It wasn't long at all as it turned out. Later the next morning there was a knock on Tim's door. He opened it to reveal Mrs. Mac, the housekeeper. "Your mother is downstairs. She wants to speak to you."
Tim walked carefully into the main room. His father was nowhere in sight. His mother looked preoccupied by something on her phone. He stood, waiting for her to finish whatever message she was drafting. After a minute she noticed him standing there.
"Timothy. Your father and I are leaving. An opportunity came up in Egypt and we just can't miss it. Mrs. Mac will be by once a week to clean and bring groceries. Remember, school starts in three days. You will attend every day without fail. I except you to continue to achieve exemplary scores. Keep yourself and the house tidy. And do try not to be a nuisance to anyone. We will be out of cell rang for most of the trip so if you need us you may contact our secretary. Is that clear."
"Yes mom." Tim said.
"Good. We should be back in three to four weeks."
Tim stood, waiting for more instructions but the conversation was clearly over. Janet turned back to her phone and placed a call. She walked away, leaving Tim behind.
An hour later they were gone. Janet had noticed him lingering by the door and given him a strained smile and a goodbye, but Jack didn't look at him once. Tim tried not to feel upset. He should have known this would happen. He messed up. He became a distraction to his parent's work, so they needed to leave. They had a business to run, people who depended on them. They couldn't be expected to do their work and raise a child at the same time, especially one as needy and distracting as him. Tim sighed. He messes up, they leave, they come back, he tries harder, he messes up, and they leave again. That was how it worked. No use complaining about it, not that he had anyone to complain to.
The one thing, he realized, was he now had time to go Bat Watching in Gotham. It didn't matter what Batman said, Tim would do better and this time he wouldn't be caught. Anyways, it wasn't like he promised to stop in the first place. Tim smiled to himself. There may be an upside to being left behind after all.