Rite of Passage
 
Author: JDillon 

Email: jdillon@mail.win.org

Rating: PG (mild language)

Summary: A glimpse into the life of a teenaged Nick Fallin.

Author's Notes: Thanks to Goldie for her beta read on this one.

Author's Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of a
character in this story to any person living or dead is purely
coincidental. Likewise, any resemblance between an organization depicted
in this story and any such actual organization is purely coincidental.


November 1985

The prep school dorm room at Hamilton Academy was not large, but roomy
enough for two teenage boys. There was a set of twin beds, two desks (one
of which was neat and orderly, the other of which was not), and two chests
of drawers. Rock music was playing softly from a radio atop one chest.
The room was currently occupied by a good looking young man of fifteen or
sixteen. He was seated at the desk that was not covered with clutter. His
hair was curly and the medium blonde common to many young people who begin
life as tow-headed babies. He held an unopened greeting card in his hand,
and was staring at it without expression. After a second, he tore open the
envelope, and removed the card. It was light blue and decorated with
sketches of party hats and birthday cakes in dark blue relief. On the
front it said, "For a Special Son". Opening the card, the boy found a
check in the amount of $16.00. The notation on the bottom said, "Happy
16th birthday, Nicholas". Shaking his head, the youth set the check aside,
and read the verse:

Happy Birthday to a Son who truly
deserves the Best of Everything

It was signed, "Love, Dad". Just as the young man was sliding the card
back into the envelope, another boy appeared at the doorway. "Hey, Fallin,
phone for you. It's your old man."

Nick Fallin stood up, ran a hand down the back of his head, then started
for the telephone down the hall.

"Hi, Dad."

"Nick! Happy birthday, son. Did you get my card?"

"Yeah. It came today. Thanks, and thanks for the sixteen bucks."

"You're welcome," Burton Fallin said with a smile in his voice. "So how
are you, Nicholas? How are classes this term?"

"They're okay. Hey, Dad, I've been thinking...."

"Yeah?"

"Well, I'm sixteen now. I'm old enough to get my driver's license."

"Right," Burton said thoughtfully.

"Well, I've been doing some checking, and I could sign up for lessons at a
driving school in Pittsburgh over Christmas break. Then I could get my
license before I come back to school."

"Hmm. Well...I hadn't thought of that, Nick." There was a long pause, and
Nick's hopes fell, sure his dad was about to squash the idea. But then his
father said, "You know, Nicholas, if you want to wait until next summer, I
could teach you."

Nick had been anticipating the possibility of this suggestion, and had his
response all ready to go (from past experience he found it unlikely that
his father would actually make time to give him lessons himself). "Well,
summer's still half a year away, Dad, and the driving school, they'll have
films and visual aids. I really think it would be better if I learned from
them."

There was another pause. "Well, okay. If that's what you want.... You
say you've picked a school?"

"Uh-huh," Nick replied, finally letting his eagerness show. "Wilton
Driving Academy. And you won't have to do anything, Dad. Well...almost.
You have to be there to sign for me when I go for my learner's permit, and
then you have to take me for the driving test at the end of the course.
That's because they make you supply your own car to take the test, you
know. And, oh, I have to have my birth certificate when I apply for the
permit."

"Okay. Well, that's no problem.... Sounds like you've got this all mapped
out, Nicholas. How much does this driving school cost?"

"It depends on how many hours of lessons I need, but it ought to be around
$200 or $250."

"Hmm. Well, I guess we can swing that." Burton laughed softly. "Do you
need me to pick you up one of those booklets with all the traffic
regulations in it? I could send it to you."

"I already have one, Dad, thanks. I wrote for it last month."

Burton chuckled. "Well, son, sounds like you've thought of everything....
So what else is going on?"


Saturday, December 20th, 1985

Burton Fallin walked down the airport concourse at a brisk stride, or at
least as brisk a stride as he could manage, weaving his way among the
throng of holiday travelers. At 52, the founder of the law firm of Fallin
and Associates was still an impressive figure. He was tall, with dark hair
now going gray and noticeably thinning on top. He sported a large, dark
mustache, and his piercing blue eyes had been known to pin an opponent to
his seat in one moment and crinkle with laughter the next. He was not a
man to be trifled with.

