Date: Sun, 30 May 2004 08:07:25 +0300
From: sanansaattaja2003@yahoo.com
Subject: Sam, chapter 15

This is a story about consensual love between males. If that is offensive
to you or if it is not permissible for you to read it at your age or in the
area where you live, proceed at your own risk. This story is fiction. It is
entirely the product of the writer's imagination. The author retains all
rights to the story.

A special thanks to Tim for his excellent help in editing.

I would be glad to hear from you! Send your comments to the following
address: sanasaattaja2003@yahoo.com All emails will be answered, but emails
with attachments will not be opened.


Sam, chapter 15

While the doctors were working on Jake, Robert sat in the waiting room
sipping a cup of coffee and Mack went to the pay phone over by the entrance
and called Marjorie's to talk to Sharon. He wanted to let her know what
they had found at Tommy's house and that his little brother Jake was now in
the hospital. After talking to his wife he got himself a cup of coffee and
sat down beside Robert.

"Sharon said Marge was able to get a hold of that lady she knows that is
head of the foster care program here in the city," Mack said. "She's
promised to get the ball rolling on investigating these kids' case right
away. I must say, that really relieves my mind. And it's not a moment too
soon either, is it? Marge seems to have great confidence in this
Mrs. Collert, so that's good."

"Yeah, man, it sure helps to know someone who just happens to know the
right person to contact, doesn't it? That'll no doubt cut out a lot of the
red tape and buck passing and other crap that you always run up against
whenever ordinary guys like us try to get the bureaucracy off of its lazy
collective ass to do something," Robert said.

Mack stood up saying, "I think I should go talk to that lady at the
admissions desk and tell her the little we do know about Jake. She should
be told that he is Tommy's brother anyway. Likely she already has some
information on Tommy, like his last name for example."

Soon after Mack had come back to where Robert was sitting, a harried
looking young doctor came up to the two men and asked if they were the ones
who had brought Jake in. "They're taking him up to intensive care now," he
said. "He should be OK before too long. He's suffering from hypothermia and
he's also dehydrated as well as very malnourished. It's a damned good thing
you got him here when you did, I'd say, but I would venture to say he's not
in any grave danger now that he's getting care."

Mack said, "That's a relief to hear, Doctor . . ."

"Doland."

"Thanks for letting us know, Doctor Doland," Mack said. "Do you think we'll
be able to check in on him a bit later?"

"Well, they don't normally let anyone into ICU except family
members. You're not family, are you?"

"Well, no . . ."

"All I can suggest is that you talk with them about it up there and see
what you can do. In any case, I would guess the kid will be moved to a
regular room in the morning, provided nothing unforeseen happens during the
night," the doctor said, and then turning away he added over his shoulder,
"Now I've got to run along."

The two men watched him disappear down the corridor and then decided to go
up to Jay and Tommy's room.

"We need to let Tommy know what we found over at his house and tell him
about his brother," Mack said. "He's going to be frightfully worried when
he hears that Jake is sick and in the hospital, but on the other hand the
thought of him being left all alone in that hellhole they've been living in
is about killing him too."

When they got to the boys' room they found Lee and Jay sitting side by side
on Jay's bed with a school book open across their laps, working together on
a homework assignment. Sam was still perched on the edge of Tommy's bed,
holding his hand and chatting with him. He was gazing up at her
worshipfully, like a little puppy almost.

As soon as Sam saw her dad and Robert come into the room she asked, "So
what did you find out over at Tommy's house, Dad? How's Jake? Tommy's so
worried about him. You found him there didn't you?"

"Yes, Sam, we found him," Mack answered, and then turning to Tommy he told
him about how they had found him and brought him to the hospital.

Tommy started to bawl immediately and as soon as they were able to get him
calmed down a bit they assured him that the doctor had said he would soon
be all right again.

"Maybe you'll be able to see him tomorrow, Tommy," Robert ventured to say,
and Tommy's face lit up and he smiled through his tears.

"Do you really think so?" he asked excitedly.

"They've got him sleeping now," Robert continued, "and I'm sure that's just
what he needs to get better."

