Late Night Homecoming

There was a crunch of gravel. Molly glanced at Will accusingly; Marisa did not have a car, and Josh hadn't taken theirs; he had been with Tony, it would seem.

"You're going to catch it," Tony said sympathetically. The boys could see the lights on in the Graham house.

"Shit, how late do your folks stay up?" Dan asked. He wasn't concerned; it was no skin off his nose if his little brother's friend got caught out. He pulled his pickup up to the house, pulling around in a wide circle.

"Not usually this late," Josh muttered. He knew he was in for it. "Thanks for the lift, you two."

Josh hopped down from the truck. "See ya," Tony waved, scooting over to the seat he had just vacated. They drove away before he got up the steps.

He sighed. No use trying to sneak in. Even so, he opened the door quietly, stepped inside, and closed it behind himself again. He'd have to go through the kitchen to get to the stairs. He figured it was his dad who'd waited up for him, and was surprised when he found both of his parents waiting, sitting at the table silently. They did not jump up, nor did they start by accusing him of anything. They just sat there. Uneasy, he stopped in the doorway.

"Sorry I'm late," he muttered.

"Just come on in and have a seat," his mother said. She sounded torn up about something. He almost expected her to call him "baby" like she used to when he was small. He was taller than her now; taller than both of them.

Will was staring at the table, with his hands in front of his face; he hadn't acknowledged Josh's presence yet. "You didn't have to wait up," Josh said from the doorway, hoping he sounded apologetic.

"Yes, we did. Sit down." Will's voice was almost hoarse; Josh's eyes immediately flicked to the glass on the table. Great.

As he walked over towards the table, he became more alarmed. Still, they hadn't accused him of anything… but something awful hung in the air.

"Look, I can explain –"

"I don't want to hear about Tony or Marisa right now," Will interrupted him. Josh shut his mouth.

"Something has happened," Will said cryptically. "In the morning, you are going to pack a bag and we're going out on the boat for awhile, a few days, maybe a week."

"But, I've got school," he protested, confused.

"Forget school."

"Honey, you're gonna have to tell him why." His mother spoke up, but not taking his side; she was being more deferential than usual. Something had happened. Something awful had happened while he was out.

"Did…did somebody die?" Josh asked, his voice sounding higher and breathier than he was comfortable with. His grandfather had gone to the hospital for his heart just a month ago. They said he was going to be fine if he took his meds….

"No," Will shook his head. "Nobody's died." Well, a few cops in Memphis did, his mind supplied helpfully, but that wasn't what Josh was asking. "I think we just need some time to…to deal with some things. Some time away from here, with the open water. We can talk more on the boat. Right now, you are going to march upstairs and go to bed. We'll leave in the morning."

Will watched the uncertainty on Josh's face, and knew, just knew, that it was going to kill him to have to tell the truth tomorrow. For all his tough teenage rebellion recently, he still had a young, vulnerable face. A death mark was a heavy burden for anyone to bear, but Josh was young and had earned it through no fault of his own. If he was not careful, Lecter was going to tear his whole family apart without even setting foot in Florida. He was sure the doctor would find that amusing.

Josh saw that his father was suppressing some kind of horrible anger. He knew that whatever they weren't talking about was bad, but that he wasn't going to get any answers tonight. Reluctantly, he stood, and mumbled 'good night.' His mom got up and hugged him tight. Will stared at the table, still.

"Why didn't you tell him?" Molly asked as soon as Josh went upstairs.

"I promise I will tell him tomorrow," Will said, finally standing up. He refilled his glass, but this time with water. "That kind of news deserves sunlight and open spaces, not darkness right before bed. He deserves a good night's sleep."

Molly shook her head. "He's spooked already."

"So am I." Will stayed in the kitchen all night, with the lights on. Molly lay down on the wicker couch in the next room, where she could see the light, but eventually she drifted off.

Josh was not having a good night.

As soon as he'd seen the light coming up the driveway, he had a sinking feeling, figuring he'd get yelled at when he stepped in the door, accusations flying. But…the silent vigil he walked in on turned out to be worse. Something was definitely up. Something serious. They looked like someone had died. They looked scared. He was a bit jumpy, up in this part of the house all by himself. It was like being eleven again, when he'd refused to go to sleep without a light on in the room, and all his nightmares were filled with silent men looming out of the darkness. That had only lasted for a few months, but he wasn't likely to forget it.

The feeling he had now was not that blind heart-racing panic, but more an awful dread. As if he'd look up and find that some horrible creature had been contemplating him from the ceiling fan. Or the story he'd read, about the tsunami. For some reason, that image always stuck with him, of the tide going out, out, out, and all the people waiting on the strangely dry beach, curious and puzzled (because in the story, none of the children knew it was a sign of the coming tsunami). And then…the dread when they realize that the sea is returning, and a giant wave bears down on them. Nowhere to go; stranded on a beach, watching doom approach. That was what dread felt like to him. He'd seen the tide go out this evening, but he wouldn't see the wave til the morning. He wondered if he'd still be standing on the beach, or if the trip on the sailboat would be a chance to reach higher ground.

Either way, something was very wrong, and Josh did not sleep well.

Next up - some introspection on the boat. Josh is most likely recalling "The Big Wave" by Pearl S. Buck, but it's been quite a few years since he read it.