Chapter Description: Will gets a glimpse at the inner machinations of the town council.
“Hey guys!” Jane greeted the pair – one enthusiastic, one far less so – as she welcomed them into her office. “Come on in. I heard you two had an interesting recess.”
“Jeeeeeeeez.” Liam huffed as he hopped back into a chair and crossed his arms. “Does everyone in the whole world know?”
“Yep, I posted about it on the Internet just now.” Jane snickered at the twin looks of shocked betrayal. “I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Have a seat, Will, how are you?”
“I’m fine.” He chirped in a small voice, not feeling up for another heated argument about the virtues of Viridian society after all the stresses of the day.
“Have you been settling in to your new class well?” She continued, clearly unwilling to let him avoid at least a brief discussion of the elephant in the room.
Will just shrugged, swinging his legs impatiently back and forth under the desk and deliberately averting his eyes. He noticed that Liam had already managed to locate the office’s old battle worn Nintendo DS and was mashing noisily on the buttons. He rolled his eyes as the boy scrunched up his legs awkwardly in his seat, the screen pressed just a few inches from his attentive amber eyes.
“Will, sweetie.” Jane chortled, waving playfully to regain his attention. “I’m talking to you. How’s the new class?”
“Fine.” The boy repeated, although his pouty cheeks portrayed that it was anything but.
“Someone’s talkative.” The counselor mused with a half-cracked smile “Are you still upset about what happened at recess? Did you want to talk about it?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“No!” He repeated more forcefully, scrunching up his arms in a defensive barrier and nuzzling his face shyly into his t-shirt.
“Oh, Will.” Jane cooed., “It won’t do any good to bottle up your feelings.”
The ticking of the clock marked the passage of a few uneasy seconds of silence as Liam continued to push furiously on the console’s buttons. “Yes!” The oblivious boy eventually cried out, puncturing the awkward atmosphere. Sensing the mood, he looked up self-consciously, blushing shyly as he realized that Jane was shooting him a reproachful glare. “Sorry.” He piped, but his lips were still upturned in a puckish smile.
“I just…” Will began, finally finding some courage. “It’s just not fair! Why did she have to make me…make me like this!”
“You know why, Will.” Jane stated firmly, yet not unsympathetically. “I know this is hard, but it will all be so much easier if you just let it go.” She punctuated her point with a whimsical flourish of her hand – her lively beaming visage making the suggested surrender sound all too inviting. “Why don’t you do another fun puzzle?” She offered, pulling out another hidden pictures worksheet from inside her desk.
Liam gave a scornful titter from behind his screen. He didn’t say anything, but the look of superiority on the boy’s face was unmistakable. He even boastfully stuck out his tongue as he clung possessively to his console – clearly thinking his own activity much more mature.
“I don’t want to.” Will insisted. In truth, the puzzle did sound quite inviting – but he was all too easily shamed by his brother’s light hearted teasing.
Jane tutted at the silly display of sibling rivalry. “Liam, put down the DS.”
“I had it first!” Liam cried out defensively, but Jane reached swiftly across the desk to pluck it from his grasp – folding the device closed with a decisive snap.
“We’re going to do something together.” She declared. “Close your eyes and put your heads down on the desk.”
Liam pouted but did as he was told, making sure to be as petulant as possible in the process. Will was more wary as he followed suit, seeing nothing but a genuine desire to help in Jane's smile.
“...now what?” Liam chirped after a second, raising his head and giggling naughtily when Jane gently pushed it back down.
“There's nothing else, silly.” She chuckled. “Just let your mind drift any which way it pleases, then tell me what you thought about.”
“That's dumb.” Liam reflexively declared as Will let one suspicious eye peek out. “Can't I go back to Pokémon? I had just found a shiny when you took it away!”
“Please don't be so dismissive, Liam, the shiny will be there when I give you the DS back.” Jane's playful chiding belied the fact that it would very much be up to her when that happened. “Go on now – heads down, mouths shut.”
