"You're right," concurred Frank. "I'm sorry. Not everything is my fault. I just feel like I've let you down when something happens to you. That's why I take the blame," Frank looked into Joe's angry eyes. "But this time, I really am. I said that awful thing at Callie's party. I didn't mean it the way it came out but I did say it. And when you told me we weren't brothers anymore, I got everyone, mom and dad included, to treat you like you were treating me. I thought that if you knew how you were making me feel, then you would at least talk to me."
"You don't get it," Joe said. "I didn't leave just because of that. I didn't even leave because the locks had been changed. I left because I couldn't take it any more."
"Couldn't take what any more?" Frank asked, longing to understand.
Joe closed his eyes and swallowed. There was so much. He had told Rick but it had been painful and it had taken a long time. How could he expect them to understand?
"Joe?" Fenton pushed softly as Callie left the room.
"Everything," Joe answered finally. "I tried so hard to be what you wanted me to be but nothing was right. I wasn't smart enough. I wasn't restrained enough. I never did anything well enough to make you proud of me."
"Joe, I've always been proud of you," Fenton declared. "Ask anyone: Sam, Ezra, and your friends. I've told them many a time how proud I am of my sons."
"Your sons," Joe repeated. "Not me. You were proud when we solved mysteries. But you were never proud just of me. If I brought home an A on a test I had studied weeks for you weren't proud because Frank had already aced the exam without trying.
"I made captain of the swim team and you never came to any of the meets. The only sports events you attended were the ones where both Frank and I played," Joe accused him. "I know. I always looked for you."
Fenton looked guilty. He hadn't realized it but Joe was right, he had only attended the games where both boys were playing. "I...I..." he stammered, unable to think of anything to say.
"I wasn't happy," Joe continued. "Sure I can help solve mysteries. I could probably solve them on my own but I don't want too. I never did. Following in your footsteps was the only way I thought I could make you proud of me. Make you respect me. And," he turned to Frank. "And it was a way to keep you with me. I always wanted to be like you but I couldn't. So I thought that if we became partners you wouldn't mind having me hang around with you even though I was younger and dumber. But at Callie's party, I found out I was wrong. You put up with me but you didn't want too."
"Joe..." Frank tried to interrupt but Joe had turned to his mother.
"You accepted me with all of my faults," Joe told her. "You listened when I needed to talk. You seemed to know most of the time when something was bothering me. You gave me strength to keep up the charade I was carrying on. But when you all changed the locks and refused to acknowledge me or let me in....I knew I couldn't do t anymore. I couldn't keep pretending to be someone I really wasn't when it didn't matter."
"Joe, you don't have to be someone you're not," Fenton said. Like Laura and Frank, he was shocked but he had to say something because if he didn't then Joe might construe their silence to mean they didn't want him and nothing could be further from the truth. "I don't want that. None of us do. You don't have to solve mysteries or do anything you don't want to do. I love you very much and I am proud of you. No matter what path in life you choose, that will never change."
"Really?" asked Joe in scornful disbelief. "I won first place in the Bayport Times photography contest and you never said a word. I showed you my picture before I entered it and all you did was ask if we had gotten around to checking some place you wanted investigated. When I won, I told you my picture was in the paper but you looked at the paper for awhile and then talked about the article on the front page. You never said a word about it. It was important to me," Joe continued. "Being a photographer is something I not only enjoy; but something I'm really good at."
"I...I thought you meant a picture of you was in the paper," Fenton stammered, remembering the occasion. "I looked at every picture but didn't see you so I thought you had been mistaken. I didn't want to hurt your feelings by telling you that you were wrong so I just ignored the issue and hoped you wouldn't think about it. Joe, son, I'm so sorry. You won? That's great!"
"Don't," begged Joe. "It was a long time ago."
"Eleven months and one week," Fenton stated. "Not that long."
"Seems like an eternity," Joe retorted softly.
