The Castaway Hotel - 4 - 38. Chapter 38 - Retrun To Normalcy

Sunday morning, I woke the boys and had them shower and get dressed, so we could go out for breakfast before we hit the road. After we ate, we checked out of the hotel and dragged all of our luggage down to the two vehicles and loaded it inside. Somewhat reluctantly, because of the great time we’d had there, we left the city and headed toward the Philadelphia airport. I guessed everyone was looking forward to picking up the Beckers, as they returned from their Disney World vacation, at least I knew that was the case for me. I was anxious to see how they had each enjoyed their trip, but especially Little Ricky.

We did make one stop along the way, to attend church and then grab a quick lunch, and then we were off again. We got to Philadelphia in plenty of time, because the Beckers’ plane didn’t land until late afternoon, so we had an hour or so to kill before we went to pick them up. We stopped for some ice cream and a drink before we went to the airport, since I figured that would be more enjoyable than sitting around the waiting area for that amount of time. Once we got there, it wasn’t long before the Beckers plane landed and all of them were beaming as they entered the terminal. Their smiles only broadened after they spotted us and began heading in our direction.

Little Ricky came tearing across the terminal ahead of his parents, aimed directly at me. As soon as he was close enough, he leaped into the air in my direction, forcing me to catch him. As soon as I wrapped him up in my arms, he immediately gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Once he had done that, he hugged me again and then quizzed me about receiving all of his letter and post cards. I told him that on Wednesday I had received and read the letter he’d sent from the hotel, but he seemed disappointed we he learned we hadn’t seen the others. I told him they’d probably be waiting for us when we returned, as we left early Thursday morning and they wouldn’t have had time to reach us by then. That seemed to suffice, so he started rambling on about their trip.

Even though he had turned thirteen before he left on his vacation, his size and enthusiasm would have belied the truth. Any curious passersby observing this spectacle would have concluded he was only about ten-years old, especially since he still maintained a level of enthusiasm and wonder about everything, which would have been attributed to someone much younger than himself. Without taking a breath, or at least seeming not to, he rattled off tales about their plane ride, eating at Planet Hollywood and their stay at the Disney Resort, but I had to stop him at that point and explain that he could fill me in about the rest of his trip during the ride home. He smiled and agreed, and then turned his head and gave a quick greeting to each of the boys.

As soon as I put him down on the ground, he zoomed over to Ricky, since he had spotted his hero while I was still holding him. He hugged Ricky as energetically as he had done to me, before hoisting my son off of his feet, which was no small accomplishment for someone his size. After setting Ricky back on the ground, Little Ricky lifted up one of his own feet to show Big Ricky he was wearing the sneakers that my Ricky had given him for his birthday. Once my son had acknowledged that fact, Little Ricky began to tell him, as well as the boys closest to him, about the things he had done. While he was doing that, I chatted briefly with his parents, while we also made our way over to the area where we would collect their luggage.

The Beckers were both still quite excited too and explained they’d had a wonderful time just watching Little Ricky enjoying himself. They thanked me for all we had done for them and for the little surprises they found after arriving at their hotel, and I merely told them that I was just glad we could do it for them.

Shortly after we got to the baggage claim area, their luggage appeared, so we decided to quickly reclaim their things and be on our way. I could tell Mr. Becker was antsy about getting back to his farm and I guessed he was most likely planning to get up early tomorrow and get back into his farm routine. Besides, Jake had to return to work too.

We led them out to the vehicles, packed everything inside and then were on the road again. Little Ricky and the Beckers rode with me, and Little Ricky’s mouth was going the whole time, as he told me about all the things he did. As I expected, he was very animated and extremely comical, as I watched him as much as I could through the rearview mirror.

Little Ricky started by telling me about the plane ride and how he had been allowed to go into the cockpit and ‘fly’ the plane, after he engaged one of the flight attendants in conversation. He even showed me his pilot’s wings, which I hadn’t noticed pinned to his shirt. Then he told me about going to Planet Hollywood the first night they were in Orlando, and even though he hoped to see some famous people, no one he cared about was there. He didn’t seem overly disappointed by this fact and happily moved on to the next part of his story.

He was now explaining, at warp speed, about what they did Monday and Tuesday, as that was when they visited the Magic Kingdom. He enthusiastically informed me that his favorite things there were Space Mountain, the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain, but he quickly added that the best thing happened to him Monday night, at the hotel.

