Butch Cassidy and the Fresno Kid

Lying on the bed in the pool house, Carver looked up at the ceiling. In twenty four hours, he had gone from a dead end future in Fresno to living in the pool house to a mansion in Sherman Oaks. It was too much. The pool house was amazing. It was like a little apartment, complete with a fridge, treadmill, working whirlpool tub, and a big screen tv. Carver was afraid to close his eyes. Knowing his luck when he opened them, it would all be gone. For now, he was content at staring at the ceiling. Aaron had stopped by a few minutes ago and given him a run of the place. He said his wife would come by to say hello soon and that his sons would probably see Carver in the morning. Carver didn't know what to think of this insta-family. As he began to study the ceiling fan above him, he heard the door creak open and his instincts kicked in, his body shooting up. Before him stood a gangly tall boy around his age. With straight ark brown hair, the boy was a spitting image of Aaron, though the cuffed jeans and 'Chinatown' t-shirt gave him a fairly different image. The boy stared at Carver for a moment before offering a smile.

"So you're the mail order kid we sent out for."

Carver wrinkled his brow, confused at the boy's comment, but before he could question it, the boy continued. "Yeah…uh…witty quips are my downfall. I'm Jake." Carver nodded, remembering Aaron's comment about his son. This was the next Spielberg or something like that. "Carver," he replied, returning the boy's small smile. The two went into silence for a moment, but Jake didn't let it last long. He walked past Carver with a relaxed smirk on his face.

"Dude, this place is better than my room. Fridge, big screen tv? Congrats. You're the new favorite child. By Thursday, I'll probably be living in the garage."

"It's nice of your parents to let me stay here," Carver replied, turning his head to follow Jake as he scurried around the pool house, admiring Carver's new digs.

"I heard you're from Fresno."

"Born and raised."

"Cool. I've always wanted to go there," Jake replied with a beaming smile. Carver couldn't help but let out a laugh. The sound of it shocked him. He couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed. Jake eyed him curiously, awaiting a response. "Sorry…but you really don't want to go there. Not a fun place."

"So what'd you think of the Valley so far?" Jake asked, sitting down in the bean bag by the side of Carver's bed. It shocked Carver how open the kid was. It was like they'd been talking forever. Jake didn't hold anything back.

"The Valley?"

"Sherman. Every place has to have it's own nickname. I'm sure Fresno had one."

Carver laughed to himself and looked over to Jake. "Yeah…Death Row," he responded, leaning his head on his hand. Jake nodded slowly.

"How charming."

"Uh…it's nice. Beaches, girls, looks a whole lot better than home."

Jake's smile turned into a grin and he shook his head, rising from the bean bag he had been sitting on. "Yeah well every town has a dark side. Sherman's no different," he told Carver, pausing a moment before adding, "But I'm kind of the outsider so I wouldn't really know about the dark side. Not exactly the party boy. If you want the VIP scene, my brother Cam will probably be your savior."

Cam. Yeah, Aaron had told Carver about his older son, Cameron. Apparently he was the party guy of the two. But Carver didn't have a great desire to check out the party scene. He had never been that type of guy which led him to believe he wouldn't fit in here in Sherman Oaks. Carver had always been a loner in his own right. Even back in Fresno. He never really fit in anywhere, but he had learned to live with it. "I had enough parties back home," he told Jake, who beamed, happily.

"So what? You're an outsider too? Obviously a lot cooler and 'Boyz in the Hood' than me, but still an outsider?"

Carver considered the words for a moment. Obviously the word 'outsider' meant different things in the Valley and back home seeing as he and Jake seemed nothing alike. Yet the fact that they both didn't fit in made Carver feel instantly more at home, though he reminded himself this place wasn't his home. "I guess," he replied with a shrug.

"You're my Sundance kid." Carver opened his mouth to question the boy's words but was met with a quick response. "I don't suppose you've ever seen a little classic they called 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." Carver shook his head and Jake smirked.

"Well, let me tell you, Fresno, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

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