Published: 4 May 2023

From The Previous Chapter:

Billy thanked the man for doing that for him and his mom. The teen then went over to his foster dad and hugged him.

As he left the bedroom, Mr. Ken told the teen not to forget to drain his lizard before going to bed. That got a laugh out of Billy, who went directly to the boy’s bathroom to do just that.

It had been a busy day at The Cove that Saturday, and everyone was settling down for a well-deserved good night’s sleep, and it was quiet throughout the night.

Sunday morning, when the boys woke up, Charles immediately went into ‘Breakfast’ mode. He told his ‘brothers’ he was going to try to convince his dad to take them out for breakfast. They all told him, “Good luck!”

“Dad … will you take us out for breakfast?” asked Charles, as he walked into the Kitchen Nook.

“Hmmmm, walking downstairs in your underwear, are we?” teased the teen’s dad.

“Daaaaad!” called back the teen. “Momma doesn’t come in on Sunday. So … will you take us out for breakfast? It’s only nine o’clock and we can all be down here in thirty minutes. The question is … can you be ready in that time?’ now teased Charles.

The boy’s dad thought about it and figured he hadn’t taken them out for breakfast for a while, so he told Charles to tell his ‘brothers’ to hurry up, and not to forget to tell Phillip.

Charles quickly ran up the stairs. He stopped at Phillip’s room, only to find it empty, so he knew the boy had to be in the other bathroom. The teen stuck his head in the bathroom his newest ‘brother’ used and yelled for Phillip to hurry up as his dad was taking them out for breakfast. He didn’t wait for a response.

Charles then quickly went into the boys’ bathroom and told his other ‘brothers’ they were going out for breakfast and for them to hurry up. The three boys thanked Charles, as he got under a shower and took a quick shower.

Phillip didn’t get a chance to ask Charles where they were going, so he quickly finished his shower and went to his bedroom to get dressed for the day. He did remember to put on deodorant before he got dressed. He met his ‘brothers’ in the hallway as they all went downstairs to meet ‘dad’ Ken, who was just coming out of his own retreat.

“OK, boys, where are we going? Remember, your friends are coming over at twelve, noon, so we can’t go too far away. Phillip, do you have a favorite place you like to go out for breakfast?” asked the foster dad.

“We never went out for breakfast, Mr. Ken. I usually … I usually had cold cereal by myself, as my mom … she was usually still out for the night. That is why … that is why I’m living with you, now. She was warned … she was warned that if she continued to leave me home alone, they would … they would take me away.

“Now they have taken me away, and … and I have no idea when we’ll get back together as she doesn’t even recognize me,” finished Phillip, who looked down and began to cry.

Mr. Ken pulled the boy to him and let him get it out of his system. The other Covers looked on and knew from their own early days at The Cove that they too cried a lot and questioned what would happen to them, and also wondered if and when they would ever get back to their family, or if they would ever have to move to another foster home.

As Phillip cried, Billy came over to him and rubbed his back. “Phil … we, your ‘brothers’, will all be here for you. And all of us … we’ll help you get through this separation with your mom. You do know that eventually … you will be back together. That is more than the rest of us will ever have.”

Phillip heard what Billy just said and it made him realize that what he was going through was nothing compared to his ‘brothers’.

“Billy … I’m … I’m sorry that … that none of you … will ever be back with your mom’s or … or with your families. After what you told me that happened to you and why you … why you and Charles are in … are living with Mr. Ken … what … what I keep forgetting is that what I am going through is nothing compared to that and all I keep thinking about is … me. I’m … I’m sorry,” apologized Phillip, who turned from Mr. Ken and hugged Billy. Billy then motioned for the rest of the boys to join in a group hug.

The Covers drove over to Four Corners for breakfast. Billy drove the van.

As they waited for their breakfast to be brought to their table, they talked about what transpired in the Foyer that morning. Mr. Ken reminded Phillip that he told him he would probably be staying with him at least through the 4^th of July, which was a good thing as he would then get to enjoy the 4^th of July Carnival, but he could possibly be with them to the end of the summer.

The man asked the newest Cover to try to focus on making The Cove his home and to let the other boys be his older ‘brothers’, and to let them help him getting settled there. ‘Dad’ Ken asked the older boys to try to befriend their new ‘brother’ and give him the help and support he needs to become a ‘true’ Cover.