They arrived back at the resort late in the afternoon, since his parents were quite tired. However, Little Ricky wasn’t and wanted to go for a swim. After some intense negotiations, his parents finally agreed to take him, figuring they could rest poolside while he swam. Therefore, Little Ricky got to go swimming, and while he was in the pool, he ran into another boy. He was shocked to discover this boy was none other than David Gallagher and he was staying at the same hotel. The ironic part was that David was also one of the people Little Ricky was hoping to see at Planet Hollywood.

Well, it seems the boys hit it off quite quickly, so David even invited him over to meet his parents. Eventually, the boys and their family got together and managed to get to know each other better too. At first, the Beckers were a little uneasy and intimidated about meeting a celebrity’s family, but the Gallaghers were quite down to earth and easy to get along with. Once they felt they knew each other quite well, the Gallaghers even asked the Beckers about their schedule, so the farm couple told them what they had planned.

After learning what the Beckers were going to doing the next day, David’s parents asked if they might be able to impose on them and asked the Beckers if they would take their son with them to the Disney-MGM Studios with them. The Gallaghers admitted this probably sounded weird, with them suggesting to let their son go off with perfect strangers, but they sheepishly admitted they had spotted them going around the hotel earlier and asked the hotel manager about them. They said the manager gave them a very nice recommendation, so they sort of worked this plan out in advance, providing the Beckers plans matched with their own. The Gallaghers went on to explain that people recognized the three of them together and David never really got a chance to enjoy himself as he should, so they figured this might allow him to get out without drawing any attention, so he could have a good time. They agreed to give the Beckers enough money to cover their son’s expenses, as well as their own, but money wasn’t the issue.

The Beckers were skeptical at first, but the Gallaghers quickly admitted that even wearing disguises were useless, as long as they all stayed together, because sooner or later one of the paparazzi or David’s adoring fans would recognize one of them. They explained they would also disguise him for the day, even though he would be with them, by dying his hair and having him wear a baseball cap and sunglasses very similar to the ones they had seen Little Ricky wearing. They thought by having David go with people totally unconnected to him, he might get a chance to just be a boy and have some fun for a few hours. The Gallaghers even went as far as to suggest they thought Little Ricky and David had enough similar characteristics that people would just assume they were brothers and not realize who he really was.

By now Little Ricky was teasing his parents to go along with this suggestion, so they agreed, and Wednesday morning the four of them were among the very first to enter the park. This way, David might be able to get to go on a bunch of rides without having to stand in the really long lines, so even if he was recognized later, he would still have been able to have more fun than if he’d stayed with his family.

Little Ricky told us that he and David enjoyed trying out the Tower of Terror, the Star Wars ride and the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular the best and they really had a great time together. They said no one else knew that David Gallagher was with them, so they both had a terrific time, and then they even had dinner with David and his parents that evening in a private dining area, which was the Gallaghers’ way of thanking them for helping their son to have fun like any other boy. Ricky and David had even exchanged addresses, phone numbers and promised to keep in touch, but they each had other plans for the following couple of days, so they weren’t able to get back together again. It seemed that David was performing somewhere nearby, so his parents had taken the opportunity to try to enjoy themselves before that happened. It was truly a remarkable experience for Little Ricky and one he would surely never forget.

After this, he told me they returned for a second day at the MGM Studios on Thursday, to take in some of the other things they hadn’t had time for the previous day, and then Friday they went to the Epcot Center. Little Ricky told us that the World Showcase was okay, but he had a better time at Future World. After that, he informed us he had also enjoyed Spaceship Earth and the Universe of Energy, but the Test Track was the best of all. I quickly learned that Test Track was a newer ride where you are the dummy during a car testing experience. Little Ricky said it was the absolute best and he went on it as many times as he could.

After that, the little blond dynamo told me on Saturday they went to Animal Kingdom and spent their last day there. He said that Dinoland was his favorite thing at that location, but he liked the Safari Village too. Finally, he told us about the plane ride back and then he thanked me again for sending him to all of those fantastic places. Believe it or not, I think Little Ricky had run out of energy, and out of breath too, because he just settled back in his seat and took it easy for the rest of the trip home.

