Another Chance - Book One
Chapter Seven: Christmas
By Zarek Dragon
As everyone sat to eat, Heather looked at the three boys. Marilyn was sitting at the table, too. "Joe asked me something today and I said I would check with Jim, but Zac, you're just as much a part of this family too."
"What did you ask, Joe?" Jim asked.
"I asked your mom if I could call her Mom. I feel like she's been more of one than my real one," Joe said looking down.
"Well, as far as I'm concerned, you are my brother, now, so it would only be fitting," Jim stated. Joe looked at Jim and smiled.
"Yeah, you belong in this family. You are definitely loved here," Zac said.
"I've only known the Bolts for a few months, and they've become a part of my family. As far as I'm concerned, you are now, also. Jim and Zac call both of us Mom, and if you ever feel that way, you are welcome to as well," Marilyn explained.
"Well, that could get confusing," Joe said with a grin, "Thanks everyone. I'd say that you have no idea how this makes me feel, but I think you really do."
"After we eat, anyone want to go around the cul-de-sac and sing Christmas Carols to our neighbors?" Jim asked.
"You all go ahead. I'll go back over to my house and fix hot cocoa to warm you back up," Marilyn offered.
As they got to the first house, Joe started singing Joy to the World before Jim rang the bell. Everyone listened to Joe sing. He had an amazing voice. When the neighbors opened the door, Joe had just finished singing and everyone sang Silent Night. The neighbor slipped some money to Joe and told him that he really liked his singing. "Would you like to hear any special song?" Joe asked.
"I love O Holy Night," The neighbor stated.
Joe started singing and everyone else sang but soft enough that Joe's voice dominated. The neighbor thanked them and watched as they walked to the next neighbor. Each neighbor handed money to Joe when they sang. Joe would then ask if they had a request and sing the song they requested. He only choked up when someone asked him to sing What Child is This?
As they walked into Zac's house, Joe pulled out the money he was handed. Someone gave a twenty, but most gave five or ten dollars. "How do we split this?" Joe asked.
"By whoever it was handed to, gets to keep it," Zac stated.
"I have almost a hundred dollars here. Sure you don't want any?" Joe inquired.
"It's yours, Bro," Jim said smiling.
"Then, can someone run me back to Jake's store. I'd really like to get a pair of cowboy boots." Joe said. Jim and Zac stared at each other and smiled.
"I'm sorry, Honey, but the sign said that he was closing at noon and won't be open again until after Christmas," Heather stated.
Later they sat and ate supper, then Marilyn handed one gift to everyone to open. Jim sat there with his gift on his lap. Joe was surprised when she handed him a gift. "I'm sorry. I didn't get you anything," Joe said looking down.
"That's alright, you never even met me until today," Marilyn said. "I hope you like it; I really didn't have any idea what to get you."
Joe opened his present to find a green sweater with his name in red on the left side. Joe hugged Marilyn. Zac opened his present and it was an 1873 model Winchester. He was ecstatic. "I've always wanted this. I knew I couldn't buy it until I was eighteen, but I would go once a week to look at it," Zac practically shouted.
"I know; I've been talking to Conner at the gun shop. Look at it closer," Zac did and saw his name engraved on the plate. "I want you to take lessons on shooting before I start buying you bullets for it, though."
Heather opened her gift. It was a pair of light yellowish brown (shade of the palomino) horse head lamps. She had a wagon wheel overhead light but no lamps in her living room, so Marilyn thought they would go perfect with the décor. "Thanks, Marilyn. I love them."
Jim still hadn't opened his gift. Everyone was staring at him. "Fine, I'll open it," Jim said as he started carefully undoing the tape.
"Need some help?" Joe asked as he ripped the paper. Everyone but Jim chuckled. Jim opened the box. It was an identical rifle to Zac's, except it had his name engraved.
"Your mom gave her approval on the same condition that Zac has," Marilyn stated.
"Thanks Moms," Jim said.
Everyone had another cup of hot cocoa, then Jim, Joe and Heather went home with their gifts. Zac and Marilyn went upstairs to bed.
Joe woke up and looked at the clock? It said six. He got up, put on the forest green robe that his new mom had bought for him. He liked the thought of that, a new mom who actually cared about him despite his being gay. Joe went out into the hall and pounded on Jim's door. "It's Christmas!" He shouted. Then he pounded on Heather's door and shouted again.
Heather opened her door. She was wearing a baby blue robe with white lace. "Yes, it is Christmas, Honey," She smiled at Joe's excitement.
Joe pounded on Jim's door again. "He's probably not in there. Ever since he met Zac and started working at the ranch, he's been up around five. I never get to make breakfast anymore because he usually has it done." Heather smiled some more.
