Thread: Billy and The Kid

Because you all are such a big bunch of whiners.........and because Wannabe... is draggin' his knuckles on adding new chapters........ here's HIS story so far

Billy and The Kid by Wannabe…

Chapter 1

It had been 3 years ago almost to the day when William Baker turned in his paperwork for his retirement after 42 years on the job as a machinist in a union shop. It had been a hard career, filled with overtime, missed opportunities and lost moments, but he was finally shed of having to be somewhere 6 days a week. The 2600 square foot house that his wife, Ann, dearly loved and the shop or man cave as he like to call it along with the 12 acres of land were all paid for. His two children, Robert and Susan were all grown up, married with children of their own and doing well for themselves. Susan was a real estate agent 7 states away in Virginia and had 2 little girls that were the light of any room they graced. Robert was closer at only 4 states away and was an Engineer with the state highway department in Colorado. Robert’s only son, Jacob was a 4 sport athlete in the 10th grade, but could hold his own in any math competition you could dream up. Even though he only got to see them on the big holidays these days, he couldn’t hold it against them for going out and leading their own lives. But when they came to town, everything stopped, vacation was taken, schedules were cleared and for those few, precious days, the world revolved around his children and grandchildren.

But William was standing at the cusp of the part of his life he’d been looking forward to for the last 20 years. He’d always enjoyed fishing, Crappie especially, and was a fair hand at it. But life and a job saw to it that he never got to do much of it. Ann was adamant about making sure that changed after his retirement. For the last few years leading up to his retirement, she saw to it that he was given generous leeway with the household budget to buy whatever he thought he might need and even some things he thought he might use occasionally. It was his birthday two years ago when she planted the seed in his mind, gently, like she had done for the 41 years they had been married, about getting rid of that old boat and getting a new one. William resisted at first, like always, about spending money on himself, but again, like always, he began to see that Ann was right.

The only boat he’d ever really fished from was a jon boat. His current one was a 14’ Grumman made in 1981 and the little 9.9 horse motor still ran well, but sure was cantankerous every year when it was time to take it out of storage. Even worse, and the part he hated to admit, was that he wasn’t getting any younger, and a bigger, wider boat would be much safer. And besides, with a big outboard, he could finally fish those big lakes and be able to go anywhere he wanted. Yes, Ann was right. It was time to get a new one. Of course, that progression of thought took William almost all of those 2 years, which is why Ann started in on him so early.

3 months before he turned in the retirement papers, William ordered the boat of his dreams.

It was that boat that Billy noticed first.

It was only the second week of summer and already Billy had run out of things to do. He’d done all that the little neighborhood could offer an 11 year old and some of it twice already. He was sitting on his front steps when he heard that Power Stroke Diesel make the turn onto his street and rev back up pulling the little hill coming his way. Billy thought that was surely the biggest bass boat he’d ever seen. When it made it’s up the street, it stopped just in front of his house and Billy perked up wondering what was about to happen. Then all of a sudden, it began to back up and the man skillfully backed it into the drive next door and it disappeared into the garage. He was so focused on the boat, he hadn’t even noticed the 2 moving vans stop in front of the house or the car that followed into the driveway behind the Ford.

For the next 2 days, there were all kinds of comings and goings with movers unloading the truck and an older couple directing their movements. The old man was grumpily barking orders and the old lady was busy trying to make sure nothing got broken. Billy watched all of the happenings intently, sometimes from the steps and sometimes from the window. His mother had already grown tired of the questions and how was she supposed to know anything about the neighbors anyway? After all, she’d only seen them once when she’d run home to make dinner between her 2 jobs and she wasn’t interested in spending the few moments she had meeting new neighbors when she had a house to clean and a son to care for.

Billy had made up his mind there had to be some way to get over there and get a closer look at that boat without getting in the way. He’d just have to think on it.

Chapter 2.

After the first 2 days, things seemed to settle down a bit with Billy occasionally seeing the old lady piddling on the porch hanging plants and the old man in the back yard arranging patio furniture, but that garage remained closed. And it was killing Billy.

The forth day saw a flurry of activity once again with 2 new cars parked on the street and 2 families coming and going. Good news too, as both cars had children in them. 2 girls and a boy. The boy was a little older than Billy and the girls a good bit younger, but he took it as a good sign since over the next 2 days he hadn’t seen any evidence the gruff old man had killed the children and there were no fresh graves in their back yard. Maybe the old man even liked children. They sure seemed happy to see him.

When the weekend was over, the new cars were gone and the new neighbor’s house was quiet once again. Billy was sitting on his steps again just like the week before when he heard the garage door open. Maybe this was his chance to get a closer look at that boat.

Chapter 3.

Billy gathered his courage and crept to the corner of the house to peer in. Much to his surprise, the garage was pristine. Peg board lined the walls and every square inch was taken up with tools, gadgets and parts. There was a work bench installed in the back that looked cleaner than his kitchen table. Shop lights were hung over the bench and there was even a fan installed in the corner at the ceiling. And there was that boat. The boat was the only thing cluttered in the whole garage and was filled to the brim with odds and ends and all kinds of fishing tackle and boxes. It seemed out of place in a garage this well kept and clean. He hadn’t even noticed how far he’d stepped from the corner to get a better look until the old man said in a voice loud enough to make Billy jump, “Hello there son”. From the initial startle, Billy’s first reaction was to run and run fast, but just as his weight settled on the balls of his feet for that first leap, he caught himself and was able to reply in a voice strong enough to surprise even himself, “Hi Mr., my name is William Brannon. I live next door. “Well Hello there Billy, my name is Will too, well, actually William. William Baker, but you can call me Mr. Will if you like”. The old man’s reply was surprisingly friendly, but even still, he seemed distracted and not all that interested in meeting Billy. “My name is William, Mr. Will, why’d you call me Billy?”. Well, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean anything by it, it’s just something I remember from back when I was a boy. People used to call me Billy, so I thought they probably called you the same”. “Oh, I see. I kind of like it really. Yes sir, call me Billy if you like”. “Ok then, I will.”.