Another huff came fromfrom Liam before he finally complied, with before Will quietly doingdid the same. The lawyer turned eight-year-old was defensive in his daydreaming at first, careful to not let his imagination wander into too childish a direction. It wasn't long, however, before those sorts of thoughts tugged at his consciousness like a toddler tugging on a pant leg for attention. Will found himself remembering how the exchange between himself and Amanda had ended. Instead of focusing on the tidbit she'd let slip – that her mom had someone turned into a baby simply because the woman had wanted one – he was more concerned with whether what he'd done meant that he was her boyfriend now.
Will's face scrunched up against his forearms at the thought, chiding himself for wondering that for even an instant when he was meant to be an a grown-up – no, an adult! Try as he might, though, the faces and details of his former partners swirled formlessly in his consciousness like motes of dust in a tornado. A whimper slipped involuntarily past Will's lips when the panicking second-grader realized he couldn't even remember whether it was boys or girls that he liked.
As he worried in dark silence, however, Will comforted himself with the knowledge that – for all the horrors of being reduced to an eight-year-old – he at least no longer had to worry about the navigating the confusing web of romance whose end goal he couldn't quite recall. Flummoxed by everything he had forgotten, Will scrambled to collect what fragments of his grown-up – no, adult, ADULT! – life he could...doing so just as much to cope as to ensure he had a properly mature answer to give Jane when she called on him.
“Okay!” The woman chirped, smiling indulgently at a blinking Will as he was yanked out of his thoughts. “Will, where did your mind go?”
“Nowhere special.” Will shrugged, hoping his nonchalance was hiding how strongly his tummy quivered when he lied to Jane. “I just thought about what I did as an adult and what I'm going to do once I'm turned back into one.”
“I see.” Jane took this casual defiance chillingly well. “And what did your inner voice sound like?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, did it sound like your regular voice? Did it sound like you speaking?”
Will's furrowed brow gave way to deathly shock as the boy finally understood what she was getting at – releasing a squeaky, defeated little moan as he realized that his inner voice had the bright, high, innocent timbre of a child.
“I was thinking about how cool it would be to be in Pokémon world,” Liam volunteered, single-minded as ever and entirely naïve to Will breaking down beside him over the thought that his adult voice was gone for good.
Jane rolled her eyes at Liam’s remark, giving an indulgent sigh as she returned his console – much to the boy’s delight. He snatched the device up at once, a chorus of cheery sound effects confirming that he was once again deep in play. “What do we say?” She reminded him chidingly.
“Thank youuu.” Liam intoned dutifully, but he didn’t bother to look up – eyes glues to the screen.
Meanwhile, Will was still sitting dumbfounded in his chair. “Your inner voice is nothing to worry about, Will.” Jane reassured. “That just means everything’s working just like it should. Soon you’ll be having just as much fun as your brother.”
The boy let his face fall into a petulant pout as he took a side eyed glance at his partner humming happily along to the theme music buzzing out from the tinny speaker. He shook his head obstinately at Jane’s remark but didn’t reply – resorting to staring stubbornly up at the grimy graey ceiling. The counselor was happy to let him sulk. As he continued to sit in rebellious silence, he noticed out of the corner of his eye that she had taken out the same little hardback book she’d employed on his last visit, reading silently while the boy kicked his legs with impatient impertinence.
Once again left with just his thoughts, he tried to focus his mind back onto all the information he’d gathered over the day – clumsily trying to organize the whole jumble of facts he’d gathered about the council, and Lucas, and Amanda’s mom. Try as he might however, he simply couldn’t focus. Time and time again he found his eyes drawn jealously towards his brother, the jovial electric music and maddening mind-hammering button smashing sound whipping him into an envious fit.
“Can you stop that!” He yelled out suddenly, baring his teeth at the boy.
“Huh?”
“Stop pressing the buttons so loud!” He commanded. “And turn down the music!”
Liam looked surprised at his brother’s seemingly unprovoked change in attitude, but he certainly wasn’t going to back down. “Why should I?” He demanded.
“It’s annoying.”
