#tmbtp:part2chapter4

Bringing the boys home meant a lot of last minute scrambling to get things in order. The first order of business was finding a place for the teenager, Brody, to sleep.

Luckily, Hollis and Mercedes were able to move into their new place sooner than anticipated, so we were able to convert Hollis’s old apartment into a new space for us.

Her old bedroom became a playroom, and her living room became Brody’s bedroom. We already had a nursery ready upstairs for the baby, who we named Lucas Solomon. 

The whole thing felt so surreal. Even though we knew we could get a call from the adoption agency at any moment, we didn’t expect that moment to come so soon. Or to be welcoming not one but two new members into our family.

When it came time to bring the boys home, Brody was a bit quiet. He seemed happy but a little shy. I remember how it felt to move in with complete strangers, so I understood where he was coming from. We arrived home and started showing Brody around.

While Paul was getting Lucas settled in, I showed Brody his bedroom. 

“I get my own bedroom?” He asked.

“Yeah, and your own bathroom, too,” I told him. 

“Wow.”

As Paul held Lucas, I noticed Chelsea watching him closely. I tried to work out what she might be feeling. If I had to guess, I’d say she felt betrayed. She didn’t say anything, though, just continued to keep a close eye on her new little brother. 

Rachel, on the other hand, was over the moon about meeting her new brothers. She talked Brody’s ear off on the way home, and continued to do so at home, although Brody was still being quiet.

We showed Brody around the rest of the house. The thing that caught his attention was our workout area. In fact, he decided to get a little workout in himself. I wanted to ask him about himself, to get to know this new person living in our house, but I didn’t want to push him too much.

We continued to check in with him throughout the evening–offering, but not forcing him, to join us in conversation. He seemed content to sit in our presence and just take everything in. It was our new normal that we were all getting used to. 

I ran into Hollis at the cafe, and we had a chance to catch up. She still lives close by, but we hadn’t had the chance to have a proper conversation in a while. It seemed like we were just shuffling the girls back and forth without taking the time to really talk.

“How is married life treating you?” I asked her.

“Oh, it’s great! Mercedes and I couldn’t be more happy. She’s been getting a lot of business at the pottery studio.”

“I know Rachel is excited about that! She was so thrilled when Mercedes put one of her vases up for sale in the shop.”

“She was! Especially when she found out someone bought it!”

“That’s our little artist!”

“How are the boys doing?” Hollis asks me.

“They’re doing well. Lucas is learning to roll onto his tummy. And he’s been babbling so much lately! He hasn’t been waking up as much at night. And Brody seems to be adjusting well. I think therapy has been going ok, and things at school have improved.”

“That’s good to hear. The girls really love their new brothers.” 

“Yeah, Chelsea is still a little jealous of Lucas, but we’re making progress. Rachel just adores them both.” 

“I know, she doesn’t stop talking about them!”

Hollis and I talk for a few minutes longer before she has to head off. I’m glad we got to catch up a bit. With everything that’s been going on, it’s hard to make time for friends. 

Brody’s perspective

It was time for school and Brody realized when he got there that he’d forgotten to study for his exam. He did the best he could, but he couldn't remember half of what was covered on the exam. 

To make matters worse, after class a boy named Tom came up to him and insulted his clothes for no reason. Brody couldn’t remember having seen this kid before. He tried not to let it get to him, but it put him in a sour mood for the rest of the day.

When he got home, he looked around for his parents. He found Paul in the baby’s room, having just put his brother in the crib for a nap. He wasn’t sure if he should bring up what happened at school, but Paul could tell something was wrong. Brody decided to be honest, and Paul gave him some good advice about how to deal with people who are rude. Brody thanked Paul for the good advice. 

Brody’s perspective

Brody didn’t understand why his parents were making him see a therapist. Did they think something was wrong with him? Maybe there was.

Family therapy was a bit awkward. He already didn’t know what to say to his new parents, and having a stranger there didn’t help. His individual therapy didn’t go much better.

The therapist, Albert, kept asking how he felt about things, but Brody didn’t know how he felt. He tried not to think too much about anything that was going on. He told Albert a little bit about school, which seemed to appease him. When he was at school, he didn’t have to think about how weird things were at home. He didn’t tell the therapist that, though.

