Like the morning before, Dick was the first to wake up. It was a Saturday, so this was normally the morning everyone slept in anyway. Dick was still living on an earlier time zone and hadn’t made the adjustment yet, so he was up hours before anyone else. He quietly made up a pot of coffee to save Jenny the trouble when she got up, made a few slices of toast with jam on them and then proceeded to go into the living room to watch the news. He liked to do a quick check to make sure the world hadn’t fallen apart yet. Dick sat there and just took things easy, keeping respectfully silent so no one would be disturbed by his wanderings. He again noticed the blue acoustic guitar in the corner of the living room and had become curious once more. Dick wanted to ask her about it, but knew it wasn’t the right time. He would have to wait to the get the answers that he sought. As he was surfing through the channels after getting bored of the news, Michael was the first to come down the stairs first. The young man walked over and sat on one of the easy chairs beside the couch Dick was veggin’ on.
“What’s up, mate?” Dick asked the young man.
“Not much.” Michael said, “Just woke up.”
“Would you like some eggs?” Dick offered.
“Sure, I guess.” Michael said as he was still trying to get a little more alert. “Just need a moment to really wake up.”
“Take your time.” Dick replied. “I’m dying to see if T-Dawg here is the father of Jessica’s baby.”
They sat there and watching junk TV until Gabe came down a half hour later. He walked over to the living room to see what was going on. “Do you really think shows like this are appropriate for a kid his age, Dick?”
“Do you think having a kid before you’re fifteen is?” Dick countered. “This show scares more kids into waiting than any other show on television. It teaches them how little they really know about women and that they’re not ready to sit at the big boy table.”
“After watching this, I never want to have kids.” Michael added.
“Checkmate,” Dick said with a smile as he leapt off the couch. “Time to hit the kitchen and make some breakfast.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Gabe told Dick as he motioned him to sit back down. “We can get something to eat on the way to the cabin.”
“I’m sorry, did you say the cabin?” Dick asked.
“That’s right.” Gabe answered, “I thought it might be nice to take everyone up to the cabin. Get away from the reporters, get a little privacy and just enjoy the great outdoors. Since Michael has a few days off, I thought this would be a perfect time to go out there and get the place ready and enjoy a few more days out there before the winter comes.”
“No offense dude,” Dick started, “But unless the place has cable and is within rage to have pizza delivered… that’s as close to ‘roughing it’ as I would prefer to get. I’m not sure if that’s such a good idea.”
“Dick,” Gabe started as he sat down on the sturdy coffee table in front of him. “This will be good for both you and Jenny. Just in case things don’t go perfectly as planned, it would be nice to be out in the middle of nowhere where there won’t be any witnesses. This will do you both a lot of good. Jenny likes going out to the cabin so do it for her.”
Dick didn’t like the idea one bit. The thought of being out of cell range didn’t appeal to him either but Gabe was right.
“Alright,” Dick said, “I’ll do it for Jenny.”
“Do what for me?” Jenny asked as she came down the stairs.
“Start packing.” Gabe said with a mischievous smile on his face. “We’re all going to the cabin for the weekend.”
“Oh, okay.” Jenny said without making a big fuss about it as much as Gabe was. “We should hit the grocery store on the way out. Pick up just the stuff we need so nothing gets left behind over winter. I’m not cleaning that stuff up again, okay?”
“That’s a deal,” Gabe said as he started to grab his stuff from the closets and the garage. Dick was watching Gabe as he was packing and there were certain things that made him a little nervous. Gabe looked up to see that Dick was looking at him. “What?”
“You’re packing lamps and flashlights.” Dick observed. “Is there no electricity at the cabin?”
“No, but we have a generator just in case it gets too hot or cold.” Gabe answered. “Don’t worry, Dick. I inherited this cabin from my Dad. He and I built it ourselves with our own hands. There’s nothing better than sleeping in something that you made yourself.”
“Your Dad was a handyman like yourself?” Dick asked as he watched Gabe continue to pack stuff up.
“Yeah, he was.” Gabe said with a sense of pride. “We really enjoyed the weekends out there. It was a time to bond, and get to know one another…”
“…and a time to get bored to death.” Michael added as he walked by with his own bagged packed. He had been out to the cabin before and the fact that it had no television, and no internet was too much for him to take. For the first time since the events that took place the day before, Michael now felt like he was truly being punished. Thankfully he had a plan to keep himself occupied, grabbing his portable game system along with some books in case he really got bored while he was out there.
“Hey, you liked going out to the cabin.” Gabe called back.
“Yea, when I was five.” Michael retorted.
“This is going to be fun; I promise!” Gabe kept saying.
