Okay I have some news to share about another story of mine; to be exact, news about Time Heals Us All. That story is making me mad. I really kind of want it to get off of my shoulders so I can focus my energy on other stories that I have planned. So here's what I'm going to do: I'm going to finish it up much quicker than I had wanted to before. Now that I'm this far into that story, it seems like an unnecessary sequel so I'm going to wrap it up and get it out of my away.
In other news, do you guys think TJ started that fire? I was hoping on having it so that the reader is kind of a 'member of the jury' to decide on their own. On that same note we get a verdict today, as well as a huge fwuffy (yes I spelled it that way on purpose) moment following that verdict. Only to be crushed the following day.
Um, there are some offensive words used in here so brace for impact when that happens. It's not the usual swearing that's in here.
Read On!
"We have to plea bargain."
With the prosecution having a stronger case than what was expected, Mr. Wilson was beginning to feel the first stages of panic. He could see by the look on of some of the people in the jury's faces that they had already made up their minds about everything. On top of that there wasn't a very strong defense that he could make out of this, so they were pretty much screwed and the only way to lessen the punishment that was going to bestowed upon TJ was to change his plea from not guilty to guilty and say that he did start the fire. His parents were in favor of the idea; less time in juvenile detention was good. But what they were in favor was didn't matter; he was TJ's lawyer, it was his case, and he makes the final decision when it comes to this.
"I can already tell that we're going to lose," Mr. Wilson said. "With our weak defense they are going to have no trouble putting him away. If we plea bargain then we could at least get a lesser sentence."
"I'm not saying I did something that I didn't do," TJ shouted from the living room. "That's bullshit. If I didn't do it then I'm not going to say that I did. Just give me a chance to tell them what really happened, even though that's YOUR job."
"Listen folks," Mr. Wilson said. "I have this fear that if he's put on the stand then he's going to ruin his own defense. There is no way that he's going to get off without some form of punishment. WE could try and say that instead of a juvenile detention center he could serve his time in a juvenile psychiatric hospital for the ODD."
"Because being around a bunch of psychos is much better than juvie," said TJ. "Especially with MY personality of leading people. That's a really good idea. I'll lead a revolution with everyone in there. We'll take over the country. Occupy USA. Kill all betrayers. What's your next idea?"
"I'll see you all tomorrow," Mr. Wilson said, closing his briefcase and leaving.
"I have the worst lawyer ever," TJ mumbled. "Should've gotten Phoenix Wright; that guy is boss. But no, I had to get this guy. This is what my trust fund is being used for. Dear God I need a drink…." Getting off of the couch he headed into the kitchen. "Where do you keep the wine in here? You know what, never mind. You're not gonna answer that…." Giving himself a mental slap he went upstairs and into his room. Once he locked the door he kneeled down near the window. The floor board near the window was loose so he used it to hide things he didn't want his parents to know he had. Lifting it up he found what he need: the last bottle of beer. When his parents found out about his drink he knew that any day they would be searching his room, so he used the space in the floor to hide them. It was perfect. Only he knew it was there, and who would think of checking the floor for loose areas. Twisting the top open he started to finish off his last drink.
'If I have to go to juvie then I'm drinking before I go,' He thought. 'I'm not going to waste a perfectly fine drink.' Soon the familiar warmth from the alcohol rushed through him. From experience, whether that was good or bad, he knew that one bottle was only going to make him feel woozy. He still want to do something before court tomorrow. Preferably something fun.
'Where is that thing….?' He asked himself as he stumbled across the room. After digging through a pile of clothes on the floor he found what he was looking for: a wrench. 'Okay, I have the wrench. Now…step two. I gotta rush this one….' Peeking outside his room he looked for any sign of his parents coming up the stairs or being the hallway. With everything all clear he dashed down the stairs and out the door.
