Chapter 95 part 1
Home Sweet Home
Morning came fast as it
usually has lately. Since Hunter came into the picture,
a full night’s sleep has become all but non-existent when it comes to rest time
for Tommy. The only part that hasn’t changed since his
arrival is the darkness. Tommy has had to live through night after night while
tending to Hunter’s nightmares instead of getting steady sleep. It has been
wearing on him the past week but it finally was getting better, a little. Tommy
actually was able to sleep most of last night. Even with Shawn waking him
briefly and then Shawn and Hunter close to him all night he was
only woken up once when he lost complete contact with Hunter and the boy
began to have yet another of his many nightmares. All in all,
Tommy felt this was some level of success, sleeping with both boys and actually getting some sleep for the first time since he could remember.
Though it was very early and he was now mostly cognizant of his surrounding, he
did want to get more sleep if possible, before something or someone caused him
to totally wake and start his day. As he attempted to fall back to sleep, he
heard the downstairs door slam closed to help him wake even more then he wanted
to be at this hour. Then, voices suddenly got very loud as it appeared Luke and
someone else had just gotten back from walking the dogs. Tommy could hear the
clanging chains around their necks as the dogs made that obvious noise by
jumping and running around now that they are back in the house. That mixed in
with Luke’s loud voice. Not being able to make out all he was saying, he was
most likely scolding the one that slammed the door on accident, causing so much
noise at this early hour. Tommy reluctantly opened his eyes. The noise, added
to the sunshine in his room, was winning as it was just starting to brighten
inside his window. Nevertheless, he was counting this some kind of shallow
victory in his mind for getting that amount of continuous sleep. He was facing
Shawn now, who was still fast asleep through all the noise with an arm lying on
Tommy and one of his legs draped across his. He moved slowly trying not to wake
the boy and expected to see Hunter awake on the other side of him when he
turned over. After he untangled himself from Shawn bit by bit, he turned to
face Hunter.
“Good morning Hunter,” he
said softly.
“Good morning Sir,” replied
Hunter.
“Hunter, how long have you
been awake?”
“Two hours and fourteen
minutes Sir,” replied Hunter. “Can I get up now Sir?”
“I wish you would so I could
sleep a little more,” replied a very groggy voice from behind Tommy.
Tommy turned back to face
Shawn, ignoring Hunters question for the moment.
“Sorry Shawn, I didn’t think
you were in that light of a sleep.”
“I wasn’t but you moved and
then started talking and that did it,” replied the cute boy in a soft, squeaky
tone. “I would really like to get a little more sleep after last night’s
nightmare,” he added.
“Okay Cutie, you try to rest,
I am going to get up with Hunter, and I have a lot to do today.”
“Okay TJ,” said Shawn in a
low sullen tone.
Just then, there was a knock
on Tommy’s door.
“I guess I won’t be going back to sleep today,”
said Shawn in a now rather disgusted tone. He lay there watching as Hunter
moved and then Tommy got up and went over to answer his door. Tommy cracked it
open to see a dressed Cody standing on the other side.
“Cody its like
“No, I just wanted to get an
early start at finding a new place to live. Guess I am too early?”
“Just a bit, I’ll be down in
a little while for some breakfast and then I can take you up the hill and we
can check out those houses okay?”
“Sure Tommy, sorry I bothered
you so early, I was just excited to get going.”
“I understand but you are
going to have to hold on at least another hour okay?”
“Sure Tom, I’ll be
downstairs, I might as well eat something too while I wait.”
“All right then, I’ll see you
when I get down there.”
Cody turned to leave as Tommy
shook his head and shut his door. Turning to the two boys, he spoke.
“I sure hope this isn’t a
sign of how today is going to be. I don’t need another
day like the past few. All of
“I’m sure it will be fine
TJ,” said Shawn as he plopped back down onto his pillow and then rolled over.
“I’m going to try once more to get some sleep TJ,” he said.
“Okay Shawn, we’ll try to be
quiet for you. Hunter, please keep your voice down until we get out of the
room.”
“Okay Sir,” he whispered back
to Tommy.
Tommy waved him over to the
dresser, then he handed the boy clean clothes for today.
“Let’s try and keep these
clean for a little while Hunter, at least until I can wash some of your other
clothes. You have gone through just about everything I bought for you,” said
Tommy in a whisper to Hunter.
“Okay Sir,” he replied
whispering back to Tommy.
Tommy watched Hunter as he
stripped off his Batman pajamas and stood there naked in front of him. He
apparently didn’t put on any underwear last night. He
watched as the boy slowly and meticulously folded his pajamas, then started to
dress. Soon both were dressed and they both slipped out of his room without
annoying Shawn anymore and were soon downstairs in the kitchen once again
talking in their regular voices.
“Sir, it seems the Shawn-sir
wasn’t in a very good mood this morning.”
“He is tired just like I am
Hunter, it’s been great with you here, but sleep has been at a premium. Plus
Shawn had a bad nightmare last night so that didn’t help either.”
