We Hid Jonah by June Wolfman

Noah and his buddies are innocently playing video games when their peace - and innocence - is interrupted by their friend Jonah.

Image generated with OpenAI

We hid Jonah. Saturday, three of us, me Ben and Leon, were gathered in my room playing video games when Jonah climbed up the treehouse and along the branch and knocked on my window - the usual entry. I opened the window and immediately saw that Jonah was crying. I'd never seen Jonah cry. Another thing I noticed was a big red, swollen handprint on his cheek.

"Hide me, Noah," Jonah said.

"Hurry," I said, and pulled him into my room.

Jonah sat down heavy on my bed, the springs creaked, his backpack pulled him slightly backwards. The backpack gave me the idea that Jonah was not running from a bully; he was running away from home.

"What happened," Ben asked, pausing the video game.

"My Uncle Jack is visiting, that asshole," said Jonah.

"Did he hit you?" I asked, looking at the handprint on Jonah's face.

"I don't want to talk about it. I just can't go home," Jonah said, and he wiped tears from his face, shed his backpack and stood up.

"Where should we hide him?" Ben asked.

"Ummm... there are a million places here in your room," said Leon.

My room is a safe haven. You see, a few months ago, I recovered from leukemia, and during the time I was ill, my parents created a fantastic room for me in the attic, and a treehouse in the tree leading up to the room. The room is the size of a small Dollar Store. There are a zillion places to hide someone. I have huge drawers under my bunkbed, two chests for my sports stuff, a cargo net hanging from the ceiling that you can climb into and hide amongst pillows like some kind of giant hammock. If we weren't such big kids - I'm almost eleven - we could play a hell of a game of hide and seek in my room.

"Let's get him and his backpack into the cargo net," I said.

"What happened?" Leon pressed.

I picked up Jonah's backpack because Jonah's hands were shaking.

"My uncle... he... um... he sort of... well... he sort of touched me. When I told my father, my dad slapped me. He didn't believe me. Uncle Jack is staying for two more days. You have to hide me for those two days. I absolutely can't go back there."

We all circled Jonah.

"You mean your uncle hit you?" I asked.

Jonah leaned from left foot to right foot and back. He said, "No, it was like that scouts leader two years ago."

"Crap," said Leon, "Don't worry. Noah's parents never snoop around up here."

"First of all, let me get your backpack up in the net," I said. "Sheesh, what's in it?" It was like he put rocks in it.

"Some clothes, toothbrush, comb, laptop... and just stuff," he said.

We searched my room's ceiling, the net, for the best place to stash Jonah's backpack. We picked a spot. I climbed the netting, Jonah's backpack on my back. My legs ached from the extra weight. See, I'm not so strong yet, since the treatment. I swung up top and gathered pillows and put them under and over the backpack.

Ever since the doctors told my parents I might not make it, they never look for trouble. They don't ask about my grades or make me clean my room. Jonah's backpack was fine there. Would Jonah be okay up there?

"So, your dad just thought you were making shit up?" Ben asked.

"Dad said, 'That's a filthy lie,'" and he slapped me so hard my neck cracked. See my uncle and I don't get along. He took my room to stay in. He messed with my dog. He mocks me. So, my uncle and I have been at it since he came. Guess my dad thought I was getting my uncle back. Guess that's what he figured anyway..."

The backpack was safely stored, so now we had to hide Jonah up there.

We heard a doorbell.

"Quick!" I whispered, "Climb up there, fast!" I gave Jonah a quick boost and he scrambled up and put pillows under and over himself.

"Excuse me," we heard Jonah's father saying downstairs, "but have you seen my son?"

"Hi Mr. Leonard," my mother said. "No, I haven't seen him. Is there a problem?"

There was talking that was less loud. We couldn't hear it.

"Put on the video games like normal," whispered Ben.

We did. We all sat around my huge monitor. You get huge monitors when you get leukemia. We heard steps on the stairs coming toward my room. I could tell it was two adults. Damn, I thought. My dad is not home, so that must be my mom and Jonah's dad!

We played the game and acted all into it.

"Kill the blue wizard," yelled Leon... for show.

The door opened.

"Hey guys," said Jonah's dad, "have you seen Jonah?"

"No," I said. "Is everything okay?" I asked that because it would be weird if I didn't ask it. Jonah's dad had never been in my room. He looked all around.

He rubbed his hair and his beard.

"Well, if you do see him," he said, "tell him Uncle Jack left, and tell him I'm an asshole." Then, Jonah's dad started to cry, which made me scared as hell. I didn't know grownups cried.

There was silence for what seemed like a long time. It dragged and dragged on. Jonah's dad just stood there crying. Jonah wasn't having it, I guessed, so I just waited for Jonah's dad to leave already.

Then we heard Jonah cry softly up in the cargo net.

"Son, let's go home," said Jonah's dad, looking up to where Jonah was.

Jonah climbed down. There was a shadow of a bruise on his cheek. I clambered up into the cargo net and lowered Jonah's backpack.

After the adults and Jonah left, we all played video games again, but we kept messing up. I got killed several times on level 4 and I'm on level 6 already. We wanted to talk about it, but we didn't want to talk about it. So, we just played like shit. Everyone went home. And that is the day we hid Jonah.