About halfway back to their house, we decided to stop and eat. In the restaurant, some of my boys filled the Beckers in about our trip, telling them about the things we’d seen and done before we picked them up. All three of the Beckers seemed pleased that we had enjoyed ourselves too and hadn’t just made this long trip to collect them and take them back home. I could hear Little Ricky asking the boys about what it was like to look out from the top of those tall buildings and about how they liked the ‘Lion King.’ He was especially eager to know if it was like the movie, which led me to conclude he had obviously seen the film at some point. In fact, I’d say he’d seen it several times, judging from his familiarity with the storyline and songs, but he also was curious about how they could have pulled it off on a stage. The boys tried to explain how they did it, as best they could, and Little Ricky seemed to understand what they were telling him and was trying to picture in his mind what it must have been like. I made a mental note that we’d have to find a way to have him see the musical version for himself, sometime in the future.

It was getting dark by the time we reached their farm, but someone had left the porch light on and had a card wedged in their doorframe, welcoming them home. It also informed them all of the day’s chores had been completed, so they had nothing to worry about and could just relax and unpack. Mr. Becker handed me the card, which was one of those humorous greetings with several cows drawn on the front of it. It had obviously been one of those blank message cards, but someone had neatly written a message on it for them. On the front they had written ‘It’s udder-ly exciting’, and on the inside it continued ‘that you and the cows came home at nearly the same time.’ Then, underneath it, there were personal messages welcoming them back and telling them about what had been done while they were gone.

It was nice to see the Beckers were so close with their neighbors and that those people would have made sure to do something special like this to welcome them back. I had forgotten how farm families tend to bond together and help each other out in times of need, and how each of them tend to become part of an extended family with all of the other families living nearby. This farm community did have a wonderful support system in place, as I discovered while trying to have the farm taken care of while the Beckers were away, these people were eager to volunteer to help out one of the others, even though they had much work of their own that would need to be done. Some had even refused the money I had offered to pay them for their help, so I told the Beckers we’d hold a big Labor Day picnic for everyone at their farm, if that suggestion was okay with them. They thought it was a wonderful idea, so I told them to start making plans and I’d supply everything we’d need.

About then, Jake pointed out it was getting late, so I got everyone else back into the vehicles and we headed for our own homes. I felt sorry for Jake, knowing he had to return to work the next day, but there wasn’t much I could do about that. The last leg of the trip seemed to go fairly quickly, compared to how much driving we had already done, and Jake and Shannon quickly transferred their things from our vehicles and into their car, thanked us for including them and then said good-bye, before setting off for their own place.

The boys and I took our belongings into the house and I had each of them take their things up to their rooms, before they went to clean up. I certainly didn’t want that clutter in the foyer in the morning. After that was taken care of, Mark, Frankie and Dustin volunteered to help me make sure all the trash and other things were removed from both the van and the Suburban, which I was extremely grateful for. As Frankie and Dustin took off to take their showers and get ready for bed, Mark hung back.

Once we were alone, he thanked me again for including him on these trips and for making sure they were special for him. I told him it had definitely been my pleasure and I was glad I was in a position where I could do it for him. He quickly confirmed that he suspected I would have done it anyway, even if we weren’t as well off. I just told him he might be right, but it was nice to be able to have the money to do things like this for all my boys, whenever we wanted. Mark gave me one more hug and said good night, before he disappeared up the stairs too.

The following week was also kind of busy, as there were a great many things I needed to catch up on. Besides the various chores I had let slide around the house, there were also things I needed to get done before Pat would be ready for his plastic surgery the following Monday, as well as making preparations for Frankie’s 18th birthday party, which would be held the weekend after that. Frankie had asked me a couple of weeks ago if he could have a co-ed party, so he could invite his girlfriend and a few others, and I told him that would be fine. Happily, he’d sent out his invitations, with the help of Dustin and Ricky, and everyone had accepted. After they’d finished with that, I also asked Frankie to come up with a list of what he’d like to eat and do at the party, and suggested he make sure he came up with activities both his male friends and the girls who would be attending would also enjoy.

I had plenty of miscellaneous details to take care of in the interim, so I was happy for their help with these other issues. When the list of those who had acknowledged they would be attending was given to me, I noticed it included all of the other boys’ girlfriends, plus all of our extended family, including Jake and Shannon. It would be quite a gathering.

Tuesday afternoon I was finally able to take Frankie and Kevin out to do some more practice driving and Dion asked if we could drop him off at the school, where he was going to meet his new girlfriend. The summer recreation program was staging a play that she was in and he was going to meet her after their rehearsal, spend some time together and then he was going to walk her home. I told him that would be fine, so we let him out at the high school, before we went out for our drive.