“I’m sorry Sir,” said a
suddenly frightened Hunter feeling he was going to be in trouble for the lack
of sleep problems. “I didn’t mean to cause you or the Shawn-sir any problems
with your sleeping.”
“Its okay Hunter, don’t worry
about that right now, just have a seat at the table and I will get some cereal
for you, then I’ll see if Jon or Kyle can spend some time with you while I go
take Cody to find a house for him and his boys.”
Tommy grabbed two bowls and
the milk. He then poured cereal for Hunter and himself before adding the milk.
He was checking his cell phone as Cody entered the kitchen. Cody appeared to
want to say something to him.
“One second Cody, I have a
message,” said Tommy.
He listened to his message
from Cameron about getting the milk today and then hung up.
“Hope everything is okay?”
commented Cody.
“Its fine, it was just a
reminder to pick up milk from the farm.”
“Oh,” said Cody as he quickly
changed the subject back to what was on his mind. “I’m sorry if I knocked on your
door too early Tommy. I was just excited to get us our own place and get out of
your way,” said Cody smiling at the prospect of having his own place on the
hill.
“Its okay Cody, I was awake,
Shawn was the one who was trying to get more sleep. If you feel bad you can
tell him later when you see him.”
“I’ll be sure to do that,”
replied Cody.
“Have a seat, I want to make
sure you know what you are getting into when you move out,” said Tommy in
between eating spoonfuls of cereal.
“What do you mean getting into?” asked a suddenly
concerned Cody.
“First off, I am not trying to scare you but you do need
to remember for the most part we live in a pretty safe neighborhood here on
this hill. Excuse me one second Cody. Hunter slow down, no one is going to take
your food away from you. Sorry Cody, I didn’t want
Hunter making a mess right now. But, what I am saying
is, this isn’t the mall where you have a huge area to protect, it’s a house. It’s probably going to be within shouting distance to mine
or
“I see what you mean. There
has to be some thought and planning that goes along with having our own place
up here. It’s not like the mall where we could just
keep the lights burning and not care what happened or who saw it. Up here on
the hill, we have to protect ourselves from anyone out there at night and all
the upkeep of a big house too.”
“Exactly Cody, I wasn’t
trying to be rude or tell you how to live once you move out of here. I just
wanted to prepare you for what could happen once you are on your own. Hell, I
just learned about protecting ourselves from the outside world recently myself.
All I am doing is passing it on to you so we can all be safe, all the
time. There are over 30 of us on the hill and we have enough firepower, without
Hunter, to protect ourselves just fine. Every little bit of planning and safety
helps now that our group is getting bigger and bigger. Just remind your boys
that safety is most important, especially after dark.”
“I will Tom, thanks for the
information. I am sure we will be okay and we will do our best to keep everyone
else up on this hill safe too.”
“The hardest thing you will
probably have to do is collect food from the stores around here. The stores that are close are beginning to run low. There
are a few places close, I will show you some and I am sure
“At least we have choices
Tommy, that’s what matters. I’ll make sure the other
guys who will be with me understand about lights at night and all the other
important things Tom. We will try to keep safety at the top of the list. I
wouldn’t want anyone else getting hurt because we got lazy and forgot what is
out there.”
“Good Cody, when you let your
guard down bad things can happen. I am sure you know that.”
“Believe me Tommy after what
happened at the mall before we left, I will never forget what is out there!”
“Okay, point taken. Care for
some cereal?”
“Yeah thanks, let me get a
bowl. I am getting used to having real milk again, I sure missed it, and this
milk tastes great.”
“It sure does,” added Tommy
as Cody went to grab a bowl from the dishwasher. “As soon as you are ready I’ll
find someone to watch Hunter and then we can go.”
“Great, but right now cereal
and real milk sounds too good to
pass up,” Cody said as Ben walked into the kitchen.
“Good morning guys,” he said.
“Morning Ben,” said Tommy.
“You are up early Tom,” said
Ben.
“Yeah, I know. I am heading
out with Cody shortly to find a place for them to move to.”
“Oh yeah, right,” said Ben.
“I forgot for a moment. Hey Tommy don’t forget you have milk to get.”
“Yeah, I know. Thanks I just
got the message on my cell.”
“Oh, okay Tom,” commented Ben
as he headed over to get breakfast together for the other boys as Kate then
walked in.
“Morning boys,” she said.
Everyone said good morning as
she headed over to help Ben with breakfast.
“You know,” said Cody, “One
thing I will miss most is Ben and Kate’s cooking. That really spoiled me the
past few days.”
Tommy, Kate, and Ben laughed.
“Don’t worry Cody, I am sure
we will have you guys over for dinner often or if not us, you will probably be
eating with my brother and Kate,” said Ben.
“You are welcome over anytime
Cody, just ask early enough so I can have enough food ready,” Kate said smiling
at the boy.
