“God, that´s big.” Davey said, so much in awe that he actually spoke plainly the words he was thinking.
“What’d I tell you about using the Lord’s name in vain, boy?” Jack said. “Anyway, it’s not that big.”
The wasp’s nest hung from the tall, rusted clothes line that sat, forgotten behind the old shed. The two men stood in the crowding darkness, a can gripped tightly in each gloved hand. The tranquility surrounding the hive belied the thriving life within it.
“I haven’t seen a bigger one.”
“Yea well, I guess there’s a lot you don´t see with your nose crammed in them books.”
“Those books.”
“We´ll have to move quickly or we´ll lose the little light we got left.” They started towards the nest.
Davey stopped and turned, “Maybe we should go at it from opposite sides. So they don’t all exit the other side and attack us.”
“Nah” Jack replied, throwing his toothpick to the ground. “Go over there a bit, we can have a go at it from an angle.”
“Isn’t that essentially what I said?”
“Quit stalling, ga head.” Davey mumbled an angry retort that he hoped was loud enough. They inched their way toward the nest, listening, as the active hum grew louder. Jack threw up a hand telling Davey to stop. He chastised himself for responding so quickly.
“One…” Jack mouthed, making little sound. “two… three…GO” They lunged forward, cans aimed at the nest, fingers pressing hard upon the valve, dusting the nest with poisoned mist. The sound of fury rose over that of the cans as wasps emerged from their home under siege. Most fell from the air only centimetres from the nest wall. The spraying became more erratic as wasps started coming from wider angles. The men’s arms flailed back and forth in a dance without rhythm. Jack felt a soft tickle on the back of his neck and a quick, stinging pain. Davey was stung on his forearm twice before shouting the retreat.
“Jack, we can´t- we gotta go!” He turned and ran for the house. Jack also gave up the fight and followed a few steps behind. He reached the house first, threw open the screen door and pushed Davey inside. A wasp had followed them into the house. It buzzed around Jack’s head. He narrowly missed another stinging when Davey swatted it away and sprayed it. They panted heavily, trying to catch their breath. Jack because he was a life-long smoker and Dave because he rarely found time apart from studying to exercise. Jack straightened himself and sprayed the wasps, poised to attack, on the screen.
“Did they get ya?” Jack asked, holding a hand over his neck.
“Yea, coupla times”. Davey reached his arms out showing his war wounds proudly.
“Told ya ta wear a sweater.” He responded, grabbing sting cream from the cabinet. “Here use this.”
“I knew we should have gone at opposite sides. I told you.”
“And we woulda sprayed eachother as much as the wasps. This stuff ain´t exactly oganic”
“Organic, it’s organic.”
“It ain’t good for you anway.”
“I don’t like this stuff, where´s the other one. The one mom used to buy.”
“I think there’s some in Kelly’s old room.” Jack said, looking away from him. He opened the fridge and grabbed a beer while Davey left the room.
A few minutes later, Davey stormed back through the kitchen door. Jack sat with a beer in his hand and another, sitting across the table. He walked past the unopened beer.
“Jack, what’s going on in Kelly’s room?”
“We painted it.”
“And the bed… and her desk?”
“There’s a family in town that don’t have much. Thought their little girl could get more use out of it. Why don’t you sit down, Davey?”
“Christ, how many times do I have to tell you. Don’t call me Davey.”
“David then. We´re turning it into an office. Somewhere I can keep my files and where your mom can…relax.”
“And when Kelly comes home?”
Jack looked up at him. “She ain’t coming back David. She don’t wanna be here.”
“So you´re just gonna erase her? Like she was never here.”
“It ain’t healthy, having all her stuff sitting there like she just left for a pack o' smokes. You just came home yesterday, you dunno what it was like. Your mom spendin all her time in there, talking about her constantly. You know she used to sleep in there some nights? ”
David hadn’t known. But he was damned if he was going to let Jack see that.
“You think I made her have a goddam nervous breakdown?”
“You think I wanted her to leave?” Jack shouted, finally losing his temper and stood so they were face to face.
“Didn’t you? Admit it. She was never good enough, was she? Neither of us were.”
“It’s not my fault she left.”
With that David lost what little control he had and swung his fist at Jack. It landed on his jaw with a dull thud. Jack sent a right hook into David’s cheek bone followed by a swift punch to his stomach. David doubled over and fell to the floor, gasping for breath. Jack dropped his hands, disappointed. He should know better by now.
“Come on. You´re ok.” He said, kneeling down. David sat up, coughing and Jack helped him into his chair. From the freezer, he grabbed a small bag of peas that he tossed to David. “Put that on your face.”
“Yea, I know.” He spat as Jack sat down.
“Probably shouldn’t tell your mom ‘bout this.”
“Yea, ok. How’s she doing?”
“She’s gone out to buy hamburger. Making meatloaf for dinner. Your favourite. That’s more than she done for awhile.”
“Good, I- That´s good.” Leaning back in his chair, he pressed the frozen peas to his face.
“That wasn’t true you know; what you said.”
“Ok,” he responded, tossing the bag of peas on to the table. He cracked open the beer and took a drink. “That’s good. Where’d you get it?”
“Dougie, he finally started his brewery.”
“Right. Jamie said he’d take me down there, show me around sometime.”
“Oh yea? Didn’t wanna go with me last year. Said it was stupid.”
“I don’t remember that.”
“Yea well...don’t matter. We oughtta go out and check on that nest.”
The ground was littered with squirming bodies. The nest looked abandoned. There was no visible or audible activity around it. They stood beside eachother, considering the nest.
“Let’s spray the shit out of it again and be done with it.”
“Sounds good to me, son.”
