Away From The Sun [Idalia]

[Cecil Wathen]

Autumn was on the way; he could feel it in the air. The days of short nights and warm days would be coming to a close soon, and the world would once more be bathed in the reds and golds and coppers of the new season. Cecil was very much looking forward to it, as he always did. Autumn had always been his favourite season, when the world was rich and colourful and everything was enjoying the last of the sun before winter took hold. The squirrels gathering nuts, the geese migrating, the pumpkins sitting heavy on their vines in the fields. Every year, something new to look forward to.

Cecil exhaled, smoke curling lazily into the warm air as he sat out in the little beer garden behind the bar. The smoker’s shelter was all ready for the upcoming season, the roof sheltering from the wind and rain with a heater making the worst of the cold bearable. It had taken so very long for Cecil to get the bar fully the way he wanted it to be, but it was getting there. With each passing season there were new repairs, new updates and new improvements. For the first time in many years, he had something to be truly proud of.

Mephit gave a bark of excitement, the always-cheery Kelpie snatching a tennis ball up off the ground as she started running laps around the tables and benches dotted around the garden. Cecil gave a quiet chuckle at her antics and took one last draw of the cigarette before stubbing it out and discarding it in the bin. He did so enjoy these lazier afternoons. “All right, c’mere missy.” Mephit bounded over, dropping the ball at his feet so he could send it soaring across the grassy area for her to chase. She had just bolted off after it when Cecil heard a noise coming from the doorway to the bar. Looking over to see whom it was, he saw the giant Dane before he saw the woman trailing behind it. “Idalia! It’s good to see you! How’ve you been? Is work treating you well?”

[Idalia Tsavaris]

Idalia was off and so it had been all she could do to keep herself out of her apartment. The air was cooling now, she smiled pleasantly remembering her college days down south where it would be sweltering until well into October. She had needed a break, it had been a long run this past week, not so much because of the actual weather, as she was looking forward to being a guest lecturer for the University of Vermont’s American Meteorological Society Chapter. She had been more than delighted to learn that they were interested in having her come talk about her career and the turns it had taken to get her where she was today. She hoped, some of the students would not follow in her footsteps. She had come back to this job in Vermont because she wanted to be close to her family again, she was always curious what she could have done had she been bold enough to be away from her family.

She was excited to see how Cecil’s new beer garden was coming, so she leashed up Ike and they went out. She knew the bar tender’s hours were as strange as hers, what with staying up until odd hours of the night. Respectful of that she went and her and Ike wandered the streets of downtown before arriving at Cecil’s bar in the early afternoon. It was still warm but there was a distinct chill in the air, Idalia herself had opted for jeans and a tee covered by a light jacket. Ike caught sight of the bar, he knew it well enough by now to know that it meant that they were going to see Mephit and Cecil. Ike just loved the two of them.

She let herself in and Ida looked to the open door in the back and let Ike drag her the rest of the way. She was tempted to let Ike go, but knowing the Great Dane he would make like a freight train toward Cecil, and well, though Idalia knew Cecil was strong, she was not confident that the Dane wouldn’t be able to know him over and possibly hurt him. Ike was starting to learn that he was huge and he had stopped leaping onto Idalia while she was on the couch, after he got a few painful shouts from her. They did still snuggle, but he just didn’t crush her anymore, which was great. “Hey-la Cecil!” She said raising a hand to wave. Ike pushed forward the last few feet and hopped his massive paws up on the bench to give Cecil a kiss, or twenty. “Ike get down,” she tugged, “I’ve been good, it’s work so its, eh.” She laughed. “This place looks great! I’m sure you’ll be busier than ever now!”

[Cecil Wathen]

It was odd sometimes, to think about all that he had gone through to get to this point in his life. He figured there couldn’t be many people who had travelled through a divorce, two major location changes and a PhD in sports tourism just to end up owning a bar. Whilst he did sometimes daydream about another life that he could have had instead, one of running a ski resort or adventure sports facility, he was proud of what he had achieved here. Sure the Churchkey was hardly comparable to some of the huge, fancy clubs in New York or London, but it was his and it was comfortable and welcoming, and he was content enough with that.

Besides, it was nice sometimes to take a skiing or surfing holiday without the trials of working there and having to run the place.

