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Part 8
Walking to Mr. Jackson’s
Walking quietly together, side by side, JD and Ezra slowly made their way to Mr. Jackson’s office. Despite all of the reassurances that were given to him and his acceptance of them, Ezra’s feeling that he had left Buck and Vin to take his punishment, started to resurface with each step. So engrossed in this growing dread, he was totally unconscious of the fact that as the feeling grew, his steps slowed until he was just standing in the hall.
JD took his steps to match those of Ezra’s. He was extremely aware of the slowing pace and the increasing sound of the fast moving and hitching breaths coming from the little boy at his side. He wasn’t surprised when the child came to a complete stop, but it did frighten him.
He stopped right beside Ezra and knelt down. When he looked at the too pale face and the wide glassy eyes that looked lost and distant, it took all of his strength not to panic and run for help. He was a father and a teacher and if now was not the time to call upon those few years of experience, then when would that time be? Slowly and carefully, as to not frighten the child any further, JD reached out to him and pulled him gently to him, encircling him in his arms. There he just held Ezra and whispered reassurances to him. His heart breaking. Because at the moment when Ezra realized he was being held, the little trembling body suddenly stilled and the harsh breathing of before quieted to the point that the child almost didn’t breath at all. It was with a sickening thought that JD realized that the reactions to his embrace were not from the comfort he tried to give but from a fear of being hurt.
When Ezra first felt the arms around him, he stilled all movement in anticipation of the pain that was soon to come. The moment seemed to last forever until the soft soothing voice broke through his paralyzed mind.
“Its all right Ezra. No one is going to hurt you here. Your safe. Vin and Buck are safe. We just want to help.” JD continued his litany of words. They were softly spoken so that only Ezra could hear them.
The softness of the breath along his ear was calming enough. It was so unlike anything else he had experienced that he automatically felt safe and secure. His breathing started again and the tremors that shook his body before slightly returned as he relaxed into the embrace. No longer was he petrified of being hurt. He just gently laid his forehead against the shoulder of the man holding him.
For the briefest of moments, JD’s heart soared. The once frozen actions of the boy relaxed and for the tiniest bit of a moment, he relaxed against his shoulder before quietly pulling away. JD did not hold him back. Instead he let the child step back to create some distance. With his hands still on the trembling shoulders, JD looked into Ezra’s eyes and asked, “are you ok?”
Ezra gave the briefest of nods as an answer. Wiping tears from his eyes, Ezra returned the small smile that his answer created on the face of the man across from him. Then his eyes grew big as he saw the man.
JD became alarmed at the look. He couldn’t understand what was wrong. Ezra was relaxed and shyly smiling at him just a second ago and now he was frozen again, looking at him like the end of the world was coming. Following his line of site to his chest, JD looked down and could not help but laugh.
Ezra knew he was going to die. Mr. Dunne had to of gone insane and if that happened, nothing good could come of it. He was laughing, LAUGHING, at what Ezra had done to him. He barely controlled the flinch when those smiling eyes looked back at him.
When JD looked back at Ezra and saw the complete look of devastation and shock in those eyes at his reaction, his laughter almost turned to tears. Looking back down at his shirt he shook his head. Returning his gaze to Ezra, he again graced him with a warm smile.
“Well, I must say, this is the longest I have gone in a day without getting something on me.” Letting lose with a small giggle, he continued. “Thank you Ezra.”
At the puzzled look he received he went on. “Mr. Sanchez and Mrs. Shuster, the secretary in the office, would of accused me of not doing my job today if I didn’t show up at the end of the day with something on me. Now that there is a little red paint on my shirt, well, it completes the whole art teacher image.”
At that he gave Ezra a playful wink and quickly rose to his feet.
“Come on.” he said, still with a hint of amusement in his voice. “We better get you over to Mr. Jackson’s office. You don’t want to be late for recess.”
JD turned and continued down the hall, a hand still resting on Ezra’s shoulder. All Ezra could do was follow, still trying to figure out what just happened here.
*
Part 9
The Art Room
Buck and Vin each followed Ezra’s departure out of the room, both of them concerned about the way he had acted.
For the week Buck and Vin had known Ezra they have never seen him display such emotion. He was always polite and calm. Even when Lucas first started to pick on him, he would never show anger or embarrassment at the things Lucas would say or do to him. He always ignored his ‘antics’ as he had once called them.
In fact the most emotion they had seen out of Ezra occurred two days ago. Chris, Vin’s father, had brought in their dogs latest litter of lab puppies. For math class they had to calculate the cost to feed the puppies for one week by using the information that was provided about how much food they ate and its cost.
They were split up into groups. Vin, Buck, and Ezra were in one of these groups.
Their group had worked well together and as a reward for their excellent understanding of the lesson, they were given some time outside to play with the puppies before Chris took them home for the day.
Ezra was hesitant at first, not really seeming to know what to do. He sat under a tree and watched Vin and Buck run around after and from the puppies for a few minutes. Chris had seen this and knowing from Vin’s descriptions that this was the new boy in his class, he took one of the puppies and approached Ezra.
Kneeling down in front of him with the lab puppy cradled in his hands,he decided to introduce himself.
“Hi! You must be Ezra. I’m Chris, Vin’s father.” With that he held out the hand that he had been petting the puppy with.