William Brannon just really didn’t have time for this Billy from next door. He still had things to do in the house for Ann and had only snuck out for a little break and to double check to see if anything else needed doing in the garage, but still he was intrigued by the little mop headed boy from next door and lingered a little longer than he should have just getting to know the boy a little. And besides, it had been a while since he’d run across a kid that said ‘sir’ when he was supposed to and couldn’t remember when the last time a child that wasn’t related to him said “Thank You”.

Just about the time that William was trying to figure out a way to send this young Billy packing so he could get back to Ann’s list was just about the same time they both heard the door open and Ann stepped in the doorway.

Chapter 4

“Oh! Hello there. Billy, why didn’t you tell me we had company?” It wouldn’t register with Billy until the next day that Mrs. Ann had called Mr. William ‘Billy’, but when he did make the connection, that settled it for him. He definitely liked Mr. William calling him Billy.

“I’m Ann Baker, but you can call me Mrs. Ann, what’s your name?” “I’m Billy Brannon from next door” he said, trying on the nickname for the first time, “Very nice to meet you”. “Well, aren’t you just about the cutest thing I’ve seen all day. I’m sorry I don’t have time to stop and visit at the moment, but it is certainly nice to meet you and you’re welcome at our house any time and tell your Mom and Dad we’d love to meet them soon”. I will Mrs. Ann, but…..um…..it’s just me and my Mom next door.”, his eyes dropped to the floor searching for the words. “Oh, I see, well you be sure and tell her I said hello and that I’ll stop in soon once I get this house in order. Now I need to borrow Mr. Baker for a minute, but you stay right here and I’ll send him right back out, OK? “Yes Ma’am. And it was very nice to meet you.”

William and Ann stepped inside and they closed the door. Billy didn’t mind at all. He could use the time to gawk at the boat. He realized it said ‘Ranger’ on the side and he’d heard about them before. Now that he had a chance to look at it, he was sure it was longer than 20 feet and had a 225 horse power black motor on it. Wow! He didn’t even know they made them that big.

Billy knew he wouldn’t have long, so he set about taking in as much of that boat as he could. When he first saw the boat, it was covered, so he hadn’t seem much other than the hull. Even now, he couldn’t see much with all the tackle and boxes piled on top of it, but he could make out that it had 2 consoles and the biggest dang fishfinders he’d ever seen. One at the driver’s seat and another at the nose. The trailer had had 2 axles and the fenders on it matched the boat perfectly with the same sparkly flakes and in the well lit garage Billy half thought there were diamonds in the finish. Up at the front there was a big rubber piece mounted over the V of the hull. He’d never seen that before and wondered what it was for. He was so intent on studying it, he didn’t even realize his had had come to rest on the top cap and he was absent mindedly letting his fingers glide down the polished and smooth surface until he heard the door open. Quickly, he dropped his hand and put it in his pocket and did his best to look down at his feet quickly in the hopes that Mr. Will wouldn’t see.


Three minutes before, Ann had led William Baker deep just deep enough into the house to make sure Billy wouldn’t hear them talking and then turned around mid step and stopped William in his tracks. “William, I need about a dozen picture hangers so I can finish this hall. I want you to go to the hardware store and get them for me. But before you go, I want you to invite Billy over for lunch tomorrow at noon. And tell him to invite his Mother too. I think that boy doesn’t have a Dad around and I’ve noticed that his Mom hasn’t been home very much except at night ever since we moved in. It’s not right that he has to make his own lunch everyday and we’re going to change that.

When you invite Billy, I want you to ask him to come back over this afternoon if he can at about 3 o’clock and help you get that boat cleaned up. I don’t like it being all cluttered like that and he obviously was studying it just now. When you get back for the hardware store, I want you to help me hang these pictures and put away those winter clothes. That should give you plenty of time to go back out and meet Billy at 3.”

William had been so bombarded with orders that he realized his mouth was slightly open and he hadn’t blinked in too long. He took a breath in to start voicing his objections to getting involved with this “Billy” from next door, but just before he started to speak, he realized that just like the other kids that Ann had “adopted” over the years, this one was going to get adopted whether William objected or not. Matter of fact, whether Billy objected or not. Ann had decided. Mid-word, he changed it from “But” to “Be right back” as he reached for his keys.

Wannabe...

Chapter 5


William Baker had heard that determination in her voice many times before. There had first been Joe. Joe was the friend of the neighbor’s kids whose Dad died when Joe was in the 10th grade. Ann had seen to it that he was always included when manly things needed doing with William and that was even before they had kids of his own. Next was Tom, their oldest son Robert’s best friend. Tom’s mother died of cancer early on and Ann had stepped in to be his part time mother until Robert and Tom went off to college together. There were several others too, but most weren’t such long term adoptions like Joe and Tom. His initial reaction was to protest considering his current health, but quickly realized there was no point in arguing with her.

William stepped back into the garage and immediately saw Billy’s hand drop from the boat to his pocket. William noticed, but didn’t let on and tried not to make Billy uncomfortable about it. “Billy, I’ve got to run to the store for Mrs. Ann, and when I get back, I’ve got a few things I need to take care of, but I was wondering if you do me 2 favors.” “Sure, Mr. Will, I’d be happy to if I can”. “Well, we’ve gotten just about everything done in the house now, but this junky boat is bothering my wife and I could use some help getting it cleaned off and all this stuff put away. Would you mind meeting me back over here about 3 O’clock and helping me? I’m just not up to climbing up and down over and over and it would be a big help if you’d just get in the boat and hand me things down as I need them”. “Oh, sure I can do that. I’d really like to help you too”. “Great! The other thing, do you think you and your mother could come over for lunch tomorrow at Noon? We’d like to meet her and get to know you better too.” “Well, I’ll check with her, but I think she’ll be here for a couple of hours, midday tomorrow. I’ll check and let you know for sure when I come back over today.” “That will work. OK, I’ll see you at 3 then”. With that William Baker turned and walked Billy out of the garage towards his truck. “See you at 3 Mr. Will.”.

