Morning came with an alarming thud as a small bird crashed into James window, James was startled awake but Apple Bloom dozed on, still looking happy. James got up dressed and went downstairs without waking anybody, as he prepared and ate his breakfast he thought about what tests he would have today. He shrugged and continued eating his bagel. James' thoughts were interrupted as his dad came downstairs with Dart. Dave wasn’t dressed and Dart looked like he had been sleeping upside down again.
“You’re up early James,” said Dave opening the refrigerator.
“And you both look a mess,” retorted James.
“I heard something coming from your room, sounded like crying,” Dave said.
“Apple Bloom had a nightmare,” said James.
“You manage to calm her down?” his dad asked.
“Wasn’t easy but I did it,” replied James.
“Good job there,” said Dave taking a bowl of cereal over to the table, “I’m quite proud of you for doing that.”
“Try not to wake them,” James said as he deposited his dishes in the sink, “I want to see if I can get home before they wake up.”
“Okay then,” his dad laughed.
James went back upstairs to get himself ready before he left for school, as he came out of the bathroom he saw Apple Bloom lying peacefully on his bed with Dart who had snuck up while James was cleaning his teeth. James grabbed his iPhone from his iHome and left his bedroom, he also checked up on Sweetie Bell and Scootaloo who were also fast asleep. James said goodbye to his mother and left the house and headed for the bus stop. A half hour later James was at school, walking into the gymnasium.
“Just four hours,” he thought, “Just four hours until it’s over.”
James saw the bleachers were extended out from the walls and students were sitting on them, James headed in the direction that he normally headed. Towards his friend Charles who was on the bleachers listening to his music.
“Wonder what stupid things he did this weekend,” James thought as he ascended the bleachers.
“Yo,” Charles said as James sat down next to him.
“No one else arrive yet?” James asked as he looked around the gymnasium.
“You know they arrive later than us,” said Charles.
“Had an LAV pull into the gas station,” James said taking out his phone and showing the pictures he took of it.
“What the hell’s that doing there?” Charles asked, a little disbelieving of what he was looking at.
“Your guess is a good as mine,” James said merrily.
James' other friends, Josh and Binkly came over and sat a row in front of Charles and James.
“The hell is up with you?” Josh asked James.
“Nothing,” James replied as he slid his phone back into his pocket.
“No there is something up,” said Binkly, “You seem more happy than usual.”
By now the rest of James' classmates had sat on the bleacher rows below them, but they went about talking with one another rather than with James.
“Life changing experience,” said James, “Happened at the gas station.”
“An army vehicle pulled in,” Charles said.
“Not that,” said James, “That’s nothing compared to what happened earlier.”
“Well what’s happened then that’s got you all excited?” said Josh.
“I found some kids behind the shipping crate that’s behind the gas station,” James said, “And I’ve taken them in.”
“Bullshit,” said Charles.
“No way you found kids behind a shipping crate in a gas station,” Binkly said.
James sighed and took his phone out again, as he looked for the pictures he took of the Crusaders. Every few seconds he could hear “fuck!” emanating from the group in front of him.
“What a bunch of wankers,” James thought as he looked through the pictures on his phone, “All they ever do is curse and make up stories of them drinking in order to seem cool, glad I won’t have to deal with them for a few months.”
“Ah, right here,” James said once he found a picture and showed it to them.
“The fuck?” Josh said.
“The hell’s up with the middle one’s hair?” Binkly asked.
“Where are they at now?” asked Charles.
“My house,” said James, “They’ve been living with us for a few days now.”
“You have them living at your house?” said Binkly, “Why would you?”
“Because they are currently looking for their families and they would have died from the cold if I hadn’t done anything,” James said taking a good look at the photo.
“So you’re keeping them at your house until their families find out where they are?” Josh asked.
“Yes,” said James, “I took them down to the gun range on Saturday. They enjoyed it.”
“Sounds like shit to me,” said Charles.
“Well they had to go through a bunch of shit before I found them,” said James, “There were people who took them in but they kicked the girls out or left them on the side of the road and never came back for them.”
“Sound rough,” said Binkly.
“It was, one had a nightmare about not getting home,” said James, “Saddest thing I’ve ever seen.”
“You went from some kid who snapped another’s arm to a foster parent in eight years,” said Josh, “Seems like those eight years changed you in a way.”
“It’s called redemption,” said James, “And this is how I’ll success in redeeming myself.”
“Do you know how much of a queer you sound?” said Charles.
“At least I have good morale values, and I speak German and Russian,” James said.
“Whatever,” Charles said as he got up to join the rest of the students at the door so they could get to homeroom. James got up and went the back way that lead out of the school and to a pathway that connected to another part of the building. As he stood at the door to the building section that was the location of his homeroom he wondered why no-one else took this route. The door was opened for him and James proceeded to his homeroom, once he got there he tested the door handle. The door was locked, so James took a paperclip out of his backpack and started working at the keyhole, a ping and a click was heard and James knew that his task was complete. As he opened the door he flicked on the lights and sat down at his desk, James looked over to the white board and read the schedule that was written on it, he had his history and English finals today.
“Not bad,” James though as people swarmed into the classroom. The usual morning that James had in school was pretty much normal, the English final was over in a flash and in the period before history while James was studying, he couldn’t help but notice that some people were craning over others to look at him. James looked at the person next to him, he was staring at James curiously, James started to feel uncomfortable about this.
“Can I help?” he said to the kid next to him.
“Is it true?” the kid asked.
“What is?” James replied having no idea what was going on.
“That you adopted some kids you found,” the kid said.
“Yes,” said James, “Why is that important?”
“Seems strange is all,” said the kid turning back to his textbook.
“I did what I felt was right,” said James going back to his book. A few minutes later some other students came over to his desk.
“You heard as well?” said James not looking up.
“We heard that you had pictures,” said one of the students, James looked up and saw three teenage girls standing in from of him.
“Bloody grapevine,” he thought as he took out his phone and pulled up the pictures and gave the phone to the girls.
“Oh my god look at them,” said the girl holding the phone.
“Aww, they’re so cute,” said a second.
“How old are they?” asked the third.
“About twelve if you ask me,” said James, the girls all “awwed” then. The girl handed the phone back to James.
“What are their names?” she asked.
“From left to right, Susie, Samantha and Abigail,” James said as he looked at the picture on his phone, “They changed my life they did.”
“Why’d you adopt them?” the second girl asked.
“Because if I didn’t then no-one would of,” said James putting the phone away. A forth girl walked over and stood at James' side.
“Come on leave him alone so he can study,” the girl said, “We all have finals and he’s got to do them as well.”
The girls left, waving at James.
“Thank you,” said James, “I thought that they would never leave.”
“But you did tell the truth right?” the girl said standing next to him, “You know about the kids you took in.”
“Yes,” James said through clenched teeth, annoyed about how the word had got around without him knowing.
“You did a really nice thing there,” the girl said.
“It was only right at the time,” said James.
The girl stood up and smiled down at James.
“Okay then,” she said walking away, “Bye James.”
James looked back at her.
“How do you know my name?” he asked, “We’ve never talked to each other before.”
“Two things that travel fast around here are rumors and names,” the girl said, “You are a combination of both.”
James turned back to his book and stared bewildered at the pages, he didn’t know how many people knew of his good deed but he decided to work with it. It could earn him some good attention.