The Welshman’s face split into a grin as Ida and Ike appeared, and he waved back at them as they stepped out into the beer garden. He had grown rather fond of the weather woman and her oversized bundle of cuddles in the time he had known them, and it was always a pleasure when they stopped by. Cecil laughed at Ike’s very enthusiastic greeting and gave the Dane a vigorous rub on the shoulder. “Hey Ike; I missed you too, buddy.” He smiled and laughed softly at Idalia’s compliment about the place. “Thanks, I’m pretty proud of how it’s turned out. I guess it’s good that I got the garden finished off just in time for winter.” He gave a playful roll of his eyes at himself. Still, it gave the place time to bed in properly before it would get a lot more use next summer.

Mephit finished scurrying after the ball and spun around to see Ike. The Kelpie charged over to greet her friend, tail wagging furiously and excited barks coming out muffled around the ball that she was carrying. She play-bowed in front of him, batting with her paws in excitement. Cecil laughed and smiled at Idalia. “You can let him off, if you want. The gate’s locked, they can’t get anywhere.”

[Idalia Tsavaris]

Life never quite went on as planned, it seemed that there was always a grander plan. Idalia had applied for grad school, quite certain that she had no idea what she wanted to do with her life. She’d gone to get her PhD because it seemed like the next logical step. Then when she had been trying to figure out what she wanted to do after graduation this job offer came across her desk. Though broadcast had been something she had dabbled in undergrad she hadn’t thought that she would ever actually pursue a career but being so close to the university made the decision easier. She could never have done what Cecil had done, she really admired him. He’d done something risky and it had worked out in his favor. For Idalia the uncertainty was just a little too much.

“You’re his favorite person,” Ida told him with a warm smile. No one could quite get Ike as excited as Cecil but that was of course until Mephit came over. Ida laughed, “It’ll give you time to plant and who knows if you get a few space heaters or a fire pit you might have people lingering out here,” she said as she looked around. A smile grew on her face, though of all of the things to mix alcohol and fire probably wasn’t the best of decisions. There were a lot of evergreen plants that could grow, but this was Vermont and sooner rather than later they would be buried under the snow for another winter. “I’ll be sure to call you and give you a heads up when we see the first snow starting up.”

Ike nearly pulled her arm out of her socket as he leapt over the bench to meet Mephit. “Alright,” she agreed after a moment of thinking. She reached and unattached Ike’s leash and the huge Dane jumped toward Mephit. She chuckled, “I swear I wish I had that much energy,” she said and dropped onto the bench next to Cecil. “How have you been Cecil?” She asked, “You’ve been taking time off, haven’t you?” She raised a brow, in his own way Cecil was as much a workaholic as she was, it was always good to remind each other to take time off.

[Cecil Wathen]

Cecil laughed lightly as Idalia mentioned that he was Ike’s favourite person. He was fond of the big goof and it had been such a great privilege to watch him slowly improving under Idalia’s care. Sure he was unlikely to ever be an obedience champion, but compared to how he had been the first time they met, he was practically a saint. Cecil felt truly grateful to have been able to watch the Dane grow and flourish, and was proud of Idalia for keeping on working with him and not just giving up because it was difficult. “I bet I’m not; surely he loves you far more.” He chuckled, lightly ruffling the gigantic hound’s ears. “Besides, if he really does love me, it’s only because when he sees me he knows he gets to play with Meph.”

As Idalia spoke about the possibility of getting heaters outside, Cecil nodded. “Yeah, that’s already in the works. They’ve arrived, I just have to find the time to install them. Hopefully then people won’t complain as much when I kick them outside to smoke.” He gave a nod of his head over to a corner where three large ceramic plant pots were neatly stacked. “I’m thinking of planting some winter flowers in them. If they’re kept under the shelter it’ll keep the snow off them at least, and give a bit of colour out here.” Cecil smiled warmly when she said she’d let him know when the first snow was on the way. “Thanks, I appreciate that.”

