Rounding Third (19 page)

His father sat in the lobby with a sports
magazine open on his lap which he wasn’t reading.

“I’m ready to go,” Rob said.

“How is he?”

Rob could not answer, but his face and
shaking limbs told the story. His father swallowed. 

“I’d like to come back tomorrow.”

His father didn’t answer, instead he stood up
and they walked together to the SUV. The trip home seemed longer than the drive
to the hospital. Rob stared out his window, staring at Josh’s mutilated
face. 

Meg ran to the SUV as it pulled into the driveway.
“Is he going to be all right?” she asked.

“Yeah,” Rob said relieved he would not have
to go into detail. “He’ll be okay, I guess.” He wasn’t sure himself if this was
true since the doubt was evident in his voice.

                       
24

The next morning Rob’s father had to go to
the office so his mother insisted on driving Rob to the hospital and
accompanying him to Josh’s room.

Her reaction to seeing Josh was worse than Rob’s.
As soon as she rounded the corner of the curtain and saw Josh, she fainted. It
was all Rob could do to brace her so her fall to the floor was a gentle one. He
turned to the tattooed kid and said, “Would you call a nurse, please!”

    
“Sure, bro,” was the reply and soon an overweight black woman in scrubs adorned
with multi-colored bunnies was helping Rob lift his mother into a chair.

“Your bud must be hella messed up,” Josh’s
roommate said as Rob fanned his mother’s face.

By the time the nurse returned with smelling
salts, Marilyn Wardell was coming around. 

    
Rob and his mother kept a vigil at Josh’s bedside for almost three hours but
Josh never woke up. A nurse came in and said they would have to leave; they had
to prep Josh for his next surgery. Rob would have spent the day if his mother
would have agreed, but she insisted they head home.

    
Saturday morning Rob went to the hospital with his father, but Josh was still
asleep. Rob covered for Josh at the farm market. He wanted to hold Josh’s job
until he was well enough to get it back. He had missed the last two days at his
own job, but he was glad the summer was over and he didn’t have to go back ever
again.

While Josh could do nothing but sleep, Rob could
find no way to sleep. All night he tormented himself with images of Josh,
wondering if he would ever awaken. Wringing all of the sweat from his body gave
him no peace and the next day he stumbled to the breakfast table.

    
Sunday he planned to work the afternoon shift at the market and visit Josh
later when he might be awake. Rob got up early with his parents to harvest corn
so he could take it with him when he went to Greiner’s.

The sun reached its height and heat early, and Meg and Rob went
back to the house to go to the bathroom and get sunscreen and a pitcher of iced
tea for their parents. The phone rang just as he hit the first step.

“Bobby,” Meg called with a volume that
indicated she must have thought he had already made it upstairs. 

He came back down a step and grabbed the
extension in the living room. Josh was the only person who ever called him so
he said a tentative, “Hello.”

“Rob, it’s Mat. I can’t really talk. My
parents would kill me if they knew I was talking to you.”

“Mat! What’s
wrong? How’s Josh?”

Mat let loose with a flood of words so fast
Rob had a hard time hearing them, let alone digesting their meaning. “The
hospital called yesterday. They said they’re releasing Josh Tuesday morning. My
mother told them to tell him, ‘The next time he tries to kill himself to do it
right,’ and hung up. They aren’t going to pick him up. I’m at a pay phone at
the Mini-Mart
across from the church. I told them I was going to the
bathroom, and dashed over here to call you. They’d kill me if they knew. They
said we are never to speak to Josh or mention his name ever again. I’m so
scared, Rob. This is so fucked up. Tell my brother I love him, and I’ll figure
a way to stay in touch. But you gotta help him. You’re all he’s got right now.
Please.”

The phone went dead. Rob put a hand on the
back of the nearest chair to steady himself. Anguish was rapidly replaced by a
hatred of Josh’s parents so intense that for a moment he studied the gun
cabinet. His concern for Josh quickly pushed out the violent thoughts. Rob sat
for a moment to think.

He stood and walked to the kitchen. Meg had
already left with the jug of iced tea for their parents in the back forty. He
had completely forgotten his need for the bathroom and sunscreen. He walked to
the area where his family worked. 

“Meg, could you give us a minute?”

She looked up, and Rob could tell she had a
smart-ass answer poised, but seeing the pain on Rob’s face, she swallowed it,
and said, “Sure.”

His parents looked at him. 

“Mom. Dad. I know this is hard for both of
you. I know we still have a lot to talk about, but...” Rob paused, unsure how
to continue.

“Go on...” his mother said with less than
full encouragement, since most of the news of the last few days had not been
good.

“Mat Schlagel just called. Josh’s parents
have disowned him. They told the hospital they won’t pick him up when he’s
released on Tuesday.” The Wardells exchanged a look. Rob went on, “I know this
is asking a lot, but Josh has no place to go. I was wondering, if it would be
okay...that is...could he have Nonie’s bed on the sun porch until we figure
something out?”

His parents looked at each other. “They
aren’t going to pick up their son?” his mother said as much to herself as to
anyone else. “That’s just not right,” she said. She grabbed her son and hugged
him to her, spilling out, “Whatever happens we love you.”

“I think your mother and I better talk about
this one,” his father said. 

“I understand. I’ll give you guys a few.” Rob and his mother
broke their clench and the young man turned and walked to the house.

