The Marshalls
by Kit
Chapter 5
Both Will and John agreed that the Sunday lunch they had in the foster home lived up to Connor's glowing recommendation. When they thanked Sarah for the meal, Will and John told her that it was the best they'd ever had. They didn't say that Sunday lunch in their father's house meant Will preparing whatever food he could find in the kitchen while their father was at the pub.
"This is the last week of term," Mike announced while they were having dessert. "So I guess next weekend is the family picnic."
"Yes, of course," Sarah replied. Addressing Will and John, she continued, "It's a family tradition. To celebrate the end of the school year, we go on a picnic and spend the whole day in the countryside. Usually, it's the first weekend after the end of term."
"Will you invite Paul even though his brothers don't live here anymore?" Mike asked hopefully.
"Yes, they still count as family, as does Stephane," David replied. Then, turning to Will, he said, "And you're family now, so you're invited."
"What day will it be?" Will asked.
"Either Saturday or Sunday. We usually decide when we know what the weather forecast says."
"Thanks, I'll keep both days free."
"We'll need to organise transport when we've spoken to Paul," Sarah pointed out to her husband.
That prompted David to do a little mental arithmetic, and he realised that if all those invited came along, there would be ten people and that their minibus had seats for only nine. Later that afternoon, Mike was very disappointed to find out that Paul and Stephane couldn't make it to the picnic. However, Paul said that he'd bring his brothers to the foster home before the trip and collect them afterwards. He also promised to provide a couple of savoury dishes.
As John had expected, not much was going on during the last week of the school year, and he felt that he could have taken the week off without missing anything important. Although he agreed that it was a good idea to discuss missed lessons with teachers, he thought that could have been done in just one afternoon. However, he didn't want to start an argument with his foster carers, so he didn't complain.
He and Mike rode their bicycles to school every morning that week, but for the first couple of days, John had to ride at a more leisurely pace because of the discomfort in his ribs. The bruises on his face had almost faded, and the others were covered by his clothing. Although he didn't have any close friends at school, there were a few boys and girls that he socialised with, and he managed to deflect the questions they asked about his absence, merely keeping up the fiction that he'd been mugged.
As the week went on, he found himself agreeing with David and Sarah that having a daily not-too-rigid routine helped to give their foster children a sense of security. The only noteworthy thing that happened was on Wednesday afternoon when he arrived home from school and found a package waiting for him. It was from Paul and contained a glass and a mug, each with his name on. Mike had a knowing and slightly smug smile as he watched John open the package.
"Why would Paul give me these?" John asked.
"I told him that you had enough sense to use a glass without a name," Mike replied, "and he didn't like the idea of you being the only person in the house without your own glass and mug."
John was happy to hear what appeared to be a small compliment from the redhead, but he felt that getting gifts from an almost complete stranger was a little odd.
"Why should he buy stuff for me?" he asked. "He hardly knows me, and it isn't even my birthday or anything."
"He's a bit weird like that," Mike said, shrugging his shoulders, "but don't worry, he doesn't want anything back. He just seems to enjoy giving stuff. Like, he gave me my laptop and my phone. He's my running coach, too."
"That's very generous," John replied doubtfully, wondering if Paul might have an ulterior motive.
"I know what you're thinking," the redhead said, frowning as he sensed the other boy's suspicion. "That's what I used to think. And I know it's hard to believe, but he's just a nice guy who likes to help people."
"Anyway," John said, "I'll borrow David's phone and call Paul after tea to say 'thanks'."
The family picnic took place on Sunday, and the household had breakfast earlier than usual for a weekend. They were still eating when Paul arrived with his brothers and Stephane. Will arrived just a few minutes later. When everyone was together and about to start loading the minibus, Paul made an announcement.
"I don't like making a big deal of my birthday, but Aunt Anne has always insisted on doing something. Also, this year I've been pressured by Stephane, my brothers, and Mike to throw a party," he said, pausing to look at the redhead as if he'd been a major culprit. "I've given in, but as a compromise, it won't be just a birthday party but also a plum-harvesting party. It's on Wednesday, and everyone here is, of course, invited. We'll provide lunch and food in the evening."
"Would you like us to bring food or anything?" Sarah asked.
"No, thanks. With me and Connor as chefs, and with the assistance of Stephane and Liam, we'll have everything under control. Aunt Anne will, as always, provide my birthday cake, and she's agreed to make an extra-large one this year."
"I'll be at work on Wednesday," Will pointed out.
