Why?
By: Blade
Warning: Child Abuse and Bad Language
Chapter 6 - Diagnosis
It was at least an hour later that Maurice's dad came in with the doctor. Maurice turned to look at them but they began talking to one another completely ignoring the fact that he was laying right there. "So what's the matter with him?" His dad asked sounding as if this was completely wasting his time. 'Great I've wasted his time even more. He will probably kill me when I get home.'
"Well Mr. Boscorelli, Maurice is dehydrated and a little undernourished. He does have a lot of bruising, I'm assuming from the fight. Some of these bruises look fresh, but with the state his body is in, it could just be that his body is just slow to heal."
"Well we were working him hard doing chores as punishment for getting into the fight, I guess we pushed him a little too hard too fast." His dad acted concerned. "He's a little rough around the house with his brother sometimes. Some of the bruises could have come from that. But what made him pass out and become so unresponsive?"
"Well he is really exhausted. Has he been sleeping very well?"
"Well he was complaining about nightmares," His dad answered.
"I'm pretty sure it wasn't just one thing. The exhaustion, dehydration, and the undernourishment combined is probably what made him pass out like that," the doctor explained.
"But Doctor, is he going to be okay? We just want to make sure he's okay and bring him home."
'Boy, Dad's laying it on thick. Surely the Doctor will notice that he's faking.'
The doctor obviously didn't see through his dad's façade. "I understand your concern, Mr. Boscorelli. We will keep Maurice one or two days for observation. We would like to get some more fluids in him, and we would like to make sure he gets some sleep. A nurse will be here shortly to move Maurice to a room upstairs. Then we will try to get him to eat something." With that the Doctor left the room, leaving Maurice and his Dad together.
"Well you really screwed up this time," his dad said in a low tone, leaning over the bed to get in Maurice's face. "You are such a wimp. Can't handle anything can you? Well listen to this, Son. The police and social services are coming to ask you some questions about what happened. You better say the bruises are from the fight, and nothing better be said about the lashes, the closet or anything that will get us in trouble. If you say anything they will take you away from us and away from everyone you know. They will put you into a foster family that doesn't give a crap about you. You may think you are treated badly now, but you will be treated even worse if you are taken to a foster family. You will be seen as a trouble maker and every family will treat you bad for causing trouble in your past family. Do you understand?"
Maurice just nodded his head.
Approximately ten minutes later the nurse came in. She first checked his IV and secured it to the side of his bed. "Now Maurice, my name is Janet. We are going on a little trip." She said quietly. She then proceeded to take him upstairs to his new room.
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Janet helped settle Maurice into his new room and bed. She changed his IV bag, since the other was almost empty. The whole trip Maurice had not said a word. Janet broke the silence. "Maurice I have some soup here I want you to try to eat." She brought the table over to the bed that had the tray on it. Maurice was so frightened by what his dad had said he only ate a couple of bites.
"Come on Maurice, you can eat a little more," the nurse tried encouraging the frightened boy.
"I'm not really that hungry," Maurice said in a small voice as he pushed the tray away from him.
The nurse frowned at him, "You need to eat. I tell you what, if you eat just two more spoonfuls of soup, I will take the rest away."
Maurice pulled the tray back and ate his two spoonfuls then pushed the tray back. The nurse kept her word and took the soup away. In just a few minutes she came back in the room and came over to the bed. "Maurice, there are some people outside that would like to talk to you about what happened. After they get through, I would like for you to take a nap, okay?" She smiled at Maurice making him think he could trust her.
Maurice just nodded his head, returning her smile. Although his was not half as big as the one he received in return.
"If you need anything, just press this button right here," Janet said showing him the nurses call button. Then she opened the door and motioned to someone out of Maurice's sight. Instantly two men in uniform and a lady in a business suit appeared at the door and entered Maurice's room.
"Hi, I'm Ms. Natalie Jeffers from Social Services, how are you feeling Maurice?"
He just shrugged. He wasn't about to talk to this lady, all he could think about was that they were going to put him into a worse family that he was in now.