Mephit was clearly thrilled to see her friend and dropped the ball to bark excitedly at him, but as soon as Ike was set loose she snatched it up again and charged off like a little ball of lightning across the grass. Cecil laughed. “Just having half that much energy would do me, honestly.” When Idalia asked if he’d been taking time off, a rather guilty look crossed the Welshman’s face. “Ahhh… not really. I’ve just been so busy, y’know? Between getting this sorted and making some updates to the kitchen and this and that, I’ve not really had time for time off. How about you? Have you been getting as much downtime as you deserve?” Then he remembered his actual manners. “Oh, sorry. Can I get you a drink of something? On the house, obviously.”

[Idalia Tsavaris]

No, Ike was never going to be a model dog, but she was his and she loved him. Idalia would never give up on Ike, not ever. She’d made a commitment to be his forever home and she wasn’t going to go back on this promise not when he had given her more than she had ever given him. Though Cecil might disagree Ike was the best dog in Idalia’s eyes. Idalia smiled and looked at the dog and she rubbed his back. Ike barked in playful distress, shaking his head out and flopping his ears all over when Cecil messed with them. Idalia giggled and patted his back. He was such a wonderful addition to her family, she had no regrets, though she was starting to think that it wasn’t fair to him that she was gone so much. “Well, maybe that’s part of it,” she relented, “But you’re a close second.” She gave her friend a wink.

“Well, there you go,” she said with a bright smile, Cecil already had it all taken care of, she should have known. He spent all of his time thinking of this. She wrinkled her nose and shook her head. “Well if they don’t want to have to go outside they can always quit,” she said, rather uncharitably. She wasn’t a fan of smoking. Her father smoked and her Papou, her mother’s father, had died of lung cancer and she couldn’t get her father to quit. She followed Cecil’s gaze and smiled. “Oh how lovely! It’s be like a little oasis in our snowy wasteland. Let me know if you need help, I don’t have a yard but I love planting!” She had a little set of pots she kept on her balcony. She used to have a few houseplants but they all met a premature demise in Ike’s younger years.

Ike chased after Mephit and they collided. Ike bowled the smaller dog over and they both tumbled around play nipping at each other. Ida laughed and nodded in agreement. She didn’t know where it all came from. She’d started running and then after a time or two she decided why not take Ike as well. He could easily run circles around her but he kept her motivated. They both loved their walks and runs. Even when Idalia was exhausted after work Ike motivated her to go. It didn’t matter if she was home late from work, because as Russell had pointed out earlier in the week, no one would mess with her so long as Ike was there. Ida gave him a knowing look and she smiled warmly. “Ah the old, list never ends,” she said and then it was her turn to duck her head. “Well…” she started, just as guilty as Cecil, “We had a proposal due this past week so we were scrambling with that…” she trailed off and waved a hand dismissively, “You know how it is, one crisis after another.”

Idalia flushed at the offer and shook her head initially then realized she could definitely use a drink. “Oh Cecil, I can’t do that,” she shook her head, she didn’t want to take advantage of his hospitality. “But on that note I could use a drink,” she gave him a sly look implying that it had been that kind of week. She’d always wanted to learn how to bar tend, she could imagine that even Cecil would fire her after a night through, she wanted to do something to help him out though, but just what she couldn’t imagine. She wasn’t that well off financially and as far as serving skills she had none.

[Cecil Wathen]

Cecil laughed brightly, greeting the giant Dane with rubs and pets as Mephit barked and pounced next to them, trying to get some attention herself. “I think I can live with being second best. It’s great to see how well he’s come on. I remember when we first met, he was pretty much dragging your arm out its socket all the time.” Sure Ike was hardly a world obedience champion, but the change in him over the months was undeniable and both he and his owner looked so much better off for it. He couldn’t help but give a quiet chuckle at her comment about quitting. “Sometimes that’s a lot easier said than done, though.” Cecil had never earnestly tried to quit smoking himself but he imagined it would not be a fun thing to go through. Sure he’d considered it a few times, but it seemed like every time he’d tried something stressful had happened and made him fall back into the habit. Perhaps he just simply had no real motivation to quit.

A smile crossed Cecil’s lips as Idalia offered her help with the planting and he nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, that’d be great! I know pretty much nothing about plants so if you’ve got a single clue that’d be a huge help.” He let Ike run off after Mephit, rolling his eyes at their antics. “We could make a day of it. If you bring Ike they can play out of the way, and we can have some lunch after. Sound like a plan?”