"That's not a problem," Paul said. "You can come after work. That's what Aunt Anne and Uncle Geoffrey will be doing. And I'm sorry that it's a weekday, but scheduling is a bit tight. On Thursday, Stephane's going to visit his family for a few days. Then, next weekend is Mike's birthday, and after that, Sarah and David will be on vacation."
After the minibus had been loaded, Mike, Connor, and Liam rushed onboard and claimed the bench seat at the rear, with Connor sitting in the middle. The speed with which they did that indicated to John that it was a preplanned tactic. Sarah and Susie took the double seat behind the driver, leaving the middle double seat for Will and John, who'd been hanging back. David checked they all had their seatbelts fastened, then shut the passenger doors and got into the driver's seat.
Not long after setting off, they reached the beginning of the open countryside. That was apparently the trigger for the three boys on the back seat start to sing. Liam had the sweetest singing voice that Will and his brother had ever heard, so they weren't surprised when they later found out that he was in his school's choir. Connor's voice was pleasant but not exceptional, and Mike's voice was barely audible.
Most of the songs had amusing or comic lyrics, and the tunes were simple, so after the first couple of songs, Will and John found themselves joining in the choruses. Even Susie was singing, though without words and often with tunes that bore only a slight resemblance to the actual song. During a break in the repertoire, Connor told Will and John that they'd learned them from Paul, who referred to them as 'school bus songs'.
After about an hour of driving through the countryside, they parked in a layby. From there, it was just a short walk to the family's usual picnic spot, which was next to a small copse of trees, about halfway up the side of a steep valley. The weather wasn't perfect, but it was reasonable; it was dry, with only a slight breeze, and the sun occasionally broke through the thin clouds, keeping the temperature comfortable.
Following directions from Sarah and David, they spread some blankets on the ground. The three adults had only a few minutes to admire the beautiful scenery before the boys started saying they were hungry and thirsty. However, before opening the hampers and coolers, Sarah insisted that the children put sunscreen on the exposed areas of their skin. After giving one pump bottle to Mike, she picked up another and started rubbing lotion on Susie and then on herself.
John felt envious when he saw that Connor and Mike were rubbing it onto each other's skin, and then he was a little surprised when they both rubbed some on Liam, whose skin tone was similar to but a little less golden than his and Will's.
"You're lucky," Mike said to Will and John, "you don't need to use this yucky stuff."
"What about Liam?" John asked.
"Oh, he doesn't really need it," Connor replied. "He just likes the attention."
Then Sarah took charge of opening the hampers and coolers, and it didn't take long until an appetising selection of food was spread out on the blankets. After they'd eaten and given the food a little time to settle, Will and David joined the four boys in kicking a ball around. When they got tired of that, Liam, Connor, and Mike started running around and playing tag. John, who felt he was too mature for such childish things, sat with the adults.
Later, John suggested to his brother that they should climb to the top of the hill, giving Will the idea that his little brother wanted to chat in private.
"Did you notice how unhappy Mike was when he found out that Paul wasn't coming today?" John asked. "And how he raved about what a great time he had at Paul's house? And how he looks at Paul like the sun shines out of his arse?"
"Yes, but it's not uncommon for a teenager to hero-worship someone he admires. It just means he wants to be like him."
"Seems more like a crush to me," the younger brother said resentfully, "and Connor's nearly as bad, claiming that Paul's good at everything."
"Younger brothers tend to look up to their big brothers," Will pointed out. In a teasing tone, he added, "Don't you look up to me?"
"Erm, yeah, of course," John said, feeling uncomfortable. "But I don't go around telling everybody about it. And another thing, how come Mike is best friends with a little kid instead of someone his own age?"
"Presuming you mean Connor, I think he's only two or three years younger than Mike, and he's not really a little kid. They were living together in the foster home for a while, so I guess that would form some sort of bond."
"Connor said that they didn't get on at first," John commented.
"If I didn't know better," Will said, "I'd think my little brother has a crush on Mike and gets a bit jealous if he thinks Mike likes other people."
"Mike doesn't like me," the boy said a little petulantly, avoiding a direct response to his brother's suggestion.
"Did he say that? I've not seen any signs of it. Anyway, you hardly know one another well enough for him to dislike you."
"We've been at the same school for years."
"Well, if you like him, why didn't you make friends with him at school?"
"Never mind," John said in frustration. "You wouldn't understand."
He began walking faster, signalling that the conversation was over.