“Thanks everyone,” Cody said
rather shyly feeling a little out of sorts, almost like he was grubbing meals
and he didn’t even move out yet.
“So, back to the old house
today Kate?” asked Tommy changing the subject.
“Yes, I enjoyed it quite
nicely here with all the boys and you Tom. Its time for us to move back to our
place and give Kyle his room back along with the other boys their space too,
one more breakfast together and we should be out of here before lunch. This was
great while it lasted but now that
Tommy smiled at her trying to
cover up the fact that he couldn’t wait to get his
place back to ‘normal’ which
included no more baths for Hunter or anyone else by her. Worries about Mike
getting out of line, or concerns about sending anyone to bed to quiet the
house. He thought it could be a good idea occasionally, but for the most part,
he was in bed most nights before most of them. He knew most of the nights ahead
a good deal of the boys from either house would be here anyway playing some
game or visiting their new friends. At least tomorrow morning there will be
around six or seven less people in this house and it won’t
feel as crowded, maybe even more if Cody’s boys move out today too. That part
however is too soon to know right now. It was time to get Kyle or Jon to watch
Hunter and get moving now that Cody was done with his cereal. Tommy was still
concerned Jon would be mad at him for last night, even though he thought they
did a good job of making up before Jon went to sleep in his own room.
“I’ll be back shortly and
then we can leave Cody,” said Tommy. “Ben please keep an eye on Hunter, I just
want to find Kyle or Jon to watch him before I go.”
“What do I do if something
happens?” asked a worried Ben.
“Yell for me, but I should
only be gone about two minutes. He is eating and I have already given him his
special food for now, I am sure he will be fine. Just remember if he gets crazy
to tell him no one will take his food away. The rest should be easy,” said
Tommy
“Okay Tommy, just please
hurry back,” said a still worried Ben.
“I will, I won’t be long at
all,” said Tommy as he headed out of the kitchen.
Tommy quickly climbed the
steps and headed to Jon’s room. He gave a knock on the door and heard a drowsy
voice come from inside.
“Who is it?” asked the voice.
“Jon? Jon, it’s me Tommy.”
“No Tommy, this is Mike, Jon
is still sleeping.”
Tommy cracked open the door.
“Let him sleep Mike, I’ll
talk to him later.”
He quickly headed over to the
end of the hall and knocked loudly on the attic door. After a second knock, he
heard footsteps come down the steps. Luke opened the door.
“Hey Luke, sorry to bother
you but I need Kyle to watch Hunter for a while. I have to take Cody out house
hunting.”
“Sure Tommy, I’ll go wake
him, he was up before he is just resting now.”
“Thanks, Luker.”
Luke smiled at Tommy when he
called him that and turned to head up to get Kyle. Tommy watched his cute butt
all the way, until he was out of site.
‘Damn that kid is still
sweet! Kyle is pretty lucky’ he thought to himself as Luke and his butt
disappeared out of site. He came back a minute later. “Kyle will be down in a
few minutes he needs to get dressed,” said Luke.
Tommy reached out and messed
the cute boy’s hair. “Thanks a bunch Luker. Remember if you ever want to talk
about anything, you know where to find me, see ya later.”
Luke smiled widely at Tommy.
“I know and I will, I promise,” he said. “Oh Tommy?” he said suddenly.
“Yeah Luke?” said Tommy
turning around towards him.
“Sorry about the noise this
morning. I guess you heard the door slam closed.”
“Yes I did, what happened?”
“I guess
“Oh well, I guess we’ll
live,” said Tommy smiling at the boy.
Luke then turned to go. It
had been a while since they talked alone, even if it was a brief chat. Tommy
knew he would be there for the cute boy whenever he could.
Luke loved it when Tommy and
he talked. He still had a special place in his heart for Tommy. After all, he
did save him from that bastard who kidnapped him back at his house and almost
killed him so many months ago. Luke will never forget that day and especially
what Tommy and Kyle did by coming back and saving his ass from that bastard.
After thinking about it for a second, he headed back up to get Kyle as Tommy
walked away after shutting the attic door.
Not wanting to leave Hunter
alone much longer, he headed back to the kitchen before any trouble broke out
with Hunter. By the time Tommy got back to the kitchen Ben looked like he was
about to lose it already and Hunter had the table a mess but thankfully not
much on himself.
“What happened? I was gone
two minutes and the table looks like hell?”
“Ummm, well, it wasn’t his
fault?” said Ben.
“Yeah Tommy, it was mine,”
said Cody. “I went to grab for the cereal and accidentally knocked the box into
Hunters bowl and it spilled.”
“Oh well, at least it wasn’t
Hunter this time,” Tommy said shaking his head.
“No Sir, it wasn’t me Sir,”
he said in between bites of food he picked up off the table that had spilled.
“I know Hunter, its fine.
Kyle will be down shortly to watch you and I will be back later. You be a good boy for Kyle, okay?”
“Yes Sir, I will I promise,”
Hunter managed to say between filling his mouth once again.