~*~TEN MINUTES LATER~*~
"I swear to God if they blame me for this I'm going to bust a tit. They did this to themselves, not even my fault. But they would blame me though, just because I hate them, made their lives miserable at school and have a wrench in my hand. That doesn't mean crap," TJ said to himself. "Maybe I was going to use the wrench to crack their skulls open, not this. They don't know! But they assume, and when they assume they're making an ass out of themselves. Besides they shouldn't leave their bikes outside if they didn't want this to happen. These bikes could've been stolen, or run over by a car, or pissed on by a dog, or dissolved in acid rain. But at least it's still 'intact.' Think of this as a public service announcement." Standing up from his spot on the ground, TJ walked away from the jumbled mess of metal parts that used to be bikes.
"TJ what the hell did you do to our bikes?" Turning around he could see his former friends coming out and seeing what was left of their beloved bikes. To say that they were angry would've been an understatement.
"It LOOKS like I took them apart," TJ told them. "Can I go now? I have shit to do and you guys are killing the buzz I have going on here."
"You're not going anywhere until you put them back together!" Vince said.
"Yeah right, Prince. How about you all do that, and I walk away from you all? Sounds like a good idea…."
"No, how about you put them back together before we make you do it?" Spinelli threaten.
"Spinelli," He said turning around to face them, before turning the corner. "For Christ's sake stop being such a twat."
"WHAT?" Before he could feel the wrath that was about to be bestowed upon him, TJ walked away from the scene. That alone wouldn't have been enough to stop it from happening but Spinelli was being, grudgingly, held back by the others. TJ wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, but not to get away from her. He left the house to head over another house where it felt more like home than at his own house.
~*~TIME LAPSE~*~
"….dude, what the fuck…?" When he arrived at Prickly's house TJ expected to go in the usual way: through one of the open windows. But he couldn't find and open or unlocked window. That itself wasn't a problem because he could just knock on the door to get in. So he decided to do that. He was stop however by a note on the front door. Reading it he found out that the windows were closed and locked because Prickly had went out to go play golf and wouldn't be back for the rest of the day.
"Looks like I'm going golfing…"
~*~LATER~*~
"How did I know you would show up, Detweiler?" Principal Prickly asked as he watched TJ approach him.
"'Cause I always show up," TJ said. "But a better question would be why you didn't come to the trial yesterday. Everyone was there; I thought you would show up too, since it was your school that caught on fire and everything."
"I wasn't aware that I was supposed to come," the principal said, focusing on his shot.
"Well you don't have to come. But I could use the support," He said. "I'm pretty sure my own lawyer thinks I did it and has given up on defending me."
"You're not going to leave this alone until I agree to come are you?"
"You know me well enough to know what the answer to that question is, sir."
"Alright, fine. I'll come tomorrow, but be quiet. You're going to mess up my shot."
"You know what I never understood about this game?" TJ asked, ignoring the request to be quiet. "When you hit the ball and it goes flying and lands, how do you know where it landed? It's so small and this area is so big. Is there like some secret golfers technique for finding it?"
"If I say yes, will you be quiet?" TJ nodded. "Then yes, we have secret technique only known to golfers. Now because you choose to mess up shot horribly, you're going to be my caddy. Let's go, I want to finish this game before it rains."
~*~THE NEXT DAY~*~
The next day at court promised to be a long one for TJ. Not only was his lawyer less than enthusiastic about the outcome of this case, but he had no idea what was going to happen. The court was packed, even more so than yesterday. Since the defense was weak, he expected the day to be a little shorter than the last. If real court proceedings were like anything he had saw on TV, the jury would be going back in their secret room to discuss whether or not he set the school on fire. Then there was that ultra-strict Judge to worry about.
He was barely paying attention when his lawyer called for him to go to the stand. He watched the frustrated look on his lawyer face as he tried to come up with any question to ask that might help his case.
"Why don't you tell us what exactly happened the day the school caught on fire?" Mr. Wilson asked him.
"You mean what happened that day or what I did that day?" TJ asked him.
