Evan plodded through the rain. He was drenched. And cold. The rain dripped off his slicker, his nose was running, his hands were freezing, and his socks and boots squelched with every step. His jeans were heavy with rain and chilling him to the bone, and even under his slicker, the rest of his clothes were still wet and cold from earlier. He couldn't remember a worse day.

The crazy beginning gave no clue of the calamity that lay ahead. The disaster really started when he lost his English paper. That stupid paper. He should've just chucked in the towel when he realized it was gone for good. But instead, he headed back to school, still hoping no one at home would realize he'd messed up so bad. The day was screwed already, so he didn't imagine it could still get worse. Boy, when he was wrong, it was like the Mount Everest of being wrong.

After school, he got a ride back to Murphys with another friend. Yeah, Troy could've dropped him at the Stevens' barn where he'd stabled Diablo, but then Evan would have to explain everything to Daniel. And he wasn't sure his brother would cover for him after this morning. So rather than dealing with a ticked off brother, Evan just found another ride from school.

Then this nightmare journey home. Just a couple miles from town, Diablo threw a shoe…the left fore leg that Molly did surgery on a few months back. Evan would walk through fire before risking Diablo's leg—and potentially the horse's life—by continuing to ride, so Evan started walking. That was an hour ago, and he still had at least another hour yet. By the time he finally got home, there was no way he could fudge a story good enough to stay outta trouble. His brothers were gonna kill him—if he didn't die from pneumonia. Too bad he couldn't re-shoe Diablo and just keep going. Probably be a lot less trouble if he just disappeared altogether.

SB4SB

Adam looked down the table and chewed the inside of his lip. All present and accounted for except Evan who was still AWOL. And it wasn't so much that he was late…it was just that no one knew why he was late or where he was or when he'd be home. It was dark already. Doggone it! Where had that idiot kid gotten off to?! He knew better than to make them worry like this!

Brian handed off the mashed potatoes. Adam scooped out a helping, followed by a spoon of gravy in the center. Glancing up again at the break in the dishes going around, he assessed his family.

Brian was managing okay with a sling. Growing up on a ranch, a guy got to be pretty ambidextrous just from everyday work. Brian might need some help cutting the cubed steak, but otherwise he was fine. Not in a great mood, but…well, none of them were.

Adam resolved to ignore Evan's empty chair. Stupid kid.

Brian and Crane were a little cool with each other. And might be for a few days. They were good brothers and enjoyed each other's company, but when they got into it, they tended to stay there for a while. They got mad at each other, blew up, and then went cold. Usually needed some time to thaw. Crane had done Adam a solid by talking Ford around, though. Having a brother who could usually keep calm as opposed to the quick tempers of Adam and Brian was a huge asset.

At the other end of the table, Hannah seemed to be better. She and Adam had sure been through it today. It started in bed this morning and grew to an inferno by lunchtime. Since then, they'd both calmed down a lot. He still needed to apologize, and knowing her, she probably would, too. Funny how he was pretty much the only one who could make her lose her temper. She kept her cool with the rest of the boys and handled them easily—like she'd been doing it for years. Like their mom. Amazing woman, his wife. He was a lucky man. He ought to remember that a little more often.

Hannah's gaze flicked over to Evan's empty seat, and Adam knew she was worried. Their eyes caught. When she quirked a crooked grin, Adam couldn't help his own. Even tired and probably still a little angry, they were thinking along the same lines—regretting their argument and worried about the kid. And Adam was gonna kick Evan's butt for getting her upset.

Guthrie seemed all right. A little quiet, but not too far from normal. He smiled at Hannah as he passed the bread. They were okay. Adam probably shouldn't have flown off the handle at Guthrie. He'd had a bad day like the rest of 'em. Hannah was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. But she hadn't deserved his back talk, and Guthrie might remember that the next time he was tempted to give his bad mood free rein. Adam couldn't help the sympathetic grin as he thought about Guthrie's clothes. Adam had been wet and dirty half the day, but at least he hadn't been covered in smelly spaghetti sauce.

Ford picked at his food, not really interested, but Adam wasn't too worried. Ford had always been a bit of a puzzle...kind of the exception that proved the rule in the family. Adam didn't always know how to approach him when he had a problem. Sometimes, Ford just didn't want to share. Today, Crane handled it, and from what Adam understood, the problem had to do with Cleo. Who was a sweet girl and probably had no idea she'd upset Ford so much. And wouldn't have done it for the world if she'd known his reaction. But Ford would hole up and lick his wounds for a day or two, and then he'd be fine.

