Chapter 38: Free day, yeah right

The next morning, just as the previous ones, the boys are awoken at 7am for school. They get their diapers changed and have breakfast. When Mrs caldwell comes in, she talks to the boys mom. saying, "She had to cancel class today her husband got into a car accident," so she's here to pick up the homework from last night to grade, but she then had to go.

Mrs. Faulkner's expression turned to concern as she placed a comforting hand on Mrs. Caldwell’s shoulder.

“Oh no, I’m so sorry! Is he okay?” she asked.

Mrs. Caldwell sighed, looking exhausted. “He’ll be fine, just a broken leg, but I need to be at the hospital with him today.”

“Of course, family comes first,” Mrs. Faulkner said. “The boys will get their work done. Don’t worry about school today.”

Mrs. Caldwell nodded, grateful. “Thank you. I’ll grade their work from last night and check in when I can.” She turned to the boys. “Keep up the good work, and don’t slack just because I’m not here.”

“Yes, ma’am,” both boys said in unison.

With that, Mrs. Caldwell left, leaving the boys with an unexpected free day—well, almost free.

Mrs. Faulkner turned to them with a knowing look. “Alright, you know what this means. You have all day to work on your volcano. No excuses.”

Jake groaned. “Man, I was hoping to get a break.”

Alex nudged him. “Come on, dude. The sooner we finish, the sooner we get that ride in the Impala.”

Their mom smirked. “Exactly. Now, get to it.”

Miss harper arrives to watch the boys and asks Mrs faulkner where Mrs caldwell is... she tells her about her husband abs she had to cancel class... so she is making the boys do their volcanoes if their frames at the very least aren't done. There will be no Impala ride as it's due Monday, and it's already friday.

Miss Harper nodded in understanding. “Got it. No volcano, no Impala ride. Sounds fair to me.”

She turned to the boys, crossing her arms. “Alright, you heard your mom. Let’s get to work. I want to see some serious effort here.”

Jake groaned again but grabbed the supplies. “Fine, fine. Let’s just get it over with.”

Alex, on the other hand, was more enthusiastic. “We should make it look really cool, like an actual rocky volcano.”

Miss Harper smirked. “Now you’re thinking. Maybe even add some lava details with paint after the frame is done.”

The boys set to work, cutting and shaping the base of their volcano with cardboard and paper mâché. Miss Harper supervised, making sure they didn’t make too much of a mess, though Jake still managed to get glue on his shirt.

After an hour, their frames were finally taking shape. Miss Harper inspected them and nodded in approval. “Looking good so far. Keep this up, and you’ll be cruising in the Impala tomorrow.”

The boys high-fived each other, feeling accomplished.

Miss Harper watched as Mrs. Faulkner left, then turned to the boys with a smirk. “Alright, you two, now that your volcano frames are done, what’s next on the agenda? You wanna keep working, or are we taking a little break?”

Alex stretched his arms. “Can we take a break first? My hands are all sticky from the glue.”

Jake nodded. “Yeah, and I’m thirsty.”

Miss Harper chuckled. “Alright, grab some water, but don’t get too comfortable. We still have to reinforce those frames before we call it a day on them.”

The boys grabbed their drinks and sat at the table while Miss Harper flipped through her phone. After a few minutes, she clapped her hands together. “Break time’s over! Back to work, slackers.”

Jake groaned playfully but got up, while Alex grabbed more supplies. They spent another hour reinforcing the volcanoes, making sure they were sturdy enough for the next step.

When they finally finished, Miss Harper inspected their work and gave a satisfied nod. “Nice job, boys. You’re officially one step closer to that Impala ride tomorrow.”

Jake grinned. “Worth it.”

Alex looked at the clock. “Can we do something fun now?”

Miss Harper smirked. “How about we watch an episode of Supernatural while we let the volcanoes dry? You’ve earned it.”

The boys cheered, quickly setting up the TV. Miss Harper leaned back, happy that the day was going smoothly—at least for now.

They watched season 2 episode 1-5 when miss harper said ok volcanos should be dry time to add some texture and details with some paint... you boys do that and I'll cook dinner what do you boys want.

Alex and Jake looked at each other, then back at Miss Harper. “Can we have burgers and fries?” Alex asked.

Miss Harper grinned. “Burgers and fries, it is. You boys get to work on those volcanoes, and I’ll start cooking.”

The boys nodded and grabbed their paints, carefully adding texture to their volcano.

20 minutes later, Miss harper says ok boys go clean up for dinner it will be ready in 5 minutes... so either of you boys want cheese on your burger?

Jake nodded. "Yeah, I want cheese!"

Alex shrugged. "I'll take mine without."

Miss Harper smiled. "Got it—one cheeseburger, one plain. Now go wash up, and don't forget to use soap!"

The boys headed to the sink, washing their hands quickly before sitting at the table. The smell of sizzling burgers filled the kitchen as Miss Harper plated their food. She set down their plates with a grin. "Dig in, boys. You earned it after all that hard work on your volcanoes."

Jake nodded. "Yeah, I want cheese!"

Alex shrugged. "I'll take mine without."

Miss Harper smiled. "Got it—one cheeseburger, one plain. Now go wash up, and don't forget to use soap!"