Tommy just shook his head and
laughed. About five minutes later Kyle came down.
“I’m here bro. You can go
now.”
“Thanks Kyle,” he said as he
walked over and gave his little brother a kiss on the forehead, still feeling
guilty about biting his head off yesterday. “I do love you very much. I want
you to know that,” said Tommy with a little smile on his face.
“I know TJ. You don’t have to
keep beating yourself up for yesterday, I promise we are good,” Kyle said
smiling at his big brother.
“You can still read me can’t
you?” asked Tommy.
“Yup, most of the time, you
did get me yesterday but if I focus, I can usually tell or get pretty close to
knowing what is going on in that thick head of yours.”
Tommy reached out and brushed
his hand through his brother’s hair.
“It’s getting long Kyle.”
“Yeah I know, I’m going to
need it cut soon.”
“I can do that,” Kate sudden
chimed in out of nowhere.
Both boys looked at her.
“You cut hair?” Tommy said.
“I forgot you mentioned that.”
“Yes, I do Bryan’s and the
others whenever it gets too long.”
“Okay, I’ll keep that in
mind,” said Tommy unsure if he wanted to go there or not. “Come on Cody lets get this over with. Oh do you have your
gun?” he added.
“No, should I bring it?” he
said surprisingly.
“Might not hurt, we are going
into peoples homes, anything is possible,” commented Tommy.
“Okay, one second I’ll go
down to my cot and get it,” Cody said.
Cody headed off as Tommy put
his gun into its holster. He had gotten one a while ago and decided to wear it
today for some reason.
“Do you really think anything
bad will happen while you are out there Tommy?” asked a suddenly very concerned
Kate.
“Probably not, but why take a
chance, like I said, we are going into private homes. You never know,” replied
Tommy.
“Always best to be safe,” a
voice suddenly came from the other room.
They turned to see Jon
walking into the kitchen.
“Morning Jon,” said Tommy
smiling at him.
“Morning,” he said back with
little reaction as he went to sit at the kitchen table.
A few more boys started to
come down and finally Cody came back from downstairs.
“Breakfast will be ready in
about thirty minutes boys so don’t spoil it with eating anything else,” Kate
said happily, as
As they talked in the
kitchen, Tommy grabbed Cody gently by the arm and both boys headed for the
front door. They quickly dressed for outside and Tommy opened the front door
and stepped one foot outside.
“Damn it’s really bitter
today!” Tommy exclaimed. “We must have gotten another freakin cold front last
night, it feels like twenty below!”
“Do you want to still do this
Tommy?”
“Yeah, but I am thinking
seriously about driving up the hill,” he laughed.
“How far away is the first
house you are going to show me?” asked Cody.
Tommy stepped out ten feet
from his house as Cody followed shutting the door behind. He pointed at the
first house on the left side of the hill. It was no more then 100 yards away.
“That one right there,” said
Tommy.
“We can walk that close, but
I agree with you. After being out here for all of one minute, maybe we should
take your truck,” said a suddenly shivering Cody.
“We can come back if you
don’t like it, or if you want to see others. But, you did say you wanted to be
close and
“I understand Tom. That might
be the house we take regardless. Let’s try walking it and if it’s too cold we
can come back to get the truck,” said Cody as he started walking down the short
hill and long driveway of Tommy’s place.
Tommy zipped up his heavy
jacket all the way and tightened the gap between his gloves and coat sleeves as
he slowly followed Cody. “Damn I fucking hate winter!” he mumbled to himself.
They put a little hop into their
step as they got to the road.
“Tell you what,” Tommy said
to Cody, “If you do want to see another house we will be coming back for my truck.”
“I hear you loud and clear. I
hope the house is unlocked,” said Cody.
“Don’t worry, I have been in
it before winter set in, and I have a key,” Tommy replied.
“Then why did you want me to
take a gun?” asked a somewhat surprised Cody.
“Because you never know Cody,
it’s not worth finding out the hard way kid. Not worth it at all!”
“I understand Tom, I was just
curious, that’s all,” Cody mumbled back to Tommy with his chin and mouth buried
deep inside his fully zipped up coat as the cold air cut him with every breath
he took outside his coat.
They approached the house as
Tommy fumbled for the keys. He didn’t want to take off
his gloves but it appeared he didn’t have much choice if he wanted to get the
proper key out. As he once again mumbled under his breath, he went through the
keys on the ring trying several before one finally finding the proper one that
opened the door. They were met with a blast of warm
air as they cautiously walked in. Cody held his gun out, ready to fire as Tommy
shut the door and then grabbed his own gun wondering why it was so warm in this
house if all power was off.
“Let’s give it a quick walk
through before we stop to look,” Tommy said in a whisper. “I wanna know why
it’s so warm in here when the power has been off on the hill for a few days.”
Cody gave him the thumbs up
as both boys began to check the house. Tommy pointed up and Cody went upstairs
as Tommy checked the first floor. About five minutes later Tommy could hear
Cody coming down the steps as he headed for him.