"You don't have to be my partner," Frank put in at this point. "I don't care about that. True, you are the best one I could ever have but first, and foremost, you are my brother. I love you. I always have. If I didn't want you hanging around then why do you think I talked mom and dad into letting you join the Boy Scouts with me? They thought you were too young but I didn't want to join without you so I promised I would take care of you."
"Really?" Joe asked, the look in his eyes reminding Frank of Joe when he was nine and Frank had promised to take him trick or treating because their mom had twisted her ankle. Frank was supposed to have attended a party at the school only for kids in his grade and had been looking forward to it for weeks. But when he saw how dejected Joe was because no only could he not attend the party but now he couldn't go trick or treating, Frank forgot about the party and went with Joe. Their dad had arrived home earlier than expected and told Joe he would take him so Frank could go to the party but Frank had refused to desert Joe even though their Dad did end up going with them.
Joe must have sensed something of what Frank was thinking because, suddenly, he smiled. "I guess I was wrong about a lot of things," he said.
"You most certainly were," Laura agreed sternly. "But so were we," she added. "We should have been more observant. We should have listened more."
"Son, please come back home?" begged Fenton. "I promise, things will be different."
"I can't," Joe declined. "But I would like for us to have another chance at being a family."
"Why can't you?" Laura asked in confusion.
"It's that creep, isn't it?" demanded Frank.
"What creep?" Laura asked.
"Rick Tyrell," Fenton answered for Frank. "He's the jerk who fixed the restraining orders."
"What?" asked Joe.
"Your boss arranged permanently renewable restraining orders against us," Frank informed him. "He's some kind of control freak obviously."
"And you will be better off as far away from him as you can be," Fenton added.
"If he arranged the restraining orders against you then he did it to keep me from being hurt by you again," Joe defended Rick, leaping to his feet.
"Honey, its going to be okay," Laura said, jumping to her feet and rushing to his side. "Just come home with..."
"I am home," snarled Joe. "You're doing it again already," he accused them. "You want me to do things your way no matter how I feel. Well, it isn't going to happen. I like who I have become and I like my job. But more than that, I love Rick. And," he continued, "since you are demanding a choice: I choose him!" Joe stormed from the apartment leaving his family staring after him in shocked silence.
"You don't get it," Joe said. "I didn't leave just because of that. I didn't even leave because the locks had been changed. I left because I couldn't take it any more."
"Couldn't take what any more?" Frank asked, longing to understand.
Joe closed his eyes and swallowed. There was so much. He had told Rick but it had been painful and it had taken a long time. How could he expect them to understand?
"Joe?" Fenton pushed softly as Callie left the room.
"Everything," Joe answered finally. "I tried so hard to be what you wanted me to be but nothing was right. I wasn't smart enough. I wasn't restrained enough. I never did anything well enough to make you proud of me."
"Joe, I've always been proud of you," Fenton declared. "Ask anyone: Sam, Ezra, and your friends. I've told them many a time how proud I am of my sons."
"Your sons," Joe repeated. "Not me. You were proud when we solved mysteries. But you were never proud just of me. If I brought home an A on a test I had studied weeks for you weren't proud because Frank had already aced the exam without trying.
"I made captain of the swim team and you never came to any of the meets. The only sports events you attended were the ones where both Frank and I played," Joe accused him. "I know. I always looked for you."
Fenton looked guilty. He hadn't realized it but Joe was right, he had only attended the games where both boys were playing. "I...I..." he stammered, unable to think of anything to say.
"I wasn't happy," Joe continued. "Sure I can help solve mysteries. I could probably solve them on my own but I don't want too. I never did. Following in your footsteps was the only way I thought I could make you proud of me. Make you respect me. And," he turned to Frank. "And it was a way to keep you with me. I always wanted to be like you but I couldn't. So I thought that if we became partners you wouldn't mind having me hang around with you even though I was younger and dumber. But at Callie's party, I found out I was wrong. You put up with me but you didn't want too."
