"You should have been watching him!"

Mrs. Sanchez's words still echoed in the man's head. Even though the veterinarian and her daughter had left about two hours ago, the words hadn't left his mind. It still felt as though that woman had a presence here. He couldn't so easily shake it off, no matter how hard that he tried. Despite him trying to let it go, he could still feel himself really thinking about what the woman had told him and his wife.

Mr. Tabootie was a little pissed off at first. He felt like the woman must have had a lot of audacity to accuse them of such things. It wasn't like she was the only one who was trying to teach her kid about the real world. He himself had Rudy come to his shop to work once in a while, like a little apprentice. He did care about his son's well being. He wanted him to succeed in life. That was why he would try to get him to do things other than just art.

But when he really thought about Mrs. Sanchez's words, something else began to sink in. Mrs. Sanchez did teach her daughter about dangerous chemicals and what to avoid. And while Mr. Tabootie did ensure that Rudy knew what cleaning supplies to use when he mopped the floor, perhaps he didn't go into as much detail on what to avoid getting in his face and why. He was certain that he at least said something. But what if he didn't do it enough?

He shook the thought out of his head. In the end, he still did his best to teach his son, as did his wife. Mrs. Sanchez had no right to call them out like that. Rudy didn't seem upset with them, so why should they keep beating themselves up? It wasn't that he was happy with what happened. He did plan on trying harder to ensure that Rudy had less of a chance of hurting himself. But he and his wife did not need that scolding from Mrs. Sanchez. She had her own daughter to deal with. Let her deal with her first.

Mr. Tabootie tried to adjust himself in the chair as he wanted for Mrs. Tabootie to make them both some hot cocoa. Not something he would normally drink, but considering the tension they were both sharing because of Mrs. Tabootie, it did seem rather appropriate. Neither of them wanted to visit their son when they're emotionally distressed due to that visit.

After all, what if they made things worse? What if it affected the way that they talked? What if it caused them to snap at Rudy? What if...

Okay, so things might not be quite that bad. But still, their son was dealing with much already right now. It would be unwise to burden him with other things. Rudy didn't need to know about this 'chat' with Mrs. Sanchez.

But despite his anger, Mr. Tabootie couldn't bring himself to be too upset with Mrs. Sanchez for long. Despite noticing what he felt were hypocritical statements, he couldn't deny that she made at least some valid points. He and his wife did both believe they were doing a good job with raising their son. But some things could still be improved. Perhaps they really should lock up a few areas so that Rudy couldn't hurt himself. Rudy wasn't really that oblivious, but he did sometimes try to take matters into his own hands and that...hadn't always worked out. Perhaps the child locks were for the best.

But both he and his wife were a little reluctant in that. In the past, they demonstrated great trust in Rudy and he usually knew how to handle himself. Like leaving him at the Roman Colosseum, they both trusted Rudy enough for him to know how to stay out of trouble and to come find them. It was probably for this reason that Rudy trusted them right back.

So what would happen if things were to change? If they did get the child locks, would that affect how Rudy saw them? Would he feel betrayed because of it? Would he think that they didn't trust him anymore?

And yet he couldn't deny the woman's words. He couldn't deny what Officer Lou had told them, and Dr. Bendor. They could have stopped Rudy from hurting himself if they just had those stupid child locks in place. Or if one of them were watching him. He knew that just because something worked before, that didn't always mean that it would keep on working. Maybe they should try something different to ensure the safety of their son.

He turned his head as he saw his wife coming towards him slowly. She was holding the plate with the two cups of hot cocoa on it. Steam rose up visibly in the air. Mr. Tabootie adjusted himself on the couch to allow himself to reach over and grab the cup of hot chocolate. As his wife took hers, she joined him on the couch. He made sure that she had enough room.

The two of them silently sipped the hot beverage. But although it tasted good and the sweetness did help them feel slighlty better, it wasn't enough to fully wash away the tension. They both couldn't forget their conversation with Mrs. Sanchez. They both found themselves locked in thinking about that, and the consequences that would surface as a result if the authorities...

No, it should be fine. If they were careful enough, if they figured out a way to turn things in their favor, maybe it would all be okay. It would just be hard, but not impossible to do. Perhaps if those people saw that Rudy still loved them, still cared about them, if they saw the lengths they went to in order to aid Rudy, maybe the legal system would give them a fair chance.

Mr. Tabootie frowned at this. No, things wouldn't be that simple. Something told him to prepare for the fight of his life. He and his wife alike. And if they could take anything from their encounter with Mrs. Sanchez, it's that they would likely have to do this on their own. He and Mrs. Tabootie would need to be prepared. For as he learned first hand...

