Lost and Found, Chapter Two
Title: Lost and Found
Rating: PG-13
Centric: High school twins.
Status: Complete.
Summary: At age seven, Joel is abducted, taken away from his home forever. At age seventeen, he’s on top of the world, a popular jock who gets everything he wants, courtesy of his rich parents. But he isn’t happy. What happens when the past he’s denied existing comes back to smash his perfect life into pieces? And when he finds the twin that he had convinced himself was just a figment of his imagination, can he deal? Or will the horrible impairment Benji faces prove too much for him to handle?
Benji doesn’t look at anyone as he rolls up the ramping path to his new school, but he can feel every eye shift to him. He keeps his eyes to the ground and quickens his pace. He feels like dying, he can’t do this. It’d be hard enough if he was just like everyone else, but he isn’t. He doesn’t look like them, doesn’t dress like them, doesn’t talk like them. And, unlike them, he can’t walk. He has a wheelchair and that in itself is cause for stares, stares he’d give anything to be without.
Benji lets an old lady show him up to the door, handing him a key he needs to use the elevators to get from floor to floor. Benji slowly rolls into the elevator, closing the door on all the whispers and stares. He closes his eyes, leaning his head back against the wall of the elevator. This is hell. Absolute hell.
The tranquility of the elevator doesn’t keep him long, however. In seemingly seconds it opens to the second floor, where his locker is. Taking in a deep breath, he rolls from the confines and goes about trying to find his locker. He doesn’t know why he’s even trying… but something tells him he needs to try to make this work.
Stopping at the locker indicated on his schedule, he twirls the combination, taking a couple times before he can get it open. When he does, he looks at the locker in somewhat confusion. He was told he would be getting his own locker, yet it is stocked with a seeming full class-load of books.
“Hi… are you Benji?” a timid voice asks, and Benji’s attention immediately snaps to the holder. A tall, skinny kid stands before him. He wears a tent-like Silverchair shirt and his black hair is in overly-gelled spikes. An eyebrow ring sits above his questioning eyes. When the kid gets a good look at Benji’s face, however, his expression reflects a bit of shock and confusion.
“Uh… yeah” he says slowly, glancing to the boy. “Are you alright?”
“Uh, yeah, sure” the boy shakes his head. “Um, well, I’m Billy. Martin… your student ambassador. You know… I show you around and all that stuff. They asked me to get your books and put them in your locker, so…” Benji nods.
“Good, I, uh… was wondering if I got the wrong locker, or what” Benji chuckles quietly. Billy… well, he seems pretty cool, better than all the preppy people that line the campus. It seems pretty much uniform. He glances back to Billy from the locker to catch him still staring at him.
“What?” Benji frowns. Billy shakes his head.
“Nothing, you just look kind of like this guy I know, that’s all” he shrugs. Benji pauses for a second.
“Really.” Sometimes people tell him that. Like if you wear bondage pants, band shirts and your wardrobe is pretty well void of color you’re just like any other who dresses similar.
“Yeah” Billy nods. “But he’s a lot different, you know… just like everyone else in this school.” He pauses. “What’s your name again?”
“Benji” he says slowly. “Uh, Madden.” He has to think a second on the last name. His family had changed their name back to his mother’s maiden name when his dad left.
“Oh, okay” Billy nods. A brief silence sets in, then the bell rings. “Uh, final bell.”
“Great” Benji mutters, glancing back towards the classrooms, the halls empty.
“No, it’s okay. I can give you a tour, not have to go to class” Billy offers hopefully. Benji nods gratefully.
“Okay, cool” the student ambassador begins his little tour, but Benji can’t really concentrate. He keeps thinking about what he said.
“And this is…” Billy start, glancing to Benji. “Are you paying attention?”
“What’s his name?” he asks. “I mean, that kid you were talking about that looks like me… or whatever.”
“Uh, Johnson” Billy answers. “He’s a jock, so everyone just calls him by his last name. Or Jay-Jay”
“Jay-Jay?” Benji furrows his eyebrows, maneuvering his wheelchair forward.