Passing the meat to Daniel, Adam studied him briefly. Daniel hadn't shared what all had gone wrong with his day. And he might not. He told the family he didn't know where Evan was, saw the undelivered letter to Stormy Weathers, and went out to work on the truck. The carburetor had been giving them trouble lately, and Daniel took it apart on the porch. That was one of the ways Daniel handled problems: he tinkered. He kept his hands occupied but allowed his mind to pick over whatever was bothering him. And at eighteen, he was old enough to handle most situations without needing or wanting an older brother to take care of things. So Adam tried to take a step back and just be around if Daniel got out of his depth. And whatever Daniel had dealt with today, he clearly wanted to keep it to himself right now.

Daniel's eyes slid over to Evan's empty seat, and he shook his head slightly. Angry…and maybe a little concerned. Like Adam himself. All they had gotten from Daniel was that Evan made it to school, hadn't been seen at lunch, and hadn't shown up for their ride home. Adam was pretty sure there was more to it, but Daniel wasn't cooperating. And knowing his stubborn streak, Adam tried not to push. No need to panic. Yet. Evan was probably fine. Of course, he was. And after the day Adam had already had, it would be nice not to get into it with Daniel, too. Especially since Evan was gonna catch holy heck when he finally got home.

Evan's continued absence reminded Adam of a cow stuck in a bog. A heifer would keep bawling till she got attention. No matter how much Adam tried to convince himself that she would eventually get out on her own, he could still hear her. And no matter how many times he told himself that Evan would be home soon with a good explanation, his mind just wouldn't settle down. After losing their parents, Adam couldn't help his tendency to expect the worst. The longer the delay, the more worried he got. And worry usually flipped to anger…which was easier. It was controllable—sometimes. But the underlying worry tended to feed the anger. And Adam was fast reaching his limits.

Brian cleared his throat with a quick glance at the empty chair beside him. "Ford, ya sure Evan didn't mention going anywhere?"

Impatiently, Ford dropped his fork. "How many times do I have to tell ya?! He never said!"

"Okay! Sorry!"

"You guys were here! When did he get Diablo?"

Adam's head turned involuntarily, "What?" His peripheral vision caught that everyone's attention was now fixed on Ford.

"Diablo's not in the barn. When did Evan come get him?"

Adam's glance found surprise and shock in Hannah, Crane, and Brian. Clearly, this was news to them, too. Adam thought back to the morning. "I worked in the barn till eleven. Diablo was there when I came in the house." To Brian and Crane, "You guys haven't been out there, have ya?"

Short negative shakes were the uniform response along with confused expressions.

Daniel folded his arms, "He wasn't at lunch; but when me and Troy were waiting after school, Aaron Munsey came by and said Evan was in sixth period. If he got Diablo after school, I would've heard him from the shed or seen him from the porch. Had to be before that. Maybe he came home during lunch?"

Adam shook his head impatiently. This made absolutely no sense. At some point between eleven and four o'clock, Evan had managed to get home and leave again on his horse with no one the wiser. But why would he come home and then go back to school if he'd decided to cut class and take a ride? In the rain?! Adam rubbed his neck in frustration. Doggone it! His idiot brothers were gonna put him in an early grave! When he finally got hold of Evan, Adam was gonna knock him into next week—

The screen door squeaked behind him. Adam got tangled in his chair as he jumped up to catch a glimpse of Evan sliding in. "Where the hell have you been?!" Exclamations echoed around him—anger from Brian and Daniel, surprise from Guthrie.

Then Hannah surged around the table. "Adam!" When she grabbed Evan's hands, they were shaking. "Evan, you're freezing, get in here! Guthrie, grab your quilt." She pulled Evan over to the stove. "Ford, shove my chair over here."

Panic surged up Adam's throat, and he pushed through to where Hannah planted Evan in front of the still warm stove. She thumbed Evan's gray face for half a second. His eyes were dull and distant, and his teeth chattered despite efforts to clamp them shut. Involuntary tremors shook him from head to toe while his clothes dripped on the floor.

