The Delinquent - Chapter 5
True to her word, Savannah spent the day avoiding Chad, by lying on her bed and reading her book. The pages filled with wizards and dragons and mythical beings allowed her to escape the harsh reality that was now apparently sitting and brooding in the lounge. Although she felt guilty for snapping at him, she didn't feel guilty about the reasons behind it. Her mom was at risk by having him, a convicted Juvenile Delinquent in the house. Her dad would have a field day if he found out about it.
The custody battle had been quite vicious at one point, with her dad being adamant that the lifestyle of her mom was not conducive to stability. Eventually, the court conceded that being a social worker, always on call and working questionable hours, was not healthy for a young and impressionable girl. Kat had been prepared to fight tooth and nail, but to keep the peace, Savannah had opted to move in with her dad. Five years later, when her dad had remarried and her step-mom fell pregnant, things became awkward in the house. As she was 16 by that time, she opted to move back in with her mom and give her dad and step-mom the space they needed.
“Sav?” called her mom from the door, gently pushing it open. “You awake?”
“Hey Mom. Sorry I was miles away.” She closed her book and sat up in her bed, straightening out her unruly hair as she did.
“It's just about dinner time. I was thinking about getting pizza for dinner and saving myself the effort of cooking for three.” She said with a smile. “Any special requests on toppings?”
“The spicy chicken one. I'm not sure of the name.”
“I'll check the menu.” Kat gave her daughter a soft smile. “Are you going to hide up here forever?”
Savannah sighed. “I'm considering it.”
“I know this is a difficult situation and I'm sorry I threw it at you without warning. But I have to help him. You know that, don't you?”
“Yeah Mom. I know. You wouldn't be you if you didn't.” She rubbed her neck and stood up, crossing the room to wrap her arms around her. “He just seems like a bit of a jerk.”
Kat sighed. “His life just got thrown upside down again. It's a lot for people like him to process and his natural reaction is to become offensive. It's a shield to them.”
“I get that. It's just annoying. But I'll try be a bit more patient.” Savannah grabbed her hairbrush off the desk and started to make herself a bit more presentable. “Let's go get pizza.”
Dinner was awkward, but Chad was well-mannered to Kat, and only slightly indifferent to Savannah, which in her opinion, was less of a black mark against his name. He ate the pizza with gusto and thanked Kat for the meal, even going so far as to offer to get more cool drink for everyone when the plates were cleared. Savannah was dishing out Ice-cream into bowls – their Sunday evening treat – when Kat started discussing Chad's immediate future.
“So as you know, you're not going to be allowed to sit around here all day while I'm at work and Savannah's at school.” She started, accepting the bowl of chocolate ice-cream from Savannah. “You're not allowed to be without adult supervision for any period of time due to your previous parole restrictions.”
“I get that.” His mouth full of ice-cream as he spoke. “So what, am I just going to shadow you tomorrow?”
“No can do. I'm in Court tomorrow and you've missed enough school already.” Kat looked at him sternly, and raised her eyebrows when he still didn't follow where she was leading him in the conversation.
Realization dawned on him and his face dropped. “Seriously?” Chad sunk into his chair, letting his head fall back and making a strangled sound. “Come on Striker, you can't be serious.”
“I'm very serious.” She got up and retrieved an envelope from her bag. “You might think you're done with school, but the State says otherwise.” She passed the envelope to him, which he opened slowly. “You will attend Dalton High with Savannah whilst you're under my supervision.”
Savannah's face dropped instantly. She'd found humour in the looks of anguish that played across Chad's face as he found out he had to go back to school, but now she was pretty sure those same looks of anguish were now pasted across her own face. She read the Ward of The State Admission letter over Chad's shoulder and sighed.
“Luckily for you, there's no uniform, so you won't stand out. There's a dress code of course, but I'm sure you won't have any problems fitting in.” Kat retrieved the letter and refolded it into the envelope. “So you and I will go in tomorrow morning and get your subjects and classes sorted out. Then Sav will be able to show you around.”
Savannah gave her mom an alarmed look, but kept quiet, remembering her promise to try and be more understanding. She forced a smile and nodded before returning to her ice-cream.
“Good. That's settled then.” Kat said, as she finished off her ice-cream and left the two of them alone in the kitchen.
Chad spooned his ice-cream with less enthusiasm now. “You don't gotta show me around. I can figure it out by myself.”
“No it's OK. I don't mind. I'm free first period anyway, so I have time.”
“Look, you don't have to pretend to be OK with me being here.” He said with a frankness that caught her off guard. “I don't want to be here any more than you want me here.” He took his bowl to the sink and rinsed it out. “I plan to get out of here as soon as I can.”
Savannah folded her arms across her chest. “I don't mind you being here, as long as my mom doesn't suffer for it.” She narrowed her eyes. “I get it that you're all 'respect' and 'street cred' and all that other bad boy crap, but my mom has genuinely put her career at risk in helping you out here.”
“I'm not stupid. I know what she's done is risky.” He raked a hand through his hair. “I didn't ask her to. I didn't ask for any of this.”
