by Rob Edwards
“Did you have a good time today, honey?”
Noah said nothing. He didn’t even look at her. He took another sip from his cup and he reached the empty, sucking gurgle at the bottom. Dropping the cup on the floor, Noah laid his head back on the car seat, turned and stared blankly into her eyes.
“What is going on in there?” Judith whispered to him. “What are you thinking about after a day like today?”
Noah still said nothing. He continued to stare back at her.
Her phone buzzed in her purse. Judith pulled it out to see Darlene’s name on the screen. She tapped on the call. “Hi, Dar.”
“Uh oh. What’s wrong?”
“Absolutely nothing. Noah laughed out loud today.”
“He did what?”
“Yep. He and Delton were playing this game where they throw stuffed animals into a bucket, and Noah had so much fun he laughed really loud. Right from his belly.”
“But that’s great, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. It’s so great I cried all the way home.”
“Why are you crying about that?”
“Because I’m not there, Dar.” Judith’s voice cracked. “I’m not the one he’s laughing with. It’s this other guy who relates to him better than his own mom.” She wiped tears out of her eyes with the used Lance’s napkin.
“Jude, I get it. But this is why you signed the little guy up for this crazy-ass thing. Because there was an outside chance that the miracle could happen. Now that it’s happened you need to rejoice a little bit. You, as his mom, made an excellent choice and you should celebrate. In fact, I know this guy that Jim works with who you should celebrate with.”
“Oh my God, did you just do that?” Judith couldn’t help but smile. “Did you just take my angst, and try to spin it into a reason to date?”
“How’d I do?”
“It was awful, and unfeeling.”
“Damn. I thought I was really clever. But what about it?”
Judith sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m not in the mood to talk about that right now. I’ll catch you later.”
“Okay, I’ll talk to…”
Judith tapped off the call and threw it onto the seat next to her. She looked back at Noah who was still staring at her. “Will you laugh like that with me someday?" She put her right arm on the back of the seat and set her chin on it. “I’d really love to hear it.”
Excerpts from the transcript of the GINfo (Global Information Network) interview between Brooke Winthrop and Rena Blossom.
Brooke: So, Rena is a unique name. Is it short for anything?
Rena: No, it’s just Rena. It’s like an old family name from my mother’s side. Like before they even came over on the boat kind of old.
Off Camera: Rolling.
Brooke: Okay Rena, I don’t want you to be nervous. All these people around us are just here to make sure you look and sound great. Think of this as just a conversation between you and me. Okay?
Rena: Okay. But I’m not nervous. I’m more sad that it’s all come to this.
Brooke: I understand. Well, let’s take a moment and talk about an incident that happened early on in the project. Noah Higgins was having a meltdown, Delton was trying to restrain him and a guard felt he needed to come in, with his gun drawn, to save the boy.
Rena: Who told you about that?
Brooke: It’s been confirmed from a couple of sources.
Rena: Well that has nothing to do with any of this. And if anybody told you it did, they were either mistaken or lying.
Brooke: I was informed that Judith Higgins was so concerned by it, that she had pulled Noah from the program.
Rena: Okay, stop rolling. I’m pissed. All of this is being taken way out of context to make things look worse than they really were. And you’re ambushing me with all of this right now, to see if I’ll say something to incriminate someone.
Brooke: All right, let’s start over. I truly wasn’t trying to ambush you. We’ve invited you here as a content expert as to what went on inside the Marmont Project Building. You were there every minute of every day. It has been represented that Judith Higgins, Delton Hayes, and Noah Higgins hit it off from the very first time they met. That was our assumption when we started this story. We have since been informed that wasn’t the case.
Rena: No. That was not the case at all.
Brooke: And then one of our researchers discovered this incident where a guard came into the room. I’m coming to you for clarity on this.
Rena: Okay, I’ll give you clarity. It literally happened on the second day of the program. Noah had a meltdown. It wasn’t because he was mistreated or anything. Delton had nothing to do with that. Noah had spun a chair all day the day before. We replaced the chair with one that didn’t spin and he got upset. Noah started screaming and hitting himself. When this happens, it’s important to restrain the child or they can hurt themselves. Taysha had called Miss Higgins and asked her to come back. A guard heard the noise, looked in and thought Delton was hurting Noah. We tried to tell him that everything was fine but he didn’t listen, he went in and pulled his gun. That was right when Miss Higgins showed up. So you could understand how a mother could be a little bit freaked out about the situation. But up until that point, Delton was doing everything right. And it has nothing to do with the reason you came here in the first place. You shouldn’t even bring it up in your story.
Brooke: You’re sounding like a champion for Delton—ready to fight me tooth and nail for his honor.
Rena: Because you guys just want to tear him down. And after everything that’s happened it’s easy to do that. But Delton was good to Noah, and he was good in the program. When he wasn’t with him, he studied hard on his own to be the best guide…companion…teacher, that Noah needed him to be. He connected with Noah, and it wasn’t just some miracle connection. Delton worked hard at it. And I think that’s why they were so good together. Delton wasn’t just putting in his time every day. He put Noah first every single minute. He was definitely the right person for Noah and even after all of this, I am glad I had him with me.
