Date: Sun, 16 Apr 2006 10:06:36 -0400
From: Scribe 1971 <scribe1971@hotmail.com>
Subject: Substitute Dad Chapter 12

Substitute Dad
By Scribe 1971

Copyright 2006, Scribe 1971.  Please do not repost this story without my
express written permission.

Author's Note:

Welcome back constant readers!  Chapter 12 of the ongoing tale of Josh and
Tommy is here.  I hope you guys like this one as much as you liked the
others.  Some really big things are on the horizon and I'm taking my time
setting them up.  As you noticed in the last chapter, I introduced a new
character - Josh's buddy Mark Reynolds.  Mark along with his older brother
Bryan will feature prominently in a sizeable chunk of this story so I hope
you like him as much as you like Josh and Tommy.  As I mentioned in the last
chapter, things are not all that pleasant in Mark's home right now, but we
all know Josh and Tommy well enough to know that they won't let that
continue.  The question is....how can they best help?  Despite some darker
underpinnings, this is a positive and upbeat chapter.

I want to thank all of you for continuing to read the story and for
continuing your positive feedback.  It always give me a good feeling to
recevie positive comments about a story and characters that I have created.
As I said, my characters are like my family and the feedback that I have
rececieved has shown me that my characters do, in fact, live.  They live in
the minds and imaginations of not only myself, but of my readers.  Thank-you
to all of you.

Also, I have a number of people to thank for making this story a success so
far.  I have been remiss in not thanking certain people.  I don't want to
mention any names without speaking to them first, but needless to say I will
be emailing all of them today.  I have received assistance and kind words
from a number of popular Nifty authors and I would like to recognize them.

I have also recevied assistance from a gentleman who has, from the start,
done an excellent job of pointing out the typos that I missed during my own
editing.  I finally decided to turn this chapter over to him and let him
hunt down those typos BEFORE I posted it.  Lars, thank-you very much for
your kind and vigilant assistance in getting this chapter out.

Scribe's Play List For Chapter 12:

"Danger Zone" by Kenny Loggins, "Top Gun Anthem" - the Top Gun movie
soundtrack, "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor and "Run To You" by Bryan Adams.

Chapter 12 -- Do You Guys Like Roller Coasters?

I herded the grinning boys into the training room and after leading them
through some stretching, we spent the next hour getting a pretty good cardio
workout.  Josh and Mark were in pretty good shape and they both had a ton of
energy to spare.  We started with the stationary bikes and the boys whipped
me soundly, covering the 5km of distance that we had set about 2 full
minutes before I did.  I decided that I needed to redeem myself so we hit
the rowing machines next.

Rowing was my forte.  The three of us took side-by-side machines.  I was in
the middle with Josh on my right and Mark on my left.  We set the distance
to 3,000 meters and made a race of it.  I had a bit of an advantage because
of my longer arms and legs, but it was the strength in my legs which made
the real difference.  I had always had powerful legs and following my
accident, I worked very hard to keep my leg muscles in shape to help
minimize the lasting effects of the injuries.

Josh managed to keep up with me for about the fist 1,000 meters or so.  Mark
fell behind much quicker than that.  By the half-way point, Mark was running
out of steam and Josh was fading.  I didn't want to embarrass the guys so I
slacked off a bit but I still easily beat both of them.

"Now we're even," I told them with a wink as we cleaned off the machines and
moved on to our next conquest.

"For now, old man," Josh replied with that familiar mischievous twinkle in
his eyes.

I knew he was right.  He was only 13, but I could see he was going to be a
big, strong guy when got a little older.  At that time, he was about
five-three tall to my five-ten.  I figured that I had about 2 or 3 years
left until he was taller than me.  I figured he was going to be well over
six feet tall by the time he finished growing and he was going to be broad
shouldered too.

"One of these days you're going to be a lot bigger and stronger than me,
kiddo.  I had better enjoy being able to beat you at an athletic competition
while I still can."  I smiled and ruffled his sweaty hair.  Josh rewarded me
with a loving smile.  I didn't want to leave Mark out so I grasped his
bicep.  "This isn't bad either, Mark.  Make a muscle for me"

Mark grinned and flexed his arms while striking a body-builder pose.

