Flying the Nest Character Reveal #4: Martin

Here it is, my final and favourite character to introduce to you. Martin is my Casanova, my Mr. Romeo of a certain age. He knows a lot, yet he’s still got a lot left to learn.

I hope you enjoy Martin as much as I enjoyed writing him! 
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👉
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Martin fidgeted with his coffee cup before setting it down on the tabletop. “I need a little help.” He withdrew a folded piece of paper and his reading glasses from the breast pocket of his sports coat. After putting the glasses on, Martin unfolded the paper. There were several points he needed to discuss, and he didn’t want to miss anything important. “It’s the Internet.”

“The Internet?” asked Chad.

“I need to know how to do a few things.” Martin looked down, referencing his list. “Like open this Facebook thing. And ‘surfing’ sounds like something I should know how to do. Do you know what the Wikipedia is?”

“I do. But I thought there were introductory computer classes being offered at the Eldernest. Remember? We saw a poster about it on the bulletin board. Facebook, email…”

“Right, right. It’s just I can’t go.” Martin shifted in his seat and lowered his voice. “Clara’s the instructor.”

“Perfect. You like Clara, you’ve said so yourself.”

“I can’t show up knowing nothing. She’ll figure it out in a jiffy.” Martin rubbed his swollen knuckles and tried not to make eye contact with his nephew. Back in his day a man would never have admitted to not knowing how to use machines. Unless it was the clothes dryer. Or maybe the kitchen mixer. And that had been a point of pride! Truth was, all these computerized gadgets made him feel vulnerable. He could feel his shoulders rounding, his chest caving in. He wasn’t ready to be obsolete.

“Damnit Chad, it makes me feel weak.”

Chad blinked, his eyes round as saucers. “I just. Well. I don’t think of you that way. You just seem so…well, confident all the time.” He took a sip of his coffee before continuing. “Why don’t you be open with Clara? She seems like a nice enough lady. Tell her you’re feeling vulnerable and explain what you’d like to learn about the internet. Who knows, maybe it will be fun having a woman show you the ropes for a change.”
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“Tell her?” A bark of laughter escaped Martin.