Johnny and Paul still seemed okay, but he didn’t trust them yet. He was getting along with his sisters, but being around them made him miss his biological brothers and sisters who were still at his old foster home. His foster parents wanted to keep them, but not him. He wondered if he would ever see them again.

Brody was too scared to talk to the therapist about all of this. Talking about it would make it seem real, and he wanted to pretend that it was all a dream.

Brody’s perspective

Brody felt very grateful that his new parents let him hang out with his friends at ThrifTea. His former foster parents always treated him like he was up to no good, which wasn’t fair. He wondered what he did to make them think that way.

When he got to ThrifTea, Nadia greeted him and showed him a stupid meme on her phone. Then he got to meet some more of his new classmates.

There was Avery, a soft-spoken girl who seemed more comfortable with the boys.

Then there were Kiely and Carmelo. Kiely was Nadia’s best friend and they were attached at the hip. Carmelo seemed pretty cool.

Malik and Toru were also hanging out that night. They were all being nice to him, but he clammed up a bit when they started asking questions. He wasn’t ready to tell everyone that he’d just been adopted and was getting used to a whole new family. 

Brody decided to distract everyone from prying more into his personal life by going up to the microphone and telling some jokes. He got a few laughs, but people were more interested in mingling than watching him perform. He knew he would have to open up eventually if he wanted to make some genuine friendships, but the thought was scary.

Brody’s perspective

After school, Brody and his friends met up at ThriftTea. His parents let him hang out there once a week, as long as his homework was done.

 Brody was excited when Nadia wanted to talk to him. Unfortunately, their friend Carmelo tagged along. It was hard to get any one-on-one time with Nadia at their gatherings.

Nadia asked him why Mr. Langerak had wanted to talk to him after class. Brody wasn’t sure what to say. He didn’t want his friends to know yet that he was adopted. He wasn’t comfortable talking about such personal things with them. 

He decided to tell her that Mr. Langerak wanted to discuss his grade on a recent project. No one needed to know that he actually did well on it. Luckily, Nadia and Carmelo accepted his explanation. He hated lying to his friends, but he wasn't ready to tell them the truth.

When Brody got to school the day after his parents talked to Mr. Langerak, he felt a bit embarrassed.

He hoped none of his friends knew that his parents talked to his teacher. He had to collect himself in the bathroom before he headed to class.

Once he got to class, he felt better knowing Tom wouldn’t be there. He was still a little worried about what Tom would do when he came back, but his parents assured him that it would be taken care of.

At lunch, he got a seat next to Nadia. She seemed in good spirits. Brody wished he could read her better. If only there was a thought bubble over her head that would tell him what she thought of him. The thought of getting rejected was too much for him.

When he got home, he made sure to do his homework. His parents talked to him about taking his work more seriously. They weren’t mad that his grades were slipping, just concerned. Brody didn’t want to let them down. 

Something has been on my mind lately. At first, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to do anything about it, but it kept coming up in my thoughts. I decide to talk to Paul about it. We’re in the baby’s room with Chelsea when I bring it up.

“I want to get your opinion on something,” I tell him.

“Sure, what is it?”

“Well, I’ve been thinking a lot about how I never finished college. I know I have a good job now, but I left when I was going through a rough time and I’ve always wondered what things would be like if I hadn’t.”

“I didn’t realize you thought about it that much. So, are you asking what I think?”

“Yeah. I just don’t know if it’s a good idea. I mean, we have four kids, one of whom is only a few months old.”

“Well, honey, that’s up to you. Do you think you have enough time to focus on school on top of everything else?”

“I think so. I looked into it, and Britechester has a program that’s geared towards working adults. It’s all online, so I wouldn't have to worry about getting to campus.”

“That sounds great! If you decide to go for it, I’m willing to help out however I can.”

“I know you would, but you have a full time job yourself.”

“We’ll make it work. If we have to get some extra help in the evenings, we can afford it.”  

“Thanks for being so supportive.”

“Of course! I want to support you any way I can. So, what are you thinking of studying?”

“I think I want to study Media Production. I think it could help me move my way up at work to some production stuff behind the camera.”

“That sounds perfect! I think this is going to be good for you.”

“Thanks, I hope it is.”