Tommy seemed to realize that he could finally let go of his nagging worry
about Jake, or at least most of it anyway. It looked like an enormous
weight had just slid off of his back. He looked so relieved. The two men
watching him both shuddered inwardly at the thought of such a precious
youngster having to carry a weight like that in the first place. They
surmised that very likely Tommy had had to shoulder almost single-handedly
all responsibility for his little brother ever since he was born, and he
was just a little kid himself at that time, no more than six or seven. What
an amazing boy he was.

Mack and Robert thought it best to spare him the more gruesome details of
what they had seen at his house, like how freezing cold it had been for
example.

Tommy asked them, "Did you see my mom? Or Hank?"

"No, son, they were gone," Mack said. "Do you have any idea where they
might be?"

Tommy just shrugged and shook his head. "They often just leave and
sometimes they're gone for days. They never say where they're goin' or when
they'll be back, or where they've been. I'm glad when Hank's gone, really,
`cause he's so mean. And mom's usually stoned or somethin', so even when
she's there she's sorta like gone anyway . . ."

It got very quiet in the room after Tommy said those things. Everyone was
sickened at heart thinking of the horrible nightmare that poor brave little
Tommy and his brother had been caught up in—a nightmare that just went on
and on, seemingly without end. They all hoped that now, somehow, it would
finally be over and that they both would soon just wake up and find
themselves in a much happier world.

 * * *

Robert slipped out of the boys' room after a while and walked down the
corridor. He had something on his mind that he wanted to suggest to
someone, a bug he wanted to plant in someone's ear. To his immense delight
it was Nurse Dennison that he found sitting at the desk working on reports
when he approached the nurses' station. He couldn't think of anyone he
would rather talk with about what he was thinking, unless it was Nurse
Hellvig. But her shift had long since ended for the day and he just
couldn't leave this till morning.

Nurse Dennison saw him coming and stood up immediately, holding out his
hand in welcome. "Well, if it isn't Uncle Robert himself!" he
exclaimed. "Good to see you again, man. How've you been enjoying your stay
here in our deepfreeze of a city?"

"I'm glad to see you again too, Nurse Dennison," Robert grinned.

"Please just call me Phil, OK?"

"Sure, thanks, Phil! Now to answer your question, I've been having an
amazing time here. Unbelievable, really. So many things have happened
already in such a short time, it about takes my breath away," Robert said.

"It's good to see Jay bouncing back so nicely, isn't it, Robert?"

"Oh yes! And it's been sheer pleasure spending time with him, let me tell
you. I'm so proud of him, I could burst my buttons," Robert said.

"With good reason, I would say! I've totally fallen for him myself. He's
the greatest. I've never seen such a sweet kid," Phil exclaimed.

"I understand he's probably leaving here in the morning," Robert said,
causing Phil to raise his eyebrows in surprise.

"Really? I'm almost sorry to hear that," he said, and then quickly added,
"But isn't that selfish of me? Chances are I'll never see him again and
that thought hurts, let me tell you. So that's why I said that. But of
course I'm happy for him, really I am. It'll be so good for him to get home
again and back to school and everything."

"You know his roommate, don't you? Tommy?" Robert asked.

"Of course. In fact I was one of the nurses who got him settled in here
when they brought him up to the floor last night," Phil replied.

"Well, you might be surprised to learn that his little brother is in the
hospital now as well," Robert said.

"What?!" Phil exclaimed. "Really?"

And then Robert told Phil the whole dreadful story while he listened in
silence, emotions playing over his face all the while.

When Robert finally finished his tale, Phil exhaled with a loud "Whew!" and
just stared at him, his mouth open.

"So can you guess what I've been thinking?" Robert asked quietly, gazing
into Phil's big, wide-open brown eyes. Nearly as soon as he asked that,
Robert could see in those very eyes the light of understanding dawn.

"Aha! Yeah, I think I can," Phil said quietly. "You're thinking that since
Jay is leaving tomorrow it would be good if Tommy's brother – what did you
say his name is? Jake...?"

Robert nodded.

"...that Jake could move into Jay's bed in the room with his big brother,"
Phil said.

Robert just grinned from ear to ear and said nothing.

"You devious bastard, you," Phil whispered, and then, surprising both
Robert and himself, he reached out his big gentle hand and pressed his open
palm lightly against Robert's cheek.

Immediately, Phil blushed crimson and apologized. "Damn, Robert. I'm
sorry. I don't know what got into me . . ." But then, a moment later, he
continued, "No, that's not quite right. I do know. But I didn't mean to be
so blatant about it. Forgive me?"