“So what?” Liam sneered, a cruel mischievous smirk spreading across his face. “Don’t you have some coloring in to do, Baby Billy?”
The employment of the vicious nickname coined by their bullies earlier in the day sent Will into a seething rage. He balled up his fist, launching himself up from his chair and bearing down furiously on the other boy so that their noses were almost touching “You’re the one who pissed his pants!” He escalated, equally cruelly.
Liam’s face reddened at the remark, only letting a single beat pass before he let out a primal scream and grabbed hold of his brother, pushing him back hard against the desk. Both boys were gearing up to strike a blow, when Jane intervened – pushing them forcefully back like identical poles on a magnet.
“BOYS!” She shouted, shocking them into silence. “What on earth do you think you’re doing?”
“He called me a baby!”
“He was making fun of me!”
“And do either of you think those are good enough reasons for fighting?”
Will and Liam fell silent as they stole sulky glares at one another, both feeling justified in bringing things to blows but neither daring to admit it. A tacit admission wasn't enough for Jane, however, the woman's brow hardening as her hands went to her hips.
“Well?”
“...no.” The pair mumbled in unison.
“Then isn't there something both of you need to do?”
Though the boys knew exactly what she meant, neither were able to put aside their boyish pride and offer the apology she demanded – at least, not until they met Jane's unyielding glare, both Will and Liam finding it infinitely preferable to face each other over her.
“...sorry.”
“Yeah, me too.”
“Come on guys, you can do better than that.” Jane's stance softened but not enough for either boy to feel comfortable defying her. “Liam, what are you apologizing to Will for?”
“...for pushing him and calling him a baby,” Liam mumbled, finding his voice when it came time to meet his brother's eyes and apologize properly. “I'm sorry, Will.”
“Thank you, Liam. And Will?”
“...for yelling at him and making fun of him,” Will managed, feeling even smaller than his eight years as he looked at his brother. “I'm sorry, Liam.”
“Thank you, Will. Now come on, get your things together.” Jane chimed, neither boy realizing until then that they'd come to the end of their appointment. “We've got to go to the town hall and get your jammies from mom before heading back to my place.”
“Wait, what?” Though Will was stunned by Jane casually revealing the trio's plan for the evening, an arch of her eyebrow was all it took for the boy to join Liam in fetching his belongings. It was only once they presented themselves to Jane's satisfaction – once she scooted them out of her office and down the hall towards the parking lot – that Will felt free to speak up once more. “Why aren't we going to the café?”
“Emergency meeting of the council, short stuff.” Jane informed him, tousling his sandy hair as though telling him not to worry his silly little head over it. “Mom let me know about it just before our appointment. Don't worry, we won't be long – a quick stop at the hall and then we're off to dinner and an awesomely fun sleepover at your super-cool big sister's house.”
Liam chirped his approval of this plan as they reached Jane's car, offering unsolicited suggestions on where they should eat as he was – with much less fuss than yesterday – strapped into his car seat. Will, meanwhile, was grappling with the horror of realizing that he'd be forced into his own throne of molded plastic for the first time, rooted to the concrete until Jane appeared at his side. Drowning in shame, the boy couldn't even look at the woman as she helped him up and strapped him in, choking on a tiny sob at the sight of his little sneakered feet dangling above the floor of the car.
“Are you okay?”
Will raised his misty eyes to see Liam studying him with concern. Gone was the cheeky kid who delighted in pushing his buttons – in his place was the kind little boy who hated seeing his brother upset.
“...mm-hmm.” Will forced a smile as he wiped his eyes. “Thanks.”
Liam held his gaze for a beat, not looking entirely convinced. The boy's attention, however, was drawn away from his downtrodden brother as soon as Jane got behind the wheel and declared that their trip had begun, Liam yipping in anticipation and going off on another round of overexcited chattering as Will sat cold and quiet beside him.
“What’s taking so long?” Liam complained. The three of them were seated on a bench just outside the town hall, the warm evening sun enveloping them like a soft fuzzy blanket. Liam scrunched up his face in frustration as he stared expectantly up at his big sister, the bothersome shimmering light reflecting into his eyes.
