#i know it's really long i just. sihskdjdkfl i had lots of ideas

[neurodivergent-loverboy]

OC-tober Day 1: Journey

Thanks so much to @oc-growth-and-development for the awesome prompt list! This one... kind of got away from me lol

-

In Scout's opinion, it was too fucking early. Too early to be steered through JFK by Officer Harding, too early to be patted down for a third time, too early to endure the withering stares of parents when he dared to smile at their kids. He kept quiet, counting down the minutes until he could go back to sleep. 

Lucky for him, being a juvenile offender meant that he got to board the plane before everybody else. He had just gotten settled in his seat when Harding pulled out a pair of handcuffs. As he fastened one cuff to the seat, Scout broke his drowsy silence. 

"You gotta be kiddin' me." 

"Rules are rules," Harding said, putting the other cuff on Scout's wrist. "And you're a runner." 

"The hell am I gonna run to? The fuckin' clouds?" Harding didn't dignify that with an answer. Scout slumped in his seat as well as he could with the stupid handcuff on. "This is bullshit. Got me chained to my seat like some kinda -" 

"Criminal?" Harding filled in, raising his eyebrows. 

He rolled his eyes and turned towards the window. Fat chance he had of getting any sleep now. 

-

Scout shouldn't have underestimated his ability to sleep almost anywhere. He fell asleep shortly after takeoff and must have been out for at least a couple hours, because as he blinked awake he realized with a jolt that his thumb was in his mouth. He pulled it out lightning-quick and glanced sideways to see if Harding had seen. 

The probation officer was looking at a book without moving his eyes, which told Scout that he had definitely been watching up until a moment ago. Scout's face burned as he subtly wiped his thumb on his jacket. 

He cleared his throat, and Harding pretended to notice him. "This plane got a bathroom?" 

Of course, he wasn't allowed to go by himself. In fact, when he tried to shut the door, Harding stopped it with a hand. 

Scout stared in disbelief. "Hey, do you mind?" 

Harding didn't remove his hand. "I'll close it most of the way, but you're not locking it." 

Scout let out an annoyed huff. "Yeah, 'cause I'm gonna get into so much trouble in a two-by-three john," he grumbled. 

As soon as he was back in his seat, it was back on with the handcuff. Harding tightened it until it bit into Scout's skin, and then stopped a passing flight attendant. 

"Could you sit with him while I step away for a minute?" he asked her, in a low tone that Scout still overheard. "He's not dangerous, he just needs supervision. Just for a minute." 

The flight attendant blinked in surprise. She was young, and kind of pretty - at least compared to the lady who'd been by at the beginning of the flight. "Oh! Um..." She shot a wary glance in Scout's direction, but nonetheless answered, "Of course, sir." 

Scout waited until Harding was out of sight before he said, "Y'know, he's lyin'. Accordin' to the state of New York I'm a violent offender." 

She didn't look too pleased about that, although it didn't seem to have the shock value Scout had been hoping for. "Is that so?" 

"Uh-huh. Busted into a store, had a knife.'' When he still didn't get a reaction, he dropped the tough-guy act and admitted, "I wasn't gonna do nothin' with it, I just had it. When you're a kid on the street you gotta have somethin' to deal with creeps." 

Her expression softened at those words. "Oh. And why were you... busting into a store?" 

"For food. Gotta eat, y'know? Just enough for 'til some cash turned up." Her face shifted from sympathetic to downright pitying. Ugh. Scout quickly switched tracks. 

"Anyway, that guy with me, Harding? He's a real piece of work. Acts like I'm gonna weasel out the window when he ain't lookin'!" That got a smile, and Scout grinned in return. "Yeah, just a real hardass. Wouldn't even lemme ask for more pretzels," he invented. 

He could see the thought forming in her head: 'I better get this poor kid some snacks'. Hell yeah. 

Harding was coming back down the aisle. "Thank you," he said to the flight attendant as he sat. "I hope he didn't give you any trouble." 

"Who, me?" Scout piped in. "Why would I give trouble to such a nice lady?" He pulled his sweetest, most charming smile. 

Harding looked unimpressed, but the flight attendant smiled back fondly. "He was fine." 

"Good. Thanks again." 

"Of course! Enjoy the rest of the flight." 

