Trouble Comes In Three's
by WolfPyre
Disclaimer: Not mine, never will be mine...well except for in my dreams.Warning: Contains Spanking of a child. If that bothers you, please hit the delete key.
This is the third story in the Dylan Series...otherwise known as Jim's Surprise. It is not neccessary to have read Jim's Surprise, but it would he helpful.
Note: My muses were not cooperating and wouldn’t let me continue my last Dylan Series story “Unexpected Visits”. All they would give me is this “older Dylan” story. ..He’s 11 years old.
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“Come on Dylan! You gotta help us!” Cole pleaded.
“Why?”
“Cause you’re the only one of us that understands this chemical stuff and it’s a great prank.”
Dylan looked at his best friend. “Cole, do you know what’ll happen if we get caught? Do you remember what the Principal Kean told us last time we were in trouble? He said we could be suspended or even expelled if we got into trouble again.”
“I know, but we wont get caught!”
“How can you be sure?”
“Oh c’mon! Everyone knows you can see and hear better than all of us. It’s like you have super powers or something. You’ll know someone’s coming before they reach us and we can run. Please??”
“I don’t know…” Dylan knew what his father would do if they were caught. He’d told him time and time again that his sentinel abilities were a gift and shouldn’t be used to find or get out of trouble. However, the plan Cole laid out was virtually flawless.
“Please??” Cole tried again.
“Oh, all right. But if we get caught…”
“Stop worrying. Everything’ll work out. Trust me.”
“Last time I did that we blew up your neighbor’s dog house.”
“Hey, it wasn’t my fault the firecracker rolled in there!”
“Whatever.” Dylan laughed. “So where’s this paper you’re talking about.”
Cole handed it to him.
Dylan looked it over. “Where’d Ryder get this again?” he asked referring to their other best friend.
“He broke through the parental control block on his Mom’s computer and found it on the Net.”
“Well, none of the chemicals listed are dangerous.” He said as he scanned the list of items needed. “And the science lab has everything we need. When are we going to do it?”
“Tomorrow night. You’ll have to sneak out and meet me and Ryder here at school. Can you do that?”
“I don’t know. That’s quite a ride for me. And besides, you know my Uncle Blair doesn’t go to bed until late. There’s no way I’d get by him.”
“Shit, I forgot about that.” Cole snapped his fingers. “I got it. You can stay at my house with me. Think your dad will let you?”
“I don’t know…it’s a school night. But I‘ll ask him tonight.”
That night after dinner, Dylan mentioned it to his dad. “Dad?”
“Yes?”
“Can I stay over Cole’s house tomorrow night?”
“No. It’s a school night. You know the rules.”
“Please dad…just this one time. It’s really important.”
“Why?”
“Why?” Dylan’s mind raced for an acceptable reason. “Well, we’re working on a project and need to do it at night.”
“What project would that be?”
Dylan reigned in his frustration. Sometimes it really sucked having a cop for a dad. “It’s for science class.”
“Okay. But I expect you to get bed at a reasonable time and have all your homework done. And you better not be late to school.”
Dylan hugged his dad. “I wont! Thanks! I’ll go call Cole and tell him.”
The next night, Dylan and Cole met up with Ryder outside the school. “How are we going to get in?” Ryder asked.
Cole smiled. “Easy. We’ll go in through the back door.”
“But it’s locked and alarmed.”
“And your point?”
Ryder laughed. He’d forgotten that Dylan was a master at overriding security codes and Cole could pick any lock he came across.
Five minutes later. The 3 boys were standing in the science lab.
“Now, once I mix everything together a foul smelling black smoke will form. We’ve got 1 minute to get out of the room before it’s too dark to see. Got it?”
“Yep. Man this is gonna be great. Will the smell last until tomorrow?”
Dylan gave them an evil grin. “Well, what the paper said to mix will. But with the changes I’ve made they’ll be lucky to get it out by next week!”
“Dylan, you are the master!” Ryder said and gave him a high five.
“Ready?” The two boys nodded and Dylan added the last ingredient to the pan. “Go!”
They ran for the door. Cole had just reached for the handle when Dylan yelled out. “Wait! Don’t!”
It was too late. Cole pulled the door open and ran smack into the janitor, Mr. James.
“What in the world…” He began then saw the smoke. “Fire! Fire!” he yelled as he ran into the hall and pulled the alarm.
Chaos followed as Mr. James hustled the boys outside. They watched the firemen run into the building then minutes later come back out with a smoking pan. A policeman came over to us.
“ Oh shit. That’s Officer Tompkins. He knows my dad.” Dylan whispered.
“Shit.” His partners in crime responded simultaneously.
“Mr. James, there isn’t a fire. All we found was that pan on the lab table. Whatever’s in it is causing the smoke and that god awful smell.”
“I’m sorry sir. All I saw was the smoke. I was afraid the school was on fire.”
“No harm done. Better be safe than sorry, what I’d like to know, however, is where the pan came from and why these boys were here after school hours.” He turned to the boys.
“Any of you have an explanation?” Officer Tompkins’ paused and looked closer at the boys. “Hey, aren’t you Jim Ellison’s boy?”
Dylan froze. “Ummm…yes, sir.”
“Care to tell me what you and your friend were doing?”
“Not really.” He mumbled.
“That’s fine. We can wait until the principal and your folks get here. You can tell them.”
