Can They Hear You Scream (CC / Teen) (Complete)

[TaffyCat]

Part 11

What a difference a day makes. Philip snorted and thought, try two weeks. Two weeks. Two weeks and he had become a father for the third time. Two weeks and he now knew the answer to the age-old question, are we alone? Two weeks and his life was turned upside-down and inside out. And as he watched Max help Joshua fill his super soaker and plot revenge against Isabel, to see his first son smile and laugh again, he realized he wouldn’t change a thing. But, God, what a hell of a two weeks it had been.

To start, they had nothing for Joshua other than a car booster seat that Nesado had bought and a few t-shirts and shorts that the kids had gotten him. He remembered frowning when he saw the Pull-Ups box. That meant Joshua wasn’t completely potty trained. Something he did not look forward to doing. So there were clothes to buy, a room to furnish, legalities to plot out, and a five-year-old hybrid newborn to teach everything to. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as daunting as it seemed. They had lots of helpers. Isabel organized shopping trips with Maria, Liz, Tess, and of course Diane, who would be taking a year sabbatical from her job. That took care of material things. And while they were shopping, Max, Alex, and Kyle taught Joshua the basics of being a guy—football, baseball, basketball, soccer, and cars. Surprisingly he, himself, was the only one that got in any serious trouble. It seemed he hadn’t quite explained the ‘aiming’ part of potty training adequately to Joshua the first time around. He seemed to understand better the second time but Diane was monitoring the situation. He chuckled as he remembered Isabel yelling at Max, accusing him of being the culprit one night.

He watched as Max distracted Isabel by nailing her in the butt with his own super soaker and then running like hell, only to have sweet and innocent little Joshua appear out of nowhere and get her in the face. Philip sat in his lawn chair, sipped a beer, and just enjoyed being a dad. He turned as Diane came outside with a tray of chicken and steaks all ready to go on the grill, and following her out were five newly arrived teenagers and one sheriff with a deluxe blow-up swimming pool. Not quite the pool Max and Isabel were hinting at but Joshua loved it. The backyard was quickly filled with the sounds of good friends and family and lots of laughter. Tonight was a celebration.

Before leaving for D.C., Nesado had supplied them with a heartfelt letter from Joshua’s ‘mother.’ She had been just a teen when Max and Isabel had been born and had abandoned them one night in an act of desperation. She had regretted it everyday since. But when she found that she was once again unable to care for her third child, her only hope was that he be united with his brother and sister. She went on to say that she had tracked them down through old newspaper clippings about how a tragic abandonment case had a happy ending. The letter, along with a few calls by the sheriff to friends and one look at the ‘family’ resemblance between Max and Joshua, was enough to allow Joshua to stay with them, pending formal custody arrangements. And that was granted today. There was just one hitch. They made an error in listing Joshua’s actual birth date, minus five years. And in order to make things look normal, they had to agree with Children’s Services that he start kindergarten this year. School began next Tuesday. He hoped that the class would survive.

A paint splattered Michael appeared from his hibernation in the old spare room that was being converted into Joshua’s bedroom. The second day that Joshua was home Michael had appeared with paint and brush in hand and declared that he was going to paint Joshua’s new room. They had no idea what he was talking about, but they told him to go ahead. The room did need to be painted and redecorated for a five year old. But they didn’t know what they were in for. Every day Michael would show up with paints and brushes and go upstairs and work late into the night. He always kept the door closed and would seal it shut before he left. Diane had caught Isabel trying to undo the seal once and warned her that if she did it again she would be grounded. Whatever Michael was doing in there was something he felt strongly about and Diane was touched that Michael would do…well, whatever he was doing for Joshua. They just didn’t realize that it would take almost two weeks. Poor Max. All of Joshua’s things were temporarily housed in Max’s room, and on more than a few occasions, that included Joshua as well. Joshua had slept with Max the first few nights. But by the middle of that first week, Joshua was turning more and more to Diane and him for comfort and security. That’s when Joshua started sleeping with him and Diane. A couple of times he woke up crying about ‘that bad place’ and they would hold and reassure him that it was gone and he was home and safe. Philip didn’t say anything but he couldn’t wait for Michael to finish. Sleeping with a five year old in the middle of the bed was getting old. He had never been happier than when Michael had told them yesterday that he’d be done tonight. Another reason to celebrate. “All done?” he asked.