“Be patient, honey.” She soothed him. “Mom said she’ll be out in just a second.”
“But I’m hungry.” The boy complained. “You said they’d be done five minutes ago!”
“Well, they’ve got a lot of important things to discuss.” Jane patiently explained. “Building bridges, paying firemen, taking out garbage.” She wrapped an affectionate arm around the boy’s waist, pulling him in for a cuddle. “Your greedy guts will just have to wait!”
Liam let out a series of amused snickers as he wriggled his way playfully out from under Jane’s arm. She returned his mischievous glance, not letting him escape without an attack of light tickles to the top of his tummy.
Will observed the innocent game with ill-disguised concern. He’d been no less guilty of such immature outbursts throughout the day, but he was becoming increasingly worried about his foster brother’s behavior. After their childish fight in the office, he knew it could only be a matter of days – maybe even hours – until all of his meticulously maintained adult thoughts were choked in the same giggly happy-go-lucky mist that was so obviously clouding Liam’s better judgement. Even now, when they were milling around outside the beating heart of Viridian political power, Liam was more focused on chortling cheerily with his big sister and thinking about his next meal than finding some way out of this mess.
Still, it wasn’t like they had even an inkling of a plan. Julio had snuffed out his hope that they might find some way of reversing their descent into childhood, and another bid at escape was all but impossible with Jane set to babysit them for the rest of the night. What they really needed was information. The boy glanced anxiously at the town hall building behind him, imagining all of the juicy facts that must be being exchanged behind closed doors. Despite what Jane had said, he very much doubted that the council was planning roads and waste disposal today. He just needed to find some excuse to go poking around.
Will pulled urgently on Jane’s arm, putting his plan into action “I’ve gotta pee.” He announced, trying to sound suitably desperate.
Momentarily pausing her silly game with Liam, Jane looked at him sympathetically. “It’ll only be a few more minutes sweetie. I promise.”
The boy groaned. Clearly this was going to take more urgent dramatics. “I gotta go right now!” He yelped, clutching comically at his crotch with all the skill of an amateur youth theater performer.
Jane pursed her lips, half amused, and half concerned by the sight of the seemingly desperate wriggling little boy. “Can’t you hold it till we get to the restaurant?” She tried to placate him.
“Nooo.” He whined, jumping up and down a little in his seat to complete the effect. “Where’s the toilet?”
The woman relented with a sigh, clearly reluctant to let him out of her sight but just as wary of causing yet another potty accident. “Just inside on the right, before the council chamber doors. Do you want me to come with you?”
“I’m fine!” He insisted, hopping up from the bench and stumbling haphazardly towards the doors. He cringed as they swung closed behind him, hoping that his red-faced blushing had come across as simple juvenile bashfulness rather than a guilty tell.
Humiliated as Will was by the infantile show he'd just put on, his humiliation gave way to a deep, bone-chilling dread when he found himself alone in the dim, deathly silent hall. The passageway would've been pitch black were it not for the slanted square of light cast upon the floor, the rich radiance of the evening sun rendered cold and ghostly by fogginess of the ancient handmade window. Will gulped as he forced himself forward, feeling as though he were being naughty merely for stepping into such an obviously important place without adult supervision. Though his knees wobbled beneath him with every soft, silent step –- though his heart pounded faster and faster against his scrawny chest the further he made it down the hall – Will, after what felt like years, finally reached the doors to the council chamber. He whimpered as he looked up at the massive mahogany panels, their sheer size and intimidating majesty nearly enough to send the boy scuttling back down the hall.
I can do this. I can do this. I can do this. I can do this, Will whispered to himself as he reached with trembling fingers for one of the tarnished brass knobs. Touching the cold metal sent a chill down the boy's spine, the entirety of his small form shivering as he very, very carefully cracked the door open.
“...it just seems a bit extreme, he's still a child after all and it's not as though...”
“...it wouldn't be the first time we reclaimed someone his age, and frankly he's been in all sorts of trouble...”
