The Phoenix Foundation - 2. The Test

The Test:

A few weeks later Matt got a phone call from Katie stating the authorities where their parents live had arrested them for Child Neglect and Child Abandonment. Katie also advised that the charges that were being filed against their former parents. Their parents could receive sentences in excess of ten years each. The state already filed for termination of parental rights to grant permanent guardianship to Matt and Jon since they had their home visit done. Katie advised them she would keep them informed as their case progressed through the courts.

Matt called and spoke to Jon at work about how they should proceed with Caleb’s guardianship, Jon was adamant that he wanted to be part of Caleb’s forever family and Matt agreed.

*****

Caleb came out of the office from school with a huge smile that reached from ear-to-ear, “Matt those tests were sooo easy!” Caleb was practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. The school administrator called Matt into his office, “Matt I can assure you with the test scores that Caleb achieved he is definitely not behind. If anything he is still ahead of our Advanced Placement classes when our new school term resumes,” Matt thanked the administrator and collected Caleb before heading to lunch.

The guys sat at a booth in the small fifties style diner which was ironically named Tin Can. Matt was proud of his brother, and he knew he needed to be praised, “Caleb I’m really proud of you, but what do you want do in the future?” Matt smiled at Caleb.

An older waitress wearing a nametag with Kerri on it approached their table.

“Hi guys I’ll be your waitress my name is Kerri,” she said pulling a notepad out of her apron, “What can I get you, boys?”

Caleb ordered a double bacon cheeseburger with fries and a side of cheese, Matt ordered a Philly cheesesteak, and both ordered Coke’s.

Caleb thought about Matt’s question, “Honestly, I’m not sure, maybe something in business?”

“If you think of anything let me know so we can discuss it,” Matt rubbed his chin and nodded, “What would you like to do this summer?”

“I thought maybe,” Caleb strummed his fingers on the table, “We could all go to the beach if you and Jon can afford it?” Matt smiled and nodded his head at Caleb.

“Let’s discuss it with Jon,” Matt watched Caleb eat for a short time considering how to approach the subject of their former parents, “Caleb I spoke to Katie from CYS. You remember her right?” Caleb nodded his head as he wiped a stray dribble of ketchup from his face. “She told me the police arrested Steven and Claire.”

Caleb sat his napkin down staring at Matt, “They deserve it,” He said bitterly.

Matt studied Caleb’s face for any signs of duress, “Caleb the state has already terminated their parental rights over you, Jon and I want to be your permanent guardians if you want that.”

Caleb sat there absorbing the news, “So you and Jon will be my permanent guardian?”

Matt smiled and nodded his head, “Do you want us to be your permanent guardian Caleb?”

“God, I’ve waited for something like this, but I never expected it to really happen,” Caleb had unshed tears in his eyes from the happiness he felt.

Matt slid out of the booth and stood up as Caleb did the same, wrapping one another in a tight embrace, “Caleb, Jon and I love you, it might seem quick to say that, but we do. We both want you to know we are going to be there for you as long as we are alive,” Matt loosened his hug and saw Caleb’s tear-streaked face, “Caleb I’m proud of you. Jon and I are both thrilled you’re with us, I know you’re gonna be safe now.”

The guys finished their lunch and went back home. Matt studied a chart that showed the requirements his youth home had to meet, Jen had been handling preliminary interviews for possible employees which had become a standard procedure. Since Caleb came to live with Jon and Matt, slowly Jen had taken over most of the day-to-day operations of the foundation. Matt’s still a tad reluctant to hand over all of the operation as of yet. However, Matt decided Caleb is his number one priority. Matt knew he needed to go to his office and check on the status of the interviews, “Caleb,” Matt shouted, “I need to go to work for a little while. Would you like to come with me?”

“Be right there,” Caleb bounded down the stairs pulling a baby blue colored polo shirt on. “Do I look alright?” Caleb brushed his hand through his hair.

Matt laughed fondly at his brother, “You look fine Caleb,” Matt ruffled Caleb’s hair causing a sigh from him.

*****

Caleb spent a lot of time watching Matt signoff on a ton of paperwork. Jen who is Matt’s assistant would stop by Matt’s office and offer Caleb a bottle of soda occasionally, which made him feel pretty special.