“Yep,” Michael replied simply and went to join the rest of his friends.

Philip watched as Diane talked to Michael for a minute then gathered everyone to go look at Joshua’s new room. They all stood in awe at what they found, especially Joshua.

“Dis my room?” Joshua looked around.

“Yep, not a spec of white,” Michael proudly stated.

“Michael…its…its breathtaking!” Diane exclaimed. The ceiling was the dark blue of midnight, and she was certain that if she checked an astronomy book the silver stars that were dotted throughout would be the perfect representation of the major ones in their summer sky with a perfect quarter moon high above. The deep blue was carried about a quarter of the way down the walls and then gradually turned to the softer hues of dawn, or was it twilight? She saw the orange glow of the sun peeking out over a desert landscape and realized that it must be the dawn of a new day. He’d painted the sun on the eastern wall. The landscape changed with each wall. The desert to the east, mountains and forests to the north, a beach with an ocean lapping at the sand to the west, and a sea of grasslands and prairie to the south. She felt her eyes tear up and she had to hug the tall, gruff young man that had a heart of gold. “Oh Michael, thank you. It’s incredible!”

“Michael, God, this is beautiful!” Maria said as she walked along the walls and noted all the details, the perfect cacti and Joshua trees, and the high plateaus that dotted the desert. And on the next wall were the pine trees and streams that flowed down the snowcapped mountains to the valleys, and high alpine lakes of crystal blue that perfectly caught the morning rays. And the prairie with its fields of grain blowing in the wind that went on forever, and finally to the beach littered with shells and its sand dunes, and the frothy waves just off shore waiting to come in and kiss the sand. It was a masterpiece! But there was one thing missing. “Michael, where are all the animals?”

Michael grinned. “In Max’s room. Have you seen the collection of stuffed animals going on in there? And there’s a new one added every day!”

Max laughed. “I don’t know. I’m getting rather fond of the three foot long crocodile.”

“Oh, and I almost forgot the best part. Check it out,” he told them and pulled the blinds shut and flipped off the lamp. The night sky twinkled with dozens of glow in the dark stars.

Joshua loved it and excitedly pointed up. “Look My-kal, oshit!”

The room was silent.

~

Diane had done it. She had survived the first school year. There had been days when it was highly in doubt. To be on the safe side, Diane had volunteered as a room mom. And it was good thing too. There were more than a few occasions when Joshua ‘got into the silver paint.’ The teacher never could find that paint can and Diane knew she looked for it at least a dozen times. It was now unwritten policy that the maintenance personnel would wait 24 hours before responding to any work orders calling for spot painting the kindergarten classroom, especially if silver paint was mentioned. They were tired of looking for paint splotches that had mysteriously vanished just before they got there. But Joshua had thrived. He’d learned to talk correctly, loved to color and draw, could count to a hundred and do simple additions and subtractions, knew his ABC’s and could write his name, hated creamed spinach with a passion, loved chocolate ice cream with Tabasco, and got tongue tied every time Anna Sanchez was around. Oh, and he recently decided he wanted a puppy. Max was a big help in that department. “Every kid needs a puppy, Mom,” he’d said. She’d wanted to smack him. She checked the clock on the microwave and realized that Joshua was going to be late for his last day of school. “Joshua! Joshua! Hurry up!” she called out from the bottom of the stairs.

“Okay, Mommy.”

Okay, Mommy? That didn’t particularly sound like he was hurrying. She sighed as she ascended the stairs and peeked into her youngest son’s bedroom. It was a total disaster area and would be condemned on the spot by any mother. “Joshua, what are you doing?”

“Tying my shoe,” he told her. Big loop, little loop, over and under and…rats!

Next time, Velcro, she reminded herself. “Joshua, you’re going to be late. Do you want me to help you so you won’t be late?”

