Dave and Leroy Ch. 18

Chapter 18 - Driver's Ed, What?

Leroy was sitting in the passenger seat, trying to remain calm. Their teenage son was behind the wheel as Leroy recalled last night's discussion in bed.

*

"Honey?" Dave asked as he walked into the room. Leroy was lying in the dark but not completely asleep. He had been waiting for Dave to come to bed.

"Yeah?" Leroy responded as Dave sat down.

Dave placed his hand on Leroy's chest and smiled to himself. "Well, I was talking to your son."

Leroy laughed and smiled, "Don't you mean our son?"

"Yeah, yeah, Babe, our son. I was talking to Jason, and we decided that you should be taking him out for his driver's training."

Leroy reached over and turned on the light, "Dave, you're the police officer. You can handle the stress of a teenage driver."

Dave laughed, "Leroy, it shouldn't be all my responsibility to teach our son how to drive. Plus, he could be doing it while I'm at work instead of waiting for me to come home. It's the summer."

Leroy closed his eyes. He knew Dave was right but didn't know if he could handle Jason behind the wheel. He had sat in the backseat a month prior when he first started to learn, and he, meaning Leroy was so tense. Dave was relaxed the whole time Jason was driving. "You're right, but you know I don't have the stomach for it."

Dave started to laugh uncontrollably and put his head on Leroy's chest. "The stomach Leroy? You were a Marine. You could handle jumping out of a plane, bombs, blood, guts, and gore. And you can't handle sitting next to our sixteen-year-old son in a car for him to practice driving?"

"Well, I never imagined my life ending in a car next to a teenager." Dave laughed, turned off the light, and walked out of the room.

*

The following morning when Leroy woke, Dave told him that he was taking Jason out while he was at work. So, here they were, leaving the driveway, and Leroy was trying to remain calm. He looked over at Jason, and Jason didn't look nervous at all. Leroy knew he should have paid more attention to this part of parenting. He decided that since Dave was the police officer, he could handle Jason and driver's ed. Dave helped Jason through the driving coursework, and now he must complete all his hours behind the wheel to pass the course to obtain his learner's permit.

"Jason, ten and two."

Jason was at a red light and looked over at him, "What?"

"You're holding the wheel wrong. You're supposed to hold it on top, at the ten and two positions." Leroy responded.

Jason was gripping the wheel a little tighter now but holding it at the position he had been taught. "No, it's eight and four, Dad. It's supposed to be better. The manual instructs us to. Ask Dad tonight."

Leroy looked at Jason, "I don't see how holding the wheel down there could be better."

"Well, it is Dad, anyway. You drive with one hand."

"Don't you worry about the way I drive!" Leroy's eyes widened as Jason got close to the person in front of him. "Shit, slow down, get off this guy's ass."

"I know, gee, will you let me drive."

Leroy took a deep breath and put his arm on his armrest. After a few more turns, Leroy spotted one of the little diners they go to a lot, and it was getting close to lunchtime. "Why don't you pull into the diner, and we'll get some lunch?"

"I thought we were going to drive for a bit longer?"

"We will, but let's get some lunch, and maybe my nerves will calm down."

*

Dave and Terry were in the cruiser driving around. "Well, I sent Leroy out with Jason today."

"You really did it? I was starting to think you didn't have the balls." Terry responded as he turned the corner.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Dave kind of knew what he was going to say.

Terry pulled the cruiser into a parking lot and looked at Dave. "Dave, since Leroy had those continuous seizures that put him in the hospital for nearly a week. What was it almost a year ago?" Dave nodded his head. "You haven't wanted to stress him out any. Just because the seizures were triggered by him being overly stressed doesn't mean he can't handle a little stress."

"I know, but...."

Terry cut Dave off. "Dave, you have been soft on him since he has recovered."

"How do you know?"

"If you must know, Shane told me. You know they still talk a lot." Terry responded, and Dave laughed.

"I know, and they will go out for lunch too. I'm glad we're not jealous men." Then they both laughed, remembering when they all stayed together for a while after Terry's house fire. "I was only worried. Mine and Leroy's families were getting on me too about not giving more responsibility to him."

"Dave, I know you were worried about him. God, I had to ride with you every day, remember? You just have to realize Leroy was grieving, and it didn't help that he and Jason were getting into it almost daily. Even the Neuro agreed that Leroy was stressed. Also, stating that they may have needed to increase his meds a while ago."