I had decided to let my two drivers practice navigating over some of the less busy streets today, after acknowledging they were ready to graduate from practicing in the parking lots to limited traffic areas. They were both doing quite well and I told them so repeatedly, so I felt confident about taking them around some of the local streets. Once they proved they could handle that, then I’d take them out and let them try driving on the busier streets and then the highway. Both of them seemed encouraged and excited by this news, and each did very, very well while he was behind the wheel, including some attempts at parallel parking.

Once we’d finished, we went back to pick up Dion, but didn’t locate him right away. Even though I sent Frankie and Kevin to look for him, it took another twenty minutes or so before any of us came across him. When confronted about where he’d been, he merely told me he’d walked his girlfriend home. I heard later, via the rumor-mill, that wasn’t the entire story. Dion and his girlfriend didn’t hang around the school for very long after he got there, at least not after she informed him that no one was home at her house. Her father was working and her mother was running a number of errands for the family and also for her grandmother, so she wouldn’t be there for quite some time. This encouraged them to go to her house, and once they got there, they went down to her family room to watch a video on their large-screen television.

I think they both knew they weren’t really going to watch a video, so their time alone quickly turned into a make out session. They began kissing and sucking tongue, and then she let Dion take off her shirt and bra, while she undid his shorts. While he was feeling up her breasts, she was checking out his more than adequate tool. When they came up for air, she told him she had heard about this from his old girlfriend, but she didn’t really believe the other girl at first, since she knew she wasn’t very experienced with guys. She told him that now she’d seen it for herself, she was also kind of shocked, as she didn’t expect him to be that well endowed. Seeing Dion wasn’t really tall and was also on the slender side, she was surprised at how much meat he had packed away between his legs.

After discussing it a bit longer, she decided she wanted to try to play with it for a while and then she’d give him a blowjob. Of course Dion was all for that, and she began to fondle his erection, before she began to lick and suck on his rigid pole. He thought maybe this was her first time, as she really wasn’t very good at giving head, so he tried to explain to her how to do it properly. However, she didn’t improve very much, even with his coaching. He finally told her he was going to shoot, so she pulled off and masturbated him until he dumped his load on his chest, and then she merely tossed him a box of Kleenex, to wipe himself off with. Dion wasn’t very impressed by the experience, to say the least.

After he had cleaned up all his cum, he moved back over and began sucking on her tits, and his ministrations caused her to moan and squirm around beneath him. While he had her occupied in this fashion, he managed to slide off her shorts and panties and slowly worked a finger inside her hot hole, gently sliding it around. Now, she really began to squirm and moan, so Dion took the chance to try something new. He gradually slid down her body, licking his way downward, until he had managed to crawl between her thighs. Once there, he began to tongue her c**t lips and work his oral muscle inside of her, while paying special attention to her clit.

He had thought of trying to go farther, meaning intercourse, but he hadn’t expected this opportunity to arise, so he hadn’t brought a condom with him. Even though he still would have liked to, he determined it would be best to wait and what they were doing would have to satisfy both of them for now. He thought he did make her orgasm a couple of times during that session, judging from her little screams and body reactions, but he was too inexperienced with females to know for sure. After a while they finished their sexual activities, since they were afraid that her mother might return before much longer, and then he asked her if she’d like to come to Frankie’s birthday party, a week from Saturday. She said she’d love to, so he said he’d call her with the details later. They also planned to get together again this coming Saturday, to go to a movie or something. After they made those arrangements, Dion said good-bye and began his walk back to the high school.

I don’t think he told Trey any of the details of his encounter that afternoon, but Trey did all the right things, at least for Dion’s sake. Trey pretended it didn’t matter that Dion had been with someone else, only that he was glad that Dion was home with him now. The two went off, to check out some new books that Trey had picked up when he rode into town with Mark, when Mark went to work. Trey had made his purchases and then walked home, and had arrived only a short time before Dion and the rest of us had returned. Seeing both boys liked to read and basically liked the same types of books, something else they had in common, they went off to compare notes and decide who was going to read which book first. It was like nothing else mattered and at that point, nothing did. I didn’t see either of them again until dinnertime, as they both started reading and didn’t emerge from their room until it was time for them to eat.