"Not bad, you're going to be a strong one too," I smiled warmly and patted
the boy on the back.  His eyes seemed to glow.  The poor kid was as starved
for affection as Josh was when we first met.  Any little bit of praise that
I sent his way really stroked his ego and brightened him up.  I had to
figure out how I could help this boy.

I knew I had to be careful.  I didn't want Josh to become jealous.  He
really didn't have anything to worry about, I liked Mark but I didn't have
anywhere near the feelings for him that I had for Josh.  I was sure that
Josh knew that he would always be number one with me, but I made sure to
lavish the same attention on him as I did on Mark.  I trusted Josh's
intelligence and maturity to keep him from feeling threatened.

I began to wonder about Mark's older brother and I decided to find out more
about their relationship.  I wondered if his brother had any idea as to how
rough Mark seemed to have it at home and if he would be in any position to
offer assistance.  I made a mental note to recruit Josh into helping me
discretely obtain some information from his friend.

We took a moment to recover from the rowing machines and then we headed into
the gymnasium to hit the mats and start our self-defense training.  I was
planning on starting with some basic throws, holds, punches, kicks and
blocks.  The plan was to take my time with them and make sure that they
learn each move properly before progressing to the next.  Once they mastered
the basics, I'd teach them what to do when faced with weapons such as guns
and knives and how to counter holds that others try to use on them.  I would
also even teach them about pressure points which can be extremely effective
in inflicting discomfort on an opponent.  I figured that the best starting
point was basic punching and blocking.

The large gym was divided into 3 sections with retractable dividers.  The
first section was being used for an aerobics class and the second was being
used by a bunch of kids playing basketball.  The third was mostly empty; the
only occupants were an old Chinese couple doing Tai-Chi and some kids
playing badminton.  I led the boys to the corner where a bunch of blue mats
were stacked up.

"Ok guys, lets spread out a few of those mats so we don't hurt each other,"
I instructed.

Josh and Mark each grabbed a mat and they used the Velcro fasteners to join
them together into a large enough surface for us to work with.

"We're going to start with some ground rules.  First of all, contrary to
what you might hear or believe, there are no rules in fighting.  There is no
such thing as a dirty move or a dirty punch.  When you find yourself in a
situation where you need to fight, the goal is to end the fight as quickly
as possible using whatever means is available and appropriate in the
circumstances."  I watched the boys closely as I spoke.  They both seemed to
comprehend what I was saying which was a good thing.

"You mean that anything goes right?  You do whatever is necessary to protect
yourself and end the fight." Josh said.

"That's right.  You need to assess each situation and determine what is
appropriate.  Your use of force in response to a threat must be appropriate
to the threat faced.  You can legally use deadly force against someone who
is threatening you with serious bodily harm or death but you have to use a
lot less force in the face of a less significant threat."

"How do you know how much force to use?" Mark asked.

"Good question.  What you need to do is figure out what action can you take
to remove the danger while doing the least bit of harm to your opponent.
For example, if someone tries to punch you, blocking the punch and hitting
back or flipping them is appropriate, but using a straight-arm punch to
break their nose might not be.  By the same token, if someone pulls a gun or
a knife on you, simply punching them is not enough force."  Both boys nodded
their heads and I could see the wheels turning.  "For each move I teach you,
I'll give you some pointers on how and when it could be employed.  I'll also
do some mental exercises with you guys to help you learn how to identify and
size up potential threats."

"What sort of exercises?" Josh asked.

"Well, we'll take a walk through the mall and through the downtown streets
to teach you how to observe people and places and identify potential sources
of threats or to identify people or things which look wrong or out of place.
  You have to learn to fight with your mind before you fight with your
fists.  Part of that is spotting and avoiding trouble before it happens."

"That makes sense," Josh replied.

We started with punches.  I had each of the boys demonstrate how they throw
a punch with the right and left hands.  As I expected, both of them pulled
back their arms before letting fly and they used their arms for provide most
of the strength.  I taught them how to throw a punch from the shoulder
without telegraphing the intent by pulling back their arms.  I taught them a
variety of styles of punches and I taught them how to block punches thrown
by an opponent.

"Guys, one of the most important aspects of throwing a good punch is target
selection.  You want to aim your punches and you want to hit your opponent
in a place which will maximize the effect of the punch while minimizing the
damage done to your own fist.  What do you think are some good punch
targets?"  I asked.

"The nose," Josh said.