Mephit gave a yelp as Ike rolled her over, the little Kelpie quickly scrambling back to her feet and nipping Ike’s ear before taking off at full pelt across the grass, careering around one of the benches before ducking under it to come out the other side, tail wagging furiously. Seeing just how happy his companion was playing out here filled Cecil with an odd sense of pride, and her obvious joy was more than enough to make him happy that he had managed to get the garden finished. “Yeah, I know how it goes. You plan for a weekend off and then another project comes up, then another, then another and before you realise it, it's the New Year and you’re starting all over again.”

When Idalia commented that she couldn’t take up the offer of a free drink Cecil quickly gave a dismissive wave of his hand. “Pft, don’t be silly. What’s the point in owning a bar if I can’t treat my friends to a free drink occasionally? Just let me know what you fancy and I’ll go grab it.”

[Idalia Tsavaris]

Idalia laughed in remembrance, “You mean yesterday?” She joked and gave Ike an affectionate look as he pounced on Cecil. “He has though, he’s such a sweet boy.” She scratched his ears and smiled absently. “You know we’ve been good for each other.” She admitted, on the one hand, Ike had someone who loved and took care of him and was helping him grow into a wonderful dog. On the other hand he was there for her when she was lonely in her apartment and more so when she had her visions, she came out of them and he was always there looking at her concerned, content to just sit with her when she had them. It made her feel as though someone missed her while she was gone, even though it was a few seconds at a time, it was nice to know there was a creature that would pull her back if she needed it. Like that time at the lake…

She shook her head coming back to the conversation in time to hear Cecil speak again. “Oh isn’t everything in life. You know nothing pissed me off more than that kinda stuff in college. You’d have that really smart kid who thought it was all easy and while you’re struggling they’re like ‘see it’s easy you just do this and there.’” She threw her hands up in exasperation. She tried her best to explain things to people in a way that wasn’t patronizing, there were some people that didn’t have that skill. Granted they tried not to sound patronizing but they couldn’t help it. She wasn’t sure where that sudden rant had come from but it felt good to get it out.

“I’m not super good, but my mother has a garden to be envious of, I can ask her a few things,” she said joyfully. It was a hobby of her mother’s that she’d never taken up, granted she’d never had a yard per say but that was really no excuse. She had a few plants but it wasn’t really the same thing. “Oh that sounds glorious! I’ll check my schedule when I go to work tomorrow and let you know when I’m off.” Granted Ida was never really ‘off’ she was always technically on call but there were certain days that she could declare Off and then it would be that the technicality was only broken if the sky was literally falling. It had happened once or twice but both times Idalia’s wrath had been worse than the weather and they’d taken that to heart. Really, to call her at her sister’s wedding for anything other than cataclysmic events was to fulfill a death wish.

Ida glanced at the dogs as she heard the commotion and she simply shook her head. Mephit was adorable and Ida couldn’t help but giggle at her antics. It took Ike a little while longer to get himself turned around but he bounded after her, just by his size he covered the distance in less steps and it seemed he made a split second decision and unlike the smaller dog he soared over the bench and landed where his friend would have been if she hadn’t already scrambled off taking the chase elsewhere. “Yeah…” she agreed with a laugh, “And the resolution is always ‘I will take more time off’ and then it’s December and you’re like oh right, that resolution, well that didn’t happen.” She laughed warmly and finally shrugged at the suggestion for a drink. “Oh Cecil, you’re too good to me,” she mused, “If you insist.” She tapped her chin thoughtfully then raised a brow, “You know what, surprise me.” Cecil had made her emotion drinks by now to know that she liked sweet things, she trusted him to give her something good.

[Cecil Wathen]

Cecil could fully understand and sympathise with having a dog to alleviate loneliness. At the time he believed that was why Aaron had come up with the idea of them getting a dog. His ex-husband had never been an animal person, but with Aaron being out at work all day for ridiculous hours Cecil was alone so much that an animal companion really had been a true help to alleviate that. Of course now he fully believed that Aaron had brought home the pedigree pup out of guilt… or perhaps as some kind of bribe to try to keep Cecil around once the truth had gotten out. That had backfired spectacularly, of course. Throughout the divorce the one thing Cecil fought for the hardest was his dog. To this day he wondered if he’d have been able to make it through the past few years if he didn’t have her company.

