Juvenile Detention

By: Rick Masters
(© 2015-2016 by the author)

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

masters@tickiestories.us

Chapter 40
The Meeting

As they heard the door close Karl called, "Hello, Simon. Could you come in here a minute please."

"Hi, dad. Just need the loo and I'll be in."

"Okay, son, we'll wait."

"Usually Simon goes straight to his room, which is why I asked him to come in. I am not sure if he has realised today is your arrival day, so be prepared for him to look a little shocked maybe," Karl warned.

Josh had sat down, but as he heard the toilet flush he stood up again and faced the door he expected Simon to come through. However, Simon detoured to the kitchen to get a quick glass of water before entering the sitting room through the door to the kitchen instead. As a result Josh was side on to Simon and did not see the sneer on his face, but Simon's opening words cut, "Oh, so you are the jail bird, I presume."

"Simon!" Esther started to chastise him, blushing in embarrassment.

"Hi, Simon," Josh interrupted Esther. "Yeah, I am the jail bird for now, but I am going to prove that I don't deserve that name. Until then if that is what you want to call me that is okay. I just hope that you can find it in you to give me a chance like your parents have and that some time we might even be friends."

"Simon, I have already explained to you that Josh is innocent and he did not deserve that greeting. I hope you will apologise," Karl demanded.

"Oh, sorry, sir innocent. I forgot you brainwashed my dad to let you have free reign in our house," Simon responded.

"Simon, that was totally uncalled for. Give Josh a chance and I think he will show you that you are wrong," Esther said.

"Shit, you haven't been in the house for a day yet and already you have turned both of my parents against me," Simon spat out.

"If you feel that strongly about it, then I will try and find somewhere else to stay while I get my life sorted out. But I really hope that I can show you I am not against you or trying to get between you and your parents."

"Whatever. Can I go to my room now?" Simon asked.

"Well at least you won't be making any more rude comments if you do, so go," Karl said. Turning to Josh he added, "I'm sorry. I did not expect that sort of reaction."

Josh saw that Esther was close to tears. "It's okay. I am going to have to get used to people looking at me differently, and at least this has happened in private, which gives me the chance to adjust. I am sorry this has happened, but I am glad that I am with you and have a chance to prove my innocence because of you. I will do my best to get along with Simon. But if you want me to find somewhere else I will do so. I definitely do not want to be the person that divides a family."

"I am sure it will not come to that. I hope Simon will see that you are okay and then will come around," Karl said.

"I am just so embarrassed," Esther added.

Josh had not yet sat down since he stood to greet Simon. Instinctively he stepped toward Esther and put his arm around her shoulder. "It's okay. We will work it out and I am not going to go telling people about this."

Esther put a hand on Josh's and whispered, "Thank you. Thank you so much."

As they sat down to dinner that evening it was in a subdued atmosphere, with Simon only responding when he had no other choice, leaving Karl and Esther in a quandary. If they tried to talk to Simon he basically snubbed them, and if they talked to Josh then it would look like they were favouring him over their own son. Josh likewise kept his peace; he did not want to do or say anything which might be seen as trying to come between Simon and his parents.

When he had finished eating Simon got up without asking to be excused and began to leave the room. "Don't forget it is your turn to do the dishes," Karl reminded him.

"Whatever."

After Simon had left the table there was a bit more conversation but clearly Karl and Esther were embarrassed by their son's reaction to Josh. Josh insisted on helping to clear the table. Once they were all back in the lounge Karl put the television on, and they all sat quietly watching the box.

After a few minutes Josh got up and headed to the bathroom for a pee. On his way back he saw the way through to the kitchen, and instead of going back into the lounge he went into the kitchen and began to wash the dishes. He was about half way through when Simon came in to do his chore. Josh looked at him and put his finger to his lips. "Don't get too loud. Your folks don't know I am in here. They might get upset because your mum said I would only start doing chores tomorrow."

"So what it is this then? You trying to buy me or show me up?"

"Neither. Friendship cannot be bought. If I can't earn your friendship then we will never be friends. And if your parents don't know I have been in here they will not know that you had some help. I just thought it was not fair for you to have extra dishes to do because of me, so I wanted to even things up a bit."

"So if you're so innocent how come you're a skinhead? All skinheads come from some sort of bad gang don't they?"

"At the Academy you get shaved from head to toe every week. It is one of their ways of humiliating you and keeping you in line."

"You're shitting me, aint you? Shaved everywhere?"

"I'm not lying. If you want we can go to my room and I will prove it to you."

