I've been going through a lot of oneshots I've had started but never finished. Some of them I started already in 2012 and haven't touched since then. I've finished a few oneshots lately and I also had a oneshot started about Bailey set right after he arrived at the dumping ground. There was one about Jody too but I won't keep on writing it as long as Jody's in the series… here is Bailey's though. It has been re-written quite a lot and parts have been added and taken off but I really want all of those oneshots I've started finished so here we go.
The story of how Bailey came into care is quite similar here than in his first chapter. It's the rest that have been added.
The flashback scenes are told from first person's POV and Baiiley's POV. The rest of the chapter is told from third person's POV as this story usually is written.
Bailey Wharton
Back at the dumping ground after Faith had been hit by a car I had been forced to pick up the things I had scattered before I ran to get to my game.
I wouldn't have showed it to any of the others but in my mind the thoughts were spinning.
…If I had only listened when they said I couldn't be going to the game without an adult or whatever…
No! This was under no circumstances my fault. If Mike had only remembered to call Serjay. If they had just let me go on my own. If people could only accept that I could do things on my own. I mostly had anyway.
If Faith only hadn't been chasing me…
"May- Li said they're keeping Faith in over night for observation. But she'll be alright."
Rick came into the room and gave us reports from what May- Li had heard from Mike who had heard it from the doctors.
But that must be good news…
"I knew she'd be okay."
But still there was that little voice in Bailey's head telling him other things..
You know perfectly well this is your fault Bailey. If you had just accepted things as they were and stayed then Faith wouldn't have come running after you and she'd never been hit by that car.
And you know perfectly well none of this would have happened if you could have just reminded your dad about that he needed to leave some money before he went away like he usually did. If he had then I would have been able to go out with Aiden and Tim like you usually do.
Now you couldn't because you were too ashamed.
And all for your pride!
And forgetting to turn that stupid toaster off.
Flashback
"Good game guys" The boys' coach said he caught up with the goal maker Bailey and his friend. "Good game. Next game is tomorrow and if we win that too then we'll get through we'll be through to the semifinals."
He held up his hand to high- five a few of them, then turned and jogged over to his car while the three best friends of the boys made their plans for the rest of the day.
"Come with us Bailey." The one named Aiden- the ever so kind one said. "It's not fun eating without all three of us there. And I'm sure my dad can pay for your meal if your dad can pay him back when he comes back home from his trip."
Trip… Bailey wouldn't ever have admitted that his dad wasn't on a trip and he'd never know when Mr. Wharton would be home…
Lord knows what would happen if he admitted it to his friends who would admit it to their parents and…
Bailey knew very well that his dad had been in contact with the social services already. But he knew the deal had been about his dad not going on "trips" every other day, or week, or month as he kept doing time and time again.
But of course, no one else had to know about those. And Bailey was thirteen years old after all, old enough to take care of himself.
"Oh come on Bai." Tim tried. "We can pay for you. And you have to come with us after that goal you made. None of us others could ever have made it. It was harder than… learning how to play football at all…"
"Or learning how to play an instrument without having the others in the room getting death." Aiden teased his best friend.
"Even walking on a thin line a meter above the ground without falling." Tim said back and tried to seem worse.
"Or using the laundry machine without shrinking all of your siblings' clothes."
"Even harder than all of those things people say are harder than any other things. Like smiling when you're actually hurt so to the point your whole soul and heart is being ripped into pieces."
"Aw Tim. You're always so poetic…. Or saying you're sorry…"
"Or admitting that you're wrong. And I think right now you'll have to admit that you were wrong when you first said you didn't want to come with us because I know that look on your face and you really want to come with us."
"Fine." Bailey gave a short laugh and rolled his eyes. "But I've got no money so you'll have to pay."
It was just that. He really wanted to come with his friend to eat junk food. But Bailey didn't even tell his friends half of the times his dad disappeared and he was afraid if they knew they'd go on to the social services…
The hardest things of them all was to go straight into what could go terribly wrong instead of trying to get around it…
End of flashback
"What is wrong with you?" Carmen asked quickly. "You hear Faith's okay and all you can say is you knew."
It was your fault Bailey, it was your fault and you know that very well. You're just trying to get away from it like you try and get away from everything else…
"What do you want me to say?"
"Well you could at least be pleased."
It wasn't like the people in front of him said anything else than the voice in Bailey's head had already said anyway.
"You should at least say sorry."
These people were just making it harder for Bailey to try and tell himself that what had happened wasn't his fault.
"I never made her run out into the road."
