The Castaway Hotel: Next Generation Book 3

Trey and Dion left early with the boys on Monday morning, because Trey had a meeting before school started.  This meant they dropped Wyatt and Tristan off earlier than usual at the elementary school and they had to wait outside until the doors were unlocked.  Tristan said he had just gotten there when one of the boys in his class came up to chat with him. 

“Hey, I’ve never seen you here this early before,” the boy began. 

“Yeah, we got dropped off earlier than normal today.  How ‘bout you?” 

“My bus drops us off this early every day.” 

“That kinda sucks.” 

“Sometimes, but I don’t mind waitin’, cuz I get to talk to the other kids until we go inside.  So did you have a good weekend?” 

“Yeah, I did.  My dads took us to see a movie and we played all kinds of games, so it was fun.” 

“Wow, I didn’t get to do any of those things.  I wish I could have spent the weekend with you.” 

“Maybe you could sometime, but I’ll have to ask my dads if it’s ok.” 

“That would be great, cuz I’d love to be your friend and get to know you better.” 

“You would?”

“Yeah, you seem really nice and I’d like it if we could spend more time together.” 

Tristan seemed to be lost in thought for a few seconds, and then a light switched on in his head.  “Hey, were you the one who gave me the really special card on Valentine’s Day?” 

“Yeah, that was me.  I was wonderin’ how long it was gonna take before you figured it out.  We talk almost every day.” 

“Yeah, but that’s cuz we sit next to each other in class.  I didn’t know that you liked me and wanted to be my friend.” 

“Yeah, I like you a lot and would love to be your friend.  You know, your really special friend.” 

“Special friend?”

“Yeah, and then we could start hanging out with each other when we’re not in school.” 

Tristan took a second to consider his comment.  “Uhhh, do you mean you want us to be boyfriends?” 

“Yeah, why not?  You live with the Curries, don’t ya?” 

“Yeah, I do, but why does that matter?” 

“Cuz I figured you wouldn’t mind havin’ me for a boyfriend, since a lot of the Curries have boyfriends or husbands.” 

“Oh, yeah.  I didn’t think about that.” 

“I did, and I was really hopin’ you’d figure out it was me so we could start hangin’ out together.” 

“I’d like that a lot.  I’m sorry that I didn’t figure it out sooner, but I wasn’t sure if the card was from a boy or a girl.  The handwriting was really nice, so it might have been from a girl.” 

“Yeah, I took my time when I wrote the note because I wanted it to be perfect.” 

“So your parents didn’t mind that you bought the card for me?” 

“Not really.  It’s just me and my mom, cuz my dad died of cancer when I was four, and she didn’t ask who I was buyin’ it for.” 

“So you don’t think she’d mind if we started hanging out together after school or on the weekend?” 

“Nah, she’ll just be happy that I have a new friend.” 

“Won’t we have to hang out at one of our houses?” 

“Yeah, we could do that or just stay after school and hang out on the playground.” 

“Ok, then I’ll check with my dads tonight to see if they’ll let me do that.  I’ll tell you tomorrow what they say.” 

“Great and I’ll check with my mom too.  I hope they let us do this.” 

“Yeah, me too.”

Their conversation ended once the doors to the school were unlocked and then they headed to their classroom.  From what Tristan told me when he got home, they didn’t have a chance to talk again until lunch, and that’s when they talked about different ways they might be able to spend time together. 

Brandon and I didn’t know about any of this when we got home from work, so we were mildly surprised when Tristan came rushing up to us as soon as we walked through the door.

“I know who my secret admirer is,” he said as he began hopping around excitedly in front of us. 

“That’s good, but does your new friend have fleas or bedbugs?”

“No, course not,” he answered as he looked at me oddly. 

“Then why can’t you stand still?  I thought maybe you were being bitten and that’s why you were jumping around.” 

“No, it’s cuz I’m so happy and excited.” 

“I see, and I’m glad you finally figured it out.” 

