• As the day went on the wound seemed to get better and not so... infected.
    I smiled as I saw him being able to use the arm normally, even though he should be wincing at every move and touch made with his arm.
    He glanced at me and looked down at Goober who was walking through the kitchen, who had smelt food and obviously wanted some too.
    I chuckled and grabbed a peice of onion from the frying pan and dropped on the floor for him.
    Goober jumped and snatched it up with his tongue.
    I grinned and petted his head. "Fat butt."
    Joel smirked and tried to hide his amusement.
    I felt myself lighten as I realized he was actually enjoying himself here. I bet at his real home he never smiled, or laughed, or teased his family. He probably hid away in his room or kept close to his mother.
    "So is bacon okay?" I ask turning my head to Joel.
    It was lunch time and I was making my 'famous' southern BLT's. The bacon was simmered in a pan with freshly cut union's and pepper, and then the tomatoes are put on the pan for a few seconds to brown and conseal the juices inside the skin of the tomatoe. That's about it... Nothing too special, besides the bacon and tomatoe's...
    Joel nodded. "Yes. It's basicly all I eat." He said looking back at me for one of the first times ever.
    I smiled. "Good. Becaue I only really know how to make this and eggs."
    He smirked, then tried to hide it. "Oh. That sucks... But it's a win for me."
    I nodded and turned back to the bacon.
    It was browning quickly and the union juices were getting deep into the meat well, so I knew this was going to be a good meal for him. I hoped...
    Goober nudged my leg and whimpered.
    I looked down at him and laughed. "No. Go back to what you were doing before. Sleep." I order.
    He nudged my leg again and gave me 'the look'.
    I sighed and dropped off another peice of union for him. "There. Now get, you lazy little stinker."
    I heard a soft giggle behind me.
    I grinned and turned around.
    Joel was covering his mouth with his hand and trying not to look at me. "What?" He said as more giggles came out.
    I felt myself feel lighter then a feather as I saw him enjoying himself, a sort of releif, I guess. "Nothing. I didn't say anything. It's just... Your having fun."
    He tried to hide his amusement again. "I am not..."
    I grinned. "Yeah, sure."
    He put on a sad face. "Not..."
    I chuckled and went back to the bacon. "Liar."
    He sighed and walked around till he was close enough to touch my arm. "What are you making?"
    I smiled proudly. "Southern style BLT."
    He blinked.
    I sighed. "Bacon, lettuce, tomatoe... with bread on it..." I explain.
    He blinked.
    "You really don't know what a BLT is, do you?" I ask feeling let down.
    He shook his head, looking lost.
    I smiled at his face. "Well, since this will be your first BLT I'll try to make it even more special for my guest." I say grabbing a spactula and flipping the meat.
    "Are you a cheff?"
    I chuckled. "I'd like to think so, but no. I'm not."
    He leaned against the counter. "Oh... You should. It looks... good?"
    I looked down at him. "Thanks... I think?"
    "I've never had this-," he said pointing at the pan and the food, "before, so I wouldn't know."
    I sighed and nodded. "I guess that's a good excuse..."
    He looked up at me and didn't look away.
    I glanced down at him as I flipped the bacon.
    He stil didn't look away.
    I smirked. "What are you looking at?"
    "You don't look like lawyer..."
    "You are so random..." I think outloud.
    He pointed at me. "No. I'm serious. You don't look like any lawyer I've seen..."
    "When have you seen any other lawyers?"
    "When Carter got in trouble and those stuffed shirts came to take him away or take something of his. He would always cuss them off our property..." He said looking down at the counter in sadness.
    I stopped paying attention to the food and glared down at him. "Don't worry about that, perverted old geezer, okay? I'll deal with him. Okay?"
    He swallowed and looked at the frying pan.
    I smiled and kneeled down. "Hey."
    He glanced at me.
    "Let me deal with him, okay? I won't let him come even an inch close to you, okay? I won't allow it." I smiled proudly.
    He smirked, but tried to hide it and looked far away from me.
    I patted his shoulder and stood back up. "Good."