Joe made his way downstairs as quickly as he could. He went to the kitchen and there was Jim at the stove. He was wearing a pair of red flannel Santa shorts with white fur at the leg openings and a black belt at the waist. He also had on a Santa hat. "Hey Joe," he called out as he was flipping sausage patties. Joe heard a noise at the backdoor.
He went to check and jumped back when Colby jumped up. Jim chuckled. "They've been out playing in the snow for about fifteen minutes. Want to let them in, you can."
Joe opened the door and Kunoichi ran over by Jim and shook her fur dry. Jim hollered as the cold snow hit the back of his legs. This time Joe chuckled. "Do you always run around with hardly anything on?" Joe asked, not that he minded. Jim does have a nice body.
"I think he'd run around naked if I weren't here," Heather said.
"Probably," Jim grinned. "Breakfast is almost done."
"Then do we open presents?" Joe asked.
"We have to wait for Zac and Mom number two to get here," Jim said.
"Well go get them," Joe couldn't believe how excited he was to open presents. This was without a doubt his best Christmas to date.
Jim set the sausage on the table. He poured a glass of juice and a glass of milk for both him and Joe. Heather grabbed a cup of coffee. There were also eggs and English muffins on the table. Jim grabbed a muffin and placed a sausage patty and an egg on it. As he sat down, the doorbell rang. Joe went to answer it.
"Boy, you look excited," Zac said when the door opened. Zac had his arms full of presents. Marilyn was behind him with her arms full, too.
"They're here!" Joe said excited. "Can we open presents, now?"
"You have to eat your breakfast, first," Heather chuckled. She looked at Jim, "Do you regret not growing up with a brother?"
"No way, Mom. I had you and Dad all to myself all these years. While I love having Joe as a brother now, I don't think I'd appreciate it as much if I had a brother growing up."
"You are so sweet," Heather smiled. Jim smiled as he ate.
Zac and Marilyn sat at the table and chatted while the rest ate. Jim offered them some food, but Zac said that they already ate. Marilyn did accept a cup of coffee and Zac grabbed Jim's juice. Jim gave him a funny look then grabbed another glass. Joe told Zac about Kunoichi getting Jim cold and wet which made Zac laugh. Zac commented on Jim's Santa shorts.
Once everybody was done eating, they retreated to the living room. Jim turned on the tree and started handing out presents. Joe opened up the box that Jim handed him. It was the green western shirt. "How did you all know that green is my favorite color?" Joe asked.
"We didn't, but that shirt goes great with your eyes, Bro," Jim responded. Every time Jim called him "Bro", Joe started feeling emotional.
When Jim handed a gift to Zac from his mom, Heather told him to stop. "There should be an almost identical box for you, Jim. I want you boys to open them at the same time."
Jim found his gift and sat down. Unlike yesterday when Jim took his time, he just ripped the paper. He waited until Zac had his paper off and they opened their boxes at the same time. They both received a Taurus Gaucho forty-five caliber revolver. "As with the rifles, you need to take shooting lessons before we'll get you any ammo," Heather said. "Remember, guns are not toys."
"I'm well aware of that Mom, you and Dad were always good about making sure I know that. Even when I did have a toy gun, I was to treat it like it was real," Jim said, feeling emotional. He hugged his mom and thanked her for the gift.
Zac opened up a gift from Jim. It was a saddle case for his rifle that matched his saddle. "I knew you were getting the rifle, so I thought you would like that."
Zac chuckled and handed Jim his present. Jim opened it and it was a black gun-slinger's holster. The Taurus Gaucho fit perfect in it. "I also knew what your Mom got for you. I just didn't know that I was getting one myself."
At that, Heather hand Zac a present and Marilyn handed Jim one. Each mom made sure that the other one had a matching rifle case and holster. "Since we knew what you were getting each other, we thought we'd make sure the other had one, also," they said.
Jim handed Joe a present from Heather. Other than the weight, the box looked like it could be another shirt. The box felt like it weighed around ten pounds. Joe ripped the wrapping off. As he lifted the box lid, he couldn't believe his eyes. Heather had given him his very own laptop. It was a Toshiba Qosmio. Joe started to cry. He ran over and hugged her tighter than he ever had.
After Joe wiped his eyes, he handed Jim and Zac his presents for them. "Thanks, Bro. Whatever it is, I'm sure we'll love it," Jim said tearing the paper. When he and Zac opened them up and saw the spurs with the black leather strap and silver accents, they were almost teary-eyed. "I think this is an awesome present. Can I give you a hug?"
