Walking softly into Johnny's bedroom, Mike noticed something wasn't quite right with Johnny. As much as he could, his body was trying to move and he was mumbling something, although what, Mike couldn't say as it wasn't in English. Gently sitting on the bed, Mike rubbed John's shoulders, trying to soothe him.

"Shhh, it's okay Johnny. You're safe," Mike softly assured John. "Time to wake up. Come on, that's it."

It took a few minutes of encouragement, but slowly, Johnny opened his chocolate brown eyes. Blinking rapidly, his heart began to race. Seeing the confusion and fear flickering in his eyes, Mike inwardly sighed.

"Hey, it's okay. You're safe. We're at your Uncle Roy's and Aunt Jo's," he informed John.

Calming down slightly, Johnny breathed in, "Uncle Mike?"

"Yep, kiddo, it's me," he smiled, relieved at being recognized. "What were you dreaming about?"

"Box. Stuck there."

"What do you mean?" Mike was confused. He had heard bits and pieces of what had happened at what was called 'The Ranch' where Johnny had lived upon being orphaned, but he hadn't heard about this.

"Was put in box," Johnny softly said. "Put in at morning. Stay until almost morning. Was bad again."

"You were put in a box for a day?" Mike asked, horrified.

Nodding slightly, tears welled up in John's eye, "I try to be good."

"What did they say you did wrong?"

"I fall sleep in church," John looked even more downcast and almost worried.

Aghast, Mike couldn't think of what to say in response for several seconds. Instead, he just stared at John and wondered at what other horrors he had been subject to. Regaining his balance, Mike took a deep breath.

"You should never have been punished for falling asleep in church," Mike strongly stated. "The way they did so was very bad as well. You do not have to worry about that here. Okay?"

"'K," mumbled Johnny.

Having listened in from the doorway, Roy came and sat down on the other side of the bed.

"Aunt Jo and I do have some rules," he told John. "We do expect you to follow them. If not, you may lose TV time, dessert, or maybe in time out. Time out is when you are put in a corner for ten minutes. We may also send you to your room for a bit. But I can promise you, we will never hurt you like those people did."

Sniffing, Johnny nodded.

"Why don't we get you washed up for dinner?" Roy suggested. "Aunt Jo made lasagna for you to try."

"Okay," John meekly said.

After giving him a hug, Roy tussled his hair and said, "Alright, let's get you out of bed. I've got some things I want to set up in the bathroom for you to help you out."

Setting things up in the bathroom to make things easier for Johnny, Roy again stepped back to allow Mike to help Johnny. Despite the overwhelming urge to be the only caretaker for Johnny, Roy realized that would be dangerous. With no way of knowing how long this condition would last or how long it would take for Johnny to regain some independence, regardless of his mental age, he knew that by doing so, it would set a precedent. One that could lead to his own exhaustion, not to mention his family would suffer as well.

Gathering his thoughts as Mike and Johnny came out of the bathroom, Roy followed behind them into the kitchen. As Mike got John settled into a spot, Roy helped set things up for dinner. Within a few minutes, Chris and Jenny were seated as well and the meal was ready. Saying a quick grace, Roy began dishing out Jo's lasagna.

"Have you ever had lasagna?" Chris wanted to know as he reached for a piece of garlic bread.

"No," John shook his head, watching as Roy finished cutting up his piece for him.

"It's really good!" Jenny informed him. "It has noodles, meat, cheese, and sauce."

Putting the first bite in his mouth cautiously, Johnny smiled widely.

"This good!" he mumbled around the bite.

Laughing, Jo smiled as she told him, "I'm glad you enjoy it, sweetie. Next time, can you finish the mouthful before talking?"

Down casted, Johnny nodded.

"Don't worry about it," Mike told him with a twinkle in his eye. "I've seen your Uncle Roy do the same thing when he was working."

Feeling better, Johnny smiled slightly before focusing on his meal. Never before had he tasted anything so good. Yes, the things Aunt Jo had brought for him to eat when he was in the hospital were really good, but this was even better! Before he knew it, the lasagna was gone. Disappointed, and still hungry, Johnny drank the milk through the straw quickly.

Noticing that Johnny had completed his meal, Roy asked if he wanted seconds. Surprise flashed across John's face.

"Do you want some more?" Roy patiently asked. "It's okay. If you didn't notice, Chris and Jenny are having seconds. Uncle Mike will be too, as will Aunt Jo and I."

"I really have more?" John nearly whispered, shocked. Even with his parents, second helpings were rare.

"Yes," Jo said kindly. "If you are hungry, just let us know. If it is too close to a meal, we might ask you to wait, but otherwise, we can get you something."

With everyone looking at him, Johnny started squirming as much as he could.

"Weird."

"What is?" Jenny wondered.

"Only three meals with parents. Less after," John explained. "Sure I can have more?"

Dumping another portion on his plate, Roy patted his hand, "It is more than fine. Eat up."

Smiling, Johnny waited as Roy cut up his portion and again dug in. Everyone had to concentrate hard on their own meal as thoughts of not always getting enough to eat were swirling in their heads. It was also difficult looking at Johnny because despite having more manageable size pieces of lasagna and a large handle spoon to scoop up the pieces, he was still managing to get very dirty.

Oh, well, Jo shrugged mentally. I'd rather have John be messy than have him get upset over having someone having to help feed him. Even at this young age, independence is so important to him and I just don't have the heart to take away any of it. Despite it meaning a major clean-up detail, both in the kitchen and with Johnny. Although, I guess that will fall to Roy and, or Mike.

Roy and Mike were just glad to see some of the happiness come back to Johnny. Both knew how hard it was for the youngest member of their family to have so much taken away from him. It didn't matter if it would mean more work later on for them, as long as Johnny was happy. Although, as they found out later, trying to clean up the mess left from supper was not as easy as they had hoped.

By the time the sink bath was done, Mike and Roy weren't sure who was more exhausted, them or Johnny. Knowing it had been a long day, neither of them could fault John, however. Tucking him into bed, Roy showed Mike out as Joanne and the kids said good night to Johnny. By the time Roy had thanked Mike for all his extra help and worked out when Mike would be coming back, John had already fallen asleep. Feeling thankful for that gift, Roy and Joanne spent some much needed quality time with their kids playing The Game of Life, before herding Chris and Jenny off to bed. All four knew that the days of craziness had just begun.