Manny Needs a Nanny - 13. School and Recovery Begin

Tuesday

Rocky's alarm started trying to wake him at the ridiculously early hour of six-forty-five. His parents had programmed it to get gradually louder and only snooze three minutes at a time. It was still five to seven before Rocky actually made it out of bed. After a quick shower, he dressed in what he thought was his coolest outfit: tan khaki pants, his white Nike 'Fired Up' T-shirt, and his red, black, and white Air Jordan shoes. He didn't want to look like a geek on his first day of school. His mom probably would have made him wear a dark pair of slacks, a white button-down shirt, and dress shoes—that's what he always had to wear for special occasions.

He walked into the kitchen just as Sandy was preparing a plate for him, bacon, eggs over hard, and toast.

"Don't you look spiffy today! You'll drive all the girls crazy."

"I hope so. Good morning. I don't want to get picked on for something as stupid as clothes. Kenny said, he wears stuff like this all the time to school."

Kenny Baxter was his next-door neighbor. ‘Next-door’ being relative—he was probably about a quarter mile up the road and around one corner. The bus would pick them up at that corner at seven-forty, or at least that's what the letter from the school stated.

"I think it looks fine. Boys at the supermarket are dressed like that all the time. You'll fit in well."

"Again, I hope so. Kenny's the only kid I'll know, and he's only going into seventh grade. I just hope I can make a couple friends before Christmas."

Bass entered the kitchen just then, "You'll be fine, Rocky."

"Good morning, Bass. Can I call you to come beat some kids up if I need you to?"

"I've seen you at your Karate lessons—you won't need me."

"We can go see Manny as soon as I get home, right?"

"Yes, I said, we'll go, and we will. Finish up and get out to the bus stop. You don't want to miss the bus. I'll make Patrick drive you in with the Volga."

He shoved the last bite of bacon into his mouth, "I'm out of here. See you later!"

Rocky disappeared like a snowflake on a sunny day.

"Bass, that was mean. You know, he hates that car."

"Mean, but successful."

She laughed, "Your eggs are ready."

"Great, thanks Sandy."

Sandy handed Bass his plate and picked up Rocky's to put into the dishwasher. She knew Bass would put his plate and utensils in himself. "Say ‘hello’ to Manny for me. I hope he's not too upset about losing his hand."

"I will. He seemed resigned to it happening, so he'll probably be okay."

Sandy left the kitchen, knowing she'd be back a while later to make breakfast for Patrick and Linda. Bass finished and headed out the door. He had his own car, Boris' “old” 2018 Chrysler 300. He didn't like making Patrick drive him when he didn't know how long he'd be out. As he told Sandy, Manny would probably be alright, but he had his doubts. He couldn't believe someone could lose a hand and not be traumatized by it.

***********************************

Bass arrived at the hospital quarter after eight. Manny was no longer in the ICU, but a standard, semi-private room. He nearly got skewered by a flying fork as he walked into the room. Manny was apparently having difficulties adjusting.

"DAMN IT!!!"

"You missed me. I hope your aim gets better."

"Christ. Sorry, Bass. I can't believe this place! They cut off my fucking arm and then they give me a chunk of ham with breakfast. How the fuck am I supposed to cut it?"

"Let me help."

Manny flipped the tray over, "No. I don't even fucking want it anyway! What's the point? My life is going to suck from now on. Callahan will find out and she'll take Rocky away and put him into foster care. When she first called me, all she cared about was that I didn't have a record and wasn't disabled. I won't be able to work in the bar anymore, I can't mix drinks with one hand. Fuck! I can't even fill a beer glass from the tap."

"Calm down, Manny. I doubt they'll take Rocky away, it's not like he's a baby and you need to hold him or change diapers. She was happy, you were working out so well. This is a minor bump in the road. And if you can't work at the bar anymore, it's not like you need the job."

Manny scowled, "A minor bump? I like the job. I like the people. What the fuck will I do all day and night if I'm not working? Thirty-two is a little fucking young to retire. Wait, I know. I'll take up knitting. Pfffft. I couldn't even do something as stupid as that. I WANT MY FUCKING HAND BACK!"

Manny started crying. Bass stepped over to him and put his arms around him, trying to console him.

"Everything will be alright, Manny. This is a big change; you're not going to adjust to it right away. I'll help you; Sandy was asking about you, Rocky, Linda, and Patrick will be there for you. You're not going to go through this alone."

The tears slowing, Manny stuttered at first, "Y-y-yeah, r-r-right. Easy for you to say. You're not the one whose whole life just dive-bombed into the fucking sewer. If I could kill that asshole a million times, it wouldn't be enough. He fucking ruined my life!"

Bass didn't know what to say. He didn't want to say anything wrong, but he knew he had to help Manny see that the world wasn't ending.

"Look, Rocky has spent so much of his free time lately, researching hand and arm transplants. This is probably only a temporary setback."