Joe held his arms out and Jim walked over; He picked Joe up as he hugged him. Joe felt so excited. He was hoping that Heather would love her gift just as much. He handed her a package. As Heather opened it, she smiled. It wasn't a very big present, and she didn't know what Joe paid for it, but none of that mattered. When she saw the silver necklace that said "#1 Mom" she started to cry.
"You don't like it?" Joe asked. "Or do you already have one?"
"No, I love the gift, Joe. It just makes me happy and sad at the same time. I'm so happy that you feel this way, but also sad about what you must have gone through your entire childhood to feel this way," Heather clarified.
"What I went through is my past. Thanks to my current family, I have a brighter future. We can't change what has happened, but I know that what will happen will be great," Joe said smiling.
Rest of the presents were opened except the one in the corner. "Well, I guess that's all the presents. I hope every liked what I got for them," Jim said putting his holster around his waist and strapping the spurs to his bare feet. Everyone laughed.
"Hey, there's one more present for somebody," Zac stated.
"There is?" Jim asked.
"Yeah, it's in the corner. Who is it for?" Joe inquired.
"Let's find out." Heather said.
Jim pulled out the present. "It's from Santa Claus…" Jim read as he was looking at the package. "It's for Joe."
Joe opened the box and found the three boots. He gave a funny look. "I don't have three feet," Joe said.
Jim walked over and pulled the special boot out. "May take you a while to get used to it since you've been walking with one leg shorter, but this will even out your legs," Jim said.
"And when you ride horses with us, that boot won't fit in the stirrup, so you have this boot for riding." Zac said as he pulled up the other left boot.
"OK, that makes perfect sense…" Joe started but he felt so emotional over what these two boys had done. Within an hour of just meeting him, they went out and had this done. Joe started to cry. "Thank you so much, Santa Jim and Santa Zac," Joe said hugging the two of them, trying to stifle the tears coming out of his eye. They both kissed him on the cheek, told him it was alright and kept holding him while he cried. Heather and Marilyn were so proud of their boys; they had tears as well.
Jim, Joe and Heather went upstairs to get dressed. Joe came down wearing his new boots. It did feel a little awkward, but he noticed relief in his back from not having to compensate for the shorter leg, too. He also had on a pair of jeans and the sweater that Marilyn had given him.
Heather came downstairs wearing a red and green plaid skirt and a green blouse. You could see the necklace proudly displayed around her neck. Joe looked at her and smiled. "You look beautiful, Mom." Joe said.
"Thank you. You look handsome, yourself." Heather was stifling a tear as she said it.
Everyone heard the distinct sound of spurs jingling and looked up the stairs. Jim had just started down them. He was wearing a pair of black jeans, a black western shirt, a royal blue neckerchief, his cowboy hat and boots. He had his holster around his waist and spurs on his feet. "Do I look like a gunslinger, or what?" Jim asked.
"Almost, but you left your six-shooter down here, partner," Zac chuckled.
Jim instinctively reached for the holster to feel that it was empty. "Dagnabit!" Jim yelled and everybody laughed. Jim took off the holster and spurs and placed them with his other gifts. He did put the revolver in the holster.
Rest of the day was just a fun Christmas. Jim started a fire in the fireplace. Marilyn and Heather retreated to the kitchen to check on supper a few times, but everyone enjoyed each other's company and watched the classic movie It's a Wonderful Life. At dinner, Joe thought he'd be cute and repeated the line from another movie that they watched, A Christmas Carol. "God bless us all, everyone." Everyone laughed.
Thursday morning, Jim went into Joe's room and woke him up at five. "What's going on?" Joe asked.
Jim answered, "I'm going to fix breakfast and when Zac comes over, we'll be heading to the ranch. Thought you'd like to get ready so you can come along. We'll be riding horses sometime today." Joe's face lit up.
Jim fixed breakfast while Joe got ready. Heather and Joe came down around five thirty. As they sat eating French toast, Jim looked at his mom. "Would you have a problem if I took what I got for Christmas to show Jackson?"
"I'm sure he would like seeing what you got. I guess it would be alright, especially since you have no ammo," Heather said, "And thank you for asking."
"And Joe's going with us if you don't mind. We're planning to ride horses sometime today. Plus, we're hoping Jackson might have something that he can do."
"I'm so glad you want to include him. I have the day off, myself. I might come out later to see about riding, too. I really do miss it."
"And Dad would want you to keep riding. You know that, right?"
"Yes, but it's so hard. I miss him so much, especially right now."
Jim never really thought about how much his mom missed his dad. He started to cry and hugged his mom. "I'm so sorry, Mom. All this time, I've been thinking about how much I miss him. I never even considered that you did, too. I love you so much."