On this Saturday, Burton was dressed in dark slacks and a blue crew-neck
sweater over a white shirt. It was winter in Pittsburgh so atop the
sweater he wore a leather jacket. Burton had gone into the office to work
that morning, and had gotten deeply involved in a case. By the time he
thought to check the clock, it was already half an hour past the time he
had intended to leave for the airport to pick up Nick. When Burton had
gotten into the terminal and checked a monitor, he had learned that his
son's plane had landed fifteen minutes ahead of schedule. That meant it
had been on the ground for more than forty-five minutes now. Damn!

Approaching gate 33, Burton began to search the gathered crowd for Nick.
He was sure the people that were there now were almost all waiting for the
outgoing flight. The incoming passengers should have cleared out of the
gate area by this time--all that is, Burton thought with mild
self-derision, except for boys whose fathers were more than half an hour
late in picking them up. After a moment, he located his son sitting in a
row of seats against the far wall. Nick was reading a book.

As Burton walked up, Nick raised his head. "He looks great," Burton
thought with a flush of fatherly pride. "He's really growing up, isn't he?
My, gosh..." Nick came to his feet, and Burton took just a second to take
a better look at his son. He thought that Nick had grown a little since
school started. Although Nicholas had never been tall for his age, he was
a well-proportioned boy, and handsome with his gray-green eyes and his
curly blonde hair. He was dressed in blue jeans and a charcoal gray cable
sweater.

"Nicholas, welcome home!" Burton said, and laid a hand on his son's shoulder.

"Hi, Dad."

"So how was the flight?"

"It was okay. It was crowded, but I had a window seat so it wasn't too bad."

"Good. I'm sorry I'm late. I was working at the office, and lost track of
time." Burton glanced down to the backpack on the adjoining seat and the
flight bag on the floor beside it. "This all your stuff?"

"Yeah."

"Okay."

Burton bent down to pick up the bag, and Nick placed the book he'd been
reading into the backpack, and then placed the pack on his shoulder. Then
he picked up his coat. With a mutual look of agreement, the two Fallins
began to walk back up the concourse, Burton occasionally placing a hand
atop his son's shoulder to steer him through the crowds of people.

---+---

As father and son walked through the airport parking structure, Nick asked,
"Dad, can we go straight to the license bureau so I can get my learner's
permit like we talked about?"

Burton's face creased in a smile as he replied, "Well, I don't see why not.
Now, let's see where would be the closest one..."

"There's one on McKinley or there's another one closer to home, on Braxton,
near the Dairy Queen."

"Oh, right. Well, are--"

"Did you remember to bring my birth certificate?" Nick interrupted to ask.

"Yeah, I've got it. It's right here in my wallet. Now, as I started to
say, are you hungry? It's after 12:00. We could get some lunch first if
you want?"

Nick considered. He was hungry, and the license office would be open till
5:00. "Okay."

By this time they had reached the car, and as Burton put in the key to
unlock the trunk, he said, "So what do you feel like eating? Burgers?
Sandwiches? Pizza?"

"Um, pizza."

"Sounds good. How about Mama Mia's?"

Nick nodded his assent. Burton placed his son's flight bag into the trunk,
and then gestured to Nick's backpack with an inquiring look. Nick shook
his head to indicate he'd keep the backpack with him. Burton closed the
trunk, and then he and Nick got into the car.

---+---

Nick and Burton Fallin walked into the Pennsylvania license bureau on
Braxton Avenue, and looked around. Burton was dismayed to see that there
was a long line of people in the line marked "Driver's License - First time
Applicants". He glanced at Nick, who seemed decidedly undeterred, and then
the two walked over to join the line. Nick had his driver's booklet with
him. He had been studying it at lunch. Burton had persuaded his son to
let him quiz him a little, and as he'd expected, Nick had practically the
whole booklet memorized. Burton had smiled at that, remembering how eager
he had been to start driving when he was young. Of course, back then, they
didn't even make you take a driving test. You answered a few questions,
paid your money, and that was it. Burton had to admit he had a few qualms
about Nick getting his license. He knew what a sixteen-year-old boy could
be like behind the wheel of a car. But then, it's not like Nicholas would
be getting many opportunities to drive any time soon. He wasn't allowed to
have a car at Hamilton. So most likely he would only be driving for the
short periods of time he was here at home. That shouldn't be too bad.