"Losing Lee, I thought, was going to kill Leroy. They had a great father/son bond. Then all the fighting and trouble Jason was getting into at school was getting Leroy pissed. They were at each other's throats constantly. I'm amazed that Jason made it to fifteen. But that day, Leroy had his seizure in front of Jason. It scared the living daylights out of the kid and straightened him up a lot." Dave chuckled.

"Yeah, when you're alone, and your father has a seizure and falls on the knife he was holding. I think that would scare the living shit out of any kid."

"Terry, that day scared me so much. I thought I was going to lose my husband. And we find it just because he is completely, well, not all from being, but mostly from being stressed out. So, I have been trying to make it stress-free again around the house."

Terry laughed, "And making your stress level increase."

"Only a little."

"A little Dave, a little?" Terry laughed. "Dave, let's stop at the fire department and get your blood pressure checked."

"It's not up," Dave responded.

"I bet you lunch it is," Terry responded. "Normal is 110 over 70, so do we have a deal?"

"You're going to make me go to the damn doctor next, aren't you?" Dave rounded his eyes and twisted up his mouth. He didn't want to get his blood pressure checked.

Terry laughed, "I'll tell Shane, and he'll tell Leroy. You know you make Leroy, so you should be going." Terry had already started heading towards the fire station.

"If it's not high, you're buying me a fucking steak."

"Dream on, Dave. Dream on," Terry responded as he drove and parked behind the fire station, and a few of the guys were sitting outback. "Hey Mike, can you do me a favor?" Terry called out the window.

"All depends. What's up?" Mike responded as he walked toward them.

"Can you take Dave's blood pressure?"

Mike laughed, "I would love to, but I'm sure Freeman would prefer to take Dave's blood pressure and do anything else Dave would have in mind."

Dave looked over at Freeman, who was out of earshot, and back at Mike. "No thanks, I don't need a jealous husband." Freeman was a sexy, good-looking young man who had been looking at Dave when they would stop in and chat occasionally.

Mike shook his head as he entered the station to retrieve his stethoscope and cuff. He had Dave sit on the bench when he took his pressure, which he checked twice to confirm. "Buddy, you got a doctor?"

Dave and Terry looked at him. "Yeah, I do. What were the readings?"

"They weren't terribly high but concerning. What's going on?" Mike prodded.

"What were the numbers?" Terry asked.

"145 over 85, which is borderline high. Well, it is considered high now because the American Health Association lowered it from 140 over 90 to 130 over 80. So, go see your doctor and tell Leroy to stop stressing you out or tell him to fuck you more." Mike laughed, but when he told Dave to have Leroy fuck him more, Freeman's attention snapped to the conversations.

"Thanks, Mike," Dave responded.

"Yeah, thanks, Mike. Don't worry. I'll keep on Dave until he gets to the doctor. But right now, he owes me lunch." Terry responded.

"Seriously, Dave." Mike touched Dave's arm. "Get to the doctor. We don't need to come to your house one night for you. It's bad enough coming for Leroy. We don't need Leroy or Jason saying you've had a heart attack."

Dave looked into Mike's eyes when he said this to him and nodded. "Thanks, Mike, I will. I promise."

*

That afternoon when Dave walked in from work, Jason, not Leroy, was waiting for him in the living room. Leroy was sitting in the backyard drinking a beer. He knew that Jason wanted to talk to Dave, and he wanted to stay out of it. Because it was concerning how he was with Jason during his little time behind the wheel that morning.

Dave didn't even get two steps in the door before Jason pounced. "Dad, I can't finish my hours with him. It's not possible. I won't do it." Dave wondered if he stepped back out of the house and back in, would this conversation still be happening?

Calmly Dave sat down, "You know you two are just alike." Dave laughed when Jason scowled. "What did your dad do that was so bad?"

"He was tense the entire time I was driving. He thought I was holding the wheel wrong. Then not even twenty minutes into driving, he made me stop for lunch. He got mad that I checked my text messages at a red light. He told me if I did that again, he would take my phone away." Dave was trying not to laugh or smile during his tirade.

Jason continued on for a few more minutes until Dave stopped him. "Jason, I will talk to your father, but you will continue to do your hours with him. You know better than to look at your phone while you're driving."

"I was at a red light...."

"I don't care if you were sitting at a red light. We discussed this. You promised your dad and me that your phone would always stay in your pocket or the armrest. If you can't keep this promise, you won't be driving."