"Get his clothes off!" Crane reached from behind the chair to pull at Evan's slicker.

Kneeling in front, Adam pushed the denim jacket back and started unbuttoning Evan's shirt. Guthrie got back with the quilt as Hannah used a dish towel to dry Evan's hair. Daniel worked one boot while Ford pulled on the other. Unable to do much with his bad thumb, Brian called out, "Evan? Ya okay?"

"S-s-sorry."

Crane pulled off the jacket and shirt once they were unbuttoned and then grabbed Guthrie's quilt. "Are ya hurt?"

Evan managed a negative head shake and muttered between chattering teeth, "N-no."

Once Adam saw he was wrapped in the quilt, "Let's get his jeans off. Guthrie, get him some sweats. Don't forget socks!"

Guthrie scrambled through the laundry room as Daniel and Ford pulled Evan to his feet. Adam worked the fly, and he and Daniel peeled the frigid, heavy denim off. Crane rubbed Evan's arms, trying to warm him with friction. Hannah placed a couple of clean towels in the still warm oven to get them ready to wrap his hands.

In minutes, Evan was again seated in front of the oven, in dry clothes, wrapped up in the quilt. His hair was drying quickly in the warm heat, and he was no longer shivering so badly. Color was starting to chase off the unhealthy skin tone that had scared Adam when Hannah pulled Evan into the light.

Adam took a second to catch his breath as he assured himself that Evan wasn't hurt and would be fine once he warmed up. He dropped into Guthrie's chair with a sigh of relief, trying to slow his thumping heart. His brothers really would be the death of him one of these days. Just like that old Candid Camera line, 'Don't be surprised if sometime, somewhere, someplace when you least expect it…' one of his brothers was gonna give him a heart attack.

Kneeling beside Evan, Hannah examined his eyes up close. "Are ya all right?" A light caress on his cheek.

Evan sighed in weariness and turned into her touch with a nod. "Yeah. Sorry I'm late." Resigned and apologetic. He had to know he was in for it. Although, Adam knew he was gonna have trouble handing out more punishment.

Brian leaned against the table, "Where've you been? What were you doing out in the rain?"

Daniel propped against the refrigerator. "Yeah. What've you been doing today?" Challenging.

Evan looked up at him, apology stamped on his face. "Sorry about this morning."

Daniel's face softened a bit, and one shoulder lifted slightly in a half shrug that signaled forgiveness of…something. Then his brows lifted in question.

Evan blew out a deep breath. "Remember my paper was due in English?"

Something flashed on Daniel's face. "Yeah, you mighta mentioned it a couple dozen times."

"Well, somehow in the rush this morning I managed to lose it."

Hannah groaned softly, "Oh, Evan, you worked so hard."

He shrugged slightly. "I searched my books, our locker, everywhere at school. So I figured I left it here."

Adam was starting to get an idea, and he caught Brian and Crane's eyes as their heads started to shake in disbelief.

Evan glanced at Adam again before dropping his eyes. "So I got a ride home to come look for it…but it wasn't here either. I must've dropped it between the house and the truck or in the parking lot at school. Anyhow, I never did find it."

Crane held up a hand. "Wait a minute, back up. You got a ride home, and it wasn't here. When was this?"

Evan fidgeted a little, looking like he'd rather be in front of a firing squad. "I got here between eleven and twelve, I guess."

Brian and Crane traded a look, "Before we got home."

Adam eyed Evan, "Hannah and I were here; what were we doing?"

Evan's gaze slid between Adam and Hannah, and he licked his lips. "Sounded like you were upstairs."

Adam glanced at Hannah who reflected his own remorse. They had been arguing, or they might've heard Evan come in.

Evan sighed again, "So when I realized the paper wasn't here, I saddled Diablo and rode back to Murphys. I stabled him at the Stevens' place and hitched a ride back to school. I didn't want to get in even more trouble for ditching."

That explained how he missed lunch but was back at school for the end of the day.

Brian prompted him, "But why are you so late getting home?"

Evan bit his lip. "Diablo threw a shoe right outside of town."

Brian's lips twitched, and he couldn't keep the amusement completely from his voice. "You walked the rest of the way home?"

Evan fought a wry grin with small nod.

The kitchen was quiet for a few moments before Guthrie's snicker triggered an avalanche.