Brooke: I wish I had the chance to meet him.
Rena: So do I. All of this is so heartbreaking.
Chapter Twenty-Six
On the bus ride back to the prison, Delton could not stop smiling. The results of that afternoon played over in his mind. This boy who could not communicate, could not, or would not show any kind of emotion toward anybody or anything, had just laughed, and smiled, and played. He knew that Rena, Taysha, and Doctor F. were very pleased with the progress, and they would study the video all night long. But Delton felt as if he had just done the impossible. He took a deep breath and felt like he wanted to jump up and do a victory lap.
He remembered how his friend Hector had teared up the very first day, when he’d had a remarkable fulfilling time with his kid. He wished Hector was still in the program, but his special kid moved to another state, so Hector had to drop out. But Delton’s feelings were different than Hector’s. He had no sense that he wanted to cry. He was ready to climb the ladder and cut down the nets.
Rick Simpson moved up a few seats and sat across the aisle from Delton. “Place was buzzing this afternoon ‘bout you. Heard them all saying you and your boy had a breakthrough.”
Delton grinned. “Yeah, I guess we did. I got my kid to laugh.”
“A laugh is a breakthrough?” Rick Simpson snorted.
“It is when your kid is as autistic as my boy is. He hasn’t ever laughed.”
“Well, that’s great I guess,” Simpson said. He sat back in his seat, then looked back over to Delton. “The only breakthrough I’m concerned about with my kid, is breaking through his mom’s panties.” He laughed and looked out the window. “Damn, she’s a hot thing.”
Delton discovered his smile was gone. He wanted to tell this hick that the rest of the crew was taking this thing seriously, and if he didn’t want to, then get out and stop wasting everyone’s time. Perhaps Hector could take over for his ki
d. Hector had been putting effort into it. Simpson clearly wasn’t.
That is what affected Delton the most. He studied, learned, and planned what to do with Noah. This wasn’t just a way to get out from behind the walls for a day. It was a mission, a responsibility he signed up for, and he was going to give his best to it. He resented the fact that someone else was just coasting along, giving minimum effort.
When they reached the prison and got off the bus, one of the guards called to him. “Hayes, you got a phone call.”
He wasn’t surprised. Judith was clearly happy about the news and they had arranged a phone call for her. When he got to the phone, a guard spoke into the receiver. “Here he is now, honey,” The guard handed the receiver to Delton, “She sounds upset.” Then he left the room.
Delton put the receiver to his ear. “Hello?”
“Delton, its Danna,”
It was good to hear her voice, and he smiled. “Hey girl. How’s it…”
“Delton, I don’t want to be here no more.”
His smile faded. “What’s wrong?”
“They’s awful.”
“Are they hurting you?”
“No. They just won’t let me do anything. They won’t even let me come see you no more. They say you’re a bad guy, and that I need to forget about you. They only want me around good people from now on.”
Delton ground his teeth. “Put Reggie on the phone.”
“Oh my God. No. They’d kill me if they knew I was talking to you. I snuck Jamie’s phone in here and I’m using that to call you, because they got the prison number blocked on my phone.”
Delton could feel his heartbeat in his throat. It kept him from speaking.
“If I say anything back to them about being unfair, they ground me and make me do all these chores and shit like that.”
Delton took a breath to calm himself, and tried to think up the best thing to say to pacify his sister. “Danna, there’s….”
A distant voice yelled on the phone line. “Who are you talking to?” Some rustling was heard and Danna’s muffled voice replied, “nobody.”
“Give me that phone,”
“No,”
More rustling could be heard and Delton heard his sister scream, “No! Stop that.” Then a man’s voice came on the phone. “Who is this?”
Delton was in so much rage he could hardly utter a word, but he collected himself and said in the most stable voice he could pull together, “This is Delton Hayes. Who is this?”
“Delton, we talked about you having no more contact with Danna.”
In the background Delton could hear Danna crying. “Give me back that phone. You’ve got no right to keep me from my brother.”
“But I’m her brother. Can’t you see she wants to talk to me?”
“That doesn’t matter. We’re her family now. It is our responsibility to see that she is surrounded by a respectable group of people, not those who make poor decisions and get themselves thrown into jail. Now I’d appreciate it if you’d stop trying to talk to her, and let her move on with her life. We can give her much more than anything you could ever offer her.” Then the line went dead.
Delton stood holding the phone to his ear, trying to process both the words, and the feelings that were now coursing through him like a raging evil drug. He wanted to rip the phone off the wall, and smash it on the floor. He remembered Taysha saying that by helping Noah, he would be helping Danna.
Delton was squeezing the receiver in his hand so tightly he thought the plastic might break.