“No,” he replied and concentrated as he almost…darn it!

“What about wearing sandals?” she tried.

“Sandals are dorky,” he informed her.

“No they’re not. Who told you that?” Diane asked. She knew it was one of four possibilities with Michael being the number one suspect.

“Michael,” he confirmed and then sighed in defeat. “Mommy, could you do that one? It’s kinda tricky.”

“Of course, sweetheart.” When she bent down to tie the shoe she got a good look at him. “Joshua, did you wash your face and brush your teeth this morning?”

“Nuh-uh. I did it last night,” he told her.

Diane sighed again. They were going to be late.

~

At noon that afternoon, she and Philip took their seats in the kindergarten playground. In her hand was the digital camcorder that Philip had given her for Christmas. She scanned the parking lot and spotted an army jeep and red Jetta pulling in. She smiled as a group of teens ambled over and stood in the back. Her attention was drawn back to the small stage as Ms. Peterson took the microphone. She congratulated the graduating class and told them that she knows they will do well in first grade. She then began calling out names and one by one they went up to get their ‘diploma.’ Diane had her camera trained on a little dark head with a miniature graduation cap as Joshua Evans was finally called. He shyly took the rolled up paper that was tied with a bright red ribbon. As he turned to go back to his seat, he beamed a huge proud smile. She could hear a group of rowdy teens clapping and whooping it up from behind her. Joshua loved it.

“And now class, you are officially graduates of kindergarten. Time to toss your hats!” Ms. Peterson announced. A small wave of little caps flew in all directions. A few even went up in the air.

Joshua came running, not to his mom and dad, but straight to his brother and sister and their friends. There was something he had to do. Gloat. He flew into Max’s arms. “I graduated before you did! I graduated before you did!” he announced.

Max laughed along with the rest. “Yeah, I guess you did.”

“And you know what you’re supposed to do after you graduate?” Kyle asked.

“No,” Joshua replied as he climbed on top of Alex’s shoulders for a better view of everything.

“PAR-TEE!” Kyle informed him and grinned.

Diane caught it all on her new video camera.

~

The Crashdown was officially closed from 2:00-3:00 for a private party that afternoon. Jeff Parker grinned as a herd of teenagers and one kindergarten graduate came in followed by the parents. “Hey, congratulations Joshua!” he said as the youngster looked around at all the balloons.

Joshua had been a semi-permanent fixture at the Crashdown since last summer. Jeff had been shocked when Max and Isabel suddenly got a baby brother. He knew that Philip and Diane were only a few years older than he and Nancy, and he couldn’t understand them taking in another young child at this time of their lives. But one look at Max and Joshua together told the story. At least this time their mother, if you could call her that, hadn’t dumped him in the desert like she’d done with Max and Isabel. Besides, the other kids adored Joshua. He was sort of their unofficial mascot. It wasn’t at all unusual to have Isabel bring Joshua in on a Saturday morning and then go shopping or whatever, Joshua stay and play with Liz and Maria or any of the other kids who might be around, have Max take him to work with him at the UFO Center, and Maria or Kyle bring him home when he got tired. Hell, he’d even seen Sheriff Valenti give him a ride home in his sheriff’s car.

“WOW! This is neat!” Joshua said in delight.

“Joshua, what do you say to Mr. and Mrs. Parker?” Diane asked him pointedly.

“Oh, thank you Mr. and Mrs. Parker,” he obediently replied and couldn’t resist checking out the big sheet cake on the counter. It had a blue graduation cap with ‘Kindergarten Graduate’ written on it. “Mommy, can I have some cake?”

