The Black Tie

Rikki was at home with her two young children when she had gotten the call that had changed her life. She had been playing tag with them around the house but she couldn't muster up the enthusiasm to continue the game afterwards. It was her four year old daughter, Brenna who had tugged on her pant leg and begged her to come play with them. Rikki had begrudgingly told her no and sent Brenna and Flint to their rooms for the rest of the day. Zane would be home soon, he could play with them. She really wanted to take a swim but she couldn't leave her two kids alone. She settled by laying on their bed, feeling as numb as she could ever remember feeling.

Rikki was thankful her kids listened to her and didn't try to come into her room. They wouldn't always do that. Maybe they realized how serious she was. For once, she didn't care if they were teaming up to destroy the house. She didn't care about much of anything.

She saw Zane enter their room a little while later. He was smiling at first but once he took in the look on her face, he must have realized something had happened.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Zane asked her as he rushed to take a spot on the bed beside her.

"My dad died today." Rikki said as she felt the tears start to flow.

"What?" Zane had asked, giving her a perplexed look. She reckoned that was fair, they had gone to see him this past weekend and he had seemed fine.

"Yeah, the hospital had called earlier today." Rikki started as she sat up from her bed. "He had a heart attack."

"I'm-I'm so sorry, love." Zane told her. Rikki nodded her head as tears began to fall again. Zane pulled her to him and she lost it, soaking his nice dress shirt in tears.

Flint and Brenna didn't understand why their mum was so sad for the next few days. Zane had taken time off of work to take care of the kids himself since Rikki was in no condition to resume her fun-loving, motherly duties. He also kept a close eye on her and made sure she was okay. She had the most brilliant husband.

The funeral came a few days later. They had debated on bringing the kids but decided it would be best if they did. Rikki reckoned her dad wasn't much of a father but he was a hell of a grandfather. Flint, especially, always loved spending time with his grandpa. The two bonded over motorcycles and sweets. Terry would watch both kids if Rikki and Zane both ever needed to be at work. She remembered having to tear them away from her dad's trailer kicking and screaming since they wanted to stay so badly. They deserved to say goodbye to him whether they knew what was happening or not.

Rikki had expected her children to be running around like manics at the funeral. It was in the middle of the day on a weekend, that's when their energy levels peaked. Brenna fussed during the ceremony so Zane had taken her away but Flint was as still as a statue. Rikki wondered if on some level, her young son knew what was going on.

Once the funeral had ended, Rikki said her goodbyes to the few of her dad's friends that had come. Oddly enough, the funeral had provided her with a sense of closure she desperately needed. Rikki searched the area for her family to head home. She saw Brenna chasing Zane in a patch of trees nearby. She smiled to herself, thankful she had such a wonderful family and she wouldn't be dealing with this by herself.

Rikki's eyes scanned the area but she couldn't find Flint. Where had her son run off to? She turned around to see the boy she has dressed in a black tie earlier, crouched in front of his grandpa's head stone. It broke her heart to see him sitting there. Rikki supposed she should go talk to him.

"Hey," she said as she bent down to his level. Flint looked at her briefly before looking back at the headstone. "Are you all right, Flint?"

"I can't see Grandpa again?" He asked.

"No, honey. I'm sorry." Rikki said as she placed a hand on his back.

"Why can't I?" Flint asked her, leaning into her embrace.

"You will one day." Rikki told him. "But not for a long time."

"Who can I play on moto-cycles with?" He asked. The boy still had some difficulty with his "R"s.

"You know, your dad's pretty good at that stuff." Rikki told him. "You know he fixed grandpa's bike one time?"

"I don't want Dad, I want Grandpa!" Flint exclaimed, loudly. Rikki looked back to see Zane was still preoccupied with their daughter. She briefly wondered how he had the energy to keep up with her.

"I know, darling." Rikki said as she held her son close and felt tears start to sting her eyes. "I want Grandpa too."

"Why did this happen, Mum?" Flint asked. "I loved spending time with Grandpa."

"I know you did." Rikki said. "He loved spending time with you and Brenna too. I don't know why it happened but we'll be okay. It helps to think of happy memories with him. Do you have any happy memories with Grandpa?"

"Well, I liked passing the tools to him when he was working on his moto-cycle." Flint started. "And then he'd give me candy afterwards and told me not to tell you. Sorry, Mum."

"It's okay." Rikki laughed. "I knew all along."

"You did?" Flint asked in surprise.

"Yeah," Rikki replied. "It would explain why you wouldn't go to bed until late that night."

Rikki tickled his sides and made the boy laugh, the joyous laugh that got her out of bed every morning.

"It's okay to cry," Rikki told him. "Your dad and I will be here for you if you need someone to talk to."

"Can we talk about Grandpa?" Flint asked, hopefully.

"Of course we can." Rikki said as she kissed his forehead. Flint wiped it off as he often did these days.

"Hey," the pair heard from above them. Rikki looked up to see Zane carrying a worn out Brenna. "Are you guys all right?"

"Dad, is it true you fixed Grandpa's moto-cycle?" Flint asked his father. Zane gave Rikki a look, knowing she must have just told him that story.

"I did," Zane replied.

"Can we get a moto-cycle and fix it up like Grandpa?" Flint asked as he stood from Rikki's lap. "He said I'm good as passing tools."

"We'll see, okay mate?" Zane told his son with a chuckle. "We should get going, your sister is tired."

"Okay." Flint said as he grabbed his father's hand.

Rikki stood from the ground and brushed the grass off her black dress. She looked down at her dad's head stone again. It was still so crazy to think that he was gone. She took her own advice and thought of all the great memories she shared with him, even if it wasn't as plentiful as her son's memories. She thought of him chasing her around with a bedsheet over his head. She thought of the time they moved to Gold Coast and he told her this place would be different and she hadn't believed him. She couldn't have been more wrong. She thought of the time he was ready to kill Zane for messing with his bike and instead came around to the then boy unlike anyone she had ever seen around him before. She thought of the time she finally told her dad she was a mermaid just a few years ago and the look of awe that came over his face. She thought about the times she had told him she was pregnant and how it was one of the few times she had seen him cry.

"Goodbye, Dad." Rikki said as she finally turned around to join her family in their car. When she arrived, she saw Flint looked like he was practicing handing off tools and Brenna was fast asleep.

"She crashed, didn't she?" Rikki asked Zane as he closed the back door.

"Yeah, it hits them like a truck doesn't it?" Zane said. "She's not the only one who's exhausted anyway."

"I was wondering how you managed to keep up with her." Rikki said.

"So, you doing all right?" Zane asked.

"I'm not sure, honestly." Rikki sighed. "But I will be all right."

She looked through the tinted car window and saw Flint had now switched to riding the bike rather than handing tools over.

"Looks like we're going to have to get him a bike soon." Rikki observed.

"I have some ideas." Zane replied. "I know you always dug guys in motocross."