After admiring the view from the top of the hill, they returned to the others and shared some more food. As evening approached, the temperature began to drop, and it became too chilly for comfort, so they decided to set off home. Connor and John had just carried the blankets back to the minibus and were setting off back to collect more items when the older boy took the opportunity to ask a question.
"How come you and your brothers look so different?" he asked Connor. "I look like Will."
"We have the same Mum but different Dads."
"So you're only half-brothers."
"We're brothers," Connor said decisively, frowning his annoyance. "We're a team."
Then he sped ahead, leaving John wondering about the way the other boy had reacted. The bit about being a team seemed odd, and the way it had been expressed had felt almost threatening. It was almost as if there was an unspoken extension of the short sentence, such as, 'We're a team, and you'd better not mess with us.'
Once everything had been loaded, they all took the same seats as before. Initially, the trio on the rear seats sang a little, but it soon went quiet, and the boys dropped off to sleep. It didn't escape John's attention that Mike and Liam were both leaning into Connor and that the brothers were holding hands.
They were still unloading the minibus when Paul and Stephane arrived, and John felt a pang of jealousy when Paul took Mike aside to chat while the others completed the task. Later, they all gathered in the kitchen. Within a few days of his arrival, John had realised that the kitchen was the most important room and the beating heart of the house, so he quickly became accustomed to the fact that everyone usually gravitated there.
"Paul asked me what I want for my birthday," Mike said, mostly addressing the foster carers but not caring who else could hear.
"I hope you didn't ask for anything too expensive," David said, raising a cautionary eyebrow.
"I didn't ask for a thing," Mike replied with a smug little smile. "I asked for him to let me go camping with them. It'll be while Stephane's away, so there'll be plenty of room in the tents."
"And who will be in which tent?" Sarah asked.
"I suggested that the three boys be in the bigger tent, and I'd have the smaller, old tent," Paul said, "but all three of them vetoed that."
"Me and Connor want to have the little tent," Mike said.
"And I'd rather be with Paul," Liam added.
"How long would you be away for?" David asked Paul.
"We didn't talk about dates because I told Mike he had to check with you and Sarah before we could decide anything. But I thought maybe we'd be away for three days and two nights or four days and three nights. I like to give actual presents, so if he doesn't already have a sleeping bag, I'll get one for him."
"We want to go to Robin Hood's Bay," Mike said, as if that might affect the foster carers' decision.
David and Sarah looked at each other and, as if by telepathy, reached a decision and nodded.
"That would be okay in principle," David said. "We can discuss details nearer the time."
That night, lying in bed, John admitted to himself that he felt incredibly jealous when he thought about Connor and Mike sharing a tent together. Trying to distract himself from the negative feelings, he imagined himself sharing a tent, and maybe even a sleeping bag, with the redhead, and his hand began moving on his penis. After the resulting orgasm, he quickly fell asleep, but unfortunately, the nightmare returned in the early hours of the morning.
On the following morning, Mike announced to Sarah that he intended to go for a run in the park but would make sure that he'd be back in time to shower before lunch.
"Is it okay if I go, too?" John asked.
"You mean to the park or running?" Mike asked, frowning.
Although Connor probably hadn't been totally serious when he'd mentioned that taking up running might help him to make friends with Mike, John thought that it might be a good idea. However, he decided that should be sometime in the future.
"Just to the park. I'm not sure my ribs will let me do any running, but I'd like to try it when they're better."
"It's a good idea to get out in the fresh air," Sarah said to John. Then, addressing Mike, she added, "Don't forget the sunscreen."
Mike rolled his eyes and grumbled about the smell of the 'yucky stuff', then went upstairs. When he came back down, John was impressed by how good the redhead looked in his dark green running kit and professional-quality shoes. He'd been attracted to Mike ever since he'd first seen him at school, but the physical attraction was even greater now that he could see the wiry muscles flexing under the pale skin on the bare limbs.
"The sunscreen doesn't smell bad," John commented, trying to distract himself from ogling the other boy.
"Yeah, if you like coconut," Mike said dismissively.
John had no difficulty keeping up with the younger boy as he jogged gently to the park, and when they got there, he stood and watched as the redhead began his warm-up exercises. He was grateful that his jeans were relatively loose, making it easier to hide his semi-erection.
"What're you staring at?" Mike asked irritably when he noticed the way John was looking at him.
"I want to take up proper running someday, so I was just seeing how you were doing the exercises," the embarrassed older boy replied. "It looks very professional."
"It's important to do it properly," the redhead said. "Paul showed me how to do it. He's a brilliant runner and a good coach."
