Totally Clueless

chapter 4

It was about to be a short week. Josh needed two days off studying to prepare for his tournament coming up on Friday. With his quizz coming up the following week it was risky. If he failed the exams he would be denied his extra curricular activity of choice which was important to him, but so was the tournament.
Gym was Chrisy's last Session on Mondays which ran most times straight into cheer leading practice and went up until 3. She stormed out of the changing room after it all, to meet her friend Bree who had promised her a ride to meet Josh.

Chrisy let herself into the living room through the door the twins seem to often leave open. Reid was moving from room to room in a frantic hurry and Josh was sitting on the plush carpet.

"Hey you..." Reid greeted her.

"Hey...just here to get Josh so we can go to dads..." she glanced over to Josh.

"Are u ready to go?" She asked him.

No response came from him. "But he was sitting right there." she thought. "How could he not hear me?" She went a bit closer. Josh sat on the carpet. Feet folded. Palms turned upwards. Resting on his knees. Eyes closed. Perfectly still. Perfectly silent.

"Josh!" She called once more. But he still did not respond to her. He sat there like a chair, unresponsive.

Chrisy turned to Reid.

"What's wrong with him?" She asked

"Nothing... meditating?"

"Say what now?"

"He does that a lot when he has karate... makes him calm...well...its suppose to make him calm....so he doesn't kill anybody."

Chrisy looked at him in alarm.

" I didn't mean it like that...dad use to made him do it all the time to get rid of anger...to calm your spirit, center your chi, become one with your surroundings, that sort of thing...his tournament is soon so he's been doing that since yesterday...his 'before every tournament ritual."

"He's been like this since yesterday?"

Reid was startled at the fact she would even think to ask him that. He gave her a peculiar look.

"No Chrisy...he does it in sessions. Twice yesterday, twice today..."

"I knew that....I saw him today at school...so clearly I was just messing with you" She responded desperately trying to justify her silly question but in truth and in fact she did mean to ask it and she never gave a thought to how silly it actually sounded until it had already escaped her lips.

"Josh...!" She called again. This time stooping to his level literally and lowering her voice to a slight whisper.

She turned to Reid again.

"Can he hear me?"

"I'm pretty sure he can..." Reid responded. As he grabbed a jacket from the couches...I'm gonna go..."

"Wait...how long will he be like this?"

Just a few minutes more.
She studied his face a bit closer. He made no movements. He was like a mannequin, frozen.

"Are you sure he even knows I'm here."

"Yup! Pretty sure. I gotta go... Josh, don't be an ass and forget to pick me up...again" He said and ran out the door quickly putting on shoes that seem to always be on the porch and running down the stairs to the sound of a honking horn.

"Where're you going? Chrisy yelled after him.

"Work!" He yelled back as he got into the waiting car.