"Sharon, do you, um, think, I could, like, get a job?"
She looked up from her computer screen and raised her eyebrow. "Why would you want that?"
"Because I'm sixteen and have things I'd like to buy."
She closed her computer. This was going to take a while. "Have a seat."
He complied with a sigh. "I don't see what the big deal is. I've been taking care of myself for a long time."
She nodded. "I know that. But you don't have to anymore." His eyes looked like he was about to protest, so she pressed on. "Let me tell you what I told my kids, okay?" He nodded. "You'll be working for the rest of your life after you finish with school. I see no reason to rush into it now. If you need things, I will buy them. If you want spending money, we'll discuss an allowance," she said.
"An allowance?"
"You'll agree to certain terms, complete a number of chores, respect me as I respect you, and I'll pay you every week."
"Yeah, Sharon, I know what an allowance is." He sighed. "I need $500."
She raised a brow. "Why? What's wrong?"
He threw up his hands. "Why does anything have to be wrong?"
She thought a minute before speaking. That number sounded awfully familiar. "This doesn't have something to do with that bus ticket, does it?"
He sighed. "I promised I'd pay everyone back."
"And I said you didn't need to. We were happy to help you."
"But she stole that money, Sharon. I...I'm not sure I can live with that."
She gave him her most sympathetic look. "Rusty, we gave that money freely. We were happy to do that. What she did with it was her choice. Her responsibility. You don't have to pay for her mistakes, especially since nothing was actually stolen."
His eyes widened. "Really?"
She nodded. "Really. Rusty, you're going to live a long life and make lots of mistakes, and that's perfectly okay because you're human. I only want you to worry about your actions, okay? You're not responsible for what other people do or say."
He nodded slowly, processing what she'd said. "I can try to do that. When I...will you help me when I do screw up?"
"I will always do anything I can to help you, yes."
He gave a small smile. "All right, Sharon. Thanks. I'll, uh, go to bed, I think."
She smiled. "Yes, I'll do the same. We have an early morning, don't we?"
He groaned.
"Don't sound so excited about your first day."
"I won't, then."
"It won't be so bad, I promise."
He nodded and stood up. There was that awkwardness, like he wasn't sure if he should hug her or not. He obviously compromised by waving and wished her a good night.
She watched him walk away. Everyone had said she was crazy for taking him in, but in just a few short weeks, he had shown so much promise. And she was every bit as proud of him as she would have been of her biological children.
She took a final appraisal of her progress, made a few mental notes for the next day, and headed for the master bedroom.