Idalia’s sudden mini-rant brought a low laugh from the Welshman and he nodded his head in agreement. “Yeah, I know. You get those people in all walks of life, and they’re all equally annoying. ‘Oh you should quit smoking, it’s so easy!’ or ‘oh, you should go run that marathon’, or ‘oh, you should come out the closet, it’s nothing!’” Cecil gave a small shrug, shaking his head slightly. “Thing’s aren’t always as easy to one person as another… Sometimes don’t you just want to smack people who can’t see that?”

The talk of the garden was a welcome distraction from the idiots of life, and Cecil’s smile brightened as Idalia agreed to come over to help out with it. Cecil wasn’t lying when he said he had no real clue about plants and so any help would be welcome, but help from someone he considered a true friend was always the best kind of help. “Great, I’m really looking forward to it! If you let me know when you’re free I’ll make sure to get everything stocked up and ready.” That included food and some drinks, as well as things they would likely need for the garden itself.

It was relaxing watching the dogs romping and playing, and Cecil gave a nod of agreement. “I think taking more time off has been my resolution every year for about fifteen years. Next year I’m going to take at least one long weekend a month. I’ve made my staff swear to kick me out if I haven’t gone out myself.” He laughed softly, watching Mephit suddenly stop and spin and try to leap onto Ike’s back, and then stood to go and make the drinks. For Idalia he fixed something fruity and sweet, finished with pineapple pieces, but not strong just in case she got called back in, and sorted out a drink for himself before carrying them back out into the garden and handing hers over. He held his glass up in a toast. “To more days off.”

[Idalia Tsavaris]

Idalia had never known, or rather she had known, but she had never realized her loneliness until she stopped being surrounded by friends all the time. She dated but nothing went very far beyond the surface attraction and relationships couldn’t be sustained. She didn’t know the intimate details of Cecil’s love life, she knew about his ex but what exactly happened she didn’t know, and she was hesitant to ask, for surely those were painful memories and it was not her place to pry. They were adults, peers and friends, if Cecil wanted her to know he would tell her. It was very pleasant not to be a teenager anymore, when keeping secrets was a horrid thing and everything was the end of the world. Nothing was the end of the world, she knew now and she was glad she was older and matured enough to recognize that.

Ida nodded and gave a little joking wince, she was fairly certain she’d said that to a smoker or two that she’d met, but she didn’t regret it. Smoking was a horrid habit. “Right? No big deal,” she gestured with a gesture that mocked dismissal. “I’ll never forget the day my sister came out, I mean we all knew our parents already knew, but that’s not a thing that should be rushed.” She nodded, she couldn’t really sympathize with Cecil in that way, she’d never been in fear of her loved ones rejecting the idea that she loved someone. She laughed and nodded her head emphatically. “Oh yes, the temptation hits me all the time. Like you said, ‘you should go run that marathon’, right fuck you go away.” She laughed at her own joke making a shooing motion at an imaginary person.

For the first time in a long time she felt the ability to relax and be herself. So many times she hung out with her coworkers and she was still ‘chief meteorologist’ it wasn’t a title she could just shrug on and off when she went to and from work and she knew it and her coworkers knew it. They were her friends, true, but in a way that could never go deeper than pleasantries. Idalia nodded, she was happy to help out, it got her out of the house on her days off and besides she loved Cecil, he was wonderful and she loved spending time with him. “Me too! I’ll check as soon as I get to work tomorrow and let you know, I promise you will not get a ‘sorry Cecil I have work from now until the end of time’,” she laughed, she doubted that, they were only allowed to work so many hours. Besides she would make time for Cecil.

“I like it, I’ll hold you to that too,” she said with a grin. Anything she could do to help, she would offer. Ike’s bark caught her attention and she laughed, finally able to unwind in what felt like forever. Ike was not happy about Mephit’s attempt and barreled Mephit over again taking the both of them for a tumble, rumbling as to who was going to come out on top. Ike was bigger and stronger, but Mephit was quicker and cleverer. It didn’t end well for either of them. She smiled and watched them while Cecil was inside. She rose to her feet and too the offered glass. Touching the rim of hers to Cecil’s, she raised her glass to days off. She took a sip to seal the deal and was surprised by the wonderful mingling of flavors. “Mmmm, really Cecil, you have magical powers. This is delicious!” She sat back down and watched the dogs rough house some more. They were tireless.