"Right.  The nose is an excellent target.  A good shot to the nose will
often knock all the fight out of someone.  Remember what happened to your
uncle when I elbowed him in the nose?"

"He went down like the sack of shit that he is," said Josh bitterly.

Mark looked aghast at Josh's use of profanity.  I almost think he expected
me to smack Josh for swearing.  I smiled and chuckled at Josh's comment
trying to reassure Mark.  It seemed to work.

"How about you Mark, any ideas?"

"How about the stomach?  The balls even."

"Both are excellent targets for well aimed punches.  Getting hit in the
stomach knocks the wind out of you and can quickly end a fight.  You're both
boys so I'm sure I don't have to tell you two what getting nailed in the
family jewels feels like!" I said with a laugh and both boys snickered.
Mark subtly crossed his legs and Josh did a rather good imitation of Benny
Hill's `grab your head and grimace' reaction to being nailed in the balls.
I laughed out loud.

"I think we'll have to introduce Mark to the wonders of Benny Hill," I said
as I winked at Josh.

"Who's Benny Hill?" Mark asked.

"An insane, dead British comedian," Josh replied.  "He was REALLY funny.
Tommy has all his tapes."

"Ok guys, back on topic," I chided gently.  I then demonstrated other punch
targets such as the solar plexus, the throat, kidneys, collar bones and
biceps.  I had them begin by "touch punching" on each other and on me.
Before long they had punching down pat and I taught them how to block and
how to properly position their feet to give themselves the maximum force and
stability while being as mobile as possible.

"I'm going to show you a very special punch called a straight-arm punch.
The straight-arm punch is extremely powerful and can do very serious damage
to an opponent.  You should only use it when faced with critical or even
life-threatening situations," I said seriously as I surveyed both boys'
faces.   "When you throw this punch, you don't make a fist.  You throw your
hand out palm first and you want to make contact with the lower part of your
palm."  I demonstrated the correct hand position for the boys.

"With this really hard part of your hand, right dad?"  Josh asked.

"That's right, you use the heal of your hand.  Try this...bang the heals of
your hands together.  Feel how hard that is?  That's the part of your hand
which should make contact with the target.  No matter where you hit the
target, it won't hurt you very much but it will be devastating to the person
you hit.  When you throw that punch, you have to throw it with everything
you've got.  The object is to knock your opponent out of the fight with that
one shot."

"Where should you aim it?"  Mark asked.

"That depends.  In most cases, the preferred target would be the nose.  If
you hit someone in the nose with that punch you will almost definitely break
their nose.  You have to be careful and make sure that you go straight in
with it -- you don't want to up angle the punch or you could actually kill
the person."

"Kill someone with one punch?"  Josh asked in amazement.

"Absolutely.  If you hit someone hard enough in the right place with a punch
like that, you could kill them.  Other targets for this punch can include
the throat which can cause very serious injuries and the chest which can
break ribs."  Both boys were in awe of what I was telling them.

"When should you use this?"  Josh asked.

"You should use this punch when you are faced with a larger, stronger
opponent who is intent on doing you harm.  You could also use it when
confronted with a gang.  Using this punch to take out the gang leader will
usually take the fight out of the rest of the gang pretty damned quick."

I spent the next few minutes demonstrating the correct technique for
throwing a proper straight-arm punch and the boys picked it up pretty
quickly.  I also demonstrated how to use the element of surprise to throw
the punch with devastating impact after feigning submission.  I was really
pleased with the progress that both boys were making.

"Nicely done guys, you're doing great.  Within a few months you'll have this
stuff mastered," I smiled at both boys and patted both of their sweaty
backs.  "Now let's learn something really cool.  Flipping."

"That is cool.  I couldn't believe what I was seeing when you flipped Uncle
Joe!"  Josh said.  The amazement was still evident in his voice.

"It's one of the easiest moves to learn and by the time we hit the showers,
both of you will have successfully flipped me"

"No way!"  Mark said.

"Yes way!  It's easy.  Flipping, like most throws works by using your
opponent's size, weight and momentum against them.  You can easily flip
someone far bigger than you.  When you use the element of surprise, it makes
it even easer.  They don't see it coming and the whole experience is
extremely disorienting to them."

"I was amazed at how quick you did it to Uncle Joe.  You really surprised
him," Josh said.  I could see the admiration in his eyes.

