Super Me

By Ray Wenck

Nathan is a twelve year old boy with Down syndrome. His mother Janelle is very protective and calls him her hero. But when Janelle witnesses a drug deal she becomes a target of the dealer. Nathan and Janelle are attacked, but Kersey, a man who hires out as a problem solver, steps in and saves them. However, with Janelle unconscious and Kersey not wanting any police involvement, he stages the scene to make it look like Nathan is the hero.
His plan backfires though as Nathan believes he is a real life superhero and goes out to save people. His efforts put him in constant danger which Kersey must extricate him from before he gets hurt.
But when a mobster, who is chasing Kersey kidnaps Nathan for leverage, Kersey is forced to hunt them down knowing to save Nathan he will have to exchange his life for the boys.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ray Wenck
• Release date: Jul 22, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463217542

Ray Wenck

Ray Wenck was an elementary school teacher for 35 years. He owned and operated an Italian restaurant for 25 of those years. When not writing his hobbies include baseball, cooking and playing the harmonica.

Book preview

Super Me

By

Ray Wenck

Copyright 2018 Ray Wenck

Editor: Jodi McDermitt

Cover: Ren McKinzie

Published by Glory Days Press

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under U. S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher.

This book is a work of fiction. While references may be made to actual places or events, the names, characters, incidents, and locations within are from the author's imagination and are not a resemblance to actual living or dead persons, businesses, or events. Any similarity is coincidental.

Acknowledgements

This was a fun story to write and brought back a host of memories from my years as a teacher. I have a Masters in special education and have worked with many wonderful children with Down syndrome and on the autism spectrum. I have always found those with Down’s to be the most loving of others. The idea for this book came when I spotted a young boy dressed in a superhero costume at a comic con. It brought back images of a few special boys I had the joy of working with and the story was born.

Super Nathan is for them—for all those with Down syndrome and for the families who have given and know their love. For the wonderful people with the passion to work with special needs children and for the ever-growing number of people and employers willing to give them a fair chance to take their deserved place in our society.

Special thanks to Brenda Maas and Linda Zunk for their long years working in the special needs classroom and for being their advocates.

If you enjoy this short story, please let me know, as I already foresee sequels.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Other Titles

Super Me

1

Help! Save me.

Janelle hung upside down on the couch, feet kicking in the air, head touching the floor.

Help me, Nathan. Save Mommy.

The short, chubby boy ran around the couch and fell to his knees. His arms slid underneath his mother's head. He grunted from the effort, determination on his face. Unseen by Nathan was his mother's arm as she pushed off the floor to aid him. He strained to shove her head onto the flat surface of the worn couch. Once safely in position, she said, My feet. I can't use my feet.

I'll save you, Mommy. Nathan leaped on the couch, bouncing to reach the flailing feet. As soon as he touched her, she stopped kicking, afraid of knocking him off the couch. He pulled her legs until they were on the couch.

She sat up, arms open wide. My hero. She wrapped him up tight and wiggled back and forth. You saved me. She planted a series of kisses on his flat moon face.

Yuh, I save you.

My hero, Super Nathan.

No. I told you. Not Super Nathan. Super Me.

Super Me?

Yuh.

But isn't your name Nathan?

Yuh.

Then you're Super Nathan.

In cartoonish slapstick, he slapped his face with his open hand and shook his head. I'm me. I'm Super Me.

Well, you're Super Nathan to me. Okay?

"Yuh.

If I make you a cape, should it say Super Nathan or Super Me?

His face took on a distant look as it always did when he was thinking about something. Then his face brightened. A cape? For me?

Well, sure. All superheroes should have a cape, right?

Yuh.

So, what should it say? Super Nathan or Super Me.

Without hesitation, he touched his chest. Me! Super Me! he shouted and bounced on the couch.

She'd been trying to get him to understand the difference between using his name and using me when he spoke about himself but was fighting a losing battle. Me was too ingrained in his mind, just as she tried to get him to call her mom instead of mommy. Now that he was getting older it sounded too babyish, but again, he wasn't good with change.

What color should the cape be?

He thought again.

Wed.

You mean red? She rolled the r and drew it out

"Yuh. Wed.

There's no such color as wed. I can't make you the cape if you can't say the word red.

Aw, man.

Just say red. Like this: reh, reh, reh.

He repeated, Reh.

Duh.

Duh.

Now put it together. Reh-duh.

Red-duh.

That's it. You got it. Red.

Yuh. Wed.

It was her turn to slap her face. That made Nathan laugh. You funny, Mommy. So funny. You be Funny Mommy. I be Super Me.

His laugh was contagious, and she couldn't help but laugh along. Like a baby's laugh, it just melted her heart, except he had never lost that laugh and she prayed he never would.

Okay. I'll make you a wed one.

Yay.

Rescuing people must make superheroes hungry. You want to eat?

Yuh. I rescued Mommy. I'm hungry.

Yes, you did, my little man. You rescued me.

It was a game they played almost daily. Janelle Upton put herself in danger and Nathan came to the rescue. And in truth, he had rescued her from her self-destructive behaviors. She had been wild in her youth. She was smart, self-motivated, and successful throughout her school years, but the death of her father led to her falling in with the universal bad crowd, and life changed.

Her grades fell in her senior year, and even though her GPA was still well above getting her into college, she lost the desire. Instead, Janelle took a series of waitress jobs that she could never keep and partied every night.

She had only slept with three men, but two of them she alternated on a regular basis until they found out about each other and walked away from her. Alone and living on the street, she discovered she was pregnant. She had no idea who the baby’s father was but didn't tell either of them.

Her mother had long ago given up on her and kicked her out. Pregnant and with nowhere else to go, Janelle returned home, only to be turned away. She lived on the street for the next three months until one day, her mother drove by and spied her sitting on a park bench, slumped back, with the baby bump displayed prominently.

A man plopped down next to her and tried to get his hand under her shirt. Her mother turned the car around and got out. By the time she reached her daughter, the man was sprawled on top of Janelle, grinding his hips into her. Janelle fought, but weakly.

Her mother kicked him from behind between his legs. The predator howled and rolled to the ground. Janelle squinted through her haze and said, Mom?

Get your sorry ass up, girl, and get in the car.

She took Janelle in and cared for her with the understanding that once the child was born, she was out on her own again, but that scenario never happened. When Nathan was born, it was clear from his features that he had Down syndrome: the flat moon face, the pudgy torso, the short legs.

Janelle cried for days, but her mother saw something perfect and beautiful in the boy. Janelle remained distant from her baby, not even giving him a name. Her mother feigned an emergency and had to go help a friend, leaving Janelle alone to take