Silence.
“Is she?” I pressed on.
“Is she what?”
“A psycho.”
A sharp inhale was my father’s response.
“Dad?”
“You need to learn how to defend yourself.”
“I started the fight,” I mumbled.
“All the more reason for you to learn how to do it properly.”
“Youwantme to fight?”
“Of course not,” he shook his head, “but if you are going to fight anyway, I’d at least want you to win.”
***
It was early the following morning when we stepped onto the athletic field near Rose Chapel Public School, frost decorating each blade of grass.
Auden sat with a picture book while my father pulled out two boxing gloves, helping me tug them on before proceeding to arm himself with his own.
“Hit my gloves as hard as you can,” he instructed.
I raised my fists in the air, hesitation circling me like a wolf assessing its prey. It didn’t feel right. It felt like something the Devil would want me to do.
“What is it, Augustus?”
“Fighting…isn’t it wrong?”
“Sometimes,” my father nodded, hands dropping to his sides, “but if we want to protect ourselves and those we care about…it’s necessary to learn the basics.”
I must have looked unconvinced, for my father chuckled and ruffled my hair before gesturing for me to start throwing punches. I did.
“What do you know about the Sons of Thunder?” he asked, taking each of my blows without moving an inch.
“Like Thor and Loki?”
“Augustus!” He scolded me, shaking his head. “The fact that you know more about Norse Gods than your own God is concerning.”
“Who are the Sons of Thunder then?”
"The Sons of Thunder," my father started, gesturing for me to strike his gloves harder, "were two of Jesus' disciples—brothers, actually. James and John."
"Why is everyone in the Bible named James and John?" I grumbled.
"There are plenty of other names," my father chided me.
"Okay," I shrugged, "so why were this particular James and John called the Sons of Thunder?"
"Well, when Jesus and his disciples were refused accommodation by Samaritans, James and John asked Jesus if he wanted them to call fire down from Heaven to destroy those who rejected them."
"What did Jesus say?"