"I love you, too, and you needn't apologize. You were hurting so much. Your dad would be so proud of you right now."
"I never knew him, but the two of you make me miss him too," Joe said. Jim and Heather hugged Joe. Heather kissed his forehead.
"He would have loved you, Joe," Heather said.
"And just so you know, the ranch isn't really open for people to come riding right now, with the snow and all, but I'm sure Jackson wouldn't have a problem if you came out. Just because it's winter doesn't mean the horses don't need exercised," Jim stated.
They finished eating and Heather cleared the table. Zac walked in at a few minutes before six. Jim suggested a time for his mom to come out, then he and Joe grabbed their winter jackets. Jim placed his presents in the back of Zac's truck. He was thankful that Zac had put a tote back there so they wouldn't be in the snow. The boys got in the truck and headed for the ranch.
When they got to the ranch, Zac pulled into his usual parking spot. They sat for a few minutes and Joe said, "You get paid to sit out in your truck?"
"No, we usually get here a little early. Sometimes we kiss while we wait. Other times, we just talk, and plan the day. Today, we have a body between us and I think we should tickle that body," Zac said.
"That sounds like a plan," Jim agreed and they startled tickling Joe. Joe squealed at the tickling.
As they saw Jackson pulling up, they jumped out of the truck. They each grabbed their Christmas gifts and walked toward him. Jackson got out of his Dodge Ram. "Whoa, partner. If this is a hold-up, I have no money on me," Jackson kidded when he saw the rifles.
"Naw, no hold-up, but we thought you'd like to see what we got for Christmas," Zac said.
"And who did Santa give this handsome young man to?" Jackson asked pointing to Joe.
"He's my new foster brother," Jim said with a big smile. "Joe, meet Jackson. I promise, I won't tell him that you asked if he were a horse," Jim continued with a chuckle.
"A horse? You thought I was a horse? Neigh…" Jackson chuckled. After Jim laughed at Jackson neighing like a horse, he explained to Jackson why Joe asked. "Out of curiosity, are your guns loaded?"
"No, our moms want us to take shooting lessons before we can have any ammo," Zac explained.
"That's smart of them. If you want, when Mr. Abrams gets here in a week, week and a half, I can see if he'll give you lessons. He is ex-military. I'll also check with your moms. Hopefully, that'll be acceptable."
"That would be cool," Jim said.
"So, what's this guy going to do while the two of you work?" Jackson asked.
"We were kinda hoping you could give him a job? We're not sure what he's capable of doing, but he's willing to do whatever he can. Otherwise, he'll probably hang with us watching what we do. Hope you don't mind we brought him," Jim said.
"With the expansion of the ranch, I'm sure we can use him," Joe smiled when Jackson said that. "For now, I need to get a horse trailer and run some errands. Can you sit at the desk and answer the phone? I'm assuming you boys plan to ride sometime today. When you're ready, just come get him."
"Thanks, Jackson. What kind of errands do you have planned? Or is it personal?" Zac asked.
"No, it's errands for the ranch. I need to fill out some paperwork. When this crew is done with the new house and office, they are going to start construction on the Rescue ranch. Hoping to have it functioning by spring. I also have a horse to go look at."
"What kind of horse?" Joe asked.
"Well, she's a quarter horse mare. She has issues. She never fully grew and the people want to get rid of her. She won't be worth much other than as a riding horse, maybe to young teens or kids, but if I don't take her, she's going to be glue."
"That's horrible," Joe said.
"Big problem is, she's not broke yet and most of my hands are too big to ride her. I was thinking that maybe one or both of you could help since you're still growing." Jackson said staring at Jim and Zac.
"I used to help my uncle before he died of leukemia." Joe said.
"Well then, she's yours to break. Instead of answering the phones, you want to go with me to get her?" Jackson asked, then looked at Jim. "If you don't have a problem with that."
"I trust you a hundred percent, Jackson. So does my mom," Jim stated. "Have fun, Joe and if you want to talk to Jackson about what we discussed, that'll give you a great opportunity."
"OK, let me hook up a trailer and we'll be on our way. You two will be only ones here today, so if you hear the phone ring, either answer it or let it go to voice mail," Jackson said.
Jim and Zac got busy with what they needed to do. While the hands took care of the horses on Christmas, they weren't as thorough as they should have been, so the boys had more work than they expected. They heard Jackson ask Joe what he wanted to discuss as the two were getting in Jackson's truck.
"Well, tell you what, when we get back, you can see if there are any horses that you like in particular. If there are, we can discuss some kind of an arrangement then," Jackson told Joe.