After lunch, John was a little surprised when Mike approached him, complaining he was bored and asking if he wanted to play a video game. The older boy quickly agreed, and they went to the games room, where Mike picked out one of his favourites. John struggled with the console controls and quickly lost.
"You're crap at this," the redhead complained. "Why don't you pick a different game that you're good at?"
"I've not played any of these," John admitted after looking at the available games. Feeling embarrassed and inadequate, he added, "Actually, I've only played a couple of video games, and they were on my phone."
He'd expected that Mike would be disappointed or even annoyed, but instead the redhead smiled smugly. Having spent much of his life feeling like everyone looked down on him, he was quite pleased to find himself now to be superior to an older, bigger boy both in running and in gaming skill.
"Okay," he said, returning to his favourite game. "I'll teach you how to play this better."
Although there wasn't any serious competitive playing, both boys enjoyed the next couple of hours together. Mike was pleased to tutor the older boy, and John was happy to be so close to the redhead. However, John was disappointed to find that their time together that afternoon hadn't seemed to result in Mike showing a desire for a closer friendship.
The weather was beautiful on Paul's birthday, with hardly any breeze and just a few light, fluffy clouds occasionally passing across the sun. At a little after twelve thirty, the foster family got into the car. Mike had been so excited all morning that he'd not been able to sit still for more than a few seconds.
Paul's home was situated in a very desirable area, and as they turned off the tree-lined avenue into the driveway, John was immediately impressed by red-brick and stone facade of the Victorian detached house. He'd supposed that Paul's house would be quite large, but he was surprised at how big it actually was. The driveway went up along the side of a garden area, then divided into two, one going to a parking area in front of the imposing front door and the other going along the side of the house to a double garage.
As soon as the car came to a halt in front of the house, Mike got out, ran to the door, and rang the doorbell. By time that the rest of them had disembarked, the door had been opened by Stephane, with Liam at his side. Both reflected Mike's beaming grin, then stood aside to let him in, with the rest of the group following.
"Welcome," Stephane greeted them. "Paul and Connor are in the kitchen, making final food preparations."
The others had been there previously and knew where the kitchen was, so John just followed them past a wooden staircase and along the wide hallway to the second door on the left. In response to their birthday greetings, Paul thanked them and apologised for being a little behind schedule in preparing lunch. Stephane asked if anyone wanted a drink while they waited, and Liam immediately asked for 'fizzy pop'.
"Surely you're not going to spend your birthday slaving away in the kitchen, are you?" Sarah asked Paul.
"No, I'm just making lunch, and after that, Stephane and Connor will be in charge of catering," Paul replied. Looking at the little girl, he added, "And I've been preparing some things for later, such as the trifle I promised Susie."
The little girl beamed her happiness when she heard that, but just to make sure, she asked, "Orange?"
"Yes, with little pieces of mandarin oranges," the blond young man confirmed.
Not wishing to distract the busy cooks, the guests left the kitchen and crossed the hallway to the living room. John was still getting used to the size of the house, and it seemed to him that every room was bigger than the whole of Will's flat. Even with two large sofas, two armchairs, three coffee tables and an upright piano, the living room didn't seem too full.
"Liam, Mike, why don't you show John around while I get the drinks?" Stephane suggested.
"Conservatory first!" Liam said enthusiastically.
The conservatory was Susie's favourite place in the house, and she grabbed her mother's hand, pulling her to follow the three boys. John, fascinated by all the plants, stood just inside the doorway, looking around. The little girl came up to him and pointed to what appeared to be a miniature orange tree.
"Don't eat," she said.
"It's not poisonous," Liam explained, "but the fruit's sour."
Liam wanted the garden to be the next part of the guided tour. However, Mike pointed out that they'd be spending a lot of time in the garden later, so they should show John the inside of the house first. They went back along the hallway and past the kitchen to the dining room, where they found Connor. He was receiving items being passed through a serving hatch from the kitchen and placing them on the dining table.
Mike's offer of help was declined, so he and Liam led John across the hallway to the parlour, which appeared to John to be just a posh living room with lots of bookshelves and sports trophies. However, on the far side of the room there were also a couple of filing cabinets and a desk with a computer, leading John to guess that part of the room was used as an office. When Liam led the way up the stairs, Mike frowned doubtfully but didn't say anything.
There were five bedrooms, and the little boy pointed out which was his and which was Connor's. He also pointed out the bathroom at the end of the upstairs hallway and added that Paul's bedroom had its own bathroom. Just a couple of minutes after they'd gone back downstairs, it was announced that lunch was ready. Everyone went into the dining room, where there was plenty of space for everyone around the large table.