To Burton's relief, the line moved along fairly quickly, and in about ten
minutes time they were standing in front of the license clerk. "May I help
you?" she asked. Nick glanced at Burton, who nodded to indicate that he
should be the one to speak. Nick said, "I'm here to take my test for my
learner's permit."

"All right. Do you have your birth certificate with you?"

Burton was already reaching for his wallet before the woman had finished
the question. He pulled out the document, and handed it to the clerk. She
examined it briefly, and then said, "Take this application and fill it out.
Then return it to the clerk over there, and she'll give you your test."

Nick nodded, and took the form. He found an open seat at a nearby table,
and sat down (his father remained standing). Nick filled out the
application, and when he was done, Burton bent down to sign in the space
indicated for "Parent or Guardian". Returning to the counter, they found
there were only two people ahead of them to pick up the written test. When
it was their turn, the woman behind the counter handed Nick the test sheet,
and gave him his instructions. Nick had already handed off his driver's
booklet to Burton by this time, and as the two walked away, Burton told his
son that he'd go outside and catch a smoke while Nick took the exam. "Good
luck, son. I know you'll ace it," he said, giving Nick an encouraging pat
on the arm before heading for the door.

By the time Burton had smoked a cigarette and come back inside, Nick was
getting up to turn in his test. "So whadaya think?" Burton asked.

"It was easy. I think I got them all right."

"I wouldn't be at all surprised," his father replied, barely suppressing a
grin.

In a few minutes time, they heard Nick's name called, and he went up to the
counter to find out that he had indeed gotten a 100% on the exam. The
clerk had him step over to the side, where she administered the vision
test. Nick passed that with flying colors, as well. And in another few
minutes, father and son walked out of the license bureau, with Nick the
proud possessor of a Pennsylvania learner's permit.

---+---

The Fallins arrived home a little before 3:00PM. Burton carried the flight
bag into the house, but when he started to head for the stairs, Nick said,
"Here, Dad, I'll take that." He relieved his father of the suitcase, and
carried it and his backpack up to his bedroom. It was a typical boy's
room, furnished simply with wooden furniture with straight, clean lines,
and dark blue linens on the bed and windows. Nick set his backpack on the
desk, and the flight bag on the bed, and took a moment to look around him.
Being home always brought with it a whole jumble of emotions. It increased
his longing for his mother--this was the last place they'd lived together
before she'd died; the last place they'd all lived as a family before the
divorce. So Nick missed his mother more when he was at home, and too,
being here always made him realize how dissatisfied he was with his current
living situation. He'd never wanted to go away to school. That was his
father's idea. He'd wanted to stay here in Pittsburgh among people he
knew. He'd made friends at Hamilton, that was true, and the school itself
wasn't really bad, but the fact remained that he didn't want to be there.
He still resented his father for putting him there, and for divorcing his
mother. Usually Nick managed to keep that resentment buried, but it always
seemed to have a way of surfacing when he was home. "Well, not this time,"
he told himself. "This time I'm going to concentrate on getting my license
and having a nice Christmas."

Every Christmas without his mother was hard, just like every birthday,
every Mother's Day...but Nick was determined that this visit home should go
smoothly. He wouldn't let himself get worked up over his father's past
injustices. He didn't want any strife. He wanted to learn to drive and
get his license, and maybe have a nice holiday in the bargain. Nick shook
himself out of his mental reverie, made a quick trip to the bathroom, then
headed back downstairs. He found his father in the kitchen, lighting a
cigarette.

"Hey, Dad, I thought I'd go over and say hi to Charlie."

Charlie McMullan was the boy who lived next door. He was a year older than
Nick, and the two had been good friends since the Fallins moved into the
neighborhood almost eight years ago.

"Okay," said Burton. "But don't stay over there too long, Nicholas. You
and Charlie have the whole break to catch up."

"Okay."

Nick, who still had his coat on, headed for the front door. Burton picked
up his briefcase from the counter, and walked into his study to get a
little more work done on the Van Owen case.