Pat and I sat down later that evening, to discuss his upcoming operation, as I wanted to make sure he still wanted to go through with the plastic surgery. After convincing me this was what he wanted to do, we talked a bit about what he would be facing, both during the surgery and afterward. I wanted to make sure he was ready for everything he’d have to face and let him know this wasn’t going to be just a stroll in the park. He was fine with all of the details about what he’d be facing and emphasized he just wanted to get rid of some of the more obvious scars, so people wouldn’t be so quick to stare at him. I then informed him it might not work out exactly the way he planned, because instead of staring at the small scars he currently had, people might be inclined to stare at his handsome face instead. He let out a little laugh after I’d said that and quickly countered that I only thought that because he was my son. Nonetheless, he said he felt he could handle that kind of staring, as it would still be better than the alternative.

Now that I felt he was psychologically ready for this procedure, I explained a few of the things he might go through after the operation was done – details I’d learned from researching the procedure online. I also advised him how long his recovery might take and he was a bit shocked by this news, although he still insisted he wanted to go forward with it. Seeing he was determined to go ahead with the procedure, I told him I’d be there with him through the entire process. He thanked me for my offer, but told me I’d only need to be there for the operation itself and it wouldn’t be necessary for me to stay at the hospital with him overnight. Although he appreciated my concern and intentions, he hinted he was now old enough that it wasn’t necessary for me to do that again. After assuring him I’d honor his request, we ended our brief discussion and I left him to his own thoughts.

The upcoming weekend also proved to be filled with a flurry of activity, as several of the boys had dates and most of the others had things they wanted to do as well. All three vehicles were in motion for most of the day, with Mark offering to transport the boys earlier in the day for me, if he could use one of the vehicles for his date later that evening. I happily agreed and gave him the van for the day, as it took a great deal of work away from me. Therefore, instead of playing chauffeur I used the time to go on the Internet to do some more reading on what would be happening to Pat on Monday, so I’d be even better prepared to help him through it.

Since various groups of boys were with me in the house at different times throughout the day, that gave me an opportunity to spend some time alone with many of my sons or small groups of them. I don’t often get a chance like this, so I made sure to make the most out of it while I had the opportunity. It was nice to be able to spend time alone, or nearly alone, with them like this, especially having so many sons and so much constantly going on. It’s not easy to find the time to do things like this, although I do wish it could happen more often.

I was in bed before all the boys got in that evening, as I trusted the ones who were allowed to stay out later. They were all very careful to be quiet when they came in, so as not to wake me or the other boys, but I think that also had something to do with the fact that they really didn’t want me to know what time they actually came in. What they didn’t know was that I did wake up each time I heard that front door creak open and knew the times that someone came in, even if I wasn’t sure which of them it was. All I know is that I eventually accounted for the correct number of individuals returning home, and when I awoke the next morning, all the boys were there and all of the vehicles were in the driveway, none of which were any the worse for wear.

I did go around the house and rouse the troops to get them ready for church, which was not what some of the later arrivals home wanted to hear, especially at that hour of the morning. They knew they had to go with us, however, if they wanted to be allowed to stay out that late on a Saturday night again, so they humored me, no matter how reluctantly. While my group of late night revelers hit the showers to get cleaned up, I went downstairs to fix breakfast for the other boys.

Once everyone was ready, I drove to the church and led my flock inside. Shortly after we sat down, I said my own special prayer for Pat, making certain to cover all the bases to ensure everything would go well the following day. Even though the doctor kept reassuring both of us that this was minor surgery, I knew there was always the risk of something going wrong, so I wasn’t about to leave any stone unturned. I felt Pat had been through enough already and didn’t want to see him have to go through more or suffer further, so I said another prayer to ask God to watch over him. As we left, our pastor even offered Pat his best wishes, as he also remembered what was going to be happening to him, and Pat thanked him for his concern.

The remainder of our day was fairly quiet and laid back, at least as far as this family is concerned, and I didn’t have to worry about getting so many things ready in preparation for tomorrow, since I’d done that during the week. This operation was going to be done locally and many of the other boys were planning to go to the hospital with us, so they could offer Pat their moral support. Pat had told them it wasn’t necessary, but he also let them know he appreciated their intentions, but he didn’t want them to have to sit around a boring old hospital for that long. Although they understood his line of reasoning, each boy said he still wanted to be there for him and they also let Pat know, in no uncertain terms, that they WOULD be going. He just thanked them and admitted he would have done the same for any of them and had already concluded he probably wouldn’t win this argument. That’s when the boys made sure to let him know he was right.