“A lot of famous disasters started with the very line.” Dick said as he put together the small suitcase he had brought with him. He had a bad feeling about this trip, but he realized there was little choice. It he wanted to hang out with Jenny and Gabe, he’d have to jump through their hoops, not the other way around. As he walked out to toss his bag in the car, he realized that Gabe was putting all the things into his truck, rather than Jenny’s car.
“Isn’t your truck a little small for four people?” he asked as he handed the small suitcase to Gabe.
“Not really.” Gabe said. “There are four seats in the truck, but Michael only likes sitting in the back if he gets both seats to himself. So, to prevent any injuries or moments of road rage, we’re going to take both cars. Michael and Jenny are going up in her car. You and I will be trucking up with all the stuff, if that’s all right with you.”
Dick thought about it for a second. “I think that’s for the best. Last thing I want to do is have a fight break out in a confined space that’s going down the highway at a hundred miles per hour.”
“Good call,” Gabe said as he tossed Dick’s suitcase on one of the back seats. “We’ll make a stop at the department store just outside town to get supplies enough to last the weekend and then after getting a quick lunch we’ll be on our way.”
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“After what happened yesterday, do you mind if we get our lunch to go?” Dick asked. He didn’t mind the attention, but he knew Jenny didn’t like it too much, especially when she was eating.
“I think that can be arranged.” Gabe said as he walked back towards the house to get more stuff. “I’ll say is a time issue. She doesn’t like to drive in the dark so we can get away with that.”
“In the dark?” Dick repeated. “How far away is this place?”
“Not that far, but far enough.” Gabe said with a grin, and he hustled back into the house.
Less than an hour later, everything was packed except for food which was going to be taken care of on the way there. Gabe and Dick waved as Jenny and Michael left first, they would not be far behind and would be meeting them at the department store to get whatever they needed.
“You all set to go?” Gabe asked.
“Just curious,” Dick said as he jumped into the front passenger seat. “Why haven’t you invited Tom to join us?”
“To the cabin?” Gabe asked.
“Yeah.” Dick answered. “I’m sure he’d love to come along. Are you saying he never comes out for trips to the cabin to hang out with his bro and nephew?”
“I guess I could call him,” Gabe said as he thought about it.
Dick laughed as something dawned on him. “He’s already packed to go and just waiting for our call, isn’t he?”
Gabe turned on the ignition. “Yes, he is.”
After picking up Tom from his house it took less than an hour for them to drive to the department store that Gabe was referring to. Tom had spent the majority of that time talking about the Horsemen and asking questions on a true fan would know. Gabe didn’t mind and actually preferred that they get all this out of their systems now so Jenny wouldn’t have to hear much of it at the cabin. Finally, he pulled into a parking spot and turned the truck off. “Here we are … the super store. Where we can get everything we need all at once place. Everybody out.”
They all departed from the truck and proceeded to walk into the enormous super store. The department store had everything, even a built-in grocery store which explained why they preferred to come here while on their way up. Despite the whole big business thing Dick had an issue with, he could understand how convenient it was to get everything once and just get back on the road as soon as humanly possible. Dick was wearing jeans and a less light sweatshirt today to hide the tattoos on his people who might recognize them. He was also wearing sunglasses and a baseball hat. While it wasn’t the perfect disguise, someone would have to be looking very closely to see who it was. It was better than nothing as Dick was hoping not to be noticed this time around. Dick grabbed a cart and started to browse through the grocery aisles. It wasn’t long before he bumped into Jenny and Michael who already had their cart half full of the stuff they needed. He waved to the two of them.
“Come hang with me, Michael,” Dick called out to the young man, “We need to find some cool stuff to take up to the cabin.”
“Right on.” Michael said as he followed Dick down to the snack section.
They grabbed a variety of chips, crackers and even granola bars. Anything that didn’t need to be refrigerated since Dick didn’t know how much if any space there would be to keep things cool. Dick didn’t hesitate to grab some spicy chips, as he was hoping to get a case or two of beer to take up to the cabin with him. He didn’t drink too much, but he felt the need to grab the brews to help him if things got too slow. A few people stared at him as he walked buy but he was sure to not make eye contact and pique their interest in him. He finally made it to the cereal aisle and started to read a few boxes.
“What to get?” Dick thought to himself as he looked around.
“How about Captain Crunch?” Michael asked as he held up a box.
“Toss one in for yourself.” Dick replied, “But I need to find something a little better for me. My guts can’t handle that much sugar, I need something with less of it and more fibre.” Dick could hear a muffled chuckle from Michael, and he turned to face him.
“What?” he asked.
“It’s just weird.” Michael said as he dropped the cereal into the cart. “I’m not used to hearing you talk about normal stuff or even do normal things like shop for groceries.”
