Prompt: Jack's son getting Garrett's son stuck in a tree
A.N.- This was mentioned in prompt #25!
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Silas peeked into the bedroom, seeing Garrett fast asleep, covers pulled up to his shoulders. He'd been up all night doing work, and Silas was relieved he'd finally fallen asleep.
Silas shut the door quietly and went down to the basement. He could hear several loud thumps and some laughter as he neared the door.
"Hey," he said, heading down to the basement. "Keep it down. Carter, dad's sleepin'."
"Oh, sorry," Carter said with a sheepish smile. "Riley and I were playing cops and robbers."
"Take it outside," Silas said. Jack had left his son Riley here for the day while he and his wife were painting their living room.
Riley Waymire looked far too much like his father for Silas's comfort, right down to the smug grin on his face. He was a little older than Carter, and Silas didn't trust him with Carter. But he knew Carter liked being around Riley, so he bit his tongue about it.
"Sure, we'll go outside," Riley said. "Come on, Carter."
The two went past Silas and outside. Silas followed them, reluctant to leave them alone outside together.
"Dad?" Carter said, noticing him. "Did you want to play cops and robbers with us? You can be a cop with me!"
Silas shook his head, though. "Nah, maybe in a little. Got to call your grandpa before dinner time. I also gotta clean your dad's car. I'll be in the garage if you need me." He wanted to stay and make sure the boys didn't get into trouble, but he knew he should call Ray and go clean Garrett's car. He'd be just around the front of the house. He'd be able to come check on them.
The watched as Silas disappeared around the side of the house. Riley formed his fingers into a gun, pressed them to Carter's head, and said, "Bang."
"Hey," Carter said, frowning. "No fair. We weren't playing."
"Sure we were. And I just won," Riley said.
Carter jumped at the sound of a loud pop, and glared at Riley. "Dad said you're not allowed to bring snappers to the house."
"My dad said it was fine," Riley said, holding up his little pack of snappers. He took one and handed it to Carter. "Here, try it."
Carter peeked at the side of the house, but he didn't see his dad. So he threw it at the ground, watching as it popped off when it hit.
"Hey, hey, let's climb the tree and throw them!" Riley said, nudging Carter and pointing to one of the trees. "That looks like a good one to climb."
"I don't know," Carter said hesitantly. "I'm not supposed to climb trees. Only if dad is holding me."
"Live a little," Riley said, smacking him on the shoulder playfully. "It'll be fine. I won't let you fall." At Carter's expression, Riley rolled his eyes. "Don't be a baby, Carter."
Carter straightened up, trying to mimic the scary look Silas could pull off when he wanted to look tougher. "I'm not a baby. Let's go climb it. I bet I can climb higher than you."
Riley grinned triumphantly and they hurried over to the tree. Riley tested the branches and climbed up first, signaling at Carter to wait on the ground. When he was sure the branches were steady enough not to break, he motioned Carter to climb up.
Carter gripped the branches and hauled himself up. He was smaller than Riley, so Riley had to help pull him up. The two climbed up the branches, Carter swapping to the opposite side of the tree so they wouldn't have too much weight on the branches.
Riley whistled as he looked down. "This is a good height. Bombs away!"
Carter watched Riley throw snapper after snapper. They hit the ground and the sound was audible even from how high up they were. Carter wanted to throw some too, but he was too afraid to move from where he was, gripping the trunk of the tree tightly. He looked down and gulped.
"That was all of them," Riley said after a few minutes, tossing the empty packet to the ground. "Let's go play basketball."
He began to lower himself down easily. Carter tried to move his feet to get down, but he was too short to reach the thicker branch below him. He gripped at the tree even more, hugging his body to it. He didn't feel quite so tough anymore.
"Carter?" Riley squinted up from the safety of the ground. "Get down before your dad sees us."
"I can't get down," Carter said in despair. "Riley, help!"
"Okay, okay, don't panic," Riley said, hauling himself back onto the branches. "I'm coming up. Don't move."
But he was only a little ways up when he heard the angry voice of Silas yell, "What the hell?"
Riley winced and looked over his shoulder. Silas hurried over and grabbed him, swinging him back onto the ground.
"Riley," he snarled.
"Dad, I'm stuck," Carter said, eyes watering.
"I'm coming. Just hang on," Silas said, making his way up the tree.
"I'm sorry," Carter whimpered before the tears spilled over. "I didn't want to be a baby. Dad, I'm scared."
"Don't be scared," Silas said, his voice gentle. "Ain't no reason to be scared. I'm going to get you down." He got as close to Carter as he could, afraid his weight might break Carter's branch. He held his arm out, leaning towards Carter. "Alright, here. Don't cry. Grab onto me and I'll get you down."
Carter shifted closer until Silas could get an arm around him. Silas pulled him close, and Carter wrapped his arms around his dad's neck.
"Gonna kill that damn Waymire kid," Silas grumbled, keeping a secure hold on Carter as he started back down the tree. "Hang on to me, Car."
They reached the bottom, but Carter didn't let go. He felt horribly embarrassed, trying to wipe the tears from his eyes.
"Hey, don't you go lookin' embarrassed," Silas said, setting Carter down but keeping a hand on his shoulder. "When Riley's dad was a kid, Grandpa Ray had to get him out of a tree when he got stuck." Silas shot a furious look at Riley. "Speaking of stuck in trees, why the hell was Carter up there Riley? He knows he ain't supposed to climb."
"We thought it would be fun," Riley said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was going to get him down."
"Did you tell him he was a baby if he didn't climb that tree?" Silas demanded.
"It was just a joke," Riley mumbled.
"Would it have been a joke if he fell out of that tree and got hurt?" Silas said. "Get inside, Waymire. I'm calling your dad to come pick you up. Actually, I'm calling your mom. I can't look at you and your dad at the same time right now." He turned that stern look on Carter. "You, go to your room. I'll be up to talk once Riley's gone."
Carter dropped his head in shame. But Silas squeezed his shoulder.
"I'm glad you didn't get hurt, punk," he said, and gave him a light shove towards the house.
Carter peeked over his shoulder at the tree. No more tree climbing. Lesson well learned.
