A long lane at night

1.28. COKE FLOAT

** BRIAN **

SIXTEEN YEARS LATER

WE WERE CELEBRATING ALLAN'S FIFTIETH BIRTHDAY this weekend. Jack would be home from college and the twins, Will and Chad, were super excited to see their big brother.

And let me give the necessary emphasis on big here. Jack was taller than Allan and I, who are pretty tall ourselves. On top of that, he's a real gym rat, so he's built like a freaking wall. He's twenty-one now, during his final year of language school. He got the passion for languages when he was seven during the first world tour I had as a headliner, playing mostly music from the movie soundtracks I had published. I'll go on the fourth one soon, and Jack's been trying to get his way out of college just so he can go with us.

'Come on, dad! What's the point of going to language school and if I can't take a chance to travel and experience all the things I've learnt?'

'The point is ... actually, that's a very good point. I'll talk to your dad and see what he says.'

Rule one of parenting: if they're winning, end the conversation by saying you'll talk to their dad. At least it buys you some time.

'He does have a great point, you know that, right?' Allan said while we were cooking dinner. So much with two fifteen-year-olds in the house really cuts down on the amount of junk food you have for dinner every night.

'I know he does. I've thought a lot about it. His marks are always great. And let's face it, touring with us is what gave him the passion in the first place.'

'Let him simmer for a little while, though,' Allan said mischievously. 'Let's break the news to him when he comes for my birthday.'

So, wait we did. Jack knew better than to bring the topic up at every call, which helped us keep it from him.

At long last, the week of the party arrived. Jack came home on Wednesday evening. And I don't care if I'm forty-six, I'll run like an overexcited teenager to greet my baby.

'Dad! Oof! I missed you! Where's dad?'

'Off to town with your brothers. Gosh, I missed you! Come! I want to hold you a little. I missed my baby!'

'Dad! No! I'm an adult now!'

'Now listen here, boy. I don't give a rat's ass if you're five, twenty, fifty or a hundred. You're still my baby and I will hold you as many times as I want to. You hear me? Now, sit here.'

'Fine.'

'Oof, boy! You're really heavy!' I said as he put his arm behind my neck and rested his head on mine. I knew he was just as happy as I was.

I rested my head on his chest and, as soon as we touched, I was swarmed by his growing-up memories. Allan and I teaching him how to read and write, how to swim, how to ride a bike. Touring the world, showing him and Allan amazing places for the first time. The arrival of his brothers. Long afternoons walking around the trees surrounding our home. Moving from the flat to the house. Getting him his car. Helping him pack for college. Helping him settle back into the city flat where he was going to live by himself. Every single Christmas morning and all of his birthdays. All of those everlastingly sweet memories that came on to me in a flash.

'I love you, dad.' He said, hugging me a bit tighter.

'I love you too, son. And you're coming on tour with us.' Crap. I was supposed to wait for Allan for that.

'Yes! This calls for a special drink! I'll make Coke float!'

I followed him to the kitchen. Every second I spent with him apparently never enough.

We were sitting by the kitchen counters when Allan arrived with Will and Chad. They ran to hug their brother and the feeling was mutual. Allan had to control himself a lot to not shove the twins out of the way.

'Oi! Neglected dad alert! Neglected dad alert!'

'Sorry, dad. Come here!'

Jack ran to Allan and engulfed him on a tight hug.

'That's better. That's how I like my hugs. I can barely feel my limbs anymore. Hey! Coke floats! What's the special... you told him, didn't you?'

'I was holding him and se said he loved me.'

Allan sighed.

'Fine,' he sighed. 'I would've done the same. Pour us some, though, will you?'

Right from the beginning, Coke float had become our family's go-to special-occasion drink. Most of our best memories were punctuated by this sweet and cold drink.

We loved having the five of us in the house. When Jack first moved away to college, we had some serious empty-nest syndrome, but by now we were more used to it.

Mama Maggie arrived on Friday evening. She always had a blast whenever she was close to her grandkids and the same went for Allan's father and his wife. They never had kids together, so ours were their only grandchildren.

Saturday night saw the whole family lazily all over the living room couches watching some movie marathon with lots of pizza and popcorn.

Allan and I went to bed shortly before midnight. When the clock struck twelve, I turned to him.

'Happy birthday, my love. Now, come here because I want to know what it feels like to make love to a middle-aged man.'

Allan laughed. 'Damn, Brian. You didn't even wait for the first minute of the day to pass.'

'What can I say?' I said while undressing him. 'You know that I never knew how to wait for you.'

I love getting old with Allan. We've witnessed so many changes in our bodies through the years, but we still manage to be madly turned on by each other the same way we were on the night of my twenty-first birthday. Touching his skin now, feeling parts of him that don't feel like they always did, caressing his head where there used to be much more hair than now, all of that made me feel like I did something right in my life. I found the one for me and I held on to him.

We slept in each other's arms and woke up a bit late the next morning and we cuddled in bed for a little while longer. Jack had said he wanted to cook today, so I allowed myself to stay in bed as much as possible.

'Oh boy, I'm fifty.' Allan said, holding my hands.

'You don't look a day older than forty-nine, my love.' I laughed and he got his revenge by tickling me.

Allan's party was a sweet affair just between us eight. We had cake, sandwiches, and lots of sweets.

'Now, Mama,' I said to Maggie, 'be careful with that sugar. You know what the doctor said!'

'He said that on special occasions I'm allowed. And let me tell you something. The day you see your boy turn fifty, you'll see if you care for what the doctor says.'

'Hear, hear!' Allan's father said. 'Damn, Margaret. We have a fifty-year-old son. How old are we?'

'Ancient,' she answered, grabbing a large bite of cake.

Later that day, everyone was out of the house enjoying the cool evening air and sitting by the pond. I was on my way out when I saw Allan standing on the porch, looking at our kids laughing with their grandparents.

'Nothing makes me happier, you know?' He said when I hugged him from behind, lacing my arms with his.

'I know.' I answered softly and placed a kiss on his neck. 'We really did it, didn't we?'

'We did,' he answered grabbing me by the hand and slowly walking towards our family. 'We really did this. And it wasn't that hard, right?'