In all his years with Ann, he’d known her to be a patron saint of lost kids and he couldn’t remember a time where she’d made a mistake. She always had a knack for knowing what they needed and just when they needed it. Thinking about it now, she had the same knack for him as well. He just couldn’t shake the feeling that the timing was wrong this time though. Ever since his diagnosis, he had made it his task to making sure she’d have everything she’d needed after he was gone. The house was too big and too far out for just her and the land was more than she could care for. This city was closer to everything she needed and more central for visits to and from Susan and Robert with the airport just an hour away. And with the doctor bills really cutting into their savings, it just made good sense to downsize and re-prioritize some for her. William didn’t care where he died really. Made no difference to him, but he just couldn’t leave all those responsibilities for her to take care of. But this Billy just wasn’t in his plan. She would have enough to deal with in the coming years without adopting every little kid in the neighborhood. Then again….this was Ann. There would be no changing her mind now. Maybe like some of the others, she’d give him what he needed in short order so the boy could just move on in life. Still, he could see what attracted her to him in the first place: Skinny as a rail, unkempt, but polite as a preacher, interested and obviously without a rudder. Well, if this is what Ann wanted, then he’d see to it that it got done the way she wanted. He just hoped that his strength would hold out to get this job done so that after he was gone, there would be nothing left undone for her to deal with, which, was all he really wanted anyway.


Wannabe...

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Because you all are such a big bunch of whiners.........and because Wannabe... is draggin' his knuckles on adding new chapters........ here's HIS story so far

Chapter 6

Billy had just about pestered his Mom, Carol, to the point of saying no, but for some reason, she could hear the want in his voice. Maybe it was the 3 phone calls in 20 minutes just before the lunch rush. Maybe it was the eye her boss was giving her and she just said yes so he’d stop calling. She’d have just enough time on Wednesday to get home, get a few things done, clean up a little and walk over for lunch and still get a short nap before she had to be at the factory for her next job. At 41, she didn’t know how long she could keep this second job working at the restaurant 4 days a week, but the tips were good and she really needed it since her ex-husband was of no use at all. He wasn’t a bad man, but he just never grew up which was fine when they were in their 20s, but she had assumed with a son at home, he’d finally get it into gear but when Billy was born, he was off on a “trip” with his friends. She held out hope until Billy turned five, but finally had had enough. When she put the decision to Tommy, he chose to pack up and leave. It had been a struggle ever since, but she was determined to get by on her own. She never could put a finger on exactly why, but the path that Tommy was on was no good for her or for Billy. It wasn’t like he’d ever hit her, or ran around on her or was a bad father. It was more that he’d threaten to hit her and flirted more than he should and just wasn’t a particularly good father. In those last years, he seemed to find more and more excuses to be away from home, drank more and did less. At some point, Carol stopped making excuses for him and at some point after that, stopped expecting something different. It wasn’t a long trip from there until she stopped wanting something different. The final ultimatum was more of prayer for an end than it was a hope for a change.

Carol knew they were better off without Tommy. The trouble was Billy. He didn’t know he was better off without him. From 5 to 12, the visits became less frequent, then the calls became sporadic and now even the cards seemed to only come occasionally. Lord knows, the money never came at all. All of that was fine with Carol and if asked, Billy would say that was fine too, but she could tell, even when no one else noticed. Maybe even when Billy didn’t notice.

At 2:58, Billy knocked on the Baker’s door. Somehow, William knew that was going to happen and he almost caught himself smiling about it. Ann scurried to the door. “Why Billy, you’re right on time! Mr. Baker has been under my feet all day and I just can’t seem to get anything done with him in the house. I’ll send him right out to you. Did you talk with your Mom about lunch?” “Yes Ma’am. She said if it was OK with you, we’d come over at Noon tomorrow and that she was looking forward to it.” “That’s perfect! You tell her for me that I’m looking forward to it as well. Here comes Mr. Baker now” and she leaned down and into Billy’s ear so as to half whisper. “You make sure Mr. Baker doesn’t goof off and you get some work out of him OK? He thinks I don’t know that he comes to the garage to get out of housework, but I know. You just make sure he doesn’t make you do everything for him”. With that she gave him a wink and a sly smile. “Yes Ma’am, I will”, Billy whispered back. It wasn’t until he saw that wink and playful smile that Billy noticed how pretty Ann was….for an old lady anyway. And she smelled good too. That really would puzzle Billy later. Most old ladies smelled like old ladies to Billy. But Mrs. Ann was different somehow.

Wannabe...
Chapter 7

William Baker was almost looking forward to getting to know Billy, but at the same time was dreading going through all of the stuff in his boat. He’d planned and researched and tested and purchased for months on end and now it all just seemed so silly to him. All that time and money wasted on something he’d never get to use now. He’d even considered selling it all and being done with it. At least that way someone would get the enjoyment out of it that he had planned to. If it wasn’t for being so busy with the doctors, the treatments and the big move, he probably would have.

When he reached the door, Billy was almost vibrating with excitement. “Hey Billy, you ready to get started?” “Sure am Mr. Baker”. “Well let’s get to it then.” William directed Billy to climb into the boat and showed him where to step on the trailer, then the fender then the deck to climb in without slipping….or scratching the boat. He took his time and explained to Billy what the fore and aft was, which way was port and which was starboard and why they were called that. Billy drank it all in and William noticed that he was listening, not just peppering him with question like most kids do. William had Billy sit first on the aft deck and scoot over the boxes that were stacked there so William could look inside and decide where to put stuff. Most of these boxes were full of tools and spare parts. There was a prop, prop wrench and spare hub kit. Some tools in weatherproof cases. Spare fuel filters, spark plugs, test light and electrical meter. Then a whole box of electrical parts – wire, crimping tool, electrical connectors, dielectric grease tubes, fuses of every size. Next was a box labeled trailer. This box was heavy too and William warned Billy to be careful with that one so he wouldn’t hurt himself or the boat when he moved it. Inside was a complete hub assembly, and a bearing and race kit, a 4 way tool, blocks of wood, a grease gun and tubes of unopened grease, a trailer wiring harness and a tire pressure gauge. Of course, Billy had no clue what most of this stuff was, he was just concentrating on not dropping anything and studying what Mr. Baker was doing with it when he handed it off. He was also trying to focus on not asking too many questions just like he promised his mother he wouldn’t do.

