Take Me Home

Days Later

May 17th, 1982

I had been with this strange man for four days now. He scared me a lot. I didn't know what he was going to do next, that's what made him scary.

He still hadn't taken me to the hospital to see my family, and I was scared they were really hurt. They must have been really hurt, if they were still in surgery. He told me they still were. They were very, very hurt he said. Worse than the time I fell off my bike and scraped my knees up. The strange man—whose name I found out was David Martins—said my family was really hurt, and that I couldn't visit them yet. They were too hurt he said. That made me sad, and worried. I wanted them to get better, so I could go back home with them. So they could come and take me back home. But I wanted to visit them. I wanted to see them. I didn't care if they were hurt. I wanted to see them. He said they were too badly hurt for me to see them yet. I wanted to be with them. I wanted my mom. I wanted my dad. I wanted Cody and Kate and Mandy. I wanted to go home. For them to take me home. I didn't like this place. I didn't like him. He was strange.

I didn't like what he did to me on the first night I was here. He hadn't done that again, and I hope it doesn't happen again. That made me feel weird. It felt bad. It hurt. I didn't like it. I didn't like the way he talked to me. He was mean. He talked mean to me, and I started crying. He told me to shut up, and he just kept doing what he was doing. I told him to stop it, because I didn't like it, but he didn't. He just went on. He's not that mean to me all the time, but sometimes he does tell me to shut up, and sometimes yells. It's scary when he does that. I don't like it.

  He coloured my hair and cut it. It was now really, really light. Lighter than before. It looked almost white. And my hair is really short. Not long and shaggy like before. There's no more wave to my hair. Like the one my family has too. I don't know why he did that. Why did my hair have to be different? Would my parents be ok with it when they see me? Would they be mad at this man for changing my hair? But why did he change it? I didn't know. It was weird.

He also didn't let me leave the cabin. I had to stay inside all the time. The squeaky door was always locked. He didn't leave either. He was always there. I asked why I couldn't leave the cabin, and he said because there were lots of germs and sicknesses outside, and if I was sick and went to the hospital to see my family, I could get them sick too and they could get worse, or even die from the germs. I didn't really get it, but he seemed to get it so it must have been right. But I really wanted to see my family. That was all I could think of. And the day before I went with this strange man. The one named Martins. But I didn't call him his first name or last name. I didn't really call him anything. I once called him Martins, and he answered to that. The next day after I was taken to the cabin, I saw a trophy that had the name David Peter Martins on it, and asked who that was. He said it was him. So I called him Martins once. That was the only name I knew him by.

"Come on son, breakfast," the man said to me and I still sat on the couch. But I wasn't hungry, so I didn't answer him. I just sat there still and quiet. He looked at me for a little bit, and then said something else. "Aren't you hungry kid? It's toast and eggs and bacon. Doesn't it smell good?" He talked again, but I still didn't talk back. "Alright, suit yourself," he said as he wolfed down some food. But I just sat there.

"When can I go see my family? How are they doing?" I asked him, the first time this day. And he gave me a pause and didn't answer right away.

"I don't know yet son. They're still in surgery," he told me, and I believed him. Man, they must be really hurt if they are still in surgery. I hope they are alright. I hope they make it through. I hope they get well soon, so I can see them and we can go home.

There was no TV or radio in the cabin, so there was nothing to do. But I had the Auto Race, but I didn't use it. I just held it in my hands. The smooth surface against my hands. I wonder if Cody has his Auto Race with him in the hospital. Maybe when I go see him, I could bring him this one. Maybe he will be really happy to see it. Maybe he will be really happy to see me. The strange man was sitting at the wooden table close to the kitchen, writing on some papers after he finished breakfast. I didn't know what he was doing. I didn't know what to do. It was boring here. But he said I had to wait here until my family was better. And so far they weren't getting any better he said. And that made me really sad.