...It was a special day. It was the last day of school but that wasn't what made it so special. It was his tenth birthday. Mom and Dad had gone to the city and would be bringing him a special birthday present. It was a marvelous day even though he had to watch Jerry until they returned. Jerry, his younger brother, was only six years old at the time and it was easy to entertain him. After school was out they had milk and cookies the played in the yard until Jerry was too tired to play. They sat on the sofa and Quentin told stories until Jerry fell asleep.
It was getting late and Quentin was worried. His parents had never been gone this long without letting someone know. If they planned to be gone past dinner time, they always arranged for them to eat with the neighbors, Herman and Idabell Rhodes. Now, it was almost dark and they still weren't home.
As he sat in the darkening living room, he had a strange feeling they weren't ever coming home again. He was right. Within the hour, Herman and Idabell told him about the car accident that had killed their parents. 'Big boys don't cry', he reminded himself as he helped Idabell pack their clothes. Mom and Dad had agreed that if anything ever happened to them, they were to live with the Rhodes' in exchange for 160 acres. It was the best deal Dad could make since they didn't have any relatives.
At the Rhodes house they were given adjoining rooms on the second floor across the hall from the bathroom. The rooms were clean and comfortable but definately not like the room they shared at home.
That night, and many nights later, Quentin slept in the room with Jerry. Many times he would brush the blonde hair away from his brothers face and wipe the tears from his chubby cheeks while he renewed his promise to always take good care of him.
That night after Jerry's tears were dried, Quentin took a sheet of paper, wrote his promise on it and dated it. Then, he took Jerry across the hall into the bathroom and washed his face.
"Do you remember when we became blood brothers?"
Jerry put his hands behind his back and nodded. His blue eyes grew wide.
"We promised that there would never be anything or anybody that was more important than our blood brother. Do you remember?"
Jerry nodded slowly, not at all sure where this was leading.
Quentin took a razor blade from the medicine cabinet and held it under the hot water.
"While our blood ran together, we swore we would fight and defend each other until the end of time."
Jerry took a step backward, away from the prospect of possible pain.
Quentin held his hand over the sheet of paper and made a small cut on his finger with the razor blade.
"As long as any of our blood runs through my body, I promise I will always take care of you," he said as drops of blood splattered on the paper.
"I promise on our blood that I will do everything in my power to keep us from being a burden to anyone."
Another drop of blood fell onto the paper.
"I promise you will have everything I can give you for as long as I live. These are promises made from my heart. These are my blood promises to you. Seal it."
Jerry took another step backward.
"Seal it" Quentin commanded.
Jerry stepped up to the sink and put his finger against Quentin's finger.
"I promise."he said as he pressed his bloody finger to the paper.
Quentin pressed his finger on the paper next to Jerrys small finger print, then held his finger under the running water until the bleeding stopped.
"Wash your hands, then we have to get back in bed. Now remember, you promised never to tell anyone."
Jerry nodded, washed his hands and hurried back to bed.
Quentin dried his hands, took the paper and went back to Jerry's room. For a long time he stood by the open window looking down the hill at the small house he called home. The stars still dotted the night sky with crisp, clear twinkling light and the breeze continued to blow gently through the trees. His whole world had been changed drastically and yet, at the same time, everything remained the same; untouched by his grief and his loss.
Quentin folded the paper and tucked it into the hidden compartment in his wallet. After climbing into bed, he kissed Jerry on the forehead and settled down in the strange bed to sleep.
The double funeral was held on Sunday and Monday morning Quentin went to the newspaper office to apply for a job.
At that time, Mac was in his twenties and eager to spend more time pursuing his pleasures away from the newspaper office, so he hired Quentin for the summer. After working all day at the newspaper office, Quentin did all of the chores at the Rhodes farm in addition to running errands and doing odd jobs for the town residents.
Even though he was earning enough money to pay for their expenses with enough money left over to save, he still wasn't satisfied. He even quit going to church so he would have more time to work. When school started, he managed to go to school and still do everything he had done all summer. He continued this way for three years.