Matt pulled out some fancy looking drawings and blueprints for the youth home, “Caleb come here, I wanna show you what the new facility will look like soon,” Matt motioned with his hand and smiled at Caleb.

Caleb smiled as he walked over to Matt’s desk and stood by him, “Wow…” Caleb studied the sign that was drawn over the front of the building, “Matt, how did you get a picture of me on the sign with you and Jon?” Caleb pointed to the picture.

Matt chuckled, “Remember the picture the three of us had taken at the restaurant Jon took us to after you first came into our lives?” Caleb nodded his head, “Well I sent a copy of that to our designer who’s doing the logo and sign; The sign is gonna be a lot of work since it’s all in bronze.”

“You both really do love me huh?” Caleb had a twinkle in his eye that nobody could deny.

Matt wrapped his arm around Caleb, “Ya we do Caleb,” he squeezed him in the one-armed hug, “We really hope you feel like this is your home.”

“It’s the only place that has ever felt like home to me,” Caleb smiled affectionately, “You both saved my life, Matt. God knows where and what I’d be doing right now without you guys.”

*****

Later that evening as they ate supper Jon smiled at Caleb as he savored the last bite of his steak, “Caleb I spoke to Matt earlier, would you mind if we all took a vacation after I get off work tomorrow?”

Caleb smiled ear-to-ear, “Really?” he bounced in his chair like he ate a bag of pure sugar, “That’d be so cool,” Caleb’s eyes bounced between Matt and Jon, “Where are we going? How are we getting there? Oh god, I need to pack. What should I wear?” Caleb rambled.

Matt held up his hand and giggled as he tried to calm Caleb, “We are going to fly down to North Carolina, and we’ll rent a car and drive to Kill Devil Hill’s where we own a beach house.” Caleb’s eyes grew to the size of a fifty cent piece.

“Can I go pack my stuff now?” Caleb fidgeted in his seat, “I need to make sure I have clothes, and toothpaste, and swimsuit, and toothbrush, and…” he just continued to ramble on quicker than either of the adults could keep up with, and Jon laughed a deep belly laugh.

The evening flew by as Caleb whirled around the house like a tornado making sure he had exactly what he needed for their vacation. Occasionally he would ask Matt and Jon if they thought he had enough stuff for a week, after the third suitcase was brought downstairs, Matt felt as flustered as Caleb looked, “Caleb we are only going for a week, not a month.”

“I don’t wanna run out of anything or forget something, I might need something. Do you think I need anything else?” Caleb babbled.

Matt sighed as Jon chuckled, “Caleb you’re fine just get some sleep if you need anything else we will buy it down there, ok?”

Caleb ran over and hugged Jon and then Matt, “Thanks, Matt and Jon you’re the best brothers I could ever ask for. Goodnight.”

*****

The following day Caleb stood at the window beside the front door bouncing from one foot to the other as he watched for Jon. As Jon’s SUV pulled in the driveway, Caleb flung the door open and flew out the door skidding to a halt beside Jon’s open car door, “Are you ready? Can we go now?”

Jon laughed as he closed his door and then put his arm around Caleb’s shoulder, “Can I at least get changed first?” As they both walked back into the house, Jon looked at Caleb, “Have you ever been on a vacation Caleb?”

Caleb shook his head, “Nope, the closest to a vacation I ever had was the week-long thing the YMCA had where you could go over and swim and stuff for the week for free.”

“Listen to me for a second Caleb,” Jon stopped walking and had Caleb face him, “I want this vacation to be special for you.” Jon reached up loosening his tie, “We can’t always get away like we are for the next week because of my practice. But I promise you if there are things you want to do and we can swing it schedule-wise I’m more than happy to do it with you.”

Caleb hugged Jon tightly, “Thanks, Jon,” loosening his grip on the hug, “Can we leave yet?” Caleb smirked and ran in grabbing one of his large suitcases to put it in Jon’s SUV.

Jon laughed and went inside kissing Matt as he entered the door, “Mmm, love you too Babe,” Jon moaned with pleasure, “Better stop or some kid may drag us outside without me getting a chance to change he’s already loading the car.”

Matt chuckled, “You should have seen him waiting at the window watching for you,” Matt ran his hand through Jon’s hair, “I swear at Christmas we will have our hands full with Caleb, he’s like an excitable puppy.”