The boys headed to the sink, washing their hands quickly before sitting at the table. The smell of sizzling burgers filled the kitchen as Miss Harper plated their food. She set down their plates with a grin. "Dig in, boys. You earned it after all that hard work on your volcanoes."

Miss Harper walked over to the table where the volcanoes sat drying. She examined them closely, nodding in approval. "Not bad, boys. You’ve got some good texture going on here. The paint really makes the details pop."

Jake grinned. "Yeah, we tried to make them look like real mountains."

Alex added, "We even added some cracks where the lava will come out."

Miss Harper chuckled. "Smart thinking. Now, all that’s left is to let them dry completely. Tomorrow, we can work on the eruption part—if you guys behave, that is."

The boys exchanged excited glances. "We’ll be good!" Jake promised.

Miss harper ruffles jakes hair and says, "You better" in a playful tone... she then looks at the time only 7pm she says ok boys you can watch more supernatural but nightime routine is 11 sharp tonight. As they are watching supernatural miss harper says I'll be right back, boys gotta go to the bathroom... they say ok.. a few moments later, the boys' stomach turns, and they realize they have to poo... but miss harper is in the bathroom, so they decide to just go in their diapers... Miss harper walks back down a few minutes later and gets a wiff of what happened

Miss Harper stopped mid-step, wrinkling her nose. She glanced at the boys, who were both sitting awkwardly on the couch, looking guilty. Crossing her arms, she raised an eyebrow.

"Alright, which one of you just had an accident?" she asked, trying to hold back a smirk.

Jake shifted uncomfortably. "Uh… both of us."

Miss Harper sighed but kept her tone light. "You boys know you could’ve waited for me to come back or at least told me you needed to go, right?"

Alex looked down, embarrassed. "We didn’t want to bother you."

Miss Harper shook her head with a small laugh. "You two are something else. Alright, come on, let’s get you both cleaned up."

She grabbed the changing supplies and motioned for them to follow her upstairs. One by one, she got them cleaned up and into fresh diapers, making sure to apply plenty of powder.

"There, all better," she said, patting Jake’s leg playfully. "Now, next time, just say something, alright?"

"Alright," both boys mumbled, still a little embarrassed.

Miss Harper ruffled their hair. "Good. Now, back to Supernatural before bedtime."

The boys ran back downstairs, relieved to be clean again, and resumed their show while Miss Harper sat back down, shaking her head with a smile.

Season 2 Episode 9 credit roll as miss harper turns off the tv and says ok boys bed time.

The boys groaned but didn’t argue as they stretched and got up from the couch. Miss Harper stood and crossed her arms, giving them a teasing look.

"Come on, up the stairs. You know the drill—brush your teeth, wash up, and then diaper checks before bed."

Alex and Jake trudged up the stairs, brushing their teeth and quickly washing their faces. When they came back to their room, Miss Harper was already waiting with the supplies.

"Alright, lay down," she instructed as she efficiently checked and changed them for the night. "There, all set."

She pulled their blankets up as they got comfortable, then sat on the edge of the bed. "You boys did great today. Volcanos are almost done, homework is out of the way, and we got to watch some Supernatural. Sounds like a good day to me."

Jake yawned. "Yeah, it was fun."

Alex smiled sleepily. "Thanks for hanging out with us, Miss Harper."

She grinned. "Anytime, boys. Now, get some sleep. Tomorrow is the big Impala ride, remember?"

Their eyes lit up briefly before sleepiness took over. "Night, Miss Harper," they mumbled.

"Goodnight, boys." She turned off the light, cracked the door slightly, and left them to drift off to sleep.

As the clock struck midnight, Mrs. Faulkner quietly unlocked the front door and stepped inside, setting her bag down with a tired sigh. She walked into the living room, where Miss Harper was lounging on the couch, scrolling through her phone.

"Hey," Mrs. Faulkner greeted, keeping her voice low. "How were they today?"

Miss Harper sat up and smiled. "Pretty good. Got their volcanoes almost done, finished their homework, and even managed to squeeze in some Supernatural. Jake still has a little attitude sometimes, but he's improving."

Mrs. Faulkner chuckled. "Glad to hear it. Any issues?"

Miss Harper smirked. "Just the usual. Oh, and they’re really excited about tomorrow’s Impala ride."

Mrs. Faulkner nodded. "Good. As long as their work is done, they can go." She reached into her purse, pulling out cash and handing it to Miss Harper, along with a little extra. "Thanks again for watching them."

"Anytime," Miss Harper said, tucking the money away. "I'll see you all tomorrow." She grabbed her things and headed out the door.

Mrs. Faulkner locked up behind her before making her way upstairs. She peeked into the boys' room, seeing them fast asleep. She smiled softly, stepping inside just enough to adjust Alex’s blanket and gently brush Jake’s hair out of his face. "Sweet dreams, boys," she whispered before quietly stepping back and closing the door.

Letting out a tired sigh, she made her way to her own room, changing into her pajamas and finally sinking into bed. Tomorrow was going to be a big day—the boys had to finish their volcanoes, and if they did, they’d finally get their long-awaited ride in Miss Harper’s Impala.

As she turned off her bedside lamp, she smiled to herself. Despite the challenges of homeschooling and raising two boys, she wouldn’t trade it for anything. With that comforting thought, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.