[Cecil Wathen]

Cecil would agree that smoking was a disgusting habit and it wasn’t one he was proud of, but at the same time it did kind of work for him. It gave him a great excuse to spend ten minutes playing in the garden with Mephit, it made sure that he did actually take ten minutes every few hours away from the bar and, to top it all off, it did actually help calm him down. He thought that was probably more to do with taking the time to stop for ten minutes and the repetitive motion than anything else, but regardless of the reason behind it, it worked. Perhaps that was part of why all his attempts at quitting had failed. He gave a nod of understanding when Idalia spoke about her sister. “I sympathise with her. I mean, I knew my parents would be fine about it but it’s still scary, y’know?” Cecil laughed lightly at her joke. “It’s right. Some people try and lord it and say what everyone else is doing is right or wrong or whatever, but it’s all just blowing smoke up their own arseholes. All ‘I’m going to try and dictate your life because I don’t have one of my own’.”

It was nice seeing Idalia be able to relax and unwind a bit. Sure it was great that she was so switched on and dedicated to her work, but Cecil knew that it would do her the world of good to just calm down and enjoy herself for a little while away from the office. Of course that was incredibly hypocritical thought since he was just as guilty of putting work before everything else as she was. Cecil smiled brightly at her promise and nodded in confirmation. “Excellent, I’m looking forward to it. I suppose I better get the rest of the supplies soon then; I’m sure the bar won’t miss me if I disappear for an hour or so tomorrow. I hear the garden centre in Burlington is excellent.”

After fixing the drinks and coming back outside, Cecil managed to avoid getting knocked over by the romping dogs long enough to make the toast. He smiled warmly at the compliment and gave a soft chuckle. “As far as magic powers go, that wouldn’t be a bad one to have, I guess. I’m glad you like it.” He sat beside her, watching the dogs playing and just taking a moment to enjoy the comfortable silence. Well, mostly silence. It was often punctured by the excited barks and yaps coming from the two massively mismatched dogs as they tore around the garden, pausing only to wrestle some more. “You know, if I had even half their energy I probably wouldn’t need to work as much as I do; I’d get it all done in an hour.”

[Idalia Tsavaris]

Cecil knew how Idalia felt about smoking, she nagged him probably just as much as those people he complained about. At least she didn’t say it all the time, usually just a casual ‘that’s a nasty habit’ was the extent of Ida’s nagging. She could do far worse damage if she wanted to, but she liked Cecil and she valued their friendship. She knew he had his reasons and if he were so inclined he would quit. If and hopefully when he chose to do so she was going to be there for her, his ultimate supporter. She nodded and looked up at the clouded sky. “I’ve never seen her so scared before. I can’t even imagine, you both are much stronger than I am,” she said turning her dark eyes back to Cecil. She would never understand what it was like to have someone hate her for her choice in lovers. Her brown hair waved in the breeze created by her nodding. “Right! Would you believe I get fashion advice from my viewers? Fashion advice!” She tossed her arms in the air in exasperation. It wasn’t like she was doing a job or anything.

Idalia nodded and ran her hand through her hair to rearrange it. “It is, they’ve got a lot of unique plants and a great deal of experts willing to help you.” She grinned broadly. She’d gone with her mother a few times and was always impressed. She gave Cecil a serious look. “I will get off you know. This is happening.” She felt the need to make that promise to him as much as to herself. If she didn’t, well she would definitely find a reason not to take a day off. She wasn’t so vital to her station that they couldn’t last a day or two without her, and they had and worked beautifully, but something about Ida not being on call just seemed to make people nervous. There were people there that were her senior by not just years but decades of experience, people who she knew should have become chief well before she did.