“Well I’m gonna throw on some shorts and a polo and some comfy shoes, and then we can get on the road to the airport,” Jon leaned in giving Matt a quick peck on the lips. “Be right back,” Jon turned heading up the stairs.

A short time later Jon came back downstairs carrying his bags, only to be met by Caleb at the bottom landing who grabbed his suitcase, “I thought you were never getting ready,” Caleb shook his head and carried the bag to the car.

Matt was standing to the side in the archway to the living room laughing, “I told you he was excited,” Matt took Jon’s free hand, and they walked out to the car after they secured the house.

A half-hour later they pulled up to the private airport which housed their private jet. Caleb looked around for large airplanes, “Uh… where are the big planes? How are we getting there? I don’t see any.”

“See that bright royal blue one with the yellow stripe?” Matt pointed with a smile as Caleb’s eyes bulged from his head, “That’s our jet.”

“Nuh uh… No way…” Caleb jumped out of the car only to have Matt jump out of the parked car and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Calm down bud,” Matt said soothingly, “You can’t run around here, it could be dangerous. Grab one of your suitcases, and we will do the same, and then we can introduce you to Marshall.”

“Marshall?” Caleb had a puzzled look on his face.

Matt laughed, “You’ll see, let’s go Caleb.” The trio walked towards their plane, technically it was a Learjet 75. Once they reached the stairs, a younger looking pilot walked out to greet them.

“Hi, guys,” Marshall said as he reached out and started shaking Matt and Jon’s hand, “Who’s this guy Matt? He sorta looks like a mini version of you?” Caleb smiled at the compliment.

“This is my brother Caleb, you will get to know him pretty well from now on,” Matt placed his hand on Caleb’s back, patting it, “He lives with us now.” Marshall shook Caleb’s hand and loaded their luggage.

“Caleb, do you wanna ride up in the cockpit with me for a while?” Marshall asked him.

Caleb turned with puppy dog eyes to his family, “Can I really?”

“Yes you may,” Matt and Jon said simultaneously.

The guys all found their seats and Marshall brought the jet to life and obtained clearance for take off. As they taxied their way to the runway Caleb’s eyes were darting to and fro. Once they were finally in the air Matt and Jon could hear Caleb ‘oohing and awing.’ Matt and Jon never saw Caleb until they touched down in North Carolina.

After the plane came to a halt at the terminal Caleb scampered out of the cockpit, “Oh my god, that was so cool. You should’ve seen it, the clouds and the mountains were so freakin’ cool I’ve never seen anything like it ever,” Caleb was rambling about his experience. They all laughed and got their luggage and found their rental SUV which was a bright cherry red in color.

Twenty minutes later they pulled into a nice sized driveway that led to a nice beach house. Caleb jumped out of the car as soon as it came to a halt taking a large breath of the fresh air, “Smell the air, it’s so different.”

“That’s the saltwater Caleb,” Jon grinned, “Let's unload the car and then we can go out and get some CrabShack Joe’s.”

An hour later they were seated in the CrabShack and Caleb had suckered the guys into each of them getting a shirt that said, ‘I got crabs from Joe.’ They opted to share a Crab Feast, Matt explained to Caleb how to peel the crab and to dip it in the butter they provided. Caleb had the look of ecstasy on his face as he took each bite. As they finished eating Caleb leaned back rubbing his belly, “God that was delicious I don’t think I could eat another bite.”

“Crab is one of our favorite meals,” Jon chimed in with a smile as he watched Caleb beam with happiness.

Matt laced his fingers with Jon’s, “Everybody ready to go home?” Caleb shot a wary look at Matt, “I meant back to the beach house Caleb,” Caleb smiled and nodded as they got up to leave and Matt threw two hundred dollars on the table as they walked away to cover their bill and tip.

Once they got home, Caleb followed the guys into the living room, “Uh… umm… Matt, I can eat hotdogs and stuff, you don’t need to spend that much for me to eat.”

Matt wrapped his arms around Caleb, “Listen to me bud, I will spend what I want on you. You’re more than worth every penny I ever spend on you ok?”

Caleb sniffled and wiped his eye with the palm of his hands, “Thanks, Matt and Jon I’m still trying to get used to…Nevermind.”

