"A firefighter? Really?" Tyler perked up.

"Yep." Pa smiled softly. "I was a firefighter and a tug. Before the firetruck in town came around, I switched between jobs when I was needed. That's why I'm a bright red color verses any other boat here. Well, I used to be bright red." He chuckled a little which made Tyler smile.

"What made you quit?" Tyler asked and that question made him frown again.

"Well, that goes back to things you don't know about." Pa began and looked to the photos on the wall again. "Do ya know any of these boats?"

Tyler looked at the photos and studied them carefully. Most of them had who looked to be Pa, though he had many firefighting gadgets on him than he did now. He had two huge hoses sticking up over the back of his deck. Most of the boats he was in the picture with he didn't recognize.

"Here, look at this one." Pa pointed his bow to a photo near Tyler and Tyler looked at it. It was a photo of Pa with another tugboat next to him. She had Tyler's same colors, though they were a little brighter. Pa sighed at Tyler's silence. The tug had just woken up after a long day after all.

"That's your ma." Pa answered for him. "That's your ma right there."

Tyler gasped and looked at the photo again. "Really? How, how come you haven't told me about her before? I thought it was just you and me."

"Ah, that's, that's just somethin' I couldn't bring myself to talk about. You were real young, and, I, I saw how happy and cheerful you were as a kid, I just couldn't see you upset." Tyler saw he was getting choked up and his anger of having his mom kept from him quickly diminished.

"What happened?" Tyler asked softly, hoping he could learn more about his ma.

"Well, that kinda leads into why I don't let ya out on the ocean by yourself." Pa said and looked to Tyler. "But, you deserve to know. I kept this from ya long enough. But, it's not really much of a long story. We were both headin' out of the fjord to head to Stornoway. She must have had a leak the other day because she began to sink and the more water she took in, the more she went under. I did all I could. I attached my winch to her and tried to keep her up until help arrived, but she was too much, and," He took in a shaky breath and Tyler wanted so desperately to comfort him. "If I had kept my line on her, I would've gone under too. By the time help came, it had been too late. I quit my firefightin' job because I didn't think I deserved the title after what happened. Among fightin' fires, they're supposed to rescue and help too. And, I didn't do that." He closed his eyes for a moment. "I promised myself I would always keep my family safe. promised her that I would always keep you safe and away from harm."

Tyler saw tears forming in Pa's eyes as he looked at the photo and he slowly floated forwards and gave Pa a gentle nuzzle. It had been so long since he had physically touched Pa that he wanted more and fully pressed his hull up against Pa's. It felt nice that Pa didn't hesitate to nuzzle back into him, finally releasing some of the bottled up emotion he had probably kept inside for so long. Tyler knew Pa was trying not to cry in front of him, but Tyler didn't care.

"I'm so sorry for yellin' at ya." Pa choked out. "I didn't want you to face the same situation your ma went through. I didn't wanna lose ya too. I shoulda been there for ya."

"It's okay. I'm just happy to be here." Tyler smiled a little and felt Pa nudge into him again. This is what Tyler wanted for so long, some affection. He felt warm inside despite the cold water on the outside. He knew his pa tried hard to keep Tyler safe.

"I'm sorry for leavin' you to go look for Josh."

"No, don't be sorry, Tyler. I shoulda been more understandin'. I know you don't have many friends, and I promise, in a few years, the both of us can travel and visit more places. I promise."

"Did I do the right thing?" Tyler asked softly. "By, letting Josh go? I keep thinkin' about him and Auntie Krista. She was so upset.."

"What you did was perfect." Pa smiled. "If he can't see how you traveled so far to help him, he don't deserve your friendship. Yer better off without negativity. The Tyler I know is always cheerful and happy. All you can do now is be there for Auntie Krista and hope that Josh kid gets what's comin' to him."

"I'm, just gonna miss 'im." Tyler looked down a little.

"If I were you, I wouldn't give that kid a second thought. All this will catch up to 'im, give it time. He'll get that bite in the rudder soon." Pa gave him a wink and Tyler smiled a little.

"So, what did ya think of Dolly?" Tyler asked, smiling even more. Josh had completely left his mind. Pa gave a laugh which made Tyler even happier inside.

"That tugboat in Newfoundland? I think she's a good friend to ya." Pa chuckled. "A long distance friend at least."

"Are ya sure we can't visit her again sometime?"

"Don't push yer luck." Pa shook his bow. "If she wants to visit, she's gotta come here."

Tyler smiled a little and looked down at the water and thought a moment. "Can I sleep with you tonight?" He really didn't want to go back to his canopy. The air was warm in the shed, and he really wanted to be near Pa.

"Of course ya can. I shoulda been sleepin' near ya more often anyways." He gave Tyler a smile and Tyler quickly zoomed to his side and pressed his hull into Pa's. It felt nice to be near him.

"Night, Pa." Tyler smiled, closing his eyes.

"G'night, Ty."