"You too," Scout called as she walked away. Harding was still watching him suspiciously. "What? You heard her, I didn't do nothin'!" 

"Hmmm." He didn't seem convinced, but he turned his attention back to his book. 

When the pretty flight attendant returned later with two bags of crackers and a tiny chocolate bar, Scout made sure to look innocent. 

-

"How long do we gotta drive for?" 

"A long time," Harding answered, not looking away from the road. 

Scout sighed and crossed his arms. It already felt like he'd been in the car forever. "Why didn't we get off at a closer airport?" 

"That was the closest airport. There aren't a lot of them out here." 

"That's dumb." He looked out the window at the monotonous view of trees, his leg bouncing incessantly. "So after we get there you gotta go all the way back, huh?" 

"Yes." 

Scout grinned. "Damn. Some weekend." He chewed his nails for a bit and then reached for the radio dial, skipping through the stations until he found something fast and percussive. He turned the volume up, looked over to gauge Harding's reaction, and then turned it up some more. 

Harding endured two and a half songs' worth of Scout drumming his fingers against the dashboard before he shut the radio off. "Hey!" Scout protested. 

"You're giving me a headache." 

"Well, I'm bored!" he complained. "I been sittin' and doin' nothin' all goddamn day, why can't I listen to some music while I'm trapped in here?" 

"Because I'm trapped in here, too," Harding muttered. Scout huffed. "Why don't you sleep some more, if you're so bored?" 

"Not tired." He wouldn't have slept even if he was tired. He wasn't about to risk sucking his thumb in front of Harding twice in the same day. 

"Then read the car manual." 

"Ha-ha, good one." 

"You could learn something useful," Harding said, as if he was serious about it. "Impress the other kids." 

"I don't like readin'." 

"Is that why you refused to go to class at the detention center?" 

They told him about that? Scout shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "No," he lied. "Just didn't feel like goin'." 

Harding was silent. Scout was sure he didn't believe him. Finally he said, "Well, you can't skip classes at the new school. If I hear you've been misbehaving then I'll have to report it." 

"Yeah, yeah. I get it." He chewed his nails some more. "Hey, you got any gum?" 

Harding frowned. "Gum?" 

"Y'know, the stuff you chew? Comes in lots of flavors?" 

"No, I don't have any gum." 

"Well, can we stop and get some?" Harding almost laughed at that. "C'mon, I'm goin' crazy! I'm gonna bite all my nails off!" 

"You don't need gum." 

"Sure I do," Scout said earnestly, quickly concocting a story. "I just quit cigs and I gotta have gum to scratch the itch." 

"Oh, really?" Harding didn't sound the least bit convinced. 

"Yeah, really. Been smokin' since I was seven, just gave it up a few weeks back. If I don't have gum I'll start again." 

"You didn't have gum at the center," Harding pointed out. 

"Yeah, an' wouldn't you know it, I been dyin' for a smoke. You don't want me to start smokin' again, do you?" 

"I'm pretty sure students aren't allowed to have cigarettes on school grounds." 

"Well, ain't you s'posed to make sure I'm bein' a good kid or whatever? If you get me some gum, it'll be easier to follow the rules!" 

Harding sighed. "We're not stopping for gum." 

It was too late for assertions like that. Scout had a mission now, and he was an expert at being annoying. He complained and argued and whined until - after nearly an hour - Harding stopped at a gas station. 

"Hey, long as we're here, why don't you get me some gum?" Scout asked as they pulled up to the pump. "Please?" 

Harding didn't answer - he'd long since stopped acknowledging Scout's repeated request. He took out the handcuffs again. This time Scout was stuck with his arm hanging awkwardly above his head, with the other cuff around the passenger seat grab handle. 

"This sucks," he said. Harding slammed the door shut. 

After he filled the tank, he went into the gas station. Had Scout actually irritated him to the breaking point? He didn't want to get his hopes up - but when Harding got back in the car, he tossed a little green package onto Scout's lap. 

Scout all but cheered. "Aw, thanks!" 

"Don't mention it," Harding said flatly, reaching over to unlock the handcuffs. 

As they got back on the road, Scout unwrapped a stick of gum. He chewed silently for a few minutes, and then announced, "This gum is terrible." 

Harding looked like he was considering crashing the car.