"Of course!" Robert chuckled. "What's to forgive?" He paused a bit and then
said, "Uh, Phil, would you do that again? Your hand felt so good
there. You've got just the right touch. No wonder you're such a damned fine
nurse, man."

"I'd love to do that again, Robert, believe me. But I better not do it
here. Can I take a rain check?"

"Sure thing, Phil!" Robert said. "I hope we can get together sometime soon,
OK? I really like you, man."

Still blushing slightly, but grinning broadly, Phil scribbled down his
phone number on a scrap of paper and handed it to Robert. Robert took it,
and looking Phil right in the eye, he lifted it to his lips and then
slipped it into his shirt pocket. Nothing more was said about that matter
verbally, but a fair bit more was spoken with their eyes.

Phil assumed a more formal pose again and said to Robert, "I'll see what I
can do to arrange for Tommy's brother to be put into the room with him
tomorrow, sir. But we'll let it be our little secret for now, OK?"

"Absolutely!" Robert agreed, delighted. "Thank you, Nurse Dennison, thank
you so much. I knew I could count on you." Then he winked at Phil and
turned on his heels and walked quickly back to Jay's room.

Nurse Dennison's big brown eyes were glued to his broad back, his beautiful
firm butt, his long muscular legs, until finally he turned the corner and
disappeared from sight.

                                          * * *

Just as he had more or less been promised, Jay was released from the
hospital the next day after the doctor had seen him and his mother on
morning rounds. Irene had brought a bag with her containing clothes for him
to change into, and over her arm she carried the blue parka he had been
wearing when he came home on Friday afternoon and walked headfirst into his
father's fury.

"Sam took all these things home with her after she had been here to see you
on Saturday, honey," Irene told Jay as they sat on his bed together after
the doctor had left the room. "You'd thrown up all over them and they
needed to be cleaned so she asked a nurse for them when she was here and
then took them home and washed them for you. Wasn't that sweet of her? Then
Sharon gave them to me later and explained about how you had gotten the
parka. Honestly, I just broke down and bawled, Jay. I had felt so miserable
about not being able to buy you and Jenna decent winter coats and things
when it turned so cold, but your dad wouldn't give me the money for it, as
you know."

Irene wiped tears from her cheeks and continued, "Sweetheart, I've thanked
God countless times these past three days that you ever became friends with
Sam and Lee at school, and then through them we've gotten to know Sharon
and Mack and Marjorie too. I – we – would never have gotten through these
past few days without them, and now I couldn't imagine going through the
rest of my life without them either. But I won't have to, Jay. Isn't that
wonderful? I know in my heart that they're going to be our friends
forever. Actually, it's more like they're our family now, don't you think?"

Jay nodded in agreement, his eyes glistening.

"Mom, this isn't really where or how I meant to talk about it, but you
know, don't you, that Lee and I are boyfriends?" Jay asked, so quietly that
Irene could barely hear him.

Irene put her arm around his shoulders and pulled him tight against her
side. "Yes, Jay, honey, I know that already. Uncle Robert and I talked
about it the other night. I really like Lee too, sweetheart, and I'm so
happy for you both. You're a lucky boy to have him, Jay. You couldn't have
found a better one. Now, we'll talk lots more about this another time, all
right? I'll step out and see if I can find Nurse Hellvig for a minute while
you change into your clothes and then we'll be ready to go. I wanted so bad
to see that sweetheart Tommy once more before we leave, but he's gone for
x-rays, you say? Oh well, we'll just have to come back up and see him later
sometime, won't we?"

After Jay had changed into his own clothes he waited in the room for a few
minutes for the orderly Nurse Hellvig had told him would be coming with a
wheelchair to take him to the front entrance of the hospital. He had been
incredulous when he heard it – a wheelchair, of all things! What did he
need to be taken in a wheelchair for? But she had explained that it was
simply the rule. All patients being dismissed from the hospital had to be
taken to the front door in a wheelchair, whether they liked it or not, and
whether they needed it or not.

The orderly who appeared a minute later was a big tall black guy with a
shaved head and a big silver hoop in one ear. At first glance Jay was quite
intimidated, but the fellow immediately put him at ease with his warm,
friendly, joshing manner. "You must be Mr. Jay, sir?" he asked with a
dignified little bow. When Jay nodded, he continued, "Well, I'm
Jeremiah. Ya all set to roll?"

