Specky Magee

by Felice Arena

  ‘Simon, stop! We know. We saw you on TV, now sit down,’ instructed Specky’s dad.

  Specky stared down at his feet, too embarrassed to look directly into his father’s eyes, and slumped onto the couch.

  ‘Simon, it’s time for us to tell you the truth about your biological parents.’

  ‘The truth?’ said Specky softly, raising his head.

  Specky’s father took in a deep breath. ‘Yes, we haven’t been exactly honest with you. We felt we’d never really have to tell you—not at your age, anyway. The way you conducted yourself on that show tonight, well, we’re proud of you.’

  Specky was surprised.

  ‘Proud of me?’ he said softly.

  ‘Yes, proud,’ added Specky’s mother. ‘You were very mature in the way you acted. Mind you, I was upset to see you there on TV, and to find out you had lied to me. But under the circumstances…’

  ‘What your mother and I are trying to say is that we’ll tell you everything. We were fooling ourselves to think this day would never come. We realise now that we were only thinking of ourselves, protecting our own insecurities, so here goes…’ Mr McGee gently squeezed Specky’s mother’s hand. ‘Your biological father is…’ Specky’s father took another breath. ‘Your biological father is my brother Bob!’

  Specky was shocked, and the news took a few seconds to sink in.

  ‘Your brother Bob? You mean Uncle Bob? The uncle that Alice and I have never met? The brother you don’t keep in touch with and have nothing to do with?’

  Specky’s parents glanced at each other and nodded. Specky was stunned. He didn’t know what to say next, except, ‘How? Why?’

  This time Specky’s mum spoke. ‘Your biological parents are Bob and his girlfriend at the time, Lisa. Sadly Lisa was involved in a terrible car accident and unfortunately she died, leaving Bob to look after you. Your Uncle Bob was so devastated by Lisa’s death that he couldn’t cope with raising a baby by himself. He was a mess. He didn’t have a job—he was an unemployed actor waiting for his big break. He begged us to take you in while he tried to get his life together. As we looked after you, days turned into months, and we urged Bob to get a job, find a place to live, and take you back and be a responsible father. But unfortunately, Bob decided he just couldn’t do that. So he packed all his possessions and told us he was leaving to go and live up in Sydney and that he wanted us to be your legal parents for good. We were so appalled by his actions—leaving his own child behind—that we agreed, but knew that it was unlikely we’d ever have much to do with him again. That was, until now. Since you discovered that photo. But saying that, Simon, we also wanted a little boy, and we were so happy to have you come into our lives.’

  Specky sank back into the couch and let out a huge sigh. He watched his mother wipe away the tears she had streaming down her cheeks.

  ‘We can get in contact with him, if you want,’ added Specky’s father.

  Specky began to cry.

  His mouth was dry and he felt all choked up. It was hard to say anything, so he just nodded.

  ‘Fine, I’ll call him tomorrow. Now it’s time for bed,’ said Specky’s dad.’

  The following morning, everyone in Specky’s household was running late. It had been an emotional night to say the least, and no one had slept very well. Specky rushed to school, feeling confused and unsure about what he had found out the night before. But as soon as he got to the school building he discovered that he was now a celebrity among his classmates, so he had no time to think about Uncle Bob.

  ‘Specky, we saw you last night. Why didn’t you tell us?’ shouted Danny, as he and Robbo rushed up to him.

  All the students in Specky’s class surrounded him, desperate to learn more about his TV appearance. Some students even asked for Specky’s autograph. Specky couldn’t believe the attention he was getting. Even a few of the teachers approached him during the day.

  There was no escaping the constant fuss, not even on the footy ground the following Saturday morning. Specky took up his usual full-forward position, and the opposition’s full-back couldn’t stop staring at him for most of the game.

  ‘That’s where I’ve seen you!’ he blurted out, while the ball was up the other end of the oval, and he and Specky were casually pacing in the goal square waiting for it to come down their way. ‘You were on Sensational Stuff!. You thought Blade Furlington was your father.’ The full-back sniggered to himself.

  Specky did his best to ignore him, and tried to focus his attention on the play ahead of him.

  ‘I can’t wait to tell my family about this! I played against a famous person!’