“Yeah” Billy nods. “His initials are Jay-Jay. Uh, Joel Johnson.” Benji stops in his tracks.
“What?” he asks. “Do you know him or something?” No, Benji thinks. It… it’s probably some big coincidence. It couldn’t be…
“No” he shakes his head. “I don’t think so.”
_________________________________________________
Seventeen-year-old Joel Johnson sits in his first period English class, waiting for the bell to ring. He glances up, his friends entering and sitting around him. It’s like they have a uniform, all wearing letterman’s jackets as the settle into their seats.
“Hey, did you see that kid?” his friend, Joe, leers, looking at Joel.
“What kid?” he asks, furrowing his eyebrows slightly.
“Some punk” Joe shrugs. “Otis, or something.”
“Benji, I think” his other friend, Brett, corrects. At the mention of the name, Joel freezes. Benji…
“Whatever” Joe sneers. “I knew it was some dog name.”
“Like Lassie” Greg smirks. Joe bursts out in laughter.
“Yes, Lassie” he nods. “Ol’ Yeller.” His friends burst out laughing. Joel forces a small smile.
“Anyway” Joe continues. “He’s like a cripple or something… just ignored me as he rolled on past, like he’s so tough. Like I couldn‘t take him with my hands tied. Feet tied, even, make it a fair fight.” The others snicker as Joe smiles defiantly.
Joel chews on his lip. He doesn’t understand how his friends can be so mean. He doesn’t, he never will. Something inside falls when he says the word “cripple.” Cripple? Something about the word makes something inside of him break. Maybe it’s the cruelty of the word. But Benji… that name. It’s something he’d never connect with that word. Something… he doesn’t even know. It was a long time ago… he doesn’t even know.
He doesn’t know for sure if it was something he made up. Because he has a family. He has a mom and he has a dad and he has a big house and a perfect life. But it isn’t so perfect, not like it looks. He knows he was adopted and he knows they aren’t his real parents. He’s blocked out what happened before he was adopted, but Benji… that name. He remembers that name, that person. That person he hasn’t seen since he was seven.
Rating: PG-13
Centric: High school twins.
Status: Complete.
Summary: At age seven, Joel is abducted, taken away from his home forever. At age seventeen, he’s on top of the world, a popular jock who gets everything he wants, courtesy of his rich parents. But he isn’t happy. What happens when the past he’s denied existing comes back to smash his perfect life into pieces? And when he finds the twin that he had convinced himself was just a figment of his imagination, can he deal? Or will the horrible impairment Benji faces prove too much for him to handle?
Benji doesn’t look at anyone as he rolls up the ramping path to his new school, but he can feel every eye shift to him. He keeps his eyes to the ground and quickens his pace. He feels like dying, he can’t do this. It’d be hard enough if he was just like everyone else, but he isn’t. He doesn’t look like them, doesn’t dress like them, doesn’t talk like them. And, unlike them, he can’t walk. He has a wheelchair and that in itself is cause for stares, stares he’d give anything to be without.
Benji lets an old lady show him up to the door, handing him a key he needs to use the elevators to get from floor to floor. Benji slowly rolls into the elevator, closing the door on all the whispers and stares. He closes his eyes, leaning his head back against the wall of the elevator. This is hell. Absolute hell.
The tranquility of the elevator doesn’t keep him long, however. In seemingly seconds it opens to the second floor, where his locker is. Taking in a deep breath, he rolls from the confines and goes about trying to find his locker. He doesn’t know why he’s even trying… but something tells him he needs to try to make this work.
Stopping at the locker indicated on his schedule, he twirls the combination, taking a couple times before he can get it open. When he does, he looks at the locker in somewhat confusion. He was told he would be getting his own locker, yet it is stocked with a seeming full class-load of books.
“Hi… are you Benji?” a timid voice asks, and Benji’s attention immediately snaps to the holder. A tall, skinny kid stands before him. He wears a tent-like Silverchair shirt and his black hair is in overly-gelled spikes. An eyebrow ring sits above his questioning eyes. When the kid gets a good look at Benji’s face, however, his expression reflects a bit of shock and confusion.