She took a moment to look around as Cecil went inside. Cecil had put in a lot of work and she could tell that he put just as much of his life into everything he’d done out here to what he’d done to the bar in the first place. The open area had indeed been changed into something wonderful. She was wondering what the place might look like with lights strung overhead when Cecil returned. “It’s most certainly a talent if not magic,” she said her eyes sparkling with joy. “You know I have to say, I have to say I really like it out here, I don’t think you’re going to have any problems kicking people out.” She mused as she took a few more sips and felt the rush of alcohol in her blood. It was comfortable just sitting with her dear friend and sipping a drink. The breeze was pleasant and it wasn’t quite cold enough where the mere idea of being outside would make someone shiver. Ida giggled and turned her gaze from the romping dogs. “If you had that much energy you’d just be able to get twice as much done,” she teased. “You know what we need Cecil? A vacation. Somewhere where it doesn’t drop below freezing in October.”

[Cecil Wathen]

Cecil knew that Idalia’s occasional nagging at him about his smoking habits was sincere and that she did genuinely feel that way, but she was never overly rude or pushy about it and so Cecil just agreed with her. He knew she was right, he just never really had any true motivation to stop it. It served its purpose, and that was plenty okay by him. “I’m sure your sister gained a lot of strength from your support… It helps a lot knowing you’re not alone. Besides, you’re stronger than you give yourself credit for.” As Idalia spoke about some of her viewers contacting her with fashion advice Cecil chuckled and gave a small disbelieving shake of his head. “People can be so strange. Besides, you’ve always appeared classy and elegant to me.”

Cecil had only been to garden centres a handful of times in his life, but he had to admit he was rather looking forward to the upcoming visit. He’d never had a green thumb and quite frankly, he doubted anything he planted would last more than a couple of weeks before he accidentally killed it in some way. However, he was looking forward to at least attempting to turn this little garden into something approaching visually pleasant and even more so now he’d have a friend to set it up with. “Those poor experts will be regretting not taking the day off by the time I leave there, I think.” As Idalia promised it would be happening Cecil smiled and gave a nod. “Good. I’ll go to the station and drag you here myself, if I have to.”

He was proud of what he had created in his time in Pilot Ridge. When he’d first arrived the pub had been boarded up, run down and unloved. It had taken a lot of work, time and finances, but he was genuinely proud of how things had turned out with it. Sure there were still changes to make and upgrades to be done, but it functioned. It was visually appealing, turned and profit and was generally well reviewed. It was just a shame it had taken such devastation for Cecil to find something that he truly loved. He smiled warmly. “Thanks, I’m pretty fond of it too. I’m thinking of maybe getting a little barbecue for summer, so I can be all manly cooking meat outside.” Cecil chuckled softly, nodded in agreement as Idalia mentioned them needing a holiday. “I actually like the snow, but a warm beach in summer sounds just about perfect right now. Somewhere in the Caribbean, or Thailand or Indonesia, maybe.”

[Idalia Tsavaris]

Ida smiled to herself, her sister had never had anything to worry about. Everyone loved her and there was no way her parents would do anything but shower her with love as they had always done before. But Idalia had never been in that position, she wouldn’t have been able to do it she thought. She smiled and shook her head, Cecil was just being his supportive self and Idalia appreciated it. She touched his arm in a silent thanks. “She had an army at her back,” she said with a slight giggle, “I wish I could’ve been there for you, do you have siblings?” She asked suddenly realizing she didn’t know. With all of her sisters it would have been nine against two if anything happened, this happened after Rio… Ida smiled in remembrance, long ago she’d decided to live her life with all of the joy Rio would have wished upon her and there were times when she was sure the eldest sister was guarding all of them.

“Awe that’s so sweet, Cecil,” she said genuinely flattered. It wasn’t those random people whose opinions mattered but those of her family and friends. The first time she’d gotten an ‘appearance review’ as she thought of them, she’d called her mother crying. It had been a very harsh review. Her mother had been able to sooth it over and made an effort to call every so often and say that she saw the forecast and it was wonderful. Informative, she would always say, because that was really what Idalia wanted it to be all about. Being a woman in science was one of the hardest fields to break into. So much of it was still male dominated and there were still those that had superiority complex. Too bad when they met Idalia and she knocked them down a peg or two.

Idalia laughed and shook her head at Cecil. “Oh my, maybe I should go with you there too,” she suggested with a bright smile. “I’ll hold you to that,” she replied pointing a finger at Cecil. She would love to see Cecil show up at the station. It reminded her of when Russell had come by, running into a friend in a work environment was great! It was like seeing someone who truly knew who hid under all of the makeup and then also being able to show them the aspects that made her life. It was one of the reasons she loved bothering Cecil while he was working. He was so in his element, and so happy. For workaholics they at least could say that they both loved what they did. Though, she was sure Cecil had to remind himself about that as often as she had to remind herself!