"But Dad?"

"No, but dad to me. I've seen too many accidents, Jason. Some of them, the kid never came home again."

"Okay."

"I love you. We love you, Jason." Dave stated.

"I know, Dad. I love you too." Jason responded.

"Where's your dad?"

"In the backyard. I'm going to my room." Jason went upstairs as Dave got up to head outside. On his way to the backyard, he stopped and grabbed two beers.

Leroy looked up when he heard the screen door open, "Hey, Babe, so what time am I taking him out tomorrow?"

Dave chuckled, "Anytime you like, just be patient with him, Leroy. He's learning. How was Lee with you?" Leroy took Dave by the hand and pulled him down on his lap. "Leroy, this chair is not going to hold us both." He laughed as Leroy kissed him.

"My Dad was on my ass about every turn I made, and you know there wasn't a damn phone going off every two seconds in our back pockets back then." Jason was listening from his room.

Dave smiled, "Lighten up on him, Leroy. You're not going to die. He's not that bad of a driver."

"What were his complaints? Besides, I didn't know the new hand positions, and I told him I would permanently take his phone away if he ever took it out while driving. Yes, I was nervous while he drove. It's technically the second time I've been in the car with him. So I asked him to stop for lunch twenty minutes into driving, then we drove for another hour."

Dave kissed Leroy, got off his lap, and pulled the other chair up next to him so they could hold hands, which faced them towards the house. Dave chuckled. "You know I told him you two are alike, and he scowled," Leroy smirked. "If I didn't know any better, I would say he was your kid through and through."

Leroy laughed to cover up his sadness, "I do miss when we would hang out and do things. But now he has his friends and no time for me. Why would you want to hang out with your old man."

Dave smiled but could see the sadness in Leroy's eyes. "Well, I still want to hang out with Jason's old man." They sat for a bit, holding hands and drinking the beer, until Dave decided he should talk to Leroy about his blood pressure. "Leroy, it's nothing, but I need to see my doctor soon."

Leroy inquisitively looked over at Dave, "What's going on?"

"Apparently, my blood pressure has been up. I haven't realized it. Terry asked me today to get it checked by one of the EMTs at the fire station. It was a little high."

Leroy jokes, "It wasn't high because one of the guy's down there was flirting with you, was it? Because I know some of them aren't bad looking."

Dave laughed and then got serious again. "No, they aren't, but no, they weren't. Terry knows I've been a little stressed lately, and I didn't want to overwhelm you."

Leroy looked at Dave for a few moments before responding, but first, he got up from his chair and knelt in front of Dave. "Hon, I'm not reverting back to when I first was medically discharged and felt like a burden to you. I know, Babe. I was stressed and should have gone to see Doctor Watts. Losing my dad and having our son fighting in school and doing the other shit. I didn't know why Jason pushed so much before my dad passed away. He started going to you before coming to me. It was like I had turned into the enemy. Some days it still feels like I am."

"I know, Lee had told me. Jason had talked to him. He talked to Lee about you a lot. But then Lee passed, and it was a bad time."

"I know, it was bad. I didn't realize losing my dad would affect me as badly as it did. I can't change things now. I don't know how to change things with Jason."

Jason stood at the window listening and remembered what Lee had told him.

*

"Papa, dad's mean," Jason said as he sat in a chair in Lee's living space.

"What did Leroy do now?" Lee chuckled.

"He won't listen to me. He had to come and get me at school because I got into a fight. Of course, he believes the school. But I didn't start it."

"Okay, so why did you get into the fight?"

Jason looked down, "A girl was getting made fun of, so I wanted to stop the kid."

"And how did you stop the kid?"

"I hit him, but I was doing it to stop him from making fun of the girl, so I didn't start it," Jason stated.

Lee laughed, "Looks like you're in a catch-22. Technically you did start that fight, but you were helping out someone else."

"But Papa, you even said, and I told Dad, that he even got into fights when he was young. He would beat up anyone that would bully Dad."

"Jason, that might be so, but you can't point that out to him. He's only trying to keep you safe and out of trouble."

"But it's not fair, Papa," Jason stated again.

Lee looked at his grandson, "Jason, right now, you don't see what your father is trying to teach you. Hell, Leroy didn't see it when he was growing up, either. We didn't fight like the two of you do. He knew his place."

"How so?"