Life wasn't always fair.

sss

"H-Hey, who's there...?"

"It's me. It's okay. I..."

"You scared me."

"...I'm sorry."

Mrs. Tabootie hung back and watched as her husband went over to speak with Rudy. They decided to stop sitting around in their house to wait until they settled down. The truth was, they were a bit shaken up, and would remain that way for a while. But they both knew that Rudy was waiting for them and, well, here they were.

But things were a little different this time around. The doctors were...not necessarily mean, but slightly more accusatory. They didn't try to treat them harshly or anything. It was just the overall vibe that they were getting. Something about the way they looked at them, or the way they stared, felt right.

But what really got them was how more on edge Rudy seemed. He didn't look as bad yesterday. In pain and wanting comfort. But today seemed worse than that. It had taken her a while to realize it but after listening to the recent exchange between Rudy and Joe, it dawned on her.

The psychological impacts of being blind, especially for a little artistic boy like Rudy, were finally showing up.

Rudy might have been fine the other day. He was still adjusting to everything, still letting it all sink in what happened. It was like he was trying to pass it off as a one day thing and wanted to believe that he would be good to go very soon. But now that it was Sunday, two days after he was hurt, it seemed to finally hit him that this blindness would last for a while. He was finally realizing what this meant, and now he was letting emotion start to better his logical judgment.

Their son didn't really scream at them or anything. It was still clear that he was uneasy, often looking around at the slightest of sounds. He was straining to see them, straining to see where he was. There were even times when he would grip the sides of the bed as though he thought he was falling down. Without being able to see, it was difficult for him to fight off dizzy spells and get a sense of grounding.

The sight of this was difficult for the large woman to watch. She put her hand to her mouth as she watched Rudy show signs of fear and startlement more easily than before. Joe managed to keep him calm. But no matter what he or she did for Rudy, it wouldn't speed up the healing process. Rudy would be stuck like this for a while. What did the doctors say? A few weeks at best? It was little wonder why Rudy was starting to get emotionally worked up.

"Why can't I see anything? Why isn't my sight back yet? Why isn't..." Rudy started to drone.

"Rudy, it's going to take a while for your sight to come back." Joe told his son. He reached down and gently patted Rudy on the head. As he caressed his hair, he said softly, "Now try to settle down. You'll only make things worse if you keep squirming about, son."

Mrs. Tabootie watched the scene sadly. She wished that she could say something to help her son feel better. But at the moment, that would be a difficult task. She had her own thoughts wandering around in her head and she was having a hard time fighting it off. As her son and her husband spoke, she tried to sort out her own thoughts.

Although her husband wanted to believe that they could just explain away their actions as 'good intentions', even if they prove that they do love their son, that their son loves them, she knew that this wouldn't really save them in the end. She tried to be cheery. She tried to be optimistic. But even she knew that, when all was said was done, that was going to do them jackshit. She knew that they screwed up and they were going to have to deal with the consequences.

She could feel a tear forming in her eye. She wiped it away before her husband could see it. She didn't want to upset up. He was already trying so hard to keep Rudy happy and calm. She didn't want to ruin that by reminding him of the harsh reality that laid before them.

She could still hear Mrs. Sanchez's words echoing in her head. The thought of that made her freeze up and she tried to keep her mind from getting too dizzy. She did eventually manage to get herself under control, but she didn't know how long that would last. Even several hours later, that woman's voice still stung her horribly.

But she could still understand Mrs. Sanchez's anger. She was a mother, with a child of her own. She had the same parental fears as they did. She couldn't really remain that upset with her. She couldn't deny that the woman made a lot of sense in her words, in what she said.

And it was Mrs. Sanchez that finally forced Mrs. Tabootie to accept the fact that there was no reset button. There was no escaping it. They messed up and now, the consequences were needing to be dealt with. It was just a matter of time before the police would want to talk to them more. They already spoke to their son. It would soon be their turn.

Mrs. Tabootie looked up when she heard Rudy calling out to her.

"Mom? Are you there?"

Mrs. Tabootie struggled to smile before she made her way over towards her son. She tried to be slow and steady, not wanting to startle him. He was already tense enough as it was. She soon stood right next to him, smiling down at him. Remembering that he could not see, she reached out and touched his arm lightly.

"M-Mom... Is... Is everything going to be okay?" Rudy sounded so desperate. "Are we all going to go home soon?"

Mrs. Tabootie exchanged a worried glance with her husband. She then looked down at Rudy and stroked his hair gently, whispering as comfortingly as possible. "Yeah... I-It won't take long. And soon we'll all go home and things will be how they were before." She sniffled once. She struggled hard to sound convincing. "It'll be like nothing happened. I promise that to you, Rudy."