"A setback!? Just get the fuck out of here! I don't want to talk to anybody right now."

"Manny…"

"GO!!! Get the fuck away from me!"

Bass didn't want to leave, but he knew staying would only upset Manny more. He knew it was Manny's emotions doing all of this, but it still hurt, being chased away. He stopped at the nurse's station to speak with one of the nurses.

"Excuse me?"

She turned and smiled, "Yes?"

"Do you know if they scheduled any counseling for Manny Talbot? He's having a tough time adjusting to losing his hand."

"Yes. That's the standard procedure after an amputation. Dr. Fillson, our staff psychiatrist, should be here around ten. I heard him yelling at you. You have to understand that kind of response is normal, you can't take it personally."

"I know that. But it's hard to take when someone dismisses you like that."

"I understand. You need to be patient with him. The first few days are always the most difficult. He'll apologize, and then, five minutes later, lose his temper again. He doesn't have any idea about how people around him—people who love him—are affected too. After a few sessions with Dr. Fillson, you'll see a change, I'm sure of it. If you want his contact information, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for friends and family members to have a session or two with him."

"I hope you're right. Yes, I’ll take his information. Thank you for your time. I suppose, I'll see you later."

She handed him a page off her pad after writing the doctor’s number on it, “I’m here until four. Feel free to come and talk with me any time.”

Bass read the undertones there: That nurse was attracted to him. ‘Well, she’s just going to have to be disappointed.’ Bass left and went back to the house, not knowing what else to do.

Linda met Bass when he walked in, “How’s Manny?”

Bass looks at his feet and sighs heavily, "He's an emotional train wreck. This is all still too new for him and he's not dealing with it well. I tried to talk to him, but it's so hard to tell what's going to set him off. I said, it was a temporary setback and he told me to get away from him; although not nearly as nicely as that."

Linda reaches out for Bass’ shoulder, touching it lightly, "You'll have to be patient with him. I know, you're starting to, well, get closer to him. It's got to be hard on you to see him like that. But give it time. Don't give up on him."

"I won't, but you can't know how it feels when someone, you have feelings for, says 'get the fuck away from me.' It almost felt like I was getting stabbed in the heart."

"I'm so sorry, you had to go through that. But remember, it's not the same Manny that you're growing fond of saying that. He's not himself right now."

"I know. Thanks for telling me all this."

"It's the truth. Just remember, he needs time. You have to find a way to let him have it."

"You're right. I think, I'm going to go take a nap. Just those few minutes with him exhausted me."

"Go ahead. Call me if you need anything. We all need to stick together and support each other right now."

"Thanks, Linda. You're a good friend. I'll see you later."

"Okay."

Bass went upstairs to lie down, but he didn't go to his room, we went to lie in Manny's bed. The sheets had been changed, so Manny’s scent wasn’t there, but Bass felt his presence, regardless.

***********************************

About the same time Bass was getting kicked out of the hospital room, Rocky was on his way to his second period class. First period wasn't so bad. Nobody picked on him, but nobody tried to talk to him either. Rocky was standing at his locker, about to drop off his book from his last class when he was pushed hard from behind. He was looking down at the time, so his face didn't get smashed into the locker door. But his forehead took quite a hard hit.

Turning around, "What the fuck?"

A bigger boy was standing next to him, "You're in my way, squirt. I need to get into my locker. Move."

"You have plenty of room, I'm not in your way."

"I'll decide who's in my way and who isn't, you little shit. Now move it."

Rocky hesitated just a bit too long and wasn't prepared for the reaction. The other boy put his hand on top of Rocky's head, grabbed hair, and pulled, knocking him onto the floor, face first.

His nose bleeding, he stood up, "You motherfucker!"

This time, it was the other boy who wasn't prepared. Rocky thrust his hand forward, giving the other boy an Oi Zuki (lunge punch). Rocky was no longer the only person with a bloody nose. He was, however, the only one of the two combatants still standing, as the other boy slowly slid down his locker to the floor.

Rocky wiped his nose with his hand and flung the blood at the other boy. He then walked away, looking for the nearest bathroom. After cleaning himself up and stopping his nosebleed, Rocky went back to his locker and completed his change of books. The other kid had slumped over on his side, holding his face. Rocky was late getting to his second period class, which the teacher didn't appreciate. This was especially true with some of the other students mumbling 'that's the kid.'

"You're late young man."

Pointing at the blood on his shirt, "I'm sorry, I had a little bit of trouble at my locker."

"You should be more careful next time. Name?"

"Rocky. Tanner."

"Take a seat, you've disrupted the class enough already."

Rocky nodded and sat in the nearest empty seat, very unhappy that he now had a teacher mad at him. The boy in the seat next to him tapped his desk, drawing Rocky's attention. When Rocky looked over at him, the boy gave him a thumbs up. When the class was over, this other boy pointed to the door, and held his index finger up, indicating, 'wait one minute.' They stopped outside the classroom door. A small crowd gathered. Rocky hoped he wasn't about to get ganged up on.

