The First Stone

Greg Matheson is Reef’s new social worker. He is young and cheerful, which surprises Reef. Reef thinks this will be a welcome break from the Barkers, although Reef is embarrassed to ride in Greg’s old car. Jink, Bigger, and Scar had visited Reef at the Barkers’ house just before Greg collected him. Reef thinks about the differences between himself and Scar. He lives in the moment, while she always wants to plan. In the car, he regrets being so brusque with her during their goodbye.

Outside of the North Hills Group Home, Reef sees that part of the logo is a stooped figure struggling to carry a burden. Matheson leaves Reef after introducing him to Frank Colville. Frank is huge and muscular, but Reef isn’t intimidated. Inside, Reef sees a wooden post carved like a pineapple, which Frank describes as a “traditional symbol of hospitality” (103). Reef sneers when Frank tells him it’s day one, but he is surprised when Frank laughs.

Frank invites Reef to sign a contract. It isn’t mandatory, but the judge will change her plans if he doesn’t sign it. The contract is an agreement to follow the rules. There are only five statements: “Respect yourself, Respect others, Be accountable, Honor your commitments, Do the right thing” (106).

Reef meets Alex Praeger, a thin teenager with long blond hair. He shakes Reef’s hand limply, and Reef is horrified by the thought that Alex might be gay. He signs the contract, thinking that dealing with Alex will be more tolerable than dealing with many people like him in prison, as Reef’s biased assumptions lead him to believe prison is full of gay men. Alex gives Reef a brief tour, referring to him as “Honey.” When Alex mentions the turrets on the house columns, Reef explodes, shouting that he doesn’t have Tourette’s. Alex laughs as if he can’t believe what he’s hearing, and Reef can’t think of anything to say.

A nurse named Carly puts in Leeza’s catheter. It happens four times a day, but Leeza is still embarrassed by the routine procedure. Carly encourages her to put up pictures of home and loved ones as Brett has done. Pain and moans keep waking Leeza up at night, and there is a man named Stephen Haynes who screams frequently. Brett says he had a four-wheeler accident two years earlier, and he’s still there because they haven’t been able to place him. His outbursts are part of the day, but Brett insists that he has a good quality of life. Valerie Harris, Leeza’s physiotherapist, introduces herself to Leeza and her mother. After Leeza’s mother leaves, Val asks her if she’s ready for day one.

Alex introduces Reef to the home’s four other members after telling him not to call them inmates around Frank. Every time he calls Reef “honey,” Reef wants to hit him. Alex says Frank has a long rap sheet and spent time in Dorchester Prison. When he got out, he started an outreach program for youth. The other boys are Gordy Towers, Owen White, Keith Benjamin, and Jimmy Franz. They have a mixture of proclivities between them, including substance abuse, shoplifting, pyromania, and more.

Reef will partner with Owen on chores for two days and must check in with Frank frequently. Frank assigns him to the greenhouse, which has several broken panels and needs upkeep. Frank says it is Reef’s responsibility to figure out how to improve and fix it. Reef immediately throws a rock through a greenhouse panel. Frank says he’ll have to pay for it. Reef makes fists as Frank walks away.

Leeza’s first day of recovery is agony. As they move her from her bed to a wheelchair, Brett tells her to find a safe, comforting, mental place where she can manage the pain. Leeza imagines the trip she took to Nova Scotia’s shore with her mother and Ellen after her mother’s divorce. She had felt like the warmth had healed them.

She meets with a specialist named Dr. Dan. That day, Leeza learns about their expectations for her, which include her learning to cook for herself and do laundry. They increase her pain medicine, which helps her forget about the day’s suffering. When her mother visits, Leeza recalls the day that they had learned her father was marrying the woman with whom he was unfaithful to her mother. Then her mother tells her about the hearing and the judge’s ruling, and they both cry.

Reef hates the sharing sessions in group meetings, which are called “issue exploration” (140). Overall, the greenhouse is his biggest complaint, but Reef says he hates the house’s toilet paper. Frank asks why he’s wasting their time and whether the tough guy routine ever gets old. Then he presses Reef to sincerely think of one change that would improve their joint experience at the home.

When Reef returns to complaining about toilet paper, Frank asks to see him later. When they talk, Frank says it’s been two weeks, and Reef is still giving mere lip service to his commitments. Frank tells him to comply with the judge’s ruling and pick a rehab facility for community service. He also says that Scar called, and he tells Reef that he’s done good work in the greenhouse.

Reef remembers a day when their car had died on the way to the beach. His drunken grandfather destroyed the car with a lug wrench, and they all hitched a ride back. Reef picks up a can and wants to throw it at something, but Frank’s comment about his good work in the greenhouse stops him.