William would take each object and would make a mental note of what needed to be done with it and either find a place for it on his pegboard in what was becoming the marine section of the garage of placing it on the floor of the shop in the spot that would normally be taken up by his wife’s car. He wasn’t sure why exactly, but he was separating what needed to be in the boat to make it ready to roll and what was considered a spare or suitable to be left behind for any trip. Occasionally, he would stop and explain what each item was for and why it was important to keep in the boat. Billy did the best he could trying to keep from asking too many questions, but sometimes couldn’t help himself and would ask a question about something he didn’t recognize like the hub kit and the blocks of wood when he noticed they both went in the ‘ready to roll’ stack and not in the marine section of the garage. By the time either had realized it and hour and a half had passed before they managed to clear the back deck and were almost done with the cockpit area. Next was the front deck and Billy noticed most of those boxes were labeled “Fishing” or “Reels” or “Line”. Then there were all the rods still in their plastic from the store. This was the good part he’d been waiting for.

“Cookies and drinks” Mrs. Baker called as she opened the door. “I’ll just set them down here and you two can help yourselves when you get ready” And just as quickly as she did, she was gone again. Billy was almost disappointed, but the “drinks” part sure sounded good. It was warm out and even though Mr. Baker had the two fans mounted in the corners of the garage going, it still was pretty hot. “Come on Billy, I think we’ve earned a break”. Mr. Baker pulled a couple of chair up and flipped a milk crate over for a makeshift table between them and they both took their positions in the chairs with drinks and the cookies between them.

Wannabe...

Chapter 8

The questions started slowly as they took their break. From their position in the garage, that motor was just begging for more explanation and that shiny metal thing it was attached to didn’t make any sense without a question or two. William Baker would have been content to just cool off, drink and munch, but he quickly found himself explaining things in great detail to Billy and quickly got himself wrapped up in the excitement of talking about something he loved to someone who was excited to hear about it. It wasn’t long before they both left the home made chocolate chips and sweet tea in frosted glasses with sugar on the rim behind and were up and walking around the boat. Mr. Baker would explain the function, purpose and how the accessory worked and that would prompt another question which would lead to more explanation. Before they knew it another hour had passed by the time they made it all the way around the boat and they were both hot again. They made their way back to their chairs and took up their positions again. A couple of minutes and a few cookies later Billy asked “Mr. Baker, that boat looks brand spanking new, but you said you’ve had it for 2 years. How come?” “Well, Billy, you see I’m sick and I just can’t take it out on my own”. Billy thought about it for a while and said, “You don’t look sick Mr. Baker, what’s wrong?”

Mr. Baker had answered this question so many times he was sick of explaining it to people and tired of talking about it. It was what it was and no amount of talking about it would help any. Then again, that wasn’t Billy’s fault so he couldn’t just dance around it like he did with most folks that weren’t worth the effort. “Well Billy, I was diagnosed 2 years ago with cancer of the Prostate”. Billy sat and thought some more. He’d of course heard of cancer and knew it was bad, but he had no idea what a prostrate was or where it was. Mr. Baker could tell he didn’t quite get it, but one of the things he liked about Billy was his ability to know when to talk and when not too. His boss had that quality for the 15 years he worked under him and was probably the only reason he was able to put up with him for all that time. Mr. Baker could tell Billy was content with what he’d told him so far, but still had questions, but wouldn’t be so bold as to come out and ask them. Yep, this Billy was a keeper.

William Baker started out slow explaining when it began and his symptoms, then the diagnosis and the treatment. He was careful not to put in too many details, but enough to sufficiently explain everything. William didn’t like talking about it, but about half way into his story, he noticed how good a listener Billy was and that made it easier on him. Still, he didn’t like all the details and skimmed most of them and spent more time talking about his movements and the decision to move Ann here and downsize their belongings more than about his cancer. When he’d come back around to a couple of weeks prior to now, the just kind of stopped in the story. Billy just sat there silently. He knew there was more and that Mr. Baker would finish, but anything Billy could say wouldn’t make it easier on him. William hadn’t really told his story recently and the family knew all the details. He reflected on his situation through out the telling of the story and couldn’t seem to find the words to tell the remaining part because he hadn’t had to actually speak it out loud to anyone up till now. “Billy, I finished my last treatment 6 weeks ago this Thursday. I have an appointment for a PET scan that morning. The PET scan will tell the doctors if there is any cancer left or if it has spread any where else. I haven’t told Ann this, but in the last 3 weeks, I haven’t been feeling all that well at all. I figure the cancer has either come back or it’s spread. If it has, I can’t go through another round of chemo therapy.” He stopped again. He’d made up his mind about that a while back when he was at his lowest point in the treatment. But he hadn’t said it out loud to anyone. Until now.

With that, the story was at its end. William didn’t have much hope of it turning out any other way. Billy sat quietly again. Mr. Baker wouldn’t be the first old guy he knew that died. Mr. Hamby down the street died 2 years ago from a heart attack, but that was quick and besides he was a pretty mean old guy anyhow. Billy remembered the time Mr. Hamby had yelled at his Mom when Billy used to ride his bike on the sidewalk in front of his house. Billy stared down at his feet, looked up at Mr. Baker and back down again. He probably hadn’t said 3 words throughout the whole story.