During breakfast, the boys asked ‘dad’ Ken what they were going to do during their ‘Family Day’ next Sunday. ‘Dad’ Ken told them he hadn’t fully decided yet, but they would find out soon enough. The boys all moaned.

‘Dad’ Ken then apologized to Bill for forgetting about his birthday being yesterday. The man said, in his defense, that with everything that was going on the past week, that he just plain forgot. The man then added that nobody, including Bill, himself, reminded him during the week. Mr. Ken asked Bill if it was OK if they got Krispy Kreme donuts for everybody later to help celebrate his birthday.

Billy was at first embarrassed at being singled out about his birthday, and then he didn’t know what to say. Last year was the first time he ever had a real Birthday Party and he wasn’t really expecting one this year. But after thinking about what his foster dad just asked him, the teen said that having Krispy Kreme Donuts would be awesome. The teenager said that having the special donuts would be incredible and probably the talk at school tomorrow, so he said he was all for it.

Dad Ken then asked Charles what he wanted to do for his birthday which, if he was correct, was next Sunday.

Charles was caught off guard with the question, but he recovered quickly and said that with it being Easter Sunday and their ‘Family Day’ he really didn’t think that it would be a good day to have a party.

Mr. Ken then asked both teens what they would like as birthday gifts. Billy wasn’t used to being bestowed with gifts. He’d gotten so much from his foster dad ever since he’d arrived at The Cove that he couldn’t think of anything he really needed.

Back at Christmas he had a difficult time coming up with ideas for gifts for him, so he told Mr. Ken that he had already done so much for him that maybe he could use that money towards his mom’s prison commissary account, so she could buy some things she needed to make her stay a bit better.

Hearing what Billy said about using the birthday money for his mom’s prison commissary account surprised the other boys, but especially Phillip. The youngest Cover, Phillip, recognized that Billy still loved his mom, unlike Charles, who was responsible for his mom being in one and Matthew who said his mom said she wanted to kill him when they got back together.

Mr. Ken said if that was what Bill wanted to do then when they visited her in two weeks, then that was what he would do for him. The man then asked Charles what he wanted for his birthday. The soon to be fourteen-year-old said he’d like a new car. All the boys laughed.

Charles then said that he really didn’t need anything special, but he thought that a nice Go-Pro camera that he could take on the roller coasters and other rides would be a good way to relive the adventures when they visit the amusement parks after school is out. Dad Ken smiled at his son and said that sounded like a good gift and later, together, they would look through the web to see which would be the best one to get.

When the Covers returned to The Cove, some of their friends had already arrived and were over at the Pavilion. Phillip saw Westin there and wanted to get out of the van at the Main Gate, but Mr. Ken told him that he and his ‘brothers’ needed to change into some play clothes before they went up to the Skate Park.

Phillip hurriedly changed and he and Billy rode the four-seat golf cart up to the Pavilion. By then all of Phillip’s friends were there.

While the boys got busy talking to one another, skating or playing a pick-up game of soccer, Mr. Ken called Wayne and asked him if he’d mind going out and buying a good assortment of 8 dozen Krispy Kreme donuts to help celebrate Bill’s sixteenth birthday.

The man told his Estate Master that he’d totally forgotten about this weekend being Bill’s birthday and the teen said that having those special donuts for his birthday ‘cake’ would be the talk of the school tomorrow. Wayne agreed to go out and get them and that he’d get some ice cream to go along with it.

“Hey,” began Phillip seeing his friends, “when you were here yesterday, I forgot to show you my new computer. Do you want to go down to my room and see it now? Then, while we’re there, I can search the web for some dinner bells Mr. Ken said I could look for, that we can hang at the Pavilion. That way we can set it up to ring so we can call everyone when it is time for burgers and dogs,” explained the newest Cover.

Phillip’s three friends were eager to see his new computer. Westin did ask if they would get to swim later. Phillip said he’d make sure they did, and told everyone to get in the four-seat golf cart and he’d drive them down to the house.

The boys entered through the garage door where the Cover used his thumb print to open the side door. His three friends were surprised The Cove had such a special door and asked Phillip about it. The Cover told them it was there when he began living there and sometimes it was unlocked and sometimes, they had to use their thumb to open the lock.