Suddenly a voice called out, startling the Tabooties.

"I'm afraid that's going to be difficult."

Mrs. Tabootie reluctantly forced herself to tear her eyes away from her son as she watched a familiar man approach them. She could practicall feel her husband's eyes narrow as they both recognized him as Dr. Bendor, the same doctor that they had spoken to before. The first one who made it apparent that legality might get involved.

Naturally, Joe wasn't too pleased to see this man here right now. Especially when they were trying to spend some time with their son. Mrs. Tabootie said nothing. But a part of her did feel as though Dr. Bendor should have waited. What was wrong with giving them a bit of time alone together? Why did he have to come right now, of all times?

Regardless, she said nothing as the man walked further in. Each step was slow and almost painful to wait for. The doctor held a stern look on his face. There was a hint of regret in them. But feeling some regret wasn't going to be good enough to stifle any discomfort she and her husband were feeling right now. Ultimately, it would depend on what this man did.

And both of them already had a less than pleasant idea on what that was going to be.

"I do apologize for walking in on you like this. But I did want to speak with you." Dr. Bendor stated. He held one hand against himself and the other he raised up. He made a slow motion towards the two parents. He took note of their displeased looks, especially Mr. Tabootie's, but he still did not cave in. "I know that you want to spend more time with your son. Don't worry, you will. There's still some time left. But I wanted to speak with you about..."

"Can it just wait?" Mr. Tabootie hissed softly.

Dr. Bendor stared with slightly widened eyes at the man and father of Rudy whirling towards him. He seemed to freeze at those eyes, piercing right through him. If Dr. Bendor had anything to say in that moment, he wasn't able to express it well enough. He only tripped over his own tongue several times before he just fell silent.

Mr. Tabootie just glared at him before he began to walk towards the doctor. His whole body had a sort of tense feeling to it. Even Mrs. Tabootie felt uncomfortable. She stayed silent as she moved her arm around Rudy's shoulder, her eyes staring intently at Joe and Dr. Bendor.

"I know what you're trying to do. And I have to say, I'm appalled that you're trying to pull this in front of our son." Mr. Tabootie's voice was low and hissy-like. He might not be towering over the man, but it certainly felt like it. "Keep whatever you were going to say and shove it..."

"This won't change anything, you know." Dr. Bendor warned. The doctor had gotten over the initial shock of Mr. Tabootie cornering him like this and was now starting to push back. Mrs. Tabootie hoped that her husband would be careful. The last thing any of them needed was to create bigger issues.

Mr. Tabootie, however, didn't look like he wanted to back down so easily. He just gritted his teeth and hissed softly. "Things would change if you would just lay off our backs. It was an accident. Just leave it at that."

Mrs. Tabootie looked at her husband worriedly. "Joe..." She whispered softly.

"M-Mom...? What's going on?" Rudy whimpered softly.

Mrs. Tabootie stroked her son's hair lovingly. "It's all right, dear. It'll be all right." She whispered to him. She turned her attention back over to the doctor and her husband. She gritted her teeth as she tried to keep herself as calm as possible, especially for Rudy's sake.

But that was going to be a difficult task, considering her husband and the doctor were moving around in circles like vultures, or rather, that's what they practially were doing inside of her head, in her panicking imagination. In reality, they were just staring at each other, glaring, each trying to stand the other down. But in the end, it would be hard to predict exactly what was going to happen.

Dr. Bendor, despite Mr. Tabootie's slightly hostile stance, seemed little more than just miffed. He hadn't attempted to engage him too much, and at the same time, he hadn't really backed off. It would seem that she finally met someone who could match her husband's stubbornness.

"If you don't mind, would you please back off? You don't need to make this harder than it already is." Mr. Tabootie spoke calmly, although his voice was laced in venom.

Dr. Bendor didn't react to that venom. He just simply cocked up an eyebrow slightly as he said, "Please, you can't just spare a few minutes? You don't want to hear what I have to say?"

Mr. Tabootie bared his teeth for a moment before shaking his head. "Not now, no. Aren't you supposed to be following our wishes? This is a hospital, isn't it?" The doctor nodded his head slowly. Mr. Tabootie took a step closer, nearly getting his face against the doctor's. "Then why don't you just leave? Don't we have the right to some privacy?"

"Indeed, you do. Usually." Dr. Bendor merely adjusted himself as he moved back one step to put some space between him and the angry father. "But there are situations where I am allowed to intervene. I know you must think me the bad guy, but believe me, I don't like this anymore than you do."

