Traditions

by Mark Peters

Chapter 13

Our second full day in Sydney was New Year's Eve, and it proved to be just as exhausting as the first, but it could have been worse, I guess, as – thankfully – we were unable to obtain tickets to do the Harbour Bridge climb. That was a relief!

What we did manage to do was check out the Art Gallery of New South Wales, visit the Maritime Museum, take a look at Parliament House, and wander through The Rocks. If the truth must be known, we could quite have probably spent an entire week in the city and still not visited everything, but all the same, we still gave it a good crack.

That night, back at the flat, we sat on the floor eating takeaway because there wasn't enough seating for all of us. The windows and the door to the small balcony were open, with city noise drifting in – sirens, voices, the hum of traffic that never quite slept.

I'm sure that we could have found some place to party if we'd have wanted to, given that it was New Year, but instead we decided to stay put, counting down the hours to midnight out on the small balcony, sitting in the darkness and talking. We got more than enough of the New Year vibe from the people around us and on the streets below us.

'Today has been,' Pippa said, raising her drink, 'excellent.'

'I think the entire trip has been excellent,' I added.

'Yeah, no arguments here,' said Kevin, then leaning over and clinking his drink against mine.

Charlie leaned against me, his head on my shoulder.

'Thanks for bringing me,' he murmured.

I kissed the top of his head. 'This is just the beginning.'

'I believe you,' he replied.

As the clock ticked over towards midnight, we stayed where we were on the narrow balcony, sipping our drinks and catching the glow of the fairy lights decorating some of the trees along the street. The hot summer night seemed to wrap around us, like a blanket, thick with the colour and scent of Jacaranda trees and distant barbecue smoke. Below us, the streets pulsed with life – car horns blared in cheerful chaos, laughter spilled from packed footpaths, and the low thump of music from neighbourhood parties drifted up on the breeze.

It was Sydney's familiar New Year roar, but up here on the second floor it felt pleasantly removed, a quiet vantage point for our last night in the city.

Charlie and I leaned back against a railing at one end of the balcony, his hand warm and steady on my thigh. I wasn't going to be sad about leaving this place, especially knowing that I would be with him. The thought of returning to the country with Charlie felt like slipping back into a well-worn life after too many years wrapped up in the hectic and exhausting city; comfortable and . . . right. My life in Sydney had been an adventure, bright and restless, but now that I'd had time to think, the echoes of open skies, the slower rhythms, the rolling waves, and a life to be built together, far outweighed the excitement of the city. I felt a quiet contentment settle in my chest, knowing that one chapter was closing, along with gratitude that a new chapter was ahead of me . . . us!

For Pippa and Kevin, I knew this was their first real taste of the city, and I could see the wonder still lingering in their eyes. Pippa, legs tucked beneath her, gazed out at the glittering skyline with a soft smile.

'I can't believe we've only been here a few days and seen so much,' she said. Kevin nodded, nursing his beer, his usual country-boy reserve softened by the spectacle. Both of my cousins had thrown themselves into helping organise this visit, and tomorrow we would finish my packing and set off for home, perhaps a little wistful that their own visit was ending.

Charlie squeezed my leg gently, his expression fond and certain. He had loved every chaotic, sun-drenched moment of the trip, but I knew he was ready to start this next chapter of our life together.

Eventually the countdown began filtering up from the streets, voices rising in ragged unison.

'Ten . . . nine . . .'

Our group joined in, our voices mingling with the growing roar. At midnight, the sky erupted. They couldn't see the main harbour fireworks directly, but the night lit up with reflected glory – bursts of gold and crimson blooming across low clouds and drifting smoke, painting the darkness in shimmering washes of colour. Smaller neighbourhood fireworks cracked and sparkled closer by, bright fountains of green and silver shooting above rooftops. The deep boom of the big display rolled over the city like thunder, vibrating through everyone's ribs.

Pippa raised her glass first.

'To Kieran,' she said warmly. 'Thanks for letting us crash your last days here. And thanks for showing us your city. We've had the best time!'

Kevin clinked his bottle against hers, then to me he said, 'Yeah, what she said!'

Charlie smiled at me, eyes bright with the reflected fireworks. 'I'm so glad we came. Coming with you was the best decision I ever made.'

I laughed softly, warmth spreading throughout me that had nothing to do with the summer heat. As the fireworks continued to put on their glittery, noisy show above the clouds, I felt our future truly click into place; bright, steady, and exactly what we both wanted it to be.

The trip home from Sydney the following day was a much quieter affair than our trip down. Four days or travelling, sightseeing and partying, including the mad rush to pack up my belongings from the flat and load them onto the trailer, had all taken its toll.

