Special Needs

Chapter 7: The Rules

The next morning, after a well-deserved sleep, Harry and I worked on his schooling together. First, I sat down and checked out my computer with Harry's curriculum on it, along with a list of rules and guidelines for caring for Harry.

First was Harry must take his medications four times a day: 8 AM, 12 Noon, 4 PM and 8 PM. Failure to adhere to this schedule may result in serious side effects or behavioral issues. No wonder Harry thought he was going to die if he didn't take his meds on time. Some dipshit nanny probably told him that because of the way this was worded. I did take mental note, though, to stick as closely to the schedule as possible.

Harry must obey the nanny at all times. If Harry disobeys or disrespects the nanny, he is to be sent to his room for 24 hours of solitary confinement. The nanny is not allowed to talk to him or interact with him in any way during this time.

No way was I going to subject the kid to solitary! He'd had enough of that in his life.

Harry must eat all food that is served to him. He is not allowed to complain about flavor, color, texture, or taste.

Well, I would just make sure to serve what he likes, including some healthy choices, of course. And I made a note to ask Theodore if Harry ever joined family meals, with what little family he had.

Harry must maintain good hygiene; shower or bathe every day, brush teeth three times a day, keep fingernails and toenails clean and neatly cut.

That made sense, although brushing three times a day seemed a bit stringent. I wasn't sure if he'd had a shower or bath since I'd arrived so I'd be sure to check with him after we were done with school.

Harry must engage in some physical activity for at least two hours every day.

No problem. Playing outdoors had been a lot of fun, although I wasn't sure how things would go once the winter came. Perhaps Theodore would allow us to work out in the home gym. I would need it to get through the winter blahs myself.

Screen time must be limited to one hour per day.

Normally, I would agree with this, especially meaningless TV shows or video games. But screen time might be Harry's only glimpse into the outside world, so I made a mental note to stockpile some educational websites and shows to round out his learning experiences.

Harry must be supervised at all times when using the computer; he is never allowed to use the internet.

Ugh, so much for educational websites, but as with all the rules, I'd take this with a grain of salt. If he was on an educational site that I'd assigned, then I was sure it would be fine. I'd be damned if I was going to enforce this entire "code" in all of its strictness. Certainly, I would make sure he was learning to be a disciplined, responsible, respectful person, but I could never, in good conscience, subject a child to 24-hour solitary confinement. If it became an issue, I would certainly draw on my experience and schooling to try to convince Theodore to adopt some more lenient standards towards his son.

The final "rule" was this: Harry is never allowed physical contact with the nanny so as to avoid any confusion on his part and any attachment of an inappropriate nature.

That fucker. I was tempted to report him for neglect with this bullshit. I simply deleted that last one and pretended it never existed. If Theodore had a problem with me hugging Harry, then he would definitely have a fight on his hands.

Eventually, I moved on to Harry's curriculum. I was surprised to find all first-grade materials. Yes, Theodore had said Harry was at the mental level of a seven-year-old, but in the few short days I'd spent with him, he seemed further ahead than that. With a little digging into the computer's files, I discovered curricula up through sixth grade. That would keep us busy for quite some time.