    After I finished making the food and got his approval of the taste I decided it was time to get cracking on this case.
    I turned to Joel, with determination in my eyes. "Can I ask a few questions?"
    He blinked in confusion at first, but nodded.
    I sat us down on the couch and smiled. "Don't worry, I won't get too personal, okay?"
    He nodded and seemed to get uncomfortable.
    "And if you don't like the question I ask, you can tell me 'skip' and we'll leave the question, you won't have to answer it. Alright?" I ask.
    He nodded.
    "Okay... How often did the lawyers come over to your home?"
    "Every week, if not two."
    I nodded. "What did they want?"
    "They said they wanted to speak with my dad about a money problem from a few years ago."
    I held the recorder closer to him so I could this better. "Okay... Uh... How often did you speak with Carter?"
    "He would call me down for dinner and then that's about it. If we was ever really talking to me he was either drunk, or yelling at me and sobber." He explained.
    I nodded and felt my heart start to wilt. "I see... Did Mister Crimson have a drinking problem?"
    He nodded back to me. "He spent our house payment money on liqour and beer."
    So that's why dumped out my wine last night...
    I sighed. "Okay... Did he ever hit your mom?" I ask sort of pushing him.
    He sat back and narrowed his eyes at me. "Skip."
    D***... I pushed him too far...
    I nodded. "Alright... How close were you to your mom?"
    He shook his head. "Not very close. We were sort of an 'alienated' family. I only spoke to her when I needed money for school and stuff like that."
    "Hmm... Okay. I think that's all... Oh! Wait! I have one more question for you." I sighed. "Do you want to be in the courtroom the whole time I'm fighting against him? Or do you want to be in the waiting room until they call you in?"
    He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I want to be there."
    I smiled. "Good."
    He nodded.

    After that I let him take a break for the day, along with myself. I was feeling incredibly worn out, which was odd, because I was usually excited to finish a case and would work night and day to get it done.
    I sat on the couch with Joel and handed him the flipper. "Chose something to watch. I'm going to get food." I say walking to the kitchen.
    He stood up and followed me.
    I blinked and looked down at him. "Do you want something too?"
    He shook his head. "No..."
    "Then why are you in here?"
    He shrugged. "I don't know..."
    I smirked and grabbed a pear. "Okay..."
    We walked back into the living room and I sat down on couch with a deep sigh.
    Joel sat next to me, closer then before.
    I smiled and looked at the television. "Whatcha' watchin'?"
    He shrugged and started flipping channells.
    "Do you want cartoons?" I tease.
    He stopped flipping channells and narrowed his eyes at me.
    I laughed. "I kid, I kid."
    He went back to flipping through channells until he found something he liked. And guess what it was?
    That's right!
    Cartoons!
    Tom and Jarry, to be exact.
    I smiled and remembered watching this show when I was kid. It was all fuzzy and had those random little black dots come up while it was playing. But Joel didn't seem to mind that it was an old episode.
    Infact he got reall comfortable. He leaned back against the couch and would smirk everytime that cat got hit in the head with something, or would fall, or somehow get hurt by the mouse.
    I laughed when the mouse stood on top of a fridge and when the cat was under it he dropped and randomly appearing hammer on his head.
    Joel glanced at me and smiled.
    After the show was over I had finished my pear and was no longer hungry.
    Joel stretched. "I'm tired..."
    I chuckled. "Then go take a nap."
    "In your bed?" He said cocking an eyebrow.
    I shrugged. "Where ever is more comfortable."
    He smiled and looked at the floor. "Can I sleep in your room again tonight? I promise I wont grab onto you again."
    I sighed and scratched my neck. "I heard it was going to storm for a long time, so yeah. If you need to, go ahead. I'm here to make you comfortable and to keep you safe, so do what ever you like. Just as long as you don't break my house in the process, okay?"
    He nodded and yawned.