"I can see why Jim and Zac like you so much. To hear them talk, you're almost like a god to them," Joe said.
"I'm definitely no god. I don't even have a physique like a god," Jackson chuckled.
They pulled onto the farm where Jackson was to check out the horse. Joe got out and helped Jackson lower the trailer ramp. "Hope I don't offend you, but you get along pretty good with your disability." Jackson said.
"Been dealing with it all my life, but it got easier thanks to Jim and Zac. They got me these boots for Christmas to help. I've only known them since Monday and they have done so much for me, already. I feel so special, Jim treats me like a real brother, I think."
"You think?" Jackson asked.
"Yeah, I was an only child, so I can only guess how I would treat my brother if I had one. I really like Jim and Zac and I know they like me, too."
"Well, from what I've seen already, they definitely do. Let's take a look at this horse," Jackson said.
They went to the house and let the owner know they were there. The man walked with Jackson as they went to the barn. The mare was solid black except for a white patch around her left eye. It was almost a star shape. She seemed a little agitated when she saw her owner walking toward her but calmed down as she noticed others with him. That caught Jackson's attention.
"Well, other than size, I can't see anything wrong with her," Jackson said as he was looking at the mare. "I'd have to have a vet do a more thorough exam to know for sure."
The man handed Jackson a report from his vet. "My vet says that there's only a ten percent chance of her reproducing. And if she does, with her stunted size, it would possibly kill her. She's not worth much to me, but the factory offered two hundred for her. You match that, and she's yours."
"What do you think, Joe? Think we can break her for riding?" Jackson asked.
Joe walked up to her and she nudged his hand. "She sure is a pretty girl. I think we should at least try."
"That being said, I'll give you what you're asking," Jackson said. "Will you accept a business check?"
"From you, I will. You have a good reputation," The man said.
Joe helped load the horse into the trailer and they headed back to the ranch. Jackson got to know Joe very well by the time they pulled back onto the lot. Heather pulled onto the lot almost right behind Jackson. Zac and Jim came to see the horse.
"What is she, about nine hands?" Zac asked.
"Actually, according to her paperwork, she's eight and a half hands," Jackson stated, "and she's done growing."
"Well, we get her broke and she should be good for younger teens, or pre-teens, maybe older kids. Joe could use her for a while," Jim suggested.
"I like her and all, but I'd like a full size horse," Joe said.
"Besides that, as Joe grows, she'd get to be too small for him," Jackson stated.
"Yeah, that's true," Jim admitted.
"Can you boys get her stabled? I still need to go sign that paperwork," Jackson asked as he was unhitching the trailer from his truck.
"Count on us, Jackson," Zac said.
"And Joe, see if any of the other horses are what you want," Jackson stated.
"He going to work out a deal with you, Bro?" Jim asked.
"What kind of deal?" Heather was curious.
"Hey Mom. Joe would like his own horse, so he talked to Jackson about making a deal like he did us. And you'll need to sign paperwork for Joe like you did me," Jim replied.
"That would be nice. My only concern, which I hope never happens, is what if they take Joe away from us?" Heather inquired.
"I'm sure Jackson would work something out with him," Jim said.
As Joe and Zac got the new mare stabled, Joe spotted Gold. "That's a beautiful horse. Think Jackson would let me have him?"
Zac chuckled. "If he owned him. That's Jim's horse, Gold. The white one in the stable beside him is my horse."
"Shucks, I really like the looks of Gold," Joe said.
"I can show you another palomino," Zac offered.
"Whoa, look at that palomino, I think she needs to go on a diet," Joe said as they walked.
"She's pregnant. Gold is the sire," Zac said chuckling.
"Who will own the colt?" Joe asked.
"Jackson offered it to me, if I want it. Could be yours, but you won't be able to ride him or her for a few years," Jim said coming up behind Joe.
"He wanted to know if Jackson would work out a deal with him for Gold," Zac chuckled.
"Can you blame him?" Jim grinned.
"Does Jackson own that horse?" Joe asked pointing at another palomino stallion.
"Yeah, but you work out a deal for him, you might be paying for a long time. He was Jackson's first stud and has brought him lots of money. His name is Caesar," Zac said.
"I thought you were Jackson's first stud," Jim joked.
"He probably wouldn't part with him, then," Joe said sounding disappointed.
"I like that horse. It reminds me of the first horse your dad and I owned." Heather said pointing to a brown quarter horse with a white boot.
"We call her Bootsie," Zac said, "She's very gentle and would be good, especially since you haven't ridden in a while."
"Here you go, Joe. This is the other horse I wanted to show you," Zac said.