Phillip took the boys up the back stairs from off the Kitchen Nook telling them it was the quicker way than going up the main stairs at the front of the house. The boys were all amazed the house had two stairways their friend could use.

When the boys entered Phillip’s room, Westin couldn’t believe the size of it and asked if all his ‘brothers’ rooms were the same size. Phillip told his friend all the bedrooms were that size and they were big enough and set up for two people.

The boys then asked Phillip to tell them about his computer. Phillip said he wasn’t too sure of what he had, so Westin told his friend to turn it on. Then, when the monitor came on and Phillip put in his pin, Westin told his Cover friend to go to Settings, System and then to the bottom of the list and click on About.

When Phillip did what his friend told him, all of the boys were surprised when they all saw on the screen that the Cover had a Dell Windows 10 Pro 64-bit with an Intel® Core™ i7 9700, 8-Core, 12MB Cache, 8GB DDR4 with a 1TB 7200 RPM HDD.

The boys all whistled at seeing what their friends had as a home desktop computer and inwardly wished they had a computer that was half of that. Westin asked Phillip to search for that dinner bell so they could see how fast it really was. Phillip sat at the keyboard and began to slowly type in the letters of what he was looking for. His three friends all sighed at how long it took their friend to do that.

“Do you want one of us to do that?” asked Bryson.

“Yeah, my typing is kind of slow, but at my apartment my mom only had a laptop and I never really learned how to type. So, one of you guys can sit down and find dinner bells,” replied the Cover.

Westin quickly sat down and the four boys searched the internet for dinner bells. They found bells that you hung on a post and used a rope or cord that pulled on an arm that ultimately moved the housing that the inner armature hit and made the bell ring. The saw triangles that you took a metal rod and struck the three sides of the triangle continuously to make the ringing noise.

They also saw handheld bells that you rung by flicking your wrist up and down to make the bell ring. There were cowboy dinner bells, Texas shaped dinner bells, ships bells, cast and wrought iron, brass, copper and even bells made from aluminum.

The boys then found a web site that would give them an idea of what the different types of bells sounded like. They eagerly went to it so they could hear the tone and how loud the bells sounded.

There they heard loud gongs they thought people could hear from far away, tinny tinkling from some of the handheld bells, and some strong clanging from the triangles and sharp ringing from the brass fire engine type bells. The boys also noticed that the larger the bell, or triangle, the deeper the sound.

After a while, Westin asked if he could see the rest of the house. The other friends said they looked at the bells long enough and they wanted to show Westin around before it got too late. Phillip thanked his friends helping him search for the dinner bells, and, with that, the four boys walked into the hallway.

Westin then asked if he could use the bathroom. Phillip showed him the bathroom he used. When the new friend went inside, he was surprised to see there was a ‘Porcelain God’ there. Preston and Bryson were also surprised as they’d seen the Boy’s Bathroom when Mark had invited them over and now there was this newer bathroom.

“Hey, when did Mr. Ken make this bathroom?” asked Preston.

“I don’t know. This is the one Mr. Ken told me I could use. I think it’s because my ‘brothers’ … they all take their showers together and … and … well, I’m not used to doing that,” answered Phillip.

“Yea, when we first came here Mark … he told us he showered with his ‘brothers’,” spoke up Bryson. “I don’t think I could do that, but when we changed down in the Pool Locker Room it was a bit … well, awkward. But they told us how we could to do it without being, you know, embarrassed, and I can see how easy it could be after you do it a few times,” added the friend.

“There’s another bathroom?” innocently asked Westin.

Phillip showed his new friend the bathroom his ‘brothers’ used every morning. When Westin saw it, he was amazed there were two ‘Porcelain Gods’ there, as well, a big shower room with four shower heads and two separate toilet rooms with grab bars.

Phillip explained they were setup with doors so you weren’t embarrassed if you had to use one while your ‘brothers’ were using the bathroom. The young Cover added that they both had handicapped bars if you had a broken leg, or ankle, so you could balance yourself getting on and off the seat.

From there, Phillip took the boys down the back stairs to the Kitchen Nook where he showed Westin where they had breakfast and dinner, the Butler’s Pantry and then had him look out the large bay window at the lake. The boys then hurried towards the MRS Room, before heading down the stairs to the Great Room.