By the time we crossed the Mooney-Mooney bridge north of the city, Charlie had his head resting on my shoulder, and was already asleep, while in the front passenger seat, Pippa had a pillow between her head and the window and was in a similar state.

I glanced up into the rear-view mirror and noticed Kevin looking at me and smiling.

'Quiet a trip,' he said quietly.

'Yeah.'

'Thanks for letting us come.'

'I think it's me who owes you guys all the thanks,' I replied. 'But still, I'm glad we did this. It's been too long since we had any adventures together.'

'Guess we'll just have to see what other things like this we can come up with now.'

'Works for me,' I replied.

We drove on in silence for a little while, until eventually Kevin asked, 'So what happens next with you guys?'

'One day at a time, I reckon. Charlie is going back to work at the local service station, and I guess I need to find some work as well. Can't do much these days without a job of some sort.'

'Any ideas about what you want to do?'

'That'll probably depend on what's available, I guess. I sorted out a computer issue for our local priest before we came down here . . . I wouldn't mind trying to see if anyone can use some IT support, and just work as it's needed, but I'm going to need more than just that, I reckon.'

'I'm sure something will come up for you,' he said, before turning his attention back to the road.

The remainder of our trip home was a steady one, and it was just on dark when we finally pulled into the driveway at Kevin and Pippa's home.

I wasn't too sure how long we had been asleep for, but I opened my eyes as we bumped over the driveway, to find Charlie doing the same.

'End of the line!' Kevin announced, as we came to a stop and he switched off the engine. 'Don't know about you lot, but I'm starving.'

As we climbed from the vehicle, Pippa and Kevin's parents came out and welcomed us home and fussed over us, with hugs and kisses all around, asking how the trip was, and how the car went, and about all the things that we'd got up to. Uncle Leo took a walk around his pride and joy and kicked the tyres, while checking for any possible damage, then grunted something as he rejoined us.

'You don't have to worry, dad. The old tub went like a dream,' Kevin said to him, which earned him another grunt.

'So, what are you boys doing tonight?' Aunt Trish asked. 'Dinner will be ready shortly, so you may as well as stay for that. And if you want to stay tonight before heading home in the morning, you're more than welcome.'

'That's a great idea, mum,' Kevin said. 'I can drive the trailer up there in the morning and help unload it for Kieran.'

I glanced at Charlie to see his reaction and he gave me a nod, so I thanked Aunt Trish and said that would be great.

'Splendid,' she replied, before putting her arm around Pippa's shoulders and they started for the back door.

After calling my parents to let them know we were back, but were staying in Macquarie Harbour for the night, I told them we would see them in the morning and then disconnected. The night proved to be a bundle of laughs, as we told them about meeting Patrick, and about all our sightseeing.

Questions were thrown at us left, right and centre, and we managed to answer them all truthfully . . . even the one about how Pippa managed to get inside a hotel. Surprisingly, they already knew about their seventeen-year-old daughter's fake ID.

Thankfully, as we were all quite tired, we weren't kept up talking all night, and managed to go to bed reasonably early. Charlie and I were shown to the guest bedroom, which had a large, comfortable double bed. After Aunt Trish said goodnight and closed the door we turned to each other and grinned.

'I guess this makes "us" official now, huh? We get the guest room all to ourselves,' Charlie said quietly.

'Did you expect anything less than that?' I replied.

'I . . . I wasn't sure exactly. It feels kind of strange, but at the same time it feels amazing that we are being accepted this way.'

I walked over to him and placed my hands on his hips and pulled him in close, then kissed him.

'If you haven't been told already, babe . . . welcome to the family,' I said, before kissing him once more. 'Now, how about we go to bed, because I'm fucking exhausted?'

After Kevin delivered my belongings the following morning, we unloaded it all into the garage at Charlie's place, before he then had to head home. We both hugged him and thanked him for everything, and promised to catch up again soon, then we waved him farewell and watched him drive away.

'Right then' I said to Charlie. 'I guess it's time for us to get back to the real world now.'

'I guess so,' he replied. 'And I probably should go and see Matt, to see if he's rostered me on anytime soon.'

'Do you want to go downtown now?' I asked. 'It's almost lunchtime, so how about we head down to the boardwalk, then you can call in to see Matt? It'll give me a chance to see if anyone has torn off any of the strips with my phone number on them, from the bottom of the flyer I left on his noticeboard . . .'

'You've talked me into it,' he answered with a laugh.

Five minutes later we were parked in the car park adjacent to the service station, which looked exactly the same as it always had, with the same faded signage, and the same faint smell of fuel and hot oil drifting on the air. Cars came and went, tyres crunching on loose stones, engines idling, people living their lives without any awareness of the nerves my boyfriend was feeling about going back to work.