“So who is your secret admirer?” Brandon followed. 

“His name is Revin Kramer.  He’s in my class and we sit next to each other.”

“That’s an unusual first name,” I muttered as I considered what he’d just told us. 

“Yeah, it is.  Revin said his mom and dad took parts of their names and put them together to make up his name.  His mom’s name is Rebecca and his dad’s name was Kevin, but he’s dead now.” 

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Brandon offered, “but I’m glad you finally know who your secret admirer is.” 

“Yeah, me too.  Revin said we should start hanging out on the playground after school or spending time at each other’s house.” 

“It would probably be better if you didn’t do it after school, because you can’t walk home from there and you’d have to wait too long before we get out of work.  We’ll have to make arrangements for you boys to get together on the weekend.” 

“Can I ask him to stay overnight with me this weekend?” 

Brandon and I glanced at each other quickly before we answered.  “We don’t have a problem with that, as long as it’s ok with Revin’s mom.” 

“Then tomorrow I’ll tell him to ask his mom if he can do that.” 

“Ok, so do you want to do it on Friday or Saturday night?” 

“How ‘bout both nights?” 

Brandon and I looked at each other again before I answered.  “I think you’ll need to have him check with his mom first, to see what she thinks about that.  If she doesn’t mind, I suppose it would be all right for him to stay both nights, but he’ll have to go to church with us on Sunday morning.  That means he’ll have to make sure his mom is ok with that too.”  

“Alright, I’ll tell him tomorrow.  Man, I’m so glad I know who it is now, cuz he wants us to be boyfriends.” 

“He does?  Did he tell you that?” Brandon followed, looking mildly concerned. 

“Yeah, he did.” 

“I see,” Brandon said as he mulled it over in his mind.  “And what do you think it means if you two are boyfriends?” 

“It means we’ll spend lots of time with each other and maybe do some other stuff too.”

“Then I want to make something perfectly clear before we agree to let you do this,” I quickly announced.  “If Revin stays over, then you can’t do the same things with him that you do with Benny and Joshie,” 

“Huh?  Why not?”

“Because we don’t know how his mom will react if she happens to find out about it.” 

“Then we won’t tell her.” 

“But Revin might slip up and say something, or she might find out when you boys are at their house.”

“So does this mean I won’t ever be able to do that with him?”

“Not until we get to know him better and we’re sure it won’t cause a problem with his mom.”

“K, then I won’t do it with him yet, but I hope I get to see him naked.” 

“That would be ok, as long as he does it on his own.  I don’t want you asking to see him naked.” 

“But how can I see him that way if I don’t ask?” 

“If he happens to undress in front of you when you’re changing, then you might see him naked, but it will probably be the only way.”

“Ok, I hope he does that when we change into our pajamas, but I won’t ask him.” 

Much to our surprise, Tristan’s demeanor had dramatically changed overnight.  For the past several days he’d been worried and unusually nervous about his ability to discover the identity of his secret admirer.  However, now he seemed to be walking on air and totally excited as he began making plans to have his new friend stay over. 

Brandon and I were thrilled that this minor episode in his life had finally been resolved, although we were slightly concerned that this new friendship might lead to other problems.  We hoped it wouldn’t come to that, and we would keep a close eye on Tristan and Revin while they were here so we can make sure things didn’t get out of hand or escalate too quickly. 

As Tristan got ready for bed, we could tell he was looking forward to going to school in the morning so he could tell Revin that we’d agreed to let him spend the weekend here.  We were hoping Tristan wasn’t so hyper that he’d have trouble falling asleep, and I made a mental note to check in on him before I went to bed.  After tucking him in and kissing him on the forehead, we wished him sweet dreams, turned off the light, and left the room. 

When I looked in on him later, Tristan appeared to be sleeping and I was hoping it was a restful slumber.  I didn’t want him to be tired and then fall asleep in class and get into trouble. 