---+---

On Sunday morning Nick and Burton went out and bought a Christmas tree.
Nick, as he had the last couple of years, had told his dad this wasn't
necessary--he was too old to care whether they had a tree, or not, but
Burton had insisted. They had left the tree soaking in a bucket of water
in the garage for a couple of hours. Then Burton had gone downstairs to
pull out the Christmas decorations and the tree stand. When he was done,
he called Nick down to help him carry everything up to the living room.
They got the tree into the stand, and began to unpack the decorations from
the boxes. Burton grumbled as he tried to disentangle the strings of
lights from the rat's nest they had ended up in last year. Every Christmas
when they brought out the lights he told Nick that they needed to do a
better job of repacking them, but year after year that never seemed to
happen. Eventually they got the lights untangled, and up on the tree,
followed by the garland and the ornaments. When they were done, father and
son stood back and admired their handiwork. It was a pretty tree--a white
pine--and the lights shining through the branches made the ornaments appear
to glow with a soft light of their own.

"Okay," Burton said. "That's done. You, uh, you want to maybe try to
catch a movie, Nick? We can probably find something playing that we'd both
like to see."

Nick agreed, and a quick look in the paper located an action/adventure
movie showing at the local multiplex. There was a matinee performance that
would suit their needs.

---+---

It was Monday afternoon, and the driving school instructor had just dropped
Nick back off at his house. The younger Fallin was feeling triumphant.
He'd had his first driving lesson today. He'd had to sit through a boring
hour-long movie illustrating safe driving tips and the "rules of the road"
first, but then he'd actually gotten to go out in a car. The instructor
had let him drive for two hours, and Nick already felt like he had this
driving thing down. Since tomorrow was Christmas Eve, and the school was
closed, he would have to wait until Thursday for his next lesson. In
Nick's mind, Thursday could not come soon enough. It would be so cool when
he finally had his license--so very cool.

Nick opened the front door with his key, and walked into the empty house.
Normally, Mrs. Spencer, his dad's housekeeper/cook would be here on
Mondays. But since it was the holidays, Dad had given her the week off
with pay. Mrs. Spencer had been working for his father since his parents
had split up. She was a friendly old lady, and Nick liked her. Walking
into the family room, Nick picked up the phone, and dialed the McMullans.
"Charlie, it's me... Yeah, the lesson was great! I got to drive for
almost two hours... Yeah. You want to come over?... Okay, see you in a
few minutes."

---+---

Since Mrs. Spencer was off, Nick and Burton decided to go on out for dinner
that night. Nick was almost bubbling over with enthusiasm about his
driving lesson. Burton was really enjoying hearing it, as most of the time
his son tended to be pretty uncommunicative. He listened with pleasure as
Nick described how they'd driven on a course in the parking lot at first,
and then, since the instructor had said he was doing fine, had taken the
car out on to the street. Burton hadn't seen Nicholas this excited about
anything in a long time. He had a fleeting thought that nothing he'd
bought the boy for Christmas was going to please him half as much as
getting his driver's license would.

Every Christmas Eve, Fallin and Associates held an open house in the
afternoon--a party where the liquor flowed freely, and clients were
encouraged to stop by and hobnob. Burton always made it a point to see
that everyone enjoyed themselves at these gatherings. He knew how
important opportunities for camaraderie like this were both to the
cohesiveness of his staff and the continuing goodwill of their client base.
Though these parties never went late--usually breaking up by 7:00--Burton
was always the last to leave. Consequently, Nick would spend most of
Christmas Eve without his father. Today, as many times in the past, he had
been at the McMullan household most of the day.

Christmas morning, Burton made the two of them a big breakfast, and then
they adjourned to the living room to open presents. Nick had gotten his
father a couple of ties and a new money clip. Burton had gotten Nick some
clothes (picked out by his secretary), a new watch and CD player, and some
pricey autographed baseball cards. Nick had been collecting baseball cards
since he was a boy, and although he wasn't as caught up in it now as he had
been a few years ago, he was still very pleased with these additions to his
collection. "Thanks, Dad," he said with genuine pleasure. "These are
great."

"You're welcome, son," Burton replied, pleased in turn.

The Fallins had a long-standing invitation to share Christmas dinner with
Burton's partner Oliver Cassidy and his family, so about 2:00 they headed
over to the Cassidy residence. It was a large gathering, with enough young
people to keep Nick's interest, so both father and son had an enjoyable
time.