Wide-eyed Will went still as a mouse as he crouched by the tiny opening in the doors he had made, the gap just wide enough to make out the faces of the council members. Abby – who Will could tell had been the second person he'd heard speaking – was looking as casual as ever, not having bothered to change out of her work clothes for the occasion. She seemed to be speaking to the man she sat beside, a barrel-chested fellow in a suit who took up the center seat, who Will figured – if his stockiness and neat blonde hair was any indication – must've been Lucas' father. Three other individuals made up the half-circle – a Latino couple in early middle age and an elderly russet-skinned man, none of whom Will recognized. Though all three were watching the conversation occurring between Abby and Lucas' dad, none yet felt the need to contribute to it.
“Has he really done anything that bad?” The man frowned as he leaned back in his overstuffed chair and folded his hands on his substantial stomach. “I mean, you have a right to be upset given that it was your boys he was teasing, but – ”
“He wasn't teasing them, Jonathon, he tickled them both until Liam wet himself.” An unamused Abby declared, cutting him off. “And I have a right to be upset because, frankly, you've turned a blind eye to your son's behavior for far too long. It'd be one thing if it were just Lucas causing trouble, but now his bad influence has Mark and Hunter acting like they're his little goons or something.”
“Julio was about your son’s age the first time we had him reclaimed.” The Latino man – who Will realized with a silent gasp was Julio's father – added as he turned to his wife for support. “How old was he, sweetheart, twelve? Thirteen?”
“Thirteen.” The woman confirmed. “And it's not like he was bullying anybody, either, the poor boy just needed to be redirected a bit.”
“I appreciate your input, Rosa...Alfred...” Jonathon said, though his deepening frown suggested otherwise. “But if we're all being honest here, the three of you – yes, you too, Abby – the three of you haven't always done this out of necessity. Don't any of you remember that reclamation is meant to be used only as a last resort?”
Abby let out derisive scoff. “A last resort? Please, dear. You’re the one who proposed that Theodore boy. We took him all the way back to two – and all because you owed the treasurer a favor.”
“He was a thief!” The beefy blond council leader sputtered out – scandalized beyond belief that his honor would so openly be called into question. “You all approved it at the time.”
“An RC Car.” Abby continued, waving her hand dismissively. “A birthday present for his little cousin if I remember correctly. Hardly the crime of the century.”
“Nevertheless, he was out of control – ”
“And rehoused as well!” Abby reasserted herself. “You’ll recall at least that I was against that move. His poor parents were so distraught to have their baby sent away. I was the one who had to pick up the pieces from that miscalculation of yours – the two of them were moping around the Cascadian Café for weeks, poor dears.” She shot the flustered man a sly smile, examining her fingernails with cool collected authority. “Jonathon, honey. You can’t really pretend that we’ve been doing things by the book.”
The council leader’s face was one of poorly disguised panic as he swiveled around to measure the mood of the room. He was distraught to see that the entire council were nodding their heads along to Abby’s speech in sage approval. Taking a moment to adjust his tie, he shifted noisily on his chair before cautiously starting to construct a reply.
“I admit, we’ve all been a little…trigger happy as of late.” He began, prompting a few censuring groans. “But that’s no reason to start reclaiming kids left and right for silly playground spats!” He hastened to add. “My son’s a good lad. We’re not going to achieve anything by packing him off back to Kindergarten!”
“Why not?” Rosa’s voice interrupted with pugnacious confidence. The woman shied away a little as every eye in the hall suddenly turned to her, surprised by her sudden audacity in interrupting the council’s leader, “Oh…I’m sorry. Is it my turn to speak?”
“That’s alright, Rosa. You have the floor.” Jonathon sighed reluctantly.
“Thank you.” She grinned, her conviction returning. “I just wanted to say that reclamation did wonders for my Julio. Every time he’s come out happier, more studious, much less disobedient…” She turned to her husband for support, placing a prompting hand on the man’s shoulder. “Isn’t that right, honey?”
“He’s at the top of his class.” Alfred boasted.
