Never Again Separate
By Cypher
Chapter Nine
Matt wiped his forehead and looked around. Thanks to his little fiasco in Florida, he'd been detained for a day. Fortunately, once they realized that he was just trying to find his brother and found nothing on him or in his bags, they let him go with a strict warning not to do something that stupid again.
Once he was freed, Matt raced straight to the airport to buy a ticket on the next flight to Tucson. He had to sleep in the airport and wait sixteen hours, but he made the flight and arrived only a day later. He couldn't have gotten too far in two days. Still, just to be sure, he checked around the airport, to see if anyone had seen a teen matching Simon's description.
Two hours later, he was confident enough that Simon was in Arizona at the least, and probably still in town. The question is, where. He looked at his bag. It was somewhat scuffed due to the guards' handling of it, but it had everything he needed. Simon didn't have a bag. Come to think of it, all he had was his ticket. Matt frowned. Sure, he could've checked his bag, but he didn't even have a carry on. For some reason, that thought disturbed Matt. Like it revealed an important aspect of Simon's life. He just couldn't figure out what.
Enough dawdling. I'm gonna get fried in this heat. He waved his hand and flagged down a taxi. I'll rent a car tomorrow. For now, I think I need a shower more than anything else. One look at the driver's face confirmed that he did, indeed, stink. "Take me to the nearest Motel 6."
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Matt sighed as another store owner shook his head. He stuck his hand in his pocket and leaned against a light pole with the other. No one's seen him, or those that have don't know anything. He's got to live around here somewhere. Matt was about to step away when something caught his eye.
A flash of blond.
Now, of course, blond isn't an unnatural color, but the hairstyle of it was what really caught his attention. He turned his full attention across the street, where a lanky blond teen was examining something. That's definitely Simon. Not wanting a repeat of what happened at the airport, he quietly slipped across the street and tried to look casual as he approached the store the teen was standing at.
He arrived just as the store owner grabbed Simon's arm. "Hey. You'd better pay for that."
Matt stood a few feet off, still unnoticed by either person. Pay for what?
"I saw you put that watch in your pocket. Now pay for it or I'm calling the police."
Matt, not wanting to deal with another bout of authority figures, stepped forward. "I'm sorry, has my brother done something?"
The shopkeeper kept his grip on Simon and eyed Matt over. Simon, on the other hand, had a surprised look, then scowled.
"He's trying to shoplift."
Matt looked at Simon. What would cause him to steal? "Return the watch, Simon."
Simon looked away, ignoring Matt.
The shopkeeper tapped his free hand on a counter.
Matt sighed. "How much is the watch?"
"Twenty-three seventy."
Matt took out his wallet and handed the shopkeeper a twenty and five. "Keep the change."
The shopkeeper nodded and released Simon. "Tell him not to do it again."
Matt grabbed Simon's arm before he could run off. "Will do." He dragged Simon away from the downtown area.
Simon struggled the entire way, but couldn't break Matt's grip. "Let go of me you son of a-"
Matt released Simon's arm, causing the teen to fall on his back. "What is wrong with you. Shoplifting?"
Simon moved away before standing up again. "Who the hell are you to tell me what's wrong!"
Matt crossed his arms. "I'm your brother."
Simon snorted. "I don't have a brother."
Matt felt his gut twist, but he tried not to show it. "Simon, it's Matt. I'm Matt, your older brother? Remember when we were Camdens?"
To Matt it looked like Simon was going to cry for a moment, but the look disappeared and was replaced by contempt almost instantly. "So what if you are? You abandoned me to the system. I don't have to listen to you."
"Simon, I didn't abandon you-"
"Go back to Hell. I don't need you."
"Simon, I'm your brother. I want to help you, be a part of your life."
"You're eight years too late!" Simon turned and ran off.
Matt considered following, but the change in Simon, his attitude and his words had both stunned and hurt him. Shoplifting, piercing his ear, his language, his attitude. What happened to him to cause this? Matt shoved his hands in his pockets and started walking towards his hotel. He was pretty thin, too. He was lanky as a kid, but now he just looks really thin. He stopped walking and looked at the businesses around him. There's got to be someone who can tell me about him. I'll call Sean. He might know someone around here. Or maybe an adoption agency.
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"He was never adopted?"
The foster care agent shook her head. She was a tall woman, even a little taller than Matt, and had short curly brown hair and green eyes. "We've shipped him around the country, trying to find a foster home who might have some ties to a permanent family. He was just interviewed in Florida by a sweet family." She sighed. "Unfortunately, they want a child, not a teenager."
"But he was a child when he entered the system. Why wasn't he adopted?"
The agent looked through some papers in her file. "He was a problem child. Always brooding, picking fights with other children in the family. One family had him for two months before they found out he was stealing from them."
Matt could hardly believe his ears. Simon, his little, innocent Simon, was a juvenile delinquent.
"Wait, here's one family that kept him for almost seven months. Then he left..."
"Why?"
"It doesn't say." She flipped the page over. "There's a court order sealing the reason." She shrugged and closed the folder. "He's fifteen. At this age, and with his history, it's doubtful he'll be adopted. He'll just remain in the system until he's eighteen." She folded her hands together. "In all honesty, though, kids like him don't last very long in the real world, if they make it that far."
Matt sat back. Did...I cause this? Did my leaving lead him down this path? It couldn't have, though...could it? He rubbed his forehead. There has to be something I can do. Something the Hamilton's can do. Something SOMEONE can do.
"Matt?"
Matt looked at the agent. "Yeah?"
"You okay? You look a bit pale."
"I'm just...he's my brother, and I'm wondering how this happened, if it's somehow my fault. It wasn't, was it?"
"Of course not. Kids act out in the system all the time. It's hardly the blame of only one person. Usually there are many factors that cause this sort of behavior."
Matt felt a little better at that, but he had a feeling at least part of Simon's behavior was due to him. "Is there any chance of him getting in a family? Even a slight chance for a few normal years of life?"
The agent simply looked thoughtful, then a small smile spread across her face. She pulled out another binder and began looking through it.
Matt fidgeted. What's she looking up?
"Matt Camden." She looked up at him, her hands resting on two pages of a binder. "I think I may have just found a family for Simon."
Matt sat up. "Really?"
She nodded and handed him the binder.
Matt read the pages she had it opened to. He swallowed. "You're sure this'll work?"
"I'll get the forms and rush authority from my manager." She got up and left the office.
Matt set the binder down and rubbed his forehead. Simon, there's hope for you, for us, yet.
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Author's Prattle: Yes, I know, not enough Simon. Well, next chapter focuses almost solely on Simon. And as I said, there's always a reason behind a person's actions. Simon's had a hard life. No wonder he's the way he is. But for this chapter, I just scratched the surface...that court order contains a secret that haunts Simon, and it'll come up very soon. Also, I'm officially notifying you that there are only three more chapters after this. After that, I'll get back to "God's in 7th Heaven, All's Right with the World" chapter seventeen. As always, thanks for reading and reviews are always appreciated.