People around couldn't figure an answer, but their sighs and shaking their heads were perfectly enough of reactions for Bailey.
It wasn't like people around usually liked him though. He usually liked them about as much- hated them as a matter of fact so what did their reactions matter to him?
Even his own coach hated him, except for the goals he scored…
But then he had his two friends and that was all he needed.
Well at least he usually talked himself into that he didn't need anyone else than Timothy Bennett and Aiden Laurent…
What did Bailey need the people here for anyway?
Serjay had promised he was only going to be here for one day…
Flashback
Having dinner with the others had at least made it so that I had something left to eat the morning before the next game.
When he went away my dad would at least usually leave some money for me to use. It wouldn't be a lot but at least enough to buy some food- bread, cheese, milk- it would never be much and certainly not as much as I would have liked to eat but it would be enough until I came to the game and there would always be someone that had brought something- and if they won like they had done yesterday, they would make me come with them whatever I said.
I could at least pretend there was nothing wrong and that I would have something to eat at home too…
At least the Chinese food with Aiden and Tim yesterday had been enough for yesterday and I could have saved the bread and cheese I actually had until in the morning so I could eat breakfast.
It wasn't that I wanted to eat, I would be in trouble because I barely had anything left. But if not I would collapse on the field later today and I couldn't do that- not with everyone having faith in me to score…
So when I took two slices of bread and pushed into the toaster I tried to figure how I would be finding something for dinner later on or breakfast tomorrow…
Or any meal at all until my dad returned- and who knew when that would happen.
If I would have ever known how my life would continue after this day on…
For now I only knew what teams we would be playing against today, tomorrow and so on…
I guess it was true what people said that you can never know what happens next din life…
Because of course I would do something wrong…
And I realized what it was about to be when I smelt something burning, turning towards it I saw I had left a kitchen towel lying on the toaster after wiping the counter.
And it was on fire!
Now what was I supposed to do?
End of flashback
Bailey would have liked to run and run far…
But in his head that same voice as before was. And it was now accompanied by the voices of this house and how they were all blaming him for Faith getting hurt.
He knew Mike had called to tell them all Faith was okay after all. But Bailey also knew such things could change fast and as if that knowledge wasn't enough the picture of Faith lying on the road and the sound of screeching breaks and the sound when the car hit Faith…
Faith could be dying right now of internal bleedings for all he knew…
Bailey kept on telling the voice in his head that he didn't need friends, he didn't need people to like him. He was only here for one night anyway.
But he just thought that it would be nice if people just didn't hate him so much…
This is just your own fault Bai and you know it.
The voice in Bailey's head was sounding louder and louder by the second and it wasn't exactly easier to ignore it now everybody else were quiet and he left the living room. But at least they weren't there to agree with it anymore.
You know they're right. You know that…
As if he could move away from it he went out of the living room where the smashed TV was there to remind him. Instead he went into the kitchen and slumped down on a chair by the edge of the table.
Flashback
"Are you gonna be okay now, kid?"
Bailey glared at the firefighter. He should have guessed his neighbours would be calling for them when they smelt something burning- and here he was and at least the fire that had gone off was put out.
But I hated people calling him kid- and especially if that person was a stranger.
I sat by the edge of the table and had only been able to do so as the fire was quickly put out. And he hadn't had to move as I explained how the fire had started and the fire fighter explaining how common this was and what I would do if it happened again.
I would have to make sure it didn't happen again.
And I had of course lied and said my dad was at his important kind of work instead of telling them the truth that dad had disappeared two weeks ago with not a word about that he had gone away without a word about when or even if he'd ever return. And I hadn't said a peep about that he'd do it but I had checked in all of the places he'd put money when he disappeared so I could at least have something to eat…
They didn't have to know that anyway.
But as for right now I just stared on the cupboard doors as if it would make the cupboard fill up with food…
I would have to come up with something unless I wanted to starve until dad came back…
Maybe I could pretend to hurt my foot during the game today and ask the coach if he could give me some money so I could pay for a cab home instead of walking…
But if I did that then I would have to fake for the next day too and probably for another couple of days. I wouldn't get to play and playing football was the only thing that kept away the thoughts about when or if my dad would return or how I would even get food.
And the team were nothing without me since I scored most of the goals so what would happen when we started losing the games?
Maybe, if I could make sure to score and we'd win again and I would eat Chinese with the boys again I could ask to bring a "doggy bag" from the restaurant.
And then act like it wasn't strange. I could usually eat ten times more than I got- and the boys knew all about that…
But dad had been gone for just about two weeks now, he'd never been gone for that long before. So for sure he would soon come back and act like I was his "buddy"
But since he'd left I'd just had the weirdest feeling in my stomach. It had started even before I noticed that he hadn't left any money.