Mr. Baker just sat there too. He’d surprised himself with how much he had told the kid. Billy just made it easy. He was not sure if it was the heat or the telling of the story, but he was tired now. Billy looked up at him again and looked straight in Mr. Baker’s eyes. . There it was. William knew it would be coming at some point. The ‘I’m sorrys’, ‘I wish I could helps’, and the worst ones of all, the ‘Let me know if I can do anything for yous’. He normally greeted them with pleasantries and politeness. He couldn’t blame people after all. What else could they do? But deep down, those little sayings just made him mad. Billy said “Mr. Baker, I guess we better finish that boat then.” That was the point at which Mr. Baker fell in love with Billy, but Mr. Baker didn’t realize it just then.
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Wannabe...
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Chapter 9

William and Billy went back at it. Billy climbed back up on the boat and William noticed he’d remember what he’d been shown. Billy moved to the front deck and set up on the starboard rod locker and opened the first box labeled fishing. This was the part he’d been looking forward to but after the story he’d just heard, he wasn’t quite as upbeat as he was earlier. “What’s in there Billy?” “Looks like jig heads to me Mr. Baker. Lots of them”. “Oh yeah, that’s my spares and duplicates box. Scoot it over this way and I’ll get it. It’s heavy though”. Billy did as asked but had to reposition himself for enough bracing to scoot it over. “Billy, you ever fish much?” “Sometimes Mr. Baker, but I don’t have much stuff. My Dad keeps most of the fishing stuff at his place. There is a little lake through the woods that has some fish in it though. I’ve caught some bream and catfish and a couple of Crappie out of it”. That was about all William Baker needed to hear. “What do you use to catch them Billy”. “Well, I’ve got a little rod my Mom bought me and I’ve caught the Bream and Catfish on worms and grasshoppers that I find around the pond. All of the Crappie bit the grasshoppers though”.

Mr. Baker took the box and set it on the floor and started going through it. “Billy hand me that blue Plano bag over there”. Billy did and Mr. Baker started a new line of stuff on the floor. “Billy, what’s this little lake like?” “It’s pretty good sized. It’s got some fairly deep water in it I think. There’s some weeds around the edge and some old trees out away from the shore. I catch most of the fish about midway to the levee around some trees I can cast the cork out to.” “What about the water? How far down you can see?” “Oh it’s fairly dirty. I can see maybe 2 feet deep most of the time. I can take you back there to see it if you like.” “Well, maybe some time”. Billy felt bad about that last comment, but didn’t realize what it might mean to Mr. Baker when he said it.

Over the next 2 hours they carefully went through each box. Each box was chuck full of one style of baits just in different sizes and colors. Mr. Baker would stop every now and again and describe how each one was used and some even had stories connected about where they came from or how Mr. Baker used them on one particular lake at one time or another. Billy drank in every word. As William talked and Billy listened Mr. Baker was not up to 5 straight and neat rows of tackle and gear lined up on the garage floor. Just as Billy was moving the last box off the deck, his mother rounded the corner of the garage. “Hi Billy, I’m Carol, Billy’s mother” she said as she walked up to Mr. Baker. They shook hands and Mr. Baker introduced himself. “I hope Billy hasn’t been any trouble coming over here and your boat is about all he’s talked about since he met you and your wife” “Moooom” Billy managed. “Oh he’s been no trouble at all. Matter of fact he’s been a big help. I couldn’t have managed all this without him. I appreciate you letting him spend the afternoon with me.” Billy puffed up a little with pride when Mr. Baker said that, but tried not to let it show. “My wife has been itching to meet you, let me go get her”. Mr. Baker stepped inside and Carol moved over to the boat where Billy was sitting. “You haven’t been pestering the Bakers have you Billy?” “No Mom, I promise.” “Good, now we’ve got to get home pretty soon and get dinner and you need a bath so let’s finish up here and get going” Ann Baker stepped through the door and greeted Carol warmly insisting that she come in so they could talk and visit some. “Let’s let these boys finish up what they’re doing while we visit”. All Carol wanted was to get home after finishing work, but she couldn’t find a way to refuse.

After they’d gone in Mr. Baker said “Your Mom seems nice”. Billy half rolled his eyes and said “She’s OK, but she stays on my case a lot”. “I’ll tell you what William Brannon, I wish I had a Mom to stay on my case,” he said. “You’re lucky to have her and don’t you ever forget it”. The tone in which he said it made Billy sit up straight. “Yes sir” Billy said as he sat up. Later that night Billy would dwell on the way Mr. Brannon had corrected him and would decide he was in fact lucky to have her and that he needed to be more appreciative of his Mother.

“Now let’s finish up that last box,” Mr. Baker said, “so we can get you and your mother home”. Billy could tell that the curtness in his voice was already gone, but he worried he’d upset Mr. Baker somehow. Billy pushed over the last box. This one was full of odds and ends. Sun screen, batteries, pumps, old sunglasses. It was just a miscellaneous catch all box. Mr. Baker again set in on the floor and started through it. Billy managed up enough courage to ask “Is your Mother still alive Mr. Baker”. “No Billy, she died many years ago, but I’d give almost anything to see her again.” A few minutes later, Mr. Baker stood up and told Billy he’d be right back. Mr. Baker disappeared into the house and Billy was able to take stock in what all they’d accomplished. The boat was now completely clean and seemed even larger. The Marine section of the garage was now almost completely filled up with spare parts and baits and only a few things were still left in 2 cardboard boxes. All of the rods had been removed from their packaging and were lined up on 2 rod racks on the other side of the boat that Billy hadn’t noticed earlier. The 5 rows of miscellaneous tackle and gear was still lined up in the floor of the garage, but other than that, the garage was spick and span with everything in it’s place.

Mr. Baker, Ann and his Mom all stepped back into the garage with the ladies saying their goodbyes. Mr. Baker came back over to the boat and thanked Billy for all of his help and saying that he would be able to finish up from here. Billy climbed down and thanked Mr. Baker for letting him help and showing him all of the equipment and explaining so much about it to him and then he thanked Mrs. Ann for the cookies and tea. As they walked out of the garage Ann called to Carol “Don’t forget about lunch tomorrow. I’m really looking forward to it.” “Oh we won’t. We’ll see you at noon.”