"Just let me check again that I've got all my things," Jay said. After a
final hurried look around the room, Jay picked up the little bag he had
stashed his few personal things in and said, "Yeah, I'm ready."

"OK, babe! Park yer cute little butt up here on this seat and let's go for
a ride!"

With scarcely time for a backward glance, they were on their way down the
corridor toward the nurses' station. There he found his mother deep in
conversation with Nurse Hellvig. When the two ladies saw him approaching,
Nurse Hellvig said, "Come here, love, and give me a big hug. I'm going to
miss you up here, let me tell you."

"I'm going to miss you too, Nurse Hellvig," Jay murmured as he stood up
from the chair, threw his arms around her and was enfolded in hers. "You've
been so nice to me. Thank you for everything." Tears began to spill down
his cheeks.

"Remember what I said, honey, about coming to visit sometime and meeting my
grandson Adam? You and Lee. I've just been talking with your mother about
that now. I'll call you one of these days soon to agree on a time," Nurse
Hellvig promised.

"I'm look forward to it, for sure, Nurse Hellvig," Jay said, and then the
orderly wheeled him around toward the elevators where his mother was
already waiting.

* * *

Later that day, just after Jay and his mother and Uncle Robert had finished
eating lunch, the phone rang. It was someone calling from St. John's to see
about setting a time for Eugene Evans' burial. Irene told them that she had
made arrangements for her husband's remains to be cremated and that she
just wanted a brief and simple ceremony at the cemetery where the urn of
ashes would be buried. She and Robert had thought that Thursday would work
out fine from their viewpoint so she asked them if that was convenient for
them at St. John's. They promised that a priest would be available on
Thursday and the time was agreed upon – 3:30 in the afternoon.

At two o'clock when visiting hours officially started at Good Samaritan,
Uncle Robert took Jay and Irene to the hospital to visit Tommy. Robert was
anxious to find out if Jake might really have been moved into Tommy's room
too, but he didn't say anything about that to the others. He had confessed
to Mack and Sharon the evening before about his little conversation with
Nurse Dennison (at least a rather well edited version of it!) and they had
agreed with him that it was an excellent idea. Mack and Robert had gone to
ICU before they left the hospital that evening to see if they could see
Jake, or at least get a report on how he was doing. They were told that he
was sleeping deeply and were assured that he seemed to be responding very
well to treatment, so they were content to let it go at that and to wait
till the next day to see him again.

Jay was the first one to enter his old room with his mother and uncle
following close behind, and the sight that greeted them was of Tommy
half-way sitting up against the partially elevated head end of his bed with
a sleeping Jake curled up against his legs, his little head lying in his
big brother's lap. Tommy was running his fingers through Jake's hair and
gazing down at him with tear-glistening eyes. He neither saw nor heard the
three who entered the room and when Jay spoke his name he gave a startled
little jerk and cried out, "Oh shit, ya scared me!"

Immediately realizing what had slipped out of his mouth, his face turned
crimson and he said, "Er... I'm sorry," as he looked up at his visitors.

Jay and Irene had never seen Jake before, of course, and they didn't know
who he was, so they were a bit surprised to see Tommy being so intimate
with his new little roommate. He didn't really resemble Tommy at all. Tommy
was a jug-eared and freckle-faced carrot-top with very pale skin, while
Jake had nearly black hair and a much darker complexion than his
brother. (They were only half brothers, after all, with different fathers.)

"Tommy, is that your new roommate?" Jay asked. "When did he come?"

"This is my brother Jake!" Tommy replied. "I'd just gotten back from x-rays
when they brought him in here and I almost keeled over, I was so surprised
to see him."

"Oh Tommy, isn't that cool, you two get to be in the same room!" Jay said.

Tommy, of course, agreed whole-heartedly.

After they had chatted awhile, Tommy informed his visitors that they were
going to operate on his broken arm the next morning. "They told me the
x-ray showed it's not set right. It's broke bad, I guess, right here where
I bend it." (He pointed to his wrist inside the cast.)

Jay's eyes and mouth opened wide at Tommy's news and Irene said, "Oh
sweetheart, I'm so sorry. But it's good they are going to get it right,
isn't it, so you won't have lots of problem with it later on."