“Tomorrow we’re going fishing at Nags Head Pier, so you need to get a good nights sleep,” Matt kissed Caleb’s forehead, “Goodnight Caleb, I love you,” Jon repeated the same process and Caleb headed off to bed.

“He’s a really special kid,” Jon said quietly.

“Ya, he really is,” Matt replied in a hushed tone.

*****

Matt had hired an instructor to help teach them the correct fishing techniques to catch saltwater fish from the pier. Matt, however, seemed to master catching driftwood and seaweed which Caleb found hilarious, “No offense Matt you suck,” Caleb chuckled as he pulled in a large saltwater trout bringing his total catch of the day to eight Trout, and three Blue’s.

Matt rolled his eyes as he removed a huge clump of seaweed, “Laugh it up you have to clean those so we can cook them,” then Matt returned to mumbling under his breath at himself.

Jon chuckled at Matt and patted Caleb’s back, “He’s just jealous because you’re catching the good stuff,” Caleb smiled as he added his catch to his bucket.

“I can hear you, Jon,” Matt pouted, “And yeah I’m jealous my biggest catch was a three-foot piece of driftwood.”

Caleb roared with boyish laughter, “Sorry Matt do you want me to hook one and give you my pole?” Matt glared and shook his head pouting.

“Tomorrow we are going hand gliding off of the dunes,” Matt squawked, “See if you’re as good at that.”

Later in the evening Matt cooked Caleb’s big catch for supper along with baked potatoes and steamed green beans, which the entire family loved and Matt received all of their love.

*****

The following morning the guys made the trip to Kitty Hawk and received their instructions, and Caleb was the first to suit up with their instructor. Caleb was all smiles as they clipped into the hand glider and the plane started to tow the glider to the altitude of 2,000 feet. Caleb turned out to be quite the daredevil, he was all smiles as the glider came to a slow rolling halt in the field where Matt and Jon awaited their turn to be one with the birds.

After Caleb was unfastened from the rigging, he came running over to Matt as Jon prepared for his turn. “Oh my god Matt, you’re gonna love it. I felt like a bird up there just soaring around no noise, the wind just blowing around you,” Caleb gushed with excitement and had the most enormous smile.

Matt looked at Jon who seemed nervous and turned his attention to Caleb, “How do you think Jon is gonna do he looks really nervous?”

Caleb looked at Jon and smirked, “He’s either gonna puke or pee his pants,” Caleb giggled.

Twenty minutes later a green colored Jon staggered back toward his family making a stop at the closest sand dune to lose the contents from his stomach.

“Told ya so,” Caleb chirped with a shit-eating grin, “Matt just go enjoy the ride it’s so much fun you will love it,” Caleb shooed Matt toward the instructor, as he went to tend to Jon.

Caleb walked up to Jon as he was bent over suffering from dry heaves and placed his hand on Jon’s back rubbing it lightly. Jon wobbled on weak legs trying to stand up and muttered, “I think I’m gonna die, I wish I was fifteen again and had the nothing can stop me attitude you have.”

“Less than a month ago I was the person that was worried about dying everytime I turned my head,” Caleb frowned, “I was so scared at every little thing, I just couldn’t show it. Now I know you and Matt are here for me no matter how bad things are.”

Jon placed his arm over Caleb's shoulder for support and they went to sit on the grass in the field to wait for Matt.

A short while later Matt jogged over to his husband and brother with a smile that would light up the world, “That was awesome Caleb,” Jon made a gagging sound, “Are you, ok Babe?” Jon rolled onto his knees and crawled away to continue heaving, “Has he been doing this the whole time I’ve been gone?” Matt asked with concern.

Caleb shrugged his shoulders, “He seemed ok until he saw the glider.”

Matt sighed and went over to comfort Jon.

*****

As the end of their vacation was winding down they were all sitting in the hot tub joking around sipping on ice cold lemonade. Matt and Jon picked on each other over their horrors between fishing and hand gliding causing Caleb to laugh at them equally, “You guys are so funny. The last week has been something I’ll never forget, Thanks.”

Matt and Jon wrapped Caleb in a hug kissing his forehead, thanking God for giving them the chance to raise Caleb.