"That was so fucking cool! I'm Bobby Panner. You laid out Bruce good."

A few of the others gathered around responded, 'yeah,' and 'cool.'

"Rocky Tanner. Thanks."

"Yeah, I got that when you told Mr. Lamb. Hey, our names rhyme. That's cool. You're new here, ain't ya?"

"Yeah."

Bobby started walking, apparently to his next class. Rocky followed, fortunately, he had to go in the same direction.

"Just move in?"

"No. I was home-schooled until… until June."

"What's your next class?"

"Um, History, room two-eleven."

"Awesome, me too. What period do you have lunch?"

"Fifth."

"Cool, me too. Want to eat with me and a few of my friends?"

"Um…"

"It'll be fine. When they hear you laid out Bruce Wilmer, you'll be more than welcome. We all think, he the biggest asshole in the school."

"Yeah, okay. I'll need a few minutes before, though. I want to try to get rid of some of this blood."

"Sure, just look for me. We always sit at the back of the cafeteria next to the windows."

"Okay. Thanks."

They arrived at their next class. When the teacher took roll, Bobby had to stifle a laugh when the teacher called out Bruce Wilmer's name.

"Something funny, Mr. Panner?"

"No, Mr. Blaine. I held in a sneeze."

Mr. Blaine looked at Bobby like he didn't believe him, but let it slide. He marked Wilmer absent and started talking about what they would cover in class.

When the bell rang for fifth period, Rocky dropped his books in his locker and headed back to the bathroom. He took off his shirt and ran it under some cold water in the sink. The blood lightened but was still noticeable. 'Fuck, that jerk ruined my favorite shirt.' He dried his shirt the best he could with paper towels and headed for the cafeteria. After buying his lunch, he looked around and saw Bobby at a table in the back, just like he said. He walked up to the table.

"Hey, guys, this is the Wilmer terminator, I told you about: Rocky Tanner."

Rocky quietly said, "Hi" not being sure how welcome he'd be. One of the other boys said he should sit down, so he did.

"I'm Mark Peeters. Sit. Did you really knock Bruce out with one punch?"

Rocky hesitated, but the two other boys answered for him.

"He did." "Yeah, you should have seen it, blood everywhere. It was wicked."

Bobby introduced these last two, Steve Kilger, and Paul Bangor. Before the lunch period was over, Rocky had four new friends.

***********************************

Unfortunately, at the end of the day, Rocky also found out he had two new enemies. And they were waiting for him right outside the door everyone used to get on their bus. One was Wilmer. Obviously, Rocky had no idea who the second boy was.

"Hey dickhead!"

Rocky kept walking until one of them grabbed his shoulder. Rocky spun around and threw a forearm to the other boy's face, knocking him off-balance and to the ground. The second boy, Wilmer, moved in a little slower. Rocky wasn't taking any chances, so he chin-punched him. Bruce's mouth was open and he—unfortunately for him—bit off the tip of his tongue.

"Ahhhh!!! Fuck. You ahh hoe!”

Bruce started to charge at Rocky. Rocky sidestepped and tripped him. Bruce hit the ground face first, much like Rocky did that morning. Bruce lucked out and landed in the grass. But not without losing another little bit of his tongue. By this time, a teacher noticed what was going on and stepped in to prevent any further violence.

"Get on your buses and stop this foolishness."

Rocky was only happy to oblige. He got on his bus and sat down next to Kenny, who happened to be right in front of Steve Kilger. Steve went for a high-five.

"You're fucking awesome, dude!"

"Thanks Steve. This is my neighbor, Kenny Baxter."

"Good meeting you, I'm Steve Kilger. Your friend is a freaking animal."

"I know. He takes Karate. We goof around and I can never even get close to hitting him. Was that Bruce Wilmer you were fighting?"

"Yeah. I don't know who the other kid was."

Steve helped, "That was Bart Pecker."

Rocky laughed, "Really? Pecker?"

"No, Bart Packer, but he's a dick, so the nickname fits."

They talked until Steve had to get off, "Let's trade numbers tomorrow."

"Okay, see you then."

Rocky sat back, thinking, he had a very interesting first day.

When they got off the bus, Kenny asked, "You want to come over later?"

"Maybe, I gotta go visit Manny in the hospital first."

"What happened?"

"He got shot in the shoulder at the bar Friday night and it fucked up his arm. They had to amputate his hand because it didn't get enough blood."

"Oh, geez, that sucks. I'd say, I hope he'll be alright, but that ain't something you get better from."

"No. I'm hoping he'll be able to get a hand transplant."

"Really? They can do that?"

"Yeah. I gotta run. I’ll catch you soon."

"A transplant sounds awesome. Yeah, call me later."

"K."

Next up - "The Visit and A Lesson In Tolerance"