"What you did that day," Mr. Wilson clarified. "Before the fire."
"I was smoking," He said. "At the old abandoned playground way at the back of the school. Then when I was done smoking that, I went to go find my backpack that I left by the side of the school earlier. I found a two bottles of beer under my bed the night before and I brought one to school to drink, but I didn't want to bring it in the school 'cause Principal Prickly knew about me drinking before and he checked my bag sometimes. So I went over to the side of the school and I found it. But then there was this kid there, and I know he didn't go to Third Street 'cause I haven't seen him before…..and he had a lighter…you know what? I bet he started the fire. He had a bottle of what smelled like gas near him and he told me to get out of there before I got hurt. And I told him if I wasn't high I would beat him up, then I took my bottle and left. I think I forgot to take my backpack with me. I went back to the abandoned playground and went I came back out later I saw the school on fire and went home."
"And what did the person you saw at the side of the school look like?" Asked Mr. Wilson.
"See, that's what I don't get," TJ said, leaning back in his chair. "He looked like me back in fifth grade. He was a few inches shorter than me, and brown hair like mine but his was a little darker, baggy blue jeans, a green jersey with while stripes around the sleeves, and a red backwards hat."
"Are you serious?"
"I'm under oath, if that's good enough for you," He said. "He even had freckles too. And the thing is, you would've been able to tell if I did it. See, if I was going to light the school on fire, I would chain the doors shut so they couldn't get out, then put something on the windows so they couldn't get out that way either. When I do a prank, I intend for everyone to get pranked—"
"Okay, okay," Said Mr. Wilson. "You can step down now. Um, as you can see your honor, whether or not he started the fire is up for debate. But what shouldn't e up for debate is what should be done as far as punishment. With a diagnosis of ODD it's safe to say that his behavior is only going to continue if the proper steps are taken. A juvenile detention center is not the appropriate place for him to be taken. With ODD a more appropriate place might be a juvenile psychiatric hospital. At least there we can guarantee that he would get treated to prevent anything like this from happening again."
'Whose side is this guy on?' TJ thought to himself.
"And….that's pretty much my defense, ladies and gentlemen," The lawyer said.
"Alright then," Judge Shore then. "The jury will now deliberate. If a verdict isn't reached in the next two hours you all are free to go home. Court is in recess." She said, followed by the banging of the gavel.
"You are the worse lawyer I could possibly get," TJ said to Mr. Wilson. "And what kind of defense was that? Either way I'm screwed!"
"Listen here, you little shit," Mr. Wilson hissed. "I, like the rest of the town, think you did it. I tried my best to defend you, but between talking to me like I have to get a damn about what happens to you, I couldn't care less. I hope they put you away for a long time." By the time he was done talking the two of them saw people start to come back in the court as well as the jury and Judge. Once everyone was back in their seats the Judge spoke up.
"That was quick," Judge Shore said. "Has the jury reached a verdict?"
"We have, your Honor," A member of the jury said, standing up holding a piece of paper. "We the jury find the defendant guilty of arson."
"Today's been a long day folks," The Judge said. "We'll return here the same time tomorrow for sentencing. Court is adjourned."
~*~LATER~*~
The ride home was long and awkwardly silent. After being found guilty, TJ found himself to very angry to say the least. He was basically, in his eyes, screwed from the beginning. With a lawyer that didn't give a damn about the outcome and a jury that probably had someone from Third Street as a relative, he didn't stand a chance in court. While he didn't say anything after the verdict was read there was plenty on his mind. He knew that everyone at Third Street was probably have a party to celebrate him not being able to terrorize them anymore. Hell, his own lawyer was probably hosting that party. But then there was how is parents had reacted, or in better words, hadn't reacted. They haven't said a word to him since the verdict was read, but he desperately wanted to know what they thought of the situation. Did they think he was guilty like the rest of the town? He tried to decipher an answer out of the expressions on their faces but came up empty. So now he stomped around in his room, trying to think of what he should do next with tomorrow possibly being his last day of freedom for God knows how long. When he found nothing to do in his own room he headed downstairs and sat in the living room, figuring that there was not a problem that TV couldn't cure. Before he could turn the TV on he overheard his parents talking in the kitchen.