"Who wants to volunteer to be the first victim?" I asked.

"Me!" Josh said as he moved at what seemed to be the speed of light.

"Alright kiddo.  I promise I won't hurt you.  We'll do this slowly and then
speed it up.  The easiest way to flip someone is to grab an arm.  Move your
arm like you're going to punch me," I instructed Josh.  Josh slowly extended
his right arm as if to punch me in the face.  "First thing to remember is
that you must use the same arm as your opponent.  Josh is punching with his
right, so I'm going to grab his right wrist with my right hand."  I reached
out and grabbed Josh's arm.  "The next thing is to step towards your
opponent while pulling them into you.  At the same time, you want to pivot
so that your back is towards them and you pull his arm over your shoulder
like this," I continued as I demonstrated the moves.  "Finally, the last
step in the move is lower your body by slightly bending your knees and
bending forward at the waist while pulling your opponent over your
shoulder."

"Looks easy," Mark said.

"Ready to try it, Josh?" I asked.

"Let's do it!" He replied.

"Ok, this time, I'm actually going to flip you.  I'll be gentle and try not
to throw you too hard.  The mat will cushion your fall.  Throw your arm like
you're going to do another touch-punch."

Josh threw his light punch and I moved pretty quickly.  Before he knew it he
was over my shoulder and lying on the mat on his back with his head at my
feet.  "You ok bud?" I asked as I offered him my hand and helped him up.

"That was cool!" He said with a giant shit-eating grin on his face.  "Let's
do it again!"

"Ok, we'll do it again, but this time I want you to throw a hard punch.  I
want you to try to actually hit me."

"I don't want to hit you," Josh protested.

"Don't worry, you won't!" I said with a laugh.

"Alright!  You asked for it," he replied and threw a punch.

I moved like greased lightening and before he knew it, he was once again
prone on the mat.

"Cool!" he exclaimed as I picked him up and hugged him briefly.

"Ready to try it, Mark?" I asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be," He said with a skeptical look on his face.

I repeated the same process that I had gone through with Josh.  I did a
step-by-step demonstration of the move and then actually flipped Mark.  By
the time he landed on the mat, he was wearing a grin that was almost
identical to Josh's.

"Ok bud?  I asked as I helped him up."

"That was great," he replied happily.

I had the two of them practice with each other for several minutes as I make
small adjustments to their body positioning and the way they maneuvered
themselves.  Before long they had mastered the technique.

"Ok, now it's time for you to throw me and then we'll hit the showers," I
said with a smile.

Josh went first.  I threw a slow punch towards his face and he flipped me
perfectly over his shoulder.  I outweighed him by 60 or 70 pounds and yet he
threw me easily.  He was amazed and very pleased with himself.  I was pretty
sure that the grin on his face was permanent.  Mark went next and also did a
perfect throw.  I was pleased with both of them.

"Well done, guys.  Let's walk a couple of cool-down laps and then hit the
showers."  We replaced the mats in their original location and then walked
around the track a couple of times before heading to the change rooms.

We decided against going swimming that day and to skip weight training
because we were all looking forward to getting to the airport and going
flying.  We would have to take some time for Mark to get permission from his
father and to pick up his overnight bag.   I had to grab my flight bag from
the house and Josh needed his headset.

The three of us stripped down, grabbed our towels and headed for the
showers.  We made a quick stop at the digital scale along the way and
one-by-one we dropped our towels and weighed each other.  I came in at 177
pounds, Josh was up to 126 and Mark weighed in at about 118.  Josh and I
were not at all modest around each other and often saw each other in various
stages of undress so the nudity didn't bother us.  I was surprised to see
that Mark was not at all modest either.  He had been coming here for a while
and I recalled Josh mentioning having to shower after Gym class so he was
used to it as well.

The shower room was nearly empty and the three of us grabbed side-by-side
shower heads.  I managed to discreetly get another look at the bruises on
Mark's back.  They were pretty faded, but they must have hurt like hell when
he first got them.  I felt myself hating his father for doing that to him. I
swore that he would never lay another hand on that boy again if I had
anything to say about it.