That night, lying in bed, Nick found himself thinking how glad he was that
Christmas was over. The day always brought with it memories of bygone
Christmases with his mother, memories which only caused him to miss her all
the more acutely. Nick wasn't surprised by these feelings, had come to
expect them over the past four years (even tried--and failed--to steel
himself against them). What would have surprised him was to know that his
father was in the next room, reliving his own memories, and missing Nick's
mother too.

Thursday dawned fair and clear, much to Nick's delight. The forecast the
day before had mentioned a chance of snow, and Nick really didn't want
that, as he was scheduled to take his second driving lesson that day. It
looked like now the lesson would go ahead as planned.

---+---

When his father came home from work Nick told him that the driving
instructor (Mr. Ransom) said he was making excellent progress, and would
probably only require another three or four hours of lessons before he was
ready to take his test. His father replied that that was "just great."

On Friday, Nick had a three hour lesson, and when it was over Mr. Ransom
told him he was ready to take his test. But he recommended that first Nick
spend some time driving the car he was going to use for the exam (his
father's Lincoln). He also suggested that Nick drive around the
neighborhood where the license office was located prior to the exam to
familiarize himself with those streets. Nick knew that you needed to make
an appointment to take the driving test. So when he got into the house, he
called his father to find out when next week he'd be available to take him
for his test. Burton was in a meeting, but Nick asked his secretary Ginny
what his father's schedule looked like on Monday and Tuesday, and jotted
down the times he would be free. Just to be on the safe side, he asked for
his schedule on Thursday, as well (Wednesday being New Year's Day). When
he hung up with Ginny, Nick called the license bureau, and was able to get
an appointment for Tuesday at 11:00AM. About an hour later, his dad
returned his call, and Nick cleared the 11:00 appointment with him, and
also got a commitment from his father to take him driving the next day.
When he got off the phone he was one very excited 16-year-old.

---+---

It was Saturday morning, and Burton was ready to go out driving with Nick.
As they stepped out into the garage from the house, Burton hit the garage
door opener. Nick got in the driver's seat, and his dad went around to the
passenger's side. Once Burton was in the car he looked at Nick, and said,
"Okay, so what's first?"

Nick answered promptly, "I adjust the seat and the mirrors."

Burton nodded, and Nick used the electronic controls to move the seat
forward. Then he put on his seat belt, and adjusted his rearview and side
view mirrors.

"What else?" his father asked.

"I familiarize myself with the location of the controls, like the lights
and wipers."

"Right."

Nick took a moment to examine the dashboard and steering column, and then
nodded and said, "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Uh-huh."

All right, so now you're ready to go. What do you do next?"

"I release the emergency brake, put the car in gear, and back up, but Dad
you don't have your seat belt on."

"Oh, right. Okay." Burton reached up for the shoulder strap, and buckled
himself in. "Now, let's go, but take it easy, son. Back up slowly, okay?"

"Okay."

Nick released the parking brake, then put the car in reverse, looked behind
him, and began to slowly back the big car out of the garage. As he did
so, he turned the steering wheel to position the Lincoln so that when he
wanted to go forward he would be pointed in the right direction. The
Fallin's garage was in the back of the house. It was reached by a narrow
drive that paralleled the side of the property, and basically required the
driver to do a U-turn to pull into the garage. So to get out to the
street, the driver had to back up out of the garage so that the car ended
up parallel with the house, and then pull forward and make the 90 degree
right turn onto the driveway.

Nick got the car in position, then reached for the garage door opener to
put the door down. He put the car in drive, pulled forward, and made the
turn onto the narrow driveway, all the while Burton was offering
encouragement ("Okay, that's it. You've got it now, son."). When they
reached the street, Nick looked at his father, and asked, "Which way?"

"Doesn't matter. But let's stay on the side streets--just, uh, just till I
know you've got a feel for the handling of the car."

Nick nodded. Leaning forward, he checked for traffic in both directions,
then pulled smoothly onto the street. He accelerated until he was doing
about 25, and then eased his foot back off of the gas to stay at that
speed. In a couple blocks he came to the first stop sign. He brought the
car to a complete stop, then turned left, and accelerated back up to 25
again.

