THANK YOU to Ally R. Swan for all of her reviews.
So. I had this idea. And I had an idea and I was going to make it a chapter with both Joseph and Archie. But then I had this idea…
So, we know that Joseph is like super- smart. And we know that Archie's dad used to have lectures at the university and that Archie can't stand seeing blood. Anyway, this is Joseph's chapter and next one will be Archie's and they will have to do with each other. I wonn't say how though because I don't want to spoil it.
Then, first of all- I'm sorry it's always taking me so long before I update again after I've updated once. But then second- there are several stories that either have been finished.
There is one I have finished as of now
-You are the best thing (that's ever been mine)
Two more that I will have finished before this story is put up
-Shake it out
-What goes around comes around
Then there are two that there are only a few chapters left on.
-The search for a family
-When I returned
And a number of stories I don't know how much are left on. But I can sort of see the finish line for them.
-Riding on the wings of a dove
-The moment I needed the most
-Buried deep within
-Game on!
-We're going home (New story in the fandom of flight 29 down, will be up before this chapter is put up)
And then, if I'd finish all of these. It will only be this story left. Then of course, I couldn't finish this until the series is over and we'd never know how long it will be until then.
But anyway. Enough about that.
Noah is portrayed by Macaulay Culkin. If you get a picture of him it might be from when he just looks like he's on drugs and all kinds of unhealthy. I have managed to find a newer photo, so if you see a photo where he does look healthier and with glasses that have thick, black frames then you'd know what he looks like.
David looks like KJ Apa
Joseph Stubbs
Joseph Stubbs was seven years old, but his life had already been a sad one. And it was about to get worse- a whole lot worse.
But it started off just like any other day.
"Come on Joseph." Noah Stubbs said with a smirk, pointing to a number on a sheet in front of him. "You have to make these so that I can brag to my adult students that my seven year old son can count math better than what they can. And I know you can."
Noah just smirked at his son- he'd never put Joseph under such serious pressure. But he was the math teacher at a university and it would be nice if he could brag like that of course…
"Of course I can."
Noah had his paper sheets in front of him while Joseph worked on his, but like so many times before he only had them lying there and the pencil in his hand he just watched as his son counted numbers that were barely possible for people five times his age.
He then looked to the picture on his desk. A picture that had been shot of his late wife Angelique the day they had found out she was pregnant and her smile shone all the way through the frame the photo had been put in.
Looking towards his son again he could always feel his heart breaking slightly that Angelique had died of Preeclampsia when their son was born. And then, just in the blink of an eye- Noah had been left as a single parent to raise their son. Their son who had his mother's intelligence, wiseness, light brown skin tone, dark hair and dark eyes.
But most of all, and most important her kindness.
"Joseph?"
"Yes dad."
"You know I love you son? And it doesn't matter what you can count and not. Just as long as you're happy then I'm happy."
"I know that dad." Joseph smiled. "I lo…"
BANG!
Both of the males were startled and interrupted when a loud noise sounded through the hallways.
"Someone closed a door very hard."… He just had the time to say it…
BANG!
"What on earth?"
There were screams, there were running…
No way!
For just a second Noah didn't know what on earth to do.
These things didn't happen. They happened in America where Gun laws weren't what they should have been…
BANG!
"What is that?"
"NO."
Joseph was on his way to get up and go into the hallway to check who it was.
BANG!
"What is that?"
Noah leaped forward and grabbed his son unnder the arms, Joseph whimpered in the move but there wasn't time to worry about that as he hurried across the floor and more or less threw Joseph into a wardrobe.
"Dad? What is it?"
None of them had noticed how silent it had gotten, that there were no bang's and no slamming in doors. Whoever had made the noises had stopped…
BANG!
"I don't understand." Joseph tried to get up. "What is that? What are you so afraid of?"
BANG!
"Be quiet." Noah Wheezed to him, and something Joseph had never seen before was shining from Noah's eyes. "And doo not- under any circumstances open this door. Okay?"
"I don't under…"
BANG!
"Close your eyes…"
Joseph did as he was told and ended with pressing his hands over his ears.
"Good boy." He heard his dad's voice through his hands barely. "Just stay like that…" He felt as his dad leaned forward and kissed his forehead. "I love you."
Joseph could see through his eyelids when it went darker and heard through his fingers when the warderobe door was closed by him. And all he could do was to hold his hands over his ears, keep his eyes closed and keep very, very quiet.
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
For every bang that was heard it came closer and closer to Noah Stubbs' office and the warderobe in which Joseph was hiding.
Why was it that Joseph's hands just couldn't shut out the noises that he didn't want to hear…
Yet they had in some way shut out the sounds of sirens of police cars and ambulances coming through. Everything Joseph could hear was heavy steps, banging and then doors slamming open.
As the sounds came closer and closer, Joseph knew he was in the bottom of the hallway. What would happen when the shooter was here? Would he turn around and go up the hallway again? Would he leave the school or go up the stairs and find new victims? The stairs and the lift was on the other side of the hallway….
Joseph flinched and bit his lip so hard it started bleeding when he heard the door to the room slam open and then a laugh. A cold, evil laugh that made shivers go down his spine in fear…
"Wow…" He heard a male's voice from outside the warderobe. "Hiding behind the curtains like a two year old playing hide and seak?"
Joseph heard moving and recognizing his dad's steps as he always pulled his feet along the floor.
"David…" His dad must have recognized the shooter. "What are you doing? How did you come to this? You're a good kid and I know i…"
"SHUT UP."
A memory flashed by to Joseph's inner vision. A young student, stressed and freaking out over every single test, running out of the room at one test and then never coming back again. A thatch of bright red hair…
"If I remember it right you always used to bring your kid to job. What is he now? Seven? Eight? Joey right?"