Lee chuckled, "Do you notice that Leroy never swears in front of me like my other children do?"

"Yeah, I don't recall him swearing in front of you." Jason had to think about it. He knows Leroy will swear that he has heard him once or twice but doesn't recall if he ever has heard him in front of Lee. But he knows he has heard all his uncles or aunts.

"He might slip once in a while, but it's rare. As you know, Leroy is my firstborn. I was hard as nails on that kid. The first and only time I caught him swearing, not only did I bust his ass, I took him over to my dad to get yelled at." Lee smiled, "Your dad is only doing what he was taught. I learned to be a father on Leroy and was easier on the rest of his siblings."

"But you're nice. He's mean." Jason stated, and Lee chuckled.

"Jason, do you remember when you asked your dads if you could learn to shoot?" Jason nodded. "Dave was against it immediately, and you went to your room and cried. After Dave went to work, Leroy asked you to come with him, and he took you where?"

"He took me to the range, telling me that I couldn't tell dad. Before letting me even shoot, he took the gun completely apart and showed me how to put it together. Then he took it apart, and it took me over an hour to put it together myself." Jason laughed. "Dad could put it together in less than a minute, and it took me over an hour. Every time he showed me, he would take it back apart, and then I would have to start all over again."

"Do you know why he did that?"

"So I would understand and appreciate the weapon. That I would understand that it was a lethal object."

"Did you end up shooting it that day?" Lee asked.

Jason laughed, "No, he didn't bring bullets. I was so mad at him after I finally got it put together. He looked at me and told me my lesson wasn't finished yet. That I needed to take the weapon back apart."

"How many times did he do this?"

"Until I could put it together in under ten minutes. Then he told me that we would come back tomorrow when Dad left for work. And every day that week, we went back, and he taught me something else related to the gun but didn't allow me to shoot it." Jason smiled, "Then the next week, he brought me to the range, and he had everything I needed, eye and ear protection."

"So, was your dad hard on you then?" Lee asked.

"Yes and no. Yes, because he wanted me to know every little detail about the gun and why it was dangerous. But no, because it was great spending time with him. He taught me things I don't think my other dad even knew, maybe because dad was in the military. I don't know."

"You have seen your father's tattoos, right?" Lee asked, and Jason nodded. "One is for his years in the Marines. Do you know the saying that is written below his tattoo?"

"Semper Fi."

"Yes, and do you know what that means?" Lee asked, and Jason shook his head. "Always faithful, and that is your father, Jason. Leroy will have your back no matter what you do. He loves you. You are his son. Always remember that."

*

Jason stood at the window, looking down at his dads sitting on the deck. He almost turned away, and then he heard Leroy speak up. "I don't think he loves me anymore. Maybe I've been too hard on him."

"Lee, shit." Dave squeezed his hand. "You two are just alike." But Dave could see tears escaping Leroy's eyes. "Leroy, Jason loves you. He's a teenager. You know what it's like to be a teenager."

"Yeah, would you like another beer?" Leroy asked as he got up. Dave squeezed his hand but nodded as he went into the house.

Dave looked up and noticed Jason, but Aaron and Bridget walked out onto the deck before he could motion for him to come down. "Why's grumpy bear out of his cage?" Bridget asked.

"Don't ask," Dave responded. "How are you two tonight?"

"Feeling old," Aaron responded.

"Ha, remember we're older than you," Dave responded.

"Really, why are Leroy's defenses up?" Bridget asked.

"Emotions, more than anything. He thinks Jason doesn't love him. They got into a disagreement, but it was nothing. You know those two. Give them a few hours, and they are fine with one another."

"Yeah, I know," Bridget said, and Aaron nodded.

Leroy came back out with beers for everyone. "Dave, Leroy, what are you doing tomorrow?" Aaron asked.

"What time?" Dave asked.

"Morning."

"Taking Jason out driving, and Dave will be at work. Why, what did you need?" Jason was still listening and knew he was going to find a way out of taking him driving.

"Bridget and I need a ride to the airport. We're going to fly down to Florida for a few days."

Leroy smiled, "No problem. What time? Jason and I will be there to pick you up."

"You will be driving, right?" Aaron asked.

"Nope, you know I can't drive currently, and the kid needs to get his hours in. If I can handle it, sort of, his aunt and uncle should be able to. You already have gone through this a few times." Leroy chuckled.

"Maybe we'll call Allison," Aaron stated.