As we showered I also couldn't help but notice with some pride that even
though Mark was actually a bit older than Josh, he was a bit less developed.
  Josh was taller, broader, had more muscle tone, more developed genitals
and more pubic hair.  His pubes, of which he was VERY proud, had begun to
come in a little thicker over the past few months since that day he first
discovered them.  He also had a few fine hairs in his armpits.  He was
definitely growing up.  I had no body image concerns with Josh.  He was
proud of his body and rightly so.

It only took us 10 minutes to finish our showers, dry off and get dressed.
We were all excited about the afternoon's activities and were raring to go.
I have Mark a quarter to call his father for permission to go flying but
there was no answer.

"He's probably passed out drunk on the couch," Mark said bitterly.

"Don't worry, we'll have to drive over so you can get your stuff anyway," I
said as I ruffled his hair and led both boys out to my Jeep.  Josh put his
hand on my shoulder as we walked across the parking lot.

"Thanks dad, that was amazing.  I feel like a million bucks after that
workout."

"Me too.  We'll do that every other day or so.  Next time, we'll do some
weight-training as well.  You're developing a nice muscle tone and doing
some weights will help you bulk up a bit."

Josh squeezed by shoulder and gave me his famous Josh grin as we arrived at
the Jeep.  All three of us piled in.  Josh climbed into the back and let
Mark ride shotgun in order to give me directions to his house.

Mark's house was actually only about 2 minutes from where Josh and I lived.
I pulled up out front of the house and noticed a beaten up Ford in the
driveway.  "Is that your father's car?" I asked Mark.

"Yeah, it usually doesn't run.  That's probably a good thing.  He'd just get
drunk and drive it."

I glanced at Josh hoping the remark hadn't bothered him.  All I saw on his
face was a look of understanding.  He'd been there before and he knew what
Mark was going through.  I reached back and gave his knee a gentle squeeze
as Mark climbed out.  While he was in the house gathering his things, Josh
and I had a chance to talk.

"Hey bud, what do you know about Mark's brother?"

"Not too much.  I met him once.  His name's Bryan.  He's a nice guy.  He's a
little older than you.  Mark said that he was going to U of T but he
transferred to the University of Calgary last year for his final year.  I
think Mark said something about him graduating and going to work as a
computer programmer for some company in Calgary."

"How do they get along?"

"Pretty well, I think.  Not quite like you and I, but they love each other.
I think Mark talks to him on the phone fairly often.  I think he moved out
west to get away from his father.  I don't know why he would leave Mark all
alone like that," Josh said.  He sounded a little angry when he said that.

"He might not have had a choice, Josh.  He probably wanted to take Mark but
he probably couldn't.  If he was still a student, he wouldn't have had much
money and he couldn't just take a 12 year old, even his own brother, and
move him across the country without permission."

"I know, but he must have known what kind of person his father was and he
shouldn't have left Mark alone with him."

"It's a hard call, Josh.  Don't judge him before you know all the facts," I
said gently.

"I know.  You're right.  I just know that I would never leave anyone that I
loved in a bad situation.  I know you' never leave me like that."

"Of course I wouldn't Josh.  I'd never leave you for any reason.  Listen
son, I think Mark's father might be beating him.  Those bruises don't look
good.  They look like belt marks.  They look old, but if he's been beaten
before, he will be beaten again.  I need you to tell me if you see Mark with
any injuries or if he says anything to you that causes you concern."

"I will, dad.  I really like Mark and I want to help him," Josh said
solemnly.

"I know Josh.  It might mean telling me something that Mark asked you to
keep secret.  Can you do that?"

"I can in this case.  I know that anything I tell you will be between us and
it won't be like I'm betraying Mark."

"Good.  I love you kiddo," I said warmly as I reached back and hugged him
awkwardly between the seats.

"I love you too," Josh replied as he nuzzled his face against my cheek.

A moment later Mark emerged from his house carrying his overnight bag.  Josh
reclaimed is customary seat next to me and Mark climbed into the back.

"The old man was drunk, just as I thought," Mark said resignedly.

"Don't worry about it, Mark.  Have you ever flown before?"

"Never," he replied.

"You're in for a treat," Josh said.  "Tommy took me up for my first time
too." Josh smiled broadly at me.

"Do you guys like roller coasters?" I asked mysteriously.

"Roller coasters?  Sure, I loved the ones we went on at Wonderland," Josh
replied.

"They're pretty cool," Mark added.

"Why do you ask?"  Josh asked with a questioning look on his face.

