Chapter Eighty-Nine

Claire smiled as John slowly eased into the pool in the backyard, swimming over to him as he sat on the steps. "You're gonna swim today?" She grinned as he nodded, taking his hands in hers as she pushed off of the steps and they floated into the deeper part of the pool. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, resting her head against his as they treaded water. "I think Asher's a good guy, you just have to give him a chance."

John smiled, pulling her closer as thunder cracked overhead.

She laughed, looking up as rain started to fall on them. "It's raining!" She kissed John's lips, tipping them both underwater as lightning flashed overhead. She pushed her fingers into John's hair, feeling how the soft locks fanned out in the water like a merman's.

John kicked, pushing them deeper in the pool until Claire's back was against the bottom. He pulled away from her, holding his breath as he looked at her. He smiled, taking her hand as he pushed off of the bottom and propelled them both to the surface.

Claire giggled, watching as John climbed to the top of the rock tower beside the pool. "What are you doing?"

He smirked, jumping off of the tower and diving into the water. He curved his body as he hit the water, letting himself surface beside her.

Claire rolled her eyes, adjusting her bikini top from the waves he'd made. "Show off."

John stuck his tongue out at her, wrinkling his nose to show what he wanted to say.

"John! Claire! Come inside, I don't want you in the pool with the lightning." Clarissa called out the back door, shaking her head at the heartbroken looks they gave her. "None of that, now. I don't want you getting electrocuted if the lightning hits the pool." She grabbed a couple towels from the bin on the deck, wrapping them around the teens as they came inside. "John, go find some blankets and I'll get the electric one heating up."

John nodded, already fighting off shivers from being cold. He pulled a few blankets from the basket beside the TV running upstairs to get into some dry clothes so he didn't soak the couch. He stopped when he saw Asher beside his room speaking to Thomas, listening to the conversation.

"Asher, I know that you're the boy's only living family member in the U.S. and there for, have the legal right to take them to your home. But we would really like to keep them until they graduate." Thomas looked up at the taller man. "John and Dominic have become like the glue to this family, and I don't think we could stand it if someone were to take them from us."

Asher smiled, patting Thomas's shoulder. "Don't worry, I don't think those kids would willingly leave with me." He chuckled, nodding toward John at his back. "Besides, I think they've got it better here than they would at my place. There's a hell of a lot more to do here."

John stepped forward, pushing past the men to get to his room as his shivers became worse.

Asher shook his head, looking at how thin John was in his soaked swim trunks. "And you probably have the right foods to get fat on that bag of bones."

Thomas smiled, as John shut his door. "We're trying. He just can't keep most of it down yet." He looked up at Asher, remembering how healthy John had been a few months before. "That meth he was drugged with did a number on him."

Asher nodded, starting down the stairs with Thomas as they let the boy get dressed. "I know of a treatment that might help him." He handed Thomas a card. "It's called acupuncture therapy, I go every week to help with aches and pains, but I heard it helps with addictions too. Thought John might be able to give it a shot."

Thomas read the card over, taking another little paper from Asher to read more about it. "Little needles and pressure points, huh?"

Asher smiled, watching as Thomas carefully read the paper. "Yep, it helps balance everything out. I think it'd really help him."

Thomas nodded, handing the papers to his wife. "We'll talk to John about it, see what he thinks." He looked up as John came down the stairs, launching himself into the blankets as Clarissa wrapped the heating blanket around him. "We'll let him get warmed up first though." He chuckled as Mary placed a cup of steaming coffee in his hands and Jan turned on the TV for him. "I swear that kid is spoiled rotten."

Asher laughed, noticing John's eyes widen as looney tunes came on. "Well, it took him long enough to become that way." He sighed at the guilt of what he'd done. "I just wish I could have taken him when I had the chance."

"I think he'll come around. He just needs time." He remembered how long it'd taken John to get used to him. "It took weeks for John to warm up to me -and I stayed in the hospital with him while he was healing up from his punctured lung."

Asher smiled, the resemblance to John showing in his face. "Well, it might take a little longer with me, seeing as how I'm an identical triplet."

Thomas chuckled, thinking about how odd it would be to have two more of himself running around. "I'll bet you they'll warm up sooner than you think. Those boys see actions more than appearances most of the time." He shook his head as he saw the group of teens looking in the fridge and grabbing all sorts of foods from inside. "Eat all you want, but no more Bender Bullion. That stunk the whole house up last time."

Dominic laughed tossing an apple at Thomas's head. "You got it Dad."

Asher looked at Thomas, knowing now that the boys had fully accepted him. "They call you 'dad?'"

Thomas nodded, taking a bite of the apple. "They call Clarissa mom too."

"You're a real family, aren't you?"

"Unconventional family, but yes." Thomas looked down at the apple, noticing that the fruit was died blue on the inside. "Alright? Who injected food coloring in this?"

They all pointed to Kaylie, making the teen smirk. "I don't have any idea what you're talking about."

Thomas rolled his eyes, noticing the blue on her fingers. "What am I supposed to do with you?"

Kaylie shrugged, taking a pie out of the fridge and placing it on the counter. "You'll find something." She cut a slice from the pie, warming it up in the microwave before taking it out to John. "Maybe he'll eat this."