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Tyler was the perfect way to keep Harley calm and even helped him remove his shirt. I turned around, facing away in a chair so the boys could remove their shorts. I knew Harley didn’t care, but Tyler was twelve.
Wes would start with Tyler, checking his ears, nose, and mouth, then Harley’s. Then he’d move back to Tyler and listened to his lungs and chest before repeating it with Harley. They took turns lying on the coffee table so Wes could push on their bellies, and then he had them bend over and touch the floor while he ran a hand down their spine. Harley got a little tense, but Wes quickly moved on to something else. Harley giggled when he checked knee reflexes and then tickled his feet. Once the physical was done, Wes had him step on a scale and then measured him against the wall before allowing them to get dressed.
“Alright, one more thing for you two.” He took out two cups. “Go use the bathroom and pee in the cups,” Tyler smirked and grabbed his cup. “Come on, Harley.”
“Why am I peeing in this?” he asked as he followed Tyler out of the room.
They returned a few minutes later, while one was light yellow, the other cup was dark yellow. I knew without a doubt that it was Harley’s.
Wes jotted notes down as he went, and when finished, he looked at Tyler. “Thanks, buddy. You can go. I want to talk to Harley and Candy. Can you ask his father to come in here, please?”
“Sure!” Tyler shot out toward the back porch, and I sat beside Harley on the couch.
“Harley, I have one more thing to do, and you might not like it very much.”
His eyes widened, and he turned to me as Wes continued.
“It only hurts for a moment, but I need to take a little blood from you to test and ensure your insides are working right.”
“How do you take my blood?”
He reached into a bag and took out a needle. “I put this needle into your arm and pull out a little blood. It sounds scary, and it only hurts a little bit. Like a pinch when the needle goes in.”
Harley looked at his arms. “But where is the blood hiding?”
Wes put out his arm, where the veins were slightly more pronounced on his muscular arm. “See this vein right here? They run all over your body and carry blood.”
“Harley, I have done it a bunch of times,” I assured him. Mike stepped into the room, and I glanced over and smiled. “Your dad has too. We all get blood tests. It’s easy.”
“Okay,” Harley said a bit nervously. Wesley set up his stuff quickly and explained everything he was doing. When he stuck the needle in, Harley barked a quick ouch but then was mesmerized as the blood filled the tube. Wes took two tubes, removed the needle, and taped down a little gauze.
“That’s it, Harley. You are all done. You can go on out and play with Tyler now, and we will eat in a little while.”
“Okay.” He took off as quickly as Tyler had.
“Well, overall, I think he will be okay. It’s obvious that he did not receive the best nutrition. His height percentile is only about twenty-two. He should be about four inches taller and at least twenty pounds heavier.” He glanced at Mike. “Especially knowing he will probably take after you.”
“He said he ate hot dogs all the time,” I told him.
“So, his sodium levels might be high, but they should level out. Right now, make sure he is eating a balanced diet. Give him lots of milk and foods that have healthy fats. Nuts and fish are good, and start him on vegetables. That’s hard for any kid but try to find something he likes. Pick water over juice, but even juice is better than nothing. Use real fruit juice, and add water to it. He’s not used to sweets, so he probably won’t notice. It is obvious that he’s not well hydrated.”
“Yeah, I thought that too when I saw his urine.”
“Let’s hope that is why it’s dark,” he said as he ensured the lid was on tight and then put a label on it. “I will drop these off at the lab on my way home. I should have the results by tomorrow, and I’ll call you and let you know. I will probably have you start him on vitamins and then refer him to a local pediatrician to keep a closer eye on him. A woman might be a better fit for him.”
“I agree,” Mike said.
“In the meantime, I would keep him in therapy, enroll him in a school that can work closely with him, and give him positive reinforcement and lots of love.”
Mike and I thanked Wes again, and then Wes left us to talk for a moment as he went back outside with his stuff.
“How did it go?”
“Tyler was a huge help. Harley didn’t seem scared at all while Wes was checking him.”
“That’s good. It was a good idea.”
“Are you okay that I came in here with him?”
