"You're highly intelligent, but you're shameful of that fact so you play it down with the use of inappropriate behavior. And you live in fear of showing weakness so you hide behind a constant barrage of jokes and sarcasm." – Declan in Shawn 2.0. This is a story about how Shawn got to be that way. All the little instances in his past that made him try to hide his intelligence.

Chapter 1

At first, Henry didn't think much about it. Babies were babies. They were all fat, whiny, and smelly. Just because Shawn shared some of his genes, didn't make him special or different. Don't get him wrong, he loved his boy. He loved the way Maddie's face softened when she looked at him, how when the crying stopped and the kid giggled, it made the whole place happier and warmer. But Henry knew all parents thought their kids were exceptional, perfect and amazing. So when he noticed how focused Shawn's gaze was, how well he mimicked voices and noises around him, how much he seemed to understand for a baby, Henry didn't think much of it.

As Shawn got older, Henry still didn't pay too much attention. Shawn started to speak earlier than most kids because his mom was a psychologist. She talked to the kid all the time, only natural that he'd talk back sooner than most. And Shawn's ability to remember and parrot back what you said weeks later was just plain annoying. Sure he was a smart kid, annoyingly so, but it was all normal enough.

And the kid was hyper. He got bored easily, always wanting to try something new, never sticking with anything for long. Sure Shawn could draw, read and write at a very young age, but was too busy bouncing around from one thing to the next for there to be anything exceptional about it. Henry always thought the kid needed more discipline and focus.

But it was uncanny how well Shawn seemed to remember the most insignificant of things. He'd hear some TV jingle one time and drive you nuts by singing it perfectly even months later. Shawn would barely have a chance to glance at the menu at a restaurant but he'd remember not only that pineapple cake was on it, but where it was on the menu, how much it cost, and the exact wording of the description. It was a lot of little things which seemed a bit strange, but then again, Henry would be the first to admit he didn't know much about child development. He was too busy at the station, Madeleine was getting more and more involved in her work, and she certainly wasn't a child psychologist either. So Henry just shrugged it off.

It wasn't until Shawn was four years old he realized the kid was a bit different from other children. Madeleine had roped him into taking Shawn to a play date/birthday party for another kid in the neighborhood, some kid named Burton. Henry had lost the post-it note with the address on it Maddie had given him. Lost it after she had questioned him multiple times about if he knew where he was going and if he had the note. Henry wasn't about to call her to ask for help. But Shawn was getting antsy.

"Dad – can we go? We'll be late!" Shawn cried while tugging on Henry's pants.

"In a minute, Shawn. We'll be just fine – just hold your horses." Henry leaned over the desk, riffling through his stack of loose papers. He really should put more effort into organizing his things at home.

"No we won't! We have to pass Miss Patty's house, and take 2 turns to get there! And you always fix the mirror and take 3 minutes before we leave. It's 7 minutes to Gus's house! We'll be 4 minutes late!" Shawn said while pointing at the clock on the wall.

Henry looked up – sure enough, if it took them as long as Shawn claimed, they wouldn't be there until 3:04.

"How do you know that?" Henry asked, pausing in his rummaging to look at Shawn carefully.

"Know what?"

"Know how to get to Gus's house and how long it takes?" Henry elaborated.

"Oh, that's easy. Mom took me there once. And you always do the same thing in the truck before we leave." Shawn stated impatiently while shifting foot to foot.

"You remember how to get there from going just once?"

"Duh," Shawn was obviously annoyed now, not seeing the need to go over what was obvious to him. "It's 4339 Cherry Wood Lane. They have 28 windows, 3 outside doors and a two door garage. His dad's name is Bill and his Mom is Winnie. Isn't Winnie a funny name? I mean she's not a bear and she doesn't even like honey."

Henry just grunted, annoyed how the kid could get himself sidetracked so quickly. "Whatever, let's go," he said gruffly while still looking a bit puzzled at the kid. Maybe he was just making it up. Kids tell outlandish stories all the time. It was an odd story to tell, but then Shawn was an odd kid. He'd find out soon enough.

"Oh, we're going to be 8 minutes late now, too" Shawn added. Henry swore under his breath and they were out the door.

- Exactly 10 minutes later at 3:08 pm -

As Henry exited the truck, he still couldn't quite believe it. The house was exactly where Shawn said it would be. There was a two door garage. He could see 2 doors – the front door and a side door and could easily believe a third lead to the backyard. A quick, rough count made it likely Shawn's 28 window claim was also correct.

Henry rang the doorbell and checked his watch. They were 8 minutes late – it had taken them 7 minutes to get there, meaning he really must have taken 3 minutes in the driveway before leaving. It was getting a bit eerie.

A warm faced woman opened the door, introducing herself as Winnie, Gus's mom. She let them inside, Shawn immediately racing off to find his friend. She explained that she and her husband Bill would be looking after the kids the entire time and Henry should expect to pick Shawn up again at 5:00 pm.

Henry nodded and grunted in all the right places, his mind still a bit preoccupied by Shawn's puzzling recitation earlier. Maddie had an uncanny ability to remember everything she heard, eidetic tonal memory or something, if he recalled correctly. But what Shawn just did, that wasn't just repeating something he'd heard. That was a catalog of details, images, facts he'd automatically collected and then piecing them together in a comprehensive and useful way. That was… it was… not normal. Especially not for a four year old child.

Just as he was about to leave, Henry turned around on the sidewalk, needing to know one last thing.

"Winnie, this is an odd question, I know. But do you like honey?"

"Honey? No, can't stand it. Why do you ask?" She replied a faintly puzzled frown on her face as she held open the front door.

"No reason. Just confirming something." Henry walked back to his truck. He and Maddie obviously need to talk when she got home.