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Normally Roger would scold Elijah for waking him and Mark up by jumping onto their bed, but today he doesn’t have the heart to. Not when he knows just how much Elijah has been looking forward to today. And while Roger is glad that his son is looking forward to going to school, it also worries him. Up until now, Elijah’s had a pretty sheltered life – not only is he blissfully unaware of just how poor they are, he hasn’t been exposed to either homophobia or people that still believe you can catch AIDS by being in the same room as someone that’s infected. And Roger’s scared to death of what’s going to happen once his son becomes aware of all the things he and Mark have protected him from.
While Mark makes breakfast – something other than cereal for once – Roger gets Elijah dressed, guiding him towards the newest looking clothes from the thrift store, hoping it will help him get to lunch before some bratty kid makes fun of him for not having new clothes. Elijah clings tightly to both of their hands when they walk him to school, but runs inside without looking back as soon as they get there. Roger vehemently denied that this made him cry, instead pretending that he had something in the eye. His little boy is growing up way too fast and Roger has too little time left with him.