“Exactly!” Rosa agreed. “And what about Abby’s girl? She was quite the terror in her first life, but ever since she was reclaimed, she’s been a role model for the whole town!”
Will barely resisted letting out a squeak of shock, his eyes widening at the revelation. Abby’s girl? Were they talking about Jane? He leaned in just a little closer, careful not to miss any details.
Rosa smiled broadly, turning towards Abby. “How young did she go in the end? Do you remember?”
“Kindergarten.”
“You see.” Rosa concluded, turning back to address the room. “It’s really nothing to be afraid of.”
Jonathon stumbled to cobble together some kind of counter argument, but Abby had already taken the initiative.
“I propose a motion to reclaim Lucas Green, Mark Thompson, and Hunter Davis to the age of six years.” She announced. “All in favor?”
A sea of hands rose into the air, leaving only the council leader with his arms crossed stubbornly on the desk in front of him, entirely caught off guard by the pace of the proceedings.
“Jonathon, dear.” Abby coaxed, a threatening flash in her eyes hiding just underneath her collected demeanor. “You know this is all so much easier when things are unanimous.”
The stocky man paled as he looked once more to his fellow councilmembers for support, only to finding himself surrounded by pitying smiles. Seeming to realize he was defeated, the head of the council straightened up, shuffled some papers on his desk and cleared his throat.
“Motion passes five to zero.” Jonathon croaked. “Seeing as how there is no more business before the council, I call this meeting closed.”
Will jumped to his feet as the man banged a gavel against his desk, knowing when the members got up from their seats and began collecting their things that he had to get out of there and fast.
“Oh, and speaking of Jane...” The boy was just about to turn and book it when Abby spoke up once more, frozen in hiding for another moment as he watched his foster mom address Jonathon. “I'll talk with her and schedule the first appointment for your son and his little friends.”
The head of the council grumbled something that Will couldn't make out, not that anything registered with him for a second after getting confirmation that it had in fact been the school counselor they'd been talking about. Energized by how well his spy mission had gone, Will bolted back in the direction he came – only to run square into Jane, who'd been standing directly behind him.
“I...I...” The staggered boy backed away from the young woman as she stared down at him, her expression unreadable. Had she heard what he'd heard? Did that even matter? Certain he'd earned himself a one-way trip to the crib, Will squeaked in terror when Jane laid her hands on his slight, trembling shoulders – terror that turned to confusion when she merely turned him towards the door as it opened, as the members of the council came filing out.
“Oh, hello there dear.” A surprised Abby greeted Jane as the other members of the council – save for Jonathon, who harrumphed his way down the hall – said their farewells in passing. She trained a curious smile on her foster son, who was held firmly in place by Jane's impossibly strong arms. “Will, darling, what are you doing wandering the halls?”
“He had to go to the bathroom.” Jane jumped in before Will could answer, the quavering boy as surprised as he was relieved. “Sorry – I know kids aren't supposed to be back here, but it was an emergency.”
“That's quite all right, no harm done. I've got a few things to finish up here, so you and the boys should feel free to go on ahead.” Abby assured her as she handed Jane the daypack strapped across her chest and smiled once again – this time, much more indulgently – at Will. “You and your brother be good for Jane, okay?”
“...uh-huh.” Will murmured, too overwhelmed by not being busted to mind when Abby ruffled his hair – nor when Jane took his little hand in hers and led him back down the hall. It wasn't until they were well away from Abby before Will could even look up at his foster sister, and it wasn't until they were almost at the door to the outside before he found his voice. “Jane, I – ”
“We'll talk later.”
That was all the young woman said before leading a dazed and frightened Will outside, where Liam had been passing the time by seeing how far off the bench he could jump.
“Finally! What took you so long?” The impatient boy cried as he leapt to Jane's side and took her other hand, frowning across her at Will when he saw his bone-white foster brother staring at the ground. “Is Will okay?”
“He's fine, he just needed a little extra time in the bathroom because he wasn't feeling well,” Jane explained before deftly changing the subject. “So, where should we go eat?”