"Maybe this'll be good for him," He heard his father said. "Some time away from here might get him to start acting straight. He has to see where is behavior will get him if he decides to act like this."
"But with all the violence in Juvenile hall it could make everything worse than what it already is," said his mother. "There are kids there that did much worse things than set schools on fire, and being around that could be really bad for him."
"So you think I did it too," He said, standing in the doorway to the kitchen. "Thanks. You don't have to worry about it happening anymore, since I'm either being put in a strait jacket or put in a cell. But as long as I'm out of everyone's hair that doesn't matter, right?" Without saying another word he walked out the front door. Not wasting a moment to relieve his anger, he punched the first tree he came close to, and then he punched it again and again until his knuckles were sore and bleeding. Leaning against the tree, he took a moment to catch his breath before continuing his way down the street. He couldn't help pass a few of his class mates who hadn't spared him of taunts of how they were happy he was 'being put away with crazy people like him,' 'wasn't going to be out with normal people,' and that 'this should've happened years ago.' A few of them went of their way to walk up to him and told them exactly what they thought about it. Like he thought before, a few of them were throwing a party of the occasion. Even with all that, it wasn't what was making him upset at the moment.
He honestly didn't give a damn about what his classmates thought. The reason his eyes stung, and his vision was becoming blurry was that his own parents didn't believe him. That hurt more than the disbelief of the rest of the public. Reaching his destination he knocked on the door with all the emotions piling up in his mind behind it.
"Detweiler," Prickly said after opening the door. "Why are you knocking on my door so hard—" He stopped asking that question once he saw the tears streaming down the boy's face. "What's wrong?"
"I didn't do it," TJ said, trying to speak past the tightness he felt in his throat. "I swear to God I didn't light the school on fire! I did all those other things, but I swear on my life I didn't set the school on fire!"
"It's going to be okay—"
"No its not!" He yelled. "It's not going to be okay because no one believes me even though I'm telling them the truth and all they want to do is get rid of me! T-they're going to send me to some lunatic asylum or juvie even though I didn't do anything!" Unable to say anymore he broke down into sobs. A few drops of water fell from the sky, signaling that it was about to rain soon. Principal Prickly led him inside to keep the both of them from getting wet. Lying on the couch TJ buried his face in the pillow and continued to cry. "I didn't do it. I didn't do it…." He continued to sob into the pillow until he cried himself to sleep.
~*~LATER~*~
Opening his eyes, TJ could see through the window that the sun had set. If that was any indicator of what time it was it must've been late. Rubbing the dried tears off of his cheeks he started to walk through the house. He made it to the front door and opened it to be greeted by the falling rain. Oh well, it's not like he wanted to go home anyways. Turning back around he headed into the kitchen where he saw Principal Prickly was waiting for him.
"What time is it?" TJ asked him.
"Seven o'clock," Said the principal.
"Oh. Hey can I sleep over here tonight?" asked TJ. "I really don't want to go home. I'll leave tomorrow morning."
"I don't think your parents would like that."
"I don't think my parents give a damn about me," He said. "They said that they thought juvie might be 'good' for me. What's it like in juvie anyways?"
"Bad," Said Prickly. "I've seen kids go to juvie and come out as junior criminals. It doesn't 'help' anyone. It's just a place grown-ups put kids that they don't want to deal with the right way. And I don't want you to go there."
"That makes two of us," TJ mumbled. "Can you call my parents and ask if I can stay over tonight?"
"Yeah. You go sit down somewhere." Nodded, TJ went ad sat down back in the living room. Tomorrow was the day; judgment day. As much as he didn't want the sun to come back up in the morning he knew that was not going to happen. Hearing footsteps he looked up to see Principal Prickly coming in. "What'd they say?"
