Chapter fifteen
Cody – Supermodel (You Better Work)
After swimming and playing in the water the next day, we got ready for the parade. It was only a ten-minute car ride into downtown Key West, but it took us a while to find parking, and then we had to walk to the parade route. But once we were all there, the fun began. The main thing I noticed was that rainbows were everywhere. That and skin. One float even had guys wearing nothing but grass skirts. I couldn’t tell if they wore anything underneath, but it really looked like they were nakey, and believe me, I looked.
The route went right down Duval Street, where we were standing, which was the main road in Key West. Some of the guys were talking about staying later, because the party was going on until really late, so maybe that’s why I thought it would be dark out, but it wasn’t. I wasn’t interested in partying all night, though. With the conversation I had with Daddy ruminating around in my brain throughout the whole parade, I wasn’t in the mood. “Hey, Joey. Do you want to stay and party?”
“Mmm…” He wrinkled his nose. “Not really. Maybe we can do something fun back at camp.”
“That sounds better to me.”
The buzz of anticipation filled the air as people cheered for the floats, all decorated in bright rainbow colors. Wild music permeated the air, changing as the parade moved by. Everyone waved, smiling and shouting. It did warm my heart, and even if only for that one moment, I felt hopeful and free, and maybe—just maybe—I could be ready for the next thing.
Chapter sixteen
Warner – Back to the Island
Paddleboarding was going to be awesome. We put them in the water right at our site. I’d never had that before but was marking this down as one of the best campgrounds ever. Since I had to have the big talk with Cody and then we all headed into Key West yesterday, I put off inflating our board, but I was up at first light to do it. I inflated Vince and Joey’s as well with my electric pump. Since our site was considered primitive, we didn’t have an electric hookup like at our previous site, but I could connect the pump to the car.
There was a boat dock on the other side of the peninsula that we were on, but we didn’t need that for paddling. While I waited for everyone to get up and ready, I also packed water and snacks in a little cooler, along with other things we might need like sunscreen and ChapStick.
“Daddy?” Cody stuck his head out of the tent and looked around. “I’m hungry.” Of course he was; the scents of breakfastwere already in the air. I suspected someone nearby was frying bacon and sausage.
“Wash your face. Here.” I handed him a wet wipe so he could freshen up. “Let’s go see what’s cooking.”
Cody sniffed the air and his stomach growled. “Yes, please.”
We made our way around camp to where Drew had set up the food station and put together a couple of breakfast burritos. While we ate, Vince and Joey showed up, and we chatted about the day. Everyone was ready to hit the water. I eyed Cody warily, trying to be sure of his mood. I didn’t want him getting pissed off and running away again. I wanted him to stay and enjoy himself. That was my main concern for the day.
As we chatted with others, it seemed some of our group were renting kayaks. The inflatables sure made carrying them easier for a road trip.
Crow and Skyler joined us before we finished eating. “You guys putting in this morning?” Crow asked.
“Duh. Are you coming with us or what?” Of course I wanted Crow around. He was my best friend, and at one time, we were practically joined at the hip. Back then, it would have been just us out on the water. But I loved having significant others to share our love of the outdoors with. Skyler had apparently not been so sure about it at first, but he was just as into it as the rest of us now.
“We can for sure. But you know, guys, paddling here is not like along the river.” Crow motioned east to west.
“Oh?” Cody asked.
“It’s more like Gandy with mangroves and open water,” Crow explained.
“What do you mean by mangroves?” Vince asked. He was a recent Florida transplant, having moved here after retiring from a successful career in F1 racing.
It took a minute for anyone to answer since we were all stuffing our faces with fresh tortilla, egg, sausage, and cheese, but finally Crow washed his bite down with some coffee. “The trees that are all around the water with their walking roots.” He made hand motions like an upside-down claw to help illustrate. “Around Gandy up in St. Pete and Tampa, they’re everywhere, and you can paddle around and through them. Sometimes they make tunnels.”
“That sounds cool.” Joey bounced in his seat, much like Cody normally tended to do.
“It really is.” Cody had gone with me a few times around Gandy. “Even if we don’t go into any groves today, it’ll be nice. The open water will be great to swim in.”
“Do you think we’ll see aminimals?” Joey asked, mispronouncing the word in a cute way that showed he was already in little head space. Cody didn’t normally go there when people outside our group were around, while Joey didn’t seem to care about things like that.
One of the other littles in the group, Danny, and his daddy, Lee, came over. “Hey, guys. We’re going in the water. Are you?”
Levi and Hudson were right behind them. This was why I loved our group. We all knew each other, and all our friends were super nice. Danny and Levi were both littles and they joined our boys, chatting away, leaving us daddies to plan our route. Cody couldn’t hold back his little when surrounded by three others. When I caught his eye, I smiled at him, and he blushed, smiling back, making our relationship feel new again.
In the distance, a late rooster crowed. “Guess that means it’s time to go.” I stood and gathered our garbage, and in a few minutes, we headed to our site and got in the water. We languidly paddled around the immediate area, not in a hurry to go off until our friends had gathered. “Look, Cody.” I pointed to the rocks along the shore.
“Ohmygosh. Is that an iguana?”
