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Chapter 16: "The Dad Squad" (Part 1/2)
RORY:
I sat on the floor with my shoes off, my butt getting stiff after being in this position for an hour. Holding Phoenix, I looked around the circle of two dozen dads with their infants, sitting on the colorful, foam-tiled floor. It was an interesting mix of guys for sure. A few of them were even younger than me, maybe even teenagers still. Others looked to be in their 50s. There was a gay couple with their adopted twins, a boy and a girl. Some men mentioned their wives; others talked about being single and juggling dating and fatherhood.
As the only new person in this "Daddy & Me" class, I'd introduced myself and my son in the beginning. We'd then gone in a circle, clockwise starting from me, and everyone said their and their kid's name. All in all, I'd quite enjoyed the class and could certainly imagine myself returning in the future.
By the end though, I was happy to get up off my sore ass. I had my eye on the coffee station at the back of the room. I hadn't slept that well the night before (courtesy of Phoenix's crying), so I made a beeline for the paper cups before I'd even slipped my shoes on, while the rest of the "regulars" were still sitting and chatting with each other. As I was filling my cup, I heard a voice behind me.
"You're smart to be first in line... we do run out," a guy around my age said to me with a smile. I tried to remember his name, but it was impossible after being bombarded with so many new names today. Luckily, he reintroduced himself as Payton. We shook hands, and I let him get his own fix of caffeine, before we walked back to my spot so I could put my shoes on and get Phoenix into his stroller.
Payton had his son with him, currently dozing in his baby carrier. As we chatted about our kids and the class for a few minutes, many men on their way out came up to Payton to say goodbye. He seemed like an outgoing guy that could draw people in quickly. Looking at him, he didn't strike me as a regular "dad." His T-shirt was tight and showed off his impressive pecs and broad shoulders. The sleeves of tattoos on both his arms were extremely detailed and I had to stop myself from staring at them too long. He wore tight, low-rise jeans; if I didn't know better I might assume he way gay, but he'd mentioned his girlfriend while speaking earlier.
The crowd in the room was thinning out and I stuck close to Payton. We walked to his spot in the circle where he casually slipped his flip flops on and picked up the baby carrier.
"Listen, Rory, a few of us get together for coffee after class usually. You're welcome to join if you want to," he invited me.
"That would be great, thank you!"
We walked together to a hole-in-the-wall place around the corner. There were only two tables outside on the sidewalk, and sitting at one of them I recognized three men from the class. They waved at us when they saw us, smiling invitingly.
Two of the men were the gay couple in class, Gill and Deacon. They looked to be in their late 20s or early 30s. Deacon got up to pull up a chair from the neighboring table when he saw I was joining them. Both of them dressed in expensive-looking casual clothes, and their double stroller was a fancy European brand (I noticed this type of things now). Gill's ears were pierced in a few places, and he held one hand on the stroller and another on his husband's lap. Deacon's colorful shirt was unbuttoned almost all the way down to his navel, which might look ridiculous on some but he could pull it off, with his muscular, hairy chest exposed underneath.
The last man at the table was Cole, whose daughter was sleeping beside him. Cole had a similar look to Payton, with tattooed arms and a tight T-shirt. He hadn't spoken in class and he seemed quieter than the rest of the men at the table. With time, though, he'd opened up and I'd learned that he was 24, just one year older than me.
"Cole's also a single dad," Gill said, causing Cole and I to make eye contact and smile at each other in comradery. Later, Cole mentioned his "ex-partner" a couple of times, giving no indication of whether that person was a man or a woman.
"What should I get?" I said, checking out the one-page menu at the table.
"The coffee's good. Just don't get the panini, they're horrific," Payton said.
"And stay away from the quinoa bowls as well," Gill added.
"Isn't this your usual spot?" I laughed. "Why do you go here again?"
"Because it's the only place in the neighborhood with a changing station in the men's room," Cole winked at me.
"Ah, yeah. The things that matter now," I chuckled.