Normally before operating on a child the hospital would have to have the
consent of his parents or guardian, but by that time Good Samaritan had
understood that Tommy and Jake were now wards of the state. Wilma Collert
had been on the ball and a preliminary investigation revealed that the
boy's mother had indeed disappeared (for the time being at least) and that
no other relatives could be tracked down. When the boys were able to be
released from the hospital they would have to be put into a foster home.

Mrs. Collert had listened intently to every detail that Marjorie had
learned from Mack and Sharon and then relayed to her. Later in the evening
she had even called the McMillans herself and talked with Mack
directly. The boys' story, sadly, was all too familiar, and even though she
had heard variations of the same thing countless times through the years,
she was just as appalled each new time as if she had never heard such
horrors before. She genuinely had only the children's best interests at
heart and was determined to make sure that each child brought under the
jurisdiction of her department would be given the best care possible.

Mack told her on the phone that he and Sharon had had a couple foster
children for a few months four years previously. They had done it to help
an invalid neighbor lady find a temporary solution for her grandchildren,
and it had been a very positive experience for them and their family at the
time. He told Mrs. Collert that Sharon and he both felt very strongly that
they would like to take Tommy and Jake into their home as if they were
their own children and become their parents. They still had a valid
certification to be foster parents, so Mrs. Collert had assured them that
there shouldn't be any problem to arrange for them to become Tommy and
Jake's legal guardians.

Nurse Hellvig came into the boys' room to check on her patients while Jay
and his mom and uncle were there and Jay flew up from where he was sitting
to give her a hug. He had only said goodbye to her a few hours before but
he was overjoyed to see her again.

"Oh my, love, haven't you had enough of this place yet?" she teased
him. "I'm afraid we don't have a bed for you now though since this little
tyke has moved into your room."

She didn't give any hint of being surprised to see Jake curled up asleep on
Tommy's bed. She just looked down at him tenderly, a little smile playing
on her lips.

"Aren't you a lucky one, Tommy, to get to have your own brother with you
like this?" she said, ruffling his unruly mop of hair. She gave Robert a
wink as she said that, and then in an aside to him she said quietly, "Nurse
Dennison told me when I got here this morning about your little chat and
that he had passed your suggestion along to the right ears. Ya did good,
man!" She gave him a pat on the shoulder as she walked out.

Robert just grinned.

Jay tugged at his uncle's hand as soon as Nurse Hellvig was gone and asked
him, "What was that about, Uncle Robert?"

Robert just shrugged and said, "Nothing, punkin," which gained him a little
scowl from his nephew.

But Irene had quickly realized what it meant and she was beaming happily.

A half hour later Irene and Robert consented to leave Jay there for a
longer visit with his buddy Tommy and the still-sleeping Jake while they
left to pick up Jenna from school and then do some grocery shopping.

A short time later the three McMillans came into the room. Jake was awake
and sitting up by that time and they were pleased to see that he was there
with his brother, seemingly recovering well from his narrow escape the day
before.

Tommy was very excited to see them and he immediately wanted Sam to come
and sit beside him again like she had done the day before. With Jake also
on the bed, she could only perch on the very edge of it. He wanted to hold
her hand, so she gladly obliged, and also gave him a kiss on the tip of his
nose which made him beam with pleasure. "Who's this scamp here," she asked
Tommy while playfully ruffling Jakes curly black hair? "I haven't seen him
before." Jake was staring up at her with eyes as big as saucers.

"This is Jake," he said. "Remember? My brother."

"Oh yes, of course! I should've known," Sam said, slapping herself on the
forehead, but at the same time winking at Tommy.

"A-h-h-h, you rat! You knew it already, didn't ya?" Tommy said, and he
slugged her on the shoulder with his left fist.

Sharon went over to Jake, holding out her arms to him, and without a
moment's hesitation he threw up his own scrawny little arms toward her and
let himself be picked up and hugged against her bosom. Just like that, the
two of them bonded, and little Jake found the mother he never had had
before. Tears were streaming down Sharon's cheeks and a beaming Jake was
grinning from ear to ear with his curly little head tucked up under her
chin. Mack hurried over to the two of them and threw his arms around them
both, trying in vain to keep the tears from spilling out of his eyes as
well.