“McDonald’s!” Liam squealed immediately, jumping up and down in excitement.
“Sounds a little unhealthy.” Jane teased. “You know there’s this great boiled cabbage place around the corner…”
The boy’s face fell into an outraged scowl. “Bleurgh!” He exclaimed, scrunching up his little features in exaggerated disgust.
“I’m only kidding, Liam.” She reassured, placing an affectionate palm on top of his head to ruffle up his straight combed curtain of silky black hair. “What do you fancy, Will?”
“I dunno…” the other boy said noncommittally, kicking his legs apprehensively against the brick lined lip of a nearby flower bed. He looked up at Jane with an uneasy frown. How could he think about dinner when she’d just caught him snooping red handed?
“We’re going to McDonald’s!” Liam insisted confidently. “And I’m gonna get a Happy Meal with six nuggets, and an orange juice, and an ice cream…”
Will continued to stare at his sister with a sad set of pleading puppy dog eyes as his brother continued to ramble. He was desperate to get somewhere private so they could at least discuss what had happened. Sure, she hadn’t tattled on him yet, but until they talked things over properly, he couldn’t be totally sure that he hadn’t simply suspended his imminent trip back to diapers.
“And a toy as well!” Liam blathered on “But not the girls’ toy. It’s gotta be – ”
“Can’t we just go back to your place and eat something there?” Will interrupted suddenly.
His brother shot him a betrayed glower. “What? No! We’ve gotta go to McDonald’s!”
Jane gave an amused titter at Will’s thoroughly unchildlike moderation. She kneeled down to brush her hands playfully across his back, trying to coax the sulking sourpuss of a boy out of his sullen shell. “Come on, Will. It’s my treat.”
“Can we go someplace else?” He complained. Although the boy couldn’t deny that the idea of a grease-drenched burger or crisp crunchy chicken nuggets sounded delightful to his new juvenile palette, his stubborn grown-up sensibilities wouldn’t allow him to admit it. “Like pizza, or Chinese?”
“Bo-ring!” Liam intoned tunefully. “They don’t even have a play place! McDonalds has got slides, and a ball pit, and this big plastic tube tunnel thing!”
Will wrinkled his nose in disgust. A fast-food play place? He thought the FDA had consigned those disgusting germ pits to history years ago! Was Liam really so far gone that he found the idea of crawling around in one of those god forsaken grease holes actually attractive?
“I’m NOT going anywhere with a play place.” He asserted, crossing his arms with pompous discontent.
“You’re such a snob, Will.” Jane laughed, rolling her eyes. “It’s not gonna kill you to play a few games with your brother. Besides, it would do you boys some good to blow off some steam.”
“I’m not a snob.” The boy contradicted. “Those places aren’t clean. Little kids pee in them and stuff.”
“Ewww!” Liam exclaimed, looking genuinely aghast despite a few involuntary childish laughs. “Is that true?”
“It’s true!” Will insisted. “They’re like…worse than the inside of toilets.”
“Yuck!”
Jane tutted at the commotion. “Don’t be gross. We’re about to eat.”
“Sorry.” Will shrugged. “But I’m not going in any play place.”
Liam nodded, quickly having changed his tune. “I don’t wanna get peed on.”
“Fine.” Jane compromised. “How about we head to the drive through and eat at the park?
Since Will couldn't think of any reason to reject the concession, he merely shrugged as Liam, energized once more, wondered aloud whether they'd run into any of his friends from school while there. Will tuned out as much of the childish chatter as possible as his eyes drifted to the window, the words of the councilmembers echoing in his consciousness as Jane navigated her neat sedan down Main Street at a modest speed. He warily raised his gaze to the rear view mirror to try and get a look at her expression, desperate for any hint as to what she knew and what she would do with that knowledge. Will could only study her for a few seconds, however, her smiling eyes suddenly meeting his as the startled second-grader blushed and went back to staring at the scenery.
End Chapter 9
Viridia
by: Noah Kidd
|
Story In Progress
| Last updated
Aug 26, 2022