I grinned to myself.  Josh didn't know that I had also qualified to fly
basic aerobatics on the Cessna 152 Aerobat.  The club owned one and if it
was available, I would take them up in it and give them a ride that they'd
never forget.  "Oh, no particular reason," I said barely suppressing a
snicker.  I saw Josh look at me funny out of the corner of his eye.  He was
reading me and knew that I as up to something.  He kept studying me as we
drove to the airport and I could see the wheels turning in his head.

I had barely parked the Jeep when the 2 boys bolted out the passenger side
door and raced to the terminal entrance.  They were both excited and truth
be known, so was I.  I was going to get to do 3 things that I loved, fly,
fly with Josh and give someone the experience of their first ever flight.
The boys were nearly floating along as we made our way to the dispatch desk.
  Josh took Mark over to watch the departing and arriving planes as I went
and rented an aircraft.  We were in luck, the Aerobat was available.  I
booked it and then returned to the boys, grinning like the Cheshire cat.

"We'll be flying a different type of plane today, Josh.  Last time we went
up in a Cessna 172.  This time we're going up in a Cessna 152 Aerobat.  It's
a little smaller but it has reinforced wings and control surfaces."

"Reinforced?"  Josh asked.

"Yeah, it just means that they can take higher loads."

We made our way to the parked aircraft and Josh and Mark piled in.  Josh
took great delight in giving Mark the grand tour of the cockpit as I
performed a ground check of the aircraft.  Luckily, the plane was fully
fueled so we wouldn't have to make a stop before taking off.

I completed the ground check and then went to evict Mark from the pilot's
seat so that we could get underway.  "Ok guys, one of you are going to have
to climb into the back seat," I said.

"You can sit up front this time," Josh said to Mark.  `That's my boy' I
thought to myself -- I knew Josh would have given his left nut to sit in the
front seat and take control of the plane again, but he was offering the seat
to his friend instead.  I was proud of him and I just reminded myself that
his selfless attitude was one of the reasons that I loved him so much.

"Are you sure?"  Mark asked.

"Positive.  I can fly with my dad anytime I want.  You can sit up there this
time," Josh said with a grin.

I gave his shoulder a squeeze and smiled warmly at him as he climbed into
the back seat and Mark slid over to the co-pilot's seat.  It only took a
couple of moments to get everyone strapped in, the engine started and to get
us into position on the runway.  As I had done with Josh on his first
flight, I let Mark do the takeoff.  By the time we were airborne, he was
positively glowing.  The dejected looking boy that I had met earlier that
morning had been replaced by a happy, confident teenager.  I smiled as I
felt Josh reach up and rub the back of my neck to express approval of what I
had done.

We spent a little while doing some sight-seeing as I headed to the remote
area northwest of the airport.  In our previous flight, Josh and I had
remained close to 2,500 feet up.  This time, I took us to 5,000 feet to
allow for a higher safety margin for the planned aerobatic display that I
was going to put on.  It didn't take Josh long to notice that we were a lot
higher.

"How high up are we this time, dad?  We weren't this high last time were
we?"  Josh asked over the intercom.

"I can't put much past you, can I?"  I chuckled.  "We're about 5,000 feet up
this time.  Last time we topped out at about 2,500."  We were just entering
the area where we could safely pull off some aerobatic tricks.  "How about
we go lower?"  I asked with a sly grin as I pulled back on the throttle and
dropped the nose into a steep dive.

"Wow!" Mark crowed from the right hand seat.  "I feel weightless," he
laughed.

"Is there something you're not telling us?"  Josh laughed from the back
seat.

Our speed was approaching the yellow line and we were down to around 3,500
feet when rammed the throttle all the way forward and pulled back hard on
the stick.

"Oh man!  My stomach is around my knees and my balls feel like they're
trying to reach the floor," Josh crowed.

I laughed and kept pulling back on the stick, pulling us past the level and
into a vertical climb completing a neat loop.  At the very end, I pealed off
to the left in a series of tight barrel rolls.  By that time, both boys were
laughing and babbling words such as "awesome" and "cool".