“Upstairs is clear and pretty
nice,” said Cody.
“Downstairs was clear too,”
Tommy added. “So now you can look it
over slowly while I figure out why this place has power.”
“Good, I do like that there
are seven bedrooms upstairs and each has a bed. That is a great start,” Cody
said smiling. “I’d like to know why it does too Tom,” he added.
“I’ll figure it out. I guess
it’s a great start, even if there are only five of you.”
“I know Tom, but you never
know who might want to stay over or move in.”
“I guess,” Tommy
said shrugging his shoulders.
As far as he knew, they would
probably be over by him or Bryan more then in their place but that was only a
guess. Cody spent the next twenty minutes looking at all the appliances and
other goodies in the house while Tommy searched for an answer about the
electric. The house was about the same size as
“This place is amazing. I
never would have guessed it Cody.”
“Guessed what Tom?”
“The entire back half of the
roof is covered in solar panels. There must be fifteen of them up there and
that’s probably why this place has power and heat.”
“That’s a good thing right
Tom?”
“That’s a dream come true
Cody. You guy’s will not have any problems with
electric as far as I know. You probably won’t need a
generator either. If I were you I’d take this place and be happy.”
“Don’t worry Tom, I love it!
This pinball game is awesome, look at everything else in here. We’ll probably
have you guys here more then I expected now that we found this stash of fun!”
Cody said excitedly.
“Yeah, I hear you. So we are
settled. This is the place for you. All you need is what we discussed, food and
so on.”
“Yup, this is it,” Cody said
smiling widely. “It’s totally awesome!”
“Good, then let’s get back to
my place. That way, you and your guys can start to pack and move in today if
you want, not that I am rushing you.”
“No, it’s cool Tom. I
understand your place has been crazy, so I am sure we can get out today.”
“Thanks Cody. Remember all of
you are welcome back anytime.”
“I know, thanks,” he replied.
Both boys bundled up as they
got to the front door. Tommy handed Cody his key and asked if he would get
copies made and if he knew how to do it. He told Tommy he would figure it out
eventually and Tommy said that was fine as both boys exited Cody’s new house
and quickly hurried back to Tommy’s place. The house smelled of pancakes and
sausage as they entered trying to shake off the extreme cold from the subzero
temperature outside. Everyone was awake now and breakfast was all but over but
Kate did save some for Tommy and Cody just incase. Cody gathered his guys together and filled them in on what they found and he
suddenly had four anxious and excited boys who wanted to check out their new
place as soon as possible. Tommy went to check with Kyle to see how Hunter was
and after he found out everything was okay he asked if Kyle wouldn’t
mind watching him while Tommy headed out to the farm for a few hours. Kyle,
still feeling a bit guilty about yesterday agreed to watch Hunter without much
problem at all.
“Just don’t take all day okay
bro?” said Kyle.
“I’ll do my best to get back
in two hours,” he told his brother.
“I guess that’s okay. It will
be around
“What did you have planned?”
asked Tommy.
“We were gonna go next door
and do some work in the greenhouse.”
“Sounds good, I’ll do my best
to hurry back.”
“Thanks TJ,” Kyle said giving
his brother a hug.
Tommy headed off to find Jon
and check with him before he left. He wanted to make sure they were okay after
last night. He headed up to Jon’s room but the only one in there was Mike, who
was packing and getting ready to leave.
“Ready to get back to your
own bed?” asked Tommy as he poked his head in getting Mike’s attention.
“In a way I guess so,” he
said. “I liked it here because there are so many others to be around but going
back home isn’t that bad I guess,” Mike said.
“Have you seen Jon?” he
asked.
“No, not since breakfast,”
Mike replied.
“Okay, thanks,” Tommy said as
he turned and walked away.
Tommy searched the entire
second floor and didn’t see Jon anywhere. One of the
bathroom doors was locked so he figured he would check
there now since the rest of his search turned up empty. He walked over to the
bathroom and knocked on the door.
“Yeah?” a familiar voice yelled from inside.
“Jon, it’s me. You gonna be a
while?”
“I just got in here TJ,” he
yelled back.
“Okay, guess I will see you
when I get back,” Tommy said through the closed and locked door.
“Yeah, whatever,” Jon
replied.
That comment pretty much made
Tommy feel that Jon was still mad about last night, so he just let it go at
that and walked away. ‘Maybe he’ll feel better by the time I get back,’ he
thought to himself as he headed downstairs feeling mad and dejected over the
whole situation. He really wasn’t in a mood to deal
with anyone else now as he walked around the side of the front steps to the
cellar door and slammed it shut as he headed out to the garage through the
basement. It was way too cold to walk outside to the
garage to get to his truck even if it was shorter. Shortly
after that, he was in the truck briefly warming it up as he popped the button
on the garage door opener and watched the door go up through the rear view
mirror. He backed out, shut the garage door, and headed down the driveway, off
to the farm. Back inside Kate, Chase, Billy, and Joey were clearing the tables
off in the dining area and getting the room all cleaned up, after Hunter and
the others had messed it up during breakfast.
