Chapter Six

Moses was the most concerned he had ever been about anybody. He didn't have a family to look to. When he was banged up by FRAT, he was Josh's age, and he was so mad that his parents didn't have enough money to visit him. He cried for nights in the hospital. He threw the sh!tty foods at the walls when they were served. He didn't want to talk to anybody until it was his father. He wasn't going to leave until his mother held him. It was the 1960s, and nobody cared about Moses the way they tended to the white folks. At that time, Moses's parents were nearing death themselves. They were seventy and seventy one. They were just too frail and too poor to take a plane across the country. They had used all their savings to school Moses in Edison.

Finally, one day, a female nurse walked into Moses's room. Moses had a crush on her since the first time she'd attended his wounds. One day, like any other, she, Delilah slipped through Moses's door. Her face was fair, but her smile was less. She whispered into Moses's ear. A tear ran down her face, and his tears followed. She wiped his tears away with her soft fingers. He wished she could rub the black off of him, just because nothing was fair to him anymore. Moses silently checked out of the hospital that day.

Moses decided he would be there for Josh from now on. No more bullsh!t. Josh passed the test. Moses never intended to take it that far. He knew he should have been with Levon and Josh at the FRAT headquarters.

Josh awoke the next day to slow, steady beeps. He had tubes up his nostrils, and his head was bandaged. He yearned  to cry, and so he did. Josh thought he lucked out, because Moses didn't seem to care. In fact, he rubbed Josh's shoulder, calming him down. Moses tried hard to hide that he was going to weep too. He told Josh about his story. Josh apologized, and then thanked Moses.

Everyday was just as good for Josh. Things sucked physically, but Moses softened everyday. Josh still continued to write his story in bed, but he didn't want to tell Moses about it yet. Not until he was out of the hospital. Finally, when Josh was sent home, Moses still came by Josh's place everyday. 

Moses was a  great accompaniment. He really put in the effort to learn about Josh, and it actually wasn't that hard to talk to Josh after all.

"What ever happened to you and that girl, anyway?" Moses asked.

"Um, I haven't talked to her. We slept together once, after Raphael injured me the first time, and she never called me back. I've just been, you know, really involved."

"I'm sure she's heard about you in the papers." Josh shot a look at Moses. "Yeah. The whole county knows about you and Levon and FRAT. I was just talking to Levon. You'd better hustle@$$ on this case." 

"I guess so," Josh replied.

"Yeah, Josh, you know you can't publish this now."

"Why not?!" 

"Josh- be realistic."

"It's already everywhere. Look, I already wrote this!" Moses read the papers that were shoved in his face.

"This is some good writing," Moses said. "You're a very perceptive man, you know." Josh nodded. "But I don't know. Not yet."

Prologue/Chapter 1/Chapter 2/Chapter 3/Chapter 4/Chapter 5/Chapter 6/Chapter 7/Chapter 8/Epilogue
This story was written by K8, and some ideas may originally belong to David J. Burke, the writer of Edison. Some of the story is K8's own work, BUT NOT ALL OF IT. The writing is K8's except for a few quotes, but the concept is David J. Burke's, except for a few scenes.