Big Poppa

3.



Delwyn didn’t do much, in the morning. He was sent to get coffee a few times, handed over required items when he was ordered to, and basically watched Big Poppa work. The man was a quiet one, as could be expected, only focusing on his work and not on Delwyn. Until after lunch.



“Can you weld, pretty boy?”



Delwyn nearly jumped to attention when Poppa spoke to him. “Yes,” he almost beamed, glad he would be able to do something. “I was pretty good at it, at school.”



“You’re not at school,” rumbled Poppa. “Come here.” Pointing at a hole at the other side of the car, he stepped aside to make room for Delwyn. “Show me what you can do, pretty boy. I want you to fix that hole. There was rust, and I cut it away. I want you to match that other corner as exact as possible. Meaning I won’t want to see any difference. Got it?”



“All clear, Poppa.” Oh nice. Quite an assignment to start with. Delwyn pulled the gear closer and sat down on his low stool, putting on the glove and helmet. He could almost hear the snort when he leaned closer to start… when he saw the hole hadn’t been prepared at all. It was rusty. No weld would hold on that, no matter how hard he tried. Putting down the metal piece and helmet again, he changed it for earplugs, protective glasses, and a grinder. Nice try, he thought. Almost got him.



Big Poppa made no remark while Delwyn worked. He sat on his own stool as he watched him, silently sipping his sweet coffee, waiting for him to finish. Delwyn had the feeling he was being judged and would be burned to the ground if he made one single mistake. So he didn’t make any mistakes. He cleaned the hole, fitted the piece of metal, and then sat back for Poppa to judge his work.



The man only grunted, and moved his hand to invite him to continue. With a sigh, Delwyn changed his tools again, and began to weld. Poppa was worse than his teacher. At least that man told him if he did anything wrong, or right. He tacked the plate and checked if it matched the other corner, and before he knew it, he’d completely forgotten Big Poppa. Only when he was finished completely and put down his helmet, he was reminded of him.



Poppa applauded slowly. “Now grind it and make it smooth enough for paint,” he rumbled. “I’m having another coffee.”



That was it? Delwyn stared at the big man as he left, gritting his teeth. Did he do okay? Was this good enough? Where was the feedback? Muttering under his breath, he changed the tools again and began to smoothen his welds. Nice. Poppa wasn’t only the silent type, he wasn’t exactly complimentary either. How was he to learn the trade like this?



It didn’t get any better, in the days that followed. Delwyn did everything Poppa ordered him to do, and even tried to think ahead, but the big man never gave him a comment or compliment. In the end, Delwyn would even be happy with a scolding. He was tempted to screw something up just to get a response. Like dropping that awful cup with the puppies and that dreadful grinning clown. He would do it, too.



The whole garage fell silent when the sound of breaking ceramic had died off.



Oops…



Even Chapman emerged from his office, freezing to the spot as he saw the shatters. “Someone please tell me that isn’t Big Poppa’s cup!” he said, pointing at the pieces.



“Careful now!” joked one of the other mechanics, as Delwyn backed away. “Dead man walking!”



Oh dear, it seemed he’d made a vital mistake here. “Ehr… Sorry,” he mumbled, quickly moving to get a broom. “I will get you another one, Poppa, I eh… I’m sorry.”



But even now, Big Poppa barely moved a muscle. He sat on his stool, looking at the shards, and shrugged. “I hated those puppies,” he rumbled. “Get me a large, plain mug instead, okay, pretty boy?”



Delwyn almost smacked the man with his broom. “Yes, Poppa,” he muttered as he cleaned the mess. “I will.”



“Alright,” boomed Chapman, “the show is over! Get back to work; there’s nothing to be seen here!”



After dropping the splinters in the dustbin, Delwyn went into the canteen to fetch his coat. Wasn’t there anything he could do to get some emotion from that man?



“Going somewhere, pretty boy?”



And he had to say his name, too! Even if it was only once. “Getting you a new mug,” muttered Delwyn without looking up. “A plain one, as you ordered. Because I broke your cup. With the puppies and the clown.”



“That can wait, can’t it? We have a car to finish, pretty—“



“Delwyn,” said Delwyn calmly. “My name is Delwyn.” He still avoided looking at the man’s eyes, which was easy. He only had to look straight forward to miss them.



“I know,” smiled Poppa. “It’s Welsh… for pretty boy. Right?”



“You…” Dammit! How did he know that? “Yes.” There was no arguing with that. “Something like that. The car will be finished in time, and I can’t get you a new cup after work.” And he wanted to get some fresh air, really.



Poppa walked to a cabinet, and took out a large, plain white mug. “This will do nicely,” he said, putting it on the sink with a clang. “Take off your coat, Delwyn. We have work to do.”



Delwyn was left alone again, and he was too stunned to move for a while. With a deep sigh, he eventually pulled off his coat again. They had work to do. Despite everyone’s reaction, Poppa didn’t seem to give a damn about his broken cup.



And apparently, it wasn’t given to him by his daughter, either.



Suddenly, Delwyn was intrigued.



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