Charlie climbed from the car and stood for a few moments, while he waited for me to join him.

'You okay?' I asked, sensing his nerves.

He took a breath. Then another.

'Yeah, I guess.'

'He's already said yes, hasn't he? So all you're doing is just finding out if you've got any hours. You'll be fine.'

'Yeah. Just walk in,' he told himself. 'That's all I've got to do.'

'See? You've got this,' I reassured him.

We crossed the road and headed inside, the alarm buzzing as the sliding door opened and we triggered it.

Matt looked up from behind the counter. He didn't smile. Not at first.

'Well,' Matt said, folding his arms. 'Just the man I wanted to talk to.'

'I am?'

'Any chance you could do a shift this afternoon? Say, two o'clock until we close at six? One of the regulars is sick,' Matt asked.

'I can do that,' Charlie replied, without even looking my way.

'Great. That's a start,' Matt replied, before turning and opening a cupboard behind him, then moments later sliding a uniform shirt across the counter. Clean. Folded. Black in colour.

'Same rules as before,' Matt said, apparently unconcerned that I was standing directly behind Charlie. 'You're late, you're sloppy, or you even look like you're heading back where you were? You're done.'

Charlie met his eyes. 'Understood.'

Matt studied him for a long moment, then gave a nod. 'Okay, that's great. I'll see you at two.'

And just like that, Charlie was back in the workforce.

As we turned to leave, I took a quick look at the noticeboard and could see that there were four tags with my phone number on them that had been ripped from the bottom of my flyer. Maybe things were going to be on the up and up for me also? I could only hope.

I thought the shirt looked good on him after he'd showered and changed following our return from lunch by the lake. I could tell he was still nervous, but at the same time he also seemed excited.

'You look sexy in that,' I said to him, as he combed his damp hair.

'Don't go getting any ideas,' he replied. 'I can't be late, remember?'

'Maybe later then?' I suggested.

'You better believe it,' he replied. He then kissed me, before turning back to the mirror to finish his hair. 'I'm not even sure I recognise the person looking back at me from this mirror.'

'Take it from me . . . it's you alright,' I said, as I rested my hands on his hips and my chin on his shoulder. 'It's the new you. The improved model. The Charlie who isn't looking back.'

'Who wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you.'

'Let's not go there again, eh? Now are you going to take the car? I don't need it for anything . . . I'm just going to start going through the stuff I brought back from Sydney.'

'How about you drop me off and pick me up later?' he suggested. 'And if you want to rearrange the garage to pack your stuff away, go for it.'

I grinned at him. 'You may regret that later.'

'Nah, it'll be fine. In fact, we could even turn it into your office for your IT business if you need it.'

'My IT business? Geez, let's not get too carried away just yet,' I replied, trying to keep it real.

'We can talk about that later. Right now, I can't be late, remember? So, how about you drive your boyfriend to his first shift back at work?'

'Gladly,' I answered.

After dropping Charlie off to work I drove around to my parent's place, as I hadn't seen them since before we left for Sydney. I found Toby in the living room watching a movie, and my mother in the kitchen.

'Kieran! You're back!' Toby yelled as I stopped at the entrance to the living room.

'No, I'm not,' I teased.

'Yes, you are. I can see you!' he replied, then as if to prove his point he jumped up and came over to me, then pinched me on the arm.

'Ouch!' I yelled. 'That hurt!'

'Stop tormenting your brother,' mum scolded.

'Which one of us are you talking to?' I asked.

'You, of course,' mum answered. 'Where's Charlie?'

'He's at work,' I replied.

'Work?'

'He's back at the service station. First shift this afternoon. I dropped him off a little while ago.'

'Oh, that's good then. It'll help to get things back to normal for him.'

'I hope so.'

'So, how was Sydney? Did you get everything done that you needed to do?'

'Yes. Brought all my stuff back. I took them all sightseeing. Watched the local New Year's celebrations from the balcony of the flat I was living in. And we met your cousin, Patrick!'

'Patrick? Really? And just remember he's your cousin too, you know?'

'I know. And he seems like a really nice guy. He was performing at the Imperial Hotel, so when she found that out there was no stopping Pippa.'

It was then that I remembered I had taken a couple of photos on my phone, so I pull it from my pocket and found them, then showed them to my mother. One was when Trinity was performing on stage. The next was just as we were saying goodbye.

'That's Patrick? Oh, my!' was all mum could say. I swear, if she'd been wearing pearls right at that moment she would have been clutching at them right now.

'Yes. That's Patrick alright. In all his glory. His show had to the funniest thing I have ever seen, in person at least. He's hilarious. And you might even be able to catch up with him in person soon . . . Pippa has asked him to come and visit!'

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Traditions

by Mark Peters

Chapter 13