We all sat and talked for over two hours. I wasn't sure if that was how long the guys usually spent here, but the conversation never stopped flowing. And the best part was: we didn't even talk about our kids the whole time! Of course that was in there, but Deacon had a pretty interesting job, Gill was hilarious, and everyone wanted to hear about my trip to Hawaii. When I mentioned I'd met a girl there who now lives in New York, it was followed by a teasing "Oooh, nice!" from the group, which made me feel like I was back in high school with my buddies.
"So, how well did you get to know each other?" Payton enquired playfully.
"Let's just say we spent the night together," I answered slyly.
"Meeting girls at weddings, man, I'm telling you. That's how my girlfriend and I met, five years ago," Payton said.
"How old are you now?" I was curious.
"26. She's 30."
"A cougar, huh?" I was happy to tease along.
The conversation about weddings continued. Gill and Deacon shared that at the last wedding they'd gone to, they were both flirting with someone independently, and were later amused to find out it had been the same guy, a 19-year-old aspiring model. The night had ended with a hot ménage à trois in their hotel room. Payton said he and his girlfriend had once gone to a wedding where they barely knew anyone, and ended up having a foursome with the best man and maid of honor. We all agreed that story took the cake. It's funny: here we were drinking coffee after a Daddy & Me class; but if we had been drinking beers instead this would've felt like a typical "night out with the boys."
As we were getting ready to leave, the conversation had turned to the little ones again. All of the guys assured me that they try to make it to class every Sunday, and asked if I planned on returning.
"Yeah, I think I will, yes," I nodded, smiling. "This was really nice."
"C'mon, you have to. You're in the Dad Squad now," Payton said.
"That's what we call ourselves. I tried to veto it, but they outvoted me," Gill added.
Gill, his husband, and Cole all got up and left, but not before giving me a hug and saying how nice it was to meet me. Payton, meanwhile, was digging through his diaper bag for a book on fatherhood that he'd mentioned earlier, that he offered to lend me.
Bending down in front of me, his low-rise jeans had slid down, exposing a bit of Payton's crack, as well as several inches of the colorful underwear he had on. It reminded me of something I might see on my brother or Owen.
"There you go!" he came up with the book finally. We exchanged a hug, waved at each other's sons, and I headed out to a nearby park to meet Phoenix's mom.
Click here for all my other stories and to find out what happened in Hawaii
RORY:
I sat on the floor with my shoes off, my butt getting stiff after being in this position for an hour. Holding Phoenix, I looked around the circle of two dozen dads with their infants, sitting on the colorful, foam-tiled floor. It was an interesting mix of guys for sure. A few of them were even younger than me, maybe even teenagers still. Others looked to be in their 50s. There was a gay couple with their adopted twins, a boy and a girl. Some men mentioned their wives; others talked about being single and juggling dating and fatherhood.
As the only new person in this "Daddy & Me" class, I'd introduced myself and my son in the beginning. We'd then gone in a circle, clockwise starting from me, and everyone said their and their kid's name. All in all, I'd quite enjoyed the class and could certainly imagine myself returning in the future.
By the end though, I was happy to get up off my sore ass. I had my eye on the coffee station at the back of the room. I hadn't slept that well the night before (courtesy of Phoenix's crying), so I made a beeline for the paper cups before I'd even slipped my shoes on, while the rest of the "regulars" were still sitting and chatting with each other. As I was filling my cup, I heard a voice behind me.
"You're smart to be first in line... we do run out," a guy around my age said to me with a smile. I tried to remember his name, but it was impossible after being bombarded with so many new names today. Luckily, he reintroduced himself as Payton. We shook hands, and I let him get his own fix of caffeine, before we walked back to my spot so I could put my shoes on and get Phoenix into his stroller.
Payton had his son with him, currently dozing in his baby carrier. As we chatted about our kids and the class for a few minutes, many men on their way out came up to Payton to say goodbye. He seemed like an outgoing guy that could draw people in quickly. Looking at him, he didn't strike me as a regular "dad." His T-shirt was tight and showed off his impressive pecs and broad shoulders. The sleeves of tattoos on both his arms were extremely detailed and I had to stop myself from staring at them too long. He wore tight, low-rise jeans; if I didn't know better I might assume he way gay, but he'd mentioned his girlfriend while speaking earlier.
The crowd in the room was thinning out and I stuck close to Payton. We walked to his spot in the circle where he casually slipped his flip flops on and picked up the baby carrier.
