But That Makes You Family (Craig Cody)

Pt 5

"You uh, you surf pretty well." Craig pulled down the top half of his wet suit. Tying the arms around his waist to keep them from getting caught, he laid his board down on the sand falling next to it.

"My mom taught me." Corbin answered, sinking down onto the sand beside Craig. "She's really good at it."

"Your mom is a kick as...she's an amazing surfer. You know, Deran taught her right?"

Corbin hesitantly nodded. His mom had mentioned a few times that it was Deran who had really taught her to surf. Something about their friend once considering going pro had been mentioned along the conversations. Corbin sat in the wet sand, the waves hitting the beach in a rhythmic motion.

"Do you like living in Connecticut?" Craig rested his elbows in the sand, stretching his legs out.

Craig asked a lot of questions.

"It's a nice place. The winter gets cold though, my mom hates it. I like playing hockey so I don't mind." Corbin leaned forward, drawing random patterns with his fingers in the sand. "Sometimes I wish we lived here, it would be cool to have summer all year."

"It's not too bad here." Craig shrugged, squinting against the sun. "Do you think your mom would ever move back?"

"She says that being here for a few months is enough." Corbin replied. Deran had taken off to talk to a friend that he'd spotted down the beach. Craig was an okay guy, although new people often turned Corbin into an awkward person.

Craig remained silent, his only acknowledgment a slight nod.

Here he was, on the beach, with his son - this wasn't how he had pictured this moment. Any time he had thought about it, there had always been more drama and angst involved.

Corbin was quiet in a subtle way. Olivia had been like that when she was younger. She would sit for hours, hanging around the house, and never say a single word. Other times there was no way to shut her up. Craig wondered if Corbin had the same trait, once he got comfortable.

"Just you and your mom?" Craig shouldn't be asking but he had to know. It wasn't as if he expected her to be a nun or stay alone forever. If he asked Olivia she'd give him some bullshit about his own conquests and shut him out.

"Yeah. My dad isn't around." Corbin told Craig part of what he already knew.

"My dad was never around either. You get used to it, I guess." Craig divulged the personal detail.

"What lies did your mom tell you?" Corbin turned to look at Craig, his face serious.

Craig scoffed. Sitting up and crossing his legs in the sand. "Man, my mother gave me all sorts of bull. Trust me, whatever Olivia has said, it's probably way more truthful than what I was told."

"How...how long have you known my mom?"

"Uh," Craig licked his lips, blowing out a huff. His hands brushing his hair out of his eyes. "Since we were kids, I guess."

Stony, Corbin sat looking out into the ocean. His attention captured by the sun and the surf, his thoughts swimming around like the school of fish that he and Deran had spotted earlier in the shallow waves.

Never would his mother leave him with somebody he barely knew. She was too protective. Olivia had been up to something, Corbin could tell by the sudden shift in her attitude. Sometimes his mom didn't think he noticed, but he did.

Always.

He knew her better than she knew herself sometimes. The sneaky suspicion was creeping in, growing the more he thought about it.