The Lost Boy

stay warm I pedaled my bike. Only after I rode past the darkened homes in the neighborhoods did I realize that it was after 11:30 p.m.
    Sometime later I rode down the street leading to my old elementary school. I coasted past the play yard, listening to the sounds of the swings sway from the breeze. Afterward, I walked my bike up the seemingly endless hill of Eastgate Avenue. When I reached the top of Crestline Avenue, just as I had a few weeks before, I hid beside a clump of bushes as I peered down the foggy street.
    I couldn’t resist riding down the street. I stopped a few houses above Mother’s house. A soft yellow light shone through her draped bedroom windows. I wondered whether Mother ever thought about me as I did her. I began to think of how my brothers spent their time at Mother’s house. A howling wind blew through my hair. I rolled up the collar of my shirt. I realized that the house I was spying on was not the same home that had entertained an army of children when Mother was a Cub Scout leader, or the same home that had been the most popular home on the block during Christmas season, so many years ago. After Mother turned off her bedroom light, I said a prayer before I coasted down the street to return to the area by the movie theater. That night I fell asleep curled up, shivering underneath an air-conditioning unit.
    The next day I spent the entire day in the movie theater and fell asleep to Bruce Lee’s
Enter the Dragon.
That evening after the theater closed, I rode up to the local Denny’s restaurant, where I salivated as plates of food whizzed by the counter. The manager, who had eyed me for two days now, sat down and talked to me. After a few minutes of prodding, I gave him the Catanzes’ phone number. I gulped down a burger before Rudy picked me up in his blue Chrysler.
    “David, ” Rudy began, “I’m not going to badger you. All I can say is, you can’t keep acting like this. This is no way to live – for you or for us. You’ve got to shape up.”
    Once we arrived at their home, I took a quick bath, then drifted off to sleep as Rudy and Lilian discussed how to handle me.
    The next day Ms Gold made a rare appearance. She didn’t seem to be her bouncy self, and I noticed she forgot to give me a hug. “David, what seems to be the problem here?” she asked in a firm voice.
    I played with my hands as I tried to avoid looking at Ms Gold. “How come you never come to visit?”
    “David? Now, you know there are lots of other children who, like you, need my help. You understand that, don’t you?”
    “Yes, ma’am, ” I said in agreement. I felt guilty taking Ms Gold’s time away from the other children, but I missed seeing her as much as I had before the trial.
    “David, Mrs Catanze tells me that you’re having a very hard time adjusting here. Is it that you don’t like the home? What’s going on inside of you? Where’s that cute little boy I knew a few weeks ago, huh?”
    I stared at my hands. I was too embarrassed to answer.
    After a minute of silence she said, “Don’t worry, I know all about the psychiatrist. It’s not your fault. We’ll find you one who’s used to relating with kids …”
    “I’m not a kid. I’m 12 years old, and I’m tired of being picked on!” I stated in a cold tone. I had to catch myself before I revealed another side of my personality that, until recently, had never existed.
    “David, why are you so upset?”
    “I dunno, Ms G. Sometimes I just …”
    Ms Gold scooted closer to me from the other side of the couch. She lifted my chin with her fingers as I sniffled and wiped my nose. “Are you getting enough sleep? You don’t look so good. Do you not like it here?”
    “Yes, ma’am, ” I nodded. “I like it here a lot. Mrs Catanze is real nice. It’s just that sometimes … I get scared. I try to tell her, but I can’t. There’s just so much I don’t understand, and I wanna know why.”
    “David, I know this may be hard for you to swallow, but what you’re feeling right now, right this moment, is perfectly normal. If you weren’t a little confused or worried, then I’d be concerned. You’re perfectly fine.
    “
But
what I
am
concerned about right now is your behavior. I know you’re a better boy than you’ve been acting here recently. Am I right? And Mr Catanze is not very happy with you right at this moment, is he?”
    “So I’m okay?”
    Ms Gold smiled. “Yeah, for the most part, I’d say so. We’ve still got to iron