After a moment, Burton said, "You're doing fine, son, just fine. How does
it feel?"

Well, it's bigger than the car they taught me in, and the brakes are a lot
touchier, but I'm getting used to it."

"Good."

Nick drove around the quiet streets of their neighborhood for about ten
minutes. Then Burton let him take the car onto some of the more
well-trafficked roads. After a little while, they headed for the area the
license office was located in. Nick drove around that area until he felt
confident that there was nothing about the streets there that was going to
trick him up during his test. Then Burton had him try parallel parking.
Nick made it in on the first try, with the wheels coming to rest about a
foot from the curb. His dad was pleased.

"Excellent, Nicholas. I'd say you did that just right. Seems to me you're
ready for your test. What do you think?"

Nick replied with confidence, "Yeah, I think so."

"Great. Well, let's head back to the house then. I've got a pile of work
to get through today."

Nick nodded, and turned the car for home.

---+---

The big day at last arrived. Nick was in the living room waiting for his
father to come home and pick him up for his driving test. His appointment
at the license office was for 11:00, and it was almost 10:30 now. Nick was
starting to get antsy. He had reminded his father about his test before he
left for work that morning, and he knew that Ginny would keep him advised
of his schedule, but he was still anxious to hear the car pull up in the
drive. Every couple of minutes, he would get up and check out the window,
but no Dad. Finally at quarter till he heard the car. He grabbed his
coat, and headed for the door. He was sliding into the passenger's seat
almost before Burton had time to put the car in park. His father had to
smile at that. He asked (knowing it was an unnecessary question), "You
ready?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well, let's go then."

---+---

Nick had gone out the door with the examiner about twenty minutes before,
and Burton was seated in a row of chairs at the front of the license bureau
waiting for their return. Based on what the man had said as they left,
they ought to be back any time now. Burton hoped it went well. He knew
how disappointed Nick would be if it didn't. Just then he saw the same man
coming in the door from the parking lot, followed closely by a smiling
Nick. Burton smiled in turn, and stood up. The examiner walked over, and
said, "Mr. Fallin, your son did a fine job. He got a 94%. All he needs to
do is take this paper up to the counter, and they'll get his picture and
issue a temporary license. His permanent license should come in the mail
in about a week."

"Thank you, Mr. Ferguson," Burton said, having met the man before the test,
and being reminded of his name again by his name tag.

Ferguson turned to Nick, and said, "Well, Nick, you drive carefully now.
Okay?"

"Okay. Thanks."

"Fine."

With a nod to Burton, Mr. Ferguson walked off to call his next applicant.

"Well, son," Burton said enthusiastically. "That's great, just terrific.
Why don't you go ahead and get in line for your picture, and I'll, uh, I'll
wait here."

Nick nodded, and headed for the counter. Burton sat back down, and watched
his son, reflecting on how fast he was growing up. Before you knew it, he
would be applying to universities, then starting college, getting his
degree, and then (hopefully) going on to law school. When he was a little
boy, Nick often used to talk about being a lawyer, but anytime Burton would
initiate those kinds of conversations now, his son was noncommittal. "Oh,
well," Burton thought, "that decision's still a long way off. He's got
plenty of time to make up his mind about that."

After about ten minutes, Nick was back with his temporary license in his
hand. He slipped it into his wallet as he and his father began to walk out
to the parking lot. As they approached the Lincoln, Burton said, "Why
don't you drive, Nicholas?"

Nick looked surprised, but was quick to take his dad up on his offer. He
got behind the wheel, and smoothly made the ten minute drive home. He
pulled into the circular drive in front of the house, and stopped the car,
putting it into park. Both Fallins got out, and as Burton came around the
front of the Lincoln to take Nick's place in the driver's seat, he said,
"Well, Nick, I've got to get back to work. But I tell you what, we'll go
out tonight to celebrate. Okay? See you later, son." He climbed into the
car as Nick headed for the house. Nick turned around in time to see his
father waving to him as he started to drive away. He stood there for a
moment, watching the departing car. He felt a little deflated. Suddenly
the driver's license in his wallet didn't seem so important anymore. He
stood like this for a few more seconds, then shrugged, and turned and
headed for Charlie's house.

The End