"She's not as pretty as Gold. Her color is pale in comparison," Joe said.
"Part of that is her winter coat. Another part is her breeding. Caesar is her sire, but her dame was a pure white mare," Zac said, "Jackson got her as part of the deal when he bought Caesar."
"Think he'd sell her?" Joe asked.
"If you're interested, he might. He talked with me a few times about buying her and I seriously considered it. Then he found Silver."
"Lone Ranger's horse?" Joe asked.
"My horse," Zac responded.
"So, you own Silver and Jim owns Gold. Kinda corny if you ask me," Joe said.
"Yeah, well, Jim named his horse about three years ago?" Zac looked at Jim and Jim nodded his head. "Mine was named by someone else. It just worked out that way."
After Joe decided to ask Jackson about this mare, Jim and Zac started prepping the four horses for their ride. Heather helped prep Bootsie. She really did miss riding. Maybe she would start riding again. She knew that Jon would want for her to continue. Horses were his passion and she grew to love them as much.
Joe changed his boot so he could mount his horse. Heather got on Bootsie and rode beside Joe. Zac and Jim led the way, but stayed close enough in case one of them needed them. "How much does Jackson charge to go riding? Unless you have a problem with it, I may come out once a week," Heather said.
"You didn't read your certificate very well did you?" Jim asked.
"Not really, just saw that it was for free riding," Heather responded.
"Jackson let me make the certificate up. You get free riding whenever you want for the rest of your life," Zac told
"Seriously? I take it then, you wouldn't have a problem with me coming out each week," Heather thought about shedding a tear but thought it'd freeze to her cheek if she did.
"We'd love for you to ride with us. Maybe not every time we ride, but definitely once in a while. Once a week would be cool," Jim said.
"Keep that up and you'll make my face freeze," Heather laughed.
"I'd love for you to come ride with me as often as you want," Joe told her. She leaned over and hugged him.
After just four days since Jackson got the mare, Joe was already making noticeable progress with her. He was having the time of his life, too. He hadn't tried riding the mare yet, but he definitely made a friend of her. After the boys put in an eight-hour day, they let Jackson know they were heading home.
Zac parked more often in Jim's driveway than his own, but this day, there was a social worker's car in Jim's so they parked over at Zac's house and walked over. Joe looked at Zac and Jim, "She said that once she got me enrolled, she'd bring me a schedule. That is why she's here, right?"
"Probably Bro, but we won't know for sure 'til we go find out," Jim told him.
As they got close to the door, Jim heard the lady talking to his mom. "His dad will spend sixty days in county. After that, he'll be on probation. We asked if they would consider letting him be adopted."
"And what was their response?" Heather asked.
"I hate to say it, but they said they want no part of him. They'll gladly sign papers for you to adopt."
When Joe heard that, part of him wanted to cry. How could his parents be this way? Jim was holding him ready to comfort him. "They don't want me, then fuck them. I have a better family now anyway," Joe raised his voice.
Heather was shocked when she heard Joe cuss. The social worker looked at her and asked, "Would you like to proceed with adoption? It won't be finalized for a year, but you'll stop getting support checks after six months. The parents can always change their mind before the year is up."
"What happens if they do?" Joe asked.
"You might go back to live with them. Or if we deem the household unsafe for you, you would remain in foster care and stay here," The social worker told him.
"What if I don't want to live with them?" Joe's face was starting to redden.
"Then you could file for emancipation and hope the court grants it. Something tells me, though, you needn't worry. I'm just telling you what could happen."
"By all means, start the process as soon as you can. Joe is where he belongs, and I want to make sure he stays that way," Heather said. Joe left Jim's arms and wrapped his around her.
"I have to agree with you. Joe is where he belongs and I will do everything in my power to make it happens," the social worker stated.
"By any chance, did you get Joe enrolled in school yet?" Jim asked. "I'd like to see if we share any classes.
"I left his schedule with your mom. She set it down in the house. I tried to get him in as many of your classes as I could, but some I just couldn't. While you are an A student, Joe's an A, B student," The social work said.
"Just my luck, I'm too smart," Jim said with a chuckle.
"Well, with your help, maybe Joe can raise his grades and share classes with you next year," Heather suggested.
"Do we share any classes?" Joe asked.
"I did arrange for you to have the same homeroom. You also excelled in science, and history, so you will have those two and health together. I'm not sure about any others off the top of my head."
"My schedule is Advanced Algebra, History, Science and English. Then we have lunch. After that is Health, Spanish, and Music. Then on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I have Gym. The other three days is study hall," Jim rattled off.