The principal, Mr. Kean, arrived first and hustled the boys into his office. “Cole, Ryder and Dylan. I should have known you three were involved some how.” They were the three smartest kids in the school and managed to get in the most trouble because of it. He leaned against his desk and stared at the boys standing in front of him. “Tell me. What were you doing?”
Before anyone could answer, Jim and Blair entered the room followed by Ryder’s mom and Cole’s parents. Dylan stole a quick look at his father and felt his heart kick into overdrive. He’d never seen his father so mad.
“What is that smell?” Jim asked.
“That’s what I was just trying to find out. Please have a seat.” Mr. Kean said and turned back to the boys.
“Now, what were you doing?” The boys looked at each other but didn’t answer.
“Dylan, you were asked a question. Answer it.” Jim’s steely voice rang out.
Dylan gulped. “Yes sir.” He gave his friends an apologetic look. “It was just a prank. We made a homemade smoke bomb in the lab. It wasn’t going to hurt anyone, just stink the place up for a while.”
“Where did you learn how to make it?” Mr. Kean asked.
Ryder looked up. “Me sir. I hacked thorough the parental blocks on my mom’s computer and found it on the Net. It was only supposed to stink the place up for a day, but Dylan changed the formula…” Cole slapped his hand over Ryder’s mouth. “…mmmhhpph.”
“I see. And just how did you boys get inside? Mr. James told me he had the door locked and alarmed.”
Dylan winced. His dad was going to go ballistic. “I overrode the security code…”
“…And I picked the lock.” Cole added quietly.
Mr. Kean sighed. “Is that everything?”
All three boys nodded. “Then well move on to your punishment.” He moved to sit behind the desk. “All of you are suspended for 3 days. When you come back to school, you will have detention for 3 weeks. But this detention will be a little different that you’re used to.” He paused to write in the file in front of him. “Since your prank would have caused Mr. James a lot of extra work, you will help him with his janitorial duties. Do any of you disagree with this punishment?” He asked the parents.
A chorus of “no’s” and “sounds good to me” were his reply. “Good. Then that’s everything. Gentleman, I’ll see you in 3 days.”
The tension in the truck was so thick you could have cut it with a knife. Dylan could feel the anger rolling off his father and uncle. He was never so glad to see the house in his life. As soon as his dad stopped the truck, he hopped out and headed for the door, Jim and Blair right on his heels. He flinched when he heard the door slam behind him.
“Dylan, you stink. Go take a shower. We’ll talk when you’re through.” Jim said tersely.
Once he left the room, Blair turned to Jim. “What in the hell was he thinking? I know he’s a genius and all, but if he messed up and mixed the wrong things they could have been hurt.”
“I know. He also lied to me.”
“He did? When?”
“When he asked if he could stay the night at Cole’s. He gave me this story about having a science project due.”
Blair gave a little laugh.
“Something funny?”
“That kid is too smart for his own good.”
“You’re losing me Chief.”
“Well, technically he didn’t lie. He was working on a science project.”
Jim couldn’t help but smile. “He was at that.” Jim heard the shower stop. “Well, time to kill my son. Care to join me?”
“No thanks. I don’t need a visual, the audio is going to be bad enough.”
Dylan was buttoning his pajama top when Jim entered the room. His hands shook as he finished the last button. He knew his dad was very angry, so he decided he’d better do some fast-talking if he wanted to sit tomorrow.
“Dad, I’m sorry. We didn’t mean for anything to happen. It was just a prank.”
“Just a prank? Do you realize someone could have gotten hurt if you mixed the wrong chemicals?”
“But I didn’t. I knew what I was doing.”
“That maybe so, but the chance was there, especially since you decided to change the formula to make it last longer.”
Dylan hung his head. “Yes sir.”
“And you lied to me. You told me you were staying at Cole’s house to work on a science project.”
“I didn’t lie. I WAS working on a science project.”
“Yes you were. But you implied it was an assignment. Did your teacher assign this?”
“No sir.” Dylan knew he was defeated. “But I didn’t really lie. I just obfuscated a little.” He whined.
Jim had to force back a smile. “You’ve been hanging around you’re Uncle Blair too much.”
He went over to the dresser and picked up the hairbrush. “And what about overriding the security code? I know we’ve talked about this before and I’ve expressed my opinion on the subject.” He sat on the bed. “Haven’t I?”
“Yes, sir.”
“You know what you did was wrong, don’t you?”
“Yes sir.”
“Then you know what comes next. Let’s get it over with.”
Dylan bared his bottom and bent over his dad’s lap. Jim didn’t waste any time. By the time he was through, Dylan’s was promising he’d never be bad again. When Jim finally let him up, he hopped around the room doing the ‘just been spanked’ dance. “Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow.” He said under his breath.
Jim stopped his ‘dancing’ and pulled him into a hug. “Shhh. It’s all over now. Shhh.” When the sobs slowed, Jim pulled him back to look into his face. “You’re grounded for the next month. Understand?”
“Yes sir.”
“ Good. Now, go say good night to your Uncle Blair and get to bed. It’s late.”
The next morning, Dylan slowly got out of bed and headed to the table for breakfast. He pulled his seat out and let out a little laugh. “Very funny, Uncle Blair.” He yelled towards the kitchen. “Very funny.” He rearranged the pillows and sat down. “But thank you.”
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