Sitting by himself on Jake's bed and watching the touching little drama
unfold, Jay said, "Jeez, I wish I had a camera!" This brought a laugh from
Mack and sort of broke the spell.

Sam then said to Tommy, "Since I'm really sorta like too old to be your
girlfriend, how would ya like to be my brother instead?"

Tommy shouted, "Really? Ya mean it? Could I really? I mean, how?"

"Of course I mean it, sweetie," Sam assured him, and then turning to Mack
she said, "Isn't that right, Dad? I get to have Tommy and Jake for my
little brothers, don't I?"

Listening to her, Tommy's eyes were nearly bugging out of his head and his
mouth was hanging open.

Mack and Sharon and Sam had been talking on the way up to the hospital
about how and when to broach the subject with the boys of them becoming
their foster children. They hadn't really reached a consensus, but now Sam
had just up and done it, as easy as that. Her parents were quick to take
advantage of the opening she'd made for them, and they explained to the two
boys that they were indeed going to be their mommy and daddy from now on
and that they would be coming to live with them.

Jake just kept clinging to Sharon as before, and Tommy lifted up his arms
toward Mack who came and squatted down beside him to give him a big long
hug. Tommy started to sob and Mack just held him tight, patting and rubbing
his thin, bony back and crooning to him under his breath.

Jay held out his arms toward Sam, so she walked over to him and they hugged
too. "This is so neat, Sam!" Jay said. "I'm so glad for Tommy and
Jake. I've been so worried about them, and wondering what would happen to
them when they had to go home again where no one loves them or cares about
them or anything. And that bastard Hank is even mean to `em."

"Well no one's gonna be mean to `em anymore. They're my brothers now," Sam
stated emphatically. And Jay was inclined to believe she would keep her
word, too.

After Tommy had calmed down again and everyone was sitting quietly, Jay
asked, "Did you tell your mom and dad that you're gonna have an operation
tomorrow, Tommy?"

"My mom and da...? Tommy started to ask, looking puzzled, and then suddenly
he remembered and his face lit up again. He turned toward Mack and Sharon
and said, "Yeah, that's right. They told me they hafta operate on my arm in
the morning. It's not right yet. They took x-rays this morning."

Sharon, who by then was sitting beside Tommy on his bed, said, "Oh you poor
sweetheart, I'm so sorry to hear that. But we'll be here for you,
honey. We'll be right here with you till they take you to the operating
room and then as soon as you get back to your room again. You'll be OK..."

Tommy didn't answer, he just nodded his head and then shifted himself up
onto her knee, put his free left arm around her neck and gave her a kiss
right on the lips.

After awhile Jay said to the McMillans, "Did my mom or Uncle Robert tell
you yet that my dad's burial is gonna be on Thursday?"

"Oh really? No they didn't," Sharon said. "But if they've tried to call us
we've been gone all afternoon."

"Yeah, they called this noon from the church and arranged the time and
stuff. It's Thursday afternoon at 2 or 2:30 or something. I can't remember
for sure," Jay explained.

"Oh my goodness, Jay, that's just the day after tomorrow, isn't it!" Sharon
said. "Oh honey, that'll be so difficult for you, and for Jenna and your
mother too. But it'll be good to have it over too, won't it?"

Jay nodded in agreement but didn't say anything.

About that time Irene and Robert and Jenna came into the room.

"Jay was just telling us about the time being set for the burial, Irene,"
Sharon said. So the two ladies talked for a couple minutes about that.

The new arrivals soon got informed of the big news that Tommy and Jake were
going to become the foster children of Mack and Sharon, too, so there was a
lot of lively and happy conversation about that.

Jay was missing Lee terribly, since he hadn't seen him all day. He asked
Sam finally, "Do you know what Lee was gonna do after school today?"

"Oh sweetie, I was supposed to tell you! He had to go to the dentist today
at four o'clock. He had totally forgotten about that appointment in all the
excitement of the last few days, but of course his mom had it written
down. Moms never forget stuff like that, do they?" Sam said, wrinkling up
her nose in semi-mock disgust, and then she continued, "But he asked me to
tell ya that he was gonna see if he could come over to your house this
evening after supper." She then leaned over and whispered in Jay's ear,
"He's missin' his little sweetheart too, don't worry!"

Jay blushed and smiled broadly.