Date: Sun, 08 Nov 2020 15:57:23 +0000
From: caliboy1991 <caliboy1991@protonmail.com>
Subject: Forbidden Fruit Chapter 2

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Chapter 2

Setting his notepad down, Adam glanced at the clock on his phone. Becky
should be home by now. The lesson plan for Wednesday evening youth group
could wait. The past couple of days had been rough. No matter how hard he
tried, he couldn't keep old memories locked away.

He cycled through the contacts on his phone until he found Becky's. As he
pressed her number, he thought about their relationship over the past
year. He had met her the first week of his sophomore year. They'd met at
church but had become friends when they found themselves in the same Intro
to Physics class. He was interested in the ministry, and Becky wanted to
become a teacher, and neither was very good at physics, so naturally, they
teamed up as study-buddies. By the end of the fall semester, Adam asked
Becky out, and they'd been casually dating ever since.

"Hey, Adam, how's Wakefield treating you?" came the voice from the other
end of the call.

"Sup, Becks? Not bad. Wish you'd stayed in town for the summer. I don't
know what to do with myself when you're not around."

The laughter on the other end brought a smile to Adam's face. She said, "I
know the feeling. I felt the same way. Then I ran into some of my old
girlfriends. We're going to go catch a movie this Friday night."

"Sounds fun," Adam said. He really did miss his girlfriend. Whenever Becky
was around, the creeping feelings locked away were gone. No, not entirely
gone, but certainly held at bay and under control. Now, a week and a half
after starting this summer youth pastor gig, he felt shaky and afraid that
everything he'd done to put his old self away was slowly unraveling. If
Becky wasn't half a continent away, he knew he could conquer these unbidden
thoughts.

"When are you planning on coming back into town for the fall semester?"

More laughter, "Jeeze, Adam, the summer's barely underway, and you're
already trying to get me back to out there. Probably won't make it back
until mid-August. You think you can manage without me until then?"

Adam put more cheer into his voice than he felt, "Of course, Becks.  Did I
mention I'm taking the kids up to Six Flags tomorrow?"

"Better you than me. I don't like roller coasters."

"Note to self, no dates that include roller coasters," Adam said with a
chuckle.

By the time Becky had to get off the phone, Adam felt better, back in
control. He told himself there wasn't really any reason for him to feel the
way he had. None of the kids in the youth group looked at all like Clint,
and he had nothing to worry about.  But the less he thought about Jacob,
the better.

***

"Mom, do I have to?" Isaiah said as his mom pulled into the church's
parking lot.

"Yes. You'll have fun, I'm sure of it," Amanda said as she parked the car.

Isaiah wasn't sure, but it wasn't like his mom was giving him any
options. When he climbed out of the car, she handed him a couple of
twenty-dollar bills. "For meals. Don't spend it on the midway, until after
you've eaten. Promise?"

"Yeah," Isaiah said, although he wasn't sure what a midway was or why it
would cost money. Looking at the two bills in his hand, he added, "Didn't
you say that money's tight. If I don't go, you'd save forty bucks."

Chuckling, his mom gave him a quick hug, "Think you're getting sneaky. Go
on, have fun."

The older kids sat at the back of the fifteen-passenger van while the
younger took the seats toward the front. That put Isaiah on the seat right
behind the driver's seat. Jason, the preacher's kid, sat next to
him. Beside him sat one of the girls from the eighth grade, whose name
Isaiah couldn't remember.

The drive on the interstate was uneventful. Their driver, Adam, stayed in
the right lane almost the entire way. And Isaiah was miserable the whole
time. He glanced at his seatmates from time to time. Jason was
interesting. Even though he was only twelve, he looked more mature. He even
had a bit of fine hair over his upper lip. And, he was even more attractive
than Josh. And that left Isaiah with a painful lump in his throat. There
wasn't any reason to say anything. The girl on the other side of Jason
occupied the other boy's attention.

The ninety minutes it took them to arrive at Six Flags felt like the
longest ninety minutes of his young life. The other kids were obviously
friends with one another and were ready to go on the rides as soon as they
could get their tickets and get inside the park.

When they assembled by the Econoline's sliding door, Adam came around and
gave everyone their tickets. "Hey, everyone. Your parents expect me to have
you home by eleven. That means we've got to meet up in front of the
carousel no later than eight-thirty. That still gives you upwards of ten
hours."

As Isaiah fingered the edge of his ticket, the youth pastor added, "Next
up, nobody goes off by themselves. Buddy up into groups of 2 or more."

