He was a bear of a man, but it was all teddy. He called in constantly to check in with Diane — one of his pet names for her was “kid” — seeing if she needed anything, though often I suspected he just wanted to be reassured by her voice. It didn’t matter if I was standing next to him, he would take the impending ribbing he knew was coming after a phone call with her that always ended with “Love you.”
My joking stemmed mostly from envy. I loved being around them because they had a relationship you rarely see. The foundation for it was built on brutal honesty, humor, deep affection and mutual respect. It didn’t matter what they were doing, they always seemed to have fun doing it.
When they were young, they lived in the back of a Scout International in Mexico for months, living like the hippies they were and enjoying every minute of the unconventional lifestyle. They were each other’s best friend, experiencing demons that would have wrecked most relationships. They not only survived, but they became united even more because of it.
Sunset Beach was the perfect place for them to live. The funky beach town that has more characters than a Raymond Chandler novel was perfect for Mark’s outgoing personality. He was the facetiously self-appointed mayor of Sunset Beach, and known to many of the residents. He volunteered as security for functions at the community center, attended the Sunset Beach Community Assn. meetings and always was available to help anybody who needed it.
When I met him and Diane, six years ago I knew I would be lifelong friends with them. We shared the same humor, had the same passions and enjoyed each other’s company. I never felt like a third wheel, and they never felt put out when I wanted to hang out with them.