Megan was nervously pacing in the kitchen.
She almost jumped Rob when he came in the door, but his face broadcast,
don’t
ask
. She tried to let him pass, but then blocked his way, “I know you don’t
want to talk about whatever it is that is going on around here,” she said,
clearly agitated, “But please tell me everything is going to be okay. I have
never seen Mom and Dad act so freaky. They won’t let me go out or talk to Ash
or Jess. What’s going on? Are you in some kind of trouble?”

“No, Meg. And I hope things will be okay
soon.” She reached out as though to hug her brother. “I’m all sweaty,” he
warned. She clutched him to her anyway. Rob wasn’t used to hugging his sister,
and the unexpected closeness made him uncomfortable so he whispered, “Thanks,
but I gotta pee.” 

By the time he returned to the kitchen, his
parents were there. Indicating the chairs around the table, his father said, “I
guess we all need to talk. Meg, we’re trusting that you’re mature enough to
handle what we’re about to say.” He looked pointedly at Rob and then added,
“Honestly, I’m not sure I can handle it, so bear with me.”

Meg looked desperately to each of the family
members for some hint of what was coming, but found none.

“Megan. We love you and your brother, and
nothing will ever change that,” their mother said. Rob could feel his eyes
swelling up. “And we hope you will always care for him.”

“Is Bobby dying?” Meg blurted, on the verge
of losing control.

“No! I’m sorry, no,” their mother quickly
said.

“I’m fine! I am!” Rob grabbed her hand.

“You don’t look fine,” she said. “Okay, we
have established I can handle the news, and he’s not dying, so it can’t be that
bad, so please, tell me what is going on.”

“Josh Schlagel will be moving in with us for
a little while...”

“He will?” Rob asked.

“Temporarily. Until we can sort this all
out,” Mr. Wardell said.

“No one is going to have to sleep in the
street while I’m around,” his wife added. “It seems that it’s all over town
that Josh, that is, Josh Schlagel, that is, there are rumors...”

“Josh got beat up by some guys who
thought...” her husband wasn’t getting to the point any sooner.

Rob could no longer tolerate watching the
struggle and said, “Meg, Josh and I have a relationship.”

Rob’s father did a half-gasp at hearing it
stated so bluntly, but tried to cover his mouth to stifle it. Suddenly he
seemed self-conscious of a rather effeminate gesture and quickly converted it
to stroking his chin. 

“Yeah, you guys are friends. So?”

Their mother was still trying to finish the
sentence she had started. “The rumors are that...that Josh...”

“We’re more than just friends,” Rob finished.

Meg let out a laugh. “What? Like you’re gay?
That’s so stupid. Josh and Bobby? That is so lame, I can’t...”  Suddenly
the silent looks on the other three faces at the table registered with her, and
she said, “Oh my God.”

“The Schlagels won’t let Josh come home
again,” Rob said. Megan looked puzzled. “They go to that whacked-out church,
remember?” Rob added.

“Some members of the football team beat Josh
up,” their father added.

“That’s what you meant ‘he had an accident’?
But you said he’s going to be okay, right?”

“Yes. But there are some very small-minded
people in this town,” their mother went on. “So we’re concerned what will
happen when Bobby goes back to school. Or what anyone might say to you.” This
was the first Rob had heard his parents voice these concerns. “So neither of
you are to go out alone around town until we see how things go.”

The family meeting went on for some time
longer before his mother insisted it was time to start lunch. Rob volunteered
to gather up the tools that they had left out in the sun before they got too
hot to touch. Rob was surprised when Meg volunteered to help him. 

They were a hundred yards from the house
before she spoke. “There are so many things I want to ask you.”

“I’m not sure I can answer them.”

“You mean you don’t want to talk about it?”

“No, there are so many things I haven’t
answered for myself yet. Just now, in the kitchen, that was the first time I
ever even thought about us having a relationship. We never talked about it. We
just were with each other. But neither one of us ever called it that.”

“You don’t say ‘I love you,’ and kiss?”

“We kiss, but at the hospital was the first
time I ever told him I loved him. I don’t think we wanted to admit it, even to
us.” Megan suddenly laughed. “What’s so funny?” Rob asked.

“I just realized why you found it so
hilarious when I flirted with him. You both knew it’d never happen!”

“Actually,” Rob said, laughing also, “We
joked that he could marry you so we’d have an excuse to stay close for the rest
of our lives.”

She slugged her brother in the stomach.

                       
25

Whatever joy Josh felt at knowing he was going
to be able to move in with Rob was overshadowed by the news that his parents
weren’t coming. Nothing Rob could do could get him to smile or give more than
the briefest response. Rob hoped it was just the painkillers and the hospital
atmosphere and that when he got him home he’d be better.

As Rob was leaving, the tattooed guy called,
“Dude.”

Rob
looked at him and the guy motioned for him to come closer. Rob stood next to
his bed and was motioned even closer. Rob didn’t want to lean too close for
fear some of the numerous piercings in the man’s face might come loose and send
shrapnel flying. When Rob was within whispering range the boy said, “
I saw your homey the other day when they were wheelin' him
back in.” 
Rob nodded for him to continue. “
If I ever looked like that bro, I wouldn’t want to know it. You might
wanna get rid of all the mirrors before he gets home
.”

Rob hadn’t thought about that. He nodded.
“Thanks. Take care. I hope you get out of here soon, too.”

    
Rob finally managed to convince his parents that it would be better for him to
miss the first day of school than for them to miss more work and that he should
pick up Josh alone.

           
Rob entered Josh’s hospital room with
the brightest smile he could muster plastered on his face. This should’ve been
the happiest day of his life. Josh was moving in with him, but he couldn’t find
much joy in it.