Jason and Justin

Chapter 25 Empty room

                  POV Pete

It was after ten o'clock when I found my lovely wife of twenty three years sitting quietly on Justin's bed as she looked around his room. 

"Is everything okay?" I asked as I stood in the doorway.

"Yes."  She then took a sip of her wine. "I just can't believe that he is really gone."

"I know." I said as I walked into the room. "It's surreal."

"Yes, it is." Jane said. "And quiet."

I could not help but laugh. "That it is." Out of the three of them he was the loudest. Always running down the halls, charging down the steps like a herd of elephants, blasting his music through the house. It was bad I could barely hear myself think.

"Don't judge me but I'm glad he is gone." She admitted.

"You get no judgement from me." I said. "I'm glad he is gone too. No more calls from school, no more of his friends parents calling us in the middle wanting to know if he knows where their kids are..."

"No more complaining or tantrums."

"Yes." I said grateful not to hear the words it's not fair again. "I'm so glad we don't have to deal with those anymore."

"It's all Jason's problem now." She took another sip of her wine.

"And he's welcome to it." I said with a sigh.

"Also we don't have to put up with clinglyness, his wanting a hug, his constant demand for attention and affection." Jan said in disgust.

I looked at in surprise. "Justin wanted hugs?" I said in surprise. He stopped hugging me when he was twelve.

"I was talking about Jason." She told me with exasperation in her voice.

"Oh." I said feeling a bit dumb at that moment. I should have known that. "He's a little needy isn't he."

"A little." Jan scoffed. "Try a lot. I was constantly having to push him away telling him not to touch me." She shook his head. "The boy has no clue when it comes to consent."

"No, he doesn't." I said. "I blame Jane for that. She was kissing them and hugging them."

"She spoiled them." Jan said. "She made them believe that they were entitled to affection. Especially Jason."

"I told her to stop hugging him so much, that she was going to spoil him but she would not listen."

"No, she didn't." Her jaw tightened. "And thanks to her he is a whiny, little brat who cries whenever he doesn't get the attention he thinks he deserves." She let out a hard breath. "I am so glad that they are finally out of hair."

"Same." I said. "I got to admit that I regret we did not stop when we had Jane. We had this wonderful little girl, it was paradise."

"Yes it was." Jan said. "And then we had to ruin it by having two smelly, obnoxious boys who brought us nothing bit chaos and dishsrmony."

"Especially Justin."

"Especially Justin." Jan then raised the glass to her lips only to find it empty much to her disappointment."

"They had their uses though." I said. "They did help to raise our standing in the community."

"That they did." Jane said. "Until Justin embarrassed us in front of everyone with his antics last year." A look of fury filled her eyes. "What was that boy thinking?" Her hand began to tighten around the glass.

"He wasn't thinking." I said. "That is Justin's biggest problem he never thinks he just acts.  He is an impulsive boy incapable of thinking of what effect his actions has on those around him."

"True." Jan agreed with a heavy sigh. "You would think with all those spankings that Jason gives him he would learn how to control himself."
She then raised the glass to her lips only to find it empty much to her disappointment. "I need a refill."

She was about to get up when I grabbed her hand and pulled her towards. "Actually let's wait on the wine." I then pressed my lips against hers.  She then kissed me passionately as she pushed me onto the bed.  A loud giggle escaped from our lips as we rolled around on our son's bed.

Sometime later....

We laid on Justin basking in the after glow. We sweaty, exhausted, and delirious.  "That was fun."  I said.

"Yes it was." Jan ran her fingers through my chest hair.  She then noticed a picture of Justin sitting on the nightstand. His smiling face looking back at him. Shame filled her voice as she said "We are really bad people aren't we."

I sighed heavily. "Yes we are." Bad, terrible, disgusting people. What the hell is wrong with. One moment we are condemning Justin for making impulsive decisions and "Maybe we should go to our own room."

"Yes we should." She said as she got up.  "After we get some more wine." Jan picked up the empty glass that had dropped to the floor.  I got up and grabbed her hand as we walked out.  We once again smiled at each other as any traces of guilt or remorse evaporated.

"You know I think I screwed up in threatening Jason the way I did." Jan said.

"What do you mean?"

"Well if we force Justin to come back then that will mean we will be stuck dealing with him." She said. "And I don't think either of us want that."

"Heavens no." I said. That is why we let Jason take him to college. So we did not put up with the little troublemaker.

"But we will have no choice to follow through if Jason does not talk to Jane."

"I'm sure he will." Pete said. "He's a good little soldier. He can't help but do as he is told."

"But what if he doesn't?" Jan stopped and looked at me. "I really don't want Justin back here." She winced at the idea.

"But we can't threaten to punish Jason and not follow through." I said. "If we do that he will lose all respect for us."

"So what do we do?"

I shrugged. "There are other boarding schools we can send him to." We started to walk again.

"We could but Jane would still be upset with us if we do that." Jan said. "She still won't let us see if Wyatt if we do that. And I'd I so do we want to show him off at the grandmother grabdbaby function at the club." Jan shook her in dismay. "I can't believe that girl using our own grandchild as a weapon against us. After all we have done for her. Such a disrespectful monster."

"That she is." Pete said. "But there is a simple solution to it."

"What?"

"We bring Justin home, make peace with Jane, she allows us to take Wyatt to club on Saturday, you get to play grandmother of the year, and then we send Justin to another boarding next week."

Jan nodded her head and said "They will all hate us for doing that though."

"Yes." I said. "But I'm sure they will change their tune when Christmas comes." I said confidently. "Their love for the gifts will we get them will outweigh any hatred they feel towards us right now."

"Probably."

"But I'm sure Jason will come through for us." Pete said. "He usually does."  I then squeezes her hand and smiled ready for a second round.