“Well she doesn't just 'do' things for no reason.” Savannah breathed in deeply, thinking her words through carefully before allowing them to leave her lips. “My mom cares. A lot. About everything and everyone. She gets her heart shattered a million times over by the kids in the welfare system. Kids that she goes out of her way to help, and they just go back and repeat the same stupid mistakes again. Over and over.” She cocked her head to the side. “But she's never put herself at risk like this before. I mean, bringing her work home. Literally.”
Chad shrugged. “This is a first for me. I don't know what the hell she thinks she's going to get out of it, dragging me here.”
“She's keeping you safe, out of trouble and off the streets. Don't you see that?” Savannah struggled to keep her voice even. “I get that you think that everyone's got an agenda, but my mom isn't like that. If she brought you here, it's because she thinks you've got a real chance at making the changes in your life that you so obviously need to make.” She stood and took a step back. “She wants to give you the opportunity to make better choices.”
“Princess, your ivory tower has got you like a horse with blinders on.” He rolled his eyes. “When you've walked a mile in my shoes, you'll learn that there ain't no 'better choices' or 'roads less travelled' or any other bull. There's just a you against the rest of the world.” He gestured out the window. “You look out there and you see opportunity. I look out there and I see the reality.”
“And what reality is that?”
“That there is no opportunity when you're not born in the right circles.” He walked around her and headed towards the stairs. “I promise I won't get into trouble while I'm here. Striker's about the only worker who ever gave a damn about us.”
Chad closed his bedroom door softly and lay down on the soft bed, groaning as he did. The pain killers were starting to wear off, and the headache was edging its way back slowly. He retrieved the small blue bottle of painkillers he'd taken earlier and helped himself to two more pills.
Striker was an idiot. He respected her, but she was a damn idiot. He played the scenario over and over in his head: Inspector Richardson threatening to detain him in the cells overnight, and her arguing that he was under-age and therefore a ward of the state if no one claimed guardianship of him. She knew Chad would never have given up his brother's whereabouts, but still she'd refused to let him sleep in the cells. He just didn't understand the woman's obsession with trying to help him. He'd slept in worse conditions. But for her to offer to take him in was something he'd never expected. People didn't just take in Juvies.
Well, that wasn't exactly true. Most of the foster homes he'd been placed in were after something. State funding for housing, government allowances for clothing and food. The list went on and on. Most of the homes weren't that bad. They just didn't care about him. Not really. They put a roof over his head and they got paid a monthly fee to do it. As long as the kids didn't make a nuisance of themselves, the foster parents barely communicated with them more then necessary.
He knew of stories much worse than his own, where the kids got abused, neglected and suffered all sorts of trauma. But Dru made sure it didn't happen to them. If someone raised their hand to either of them, Dru raised his own right back. He'd always been a fighter, and Chad knew he'd owe his brother a million times over for the protection he'd received throughout his childhood.
He thought again about Striker's insistence that he be released into her care. He recalled how her eyes had narrowed as she all but threw the book in Inspector Richardson's face, teaching him about the laws he was supposed to be upholding. The woman was a steam roller with the way she just ran over him. But it still didn't explain why the hell she thought personally babysitting him was a good idea.
Not that he didn't appreciate it. He really did. The bed was soft, the room was warm and the water was hot. So far the food was fantastic. And the company, he had to admit, wasn't too hard on the eyes either.
He had to admit, he'd been taken aback by her beauty when he'd first seen her in the dark and dirty streets of his neighbourhood. Her hair had been up-styled but tousled loose, but still managed to look beautiful. Her dress had sparkled, the only green in the dark filthy streets. Her eyes, just as green, wide and terrified. His heart rate had gone into overdrive as soon as Rhino took a step towards her. He'd seen what happened to girls when Rhino got hold of them. It wasn't pretty. The thought of Savannah's face being smacked around and bruised by that brute and his brainless side-kick had him jumping to her aid without a second thought.
Seeing her for the second time, all mussed up with pyjamas and slippers, had him at a proper loss for words. She looked like the girls in the romantic comedy movies: the ones who woke up looking absolutely perfect without batting an eyelash. The ones you dreamed of waking up next to.
He snorted at his train of thought. Picturing Savannah like that was not healthy, especially if he wanted to live to see his eighteenth birthday. He was pretty sure Striker's compassion only went so far. And inspector Richardson's too, for that matter. No, Savannah was not someone who would mess around with just any guy, he thought to himself. She seemed too naive to even consider bedding a guy before being married. She was sensible. Clear headed. Not like the girls he'd been with. They mostly were rich girls hooked on petty drugs looking for a way to pass the time. And he was only too happy to be a temporary distraction.
He wouldn't even think about her in any way so demeaning. Savannah Striker was delicate in his eyes. A gentle flower, or delicate gemstone, in need of protection. She'd end up with a good man, with a five-year financial plan, fancy car and a posh sounding surname that sounded rich and royal. It's what good girls deserved. He smiled to himself and whispered “Good luck to the guy that can handle her temper though.”