The boy's heart sank as the other kids grouped themselves together, leaving
him standing next to Adam. He felt something burn at the back of his eyes
when he felt a hand rest on his shoulder.  He glanced up into Adam's
face. The young man squeezed his shoulder, "How about the two of us buddy
up, Isaiah?"

That kindness reached from his green eyes to his red lips, and Isaiah felt
that constriction in his throat loosen. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after
all.

Adam raised his voice, "Alright, before we all run off to ride the Titan,
everyone gather round, let's say a quick prayer first."

The boy felt his heart thunder in his chest when Adam took his hand. It
didn't lessen the moment when everyone joined hands as Adam said, "Heavenly
Father, thanks for letting us make it up here safely..."

While the young man prayed, Isaiah tried to listen to the words, but the
fact was, he was thankful Adam had stepped in as his buddy for the
day. Adam hadn't said anything weird to him since his mom buttonholed him
in the fellowship hall a week and a half before. Maybe his mom hadn't said
anything about how he'd fallen out with Josh.

No sooner were the words "amen," out of Adam's mouth, than the group broke
up into their smaller groups as everyone made their way toward the park's
entrance.

Adam fell in beside him as they followed the other kids. They were halfway
across the expansive parking lot when he spoke, "You have a favorite ride?"

Isaiah shook his head, "No. Mom's never had the time or money to take
me. What about you?"

"Yeah. It's old school, but I like the Shockwave. It's been here since my
parents were kids. You okay with riding the roller coasters?"

The boy felt an icy grip on his heart. The only roller coasters he'd ever
seen had been on YouTube videos and TV. And they looked scary. He shrugged,
"Dunno. Are they safe?"

Adam chuckled, "Very. Unless you're pregnant or have a bad heart. Either of
those a problem for you?"

Isaiah laughed, "No. Don't be silly. Um, I guess we can try one."

It took almost as long to get into the park as it took them to cross the
parking lot. Even though the pandemic was under control and a vaccine
available, there were still people wearing face masks and observing the old
social distancing rules. It was easy enough. The blue circle with feet were
placed every six feet from the start of the concourse, all the way to the
gatehouse where attendants still took people's temperatures before allowing
people through the turnstiles.

Once they were inside the park, Adam pointed toward the carousel, spinning
around with little kids and their parents. "Is that one you had in mind?"

Isaiah could hear the mirth in the youth leader's tone. The boy squinted up
at the young man before shaking his head, "I don't think so. You're too
short for that ride."

Laughing, Adam placed a hand on his shoulder, "Fine, let's go find the
Shockwave and see if it's still as fun as I remember it."

The walk over to the shockwave would have been worse if the park had been
crowded. For a Thursday morning is was surprisingly empty, just a few
thousand souls enjoying the park's thrills and rides. Isaiah stopped in the
middle of the concrete path leading to the Shockwave as he watched a train
of cars zip along through the double loops for which the ride was famous.

Adam's hand returned to his shoulder, "You okay with this? We can start
with something easier if you want."

Feeling better with his youth pastor's hand on his shoulder, Isaiah
swallowed hard, "Yeah. I think so. Will they let us sit together?"

Nodding, Adam led him toward the ride.

The line started a couple of hundred feet away from the turnstiles that
accessed the platform where the cars were unloaded and loaded. Most people
ignored the blue markers for social distancing, and only a few wore
masks. Isaiah didn't miss his. The speed with which riders were whisked
through the ride meant he and Adam soon were waiting their turn to load
onto the next set of cars to cycle through.

As the roller coaster's steel frame shook as the train of cars zoomed by
overhead, Isaiah's anxiety grew until, without realizing it, his hand
gripped Adam's.

"If you don't want to ride this, we don't have to," the young man said,
bending down close to his ear.

The thing was, Isaiah felt like he had to. Not just for himself, but to
show Adam that he wasn't a little baby. "I want to," the boy growled as the
gates separating the queue from the cars swung open.

Once they were seated and the mask-wearing attendant lowered the bar that
secured the two of them in place, Adam must have felt him shaking with
nerves. He reached out and put his larger hand over Isaiah's smaller,
"You'll be fine. You'll see."