After lunch, Liam insisted on giving John a tour of the garden, and apart from Connor, Stephane, and Paul, the others decided to enjoy the fresh air and trailed behind them. The little boy impressed John with his knowledge of the plants, but he was even more impressed by the size of the garden. There was a large lawn and several flower beds, many of which contained roses.
"That's where we have fruit," Liam said, pointing to some trees at the far end of the garden. "Only the plums are getting ripe now."
"How does Paul manage to look after all this?" John asked, amazed.
"Me and Stephane do it, and some gardeners come for heavy stuff. Twice a week, now it's summer."
"What about the house? It must be a lot of work taking care of such a big place."
"Mostly we all do cleaning and tidying, especially upstairs, and Mrs T comes twice a week."
"Wow! I didn't know Paul was rich!"
"Paul says we're not rich," Liam said seriously, "just comfortable."
A few minutes later, Paul, Connor, and Stephane came into the garden carrying straw baskets and announcing that it was time to pick plums. In order to reach the higher branches, Liam sat on Paul's shoulders and handed the plums down to the others. As Liam had said, the majority of the fruits were unripe, but they still managed to half-fill three baskets with edible specimens.
John, who'd never picked any sort of fruit before, found the whole experience fascinating, and he liked the idea of being able to eat food that didn't have to be paid for. Back in the kitchen, they washed the fruit and everyone got to try one. Sarah peeled and sliced Susie's, removing the stone, and the little girl quickly devoured her share. John was initially cautious in tasting his, but when he did, he discovered that it was delicious.
"Can we save one for Will to taste?" he asked Paul.
"Of course. I'll divide them up so everyone can take some home with them."
"Can we put the tents up now?" Connor asked.
"Yes, but you have to make sure you take them down and put them away before you go to bed," Paul replied.
Mike and Connor asked John to give them a hand bringing the tents up from the basement, and Liam also offered to help. Once the tents were unpacked on the lawn, they showed John how to put them up. John found it easy to set up the newer, freestanding tent, which looked a little like a bright blue igloo. However, the older, olive green tent appeared to be much more complicated to set up.
Once both tents were ready, Mike and Connor climbed into the smaller one and started whispering and giggling. John, feeling a little left out, got the impression that they might be telling dirty jokes. Liam, who detected John's mood, invited the older boy to join him in the bigger tent.
"Mike and Connor are being silly again," the little boy commented.
"Don't they ever include you?"
"Yeah, but all they talk about is boring big-boy stuff, and they make stupid jokes. I'd rather play on my keyboard," Liam said. "Do you like music? Do you play anything? Stephane's teaching me guitar chords. Paul says I can start proper lessons soon, but I haven't decided if I want piano lessons or guitar lessons."
"I love music, but I don't play anything," John admitted.
"Do you like singing?" the little boy asked. "I love it. I'm in our school choir."
"Yes, I like it, and I was in the choir until my voice broke."
"Yeah, Mike's voice gets all squeaky now," Liam said, "but he could never sing, anyway."
"Connor said Mike wasn't nice to you at first, but you're all friends now."
"He used to be nasty, but he's okay now," the smaller boy agreed. "And he's really more Connor's friend."
As Liam seemed comfortable chatting, the older boy decided to ask him about something that had piqued his curiosity.
"A couple of times Connor said he was going to the bathroom, but he went upstairs even when the downstairs bathroom was empty. And both times Mike went with him," John said. "Isn't that strange?"
"Nah, it's usual when Mike visits. They like the bee day."
Because it was said as two words and in a sing-song way, at first, John didn't understand. Then he realised that Liam was probably referring to a bidet. He knew what one was but had never actually seen one, and he was tempted to go to the bathroom to take a look. However, he didn't feel comfortable with the idea of exploring the upstairs of the house of an almost-stranger, especially on a first visit.
A little later, back in the house, he saw Mike whisper to Connor, and then both boys went upstairs. After a couple of minutes, when no one was paying attention to him, John followed them. He made his way to the end of the hallway and stood outside the bathroom door. On hearing boyish laughter, giggles, and an occasional squeal, he knew that both boys were inside. He spent too long trying to work out what was going on, and the door suddenly opened. All three boys were surprised and startled, but Connor was the first to speak.
"What're you doing here?" he asked as his surprise turned to annoyance.