"I guess you'll see a lot of each other, then. Joe has regular Algebra, but otherwise, his schedule is the same, I believe. Mind you, I already told you about your gym class and Coach Jenkins said he doesn't have an issue with it. If they are doing something where you can participate, you will. Otherwise, he'll send you to study hall."
Joe smiled, "Thank you."
"No thanks are necessary, Joe. I'm just glad that I can help make you happy. You are my priority here. No offense to Mrs. Bolt, but I don't care if she or your parents are happy until after I make sure you are safe, happy, and being taken care of."
"I can tell you that I am," Joe said smiling.
"And I understand that Santa brought you a special present," the case worker said.
Joe's eyes lit up. "He did, check out my boots. Actually, though, it was two Santas."
"Those are nice. Do they help you get around easier?" the case worker asked.
"Now that I'm getting used to them," Joe stated.
"Well, I need to go. Until the adoption papers are filed, I'll need to visit once a week, but after they are, it'll go to once a month with an occasional surprise visit. I'll probably stop next Monday to see how your first day of school was and to let you know the papers are filed."
"Thank you so much. You're welcome to visit any time," Heather assured her.
The case worker got in her car and left. Jim looked at Joe's schedule just to be sure. "Yeah Bro, other than Algebra, we share the same classes. Wait until you meet some of my classmates."
"If you like them, I'm sure I will," Joe said with confidence.
"Just one thing, when you meet Cheyenne, try not to stare. She was attacked and beaten pretty bad. Her wounds are healed and her scars are disappearing, but some are still visible."
"Why was she attacked?" Joe asked.
"From what I heard, just because she's friends with a fag," Jim stated.
"Or in other words, you," Joe said.
"Yeah, just because she's my friend," Jim said with a little sadness in his eye.
"Well it's not your fault any more than it's my fault that the sperm donor had hit me," Joe announced.
"I know, and Cheyenne doesn't blame me, either. Her boyfriend is one of my closest friends and we hang out together at school, sometimes after school. They're the ones who took me to get Kunoichi and Colby."
"That's cool," Joe said. He walked over and gave Jim a hug.
"What was that for?" Jim asked.
"Just for being a cool guy. I'm proud to have you as a brother," Joe said.
"I'm the lucky one. I have you as a brother," Joe smiled when Jim said that.
It was New Year's Eve morning and Jim woke up his usual time. He went downstairs to let Kunoichi out and start breakfast. He was shocked when he walked into the kitchen. "Morning Joe, you're up early."
"I had to be. I wanted to surprise you with breakfast," Joe responded.
Jim opened the backdoor and Kunoichi went outside while Colby came in. "So what are you fixing?" Jim asked.
"I'm not telling, it's a surprise," Joe stated.
"In that case, I've leave you be," Jim said opening the fridge and grabbing the juice and milk. Jim also started the coffee for his mom.
Heather came downstairs just as Jim was letting Kunoichi back in. "What smells so good?"
"I have no idea. Joe says that it's a surprise," Jim stated.
"Joe's cooking? I didn't know that he could cook," Heather admitted.
"I'm sure there are lots of things for us to learn about him. After all, we've only know him a week."
"So true and I look forward to learning each and every detail," Heather smiled.
After a few minutes, Joe came to the dining room carrying a big plate. Jim stood up to help him. On the plate was fried potatoes with scrambled eggs mixed in and some ground up sausage. After Jim took the plate, Joe went back to the kitchen and emerged with a bottle of ketchup.
Jim and Heather filled their plate, then Joe got his. "This is really good, Joe. Mom fixes something like this for suppers occasionally."
"Only, I use smoked sausage and slice it up." Heather said. "Guess with you two, I never have to worry about breakfast anymore."
"You want to fix breakfast sometime, just let us know. We'll let you, won't we, Jim?" Joe more stated than asked.
"Yeah, and Mom fixes the best breakfasts, too," Jim stated. Heather smiled.
As usual, Zac walked in just before six. The boys grabbed their coats and were off to the ranch. Since they were putting time in every day this week, Jackson told them to get out as early as they could for the holiday. He thought about asking them to take the two days off like they did for Christmas, but the boys started grumbling about the hands not being so thorough.
"Makes me wonder, they seem thorough while we're in school, why aren't they on the holidays?" Jim asked.
"I can give you different reasons. First, it's the holidays. They want to enjoy them, too. Second, the hands that did it for Christmas are the ones who take care of the cattle and their own horses. They probably rushed for these horse. Third…" Zac started but Jim cut him off.
"OK, I think I understand," Jim said.
Joe helped the boys do their work instead of working with the mare today. They headed home by noon.