I'd tried calling him but my phone had ran out of money from talking to Aiden and Tim and lying about what I was doing. And even before it ran out dad hadn't picked up the phone once of the thousands of times I had called him along with voice messages telling him what to do…
Maybe the feeling was about that this was the time he wouldn't return…
I was woken up from my thoughts when the doorbell rang…
No one should be here now. I had changed into my football gear but it was yet a few hours until the game started…
"Yo?" I opened the door to find a brown- skinned man standing closest to the door, with a white, brown- haired woman. They had each bag and some paper sheets. "…If you're selling anything you're wasting your time. I'm not buying."
Without anything else and leaving them with no chance or time to talk to me I tried to close the door but the man stopped it with his foot…
"What?"
"My name is Serjay and this is my colleague Maria." I sighed and leaned against the door. "We're from the social services. We've had calls from your neighbours the last few days…"
"I don' need you." Something in my stomach clenched when I realized why they must be here. "My dad's just gone for a work trip. He'll be back by tonight. I just have to go for my football game in a while and he'll be back before I come home tonight."
"Strange." Serjay seemed weird. "We've gotten some other reports from your neighbours…"
Without even thinking about what I was doing I let go of the door and into the hallway. I felt the fear roaring up inside of me- now what was going to happen.
"We need you to pack your bag and come with us." Serjay told me without Grace. "And no trying to run away."
It was like he had read my mind of what I had planned to do.
"Sweetheart." Maria spoke for the first time since she had come. "I know this is hard. But you need to listen to what Serjay say. We barely know more than you do right here and now so you have to come with us and let us figure more until we can reach your dad at least. Okay?"
"I'm not your sweetheart." I spat back. "And I don't have to do anything to tell you…"
The way Serjay and Maria both looked back at me I didn't protest.
"I guess I'll go and get my things."
I tried not to hurry so no one would come after me. I pushed a few changes of clothes into my backpack and took my football…
But no way was I going to give in so easily…
I opened the window and crawled up on the window sill.
And then tried to hurry to jump when I heard the door to my room flew open and Serjay came running to the window. I didn't have any choice of what to do. It was falling head first to the asphalted ground three floors down or letting him catch me by my backpack and pulled me down into the room.
"Oh no you don't."
Soon I laid there on the floor, uncomfortably because of my backpack and staring into the ceiling…
I would have to way to get through this after all and get to my game. After I was done with the games for today I could do whatever.
End of flashback
And by the kitchen table at Ashdene Ridge Bailey Wharton still sat and stared right ahead of him without giving a damn about anything around.
He had given up his tries of silencing the voice in his head. But maybe he still thought there was a chance of not blaming himself and blaming anyone and everyone else.
If his dad just wouldn't have left.
If the social services would have left him be and believed his lies like he hoped.
If Mike and Serjay had just let him go to his game.
If Faith just hadn't followed him when he tried to run to it.
But through the voice in his head Bailey knew exactly whose fault it was and the knowledge couldn't be silenced.
No matter how much he tried to blame the others he knew the fault was no one's but his own…
No matter what admitting that he was lying to himself and the hardest thing of all was to admit he was wrong and the voice in his head was correct.
As- freaking- usual…
At least Serjay had told him Bailey was only here for one night. So soon he would be away from all of this and he could back to playing his football games forgetting all about this. They could also forget all about him. Because Faith would be okay soon…
Aiden Laurent looks like Connor Gibbs (who actually played Aiden Lucas Clancy in Ghost Whisperer haha) and Timothy "Tim" Bennett looks like Lev Cameron Khmelev.
Random fact
I got the names Aiden and Tim because I was watching Ghost Whisperer while writing
…It might take a diehard ghost whisperer fan like me to even know who Tim is. His name is Tim Flaherty (also called Flare) and is only in six episodes where he works with Jim and briefly dates Delia.
…I basically went through most characters' names to figure the name. But Jim/James, Eli, Ned, Rick or Carl (the ghost at the end of the series) just wouldn't fit.
One more fact
I started this chapter as a oneshot August 30th 2014 and then it's been only a page and a half (ish) and then I didn't touch it until a few weeks ago until I decided to make this into a chapter for hteuic instead of a oneshot. But all of this it's been saved under my "one shots- folder" on the computer(s.) under the title "good enough" Referring to that Bailey would have been good enough for the things Tim and Aiden tells him at the beginning of the chapter.