Upstairs, Mike was all packed
and on the way down with his two overnight bags that he used while staying at
Tommy’s house. He has been trying to lay low now that his cleaning punishment
was finally over. Cody had got to his guys before, and
told them the good news about the house. They too were all packing downstairs,
getting their few things they had brought inside Tommy’s house from the RV
together, and getting ready to go check out their new home soon. Moments
earlier Junior, Calvin, Phil, and Denny had watched as Tommy slammed the
basement door and briskly walked by them on his way to the truck. They said ‘hi’
and he waved as he headed to the garage causing the boys to wonder what got him
so pissed off. Jose, Todd, Ryan, Matt, and Austin were currently gathering
their own stuff and bringing it to the foyer, as they too got ready to leave.
It was close to
“Finally!” yelled Zack out
loudly causing the others to laugh as the noise level in the game room came
alive again.
Soon after that, cheering,
yelling, and other associated noises were heard coming from the rear of the
house again, as one by one the boys soon would be challenging each other once
more. About twenty minutes later, Ben, Hunter, and Kyle returned back home and
heard the noise once they got inside. Ben and Kyle quickly attempted to warm
themselves as Hunter watched them trying to figure out why they were so cold and
he wasn’t. The three of them headed to the kitchen
after hanging up their coats. While making some hot chocolate in the kitchen,
Cody and his boys came in and thanked Ben and Kyle for
everything. Cody told them that they had their stuff together and were heading
out. It was 12:45 and they were now ready to go and check out their new home.
Ben and Kyle told them they were welcomed back anytime and that they were pretty sure Tommy would be checking with them later in the
day to make sure everything was fine. They said their goodbyes and then headed
outside. Cody told Ben before going that he would move the RV up the hill at a later time and of course, there wasn’t a problem with
that since it wasn’t blocking anything. After they left, Ben went back to
getting things together in the kitchen before heading out to the game room. Ben
knew from experience, that he or anyone else walking into the game room with a
drink would only raise questions and complains about where the other’s drinks
were. So, before the three of them left the kitchen, Ben
made up a big coffee urn of hot water and got out the hot chocolate mix for
anyone who would smell it and want some of their own. No sooner then they
walked in carrying their mugs did a few of the boys want some too. Ben pointed
towards the front of the house and told them it was in the kitchen and to go
get it themselves if they wanted it so badly. So they
did. They actually paused the game, as all of them
headed quickly to the kitchen to go get their own drinks. It didn’t
take long for them to return and for the game to be on again.
Up the
hill…
After Ben, Hunter, and Kyle left, Kate headed to the kitchen and she too decided
to make some warm drinks and food for the boys, as they went to put their stuff
away.
Across the
street at Cody’s…
The boys left Tommy’s house
and quickly headed up the hill to their new home. They talked to and bugged
Cody the whole way about to what to expect as they walked the short distance to
their new home. The excitement of what was about to happen was quickly setting
in for all of them. Cody wouldn’t tell them what to
expect inside their new place. He told them it was a surprise and they would
have to wait until they got there to find out. Finally, they arrived and Cody
was now opening the front door. The five of them walked in. He shut it as they
dropped their stuff right there on the floor and began to walk around their new
place and check it out. No more then two minutes
passed and one of the boys was yelling for everyone to come see what he found.
Cody was smiling, as he already knew what it was. As Jr., Phil, and Calvin
rushed to join Denny, who was first to find the enormous game room, Cody walked
in.
“Wholly shit Cody,” Denny
said. “This place is awesome!”
The others agreed as they
went from game to game and checked out everything in the room that they could
now call their own. Soon the sounds of pinball games could be heard throughout
the game room as Jr., Calvin and Phil were each
playing a pinball game. Cody challenged Denny to a game of pool and all five
were having the time of their life. This went on for the next hour before Cody
finally asked them to go check out the rest of the house and pick a room. Cody
had already stolen the master bedroom himself before coming down to get the
others. He rustled up the others and with a little moaning, they headed back
out to pick up their clothes and other things. They headed upstairs as a group
and looked over the remaining six rooms. Then, one by one, with very little
arguing, the boys chose a room to call their own.
“Get your stuff put away and
let’s try to keep this place a little neater then the way we kept the room at
the Mall. If you can’t, then close your door. If I don’t see cooperation there will be punishments. If you guys don’t want to follow the rules, the door is downstairs.
You already know how things are done at Tommy’s house and I am pretty sure you know how Kate and Bryan do things, so… if
you think living there or on your own is any easier then don’t let the door hit
you in the ass on the way out! I said my peace, now the rest is up to you
guys.”
With some grumblings from
them, he turned and headed into his room closing the door behind him. It was
now time for him to check out his own prize and see what goodies he got. He
already knew he had the big room, now what was
in it? He put his bags of clothes and pillows on his king sized bed and set off
to check out the rest of his room. Off to the left was the first closed door.