The four boys headed in that direction and when they got to the stairs Phillip stopped them and told Westin that Mr. Ken’s Study was the first door on the right and down the hall was his private retreat. The Cover added that there were two large guest bedrooms above Mr. Ken’s retreat, and he forgot to show Westin them when they were upstairs and he’d show him them at another time.

From the glass banister before heading down the stairs, Phillip pointed out to Westin the large Rumford fireplace and the thirty-foot high windows that looked out onto the Patio and the lake.

When the boys went down to the Great Room, the Cover showed Westin the Party Bar area, the Theater with its special seating, the half-bath down the hall and explained the door at the end of the long hall that was an emergency Exit. From there, the Cover showed his new friend the Party Restrooms that were situated under the stairs and MRS Room. The boys had to go into both of them to see how big they were.

The pool area was next and Westin’s eyes went wide open when he saw the size of the pool and the jumping ledge he’d get to use later in the day.

“Dang, would you look at the size of that indoor pool!” exclaimed Westin, as he walked into the pool area. “And look at that waterfall coming off that ledge overhanging the pool,” offered the new friend, as he continued to walk towards the waterfall.

“Yea, when they turn the water off, it becomes a jumping rock,” laughed Preston.

“I can’t wait until we get to swim in it,” offered Westin, to no one in particular.

“That’s why I had you bring your suits and a towel. My ‘brothers’ and their friends … they will ride their boards until they get tired. Then, they either swim or ‘burn the burgers and dogs’ and then swim. Let’s finish looking around,” spoke up Phillip.

The four boys then went into the Locker Rooms to see what they looked like. It was in there that Preston explained how they were told how to just leave their shirt on as they changed into and out of their swimsuit so as not to be too embarrassed in front of all the older boys. After the boys saw the industrial sized washer and dryer, they walked outside.

The four friends walked across the Patio, so they could look over the ornate banister and view the beach, dock and artificial cove Mr. Ken had built. Westin then asked his Cover friend why his foster dad used to call the estate Three Finger Cove. Phillip said Billy told him that you had to hold up your left hand and using that hand spread the thumb and the two fingers next to it to form the two coves, and bend under the remaining two fingers.

They all did that and then they could essentially see how the area between the thumb and the first finger formed the cove, and then the area between the two fingers formed the area where the Commander and sailboats were moored.

“Oh, I can see why he called it Three Finger Cove,” spoke up Westin. “The thumb is the first finger, then the cove, then a finger, a cove and then the third finger. How neat!” The other boys agreed.

Preston then pointed out the Men’s and Women’s restrooms located under what was the four-car-garage above them. He told everyone that Phillip probably didn’t know that yet, but that Mark told him that when Mr. Ken used to have his picnics people used those restrooms instead of having them walking inside to use the ones under the stairs.

The boys then walked down the stairs to the dock to look at the Commander, the Sunfish, a 14-foot sailboat, the other sailboats Mr. Ken bought last year and the five-personal watercraft. Westin was amazed at what he saw.

From there, Phillip pointed out the water toys out in the cove that they will get to play on, once the weather and the lake water gets warmer. Preston added how much fun it was when they played King of the Raft with the older boys. He continued and told the boy that they also got to ride on a water tube behind the personal water craft and that a few of the boys who knew how to sail the small sailboats would take them out.

Bryson then told Westin, and thus Phillip, that anyone under twelve had to wear a life vest, but that they weren’t bulky, so they didn’t hinder your fun on the rafts. The boy did add there were at least four lifeguards out there watching so you could feel safe. That made Westin feel good about swimming out in the cove.

Phillip looked at the time and said they probably needed to head to the Pavilion as they were probably burning the burgers and dogs. The four boys hurried up to the picnic area where the burgers and hot dogs were indeed being served.

Billy, seeing his younger ‘brother’ and his friends hurrying to get there, called out to him, “It’s about time you four showed up!” The teen then laughed.

The four boys got in line and they each took a burger and a hot dog and dressed it with what they liked on them. They then found an empty table and sat down to talk about what they saw. Westin talked the most as this was the first time, he’d seen everything and he was amazed at everything he saw. He told his Cover friend that he couldn’t wait until it was time to swim.

