Michael Daigle had spent about eleven years of his life as Mikey. A few days before sixth grade, he and his best friend, Tyler, discussed the problem of his cute name. He couldn't become Mike because that was his father's name, although his old man predominantly went by Michael. On the first day of school, he told his teachers to call him Mick. The name stuck.

Twenty years later, everyone called him Mick, well almost everyone. His mother didn't, and sometimes Chickie Hathorne, his best friend's mother and his pretend mother, looked him in the eye with love and said Michael. Obviously, he signed his taxes with his legal name. Taxes for him were a nightmare, but working as an independent contractor in different states and countries made every cent he paid the CPA well worth it.

Mick could afford it. He lived a cheap life when he was away from Boston. It didn't matter where he was, his focus was on work.

One year into his project in Cartagena, Colombia, Mick's contract extended for a second year. The large skyscraper was taking longer to complete than the original estimates. They spent the first four months making sure the ground was sound to hold the footings for the forty-story building. Mick didn't mind because it was his job and he thrived on challenges.

He walked the site in his hard hat, denim, and work boots. As he inspected the day's progress, the sun was still high in the sky and the heat baked him.

With bronzed skin like a farmer, he looked in the mirror at his naked torso which looked like he had a white tee shirt on. He really needed to change that. Have some fun, he told himself.

His phone buzzed in his pocket and he smiled after he pulled it out. "Meggy!"

"Hi Mick."

"How's married life? I still feel bad I couldn't be there."

"You aren't coming home for the wedding."

"I know, and no one knows yet, but I'm staying another year. It's a great gig." He lived so cheaply. "I'm making a killing."

"That's good, but Ty needs you."

His heart sang as she used his best friend's nickname. For months, it had been 'I don't want to talk about Tyler' or 'will he ever forgive me', but now his two best friends were back together. Not together like Tyler wanted, but friends again. Half the reasons he left no longer existed.

Meg had married Cade. Mick didn't know the guy, but he trusted her to choose wisely. He also knew if her parents approved of the union then he had to be a good guy. Sharon Rice was a tough egg. Not as tough as Annette Daigle, but his mother was the human equivalent of a polar vortex. She was the reason he never stayed in Boston for long. Or at least she had been when he started his career ten years before. He had a long stint home prior to taking off for Cartagena. He might have stayed and avoided his old lady, but Meg and Tyler fell out. Mick needed to put distance between himself and the drama.

Ty needed him. "I can't believe how much he fucked up his life. I mean a baby with a stranger."

Meg laughed. "Poppy's not a stranger anymore, and she is oddly perfect for him. She loves him."

"Did she tell you?"

Meg's laugh bounced off cell towers from all the way to him in South America. "She's jealous of me which means she cares."

"Or she's afraid you'll see her plan." God, he sounded cynical. Mick always protected his own and Tyler was the one person he could count on for most of his life.

Meg laughed. "I would be insulted on her behalf, but you haven't met her. Mick, she's sweet and everything Ty needs but was too dumb to realize." She paused. "Except, he needs you to stand next to him. Can't you please take a vacation, even a long weekend, and come home for his wedding. I know it's short notice, but he asked me to be his best person. You know I love him, but Poppy doesn't want me to. I get it. I wouldn't want Cade's ex to stand with him. He should have Eli, but he is Tyler."

"Stubborn Tyler." Who valued his friends above all? "Breathe Meg. I'll see what I can do."

"Really?" He could imagine her jumping up and down. Her pitch raised two octaves.

"No promises and don't tell him. I can't face disappointing him if I can't pull it off."

"It can be a huge surprise for him. I won't tell him even if we can pull it off."

Mick frowned. "How much does this mean to you?"

"What do you mean?"

"All my suits and tuxedos are in Newton."

He could hear Meg gulp from two thousand miles away. "I'll have my mother call your mother and get your tux."

"I don't want her to know I'm in town. Assuming I am, that is."

Meg's voice was soft and encouraging. "Call your dad, Mick. He'll bring it to Chickie's for you. You know he'll want to see you."

"For a quick lunch between meetings that have always been more important than me."

"Think about it. Hell, you can wear Cade's tux. Please come."

"Cade owns a tux," he teased.

"Yup and he looks gorgeous in it."

The guy Meg married had made more money himself than Mick would make in a lifetime. Although Mick wasn't poor, he saved and had a trust fund.

The following day, Mick signed his extension with four days off to go home plus a weekend. He'd spend two of the six days traveling which didn't give him much time to see people. The Monday before he flew back on Tuesday morning would be the best day, but people worked. Was it too late to ask his cousin, Hunter, to take the day off?

He and Hunter were tight, but not like him and Tyler. Tyler was his brother, and Hunter was exactly what he was, his cousin. Maybe he wouldn't tell him he was in town. If he did, Aunt Lori would want him to come for a family meal. There just wasn't enough time.

Why did it always feel like he disappointed others every time he did what he wanted?

Instead of going home to his small apartment, he stopped to eat. Sitting at a table outside, he sipped his beer and thought about calling his father. He had already texted Meg to tell her he could come and expected her excited phone call.

Pointing to his almost empty beer, he said, "Uno mas."

The server hurried away and returned with another bottle. After taking a long pull, he called his father's phone. It rang four times before he heard Michael, Senior's voice.

"Mick."

"Hi dad. You busy?" It was a rhetorical question, because the man was always busy. His picture should be next to the word workaholic in the dictionary.

"Not for you."

He said it, but didn't mean it. "I just called to say I extended my contract for another year."

"That's a long time away."

If his father took vacations, Mick would invite him. If his father took vacations, he might be the father Mick would want to visit him. It wasn't like he never took a vacation, but the memories of their trips away and days together were blocked by all the days in between. Days when his father worked and Mick was stuck pondering the hundred billion dollar question: how could a mother hate her own child?

"Yeah, I know. I like it here. My Spanish is better than ever." His father laughed. "I'm coming home for Tyler's wedding. It's just a long weekend."

"I heard about Tyler getting married."

"You did? Really?" Mick didn't think his father's path crossed with any of his friends. Had Chickie sent an invitation? No way Annette Daigle would attend. It would require her to put her fangs away and act nice.

"I ran into the Aldens when I was out to dinner one night. They asked about you."

Their son was Tyler's brother's best friend, Eli's Mick. Maybe Mick was Tyler's Harrison since the other two were older.

"I, um, won't have time to drop by and get my tux before the wedding. Could you maybe bring it to Tyler's house?"

"Will you have any time to see me?"

"I don't know. I expect a lot of wedding preparations and I'd like to get to know the bride. Tyler doesn't know I'm coming. It's a surprise. Maybe you should drop it at Rice's instead."

"Mick, I'll do anything for you, but if you can spare a few minutes to see your old man, I'd appreciate it."

"Okay. Yeah. Monday, the..." He told him the date. "Um, dad, Meg's calling me. I have to talk to her about the arrangements."

"Bye, son."

Bye, Dad." He said the words, but he was already clicking over to Meg. 

Hopefully everyone remembers Mick. Thanks for voting ⭐️