Ezra took the hand gently and returned the greeting in a small voice. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you too Ezra. Hey, I was wondering if you could do me a small favor?”
Seeing the slightly hesitant look starting to cross the boy’s features, he quickly added.
“This little fella needs someone to watch him a bit. Do you think you can hold him for me for awhile?”
At that he held the puppy out to Ezra. Ezra meekly took the puppy and placed it in his lap while giving a shy smile and a soft thank you to Chris.
All it took was for the puppy to reach up to his face and give him a big ol’ sloppy puppy kiss and Ezra giggled. Buck and Vin came over with all the puppies following them. Once the other puppies saw the giggling boy, who was by now laying in the grass laughing as the puppy on his chest lapped at his face, and they soon attacked him too.
Not only did Ezra laugh and giggle at the attack, but soon Buck, Vin and Chris were joining in. And for the last fifteen minutes of their reward, all three boys were running, playing and laughing in the school yard.
Buck and Vin each looked at each other after Ezra disappeared from their sight. Each of them thinking about the same thing.
‘That was two days ago and Ezra has been even more closed off, than at first, since then.’
*
Josiah saw the interaction between the three boys and quietly waited. When it became apparent that neither boy was in the present, he cleared his throat, hoping to bring them back. At the sound, both boys looked at him and waited for his questions to begin.
“Just relax boys.” Josiah soothed. He could tell that after Ezra’s explanation of events, that both boys were a little upset at the moment.
“All I need is for each of you to tell me what happened, one at a time. How about we start with your version Buck?”
Buck looked at Mr. Sanchez and immediately brightened up. He has known Mr. Sanchez for a long time. He first met him the summer before his mommy died. His daddy was just trans-ford, that means he went from one school to another, and he took Buck along with him to see the new art room.
Mr. Sanchez had greeted them both at the front door. Buck didn’t know that anyone could have so many teeth, but Mr. Sanchez sure has a pretty smile and he is always kind and talking to Buck. He knew he could trust him.
With a bright smile on his face and trust shinning in his eyes, Buck relayed his story.
“Well Mr. Sanchez, it was all a really big aksit-dent. Ya see there was this really big and hairy spid’r that came swing down from the ceiling, on his web, just like spidy-man. He dropped right in front of Ez.
Ez was just sitting there all quiet like and doing his painting like daddy, oops, sorry,” he corrected with a small giggle. “Like MR. DUNNE told us to do. Well when that spidy landeded right in front of him he just jumped up like a rabbit out of its hole and falled over his seat some trying to get away and that's when the paint gots spilled all ov’r Lucas’s paper.”
“Is that all?” Josiah asked Buck when he didn’t say anymore.
Nodding his head vigorously and looking as seriously as a nine year old can, Buck answered with a wide eye, “Uh Huh!”
“Thank you Buck. Vin do you have anything to add?”
“Yes sir, Mr. Sanchez.”
Vin had relaxed as soon as Buck broke out into a smile. He never had any problems with Mr. Sanchez, he always seemed nice enough,but he could see why Ezra might be a little frightened of him. After all Mr. Sanchez was a giant! Vin himself often wondered if that big ol’ plant in his office was not just a reminder of his days before someone like Jack chopped down his bean stalk. But he knew that if Buck could trust him then so could he.
“What Buck said is all true sir. But he forgot to tell ya of how Lucas James got all mad at Ez because the paint spilled on his paper. Ez didn’t mean for the paint to go on Lucas’s paper. It just happened. Anyway, Lucas got up and called Ezra a really bad name and threw ‘is paint all over ‘im and pushed ‘im to the floor.
That was when Buck and me went to Ez’s da’fence and well, I kinda pushed Lucas back away from Ez while Buck tried to help ‘im off the da floor.
I am sorry I pushed Lucas. I knows it was wrong and I knows ya got to call my dad and all. But he’s bigg’r than Ez and it wasn’t right what he did. Ez didn’t do nothing wrong!”
Just retelling Mr. Sanchez about the incident had Vin upset again. He couldn’t help but feel helpless in this situation and he didn’t like that feeling, not at all.
His breathing calmed and the anxiety subsided as he felt Buck step closer and put his arm around his shoulder in a brotherly squeeze. Buck understood where Vin’s anxiety came from, he has known Vin since he was adopted by his Uncle Chris and though most adults don’t realize how much Buck understood Vin’s pass, Vin knew that Buck did.
Josiah could do nothing but smile at the support the boys offered each other and it warmed his heart to know that they included Ezra in their system of support.
“Thank you Vin for admitting that you pushed Lucas and for telling me what happened. I will tell you that I agree that it was wrong and I feel that you owe Lucas an apology, but that will have to wait until after I have talked with him.
As for talking with your father, that is also something I will have to do in a few minutes. Just know that I will not only be talking with your dad but with Buck’s, Lucas’s and Ezra’s too. I think between us all we can come up with a solution to the problems we had today.
Now is there anything else the two of you would like to add?”
Both somber looking boys shook their heads in the negative.
Standing to his full height, Josiah gently laid a hand on each of the boy’s slender shoulders. Smiling down at them he finished by telling them to head on over to Mr. Jackson’s office for a change of clothes and that he would talk to them, again, later.
Both boys walked quickly down the hallway, both being careful not to run because they did not want to get in trouble anymore today, but both anxious to see their friend. |
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