Cecil had done an amazing job with this place. She remembered when he first told her which bar he owned and she couldn’t believe her eyes. For as long as she could remember this place had been like the abandoned building from a horror film, filled with rumors and stories. Yet here it was, sooner than she even could have imagined, populated, beautiful and amazing. Ida smiled in return and couldn’t help but join in his laughter. She pitched her voice up, “Ohhh, look at you!” She elbowed him teasingly. “Because you know that is the definition of manliness.” Cecil was so precious, literally the sweetest human being she knew, she didn’t know how he was still single. Really, she knew why she was single, she could come off as a bitch if someone rubbed her the wrong way and she would admit that.

“Mhmm,” she nodded closing her eyes and stretching out her legs imagining the warmth. She pulled her legs back just in time for Mephit and Ike to come charging by. She laughed pulling her legs out of the way as the pair circled the bench. “Ike!” She called as the Dane clamored over them to get at Mephit using them as a human shield. “Geez! I can’t take you anywhere!” She said, a little bruised but not really all that upset. She was glad to see Ike having fun. She giggled and pulled her coat tighter around her. “If only, right?” She said turning back to their previous conversation. “But if I go there I might never return!”

[Cecil Wathen]

In truth, Cecil knew he had been lucky. He’d never had any doubts about how his family might react to him coming out to them as gay. They had always been very close-knit and it would take something far more damnable than that to cause any bridges to be formed between them. “Yeah, there’s five of us. Reese and Tristan are my baby brothers, and Gwen’s my older sister. Then there’s Carys, my twin. “ He chuckled softly. “My parent’s house is pretty tiny; to this day I wonder how we all managed to fit in it. How about you? Was it just you and your sister?”

Cecil smiled warmly as she seemed genuinely flattered by his words. It was something he could relate to, in a strange way. He’d never had the slightest shred of interest towards fashion when he was growing up. It was something that did not ever register on his radar, something that other people concerned themselves with. Aaron had changed all that, of course. His ex-husband’s deep connection with the fashion world had rubbed off on the Welshman, and even though he never really took much of a direct interest in it, he paid enough attention so he could actually converse on the subject. He had learned to care for his own appearance, to wear clothing that made one statement or another and was, frankly, far more about pleasing the eye of others than it was about his own pride or sense of worth. When he had left Aaron, all of that modicum of interest had flown right out the window and Cecil was once more back to wearing whatever the hell he wanted to. Though admittedly, he did retain a thing for a well-cut suit.

Cecil laughed easily, giving a small shrug of his narrow shoulders. “Hey, if you want to go there too I certainly won’t complain. You could maybe stop me from buying something really fancy and expensive and easily killed off.” The joy of having friends turn up at your workplace was something Cecil could easily relate to. Granted sometimes it could be problematic, especially if they showed up in the middle of a ridiculously busy shift, but nine times out of ten it was just an absolute pleasure and helped the hours tick by that little bit faster.

As Idalia teasingly elbowed him Cecil mock-winced, rubbing his arm like she’d just delivered a mighty blow. “You’re so mean sometimes!” He was chuckling far too much to appear even remotely sincere though, and playfully rolled his eyes. “You know it’s true! You’re not a man unless you can cook meat outside on an open flame.” He smiled warmly, scooting his legs out the way as the dogs charged past. “Though I’ll admit, when it comes to barbecues, my ma can cook circles round my dad any day.”

Cecil cursed under his breath as the dogs attempted to clamber over them, and he went over to a small tub by the doorway and retrieved a tennis ball from it. “Here, psycho puppies.” He tossed the ball lightly the short distance across the grass, Mephit momentarily forgetting about Ike as she careered after it. “Hopefully that’ll keep them busy for a bit.” Cecil then sat back down next to Idalia, chuckling at her comment about never returning. “You definitely would. I’d give it a month before you got bored stiff.” He put on a mock reporter voice, pretending to hold a microphone. “Today’s weather forecast. Sunny. Again. What happened to actual weather?”