Back at home, the next couple of hours were a flurry of activity for Carol getting dinner ready and clothes folded and put out for the next day. And before she could even think about getting a bath herself, she needed to pay the light bill and replace that light bulb in the bedroom. To make matters worse, Billy kept getting distracted from his chores while he recounted something that Mr. Baker said or describing that silly boat. Even as warm as it was in the house that night, Carol finally flopped in the bed at 11 and was almost asleep when Billy stepped in the door and said “Thanks Mom for letting me go over to the Bakers today. I love you. Good night” It occurred to Carol when she said “I love you too” that Billy rarely said thank you to her for much in the last couple of years. He was always polite, but sometimes he seemed to take her for granted. “Your welcome Billy. Good night.”


Wannabe...

Chapter 10

The next morning Carol was gone by 5 AM, but today she’d have only 5 hours to work at the diner and still would have time for lunch with the Bakers before heading out again to be at work by 2. Before she left, she checked in on Billy and noticed his room was picked up more than usual. It still wasn’t clean exactly, but she could tell he spent some time on it last night.

Billy resisted the urge to run over and see what Mr. Baker was up to when he got up. Around 8 he noticed Mrs. Ann leaving in her car and it wasn’t much longer before Mr. Baker drove off in that big diesel too. Great, now how was he supposed to pass the time. Billy thought back to the project he’d started last night and decided that was as good a way as any. It wasn’t exactly fun, but it did manage to pass the time. He didn’t even realize how late it was when his Mom walked in the door yelling his name and telling him to hurry up, they didn’t want to be late. Ann threw her things down, picked up a pie off the kitchen counter and herded Billy down the hall and out of the door.

They walked past the garage and to the Bakers front door. Ann greeted them and hugged Carol and Billy as if she’d know them all their lives. Mr. Baker was busy in the kitchen, but managed to pop his head around the corner to say hello to them. Ann took Carol into the kitchen and soon sent Mr. Baker back to the living room to be with Billy. They chatted and talked fishing while the ladies put the finishing touches on lunch. Soon they were eating like kings on what seemed to Billy to be a feast. The conversation during lunch was more about getting to know each other than anything else. Billy just ate and tried to keep quiet while concentrating on not spilling anything on the white table cloth. They talked about where they were all born, his Mother’s jobs, Mr. Baker’s work and their kids. Soon lunch was over and Ann insisted on sending the boys out to the garage so she and Carol could visit some more and so the boys wouldn’t be in the way. Mr. Baker seemed relieved and so did Billy so they didn’t put up much of a fight. This was all a bit too formal for the both of them.

Mr. Baker motioned for Billy to come with him and they stepped out to through the utility room to the garage. Billy was amazed that Mr. Baker had completely finished everything since he was over the day before. All of the gear on the floor was gone and the peg board was even straighter and more precise that it was yesterday. Even the cardboard boxes were gone and had been replaced by some plastic storage bins with drawers. But the boat was cluttered up again with some tackle and rods and some odds an ends. “Mr. Baker, can I help you finish cleaning the boat?” “I was hoping you would Billy. Climb up there and hand me all that stuff”. Billy did and one by one handed over the 2 spinning rods and reels, a large tackle bag that was heavier than it looked and 2 plastic bags of loose stuff. With each hand off, Mr. Baker created a little pile on the garage floor. Then walked over and turned on the fans and pulled up the two chairs. “Billy come on down here and lets look at this stuff”. Before he did, he took a moment to marvel at the boat they’d cleaned off. It seems like you could land a plane on the front deck and still have room for the helicopter on the back now that it was cleaned off.

They took up their positions in the chairs and Mr. Baker leaned over and grabbed the spinning rods. “Billy, I want you to take this stuff home with you.” “No Mr. Baker, I appreciate it, but I don’t think I can do that.” “Why not Billy?” “Well, I don’t want you to think I was helping you just so I could get stuff, besides, my Mom wouldn’t like me taking it.” “Well Billy, Ann and I talked to your Mom about it yesterday and she said it’d be fine with her. You’ve seen how much junk I’ve got and you know I’m never going to get to use it.” He paused for a second to check to make sure Billy understood what he’d just said then went on. Billy did. “I’d rather you take it and use it to catch every fish in that lake back there with it and then come and tell me all about it. Besides, if you don’t take it, I’m just going to throw it all in the corner and let it rot.” Billy slumped back in his chair and furrowed his brow. He glanced down at the pile, up at Mr. Baker, then back to the pile. A few moments passed and Mr. Baker sat patiently. Billy’s brows eased and a smile started and continued to grow. “Mr. Baker, I will take this stuff. I’ll take it and do my best to clear out that lake with it. Thank You. Thank you so much.” “Billy, I can’t accept your thanks. The only thanks I want is for you to come and tell me about the fish you catch with it and I want every detail from every trip back there. Promise me.” “Oh you can count on me Mr. Baker. I promise”. The grin on Billy’s face would stay would be one of the things that kept coming to mind to him on the day he died. “I’m sure you will Billy. Now, let’s go through all of this stuff and let me show you how to use it and how these reels work.”


Wannabe...

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And just cause ya'll are being so nice to me and encouraging me about the FJ this weekend, here's a twofer for ya. But I'm warnin' ya...I don't want to hear any crap about not posting anything on Friday.

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And just cause ya'll are being so nice to me and encouraging me about the FJ this weekend, here's a twofer for ya. But I'm warnin' ya...I don't want to hear any crap about not posting anything on Friday.


Chapter 11.