“To be honest, it’s been a while.” Dick confessed, “Usually, I pay someone to do this for me. That way I can’t be tempted to buy anything my doctors want me to stay away from.”
“You mean like all the snacks we just picked up?” Michael asked.
“You, your father, and your uncle are going to be eating most of that stuff.” Dick corrected him, “I’ll just enjoy a nibble every now and then.”
“I didn’t realize Uncle Tom was coming too.” Michael said.
“While I’m sure he respects your privacy, I’m willing to bet my being here has a lot to do with his eagerness to tag along this time.” Dick informed the young man as he tossed a much healthy cereal into the cart. “We need some pop tarts.”
While they were browsing around, Dick passed by an electronic section of the department store section and picked up a few batteries and some more flashlights for the darkness. He even picked up a novel or two for him to read, taking a page from Michael’s playbook. He walked by the section where the music was located and grabbed a few compact discs of the Horsemen and tossed them into the cart. He could tell by the look on his face that Michael was clear confused.
“You’ll see why I grabbed those later.” Dick said to him. “All will be clear.”
Gabe came by and dumped some stuff into Dick’s cart. “Nice to see you got some batteries, you’ll need them after the sun goes down.”
“Really?” Dick whined again as he didn’t really relish the thought. ‘Will there at least be a fire to keep us all warm?”
“Of course,” Tom replied with a smile. “We’re not cavemen.”
“Thank goodness for that.” Dick sarcastically commented as he continued to browse around with Michael. He went to the men’s section to pick up some clothes just in case what he had in the small suitcase wasn’t enough to keep him warm the entire weekend. He also grabbed some stuff that would be more appropriate for the situation. Sneakers instead of expensive Italian loafers, t-shirts, and other regular stuff so he could fit in a little more as just one of the guys. Even Michael picked up a few new shirts for himself and a new pair of shoes so he wouldn’t have to risk ruining the ones he liked wearing to school. As they went to checkout, Dick could feel the eyes on him, even though most of it was likely paranoia. Finally, they all made it to the checkout together, and Dick plucked out his debit card and turned to the cashier.
“Hi there,” Dick said with a warm smile, “I’m going to be taking care of both these carts.”
“You don’t have to do that, Dick.” Gabe said.
“Relax sport… this is a drop in the bucket.” Dick reminded him, “It’s the least I can do since I’m going to be hanging out with everyone else.”
Dick handed the young lady his card and she looked at it for a moment. Gabe had just called him Dick, and the card said Richard Mitchell. She looked up at the man standing before her, and while the tattoos on his arms were well covered, she could see a portion of the tattoo on his neck, and she couldn’t believe who she was looking at.
“Hi there.” Dick said again, “We’re in a bit of a hurry.”
“Sorry about that, Sir.” She said as she started to ring through all the items from both carts. “I’m just a very big fan.”
“I can tell.” Dick said with a smile. “Only the good fans can see through this disguise. He grabbed one of the Horseman discs from the card and handed it to her. “Ring this through for me and hand it back.” As she did that he pulled out the pen that he always keeps on him to do autographs. It was one of those expensive pens that he only had to replace on a yearly basis and rarely ever lets him down. “Here’s the deal. I’m going to sign this after I buy it and give it to you as a gift. All you have to do in return for this gift is to keep quiet and not tell anyone I was here until we’re long gone. Deal?”
“Yes Sir, deal.” She repeated back to him very excited as she rang the CD through and gave it back to Dick.
“Thanks Marsha.” Dick said as he winked to her while signing the CD.
“How did you know my name?” Marsha asked, still somewhat star struck but the moment.
“It’s on your uniform.” Dick said as he pointed to her vest. “Here you go. Now don’t say anything until we’re gone, and I promise to come back the next time I’m in town, okay?”
“Have a great day.” Marsha replied, acting as normal as she could to the point where it looked weird to everyone else working there.
Tom and Gabe let Dick jump into the truck and disappear while they unpacked the carts into the back. No one came running out thank goodness, but Dick was eager to get back on the road. Jenny and Michael waved as they went to the car and moments later, Tom and Gabe were back in the truck.
“All set, Dick?” Gabe said as he started the engine.
“I’m dying with anticipation.” Dick sarcastically answered.
“That’s good enough for me.” Gabe said as he started to pull out of the parking lot. He was excited to get everyone down to the cabin. If Jenny and Dick needed a place to loudly get something off their chests, there wasn’t a better place to do it. Out in the middle of nowhere, with no witnesses to tape it and sell it to TMZ for some hard cash. There would also be no reporters or paparazzi there to take a million photographs. Just the two of them and nature, the way things should have always been Gabe thought to himself as they all finally got back on the road.