Brixl, wearing a decent casual shirt, covers his tats, tags tucked under it, followed Tom outside, carrying the metal pan. “You can put that there, son,” said Tom, pointing to a picnic table behind them. Brixl set it down, glancing as the door shuts behind him, dimming the sound.
Tom took hamburgers from the tray, laying them out on the grill. “Hope you don’t mind my not using gloves. We’re all family here.”
Brixl shook his head. “Nope, and thanks.” He held the pan out for Tom to take the burgers. “Bit nervous here, sir.”
Tom chuckled. “You’re nervous? I’ve never had to deal with something like this.”
“Same, but yeah; Red’s got a hellish big family, too.”
Tom again chuckled, more to himself. “I’m more used to telling the guys, ‘You’d better treat my daughter right or I’ll have to kick your ass.’ I’m getting a little too old for that kind of thing now.”
Brixl scratched his chin, thoughtfully “Going to treat him right. Not ahh…” Brixl flicked an eye back to the house, and back “..trying to rub anyone’s faces in anything.”
Tom glanced at the grill, then faced Brixl. “Listen. I don’t have a problem. Steve’s big enough, old enough, experienced enough to know what he wants.”
Brixl seemed to relax a bit as Tom speaks.
“And I’m a pretty good judge of character. So’s Mandy, regardless of what anybody tells you that she’s a crackpot artist.” Tom leaned in. “She’s happy. She’s on her own, doing what she loves. Not like the other one in there who’s an exact copy of her mother.” Then Tom looked back to the grill. “Is Steve happy?”
Brixl has been watching the grill, as he listened, here he noded, once, almost right away. “Yeah. Me too. Not that we’re happy all of the time? But not unhappy about each other. Err, know what I mean?” Brixl added, “Think he’s really happy to be with me. Heaven’s know I am to be with him.”
Tom nodded. “I do know what you mean. Is he doing what he loves? You love each other, and you treat each other right?”
Brixl met Tom’s eyes “We do. Love each other and treat each other right.” Brixl let out a slow breath, as if listening to his own words. “Yeah.”
Tom focused on Brixl, trying to read through him. And what he saw confirmed what he thought when the man walked into the door, and confirmed what Mandy had told him last night. “He’s a good man, dad,” she had said when concluding their conversation.
Brixl then asked, “What do you know about me?”
Tom recalled last night’s conversation with his daughter. “You’ve been in the service, too, Marines. You’re a mechanic. And supposedly you’ve got a great sense of humor.” He smiled a bit, “That’s according to Mandy.”
Brixl smiled hearing that “Mandy’s amazing. And yeah, marines. Lot’s of action, front line stuff. Now a mechanic. An honest one, and that is not easy in ld Detroit. Bikes mainly, but othertstuff too.”
Then Tom sighed, thinking about his wife. “You’re going to need that sense of humor, dealing with Janice. My wife. She threw out the invitation as soon as she saw it.” Tom flipped a couple of burgers saying, “But I know the date, and time, and I plan to be there. Don’t tell Steve.”
Brixl blinked “Deal.” They paused for a minute. “Can I ask something? ”
Tom said, “Yes?”
Brixl gathered his thoughts. “Like… hells, I am embarrassed if you folk think of what me and Red might get up to at home… ewww. But, when Red first went away and joined the picks and shovels – army – and then went to active duty? Did you and Janice watch the news, check each report from where he knew he was? Spend some of the time hoping “some losses” wasn’t him?”
Tom sighed. “God knows I did. Janice—“ He looked heavenward, “She’s the stoic one. She’d say no and say she trusted in God, but I know her better than that.”
Brixl paused, then nodded. “Yeah. My parents the same. Red -is- doing what he loves, with his work. It’s the same kind of thing. I’ve a small news feed running all the time at my shop. I die a bit each time there’s an incident. Only relax when he works in the door later. Know it’s different, but…” Brixl slowed, “Yeah, not easy.”
Tom realized that this man loved his son, just as much as he did. He exhaled slowly and whispered, “Yeah.”
Brixl shared that feeling with Thom a moment. “Do what I can to help out, make sure Red has -the- best gear, gets to work focussed, not worried about crap deals and all, you know?”
“I truly appreciate you taking care of him.” There was another awkward pause, and finally Tom screwed up his courage. “I just wanted to tell you, the most important thing.” He put a hand on Brixl’s shoulder and said intently, “Whatever Janice or Lizbeth do or say, don’t take it personally. As far as I’m concerned, you’re going to be just as much family to me as everyone in there.”
Brixl would -almopst- tear up an instant, maybe, he looked away, then back “Thanks, Tom.”
Thomas Cutter smiled, “At least while I have all my sanity, which they’re driving from me ever so slowly.”
Brixl smiled a bit “And you’ve no idea, sir, how much i appreciate you saying that. Not going to let you down.”
Tom gave him a wide, genuine smile. “Good deal, son. Now go on in there, get yourself a beer, and meet the rest of the family.
Brixl gave him a crooked grin, and a casual salute “Ooh-rah, sir!”
Thomas Cutter chuckled as he went inside. He checked the burgers again, and his heart felt twenty times lighter.