I performed a number of split-S and Immelman maneuvers and even performed a
horizontal-eight over a road.  We spent the next half hour on what was
probably the most exciting ride of the boys' lives.  For a grand finale, I
decided to perform a hammerhead stall.  I backed off on the throttle and
pulled us into a steep climb.  Before long, the pane began to shudder and
the stall alarm went off.  Just as we stalled, I kicked the tail over and
neatly pivoted us into a vertical dive.  All of us felt our stomachs rise
into our throats as we began to pickup speed and hurtle towards the ground.

I quickly regained control of the aircraft and leveled her out for the trip
home.  I smiled to myself as I sat and enjoyed the excited chatter of the
two boys who were now wound up like three dollar watches.

Sadly, the time in the air came to a close 30 minutes later as I gently set
us down on the runway back at the airport.  All three of us were coming down
from a major adrenaline rush as we taxied back to the parking spot.  I
parked the plane and the boys helped me to chock the wheels and attach the
tie-downs.  Before we made our way back to the terminal, I was rewarded by a
massive Josh hug.

"Freaking awesome, dad!  I didn't know you could do all that.  That was
better than any roller coaster I've ever been on," Josh gushed.  "I love you
and this is the best birthday I've ever had!"  Josh said as he gave me a
quick peck on the cheek.

"I love you too," I replied as I returned his embrace and his kiss.  "Happy
birthday, son."

I barely released Josh when Mark surprised me by also giving me a big,
friendly hug.  "Thanks Tommy!  That was amazing.  I've never done anything
like that before in my life.  You're the best.  Josh is the luckiest kid
alive," he said with a wide and sunny grin.

"You're welcome, Mark.  You did really well with that takeoff and I'd be
happy to take you up again sometime," I replied as I gave him a warm
squeeze.

As soon as we entered the terminal, the various people in the waiting area
broke into applause.  Evidently, several of them had binoculars and had
taken advantage of the clear blue sky to watch my aerobatic performance.  I
smiled, shook hands with several of the `fans' and surprisingly even signed
a couple of autographs!

We made a quick stop at the restaurant for a light lunch.  None of us wanted
to fill up before hitting the Mandarin for Josh's birthday dinner so we ate
light.  At one point during the meal, I excused myself to go to the gift
shop.  I picked up a pilot hat and pair of aviator sun glasses for Mark just
like the ones I had bought for Josh.  I had just paid for the purchases when
a dejected looking Mark met me at the door.

"Tommy, I don't have a present for Josh," he mumbled as he looked at his
shoes.  "My cheap ass father wouldn't give me any money."

I put my arm around his shoulders.  "Don't worry about it," I said
soothingly as I pulled $40 out of my wallet and gave it to him.  "Use this
to go buy something for him in the gift shop.

The boy smiled broadly at me as he accepted the money and scurried into the
store.  I went back to the restaurant and sat back down with Josh.  "Hey
bud, I decided to get Mark a pair of aviators and a hat like yours."

"He'll really like that," Josh said.

"He's a really nice kid.  I like him a lot,"

"Other than you, he's my best friend," Josh said thoughtfully.

"Well I'm glad to hear it.  Mark sounds like he needs some good friends."

A moment later, Mark returned to the table carrying a gift shop bag.  He did
his best to conceal it from Josh.  I was sure that Josh noticed but to his
credit, he did a great job of pretending not to.

I took a moment to give Mark the aviator glasses and pilot's hat and I
smiled at his reaction.  He looked as if I had just given him a million
dollars.  His face lit up with pride and his emotions almost overcame him.
I can't recall ever having been thanked so many times or having such a small
gift mean so much to someone.  The more I thought about it, the angrier I
got at the thought that this marvelous boy was possibly being abused or
mistreated.  I was beginning to feel a deep need to protect him and to try
to make his life better.  I began to formulate a plan.  This plan would
depend on a lot of things and a lot of people.  Most of all, it would depend
on Mark's older brother and, unfortunately, it would depend on his father.
I made a mental note to give Andy a call later that evening.   If anyone
could or would help, it would be him.

We finished our light lunch and left the airport.  As we walked out to my
Jeep, I was flanked by two very happy boys and I felt energized by their
happiness.  We were all looking forward to Josh's birthday dinner at the
Mandarin and Josh and Tommy were looking forward to their sleepover
afterwards.  I couldn't wait to see Josh's reaction to finding out about the
summer trip that he and I were going to embark on in just a few months.
Josh thought he was having the best birthday of his life, but he didn't know
the half of it yet!