Tristan appeared to be full of energy when he joined us for breakfast, although it might have been the result of an adrenalin rush due to his excitement over making plans with Revin.  I felt that with a little bit of luck, he should be able to make it through the morning and afternoon without crashing from his adrenalin high, and we told him to have a good day before we left for work. 

When we came home that evening, Tristan rushed over to tell us how it went.  “I asked Revin if he could sleep over this weekend and he said he’d ask his mom.” 

“Ok, so now you’ll just have to wait and see what she says.” 

“Yeah, and I hope she lets him do it.” 

Tristan was jittery all through dinner, because he was worried that Revin’s mother wasn’t going to allow him to spend the weekend with us.  We kept telling him that he’d find out soon enough and to quit thinking about it, because it wouldn’t change anything.  I’m not sure if my advice helped, although he did seem to calm down after that.  However, I later discovered that Benny and Joshie had taken him up to their bedroom for a little fun after we’d eaten, and that seemed to be what helped the most. 

Tristan was hyper again when we saw him the following morning and was in a hurry to get to school so he could find out if Revin was going to be able to stay over.  He couldn’t seem to sit still while we were eating breakfast, and Benny and Joshie seemed to understand what he was going through.  Wyatt, on the other hand, was slightly confused. 

“Why are you actin’ that way and why are you in a hurry to get to school?” he demanded. 

“I’m just excited, cuz I’m gonna find out if my friend can stay over this weekend.” 

“Which one?” Wyatt demanded, since he knew some of Tristan’s friends and had hung out with them. 

“His name is Revin, and you haven’t met him yet.” 

“He’s Tristan’s secret admirer,” Benny added, hoping it would clarify the situation for Wyatt. 

“Oh,” was all Wyatt said, but he didn’t look happy.  I wasn’t certain, but it looked as if he was jealous that someone else would be sleeping with Tristan this weekend. 

Brandon and I didn’t know what to expect when we got home that evening, but as happened the previous two nights, Tristan rushed out to greet us as soon as we walked through the door.  “Revin said his mom wants you to call her tonight and he gave me their phone number.” 

He then handed me the slip of paper on which it was written.  “Ok, I’ll do that after dinner.” 

“Ok, just don’t forget.” 

Tristan was antsy throughout the meal and he kept wiggling in his seat as he wondered what Revin’s mom wanted to talk to us about.  We’d barely finished swallowing the last bites of our meal when Tristan reminded us to call her.  I told him we would and suggested that he should go into the other room for now, because I didn’t want him pestering me while I was on the phone.  Reluctantly, he agreed to do as I asked.  As soon as he was gone, I punched in her number and put the phone on speaker so Brandon could hear as well. 

“Hello,” a woman’s voice said. 

“Hello, Mrs. Kramer.  This is Danny Currie and Brandon is here with me too.  I was told that you wanted to speak with us.” 

“Yes, I do, and it’s so nice to finally be able to talk to you.  Revin said that he was invited to spend the night at your house this weekend.  Well, what he actually said was that he’d been asked to stay over both Friday AND Saturday night at your house?  Is that right, or did he misunderstand?”

“No, that’s correct, but only if it’s ok with you.  We would love for him to spend the weekend with us, but if you have other plans then you can pick one night or the other, or we could do it another weekend.” 

“No, we don’t have other plans, and I already know who you are and don’t have a problem with Revin staying there.  I just wanted to make sure he was asked to stay both nights and didn’t get confused or make it up.” 

“No, Tristan wants him to spend the weekend with us.  I hope that’s not a problem.” 

“Not at all, and it will be nice to have a weekend to myself.  I think I’ll see if I can make an appointment to have my hair and nails done, and maybe I’ll ask one of my friends if she wants to get together one night and share a bottle of wine.” 

“That sounds lovely and you deserve some special time like that.” 

“Yes, it’s rough being a single parent and I don’t get much time to do things like that any more.” 

“Well you will now, and we were sorry to hear about your husband.” 

“Thank you.  Even though it’s been six years since he died, I still miss him, but most of all I wish he was here for Revin.  He needs a male role model, and I’m grateful that you might be filling that role for him now.” 

