Dak woke up in the middle of the night and sat bolt upright in bed thinking about Brody. He dreamed that his grandmother told him that he wasn’t good enough for Brody. She said it with such intensity that he broke into a cold sweat after he woke up.

Remembering that all of his other relatives disliked her and she was a bitter old woman at best helped slightly, but her words kindled deep fears that always lingered in the dark recesses of Dak’s mind. He barely graduated from high school, and he could only work on the boat until his body started giving out, probably by about age 45. The wear and tear on his body meant he would have a rougher time than many men his own age with any activities, including sex. Dak secretly dreaded what would happen to him ten years down the road.

Dak’s pulse raced, and he found himself breathless with a tight sensation in his chest. The sensations were familiar from childhood, but they were his worst physical reaction to self-doubt and anxiety in more than a decade. He stumbled to the kitchen and drank a glass of water. The liquid had a soothing effect, and soon he was able to breathe normally again.

Maybe Brody was right about going back to school. He wondered what Brody would do for work in the city. That didn’t last long. He remembered that Brody had a college degree, and there were stores like Home Pro all over the Twin Cities. His resume would be snatched up by employers in an instant.

It was the river. It was in Dak’s blood. He thought about the warning words from Mr. Bennett when Dak first heard about the idea of working on the boats. Mr. Bennett said, “One thing to be careful about. They say the river eats her own. She knows who they are, and they eventually come back to her bosom.”

Dak shivered. At least one night of every month he spent on the towboat, he woke in the middle of the night with a nightmare of drowning in the icy cold river in late fall or early spring. The dark water closed above him and everything started to go black until he woke with a start.

When he returned to the bedroom, the clock on the nightstand read 3:11 a.m. Dak knew that it was a crazy time of night to call anyone, but he decided to do it anyway. He picked up his phone and started to type in the number.

Brody’s voice was thick and scratchy when he finally answered after seven rings. “Dak, is that you? What the fuck?”

It sounded like Brody was pissed off, and Dak couldn’t stop himself from laughing. Between guffaws, he asked, “How’d you know it was me?”

Brody growled, “I waited for my eyes to focus and the phone says Dak right there by the phone number on the screen.”

Dak was still chuckling when he said, “Oh, that’s right. I guess I don’t have to ask if you’re awake.”

“Stop saying inane shit and tell me why you’re calling.”

“I miss you.”

Brody growled again. “Damn, you couldn’t wait until maybe eight to tell…” His words came to a screeching halt, and in a softer voice, Brody asked, “You what?”

“I miss you. I think you should be here in my bed.”

“Or you here,” whispered Brody.

“Will you let me in? I can be there in ten minutes.” Dak was already pulling clothes out of his suitcase while he listened for the response.

“Of course. I’m pulling on shorts now.”

As promised, ten minutes later Dak was knocking on Brody’s door. He was dressed simply in jeans and a gray T-Shirt. He stuck a toothbrush in the pocket of his T-Shirt and a condom in his jeans pocket.

Brody opened the door and pulled Dak inside. He said, “I’ve got something to say.”

Dak shook his head. “It’s 3:30 a.m. Can’t it wait until later in the morning?”

“No,” said Brody. “Come here and sit by me on the couch.”

Dak settled himself on the couch and asked, “How do you do this? Everything is always perfectly neat and tidy. Don’t you ever eat in front of the TV? I’m already turning my brand new apartment into a pit.”

Brody laughed. “You’re distracting me, but I’ll answer anyway. My mom taught me to put things away. She told me to put everything back where I found it, and I always clean up everything before I go to bed.”

“We might need a serious discussion about that.”

“You’re moving in, Dak?”

“Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves.”

Dak had never seen such a huge smile on Brody’s face. He said, “I still have something to say, and it’s that I”m sorry.”

“For what?” asked Dak.

“Trying to push you around and trying to make decisions without talking to you about them. It’s a bad way to start. If we’re gonna do this, we need to decide things together. I was way out of line. Those dollar signs made me crazy.”

Dak shoved Brody down on the couch and snuggled up close. “Damn, you came up with that without me having to say anything. You took all the wind out of my sails.”

“It wasn’t hard. You know why?”

Dak slipped a hand under Brody’s T-Shirt and asked, “Why?”

“Fuck, you’re so distracting,” moaned Brody. “Because your heart was right out there on your sleeve for me to see. You commented, and I figured it out. You might keep your heart private and tucked away from losers like Lewis, but it’s right out there in the open for me.”

Dak pulled up the T-Shirt and kissed Brody’s belly. He said, “Now I have something else to say that comes straight from my heart, or maybe down a little bit lower.”

“And that is?”

“I really wanna go climb back in bed with you. I’m not supposed to be up at this hour.”

“Me either. I’ve got to get up and get ready for work in just a few hours.”

Dak leaned forward and shared a kiss. “Then we’ll save the fun stuff for tonight? Right now, we can just sleep.”

Brody held up a hand for a high-five. “It’s a deal!”