"What, you would strip off and let me see you naked and hairless?"

"If that is what it takes to show you that I am not lying, then yes. I mean, to be naked in front of someone else will be no new thing for me. Inside there wasn't a day when I wasn't naked in front of at least fifty other guys."

"Right. When we finish here you can prove it to me."

Josh thought he sensed excitement in Simon's voice and a bit of a gleam in his eye. Quite what that meant Josh was not too sure. But he knew that if he showed Simon he was not lying on that score he might have a way of breaking through the barrier between them. The two boys stood side by side as Josh finished washing the dishes and then took the dish towel from Simon and said that he would dry so that Simon could put things away as he had no idea where anything went.

Simon put the last dish away while Josh gave the counters a wipe down and they headed to Josh's room. Josh had not suggested using Simon's room; he had no intention of entering that room until he was invited by Simon. Simon followed Josh in and closed the door. Josh started to strip off, not bothering to ask how far Simon wanted him to go. As soon as he was fully naked he turned to face Simon and let Simon look all he wanted. Josh was quite pleased to see that Simon's gaze kept returning to centre on his package. He was also pleased that his six months at the Academy had trained him so that he could be aware of this kind of examination without getting hard. He gave Simon about a minute to look and then he started to pull his shirt on. "I better get back to the lounge or your folks will think I have flushed myself down the loo."

"Okay. Thanks for helping with the dishes." Simon turned and left the room, heading towards his own room.

Josh smiled to himself and thought that maybe he had already started to make some headway with Simon. He quickly finished dressing and went back through to the lounge. As he sat down Esther said, "Thank you."

Josh looked at her with a questioning expression on his face but did not ask what he was being thanked for.

"Josh, thank you for helping Simon with the dishes. We saw and we noticed that it helped Simon to see that you at least aren't all bad," Karl told him.

"Please don't let Simon know you know. Let me tell him. It could change everything. It's supposed to be a secret between us."

"We know that too. Sorry I eavesdropped on your conversation for a bit," Esther replied.

"What is the routine for the morning? I am so used to being woken up early that I guess I will be awake early even if not up and I don't want to get in the way of you all getting ready to work."

"Esther is not working tomorrow, so she will be home and can show you where things are and how we do things. I usually get up at about six and have my shower and shave and then breakfast at seven thirty and off to work. Simon normally follows me in the bathroom and joins us for breakfast before heading out to get the bus to his school. So basically from about six to seven the bathroom is busy. On the days when Esther works she gets the bathroom before me and Simon but then leaves after us as she starts later. But Esther gets the breakfast ready while Simon and I are getting ready. Of course when you start back at school we will have to re-arrange things; but we will worry about that when the time comes."

"Thank you, I will try and be ready to join you for breakfast and then do my ablutions after that if that's okay."

"Sounds fine by me. Esther, are you okay with that plan?"

"No problem. Then once you are ready I will show where things are so that when you want a snack or drink or something like that you can just help yourself. And no, you don't need to ask every time."

"Thank you so much for everything. I really do appreciate it."

"It is our pleasure and if you keep on saying thank you I might just scream. Getting your name cleared will be thanks enough for us. Then we will know we have done the right thing."

Josh had to sit quietly for a bit to regain some composure because he found he was very moved by the kindness and compassion these relative strangers were showing him. Josh yawned and realised that he was actually quite tired. Excusing himself from the Silveys he took himself off to bed to sleep in a room on a soft and comfortable bed for the first night in six months. As he got to the door of his room, Simon came out of the bathroom wearing just a pair of shorts, which Josh guessed were what he slept in. "Good night. Hope you sleep well."

"Huh, oh, uh, thanks. You too." Simon began to walk toward his own room. Then he stopped and turned back. "Can I ask you something?"

"You can always ask. I can't guarantee any answer though."

"If you are innocent, how come you got sent up?"

"Those people who were supposed to help me just didn't. They either did not want to, like my stepfather, or I think they just didn't care because they got paid either way, like my lawyer and the judge."

"Dad believed you, so why didn't they?"

"Do you want to come in my room? We can sit and I can tell you the whole story, or do you want to leave that for some other time?"

"No, I want to know, and I don't think I will sleep well with all the questions in my head."

"Come on in then and I will tell you. Then if you still don't believe me, it will have to wait until I get it proved in the courts." The two boys went into Josh's room and sat down on the bed. Josh began to tell his story for the umpteenth time and knew it would not be the last time either.

To be continued...

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Posted: 07/22/16