~

Diane sat at the table and watched her children. They were all laughing and joking and eating cake and ice cream liberally doused with Tabasco. And Joshua was right there in the middle of it. He was adorable with chocolate cake and ice cream smearing his mouth, probably his clothes too but she couldn’t tell at the moment, and wearing the sheriff’s hat. He loved that hat. She’d never forget the night the sheriff’s car pulled in front of their house with lights flashing and siren blaring. She and Philip almost had heart attacks as they ran to the front door, certain something horrible had happened. The sheriff had just waved and smiled after he shut the lights and siren off. Joshua had come running up to them wearing the hat and grinning from ear-to-ear, anxious to tell them all about the neat things he got to play with in the sheriff’s car on the ride home. Joshua, spoiled? Certainly, but they weren’t the only guilty ones. How could they not spoil him? He’d gone through so much in such a short life. She could remember all too well the nights she woke to the sound of crying and having to hold and cuddle him as she rocked him back to sleep. It was difficult for Joshua to tell them what had happened in that horrible place. He simply didn’t know how to put it into words, but what they did learn broke her heart. He referred to it as ‘that bad place,’ and that described it well enough. As time went on and Joshua felt more comfortable and secure, the nightmares diminished. He rarely had them now and for the most part, he was healthy and happy, and surprisingly an outgoing little boy. He’d also gotten a lot better at controlling his emerging powers too.

Her other son was sitting there laughing and joking as if everything was normal, including him. He amazed her. She and Philip had immediately understood the futility of the therapist and medications. Max couldn’t tell the therapist anything, but he needed to talk to someone. And while he had been doing that to some extent with his friends, it really needed to be with an adult that could offer a bit more advice and perspective. This came to light one night about a month after Joshua came home. Max had woken from a nightmare shouting “NO,” and woke the whole house, including Joshua who was naturally very upset. It had been Joshua who had broken through to Max when he’d told him, “I have bad dreams too, but Mommy and Daddy always help me.” That night as she had rocked Joshua back to sleep and then put him in their bed because ‘she’ needed to cuddle him, Philip had sat in Max’s room and listened. Max had told him everything and by morning, after Max had finally gotten back to sleep, she’d found Philip at the kitchen table sipping coffee and looking completely drained and exhausted. He’d never told her much of what Max had said but his only comment that morning had chilled her to the bone. “I’m glad they killed them,” he had said to her. Max would still, on occasion, have nightmares but they too lessened as time went on. And Max was busy with other things, like Liz. They’d started officially dating again at the start of school, and by the Christmas Ball they were a firmly established couple and were still going strong.

There had been other changes as well. With a third child they had to rethink their finances. They had been hoping to semi-retire after the kids graduated from college, now that too had changed. Without her extra income, their nest egg wasn’t growing as quickly and neither were the college funds. Semi-retirement simply wasn’t going to happen any time soon. They had always known it wasn’t going to be easy sending two to college at the same time, but now they had to inform Max and Isabel that an Ivy League school simply wasn’t in the financial cards. They could pay for state college but anything more than that and they had better be looking for scholarships and loans. They still had another one to educate as well. This had made for some interesting and unexpected changes, especially in Max. Both had always been good students and had been on the honor roll since their freshman year, but where Isabel joined all kinds of clubs and did numerous charity functions, Max simply sat on the sidelines. It finally dawned on Max that if Liz went to Harvard, which she had an excellent shot at, then he had better be thinking along those lines as well, or at the very least, something close by. Unfortunately, his application was looking mighty thin. Max made the varsity baseball team that spring, joined the science club, and at his father’s urging, the debate team. That last one was a bit of a stretch but Philip thought it might help him come out of his shell a little more. He’d done pretty well on it too. He also did some volunteer work at the Children’s Center with helping to organize special outings for the kids. Most surprising of all, he had talked Michael into helping as well.

“I bet this has been a year to remember,” Nancy said to Diane as they had coffee and cake together.

“I’d say that’s a bit of an understatement,” Diane replied and looked back over at her children, who were healthy and happy…and normal.

“Joshua certainly is adorable. All the kids dote on him,” Nancy commented.

She watched as Michael blew the wrapper off a straw and hit Isabel with it. Of course Joshua just had to try it too. “Though sometimes I’m not too sure about some of the things he’s picking up from them.”

Nancy laughed as Isabel retaliated with ice cubes flung at both of them. “I see what you mean.”