Back in the house, Ann and Carol finished cleaning up and settled back down at the table to visit like only ladies can visit. Ann started with gentle questions: Tell me about Billy. What about your work? Etc. Then went deeper: Are you divorced? Where is your Ex-husband? Etc. She managed, as only Ann could, to get a deep understanding with only a few questions and let Carol fill in the blanks. Ann was so easy to talk to and Carol had so little time to really talk to another woman since her Mother had died 5 years ago that Carol poured out like a tea pitcher before she knew it. Before it was over, Carol has relayed her entire history, the struggles she had to make ends meet and the exhaustion she felt trying to keep them tied together. And on top of it all, there was the ‘man stuff’ that need to be done. The A/C was on the fritz and the leaking faucet and just about the time she managed to fix one thing, another would break. When Carol had talked herself to the point where it started to make her sad, Ann jumped in and changed the subject to her and Mr. Baker.

“Carol, I’ve got to tell you something. The reason we moved here is William. We don’t think he has long.” Ann went on to recount the entire story all the way to the point of his pending PET Scan Thursday. Carol sat quietly listening. Embarrassed that she had been so caught up in her own troubles. “Carol, I need your help” “Anything,” Ann said. And she meant it. “William thinks that I don’t know, but he’s given up on getting better. He’s convinced himself that he’s going to die and he’s going to do it soon. Truth is, maybe he will, but I don’t want him to give up before it’s time. He’s always needed something to work towards and up till now, I’ve been able to provide it for him. The last 6 months, it’s been this move. But now that we’re settled in, he thinks he’s finished. That everything is done and I’m taken care of and that he can just lie down and die. I’m not going to have it.” She paused and cleared her throat and wiped a soft tear. “What can I do to help Ann? Just tell me”. “Well, it’s Billy. He needs something or someone to focus on. He likes Billy too. And he doesn’t like many kids these days. If you will, would you please let Billy spend some time with William? I mean, just let Billy come over and visit and let them piddle in that garage. And I’ll make sure that Billy is always safe and where he’s supposed to be when you need him. I can help look after him and help you when you need to work too.” Carol held up a hand to stop Ann before she went any further. “Of course Ann, I’ll make sure Billy stops by any chance he gets and I’ll let him know that he can come over any time he wants. To tell the truth, you and William are Godsends. Billy’s at an age where it won’t take much to get him going in the wrong direction and without his Dad around.....” She let that last sentence trail off without finishing it. Deep down, she wasn’t sure that having him around right now would be such a good thing if she stopped to think about it. “Ann, you have my word, we’ll put these two together as much as possible and if things don’t go well with William, it won’t be from our lack of trying”.

Ann hugged Carol and tried not to break down. “Ann, I’m sorry, but I have to leave for work now. Thank you so much for lunch and for everything.” “No, Thank you Carol. Thank you.” The two hugged and headed out through the garage. The boys were deep in discussion over the merits of solid body tubes verses hollow body tubes when the girls stepped through the door. “Billy, I have to leave for work now, but you can stay here with Mr. Baker and Mrs. Ann as long as you don’t get in there way. You’ve got leftovers in the frig and I expect you to be bathed and in the bed no latter than 9 tonight. We’ve got to get up early and do the grocery shopping.” Ann paused to let Billy do is normal whining about taking a bath and the early bed time. “Yes Ma’am and I’ll be sure not to leave a mess in the bathroom again”. Carol’s eyes went wide. She half smiled and cut a glance at Ann. “Well…….oh….Ok then, I love you and I’ll check in on you when I get home” “Love you too Mom”. Carol blinked again. Really hard. She had to leave 5 minutes ago and she’d cry about it on the way to work when she had the time. “Mr. Baker, thank you for lunch. And please don’t let Billy get in your way.” “Oh, he’s not trouble at all Carol, I’m happy to have him around.” “Mom, did you really say Mr. Baker could really give me this fishing stuff”. “Yes Billy, but it sure is a lot, are you sure it’s OK Mr. Baker?” “Oh sure, it’s just some stuff I was going to throw away anyhow” That wasn’t true of course, but a little fib wouldn’t hurt anyone he thought to himself. “Well, if you’re sure then. Yes, you can keep it Billy, just be sure to take care of it.” “Yes Ma’am” There was the Ma’am again. Good thing is was a full 30 minutes to work. Ann and William watched Carol leave.

“William, Billy, ya’ll put that stuff away for now. William, go grab your tools, I’ve got some things I need you to do. Billy, would you mind helping William with some chores?” “I’d be happy to Mrs. Ann”. Good, I’ll make a list and you go change into some clothes that you can get dirty in. “Yes Ma’am” and Billy lit out for his house. “We’ve got to be at the doctor at 10 AM in the morning so I want you to go over and check on Carol’s air conditioner and get Billy to show you which one of their sinks is leaking. Now, don’t do anything to strenuous, but see what needs to be done to that A/C and go ahead and fix that sink. She flashed a smile at William and planted a big kiss on his cheek while she hugged him. Then spun on her heels and left William standing there not even giving him a chance to say yes, no, huh, wait a minute or anything.

Wannabe...
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Chapter 12

William just smirked to himself and turned for his tool box and bag. Hmmm…Better get my meter and test light….might need a pipe wrench….probably need my pressure gauges…he thought as he loaded the bag. Just as he loaded the last item, Billy re-appeared. “Well Billy, looks like we’ve got some fixin’ to do”. “Great. What needs fixing Mr. Baker?” “Well, Mrs. Ann wants me to go over and take a look at your air conditioner and said something about a sink”. “Oh…OK. It has been getting hot in the house lately. And the sink in the kitchen drips and I think Mom said there is a leak in under the cabinet.” “Well, we best get moving if you’re gonna go fishing today.” Billy grinned as big as ever. “Let’s go then”.