He opened it to reveal his own bathroom. In there was a full shower with
Jacuzzi tub in the bottom. The usual sink, toilet and cabinet above the sink.
There were two doors. He opened the first one to reveal towels and essentials
that were stored below the towels that took up the top two shelves. Whoever
lived there had stock in anything from rubbing alcohol, to Band-Aids, and
everything in between. He would later have to go through this stuff and see
what the inventory totaled. He closed that door and went to the other one. He
opened it to a surprise. Inside was a small workout room with a hot tub in the
corner. ‘Very nice,’ he thought to himself. He then set about to clear out
anything he didn’t want that was left behind from the
home owner in the bathroom and then in the various dresser draws around the
bedroom. He had a ton of space to call his own including a small refrigerator
that was stocked with water bottles, wine coolers, and
some spoiled food. He spent the next hour plus some, making the room his own
including washing the bed linens and remaking the bed. In between that, he went
to check out the rooms that JR., Denny, Phil, and Calvin took. All five boys
were doing their own thing to make their room up the way they wanted it. Cody
reminded them to make sure everything they used was clean since they didn’t know who had used it before. It didn’t
take long for there to be a line at the washing machine as all of the boys
wanted to do some wash after what he told them. Their afternoon flew by as they
all did miscellaneous chores in their rooms and around the house. By late
afternoon, it was getting dark outside. Most of them were
close to done with their set up and cleaning. They were now hungry and
looking for something to eat. Since there was little in the house, Cody decided
to call Kate for some help with dinner. It was later then he wanted it to be to
ask but he figured this one time might not hurt and maybe tomorrow they could
get food in the house for themselves.
Across the
street at
They boys had settled back
into their rooms after having some fresh baked food much earlier in the day.
Kate was getting ready to give Joel a bath and Ryan, Todd, Matt, Austin, and
Jose were all out of the house already heading back down to Tommy’s
to play with their friends by
Tommy…
He had left the house alone
and in a pissy mood thanks to Jon being mad at him from last night and the
going to bed issue. If he didn’t try talking to Jon
before he left, he would have probably been happier during his ride over to the
farm but Tommy was Tommy and when something didn’t go his way he had to deal
with it in his own way. He took his time heading to the farm to get milk. He
had left so upset, that he totally forgot to ask Chance or Chase if they wanted
to come along and at this moment, he really didn’t
care. By the time he arrived at the off ramp to Cameron’s house, a good thirty
minutes later, he was a bit calmer and thinking of a way to make things up to
Jon. He pulled onto the property around 1 PM and beeped the horn to let them
know he was there, incase the boys had gotten extremely distracted inside. They
came to the door to greet him.
“Hey guys,” he said to
Cameron and DJ. “How’s things?”
“Going good Tommy, how are my
brothers? I hope they aren’t causing you too much trouble,” Cameron commented.
“Nope, none at all, they have
been to into playing with the other boys that I guess time has been flying by
for them. I hardly got to spend much time with either
of them. Either Chance was helping out with the
cooking or he was enjoying himself in the pool or playing with the others. We
had so many at the house that it was quite noisy and busy there.” He looked at
DJ. “You sure picked the right time to come here.”
DJ laughed. “That’s good to
know,” he said.
“So Chance has been helping
out with the cooking?” Cameron asked.
“Yes, according to Ben he has
been helping himself and Kate a lot in the kitchen and learned quite a bit
about cooking.”
“That’s great to hear Tommy,
when he comes back he can cook for us so I don’t have to almost every night,”
Cameron said laughing.
“I hope that works for you
when you get them back here
“A ball or two or three,
Tommy,” DJ said jokingly. “We have had plenty of time to do what we want
without any interruptions. It’s been great!” he added.
“Well, that’s good to know, I
can’t stay long since I left Hunter with my brother and I promised him I would
hurry back. No one likes to baby-sit Hunter for too
long,” Tommy chuckled.
“Yeah, I can understand
that,” Cameron said. “From what I know he is a handful,” he jokingly added.
“He can be. Its getting
easier but it will take time. Hunter has been through hell and then some, but
we are making slow progress. He and Shawn are getting very chummy. That is
helping a lot for both of them.”
“That’s interesting,” said
Cameron. “I guess we should get your milk and eggs so you can get back there.”
“That’s probably a good idea.
I think I will be going home to a lot emptier home. Kate,
“So, when you get back you
could have an empty house?” DJ asked.
“Empty? Hardly, we still have
all the guys that live there and it’s my bet that even after everyone moves
out, they will be back to visit their friends, go swimming, or in the very
least have something good to eat by us,” Tommy said in a disgruntled voice.
“After all we are the neighborhood eatery and hot spot,” he added sounding
annoyed.
“You sure don’t sound too
happy about it,” Cameron said to him.
“It has its moments, good and
bad. I am just tired of having more than 30 people in that house. It’s too
freakin noisy and crowded!” he said.
