that group took off, some of the other boys decided they wanted to watch ‘Eclipse,’ which is the third installment of the ‘Twilight Saga.’ While they were purchasing their tickets, some of the others agreed they wanted to see ‘Robin Hood,’ with Russell Crowe.

Dion, Trey, Jake and I planned to accompany Joshie, because he wanted to go to the new ‘Karate Kid’ movie. When it was over, I was actually glad we had done this. It was obvious that we had all enjoyed the flick, but none more than Joshie. I think I had just as much fun observing him, while he was focused on the screen.

Joshie was especially comical to watch when the 12-year old character, Dre Parker, was either practicing or using his karate skills. As the actor was going through his routine, Joshie’s arms and legs were also jerking and twitching, as he kicked and punched along with the main character. I also enjoyed watching my grandson whenever the action was taking place at the Great Wall of China, because Joshie was enthralled by the beauty and splendor spread out before him.

Noting his fascination with the movie, I suspect Joshie will continue experimenting with these moves when we get home. I also believe he might soon begin teasing for us to allow him to take martial arts lessons. This thought made me wonder how his fathers were going to react, if Joshie does make that request.

On the way home, I got everyone to agree to stop for some ice cream and frozen yogurt. Yes, Jake and I had the frozen yogurt, along with the girls and Joshie. Since Joshie has spent so much time with me, he seems to prefer the frozen yogurt, instead of the ice cream, possibly because it’s what we usually have at home. No matter the reason, we all seemed to enjoy our treats.

Once we returned to the house, Dion rushed Joshie off to bed, since it was already well past his bedtime. Some of the other boys decided to go to their rooms for a little private time too, while a few of the others stayed up with Jake and me and chatted for a bit. Most didn’t stay up for very long, but a few of us did stay up later than we normally would or possibly should have. That was definitely the case for Jake and me.