Dr. Bendor's expression managed to remain calm to some degree. His voice betrayed less than Mr. Tabootie's did. But there was still something about his voice that was unsettling. To anyone listening, that might not be too apparent. But Mrs. Tabootie already had a really good idea on what the problem was going to be.

She hoped that she was wrong.

"It'll be easier if you just cooperate and listen to what I have to say." Dr. Bendor stated. He turned his head until his eyes met with Mrs. Tabootie. She jolted slightly upon realizing she was being stared at. "I want you and Rudy to listen to this as well. It's something I feel all of you should know, so that you can..." He turned his head to one side, letting out a small exhale. "...be ready."

Mrs. Tabootie gulped at this. She could feel Rudy's hand tighten around her arm. She held onto him with one of her large arms more firmly as she bit her lip. She had no idea what the doctor was going to say, but a part of her had a feeling that she wasn't to like it. Surely it must have to do with...

She wasn't able to finish her thought when Mr. Tabootie let out a low growling statement, "What's that supposed to mean...?"

Dr. Bendor simply stared at him, occasionally looking over at where Mrs. Tabootie and Rudy were. "Sir, you can't tell me that you and your wife don't know. I know that I told you about this, as did Officer Lou." He raised his head slightly up. "And your son knows, too. I spoke with him the other day. I..."

"You did what?!" Mr. Tabootie looked like he was ready to grab onto the doctor's throat. He managed to stop himself in time, which Mrs. Tabootie was relieved with. Mr. Tabootie drew in a long, deep breath to try to settle himself down a little. He bit his tongue firmly to keep form yelling a second time. "What...exactly did you talk to him about?"

"You already know about this, Mr. Tabootie. Officer Lou must have said something." Stated the doctor.

Mr. Tabootie didn't say anything. He just continued to glare, although his expression softened up slightly.

Mrs. Tabootie could feel her heart skipping a beat at this. She had nearly forgotten about that. Indeed, Officer Lou did tell them that they were going to question Rudy. The stress with their neighbors and Mrs. Sanchez and the legality thing had made her forget that one critical detail.

She glanced down at her child. Rudy's eyes might not be visible from underneath those bandages. But she could still read the guilt on his face. That would explain why he hardly spoke. He might already know what's going on, but wanted to just deny that it was happening at all. He must feel horrible about whatever he told Officer Lou. She could even feel him staring at her as though to plead with her not to be angry.

She tried her best to smile at him. Well of course she wouldn't be angry with him. It wouldn't be his fault. He was put under pressure by this doctor and his police comrade to spill out some information. She did at least have confidence that he managed to sway them just a little. Maybe make them realize that he didn't want to leave them. Surely, that would be worth something, right?

...right?

"What did our son tell you?" Mrs. Tabootie asked, unable to remain silent for much longer. Dr. Bendor turned to stare at her silently. She continued, "You claim to have spoken with our boy. What exactly did he tell you?"

Mr. Tabootie chimed in. "Did he tell you to back off?"

Dr. Bendor shook his head slowly. "I'm afraid not." He moved forward slowly, making a few motions with his hands. "It was a rather...interesting conversation, nonetheless."

"What did he tell you?" Mr. Tabootie hissed. "How exactly did this conversation go? Did you force him to speak?"

"I can assure you, Mr. Tabootie, that I did no such thing." Dr. Bendor raised his hands up, quietly trying to settle down the pissed off man. "We were just having a chat, like you were informed beforehand. Now..." Dr. Bendor folded his arms behind his back. He straightened himself up, as though to make himself look a bit more serious. "Can I get started?"

Mr. Tabootie was about to say something, but a glance at Mrs. Tabootie appeared to change his mind. Mrs. Tabootie silently reminded him that he wasn't going to do any favors by being too aggressive. This caused Mr. Tabootie to give a soft, forced exhale as he glared back at the doctor. "...all right then..."

"Thank you for your cooperation." Dr. Bendor cleared his throat as he adjusted himself once more. "Now... to get started..."

The doctor began to relay the situation.

sss

Mr. Tabootie could feel his body shaking. Every word that came out of this doctor's mouth made him want to punch him even more. It was only the fear of getting arrested and not being there for Rudy or for his wife that held him back. That didn't mean that he stopped trying to look physically intimidating, though. He tensed himself up and flexed his fingers somewhat eagerly, giving this doctor warning that he was crossing the line.

But the doctor just kept going. What pissed off Mr. Tabootie was not that any of these things were lies. Contrary, the three incidents that he brought up were things that he did recall happening.

