Chapter 35: History of the Earring!
THE NEXT DAY!
Simon couldn't stop thinking about the conversation he had with Rob and his fiancée, Judy, yesterday. The more he thought on the subject they discussed, the more he would remember his friends. Eventually it brought him up to the attic.
When he was finally getting help after his suicidal attempt, Simon cleaned out all the things that reminded him of what he had become. He stored many of his old things in a big box and stored it up in the attic. As Simon looked inside the box he found a photo album. Without looking at any of the pictures, he places the book on a different box behind him. Simon continued to search the old box until he rediscovered his old leather jacket. He smiled as he remembered the day that Dave and his brothers bought it for him.
When he started to fish through on of his pockets he found a photo that was taken on the last day that he and his friends were together. Simon remembered the day it was taken. Brenda's parents were so thrilled that their daughter was brought back safe to them and were sorry that she had to say good-bye to her friends. So they took a few pictures of the five of them together. Brenda had sent him a copy to each of them two days before Brian ran in a store with a gun and had himself killed by the surrounding police. The news probably hit her like a tone of bricks, which caused her to jump off a cliff.
As Simon sat and stared at the picture, he would remember the good and bad times the five of them had on the Island. In the picture showed Tom and Renee holding each other in a lovingly manner, and Brenda had rapped her arms around both Simon and Brian in buddy like style. His thoughts of his friends were interrupted when his kids snuck up behind him and made him jump a mile high.
"Whatcha doin' Dad?" Vince said after walking up behind Simon.
Simon jerked; he quickly turned to his son. "Don't do that again, Vince!" He warned.
"Geez, I'm sorry." Vince said; his tone was both apologetic and sarcastic.
"Do you need any help, Daddy?" Mary said sweetly.
Simon sighed and surrendered to Mary's tender stair. "Not really, Honey. I was just looking through some old thing of mine."
"Who are these people?" Tom asked when he saw the picture Simon was holding.
"Oh, these are just some very good friends I once knew." Simon smiled faintly.
"Where are they now?" Vincent asked.
Again Simon frowned and let out a sigh of regret, "They are not anywhere now, Vince. They died a long time ago."
"Oh." Vincent had nothing else to say about that. He leaned up to the picture more and noticed something. "Gee Dad. This guy looks like the kid I told you about when we went camping."
"Yeah?" Simon smiled, knowing that it really was his old friend there with his son. He looked over and noticed that Mary had the same knowingly smile.
Tom reached for the photo album that Simon at placed on the box behind him. The youngest of the triplets started to look through all the pictures and really took interest at some newspaper clippings inside the album. To his surprise the pictures had his dad's face from when he was 10 years old on them and the reports talked about Simon Seville being kidnapped. He looked up at his dad and suddenly had a few questions he would like answered.
"Dad? You were kidnapped?" Tom asked in a shock looking at his father.
Simon froze and collected his thoughts on what his son said. He knew that this day would come soon, but he didn't expect it to happen today. Slowly he turned to face Tom and with gulp he answered his son. "Yeah...yeah, I was."
"Who would do such a horrible thing?" Mary squeaked.
"Some very bad people that wanted to hurt and control all the other children that was kidnapped like me." Simon carefully said.
"Maaan, if I ever got my hands on those people that hurt you, I would beat them up and make them beg for mercy." Vince said as he slapped his fist into his other hand.
Simon chuckled as he reached over and rubbed his sons head affectionately. "Thanks, Vince. But I don't think you'd want to mess with any of these bad people."
"Why not?" Whined Vince.
"Well, lets just say that they mean business, and, er...you really don't want to mess with them."
"Why?" Tom added as he too became interested in this conversation.
"Because kids, these people are really dangerous and evil. They took me far away from home, but fortunately I made some friends there and together we survived the horrible things these people did to us. Thanks to some of them I was able to come home again." Simon said with a blank expression.
"Did you get that earring on the Island dad?" Mary asked with a smile.
Simon looked up at her in shock. Then he realized that what Judy said could be true. His daughter really might have psychic abilities, and could sense people's thoughts. He could really see it now, just by looking into her eyes. "Yes, Mary. That is when I got my earring." He answered.
"Dad? When I grow up, can I get an earring just like you?" Vincent asks innocently.
Simon lets out a little chuckle before answering. "We'll see son, we'll see." He could almost hear what his mother would say, 'Chipmunks don't wear earrings! Look at what you started. How could you be a bad influence to your own children?'
The four of them looked through some more clippings in the binder before putting everything away. Simon was about to put back the jacket when he realized how badly it stunk. Not only it smelled of cigarettes and marijuana but also mildew as well. When he checked the pockets to see if there was anything else of value to him. He felt a small object and pulled it out. Simon gasped in shock when he noticed that there was still a small piece of marijuana in his jacket pocket. Before his kids could see it, he put it back in the same pocket. He decided to keep the picture, but he really felt that he didn't need the jacket anymore. Simon herded his kids back downstairs from the attic and headed for the garbage can in the garage.
Simon lifts the lid of the garbage can and throws the old jacket into it. Before he puts the lid back on the can, he ponders for a bit. Simon strokes his left ear and begins to remember the day he got his earring.
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ONE DAY, WHILE ON THE ISLAND!
The gang was at the smoke pit as usual they were all having a smoke and drinking too. Something they would often do to forget the horrors of what they witness and the depression of not being able to be with their families. At this point they didn't care if the Founders found out about their drinking problem or not, they just wanted to forget. All of a sudden Mary-Anne pulls out an earring from her pocket and looks at it admiringly.
"What is that, Mary?" Tom asks.
"It's an earring. Apparently it is a popular thing to wear these days in the outside world." Mary answered.
"How did you get it?" Brenda asks.
"It was given to me." She answers with a smirk. "Anyone care to try it on?" She then asks as she holds it out so everyone could see it clearly
Before anybody could speak out, Simon raises his hand. "Sure. I will."
Next thing Simon knew Mary was preparing him to receive a poke with a needle. She hesitates for a second. "This might hurt a bit." She admitted.
"Wait a sec," Simon held up his hand and took a huge gulp of Whisky from the bottle he held in his other hand. "Ok, do it now." Simon winced as his human friend poked his ear then put in his earring.
The next morning, a gong sounded around the campus it indicate that it was time to get up and get ready for the first classes in the day. Simon got up with a bit of a headache and a sore ear. He knew why his head hurt, but why does his ear throbbing? After getting dressed he went into the bathroom, he looked in the mirror and remembered why his ear was hurting. He stood there in shock for a while until Tom came by with a smirked on his face.
"You are so crazy." He said. "But I like it."
"If I ever get home, Dave will kill me!"
"Think of it this way," Brian said as he was straightening his tie. "You've been though an ordeal so bad that you needed a change in your life. Besides, it looks great with your new hairstyle."
Simon again looked at himself in the mirror and started to admire at his new image. "You guys are right. I think I'll keep it."
Simon wakes up from his daydream and places the lid back on the trashcan and heads back inside the house.