Then the cars shook as they rolled forward. Isaiah felt the car jolt as a
long metal chain pulled the cars up a steep incline. He felt the rattling
of the chain all the way into his teeth, as foot by foot, they pulled the
train of cars upwards. Ten seconds, twenty seconds, thirty seconds, they
continued to climb. Then, when it seemed as though the whole world was on
display below, they reached the top. The cars, propelled by nothing but
gravity, went around a hundred-eighty-degree arc. No sooner had they turned
a sharp corner then the floor fell out from under Isaiah. At least that was
the sensation when the tracks fell down a steep drop. Isaiah's hands
gripped the bar resting against his lap even as Adam's shout sounded joyous
as he raised his hands in the air.

And then it was on them. The first loop came up faster than the boy could
prepare for it, and as his head was forced against his chest, adrenaline
shot through his still-eleven-year-old body. By the time the car took the
second loop, Isaiah added his voice to Adam's as he screamed, just for the
heck of it. This wasn't as bad as he feared.

With so much force propelling the cars forward, the boy was surprised when
more controlling chains gripped the cars, throwing him and Adam against
their harnesses and slowing the cars down, before letting them continue
onward, around another sharp bend. With a few more twists and turns as well
as a couple of more sharp drop-offs, the train of cars looped back around
to the starting point.

Once they were out, Isaiah, still on his adrenaline high, yelped, "That was
freaking awesome! Can we ride it again?"

***

The change in the boy's demeanor brought a wide grin to Adam's face as they
queued up for the Shockwave again. The line was even shorter their second
time around. Now, as the car lurched forward and started up the long climb
to the top of the ride, he glanced at the boy sitting beside him. Gone was
the fearful expression. In its place was an intense look of
expectation. The only thing remaining the same the second time up the steep
climb was Isaiah's hand clenched to his.

After the cars careened around the U-turn, they plunged a hundred feet
toward the ground before heading into the first loop. Taking Isaiah's hand
in his, Adam raised it into the air as his voice was ripped out of his
lungs on the plunge down the roller coaster's steel-shod tracks. Around and
around the two loops they flew. The five Gs of gravity forced his head
against his chest until they shot out of the second loop. The boy's giddy
laughter was music in Adam's ears. He had come close to making one of the
other groups of kids take Isaiah with them, but as they were shaken around
the track, instinctively, Adam knew he'd made the right choice.

The rest of the morning flew by as they rode Mr. Freeze and the Tower of
Power rides. As they came off the Tower of Power for the second time,
Isaiah seemed to wilt a bit under the hot north Texan sun. It was, if Adam
was honest with himself, time to hydrate and eat.

Resting his hand on the boy's shoulder, he said, "How about we get a drink
and food? There are lots of places around here to eat."

"Yeah. I could eat. But I'm pretty thirsty."

"Sit down or grab-and-go?"

The boy's expression grew thoughtful, "Can we rest for a bit?"

Adam nodded as he guided his charge through the thin crowd. He took the boy
over to Johnny Rockets, one of the park's larger sit-down restaurants,
where they ordered hamburgers.

After finishing his burger, Adam found his eyes taking in the boy's every
detail. His dark brown hair was a darker shade than the milk-chocolate of
his eyes. At a shade under four and a half feet, Isaiah was the shortest
kid in the youth group, although sitting down at the moment, it wouldn't
have been noticed. His cheeks were tanned, although, at times when
embarrassed, crimson would flush away the light brown of the boy's tan. The
boy, Adam's subconscious mind decided, had perfect skin, unblemished by
puberty's cruelty.

Without realizing his mind going there, it wasn't Clint to whom Adam
compared the boy, but to Jacob. When he realized what he was doing, Adam
tried to shut the thoughts down. Although all Isaiah shared with Jacob was
his age, that was all. With a slight shake of his head, Adam amended the
thought. There was nothing to compare. Not at all.

Still, his mind wouldn't entirely let go of that unhealthy thread. In the
deep recesses of Adam's subconscious, his brain worked over the
connection. Then, as the boy finished his meal, the youth pastor saw, not
Clint, not even Jacob, but himself in the features of the
not-quite-twelve-year-old. As they left the restaurant, despite the near
one-hundred degree heat, an iciness gripped Adam's insides as his mind
worked over the implications. Was he Isaiah's Clint?

Oh, God, no! Adam quietly prayed even as his young charge was entirely
oblivious to his newly awakened fear. Isaiah said, "Isn't there a train
that goes around the park?"

There was. Pretty much the only ride to survive the parks' more than fifty
years of operation was the railroad. Fortunately, the walk toward the
nearest depot was only a few minutes. And their timing couldn't have been
better. A few other people waited as the train pulled into the station. It
was an old-style steam engine pulling three passenger carriages. A few
people got off the train before the depot attendant opened the gate and let
the handful of people, including Adam and Isaiah, find their seats in the
open-air carriages.

