Chapter 16: caught

Chapter 16: Caught

The next morning, sunlight filtered through the curtains, casting a warm glow over Jake’s room. He stretched, still groggy from the night before. Beside him, Alex was still out cold, his quiet snores filling the room.

Just as Jake was about to relax, the bedroom door creaked open.

“Morning, boys,” Mrs. Faulkner said as she stepped inside.

Alex groaned, rubbing his eyes. “What time is it?”

“Almost nine,” she replied with a knowing look. “Jake, we need to talk.”

Jake’s stomach twisted. “Uh… about what?”

She sighed, folding her arms. “I checked the trash this morning.”

Jake’s heart nearly stopped. He exchanged a panicked glance with Alex.

“I found the diapers,” she continued, her tone calm but firm. “Care to explain?”

Jake swallowed hard. He knew there was no getting out of this one. “I… we just… I mean—”

Alex quickly jumped in. “We didn’t want to bother you with them, so we just threw them out ourselves.”

Mrs. Faulkner raised an eyebrow. “At midnight?”

Jake fumbled for words. “We just… thought it’d be easier that way.”

She studied them for a moment before sighing. “Jake, I told you before—you don’t have to hide things from me. If you two are choosing to use them, that’s your decision, but lying to me about it isn’t okay.”

Jake bit his lip. “So… you’re not mad?”

“I’m not mad,” she said gently, “but I don’t appreciate the sneaking around. I need to be able to trust you.”

Jake exhaled, feeling a weight lift from his chest. “Okay… I understand.”

Mrs. Faulkner nodded. “Good. Now, get cleaned up and come down for breakfast.”

As she left, Alex let out a nervous chuckle. “Dude… she totally knows.”

Jake ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah. But at least she’s not mad.”

Alex smirked. “Still… we gotta be more careful next time.”

Jake laughed nervously. “Yeah… next time.”

But deep down, he knew his mom would be watching them a lot more closely from now on.

The Call

After stepping out of the room, Mrs. Faulkner sighed and pulled out her phone. She scrolled through her contacts before dialing Alex’s mom.

“Hey, Maria, it’s me,” she said when the line connected. “I wanted to talk to you about something I found this morning.”

She explained what had happened—the diapers in the trash, the boys’ attempt to cover it up, and their eventual confession.

Maria listened carefully before responding. “I’m not upset about the diapers. If Alex wants to use them, that’s his choice. But lying about it? That’s not okay.”

“I agree,” Mrs. Faulkner said. “I was thinking they need some kind of punishment—not for using them, but for trying to hide it from us.”

Maria sighed. “Yeah… I think that’s fair. They need to learn that honesty is important.”

“Exactly,” Mrs. Faulkner agreed. “I’ll talk to Jake about it, and maybe we can come up with something that’ll make sure they don’t try to pull something like this again.”

“Sounds good,” Maria said. “Keep me posted.”

After hanging up, Mrs. Faulkner took a deep breath. The boys had a lesson to learn, and she was going to make sure they did.