While the boys were eating. Mr. Ken and Mr. Wayne arrived. They brought with them a cake made out of the eight dozen Krispy Kreme donuts Mr. Ken had his Estate Master buy before coming over to The Cove.

“Men … if I may have your attention. As you know … Bill had his sixteenth birthday this weekend. And what you didn’t know is … I sort of forgot about it. (The boys all laughed.) Now in my defense, it was a busy week for me, and … and Bill never reminded me, so there!” laughed Mr. Ken. (The boys laughed right along with the owner of The Cove.)

“Anyway, I talked with Bill about having a cake and he suggested getting Krispy Kreme donuts. Or, was it the other way around? Whatever! So, Mr. Wayne here … he decided to create a makeshift birthday cake out of the donuts and, as you can see, he got a one and six candle to place on the top. So, how about we light them and we all sing Happy Birthday to Bill. Then, he can blow the candles out and you can all use the tongs to take your favorite donut,” offered the owner of The Cove.

Mr. Wayne lit the candles and the boys sang Happy Birthday to the sixteen-year-old Cover and when that was over, Bill blew out the candles. The birthday boy took the tongs and took his favorite Krispy Kreme donut.

“Oh, and Mr. Wayne also picked up some of those individual ice cream cups. You know … the ones that come with the wooden spoons. Take one of those, too. And eat at least two donuts, so there aren’t any leftovers,” spoke up Mr. Ken.

All the boys quickly got their favorite donuts and an ice cream cup and they sat around and ate and talked about how unusual, but also how fun the birthday was. The high schoolers said that it would be the talk of the school tomorrow, for sure.

After all the boys ate and helped clean up the Pavilion area, Phillip told Westin, Preston and Bryson to get their swimsuits and they would go to the indoor pool and change. Once there, Phillip and Preston went to the dryer and they both got their arms loaded with dry swimsuits and towels and brought them to the Locker Rooms.

Phillip made sure he had his swimsuit and towel and then joined his buddies in the Woman’s Locker Room. This was actually going to be the first time he was going to change into his swimsuit in the locker room. He had changed out of his swimsuit the last time he swam, but hardly anyone was in the room, but now all three of his friends were there and he had to mentally deal with it.

The Cover took his time and watched what Preston and Bryson did. He noticed they both did what Preston said to do earlier. They sat down and slipped off their shoes and socks, stood up, turned and then faced the wall. Once they had done that, they left their shirts on and they then dropped their shorts and underwear, at the same time, and then put on their swimsuits.

Westin was also taking his time and watching what the other two boys had done. He then looked over to his host, shrugged his shoulders and then he sat down and took off his shoes and socks. He then stood up, turned and faced the wall and, and leaving his shirt on, he dropped his shorts and underwear at the same time and proceeded to put his swimsuit on.

Phillip took a deep breath, faced the wall and did the same. The two boys sort of looked over at each other as they both pulled up their swimsuits. They both then laughed.

“Hey … what are you two laughing at?” asked Preston, when he looked over at the two boys.

“Ahh … nothing,” chuckled Westin, with Phillip giggling right along.

The four boys went out onto the pool deck and Phillip showed his newest friend how to use the lockers out there. Once they each had put their clothes into a locker, locked it and then placed the key around their ankle, Westin wanted to walk over and look at the waterfall.

“Phillip, remember, Westin … he needs to take the Swim Test, before he can swim. You probably should ask Billy or Robert to give it to him since you only just took it yourself,” Bryson reminded Phillip

“A … a ‘swim test’?” questioned Westin.

“Yea, Mr. Ken … he requires everyone, adult or kid, to pass a swim test of swimming across the width of the pool before they can swim anywhere in the pool. I had to do it the last time I swam here. Billy … he gave it to me,” explained Phillip. “But any of my ‘brothers’ can give it to you. I think?” finished the youngest Cover.

Charles heard the conversation as he came into the pool area. He walked over to the four boys and said if this was Westin’s first-time swimming in the indoor pool he needed to swim across the widest part and if he was ready, he’d watch.

Westin said he was ready and he jumped into the pool and easily swam across the pool. Charles said he passed and for him to have fun swimming with his friends. The teenager then went into the Men’s Locker Room to find his swimsuit and change, so he could swim, as well.

“Phillip … can we jump off the waterfall as it is going?” asked Westin.