Eventually he hung up the phone, closed his eyes, leaned his head against it, and concentrated on breathing. He told himself that Danna was going to be fine. She just didn’t like the people, and one day he would be able to help her with that, but today was not the day.
He stood straight, with one deep breath and nodded to the guard to let him out of the phone room. He walked back to the cafeteria realizing just how quickly his feelings of winning could come crashing down into helplessness and rage.
The roller coaster of life was going full speed.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“Woof, woof, woof,” barked the basset hound alarm clock. “Woof, woof, woof,”
Noah blinked his eyes open, stared for a moment at the little plastic basset hound lying on the digital clock, then sat up in bed.
“Woof, woof, woof.”
“Noah, honey,” Judith said as she rushed into his room. “It’s time to get up.” She reached down and tapped the dog on the top of his head.
“Woof, wo…”
Noah jumped from his bed and ran into the bathroom. Such quick movement surprised Judith. Normally her son slogged through the morning routine. She would have to continually prod him to keep moving forward. The toilet flushed and out he ran, back into his room and threw on his pants, and t-shirt that she’d laid out for him the night before.
Trying to stay ahead of him, Judith filled his bowl with Captain Crunch and was pouring the milk when Noah rushed into the kitchen. Judith smiled. “Slow down, Speed Racer. We can’t be the first ones there today.” She brushed his hair with her fingers while he ate. “When you’re done eating, go in and brush your teeth.”
She poured herself a cup of coffee and headed back to her bathroom to paint her face. She picked up the eyeliner and looked into the mirror, admitting to herself that seeing this reaction from Noah, helped her struggle from the day before. Even though it hurt to be away from her son when he was seeing so much growth, watching him appear excited to go back, was a great validation that she had made the right decision.
Judith pulled the top on her mascara and slowly began to apply it to her lashes.
Noah’s success was also the perfect ammunition to use to point out to everyone who reacted with disbelief and disdain that she had ever put her son in a program like this in the first place. He had gone farther in less than a month than he had in the last three years at school.
Judith twirled up the Peach Passion lipstick.
She wondered what Delton’s secret was. Was it the location? The room? The other people involved? Perhaps it was all the factors combined. She knew she signed up for a sociological experiment, and Noah’s success thus far had to be one of the highlights of the project. She was sure they would study his outcomes and determine what the factors were. In the meantime, she was happy with the gains.
She put away her lipstick just as Noah walked in to brush his teeth. “You made quick work of that bowl of cereal, buddy. You must really be in a hurry.”
The parking lot at the project building was starting to look a little thinner. Four of the children had dropped out of the program—one because his inmate became aggressive and shook the child, two of them because their inmates refused to stop swearing, and the last because the father got another job, and moved out of state. That meant at least eight parking spaces were free, so she pulled up very near the front door. “Look buddy. We got a close spot today.”
Walking around and opening the door, Judith unlocked Noah’s seat belt. He jumped down, grabbed her hand and dragged her into the building. “Oh my goodness,” She said, giggling as she followed along. “Noah, I can’t keep up with you.”
Noah went as fast as he could down the hall to his room. He even knew which door was his by this point. The outer door was open, and Rena and Taysha were surprised to see them so early. Judith could see Delton through the glass, sitting at the table reading something.
Noah walked up to the door and moaned for her to open it.
“My goodness, we’re excited to begin today, aren’t we?” Rena said.
Judith laughed. “I guess so.” She opened the door for Noah, and he ran inside.
Delton looked up. “Hey there.” He put his fist down, like every day before.
Noah ran around the table to him, bumped his fist and cried out, “Hey, me min!”
Delton stood up, throwing his hands to his head in utter disbelief. “What the f….” He said no more. He looked over
at Judith with wide disbelieving eyes.
Judith thought her heart stopped. A dizziness hit her, and her knees wobbled slightly. Her hand was on her mouth, she didn’t know why, perhaps so she didn’t say anything in case Noah would speak more.
That voice. That beautiful little voice that had been kept silent by the autism monster. It had been liberated to be shared with the rest of the world.
Rena and Taysha, both entered the room slowly, their mouths wide open with no sound coming out. It was as if, once Noah found his voice, everyone else in the room lost theirs.
Judith’s blouse was damp before she realized tears were running down her face. She looked at Delton, and discovered small tears running from his red eyes as well. She tried to say thank you, and laughed when it came out as an incoherent babble. She stumbled over and wrapped her arms around him, holding on tight, lest her knees give out completely.
“Wow.” Delton whispered in her ear. “I needed to hear that today, more than you’ll ever know.”
Rena and Taysha joined them, and all four adults shared a group hug. They heard a muffled thunk and then a happy giggle. Looking over, they saw Noah picking up where they’d left off the day before, tossing stuffed animals into the waste basket. He threw two more that bounced off to either side, then grabbed a monkey and threw it. It hit the wall and dropped in. Noah raised his arms and laughed.
Looking at his face, filled with so much joy, Judith felt his smile was so brilliant and bright, it lit up the whole room.