  Specky rolled his eyes. He couldn’t understand why it was such a big deal to so many people. All he knew was that he wanted things to get back to normal—even with the knowledge that Uncle Bob was his real father. He glanced over to the boundary line to see the fathers of all his team-mates cheering the team on as usual.

  It would be pretty cool to have Uncle Bob here watching me play, thought Specky.

  The game ended with Specky’s team winning once again. Specky was glad to be in Robbo’s father’s car and heading back home, away from all the gawking and unsettling attention.

  ‘So, Speck, what happens now in terms of you finding your biological father? Will you wait a few years, until you’re a little older?’ asked Robbo’s dad, staring back at Specky from the rear-view mirror.

  With all the weird things that had been happening over the last few days, Specky hadn’t told anyone, not even Robbo and Danny, about Uncle Bob.

  ‘Um, my parents told me who he was after the TV show,’ answered Specky, as if it was no big deal.

  ‘Really? Who is it?’ asked Robbo.

  ‘It’s a long story,’ said Specky, aware that they had pulled up alongside his house.

  ‘We understand,’ added Robbo’s father. ‘You can fill us in when you’re ready, mate. Great game today. Bye, Speck!’

  Specky hopped out of the car and headed up the path to the front door of his house. He hadn’t even noticed that there was an old white Kombi van parked in his parents’ driveway.

  As he opened the door, he was startled to see a stranger standing in the doorway.

  ‘Hello, Simon?’ the man asked.

  Specky nodded, slightly startled. He knew straight away who this man standing in front of him was.

  ‘I’m Bob—your dad. Nice to meet you.’

  22 BOB

  Specky abruptly dropped his sports bag on the floor. He looked around to see if his parents or Alice were nearby.

  ‘They’ve gone out for the rest of the day, to let us get to know each other. I hope you don’t mind. I have to say I was a little shocked to have got a call from my brother, telling me that he had told you everything.’

  Specky wasn’t sure what to say. He just stared at this tall, strange man, who looked like a hippy, left over from the ’70s. He had long tangled hair and wore a loose cheesecloth shirt, leather-strapped beads, a multi-coloured vest, hessian-like pants and sandals.

  ‘So you’ve been playing footy this morning. That’s cool. What position do you play?’ he asked.

  ‘Full-forward,’ answered Specky.

  ‘Cool!’

  Specky could tell that Uncle Bob was just as nervous as he was. He also hadn’t heard anyone who looked that old say ‘cool’ before.

  ‘So,’ Uncle Bob continued, ‘I bet you kick a lot of goals. Um, have you eaten lunch? Would you like to?’

  Specky nodded.

  ‘Is Macca’s okay with you? I love their French fries. I shouldn’t, really. I usually only eat organic food—well, mostly. My girlfriend Becky would freak, but since it’s a special occasion, why not!’

  Specky nodded again and smiled—he loved fries from MacDonald’s as well.

  On the way there, both Specky and Bob began to relax with each other. Eventually they were talking nonstop.

  ‘Yes, Becky and I have been together for three years now. We run a yoga centre and are
also experimenting with a part-time retreat for stressed birds at the base of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales. We’re real nature people.’

  ‘Stressed birds?’ asked Specky, curious to know more.

  ‘Yeah, stressed pet birds like parrots and budgerigars. City owners and their birds come out to get away from it all. We let the birds fly freely, take in the fresh air. Get away from their stuffy cages.’

  ‘But don’t they fly away for good and not come back?’

  ‘Well, yes, sometimes, but we let our clients know that if they fly away for good, it was meant to be. If they come back to them, then it’s true love.’

  ‘How many come back?’

  ‘Well, none have flown back to their owners to date, but I’m sure there’ll be some in the future that will.’

  Specky tried not to scoff and appear impolite.

  ‘And you make money from that?’ he asked.

  ‘No, like I said, we’re experimenting. Thankfully we earn from the yoga centre, which Becky mainly runs. I’m an actor. I’m not sure if you were told that. My big break is just around the corner, I can feel it. I’ve just acted in a pilot for a new sitcom and I’m hoping to get a call any day now from my agent, saying a TV network has picked it up.’