Isaiah ran on ahead, climbing aboard the middle carriage. When Adam joined
him, the boy leaned against his arm as they waited for the train to depart
the depot. After a bit, the carriage jolted and rolled forward. Isaiah
murmured, "I was worried I wouldn't have a good time. But this has been so
much fun. Thanks."

Adam had walled away his fears. He knew he didn't have anything to worry
about. The boy was as safe with him as he'd be with his own mom. "Me,
too. Now that you're no longer afraid of roller coasters, which one do you
want to do next?"

"Can we try the Giant? It looks huge."

"Yeah. You bet." He enjoyed the feel of the youngster leaning against his
side. Despite errant mental wanderings related to Clint and Jacob, the
balance of Adam's mind wondered if he could be a positive role-model for
Isaiah. The way the boy clung to his side left him convinced he needed a
positive role model.

The wait for the Texas Giant was the longest so far, but it was still only
fifteen minutes. They rode it twice before they headed over to the
Titan. By the time evening rolled around, Adam and Isaiah rode the train
around the park a couple of more times, although the boy's head rested
against Adam's chest the last go-around as he slept.

Adam wasn't surprised that a couple of the groups of kids didn't show up
until almost nine. Knowing how he was at that age, he'd budgeted more time
to collect everyone.

The drive back to their hometown was a lot quieter than the drive up. Most
of the kids were asleep before they left the metroplex. He could see Isaiah
in the rearview mirror, with his head lolled back on the seatback. He could
also see Jason and Meredith, also on the front row. The tall seventh
grader's head rested against the girl's bushy red curls. Both were passed
out. As ninety-minute drives went, it was peaceful, with only the
occasional murmured voice breaking the silence.

The church parking lot was half-full of cars when he pulled into the van's
normal space. Parents leaned against the sides of vehicles, quietly talking
among themselves, patiently waiting for their kids to spill out of the van,
in their zombie-like trances.

One by one, cars pulled away, taking their tired charges home until Adam
found himself alone. Or nearly so. As he opened the van's sliding door,
Isaiah slept, his head tilted back. The youth leader spun around, scanning
the parking lot and surrounding streets. They were empty.

What the hell? he thought. All the parents knew they were supposed to pick
their kids up no later than eleven. Another glance at his watch showed it
was already ten minutes after.

Adam opened the passenger's side door and grabbed a notebook full of
permission slips. When he found the one signed by the boy's mom, he put the
number she had left into the phone. But before he could press the dial
button, an older model Chevy pulled into the parking lot. Amanda Clayton
climbed out of the car, her hair a disheveled mess.

When she came over to Adam, her cheeks were aflame with embarrassment, "I'm
so sorry, Adam. I fell asleep on the couch. When I woke up, it was already
eleven."

Her eyes roamed about, "Where's Isaiah?"

His lips turned upwards at the woman's distress, Adam opened the sliding
door, revealing her sleeping son. "All safe and sound."

Relief washed over the woman's face, "Oh, thank God. Had me worried for a
moment. How'd he do? He wasn't too much trouble, I hope."

Adam shook his head, "Not at all. He was a delight."

A note of relief in her voice, Amanda said, "That's good to know. He
doesn't make friends very easily. I was a bit worried the other kids
wouldn't take to him."

Uncertain how to respond, Adam pressed his lips together before finally
admitting the truth, "Well, he didn't really bond with the other kids,
Amanda. When they broke into groups, he ended up with me. I hope that's
okay."

Staring at her son, still asleep in the seat, Amanda's brows knit in
worry. "I guess. After he lost his friend, Josh, I kinda hoped he'd make
more friends in the youth group."

Adam didn't want to pry, but the boy's mother had strongly hinted whatever
had happened between Isaiah and his friend still troubled her. "Give it
more time. He's a really sweet kid. He'll make more friends."

Amanda smiled and rested a hand briefly on Adam's arm, "Thanks for looking
out for him, Adam. I'm grateful you see how special he is. I know you're
only here at Wakefield through the end of the summer, but I'll be forever
grateful for any mentoring you do."

Seeing the sleeping boy, Adam felt a desire to protect the boy from the
harshness of the world. For now, there wasn't any thought about his own
troubled past or how similar Isaiah was to himself at that age. He simply
wanted to be there for the boy.

Adam said, "My pleasure, Amanda. How about we get him awake so you guys can
get home."