“I don’t know. I don’t think we can. I’ll ask the lifeguards,” replied the Cover.

Coming back, Phillip told his friends that Gavin was going to shut the waterfall off and then they could jump off the ledge. Five minutes later the water had stopped flowing off the ledge and the four boys climbed up the steps and went to the edge and looked over it.

“It sure looks higher from up here, doesn’t it?” gulped Westin.

“That’s because your eyes are now four plus feet higher above the level of the ledge. If you sit down, it won’t look as high,” yelled up Gavin, as he counseled from the pool deck. The boy sat down and let his legs hang over the ledge.

“That’s better, but it’s still high,” called down Westin.

Preston said, “It only looks high, but once you jump off it feels great.” The boy then jumped off and was quickly followed by Bryson.

“Come on, jump!’ yelled up Preston to Westin.

Westin hesitated. Phillip told his friend that the first time is always the scariest. Then the Cover jumped off the edge. Westin was now all alone on the ledge, with his three friends calling up from the water for him to jump. Westin wasn’t sure what he should do.

The three boys in the water kept yelling for Westin to jump. He knew he needed to, otherwise he would be teased at school tomorrow. The boy made up his mind, so he closed his eyes and leaped from the ledge. He didn’t just jump; he sprang out from the ledge and landed about ten feet further out than his friends were wading in the water.

All three boys applauded Westin for not just jumping, but for leaping out so far from the waterfall. Gavin saw what the boy had done, as he had been watching, too, and he went over to Westin and congratulated him as well for a jump well done.

The four boys all went to the top of the waterfall and jumped again. This time Westin didn’t hesitate. As a matter-of-fact, he was the first at the top and he just ran across the top of the waterfall and jumped directly off. He yelled as he went down into the water. All three of his friends went over the edge of the waterfall, looked down, and laughed at him. They then jumped off and joined the boy in the water.

When all the other boys were in the water, the lifeguards gathered them together and got them to play the games Russell devised for them to play. Westin never played any of those types of games before, and he was having fun playing with the much older teenagers.

Walking backwards was the most fun, Westin thought, as even though the older boys had played those numerous times, they still went off course. The boy also enjoyed playing horsey, Marco-Polo, relay and diving for the things Mr. Ken had bought the twins for Christmas last year.

Westin, Phillip, Preston and Bryson were having so much fun playing the games that when they saw the older boys getting out of the pool and going to change into their street clothes, they didn’t realize it was getting so late. So, they too, went into the Women’s Locker Room to change into their street clothes.

Now Phillip and Westin had to decide how they’d do that. The two boys watched how Preston and Bryson put on their shirts first, placed their shorts and underwear on the bench next to them and then faced the wall. The two boys then slipped off their swimsuits and then quickly slipped on their underwear and then their shorts. Then they sat down and put on their socks and sneakers.

Phillip and Westin saw how easy it looked and they both did what their two friends did. They put their shirts on, placed their underwear and shorts on the bench and then faced the wall. That done they dropped their swimsuits letting their shirts hide their ‘boy parts’, as best they could, then they quickly donned their underwear and shorts. They both sat down and put on their socks, which were a bit difficult, over their still damp feet. Their sneakers were next and then they joined their two friends out on the pool deck.

Phillip took his and his friend’s wet swimsuits and towels to the dryer and threw them in with the other boy’s things. He then caught up with them out on the pool deck and the four walked out to the Great Room, up the stairs and out the Foyer Door and up to the Main Gate to wait for the boy’s parents.

“Mom, dad, I had a blast today. Mr. Ken … he had a Krispy Kreme donut birthday cake for Billy. He turned sixteen this weekend. Then we went swimming and … and I actually jumped off this really high waterfall ledge,” said an excited Westin.

“Yes son, we saw that waterfall when Mr. Ken showed us around the house, so we know how high up that ledge really is,” replied mom, Lauren, with a knowing smile.

The other parents came over to the Neezeman’s and they talked with them. Westin’s sister, Whitney, was there and she went over and talked to Robert, and a few of the other Alvin York Freshmen. Lucky for the local residents, Mr. Ken had those twelve extra parking spaces installed just outside the Main Gate, and that relieved the congestion at the Main Gate area.