"I'm a little worried about the condition you are in," Ms. Jeffers continued, "Your parents say that your bruises were sustained in a fight at school. Is that correct?"
Maurice nodded, too scared to say anything else.
"Okay, how about your eating habits? Have you been eating okay lately?"
Maurice shrugged, "I just haven't been hungry lately." 'Not to mention Dad keeps me so busy and so sore and tired I don't feel like eating.' He thought to himself.
"Let's talk about your home life? Come on Maurice you can trust me." Ms. Jeffers added when she saw Maurice already shaking his head no.
Maurice suddenly became very agitated and upset, "NO…NO! You just want to take me away. Don't let her take me away." Maurice yelled at no one in particular.
"It's alright, no one is going to take you away. I promise," Ms. Jeffers reassured him. Another lady in a business suit came in then and handed Ms. Jeffers a note. She read it silently and then turned to Maurice. "This is a note from your Principal, he confirms that you were in a fight on Monday and were bruised badly. I don't think that there is any reason to further investigate the bruises, but I will be by later to talk to you and your parents about the undernourishment and the exhaustion. I do hope you get better. Please stay out of fights for now on and take care of yourself." She said with a smile. Then she got up and left the room. One officer followed her out but another stayed behind. As soon as the others had left he came to Maurice's bed.
"So how are you feeling, really?" He asked.
"Fine, tired," Maurice admitted.
"Yeah, I bet." The officer stated.
"What are you doing here?" Maurice asked.
"Well I know you are afraid. I can see it in your eyes. I don't know if you are afraid of that Ms. Jeffers taking you away, or afraid of being alone. So I just figured I'll sit here until you go to sleep. That way you can be sure that nobody will hurt you."
"Why?" Maurice was curious but he could barely keep his eyes open. He was just so sleepy. Can I trust this guy?
"Well my job is to protect people. And you are the only one right now who needs protecting." The officer stated.
"Protecting people is what got me in trouble," Maurice claimed.
"Why don't you tell me what happened?" The officer asked. So Maurice did.
"My dad said I was stupid for taking the hits for another guy. But you know what, if the same thing happened tomorrow, I would probably do the same thing. I just can't stand to see little guys like that being taken advantage of." Maurice sighed sleepily.
"You'd be a great cop. That's what we do. We help those who are being taken advantage of." The officer stated. "We help the little guys, like you." The officer smiled and tweaked the end of Maurice's nose earning him a real smile and a giggle from the young boy, the first real smile and giggle that escaped the boy in a long while. "Would you like for me to get you're your parents to come in and stay with you until you fall asleep?"
"No, that's alright, but you can stay with me." 'Dad can't beat come in and threaten me with a police officer here, and maybe I won't have any nightmares knowing that a cop is here protecting me,' he thought to himself.
The officer smiled and nodded.
"Can you do me a favor?" Maurice asked.
"Sure, what do you need?"
"When I get to sleep don't let the nurses turn the lights off. The dark scares me." Maurice muttered low as if embarrassed at his weakness.
"Sure I'll tell Nurse Janet to make sure the light stays on at all times." The officer smiled sitting down in the chair next to his bed.
"Hey, you know what?" Maurice smiled, "Maybe when I get big, I'll be a cop and I'll protect little people like me too."
The officer turned to Maurice and smiled, "That would be great." He then leaned in like he was going to tell Maurice a secret, then he whispered, "I tell you what, if you ever need any help getting into police work just call me and I'll give you a hand." The officer lightly grabbed Maurice's hand with one hand and laid the other on Maurice's forehead. "Go to sleep little Maurice. Sweet dreams." Maurice started closing his eyes.
Maurice opened his eyes barely like he was already half-asleep and groggily asked, "What is your name?"
The officer chuckled, "Yes I suppose I didn't tell you that did I. My name is Glenn Hobart. But you can call me Glennie, all my friends do."
Maurice smiled and wearily shut his eyes, quickly falling into a deep and undisturbed sleep.
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I know it's short, but hopefully there will be more tomorrow!