“God, Michael! Could you not be so…so juvenile! I think Joshua is more mature than you!” Maria admonished in total disgust and turned her head.

Joshua giggled as Michael pretended to be Maria when she wasn’t looking. He now understood why everyone laughed when Michael and Maria played the yelling game. It was funny! He smiled and blew Cherry Coke bubbles through his straw.

“I suppose you showed him that too,” Maria accused.

“No, actually that was an Alex one,” Isabel informed them and all eyes turned to the culprit. “I know because I was there.”

“What? A guy’s gotta have some fun. Right, Joshua?” Alex defended.

“Right!” Joshua nodded enthusiastically

“It’s amazing they haven’t taught him to grunt and scratch himself yet,” Tess commented.

“No, that’s on next year’s schedule,” Kyle retorted.

“Yeah, right along with burping and farting,” Michael added in.

“I can do those already,” Joshua announced.

“Mom will be so thrilled,” Isabel dryly stated and rolled her eyes.

“Well, we’re just going to have to double our efforts to offset these…testosterone tendencies with more…cultural things. Like museums,” Liz told them.

“Plays,” Maria added.

“Art shows,” Isabel contributed.

“There’s a ballet coming to Albuquerque in a couple of weeks,” Tess suggested.

“No, no ballet, that’s where I draw the line,” Max told them.

“Car show this weekend in Hobbs,” Kyle threw in.

“Demolition Derby at the end of the month in Tatum,” Michael recalled. He had it marked on his calendar.

“X-Game tryouts next month in Las Cruces,” Alex included.

“Well, there’s the stock car races coming to town in a few weeks,” Max offered.

“God, Max, must you encourage them?” Isabel growled at her brother.

“Well…yeah,” Max replied.

“Good come back, Maxwell,” Michael commented.

“Ugh, you guys are impossible!” Maria proclaimed.

“I wanna go to the X-Games!” Joshua announced.

“See, the kid knows what he wants. Quit trying to make him into a wuss,” Kyle told them.

“What’s a wuss?” Joshua wanted to know.

“Your brother,” Kyle informed him.

“I am not,” Max shot back.

“Yeah, where are you and Liz going on Saturday?” asked Kyle.

Max remained silent.

“Well?” Kyle cajoled.

“Museum of Natural History in Albuquerque,” Max admitted.

“Wuss,” Kyle confirmed.

“Um, Kyle, we have tickets to the ballet. You already said you’d go, remember?” Tess reminded him.

Snicker. Snort. “Ballet? Kyle, you’ll look adorable in a tutu. Pink?” Max cackled with laughter.

“What’s a tutu?” asked Joshua.

“What Kyle will be wearing in two weeks,” Alex laughed.

“Shut up, Whitman,” Kyle warned. “I am not!”

Philip walked over and the conversation came to a stop. “Kids, Jeff needs to open the Crashdown. We need to lend a hand to get it ready.” Everyone pitched in and everything was ready in just a few minutes. The leftover cake and balloons went home with Joshua, and waiting there was a surprise on the porch. Philip took Joshua’s hand as he climbed out of the car and bent down to talk to him. “Joshua, there’s someone here who is anxious to meet you,” he told him and then walked him up the walk to the front porch where a man was waiting.

Joshua was still a bit leery of strangers but he knew it was okay so long as he was with his dad. His eyes grew huge as they neared the porch and he saw the man, or more precisely, what the man had with him. He couldn’t resist running the rest of the way, anxious to pick up the golden-colored puppy that wagged its tail and licked his face. “Dad, look, look!”

“Yes, I see. Now Joshua, a puppy is a huge responsibility. You have to feed it, clean up after it, and take it for walks,” Philip told him.

“Don’t worry Dad, I will! I’ll take good care of him!” Joshua assured him and giggled. The puppy’s tongue tickled.

Max came over and petted the puppy. “So what are you going to name him, Joshua?”

“Pete! His name is Pete!” Joshua announced. “Come on, Pete, I wanna show you your new home!” There was no hesitation as he ran into the house. His nightmare screams had been heard and answered. He was home.


The End