When they got to Jim's house, Marilyn was sitting on the couch sipping coffee and talking with Heather. The boys said hey and headed up to Jim's room. Jim popped a blue-ray into the player. The three laid on his bed watching "Man of Steel" with Joe in the middle.
At supper time, Heather came up to get them. The TV was on showing the menu selection screen over and over and the boys were fast asleep. She woke them up and headed downstairs. The boys were dragging as they came downstairs.
"Falling asleep already, you'll have a hard time staying up to watch the ball drop with us," Heather said as they sat around the table.
"Working forty hour weeks is hard when you're not used to it," Jim commented.
"And ranch work isn't easy to begin with. Imagine, your dad put at least fifty-six hours a week in and if something came up…" Heather started.
Jim caught a tear in her eye. "As much as I respected him before, I really respect him now. I don't know how he did it for all those years."
"He was used to it. And if you did it every week, you would get used to it too," Heather said smiling.
After dinner was over, the boys helped clean up. Heather grabbed a bottle of bourbon and filled five twelve ounce glasses half full. She filled them the rest of the way with orange juice. "This is all you boys get, so drink it slow so you have some at midnight," she warned them. She told Marilyn to help herself if she wanted more.
Joe took a sip of his drink and his eyes got big. He never had any alcohol before and this tasted very potent to him. Joe looked at Jim, "You drink this often?"
"Only for New Year's Eve," Jim said, "Mom and Dad always said it was a special event." Zac took a sip of his.
Rest of the night, they played cards, chatted and just enjoyed being a family. It was ten when the ball in New York dropped, but they enjoyed all the music and everything. Joe could barely keep his eyes open.
When midnight hit, Joe was fast asleep and had only drank half his drink. Zac and Jim were starting to fight sleep. They finished their drinks, wished their moms a Happy New Year, and then headed up to Jim's room. Marilyn thought about heading home, but snow was falling so hard that she could barely even see her house. Heather grabbed a pillow and blankets and offered her the couch. Heather tried waking Joe up, but he was sound asleep in his chair, so she left him.
New Year's day, the boys overslept. Zac and Jim hurried and got dressed and ran downstairs. Heather was standing at the window looking outside. "Mom, why didn't you wake us up? We overslept."
"You needed your sleep. Besides, Jackson called at six," She said.
"Why did he call?" Zac asked.
"Look outside. It hasn't stopped snowing yet. You're going nowhere."
Jim and Zac looked outside and there was at least four foot of snow on the ground. They could barely even see Zac's truck. "What about the horses?" Joe said as he started waking up.
"As much as I wish we could do it, I guess the hands at the ranch will have to take care of them," Zac stated. "Guess I'll be busy digging my truck out."
"Can I help?" Joe asked looking at Heather. She smiled and nodded her head.
Meanwhile, at the county lock-up, Joe's father was sitting in a cell with another man. "What are you in for?" the man asked.
"They have something against me smacking my faggot ass son about. I don't see what the issue is. I mean he's a wimpy little faggot," Joe's father said seething through his teeth.
The man rose to his feet. He stood six foot one and his arms were as thick as trees. He had steel blue eyes that looked like they were piercing through Joe's father. His jet black hair was slicked back. "What did you say?" he asked.
"What, are you a faggot, too?" Joe's dad asked.
"No, but I just found out that my son, Cornelius, is. He and his mother came to visit for the last time before I'm transferred to prison."
"Then you should consider yourself lucky that you don't have to put up with that faggot," Joe's dad said right before the back of the man's hand sent him flying.
"I'd give anything to be with my son. It shouldn't matter if he's gay, straight or polka dotted. He's my son and I will love him no matter what."
The deputies came running when they heard the commotion. "Mr. Jones, step back. I'd hate to see more days added to your sentence."
"Do you know why he's in here?" Mr. Jones asked pointing at Mr. Walker.
"Yes, and while we don't condone him abusing his son for any reason, we can't allow this either."
"I understand; it just really upsets me when any parent can abuse their child. The child should be able to feel safe in their parents' arms. I won't even get to see my Cornelius graduate," Mr. Jones started sobbing as he sat down.
A deputy helped Joe's dad get up and was going to take him to the infirmary. He looked at Mr. Jones. "I hope your son rots in hell next to mine," Joe's dad said, then spit blood on Mr. Jones.
Another deputy stayed with Mr. Jones. "Unfortunately, he'll have your hand print on the side of his face for a long time. He may lose some teeth, too. We have to write the incident up, but from what I can tell, he provoked it. I'll write it that way and hopefully, you won't receive any additional time for it."
"Thank you," Mr. Jones said.