"They said you can stay," He Said. "Just come home in the morning."
"So you're letting me stay?"
"That's right. But don't get used to it."
"Thanks. So um, where am I sleeping?"
~*~TIME LAPSE~*~
After forcing down a sandwich to stop any hunger that might strike between now and later, all TJ wanted to do was sleep, even though he knew what was going to happen when he woke up. So he was taken to the guest room and promptly laid on the bed. With nothing else on his mind but tomorrow he could feel the sting of the tears coming back to his eyes as he pulled the blanket over him. He didn't want to think about what would happen tomorrow; he would've rather thought of anything else but that.
"Thanks for letting me stay over here, Principal Prickly," He said.
"Yeah, yeah. Just don't get used to it," The Principal said, leaving the room. "Now get some sleep, alright?"
"Hey can I tell you something, sir?" TJ asked barely above a whisper, laying down and facing the wall. "I wasn't going to say this but since I'm pretty much going to jail for the rest of my foreseeable life, I think I should. You're kinda like a father to me. I mean I know we've had plenty of moment where we didn't agree on something or see eye to eye but we've had moments where we got along. Like that whole summer vacation thing with Benedict? That was really fun. Even before that we had a lot of fun. Like that one time I was principal of the school for a day, even though I became a tyrant, it was fun spending time you. I think we have a lot more in common than we both know. I really do respect you, sir. Not that I don't respect my own father but he's always been so strict with me, even when I was little. You're strict too, but you still let me be a kid at the end of the day, and really appreciated that. And these last few weeks I've been coming over here were great. I think everyone has some sort of role model and you're mine. I guess that's all."
"….gee, Detweiler, I don't know what to say…."
"Promise you'll visit me in juvie?"
"I promise."
"Thanks. Goodnight, sir."
"Goodnight, Detweiler." After turning the lights off Prickly closed the door to the room. Once the door was closed he leaned against the door and let out a sigh of exhaustion. He truly didn't want the boy to have to go to juvenile hall. He had seen kids go in and come out so traumatized, disturbed, or just plain changed that they couldn't adjust back to normal life outside. He did care about the boy, and he didn't want him to go through that; he wouldn't come back out the same. And now he just told him that he saw him as a father figure. That made him feel as if he failed the boy.
~*~THE NEXT MORNING~*~
The courtroom seemed unusually quiet to TJ, despite the massive amount of people and press who showed up to see just how long he would be put away. He didn't really understand why he had to dress up for this; he was probably only going to be in here for ten minutes. Whether or not that wold be true was about to be answered when the Judge entered and sat down at her bench.
"Okay, this is complicated," Judge Shore began. "In making this decision I considered every aspect of this case. The fire, as well as the mental illness all play. So let's get right to it, I want to get home to watch my stories. Theodore J. Detweiler, I sentence you to the Duval Regional Juvenile Detention Center until you reach the age of 18. When you reach the age of 18 you are to be transferred to the Duval Regional jail until you reach the age of 21. While you are incarnated you are to receive counseling by Mr. Simmons for your ODD. Court is adjourned."
Was I too harsh on the sentencing? I feel like I was….
RandallXSpinelli: It took me forever to find out that ODD exists and at first I didn't believe it but there it was so I used it. He definitely has it in this story, definitely. As for it turning into Conduct Disorder, which is much more dangerous than his current behavior, we'll just have to see. ;) And congratulations on getting Super Mario 3D Land; that game is epic. I thought it was kind of easy though. And that TJXLawson fic was weird wasn't it? I almost didn't finish it. I'm thinking of writing my own story with that pairing. Have you ever thought of writing your own SpinelliXRandall fic one day? I sure a lot of people would be interested in how that would work.
Donna Nnov: You actually lead me to find ODD! Yays for that! Ten points!
Reviews are a great way to tell me what you think about the story!