By: Blade
Warning: Child Abuse and Bad Language
Chapter 6 - Diagnosis
It was at least an hour later that Maurice's dad came in with the doctor. Maurice turned to look at them but they began talking to one another completely ignoring the fact that he was laying right there. "So what's the matter with him?" His dad asked sounding as if this was completely wasting his time. 'Great I've wasted his time even more. He will probably kill me when I get home.'
"Well Mr. Boscorelli, Maurice is dehydrated and a little undernourished. He does have a lot of bruising, I'm assuming from the fight. Some of these bruises look fresh, but with the state his body is in, it could just be that his body is just slow to heal."
"Well we were working him hard doing chores as punishment for getting into the fight, I guess we pushed him a little too hard too fast." His dad acted concerned. "He's a little rough around the house with his brother sometimes. Some of the bruises could have come from that. But what made him pass out and become so unresponsive?"
"Well he is really exhausted. Has he been sleeping very well?"
"Well he was complaining about nightmares," His dad answered.
"I'm pretty sure it wasn't just one thing. The exhaustion, dehydration, and the undernourishment combined is probably what made him pass out like that," the doctor explained.
"But Doctor, is he going to be okay? We just want to make sure he's okay and bring him home."
'Boy, Dad's laying it on thick. Surely the Doctor will notice that he's faking.'
The doctor obviously didn't see through his dad's façade. "I understand your concern, Mr. Boscorelli. We will keep Maurice one or two days for observation. We would like to get some more fluids in him, and we would like to make sure he gets some sleep. A nurse will be here shortly to move Maurice to a room upstairs. Then we will try to get him to eat something." With that the Doctor left the room, leaving Maurice and his Dad together.
"Well you really screwed up this time," his dad said in a low tone, leaning over the bed to get in Maurice's face. "You are such a wimp. Can't handle anything can you? Well listen to this, Son. The police and social services are coming to ask you some questions about what happened. You better say the bruises are from the fight, and nothing better be said about the lashes, the closet or anything that will get us in trouble. If you say anything they will take you away from us and away from everyone you know. They will put you into a foster family that doesn't give a crap about you. You may think you are treated badly now, but you will be treated even worse if you are taken to a foster family. You will be seen as a trouble maker and every family will treat you bad for causing trouble in your past family. Do you understand?"
Maurice just nodded his head.
Approximately ten minutes later the nurse came in. She first checked his IV and secured it to the side of his bed. "Now Maurice, my name is Janet. We are going on a little trip." She said quietly. She then proceeded to take him upstairs to his new room.
***************
Janet helped settle Maurice into his new room and bed. She changed his IV bag, since the other was almost empty. The whole trip Maurice had not said a word. Janet broke the silence. "Maurice I have some soup here I want you to try to eat." She brought the table over to the bed that had the tray on it. Maurice was so frightened by what his dad had said he only ate a couple of bites.
"Come on Maurice, you can eat a little more," the nurse tried encouraging the frightened boy.
"I'm not really that hungry," Maurice said in a small voice as he pushed the tray away from him.
The nurse frowned at him, "You need to eat. I tell you what, if you eat just two more spoonfuls of soup, I will take the rest away."
Maurice pulled the tray back and ate his two spoonfuls then pushed the tray back. The nurse kept her word and took the soup away. In just a few minutes she came back in the room and came over to the bed. "Maurice, there are some people outside that would like to talk to you about what happened. After they get through, I would like for you to take a nap, okay?" She smiled at Maurice making him think he could trust her.
Maurice just nodded his head, returning her smile. Although his was not half as big as the one he received in return.
"If you need anything, just press this button right here," Janet said showing him the nurses call button. Then she opened the door and motioned to someone out of Maurice's sight. Instantly two men in uniform and a lady in a business suit appeared at the door and entered Maurice's room.
"Hi, I'm Ms. Natalie Jeffers from Social Services, how are you feeling Maurice?"
He just shrugged. He wasn't about to talk to this lady, all he could think about was that they were going to put him into a worse family that he was in now.