  Specky nodded, not sure about all the show business jargon, but slightly impressed nevertheless.

  ‘Well, here we are,’ said Bob, as he pulled up into a MacDonald’s car park.

  As they ordered their food and sat down at one of the vacant booths, Specky couldn’t help thinking that Bob was definitely not the kind of footy dad he had imagined. He wondered if Bob still enjoyed Aussie Rules. ‘Do you still barrack for Geelong?’ asked Specky as he was about to take a bite from his McChicken burger.

  ‘The footy team?’

  Specky explained how he found the photograph of him dressed up in all the Geelong footy attire.

  ‘I remember that! It was Lisa…’ Bob paused for a second, as he realised just who he was talking to. ‘Your mother. She was a die-hard Cats supporter. She was from Geelong. We met at an audition for a musical.’

  ‘So do you still like footy?’ asked a hopeful Specky.

  ‘Yes, I do. But I don’t follow it as much as I would like to. Becky’s not into it. Actually, Lisa would have been proud to know that her son loved his footy. I’m kind of proud also, even though I haven’t been a part of your life.’

  There was another pause. Specky blushed, feeling slightly awkward.

  ‘I would love to see you play. If that would be okay?’

  Specky’s face beamed. ‘Sure. That would be great. I’m playing next Saturday. How long are you staying for?’

  ‘A week, if that’s okay with you. I’m staying in a nearby hotel. I don’t want to make it uncomfortable for everyone at your place, if you know what I mean.’

  For the following week, Specky and Bob made arrangements to see each other as often as they could. One afternoon, after school, Bob decided he would take Specky to the movies.

  ‘Come in, Bob, let me get my jacket,’ said Specky as he rushed upstairs to get it.

  As Bob was left waiting in the hallway of the house he could see Specky’s mum preparing dinner in the kitchen.

  ‘Hi,’ he said politely.

  Specky’s mum coolly said hi back. Bob felt a little uncomfortable, but he took a few steps closer and entered the kitchen.

  ‘Um, Jane, I’ve been meaning to thank you,’ he said.

  ‘For what?’ Specky’s mum was chopping up some carrots. She didn’t look up at Bob.

  ‘For keeping me informed about Simon’s life over the years. All those photos of him you sent me. His report cards, even his finger paintings. Well, I want to thank you for that.’

  Specky’s mum stopped chopping and turned to Bob. ‘You’re thanking the wrong person.’

  ‘What?’ asked Bob, looking surprised.

  ‘You should be thanking your brother, not me. He sent all that stuff. If I’d my way, Bob, you wouldn’t have got a single thing. Not only does your brother—my loving husband—constantly think about you, but he has been a wonderful father to Simon. I suppose you want him back now? Do you? Is that what you want, Bob?’

  Bob was a little taken aback by Specky’s mum confronting him.

  ‘Well,’ he began to say, ‘I was thinking…’

  Just then Specky came bouncing in, wearing his jacket. ‘So, are we ready?’ he asked, unaware that he had interrupted a tense moment.

  Later that evening, Bob and Specky were seated in the cinema. The movie had just started, when Bob’s mobile started to ring.

  Specky was embarrassed when everyone around them shushed Bob at the same time. But Bob still took his call, whispering loudly to the person on the other end. After hanging up, he leant towards Specky and said, ‘That was an old friend of mine who lives here in Melbourne. He’s now a film producer. Isn’t that great? Anyway, he wanted to know if I could catch up with him in the next hour. I’m going to duck off and have a quick drink with him. I’ll come back and get you after the movie.’

  ‘But, didn’t you want to watch this with me?’

  ‘Sorry, mate. This is kind of important. I may get work out of this. You understand, don’t you? I’ll be back by the…’

  Bob’s mobile rang again and once more everyone in the cinema let out an annoyed, ‘Shhhh!’

  ‘That was him again. He’s decided to cancel, something’s come up. So now I’m staying!’

  Bob looked back up at the screen and continued to watch the movie as if nothing had happened. For the rest of the film, Specky felt annoyed that Bob would have taken off and left him to watch the movie by himself.

