dog days of summer//pope heyward

one

I walk into Heyward's for the first time in years. The place hasn't changed a bit. There aren't many people inside, just a woman looking at fish and a man looking at mussels. I notice Heyward standing with his back towards me. I walk over towards the counter.

"Excuse me sir," I say.

Heyward turns around and smiles when he realizes who I am. "Do my eyes deceive me? Miss Nix Blake standing in my store all grown up."

I chuckle as I hold my arms out dramatically. "You haven't lost it yet Heyward."

"So what brings you back?" Heyward questions.

I smile wide. "I'm back for good."

"Four years in Seattle was enough for yah huh?" Heyward remarks.

I nod my head. "The rain was dreadful and the beaches, if you could even call them that, were worse."

"I'm guessing you came here to see Pope," Heyward says.

I laugh. "As much as I enjoy your company I did."

Heyward chuckles. "Pope! Get out here!"

"What is..." Pope stops dead in his tracks as he walks out from the back storage area. "Nixie?"

I nod my head. "In the flesh."

Pope rushes towards me and wraps me in a hug. I giggle as he swings me around. As Pope puts me down I look back at Heyward.

"Any chance Pope can get the rest of the day off?" I ask. Heyward looks at me for a moment. I bat my eyelashes. "Pretty please."

Heyward cracks a smile. "Just this once."

Pope takes off his apron with a smile. "Thank you so much, Pops."

Pope and I walk out onto the dock. Pope starts to bombard me with questions. "What are you doing back? Is your family back? How long are you staying?"

"Calm down, Pope." I chuckle. "We've got time."

"When did you get back?" Pope asks.

"Late last night. I thought it would be best to wait until this morning to come by," I tell him.

"So how long are you staying?" Pope questions.

I smile. "Oh I don't know I'll probably leave for a while to go to college, but I'll probably come back after."

"So you're back for good?" Pope asks. I nod my head. "Is your whole family back?"

I shake my head. "No Hunter and Willow stayed with my mom."

"So why did you come back?" Pope asks.

"I couldn't stand to be away from here, from the water, from you and the crew," I explain.

"Do they know you're back?" Pope asks.

"No. I wanted to see you first," I confess.

Pope smiles. "We should probably head to John B's."

I shrug my shoulders. "Or we could get breakfast first."

Pope chuckles. "Breakfast? It's eleven."

"Then I'll get breakfast and you can get lunch," I offer. I grab Pope's hand and start dragging him to my car. "Come on."

***********************

We're the Pogues, and our mission this summer is to have a good time, all the time. Most days that includes good beer, a place to hang, and lots of laughter.

Right now we're drinking at a partially finished house in the rich part of town. John B is standing on the roof, beer can in hand, balancing on one foot.