“We’ll definitely do what we can.” 

“And I’d love to have your son stay with us sometime, possibly the following weekend.”  

“I’m sure we can work something out, but you don’t have to keep him both nights.  One or the other will be fine.  Just so you know, if Revin stays with us on Saturday night then he can go to church with us on Sunday morning.”

“That’s not a problem.  We usually only go to church on the holidays, but it won’t hurt him to go more often.” 

“That’s good to know, and if Tristan stays with you on a Saturday night then we can pick him up, or both of them up, the next morning so they can go with us to church.” 

“Ok, I’ll keep that in mind.  Thank you very much for inviting Revin to stay over, because he’s really excited about doing it.” 

“And Tristan is just as excited about having him stay over.” 

“Thank you again, and I’ll send everything he needs with him on Friday morning.  I have a small duffle he can pack his things in, and I’ll make sure he has something nice to wear to church as well.” 

“That will be fine, and we look forward to meeting you when we bring him home.  Is there any special time you’d like for us to do that on Sunday.” 

“Not really.  You can either drop him off after church or any time before we have supper.  We usually eat around 6:00.” 

“Great, then we’ll probably drop him off around 3:00 or 4:00.” 

“Ok, I’ll see you at that time and thanks again.” 

When the call ended, we went to find Tristan to let him know how it went.  “Can he stay both nights?” he asked after we called him out to join us. 

“Yes, his mom said it would be fine.  She just wanted to make sure that we invited him to stay both nights and he hadn’t made it up or misunderstood.” 

“Oh, ok.  So will he be coming home with us on Friday, or is she gonna bring him here.” 

“He’s going to take his things to school on Friday morning and will be riding home with you, the other boys, and your uncles.” 

“This is gonna be great,” he squealed as he began jumping up and down while pumping his fist in the air. 

“Just don’t get too carried away with your celebration.  I think Wyatt might be a little jealous that you’ve invited someone else to stay with you this weekend.” 

“Really?” 

“Yes, he enjoyed sleeping with you this past weekend and I think he was hoping to do it this weekend too.  I’m afraid he’s feeling like you’re replacing him now.” 

“Oh, I don’t want him to feel bad, cuz I like him too.  Do you think Uncle Dion and Uncle Trey will let him sleep with me tonight and tomorrow then?” 

“That’s not a bad idea and it might make Wyatt feel a little better too,” Brandon agreed.  “I’ll go ask them and see what they say.” 

“Thanks, and I’ll make sure we let Wyatt do some stuff with us when Revin’s here.” 

“That’s a very good idea too,” I concurred. 

“Uhhh, can I have Revin’s phone number back?”

“Of course, but let me add it to my contact list first.  May I ask why you want it back?” 

“I want to call Revin and talk to him.  I’m gonna tell him to meet me when I get to school, cuz he gets there before I do.  I’m gonna have him put his stuff in the SUV before Uncle Dion and Uncle Trey leave, so none of the other kids will be able to steal anything.” 

“I see, and that’s not a bad idea.” 

As we were speaking, Brandon returned, and even though the next two evenings were school nights, Dion and Trey didn’t have a problem with Wyatt sleeping with Tristan.  Tristan agreed to shower with Wyatt too, and Wyatt looked a lot happier as they were heading upstairs to undress.   

When we went up to tuck them in later, Wyatt had something to tell us.  “Tristan’s lettin’ me sleep with him tonight and tuh-morrow, and he said he’d let me do stuff with him and Revin this weekend.” 

“That’s very nice of him and it sounds as if you boys will have a wonderful time.” 

“Yeah, cuz I like spendin’ time with Tristan.” 

“And we can tell he likes spending time with you too.” 

That brought a smile to Wyatt’s face, so we tucked them in, kissed each one on the forehead, and wished them sweet dreams.  It was going to be an interesting weekend and we couldn’t wait to see how it was going to work out.