"Erm, Liam said there was a bidet up here," John said nervously, thinking quickly of an excuse. "I've never seen one, so I thought I'd take a look."
"And it just so happens that you decided to do it while we're here," Mike said in a tone that made it clear that he didn't believe John's excuse.
"I thought it would be rude to come up here exploring on my own," John replied, finding his own words unconvincing even though they were at least partially true.
"I think he's a stalker," the redhead said to Connor. "He admitted he'd been watching me and Katie at school."
"I didn't say I was watching you! I said I saw you. And a stalker follows people, but I just happened to see you at school."
"But you followed us to the bathroom," Mike pointed out. "That seems like stalking to me. Or worse, you're a perv."
"Like I said, I wanted to see a bidet and didn't want to explore on my own," John replied defensively. "And if anything's pervy, what about both of you using the toilet at the same time?"
"We weren't using the toilet. We were just playing with the bidet," Connor said, blushing, "and it's my house, so I can do what I want."
"Come on, Connor, let's go downstairs," the redhead said. Casting a disdainful look at John, he added, "Leave him to see the bidet."
The two younger boys went downstairs, and John went into the bathroom, locking the door behind him. Having never seen one before, he'd thought that the bidet would be a separate item. However, this one was an attachment on top of a standard toilet. There were various controls, but he couldn't find any instructions, and the encounter with the other boys had left him feeling dispirited, so he didn't bother exploring further and went back downstairs.
He kept away from Connor and Mike, who both spent the next half hour or so in the kitchen with Stephane. Meanwhile, Susie was having an afternoon nap in the parlour. It was a little later than her usual nap time because the little girl was so excited that she'd found it hard to settle down. Rather than join the adults, John went to look for Liam and found him in the conservatory. The smaller boy was telling John about his favourite plants when Connor and Mike came in.
"Have you shown him your succulents?" a smirking Mike asked Liam. He turned to John and said, "SUCK YOU lents. Get it?"
Mike and Connor started laughing, leaving John wondering if they were laughing at him as much as at their feeble joke. Embarrassed and irritated, he was trying to think of a suitable retort when David came into the conservatory.
"Is everything okay?" he asked, sensing the tension in the room.
"Yeah, great. We were just talking about some of the plants," Connor said, "but we'd better go see if Stephane wants a hand."
Mike and Connor went out, accompanied by Liam. David looked at John and could tell that he wasn't happy.
"What's the matter?" he asked.
"They were just telling stupid jokes," John said, unable to hide his irritation. "I mean, Connor's just a kid, so I expect him to be silly like that, but Mike's fourteen in a few days. He shouldn't be so childish."
David frowned in thought and looked at the boy for a few seconds; then he sighed.
"Come with me," he said. "I think we should have a private chat."
Susie, having now finished her nap, was now in the living room, sitting on her mother's knee and drinking from a small plastic mug, so David led John to the now empty parlour. Having guided the boy inside and asked him to take a seat, he shut the door.
"What you said about Mike being childish would've been hurtful if he'd overheard you. You shouldn't be so judgmental of others," David chided. "You don't know what people are really like inside, and you don't know what sort of background they have. Imagine how you would have felt if people judged you just based on the bruises you had when you came out of hospital."
"I was just saying what I think," John said defensively. "If someone who's almost fourteen behaves like a little kid, isn't that childish?"
"Who are you to decide what's childish? Maybe it's just childlike, which is different. Even if it's what you call childish, it doesn't matter as long as it doesn't harm anyone. Why is it your business? Is saying what you think more important than the risk that what you say may hurt someone?"
"I didn't mean to hurt anyone," John protested.
"I know that, and I understand that you're not used to living in a family like this," David replied. "We all have to get along, so we need to think about how the things we say and do will affect others. For the foreseeable future, you and Mike are going to be foster brothers, living in the same house. It would be best if you could be friends, and that's easier if you're not judgemental."
John sat in sullen silence for a few seconds, resenting the fact that he'd been chastised just for saying what he thought. David observed the boy's reaction and sighed quietly, then decided to reduce the tension and allow time for John to think about things more objectively.
"What time is your brother arriving?" he asked.
"He said he'd come over straight after work, so I guess around five thirty."
"Less than an hour, then," David commented. "Anyway, let's go and see if Stephane wants any help with the party preparations."
David regretted having to scold the boy. However, he and his wife had noticed that Mike, who'd effectively had his childhood stolen, had recently shown signs that he was learning how to be a child again. The man didn't want that progress to be jeopardised by John's attitude or careless comments.
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