Billy led the way and William followed right into the kitchen. “See that drip there, Mr. Baker?” Billy opened the cabinet and pulled all the cleaning stuff out for William. “Right there. See how it’s been dripping and stained the cabinet? Must not be much of a leak, but it is dripping some”. “OK Billy, that doesn’t look to be too much to fix. We better have a look at that A/C now. Billy, you ever do any fixing?” “Not really Mr. Baker. I don’t really know how most stuff works. Just never really had anyone to show me.” “Well, we can fix that too. OK, where is your thermostat and your fuse box?” Billy showed him the fuse box and then the thermostat after Mr. Baker told him the thermostat is the ‘A/C on/off thingy’. Mr. Baker took the time to explain the why every house had a ‘fuse box’, what a circuit was, hot, neutral and ground and why there were different sized fuses…..at least a quick course on it anyway. He took extra care to emphasize how to be safe with electricity when you had some work to be done with it. At the thermostat, he explained how a mercury switch worked and pulled the cover off to let him see it as Mr. Baker moved the control arm. “Huh. That’s pretty simple Mr. Baker”. “Nothing to it really. OK, let’s set it to cool and go out and take a look at the unit outside”. Mr. Baker could hear it kick on and assumed it was just probably low on Freon or maybe had a leak.

Once outside, Mr. Baker could see no one had touched it in quite a few years. “Hmmm, look here Billy, the coil is filthy. No wonder this thing is not working like it supposed to.” What does the coil do Mr. Baker?” “Hand me that screw driver and go get the garden hose and I’ll show you”. Billy handed him a flat screwdriver and Mr. Baker explained the difference between a Phillips and a Flat and Billy took off for the garden hose. Mr. Baker removed the housing and exposed the coils showing all the dirt and leaf bits and explained how the Freon flowed through the unit and was cooled by the fan unit. Then he took the hose and sprayed it out. “Billy, this needs to be done at least once a year. I do mine twice just to make sure it’s operating efficiently as possible. Once in the spring when I see the first flowers and then again in the peak of the summer around the 1st of August because it’s usually gotten dusty by then and the pollen from the Spring would have built back up and made the dust stick to it. You need to make sure and do this for your Mom from now on. It’s one of the ways you can help your Mom out.” “Yes sir, I’ll take care of it from now on”. They finished the cleaning and Mr. Baker hooked up his gauges, explaining the theory of high side and low side and what the unit should be doing. “Well, there must not be a leak, something else is wrong. I still haven’t heard the compressor kick on”. “What’s the compressor?” Mr. Baker pointed it out again and explained what it does. “We better see if it’s getting power first. When your trying to fix stuff, it’s always easiest to start with the simple things and work up from there Billy”. Mr. Baker grabbed his meter and started connecting it here and there. He didn’t explain what he was doing though, other than to tell Billy that this was not something he should try because you had to be sure of what you were doing or that electricity would bite him like a Rattle Snake except the electricity wouldn’t let go right away.. Billy nodded and thought about that. He didn’t like snakes. “Yep, that’s the problem right there. The capacitor is bad. OK, you go into the house and turn the breaker I showed you off and we’ll get this fixed. Billy did as asked then came back out. “Billy, remember, always double check when working with electricity and I like to check 3 times. Mr. Baker reached over and threw the power switched mounted to the wall then showed Billy how to check for current with his meter. “That wall mounted box there kills the power to this unit…..or at least it’s supposed to if it was hooked up right. That’s the trouble, you can never be sure that someone else has done it the right way, so don’t trust your life on whether or not they did”. Mr. Baker threw the switch again and re-tested. Still no current. “This one was installed properly, but I’ve seen them where they weren’t. You see the trouble is that somebody may have done a repair down the road and bypassed that box and put current straight to the unit”. He turned the switch off again and removed the capacitor and explained how it worked and why it wouldn’t let the compressor come on. “OK, we know what’s wrong here, let’s get to that sink next.” The sink turned out to be a bad washer on the on the valve. The drain had just worked loose and only took ½ a turn with the pipe wrench. Mr. Baker explained every step of the way. “OK Billy, let’s run to the hardware store and get the things we need and we’ll be in business.”

Billy had never ridden in a truck as big as this. He felt like an over the road trucker and grinned the whole way there just listening to that Power Stroke chug the hills. Barely, he managed to resist the urge to ask Mr. Baker to honk the air horn. They walked in to the hardware store and the 3 guys behind the counter greeted Mr. Baker like a long lost cousin. Billy didn’t understand how they seemed to know him so well. “Who’s this fella with you Billy, your Grandson?” “Oh no, this is my next door neighbor, Billy Brannon”. “Well hey there Little Bill, nice to meet you”. Yep, Billy really liked this new nickname for sure now. Billy managed a smile and shook the man’s hand. Another guy slid a container of candy over to him and winked at him to let him know it was OK to swipe a few. Billy took a seat on the stool and started fishing out the good stuff. Mr. Baker showed the man what he needed and the third guy went to get the things for Mr. Baker from this aisle and that and brought it back. “I sure do appreciate it Tim”. Billy noticed Mr. Baker put 2 brand new 20 dollar bills on the counter and took his change. “No problem Billy, we’re just happy to see you out and about. The wife and I have been praying for you”. Billy winced a little. Mr. Baker did too. Billy hadn’t even thought about Mr. Baker’s appointment all day. “Thanks Tim. Ann and I appreciate it. I’ll see you guys soon.” “You be sure and bring your helper back with you when you come.” “You keep giving him candy and I won’t be able to get over here with out him.”

Mr. Baker and Billy drove back home, but didn’t say much. That was just fine with Mr. Baker. “This kid just knows when to be quiet”, Mr. Baker thought to himself. Back at the house, they installed the capacitor first and put the power back to the unit and it worked like new. The sink only took another 15 minutes and Billy could already feel the house getting cooler. “Well, that will do it for the day Billy. It’s 4 O’clock now. That gives you plenty of time to get back to that lake and catch me a story or two. Why don’t we gather up the tools and lock up the house and you take off. I better get back and check on Ann and probably ought to rest up for tomorrow. “Yes sir, I’m going to try those solid body tubes you showed me and I’ll be sure to come over as soon as you get back tell you all about it.” “Remember now, you promised.” “Yes sir.”

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