"Listen, Rory, a few of us get together for coffee after class usually. You're welcome to join if you want to," he invited me.
"That would be great, thank you!"
We walked together to a hole-in-the-wall place around the corner. There were only two tables outside on the sidewalk, and sitting at one of them I recognized three men from the class. They waved at us when they saw us, smiling invitingly.
Two of the men were the gay couple in class, Gill and Deacon. They looked to be in their late 20s or early 30s. Deacon got up to pull up a chair from the neighboring table when he saw I was joining them. Both of them dressed in expensive-looking casual clothes, and their double stroller was a fancy European brand (I noticed this type of things now). Gill's ears were pierced in a few places, and he held one hand on the stroller and another on his husband's lap. Deacon's colorful shirt was unbuttoned almost all the way down to his navel, which might look ridiculous on some but he could pull it off, with his muscular, hairy chest exposed underneath.
The last man at the table was Cole, whose daughter was sleeping beside him. Cole had a similar look to Payton, with tattooed arms and a tight T-shirt. He hadn't spoken in class and he seemed quieter than the rest of the men at the table. With time, though, he'd opened up and I'd learned that he was 24, just one year older than me.
"Cole's also a single dad," Gill said, causing Cole and I to make eye contact and smile at each other in comradery. Later, Cole mentioned his "ex-partner" a couple of times, giving no indication of whether that person was a man or a woman.
"What should I get?" I said, checking out the one-page menu at the table.
"The coffee's good. Just don't get the panini, they're horrific," Payton said.
"And stay away from the quinoa bowls as well," Gill added.
"Isn't this your usual spot?" I laughed. "Why do you go here again?"
"Because it's the only place in the neighborhood with a changing station in the men's room," Cole winked at me.
"Ah, yeah. The things that matter now," I chuckled.
We all sat and talked for over two hours. I wasn't sure if that was how long the guys usually spent here, but the conversation never stopped flowing. And the best part was: we didn't even talk about our kids the whole time! Of course that was in there, but Deacon had a pretty interesting job, Gill was hilarious, and everyone wanted to hear about my trip to Hawaii. When I mentioned I'd met a girl there who now lives in New York, it was followed by a teasing "Oooh, nice!" from the group, which made me feel like I was back in high school with my buddies.
"So, how well did you get to know each other?" Payton enquired playfully.
"Let's just say we spent the night together," I answered slyly.
"Meeting girls at weddings, man, I'm telling you. That's how my girlfriend and I met, five years ago," Payton said.
"How old are you now?" I was curious.
"26. She's 30."
"A cougar, huh?" I was happy to tease along.
The conversation about weddings continued. Gill and Deacon shared that at the last wedding they'd gone to, they were both flirting with someone independently, and were later amused to find out it had been the same guy, a 19-year-old aspiring model. The night had ended with a hot ménage à trois in their hotel room. Payton said he and his girlfriend had once gone to a wedding where they barely knew anyone, and ended up having a foursome with the best man and maid of honor. We all agreed that story took the cake. It's funny: here we were drinking coffee after a Daddy & Me class; but if we had been drinking beers instead this would've felt like a typical "night out with the boys."
As we were getting ready to leave, the conversation had turned to the little ones again. All of the guys assured me that they try to make it to class every Sunday, and asked if I planned on returning.
"Yeah, I think I will, yes," I nodded, smiling. "This was really nice."
"C'mon, you have to. You're in the Dad Squad now," Payton said.
"That's what we call ourselves. I tried to veto it, but they outvoted me," Gill added.
Gill, his husband, and Cole all got up and left, but not before giving me a hug and saying how nice it was to meet me. Payton, meanwhile, was digging through his diaper bag for a book on fatherhood that he'd mentioned earlier, that he offered to lend me.
Bending down in front of me, his low-rise jeans had slid down, exposing a bit of Payton's crack, as well as several inches of the colorful underwear he had on. It reminded me of something I might see on my brother or Owen.
"There you go!" he came up with the book finally. We exchanged a hug, waved at each other's sons, and I headed out to a nearby park to meet Phoenix's mom.
Click here for all my other stories and to find out what happened in Hawaii