Eventually, the parents said they had to get their sons home and fed, so they began to leave. Whitney asked Robert if she could come over next weekend and bring a friend. Robert told her about the Easter Egg Roll on Saturday that would run until about 2:30 and that on Easter Sunday that would be a Family Day. The Cover teen told the pretty girl that he would ask his dad about her and a friend coming by for a few hours after the Easter Egg Roll on Saturday. The teen added that if not next weekend, then the following one.

Whitney smiled at the Cover teen and thanked him for at least trying to figure out a way for her and her good friend to stop by. She then told Robert she’d see him at school tomorrow and she hurried to catch up with her parents.

Since it was Sunday, ‘dad’ Ken took the boys out to dinner. The boys wanted to drive the Go-Karts which meant they had to go over to Four Corners to eat dinner. But they ate on the Diner side, so that way they didn’t have to get too dressed up.

While the Cover’s ate, Mr. Ken told Phillip that Mr. Chris couldn’t get him an eye appointment on Friday, which was why they didn’t go last Friday as he had hoped. But that the Estate Manager did get him one for after school on Monday and either he or Mr. Wayne will take him. ‘Dad’ Ken also told Phillip he would see Doctor Doug on Tuesday and Mr. Dennis will come to the school, in the afternoon, to get him and he will see the dentist on Wednesday.

Mr. Ken then told Bill that he’d see Doctor Doug on Wednesday, and he reminded the older teen that the DA would be talking to him on the twenty-ninth of April concerning the Golderson’s home invasion.

The man then turned his attention towards his son, Charles. He asked him when was the next time he was supposed to have his braces adjusted. Charles said it was this week and he asked his dad if he would go with him. Dad Ken told his son to let him know which day it was so he could put it on his calendar.

Mr. Ken reminded the boys that next Saturday was the Easter Egg Roll and to ask their friends to be at The Cove by 10 a.m. to help put out the one thousand eggs and set up the prize area. He recapped that they would have a Family Day on Sunday and they needed to remind their friends that there would be no skating, swimming or the burning of burgers and dogs on that day. The boys all laughed. He then asked the boys if they had anything they wanted to bring up.

Phillip told his foster dad that he and his friends looked at different bells on his new computer, but they didn’t decide on any of them. The boy did tell Mr. Ken that they went to a web page that allowed them to listen to how the bells sounded and that he did like a few of them. Mr. Ken told his new foster son to print out pictures of the ones he liked and they would talk about them one day soon.

“Dad,” began Robert, “Whitney … Westin’s sister … she … well, she asked me if she and a friend, you know, if they could stop by next weekend. I told her about the Easter Egg Roll on Saturday and us having a Family Day on Sunday. So, what do you think, dad?”

“Hmmmm, well, I guess she and her friend could stop by for a few hours after the Easter Egg Roll. But … she has to know that you guys have to clean up first, after the kids leave, before there is any skating and the burning of burgers. OK?” offered the teen’s dad.

Robert said he understood and said he’d tell Whitney that, tomorrow at school.

After the Covers ate, they all headed over to the Go-Kart Track. Phillip was looking forward to driving the go-kart again and hoping he’d do better this time. When it was their turn, the young Cover went to the last kart in the line. He knew he wasn’t that good, so he didn’t want to hold up any of his ‘brothers’.

When the green GO light was lit, Phillip mashed the gas pedal and sped up as fast as the kart would take him. He kept up with the last group of racers and was holding his own until he went into a turn too fast and spun out. When he recovered, he found himself one lap behind the front runners. But he learned a lesson. You slow down, or brake, into a turn and speed out of it.

The Covers stopped at Mr. Ken’s Kreamy Kone to get Chief her cup of ice cream who received it with the gusto she is known for. The thing she did not do, was bowl Phillip over. She did however, plant many doggie kisses on him for bringing her the cold concoction she so loved.

Mr. Ken sent the boys up to their rooms after they watched Chief eat her ice cream. They already had their evening meeting while they ate earlier, so there was no need for them to cover the information again.

‘Dad’ Ken didn’t spend much time in each boy’s room that Sunday night. He told them to relax and not stay up too late and he’d see them in the morning at breakfast. The boys all got hugs from the man before he left their room. The Cove was quiet all night through.

The saga of Three Finger Cove continues. Let Chowhound know you are reading his story: Chowhnd at Gmail dot Com

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