“I’m sure when you get home,
that will be over with,” DJ said. “I’ll probably stay here a few more days as
long as
“I don’t think they are DJ.
They have been having way too much fun,” Tommy replied.
“Okay, let’s get you loaded,”
said Cameron. “I have lots of eggs and milk for you this time. You can share
with
“Good, I know we were low
after so many people spent time with us. I have been meaning to get here but
every time I tried, something came up that put it off another day.”
With that, the boys dressed
warmly and headed out. Tommy brought his truck over to the barn doors while DJ
and Cameron headed inside to wait for him. They loaded up dozens of eggs and
gallons of milk into the back of Tommy’s truck as he got out the empties and
returned them. Then they went back inside to talk for a little bit more, before
Tommy needed to get back.
“I better get back before my
brother is calling me every five minutes,” Tommy joked. “Thanks for everything
and you two be careful and have fun together. I am happy for both of you.”
“Thanks Tommy,” said DJ as he
gave Tommy a quick hug.
“Yeah thanks for watching my
brothers, I really appreciate it,” said Cameron.
“No problem guys, thanks for
the milk and eggs. Everyone appreciates fresh milk on their cereal and with
their chocolate syrup!”
Tommy gave both DJ and
“Only one more stop before I
go home,” he said aloud to no one.
Tommy got back on the parkway
and headed back to town. The snow wasn’t too bad and
he made it easily through it in four-wheel drive with his plow down. Instead of
getting off at his exit, he kept going and got off at the next exit. He turned
off and pulled into the parking lot of Jim Barry’s Jewelers. ‘I know how I will
win back Jon!’ he thought to himself. He grabbed his gun and got out of the
truck. The store was unlocked but there wasn’t any
power on. After searching the store, he went over to the glass cases and
started looking into them. Thankfully, it was a bright day outside or he might
have needed a flashlight to make sure the store was clear and possibly to even look at the jewelry. He wasn’t
totally sure what he was looking for, but he knew that when he saw it he would
have his present. Glass case by glass case, he looked slowly through each
checking the merchandise in them. Then he saw it. The first one that caught his
eye was a cross on a golden rope. It was made of 22 small diamonds according to
the paperwork that was with it. It glistened back at him through the glass
case. The price above it said $9500.00. That was for his brother. He went
around back, opened the case, and took it out. He looked for a box for it and
placed it inside one of the velvet-lined boxes he found on the back counter. In
the next glass window was a small necklace with a Pacman on it. That too was in
diamonds, ten of them inside the golden half-circular Pacman necklace that he
picked up. It was priced $2500.00. He thought it would
be perfect for Shawn, so he put that into a box. He went back to looking. This
time he wanted the perfect gift for Jon. He had three cases left to check and
he was slowly losing hope he would find it, whatever ‘it’ was. He went though
the last three cases and didn’t see what he wanted.
Then he looked up and saw it in the back display case. His eyes bugged out as
he looked at it. It was beautiful and the display case was
locked. He searched for keys for a few minutes not wanting to break the
glass and finally he gave up. He grabbed his gun and turned it around. He
struck the butt of the gun against the glass and it shattered into a few
thousand pieces as he shielded his face with his arm. He reached inside and
grabbed the most beautiful piece of jewelry he had ever seen. Under it was
paperwork and a price tag. He gasped at the price, $59,950.00.
“Wholly fuck!” he yelled out,
his voice bouncing off the walls of the store.
He grabbed the card next to
the price tag, and started to read about his find:
‘Breathtaking and phenomenal, this magnificent 14K gold
men’s princess cut diamond chain necklace shines with sophistication. This
white gold with its Sleek and fabulous design will brighten anyone’s day. It is
all you need to show off your good taste. Created in the timeless brilliance of full 80.00 carats of
invisibly set princess cut diamonds, this dazzling men's diamond necklace is a
masterpiece!’
He stuffed the
card into his pocket, held the 14k Gold Men’s Princess Cut Diamond Chain up to
the outside light, and watched it glisten, gleam, and shimmer, in all its
beauty. He found the perfect gift for Jon. This should get him back and out of
his funk, Tommy thought. He packed that one in another velvet-lined box and put
it in his pocket. He had three awesome presents for the three most important
boys in his life now. Not thinking Hunter would appreciate any jewelry, he
decided against getting him any right now. He turned and headed back out to his
truck. He would smile all the way home hoping the gifts would make his boys as
happy as he was. He got back on the parkway, drove the one exit, to his exit,
and got off there. With the excitement building in his head, he planned out how he was going to give each of the boys their
new presents. He pulled up to the garage, opened the door with the remote, and
pulled his truck in just enough so they could reach the milk and eggs without
going inside the garage. After turning off the truck, he got out and headed
inside the house. He entered the house to blaring noise, and he immediately
knew they were playing games once again. He walked into the back of the house
and stopped in the doorway of the game room. The sound was borderline
deafening.
To be
continued…