"Joe..." Frank tried to interrupt but Joe had turned to his mother.
"You accepted me with all of my faults," Joe told her. "You listened when I needed to talk. You seemed to know most of the time when something was bothering me. You gave me strength to keep up the charade I was carrying on. But when you all changed the locks and refused to acknowledge me or let me in....I knew I couldn't do t anymore. I couldn't keep pretending to be someone I really wasn't when it didn't matter."
"Joe, you don't have to be someone you're not," Fenton said. Like Laura and Frank, he was shocked but he had to say something because if he didn't then Joe might construe their silence to mean they didn't want him and nothing could be further from the truth. "I don't want that. None of us do. You don't have to solve mysteries or do anything you don't want to do. I love you very much and I am proud of you. No matter what path in life you choose, that will never change."
"Really?" asked Joe in scornful disbelief. "I won first place in the Bayport Times photography contest and you never said a word. I showed you my picture before I entered it and all you did was ask if we had gotten around to checking some place you wanted investigated. When I won, I told you my picture was in the paper but you looked at the paper for awhile and then talked about the article on the front page. You never said a word about it. It was important to me," Joe continued. "Being a photographer is something I not only enjoy; but something I'm really good at."
"I...I thought you meant a picture of you was in the paper," Fenton stammered, remembering the occasion. "I looked at every picture but didn't see you so I thought you had been mistaken. I didn't want to hurt your feelings by telling you that you were wrong so I just ignored the issue and hoped you wouldn't think about it. Joe, son, I'm so sorry. You won? That's great!"
"Don't," begged Joe. "It was a long time ago."
"Eleven months and one week," Fenton stated. "Not that long."
"Seems like an eternity," Joe retorted softly.
"You don't have to be my partner," Frank put in at this point. "I don't care about that. True, you are the best one I could ever have but first, and foremost, you are my brother. I love you. I always have. If I didn't want you hanging around then why do you think I talked mom and dad into letting you join the Boy Scouts with me? They thought you were too young but I didn't want to join without you so I promised I would take care of you."
"Really?" Joe asked, the look in his eyes reminding Frank of Joe when he was nine and Frank had promised to take him trick or treating because their mom had twisted her ankle. Frank was supposed to have attended a party at the school only for kids in his grade and had been looking forward to it for weeks. But when he saw how dejected Joe was because no only could he not attend the party but now he couldn't go trick or treating, Frank forgot about the party and went with Joe. Their dad had arrived home earlier than expected and told Joe he would take him so Frank could go to the party but Frank had refused to desert Joe even though their Dad did end up going with them.
Joe must have sensed something of what Frank was thinking because, suddenly, he smiled. "I guess I was wrong about a lot of things," he said.
"You most certainly were," Laura agreed sternly. "But so were we," she added. "We should have been more observant. We should have listened more."
"Son, please come back home?" begged Fenton. "I promise, things will be different."
"I can't," Joe declined. "But I would like for us to have another chance at being a family."
"Why can't you?" Laura asked in confusion.
"It's that creep, isn't it?" demanded Frank.
"What creep?" Laura asked.
"Rick Tyrell," Fenton answered for Frank. "He's the jerk who fixed the restraining orders."
"What?" asked Joe.
"Your boss arranged permanently renewable restraining orders against us," Frank informed him. "He's some kind of control freak obviously."
"And you will be better off as far away from him as you can be," Fenton added.
"If he arranged the restraining orders against you then he did it to keep me from being hurt by you again," Joe defended Rick, leaping to his feet.
"Honey, its going to be okay," Laura said, jumping to her feet and rushing to his side. "Just come home with..."
"I am home," snarled Joe. "You're doing it again already," he accused them. "You want me to do things your way no matter how I feel. Well, it isn't going to happen. I like who I have become and I like my job. But more than that, I love Rick. And," he continued, "since you are demanding a choice: I choose him!" Joe stormed from the apartment leaving his family staring after him in shocked silence.