Instead, what pissed him off is the fact that he went to Rudy, his son, for this. This man interrogated his lone, single child for this information instead of just talking to him and his wife. That was something that angered him about the police officer, too. He couldn't believe that Officer Lou decided that it was fit to interrogate a small child. Sure they would claim they had their reasonings, but that didn't change the fact that it made him sick as heck about it.

Now here he was, trying to tear into them once more. Bringing up these things and asking them more in detail about them. The man was making them respond to his questions with Rudy in sight. Joe had no idea which was worse: the fact that the doctor was asking these questions, or the fact that he was asking them within earshot of Rudy.

During the process, he could tell that Rudy was growing uncomfortable. He could hear him whimpering softly. He could practically feel the guiltiness rising in the air, radiating from the young child sitting in the hospital bed. He could see, out of the corner of his eyes, Rudy adjusting himself on the bed uncomfortably. Seeing him moving around like that made the man's heart tighten, and gave him more reason to be pissed off at the doctor.

"And further more..."

"Oh will you just shut up already?!"

Mr. Tabootie was getting sick of Dr. Bendor's malarky at this point. He hadn't slowed down much; it was like he was releasing an avalanche of words nonstop. It was getting rather irritating, and it made him shift uncomfortably.

Mr. Tabootie continued, "Can't you see you're upsetting our boy?" He motioned to his wife, who continued to hold and cradle their child. "Don't you have any sort of..."

"Yes, I know. I just thought it would be best if he heard this too. After all, it's not like he wasn't going to find out later." Dr. Bendor said, his voice somewhat casual. "What's the difference if he figured it out now or later?"

Mr. Tabootie ground his teeth hard at this. "That sort of answer is bull dandruff and you know it, you a..."

Dr. Bendor raised his hand up swiftly, cutting the man off. "Please, no need to talk in such a manner."

Mr. Tabootie growled at this, but remained silent.

Dr. Bendor slowly lowered his hand. He watched the two parents, clearly waiting to see if they had anything else to say. Once he was certain that they had nothing more to say at the moment, he cleared his throat and began to continue. "Now as you know, the law will not allow things to just slip away like this. It doesn't really matter how much I or Officer Lou would love to just give you the benefit of the doubt and let you go. That isn't the way things work. I hope you know that."

Mrs. Tabootie called out, "B-But we love our son!"

"I know you do. That's why this is so difficult for me to do." Dr. Bendor looked at the woman sympathetically. Mr. Tabootie released a harsh growl at this, granting him another glance from the doctor. "I know you probably don't believe me. But I speak to you the truth. Neither me nor Officer Lou wanted to do this."

"Then why are you? Why can't you just leave us alone?" Mr. Tabootie demanded, forming tight fists with his hands. After a few moments of silence, he called out in a louder voice, "Answer me, you jerk!" He hadn't meant to say that.

But it didn't smean to bother Dr. Bendor. "The law is the law. You should know this."

"But it isn't fair! Why can't this just..."

"You know that it can't be forgotten. I told you, I can give you time. Delay it for weeks if I'm lucky. But outside of that, there's little that I can do. The police are already..."

"Because you interrogated our son!"

Mr. Tabootie was trying really hard not to get too pissed off. He was trying as best as he could to keep his mouth shut a little more. He didn't want to provoke things into being worse. He didn't want to destroy whatever chance he and his wife had in staying here longer, or even overturning this entirely. Mr. Tabootie took in a slow, deep breath and managed to stage off another yelling...for now, at least.

Dr. Bendor took pause for a moment, giving the father some more time to cool down for a bit. Then he said, "I can understand why that would make you angry, Mr. Tabootie. But it needed to be done. We needed to be sure, so that we can figure out the right path to take."

Mr. Tabootie replied, "I don't know why you have to keep this up. R-Rudy did say that he cared about us, didn't he? Why doesn't..."

"Because of legality. You know that." Interrupted Dr. Bendor. "Look, I spoke with you and your son because I was hoping that there would be something that could be presented in the court in your favor."

Mrs. Tabootie spluttered. "Th-The court?! D-Do they have to..."

Dr. Bendor nodded firmly. "If you want a chance to stay with your son..." Dr. Bendor took a moment to look at the startled family. His expression softened up slightly to show some sympathy. "Yes, it has to be done. And so far, I'm afraid that you haven't presented me with enough." His eyes closed softly. "The three instances that your son told me is more than enough to convict you."

Mr. Tabootie gritted his teeth. He knew that he wasn't going to like whatever the man would say next. But regardless, he still forced himself to ask that dreaded question. "Convict us of what?"

Dr. Bendor's expression hardened up. His next words sent chills through the Tabooties' spines. "Child negligence."