    {Author's point of veiw}

    After Joel woke up from his nap he walked out into the living room, where Timothy was sleeping. Joel smiled and walked up beside his sleeping body. "Hey." He whispered. "Are you awake?" But Joel already knew the answer to this.
    Timothy didn't move, his eyes didn't even blink.
    Joel leaned down to get a better look at him.
    Timothy's eyes were shut heavily and his lips curled into a pleased smile, his glasses half way down his nose.
    Joel grabbed his glasses and set them down on the table, just trying to make Timothy feel more comfortable. 'He really doesn't look like a lawyer, does he?' He thinks.
    Timothy sniffled.
    Joel jumped and stepped back. 'Oh crap! I woke him up, didn't I!?'
    But Timothy just turned his head the other way, towards Joel.
    Joel sighed deeply in releif and leaned back down to get a better look again.
    The dark marks under Timothy's eyes showed Joel how much detication Timothy put into his job.
    Joel smiled and ran his finger under Timothy's eye. {Obviously not thinking straight, eh?}
    Timothy jumped and sat up. "What's wrong!? What are you doing!?" He panicked, still waking up.
    Joel wanted to smile at his reaction, but felt embaressed that he was touching Timothy so strangly. "There was something on your eye, so I took your glasses off and got it..." He lied.
    Timothy nodded and layed back down. "Oh... I thought you needed something or your arm was bleeding again..." He said slowly falling back asleep.
    Joel smiled. "Nope."

    {Timothy's point of veiw}

    I woke up to the sound of something falling with a loud thud, and then a bang of thunder. I jumped and sat up. "Joel!?"
    A dark ball was on the carpet next to me.
    Goober? No... His body shape wouldn't look like that... What the crap is that? A blanket?
    I poked it and it twitched. I sighed. "Joel?"
    He looked up at me. "Yeah-?" A boom rippled through the room and he coward back into a ball.
    I smiled. "Do you want to go to my bed room now?"
    He nodded.
    I laughed and stood up, then walked into the bed room.
    Thunder boomed.
    Joel yipped and grabbed onto my shirt.
    I sat down on the bed and didn't feel him let go of my shirt. I turned and looked down at him. "Are you okay?"
    Thunder boomed again.
    He jumped and did something unexpected, it still makes me blink in confusion. Joel threw himself at me and wrapped his warm arms around me tightly, burrying his face into my chest.
    I blinked down at him. "Wha... What are you doing?"
    He held me tighter. "I don't want it. Make it go away!"
    Hold on! Did it sound like he was crying!? Or was that just me!?
    I felt my heart start to hurt.
    He sniffled and his body began to shake.
    I put my arms around him and felt like a sheild protecting him from the evil lightning... Or something...

    I fell asleep with Joel tighlty in my arms and my back to the window so my shadow would keep him from seeing the lightning. And when ever I heard thunder I would hold him tighter and make sure he wasn't going to start crying again.
    Joel yawned and looked up at me. "Hm?"
    I looked down at him. "What is it?"
    He blinked in confusion. "Why...?"
    "Why, what?"
    "Why are you hugging me?"
    I smirked. "Why are you hugging me?"
    He tried to pull his arms away, but winced when his bandages were tugged when the button on my cuff caught on to it.
    I jumped and undid the button. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
    He nodded and put his face back against my chest. "Mm hm."
    "Are you going back to sleep?" I ask.
    He nodded and scooted himself against me. "Mm hm."
    I smiled and held him against me again. "Fine... But when I get hungry, I'm leaving."
    He nodded. "Mm hm."
    "I should shut up now, huh?"
    "Mm hm."
    I grinned. "Okay..."
    It was silent for about three seconds before I got bored and started talking again. "You really don't talk much, do you?"
    He sighed.
    I chuckled. "Fine, fine. I'll shut up... For now..." In my head after I said 'For now' the 'dun dun duunnn' thing played. I would have laughed if Joel wasn't in the room. But if I did laugh it would make me look insane... Wouldn't it?