  But by the following day this was all soon forgotten, as both of them spent a couple of fun hours bike riding along the Yarra.

  23 SENSITIVITY

  It was Friday night before Specky had some time to himself. He was kicking his plastic toy football around his bedroom when he suddenly heard a voice.

  ‘Hey, squirt.’ It was Alice, barging in again, without knocking. ‘Are you having a good time with Bob?’

  ‘Yeah, I am.’

  ‘Are you going to move to his house in Sydney?’

  Specky wasn’t sure what to say. During the week he had fantasised about what it would be like to have Bob around full-time. He could definitely picture Bob coming to his footy games, and that’s what he had wanted all along. But he hadn’t really thought about living away from where he was now.

  ‘I don’t know,’ he replied, shrugging his shoulders.

  ‘Well, I know that Mum and Dad are freaking out about it. It’s eating them up inside. I know their biggest fear is that they’ll lose you,’ added Alice.

  Specky’s stomach sank. He realised that his parents, especially his dad, had made a special effort to keep out of the way during Bob’s visit. Until now, he hadn’t thought about how they were feeling.

  ‘And I’d have no one to pick on anymore if you moved away,’ said Alice as she left the room.

  Specky was touched by his sister’s attempt to show him her true feelings. He took a deep breath and felt his heart skip a beat.

  The following morning Specky was standing alongside his team-mates, ready to run out and play footy. He hadn’t stopped smiling since he had woken up a few hours earlier. Bob had picked him up as planned, and had driven him to the game.

  ‘Coach, this is…’ Specky paused for a moment, wondering how he was going to introduce Bob. ‘This is…my father, Bob.’ Specky smiled, looking up back at Bob proudly. Bob blushed as Coach Pappas looked slightly confused. ‘Your dad?’ he asked. ‘But I thought that…’

  ‘He’s my biological father,’ explained Specky.

  ‘Oh, okay. Well, welcome. This team is very lucky to have someone like Specky,’ said Coach Pappas, shaking Bob’s hand.

  Specky then introduced Bob to Danny and Robbo and the rest of the team. He was so happy to have someone there to watch him play. But not just anyone—his very own dad, lik
e everyone else. This is what he had dreamt of for so long.

  Specky ran to his position, joining his opponent from the other team. The umpire held the ball above his head and blew the whistle to signal the beginning of the game. Specky glanced over to the boundary line to see Bob standing with the other dads, smiling. Specky waved back at him. He was ready to play his best game ever.

  24 FOREVER FATHER

  Specky paced the goal square, eager for the ball to come his way. Unfortunately, the other team had got off to a superb start, and had taken Specky’s team by surprise. In fact, the ball had only come down to Specky’s end once, and even then he struggled to get a hand on it.

  This wasn’t the type of play he wanted Bob to see, and by the time the first-quarter whistle sounded, Coach Pappas wasn’t the only one who was disappointed. Specky’s team huddled together and faced their upset coach.

  ‘I want you all to wake up!’ he said, raising his voice. ‘They’ve kicked four goals two to our big fat nothing. C’mon, guys! Snap out of it. I know you can play better than this.’

  Specky hadn’t heard his coach’s plea. He was looking over at Bob, who had wandered away from the boundary line to talk on his mobile phone. Specky tried to get his attention, hoping he would look up, but he didn’t. The umpire blew his whistle—it was the second quarter. Specky continued to look back at Bob as he ran to take up his position at the other goal square. He was still engrossed in his phone call, as he had been at the movies the other day.

  ‘Specky!’

  Specky looked up to see that the ball was heading his way. Danny broke away from the centre and stab-passed the ball to Robbo. Robbo swiftly kicked it to ‘Smashing Sols’, who then gave it an almighty boot. It was a powerful, good-looking torpedo kick. The ball shot high into the sky, arcing its way down towards Specky.

  The torpedo punt, when kicked properly, covers more ground than any other kick. It travels in a spiral motion through the air, and requires a lot of practice. The ball is held at an angle, across your body, and should make contact with the middle to outside part of your foot. There is a big margin for error and a lot of torpedoes go horribly wrong and drop short or fly off the side of the boot. But the one that spins correctly is a work of art and a delight to watch.