The Juvie Three

Gecko sits in chemistry class with Diego, sympathizing with the boy’s fear of his classmates: “He lives in constant fear of being used as a punching bag by a gaggle of Neanderthals” (85). The teacher asks Diego to go get more supplies, but Gecko volunteers in his place. Once he gets up, he makes the decision to go to the hospital and see Healy instead.

At the hospital, Gecko asks to see his “uncle” Douglas Healy, but there’s no record of anyone by that name. The receptionist sends him to the head trauma unit on the seventh floor. Gecko avoids the hospital staff and finds Healy, still unconscious and hooked up to an IV and a heart monitor. Gecko looks at Healy’s chart and sees that he’s listed as “John Doe,” or an unidentified person. He realizes that the hospital had no way of knowing who he was because he came in without his wallet.

Gecko is interrupted by a young volunteer named Roxanne Fitzner, who assumes he’s come with a school volunteer program. She gives him a volunteer badge and tells him that the unidentified man was probably mugged and might never wake up. Gecko leaves the room and returns to school.