“Uh… yeah” he says slowly, glancing to the boy. “Are you alright?”
“Uh, yeah, sure” the boy shakes his head. “Um, well, I’m Billy. Martin… your student ambassador. You know… I show you around and all that stuff. They asked me to get your books and put them in your locker, so…” Benji nods.
“Good, I, uh… was wondering if I got the wrong locker, or what” Benji chuckles quietly. Billy… well, he seems pretty cool, better than all the preppy people that line the campus. It seems pretty much uniform. He glances back to Billy from the locker to catch him still staring at him.
“What?” Benji frowns. Billy shakes his head.
“Nothing, you just look kind of like this guy I know, that’s all” he shrugs. Benji pauses for a second.
“Really.” Sometimes people tell him that. Like if you wear bondage pants, band shirts and your wardrobe is pretty well void of color you’re just like any other who dresses similar.
“Yeah” Billy nods. “But he’s a lot different, you know… just like everyone else in this school.” He pauses. “What’s your name again?”
“Benji” he says slowly. “Uh, Madden.” He has to think a second on the last name. His family had changed their name back to his mother’s maiden name when his dad left.
“Oh, okay” Billy nods. A brief silence sets in, then the bell rings. “Uh, final bell.”
“Great” Benji mutters, glancing back towards the classrooms, the halls empty.
“No, it’s okay. I can give you a tour, not have to go to class” Billy offers hopefully. Benji nods gratefully.
“Okay, cool” the student ambassador begins his little tour, but Benji can’t really concentrate. He keeps thinking about what he said.
“And this is…” Billy start, glancing to Benji. “Are you paying attention?”
“What’s his name?” he asks. “I mean, that kid you were talking about that looks like me… or whatever.”
“Uh, Johnson” Billy answers. “He’s a jock, so everyone just calls him by his last name. Or Jay-Jay”
“Jay-Jay?” Benji furrows his eyebrows, maneuvering his wheelchair forward.
“Yeah” Billy nods. “His initials are Jay-Jay. Uh, Joel Johnson.” Benji stops in his tracks.
“What?” he asks. “Do you know him or something?” No, Benji thinks. It… it’s probably some big coincidence. It couldn’t be…
“No” he shakes his head. “I don’t think so.”
_________________________________________________
Seventeen-year-old Joel Johnson sits in his first period English class, waiting for the bell to ring. He glances up, his friends entering and sitting around him. It’s like they have a uniform, all wearing letterman’s jackets as the settle into their seats.
“Hey, did you see that kid?” his friend, Joe, leers, looking at Joel.
“What kid?” he asks, furrowing his eyebrows slightly.
“Some punk” Joe shrugs. “Otis, or something.”
“Benji, I think” his other friend, Brett, corrects. At the mention of the name, Joel freezes. Benji…
“Whatever” Joe sneers. “I knew it was some dog name.”
“Like Lassie” Greg smirks. Joe bursts out in laughter.
“Yes, Lassie” he nods. “Ol’ Yeller.” His friends burst out laughing. Joel forces a small smile.
“Anyway” Joe continues. “He’s like a cripple or something… just ignored me as he rolled on past, like he’s so tough. Like I couldn‘t take him with my hands tied. Feet tied, even, make it a fair fight.” The others snicker as Joe smiles defiantly.
Joel chews on his lip. He doesn’t understand how his friends can be so mean. He doesn’t, he never will. Something inside falls when he says the word “cripple.” Cripple? Something about the word makes something inside of him break. Maybe it’s the cruelty of the word. But Benji… that name. It’s something he’d never connect with that word. Something… he doesn’t even know. It was a long time ago… he doesn’t even know.
He doesn’t know for sure if it was something he made up. Because he has a family. He has a mom and he has a dad and he has a big house and a perfect life. But it isn’t so perfect, not like it looks. He knows he was adopted and he knows they aren’t his real parents. He’s blocked out what happened before he was adopted, but Benji… that name. He remembers that name, that person. That person he hasn’t seen since he was seven.