A Life Afloat (Maybe)

Chapter 24

At Alec's request, and with a look of surprise on his face. Pete went to join him in the aft seating area. As he took his seat, he frowned a little, and then asked Alec if he had done something to upset him? Sitting there uncomfortably, fidgeting, he added that if he had, he deeply apologised. With a gentle, slightly sad looking smile, Alec tried to put him at ease. "No! No! It's nothing like that. In fact, it's completely the reverse", Alec said quietly. "Sit still for heaven's sake, will you! You're making me more nervous than I should be", he complained. "Peter! Just listen, will you! I'm trying to be really serious for goodness sake". "Over the past weeks, you have become the true friend that I had craved for, but never had". "You really have become a large part of my life". "Knowing that you were around, asking for nothing", "Apart from knowledge", he added, with a big smile. "I could not have wished for anyone better". "I know you arrived. Out of the blue, one morning". "Just wandering around, with an inquisitive manner". "We talked in general about boating", then, with a bit more conviction. "On sailing, especially a yacht like this one". "That's very kind of you". "It's a friendship, that I, too, value greatly". "Far more than you realise", Peter interjected.

With a big smile on his face, Alec growled, "Don't interrupt! Breaking my trend of thought won't help". Still, with a large and very happy smile on his face Alec went on to say, "As you know, my Rose is in a pretty bad way". "From what the doctors say, she will never be well enough to leave the Nursing Home". "As you will understand, this leaves me with quite a few life changing decisions to make". "In some ways, I feel that I should pack up and move to a new home. Closer to where my Rose is staying". "Not a decision, that I'm ready to make just yet". Pete broke into Alec's words, with a very quick "But Alec, Rose is your wife! And from what I have seen, you idolise her, you must be with her", with his usual chuckle, but somewhat subdued, Alec continued, "I knew you would say something like that!", "And in some ways, I agree with you". "However, I'm not sure that is the right thing to do, just yet!". "Why on earth not?" was Pete's immediate question. "It really is quite difficult to explain. Every time I have been to see her, it breaks my heart". "Such a vibrant, active, energetic, enthusiastic woman", a long pause then "Reduced to what is nothing more than a shell, a body". "With all its vital organs pounding and beating away. As if all were well", and then, with a real crack in his voice, "But! No Rose, the wonderful person that I still worship", "She! She no longer exists", "My Rose is no more". "All I have, are the glorious, wonderful memories of our life together", "THOSE! those! Are with me, here!" Tapping the side of his head to make the point, "With me when I visit her! With me when I'm at Dons' place". "What is not here, here with me, and never will be, is Rose". "THAT! That is a hole that will never be filled!", "No!", "Never!", "My Rose can't be replaced, or rebuilt", "It may be a crazy thing to say". "But it is something that I am beginning to believe", "Now! I truly believe that her very soul has been destroyed".

A long and heavy silence followed those profound words. Words that to Peter, seemed to come from deep-down in Alec's persona. Moved beyond words, Peter found himself unable to say a single thing, so affected had he been by Alec's utterances. Slowly, the gentle smile, that Peter was so used to seeing on Alec's face, reappeared. "Sorry," Alec said quietly, "there are times when I get too emotional". "With you around, I seem to be able to vent my feelings and frustrations". "Knowing that you will not be offended by my outbursts". "That's what I mean when I say you are the true friend that I have needed", "but never had until now". It was then Peter's turn, to make a somewhat similar confession. "Like you, for a long time, I have been short of a really true friend". "Over the years I have had friends that were no more than working acquaintances". Guys I met while driving that taxi, spoke to them every day". "But they never became the person I could sit down and talk to", "the way I do with you". "It's been somewhat of a revelation to me", "I hadn't realised that I was that lonely", "I just felt, that for all these years. I have simply preferred my own company". "Now! having someone to talk to, to share feelings, hopes, dreams with". "A whole new world has opened before me, and I have you to thank for that".

Looking across at Peter, Alec, with his usual large grin, suggested that they have a drop of the hard stuff to calm their minds. Agreeing, Peter told him that it was the best idea, that he had made all day. Smiling as one, they moved below decks into the galley where Alec produced both the glasses and the Armagnac. Which they had sampled, with great pleasure once before. When they had anchored out on the bay some little time ago. Pouring more than generous measures, Alec took his place opposite Peter. Sitting in the small cabin, which was beyond the galley, they both nursed their glasses, seemingly not wishing to break the silence that had come upon them. It was Peter who broke the silence, with a laugh in his voice, after taking a large sip from his glass he said, "OK! Alec, I can see from your face, that now we have cemented our friendship". Peter raised his glass in salute, "YOU! You have more on your mind, that you wish to say to me!". "Out with it! before the Armagnac consumes me and numbs my mind!". With a look of consternation, which was quickly followed, by his own laugh. Alec raised his own glass to return the salute and took a very large sip of his Armagnac. "Very perceptive of you, to notice that!". "You surprise me more and more, every time we sit and talk." Alec's next question caught Peter off guard, "Got a spare fiver you can do without?". "What? Now!", "Yes! if you can spare it" was Alec's grinning response. "For sure" was Peter's similarly, easy, grinning response. Pulling his old leather wallet out of his rear trouser pocket, he eased out one of the well-used five pound notes that hid there, placed it on a small table that sat to one side, "What next?" he asked Alec, who told him "Relax, bide your time", "there's more to come".

"As you know", Alec started, "My Rose is a fair distance away from me". "I mentioned to you before", "that I feel that I should be up there, with her". "That I should move up there, to be near to her". "I've decided, after all, that I need to spend more time up there", with a chuckle, "So I've bought a very old, worn out, one bed-roomed cottage". "Just so that I don't have to stay with my son". "Who, as you know, I don't get on with at all". "It will give me something to do while I'm up there, tart it up a bit, refurbish it". "Pass the time between visits, that sort of thing". Pete thought it was time he said something, so he butted in, saying that he thought it was a good idea, that, he, Alec, needed to be with his wife. ""Mm!" was Alec's only comment, after a long pause, he went on, "Leaves me with a bit of a problem, well, a couple of problems really". "A cottage that both Rose and I love", with a rueful smile, "it's the best home we've ever had". "The most comfortable and relaxing home ever!". "So many wonderful memories are in there". "It is our home, mine, and my Rose". Chuckling once more, "That cottage will not be sold", "Much as my son want's me too". he said emphatically. "Same as this old girl," he said patting the yachts' bulkhead, "Though I did say some time ago, that it was time to let someone younger have the fun of owning her". "But I've changed my mind".

He reached across, picked up the five pound note that Pete had placed on the small side table earlier on, and with his grin bigger than ever, "You are sure you don't need this?" he asked a bemused Pete, "Yes! I'm certain" he said with a bit of a frown, wondering what Alec was up to. "Right then, it's too late for you to change your mind". Laughing even louder, he put the five-pound note in his own wallet, and then placed a white envelope on the side table in its place. "You can read the details that are in that envelope later, at your leisure". "When you get over the shock", with tears of laughter rolling down his cheeks, "You are now, part owner of this yacht!". "All drawn up and legalised by my solicitor". "All you have to do is put your signature. At the bottom of both copies", "One for you and one for me". "If you don't agree to it, it will make me very sad". "But I will give you your five pounds back and tear up the Letters of Agreement". "All I ask is that you read it very carefully before you make your final decision". All of that came as a complete and total surprise. A bolt out of the blue completely left of the field. He, Peter, had no idea, that that, was what, was coming.