"Joseph." Noah corrected. "Seven. He's not here today. He's at a friend's so he wouldn't have to watch me correct tests and assignments all day."
"Huh? If I remember it right Joseph quite liked watching you correct tests and assignments all day…"
"He grew tired of it."
"Then… What lies here on this chair? One little jacket? One little backpack? Who do they belong to? If Joseph's not here?"
"He went outside…" Noah lied. "He's not here he went outside with a student to get some lunch?"
"Lunch? It's nine in the morning."
There was another cold, evil kind of laugh…
BANG!
Joseph only barely managed not to scream when there was another bang. And then when he heard footsteps coming closer to his hiding place and then…
"DROP THAT GUN"
Suddenly there were more voices than that one, just when David had come right up to the wardrobe and about to open the door to find Joseph there were more voices from more people- people bursting into the room with more guns…
"DROP THE GUN AND HOLD YOUR HANDS WHERE WE CAN SEE THEM."
Joseph heard something landing on the floor and then more moving.
He could hear more screaming and more running and crying.
He hadn't dared to open his eyes or move his hand from his ears.
"This one is dead." He heard David saying without the tiniest bit of remorse. "And he usually brings his kid with him here- I would have found him and killed him too."
Joseph wished that not so much noise from outside would reach through the warderobe doors, through his hands and into his ears.
All of the noisies he was hearing here and now would be stalking him for the rest of his life…
There was another one of that cikd, evil kind of laughter heard.
If Joseph would have shut out only one kind of noise it would have been that…
"Now come on…"
Joseph heard more footsteps towards the door to the hallway and then it went quiet. But as they moved further and further away, so did the laughter that just wouldn't stop.
"Do you think there really is a kid somewhere around here?"
Suddenly there were two people in the room except for Joseph himself and he could hear them walking over to something by the windows.
"I don't know." It was one woman and one man. "Maybe there is. But we can't just take for granted there isn't one and leave… Dead!"
Dead? Who was dead? Surely it wasn't Noah Stubbs. Everyone liked Noah Stubbs.
Just an hour or two they had talked about that it was Friday and they were going out for pizza later. And they still were if Joseph could just find the right moment to open the warderoe and get out.
Surely the one who had laughed so evilly, David or whatever his name was was gone by now. Joseph hadn't heard him for a long while.
But just as he wasn't sure he tried to open the door just a little bit, peaked with one eye just a little, tiny bit…
And as he leaned against the door heavier he fell out of the warderobe and to the floor.
Both the police woman and the man turned towards the boy when he suddenly came into their sight. But Joseph pressed his eyes closed harder than ever and didn't see them or as the woman came over to him.
"Hey Sweetie… What's your name?" She tried at first. Joseph didn't answer and didn't open his eyes. "Keep your eyes closed sweetie. But I'm a police and you're safe now…Do you know what a police officer is?"
Joseph nodded, he could hear it was the woman's voice but he just wasn't so sure if he was going to ever forget what there was for him to see.
"Well, I am a police officer. My name is Alana. Officer Alana."
"Can I open my eyes?"
He might as well ask. He didn't have a clue of what was going on really.
When someone had spoken the word "dead" about someone in he same room as himself it couldn't have been his dad right? No one would have wanted to hurt his dad? Everyone liked him.
"No, don't open your eyes. Come here. Stand up" Officer Alana kept a hand on Joseph's shoulder so even though he now held his hands over his eyes she could lead him through the misery that had become of Forest Lake university. "Just straight ahead, straight ahead."
Officer Alana wouldn't have had to both spoken and keep an eye on Joseph's shoulder. Even with his eyes closed he knew where the hallway went, and feeling the concrete floor through the soles of his tennis shoes he could have found the way out to the parking lot alone and in his sleep.
Not until he came outside Joseph remembered his jacket and backpack…
…He didn't know the way they hung blood stained in his dad's old's office…
But it didn't matter, the sun had broken through the clouds and the way it shined seemed almost rude on the terrible things that had just happened.
"Come here." The officer turned Joseph and continued. "Come around the corner…"
There were people screaming and crying all over. But Joseph still just couldn't quite understand what had happened…
"Will my dad be waiting for me there?"
He didn't get an answer…
But when someone had spoken the word "dead" they couldn't have been spoken about his father, right?
"You can open your eyes now sweetie." Alana told Joseph. "There's nothing here that you can see…"
But Joseph didn't open his eyes.
More than anything he wanted to open them and run back to the office and get his dad. They were supposed to go and have pizza today since it was Friday.
And maybe he knew better than what he could understand that when Joseph would open his eyes again he would see the rest of his life, from the eyes of an orphan.
I was watching TV while writing this and put my hands over my ears to see how much noise would reach through and if it made sense that Joseph would hear as much as he did. It didn't shut out much noise I can tell and therefore I kept what I had written about what he heard.
Random fact
I was chatting with x snow-pony x like we usually do when I was starting this chapter. And I said what idea I had and she literally answered "Like they have in the US? We don't have them over here because we don't have guns." And I just wondered for a bit to start the story. I'm a besserwisser who always want to be right so I looked it up. Does it really happen in America?
Well, it's way more common there than in America but I still needed something to prove- and I found one I could remember seeing on the news years and years ago, in 2008, in Finland.
Summer of 2012 there was one in Norway, along with a bomb in Oslo there was a massacre. However, that one wasn't at a school but at a summer camp.
And at last there was one in Sweden fall 2015, although the weapon used was a sword and not a gun.
So yes, I could still write this chapter. And I could still write Archie's chapter which will be set at the same school, at the same time. These shootings are thankfully very rare. But I doubt I will write about another one again.
Still… something like a school massacre always fascinated me in some kind of terrible way…