"I'm a little worried about the condition you are in," Ms. Jeffers continued, "Your parents say that your bruises were sustained in a fight at school. Is that correct?"
Maurice nodded, too scared to say anything else.
"Okay, how about your eating habits? Have you been eating okay lately?"
Maurice shrugged, "I just haven't been hungry lately." 'Not to mention Dad keeps me so busy and so sore and tired I don't feel like eating.' He thought to himself.
"Let's talk about your home life? Come on Maurice you can trust me." Ms. Jeffers added when she saw Maurice already shaking his head no.
Maurice suddenly became very agitated and upset, "NO…NO! You just want to take me away. Don't let her take me away." Maurice yelled at no one in particular.
"It's alright, no one is going to take you away. I promise," Ms. Jeffers reassured him. Another lady in a business suit came in then and handed Ms. Jeffers a note. She read it silently and then turned to Maurice. "This is a note from your Principal, he confirms that you were in a fight on Monday and were bruised badly. I don't think that there is any reason to further investigate the bruises, but I will be by later to talk to you and your parents about the undernourishment and the exhaustion. I do hope you get better. Please stay out of fights for now on and take care of yourself." She said with a smile. Then she got up and left the room. One officer followed her out but another stayed behind. As soon as the others had left he came to Maurice's bed.
"So how are you feeling, really?" He asked.
"Fine, tired," Maurice admitted.
"Yeah, I bet." The officer stated.
"What are you doing here?" Maurice asked.
"Well I know you are afraid. I can see it in your eyes. I don't know if you are afraid of that Ms. Jeffers taking you away, or afraid of being alone. So I just figured I'll sit here until you go to sleep. That way you can be sure that nobody will hurt you."
"Why?" Maurice was curious but he could barely keep his eyes open. He was just so sleepy. Can I trust this guy?
"Well my job is to protect people. And you are the only one right now who needs protecting." The officer stated.
"Protecting people is what got me in trouble," Maurice claimed.
"Why don't you tell me what happened?" The officer asked. So Maurice did.
"My dad said I was stupid for taking the hits for another guy. But you know what, if the same thing happened tomorrow, I would probably do the same thing. I just can't stand to see little guys like that being taken advantage of." Maurice sighed sleepily.
"You'd be a great cop. That's what we do. We help those who are being taken advantage of." The officer stated. "We help the little guys, like you." The officer smiled and tweaked the end of Maurice's nose earning him a real smile and a giggle from the young boy, the first real smile and giggle that escaped the boy in a long while. "Would you like for me to get you're your parents to come in and stay with you until you fall asleep?"
"No, that's alright, but you can stay with me." 'Dad can't beat come in and threaten me with a police officer here, and maybe I won't have any nightmares knowing that a cop is here protecting me,' he thought to himself.
The officer smiled and nodded.
"Can you do me a favor?" Maurice asked.
"Sure, what do you need?"
"When I get to sleep don't let the nurses turn the lights off. The dark scares me." Maurice muttered low as if embarrassed at his weakness.
"Sure I'll tell Nurse Janet to make sure the light stays on at all times." The officer smiled sitting down in the chair next to his bed.
"Hey, you know what?" Maurice smiled, "Maybe when I get big, I'll be a cop and I'll protect little people like me too."
The officer turned to Maurice and smiled, "That would be great." He then leaned in like he was going to tell Maurice a secret, then he whispered, "I tell you what, if you ever need any help getting into police work just call me and I'll give you a hand." The officer lightly grabbed Maurice's hand with one hand and laid the other on Maurice's forehead. "Go to sleep little Maurice. Sweet dreams." Maurice started closing his eyes.
Maurice opened his eyes barely like he was already half-asleep and groggily asked, "What is your name?"
The officer chuckled, "Yes I suppose I didn't tell you that did I. My name is Glenn Hobart. But you can call me Glennie, all my friends do."
Maurice smiled and wearily shut his eyes, quickly falling into a deep and undisturbed sleep.
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I know it's short, but hopefully there will be more tomorrow!