In the center, Evan rubbed his eyes, then his face, and finished with the back of his neck. "It's not funny," but his voice proved even he saw humor in it.

Hannah stepped behind him and wrapped her arms around his neck in a mock strangle. "Ohhhh! You guys're driving me crazy!" She planted a kiss on the top of his head.

He leaned back against her fondly. "I really am sorry."

Crane squeezed Evan's shoulder. "What did your teacher say about your paper?"

Evan shut his eyes. "I never went back to see her. I figured I'd just scratch out something tonight and turn it in tomorrow. It won't be as good, and it'll be late, but it's better than nothing. At least I won't get a zero."

Daniel pushed off the fridge and ruffled Evan's damp hair. "Don't worry about it. I turned it in for ya."

Evan looked at Daniel in shock. "What?"

"I found your folder in my stuff. I turned it in to Miss Klein this afternoon."

Evan clearly didn't understand. "It wasn't in the locker."

"I didn't actually stop at the locker this morning, Bozo. We were interrupted just as we got there, remember?"

"Oh, yeah." Evan looked sorry all over again.

"Yeah. Jerk." But Daniel said it with a slight tease in his voice. "I was gonna give it back to ya at lunch, but you didn't show up."

Evan groaned softly in disbelief. Adam saw the irony: Evan came home, looking for the paper Daniel had at school. Adam watched Daniel and Evan have a wordless conversation. Clearly, something had happened between them, but it was doubtful they'd ever explain it. Those two were pretty tight, and Adam guessed there was a lot they got up to that never made it back to the family. Of course, he hoped a lot of what he and Brian had gotten into never made it back to their parents.

Guthrie looked back at the table. "Supper's cold."

Evan glanced at their forgotten meal, but his eyes lit up, "I love cold cubed steak. I think it's better than when it's hot."

Adam studied on that. Come to think of it, he liked it cold. Brian didn't seem upset about the idea either.

Hannah glanced at them and then rolled her eyes as she pulled the skillet back on the stove. "Hand me those mashed potatoes, and I'll fry 'em up into potato cakes. Crane, can you warm the gravy? Ford, you and Guthrie slice the rolls and then you guys can eat your cold cubed steak in an open sandwich."

Everybody laughed at the new menu, and Adam was happy about the prospect of the day ending on a good note. A great meal with everybody safe at home, around the table, enjoying each other's company. Relaxed and glad the day was almost over. Finally.

Evan stood and pulled the quilt from around his shoulders, handing it to Daniel to fold. Adam hugged Evan close, relieved he was okay. Brian pulled him into an embrace after Adam turned loose.

"Why didn't you just call and have whoever answered the phone look for your paper?"

The whole room stopped to find out the answer to Guthrie's question. Evan started to answer but didn't. Then he tried again…and nothing came out. One more time, and he finally shook his head, "It seemed like a good idea at the time."

Adam couldn't begin to imagine how that convoluted plan might be a good idea, but after the day they'd all had, maybe it wasn't such a stretch.

Daniel threw an arm around Evan's neck and gave him a gentle noogie while mocking a growl.

Evan managed to twist away without too much trouble. "Gimme a break."

"I was ready to break your neck. And you deserved it." Daniel kept his voice relatively soft so their conversation was mostly just between them. Adam wasn't sure anyone else heard it.

"I'm sorry." Adam could see Evan meant it.

Daniel shrugged forgiveness then his brows went up in question. "Beth?"

Evan smiled faintly with a brief nod in response.

"Hmm. How 'bout that?"

Adam shook his head. Whatever the problem was, they'd already worked it out. Just as it appeared Brian and Crane probably had as Crane fussed good naturedly about Brian using his hand too much to put the chairs back around the table. And Adam and Hannah had mostly forgiven each other except for the fun part of the fight and make up balance. Ford and Guthrie were poking at each other, and Guthrie was telling his Murphys Squared joke.

They'd all had a bad day. A really bad day. But it was almost over, and tomorrow would be better. It just…it had to be. He hoped. Adam sent a brief prayer and glance upward. Please?

So this story was clearly inspired by Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst—a great classic of American literature. I wanted something a little funny that included all of the characters (as I usually end up leaving out one or more of them when I write.) I hope you enjoyed. Thanks to my beta reader, Shee1, for the assist. She's great. All errors that remain are mine.