DISSONANCE
by
Duckling
Chapter 5
The Chapters
Petite, blonde Callie Shaw was momentarily surprised to see her boyfriend’s brother at her door early Sunday morning. While she and Joe got along together quite well, he was hardly in the habit of dropping in at her house. Callie smiled a welcome at him as she held the door open. Joe gave her a weary smile and followed her into the living room. He was slightly dismayed to see that both Mr. and Mrs. Shaw were comfortably ensconced in their respective chairs, reading. Callie’s parents put aside their papers and greeted Joe warmly, albeit somewhat curiously.
“So, Joe, how is your brother,” inquired Mr. Shaw, casting a brief glance at his daughter. Callie blushed.
“Well,” Joe began, still standing, “that’s . . . er . . . what I’ve come over about.” He gulped nervously. He didn’t want to be the one to have to tell Callie, and he sure didn’t want to have to do it in front of her parents. But he had no choice now. Might as well get it over with, he thought, although he inwardly grimaced.
The Shaws sat quietly, waiting for Joe to continue. Joe braced himself for the verbal, and most likely physical, blows he knew were to come. He pulled out the note Frank had left for his family from his pocket and stood for a second reluctant to go on.
“Well?” asked Callie. She hadn’t missed Joe’s uneasiness and exchanged a glance with her parents; apparently they hadn’t either.
“Well . . . um,” Joe began. Then he just spit it out, “Frank left.”
“Frank left,” Callie repeated, not sure of her hearing or of Joe’s meaning. “What do you mean?”
“I mean,” said Joe as he took a deep breath, “Frank ran away from home. He left this note. I found it when I came home yesterday.” He handed the note over to Callie, who took it with a shaky hand.
There was a stunned silence as Callie read the note before handing it to her father. Then, she flung herself at Joe, pounding him on his muscular chest as she cried out, “No! He didn’t leave me! You’re lying! You horrible liar!”
Joe just stood there and took the abuse. Even if he could understand that Frank had found it necessary to leave, he could empathize with Callie. Part of him felt the same sense of rejection and betrayal. But Joe, alone of all Frank’s circle, had not been rejected.
Callie continued to rant and punch, but soon her verbal insults turned to sobs. Joe drew her to him and held her as she cried, looking up every now and then at Callie’s parents. There was a determined set to Mr. Shaw’s jaw, but he smiled grimly at the blond boy. It was the brown-haired brother who deserved his anger, not the one standing in his home comforting his daughter. He appreciated the fact that Joe had come to deliver the news in person. Mrs. Shaw hovered at Joe’s elbow, but Callie was reluctant to let go of Joe. She knew that once she did, Frank would be gone to her forever.
Finally, her tears subsided, Callie pulled away from Joe. Her mother instantly swept her into the kitchen for a soothing cup of tea. Joe looked up into Mr. Shaw’s brown eyes and said simply, “I’m sorry.”
Mr. Shaw handed Frank’s note back to Joe, who accepted it. “Thank you Joe,” he said sincerely, “for coming in person.”
Joe ducked his head and blushed. “It was the least I could do,” he muttered. Then he raised his eyes back to Mr. Shaw and said gently, “I can see myself out.”
Mr. Shaw nodded once before turning towards the kitchen and his distressed daughter.
***
“So, how did it go,” asked Biff, as Joe settled somewhat stiffly into a chair.
“Oh,” he replied lightly, “she took it pretty well. Only eight or nine bruises is my guess.”
“Ouch,” sympathized Biff.
“But her parents were there, too, that was rather unnerving. I expected at any moment to be thrown out of the house.”
“Double ouch,” replied Biff, wincing.
“Yeah,” Joe agreed, “double ouch. More like triple ouch, if you ask me.”
Biff opened a soda and poured half of it in a glass for his friend. He wished he hadn’t eaten the last of the brownies; Joe loved Mrs. Hooper’s brownies and would have certainly welcomed one right then.
“Thanks, bud.”
“No problem.”
“Hey,” Biff continued, “Do you want me to tell the others? I mean, this can’t be easy on you.” He looked at his friend compassionately.
Joe threw his friend a grateful glance. “Thanks, Biff, for offering, but there’s no need. I’ve already called the others and told them I’d be dropping by their places sometime today.”
“I can at least go with you.”
Joe sat for a minute and sighed. Then he looked back up at Biff and said, “Thanks, that’d be nice. Maybe you could drive.”
“Certainly. Do you want to go now?”
“Might as well,” replied Joe. Then he remembered the open soda in front of him.
“Don’t worry about that,” Biff stated firmly. “I’ll deal with it when we get back.”
Five minutes later, the two boys were pulling out of the Hooper driveway, on their way to break the news of Frank’s betrayal.
***
Frank had woken up exultant. He was in his own place. He could determine who could and who could not enter his private domain. And Fenton Hardy was definitely on the “not” list. Frank quickly showered, dressed, and breakfasted. He had furniture to buy. The floor wasn’t all that uncomfortable, but a bed would be most welcome. Frank debated for a moment whether to call a cab or take his bike. He ultimately chose to call a cab; he might want to buy some things that would be too bulky to transport by motorcycle.
Frank picked up the phone and punched in the number of the cab company he had used the day before. As he waited for someone on the other end to pick up, he mentally reviewed all that he had to do, least of which was to enroll himself at the local high school. Of course, that would have to wait until tomorrow morning. Frank grinned at the thought of his father fruitlessly searching for him. He seriously doubted his father would find him in his newest persona, that of Hank Hardin, aspiring astrophysicist.
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Disclaimer
The Hardy Boys belong to Simon and Schuster and the Stratemeyer Foundation. The authors have just borrowed them for an adventure or two. The authors promise to put the boys back when they are done with them. The authors do claim copyright to the original characters in this story. Please do not borrow original characters without express permission of the authors.