Page 57 of Left In The Dark

Two of the other guys in the course wave at me through the window, and I lift my hand slightly, pointing my screen down. Completely unbothered by what they saw when they looked at me in my car, they go back to talking and laughing. Good, they didn’t see what they weren’t supposed to. I was Blake’s little secret and now he’s mine.

Setting the phone down, I drive home, grabbing takeout on the way there. It’s only Blake and me at the house. I’m in no mood to cook, and I need to make a trip to the grocery store tomorrow. I can look for an MP3 player while I’m in town too. He wants a radio, but that would be too loud, and who knows what he has planned with it. All I need is for him to hear a car pull up and turn it up full volume at the wrong moment. Yeah, I don’t think so.

He’ll get what I give him. It’ll have more songs for him to listen to anyway, and I’ll also add some ebooks. Based on how he shit on me for reading all the time in high school, he might not even notice they’re there or care to click on them. He needs more things to do while alone for long periods of time, though.

The front gate is open when I pull up on our property and I quickly drive forward. My dad’s truck is parked in front of my house and panic sets in. Where is he?

Stomach shifting, I stop my car behind his and quickly climb out. He’s not near the barn and the lock doesn’t appear to have been tampered with. No sounds come from inside, and I press my ear to the door. There are some shuffling sounds, but they fade away when I step back.

Glass shatters from behind me and I whip my head around. My dad’s at the side of the house, climbing through what was once his and my mom’s room. Son of a bitch. Stomping toward him, my hackles rise as I reach for his legs, yanking him back so hard he crashes to the ground.

Face red and angry, he shouts, “What the fuck.”

“What do you think you’re doing? You have any idea how much it’s gonna cost to fix that window?”

Groaning, he tries to sit up, but I rest a foot on his stomach. “No, you’re going to stay where you are until I say you can move.”

“Fuck you. This is my house. If you didn’t want me to break a window, you shouldn’t have locked me out.”

“Listen to me carefully, old man.” I slide my foot closer to his neck. “You don’t live here anymore. You and Mom were both almost on the streets until I came along. So take your worthless, drunk, cheating ass back to Grandma’s.”

I can tell he wants to argue and then sighs in frustration, slapping my foot around. “Fine. Let me just get the rest of my clothes and I’m gone.”

Lifting my foot, I nod. “Only your clothes and then you’re going.”

“I swear.” Sitting up slowly, he crosses his heart and I roll my eyes. His word ain’t worth shit. Never has been to me. If only my mom could see what I saw all this time. Might have saved a lot of heartache and pain. Then again, maybe it wouldn’t have. Who knows where I’d be if things hadn’t happened how they did. Would Blake still be in my barn?

I shake off the thought, and back away from my dad as he uses the side of the house to stand. He dusts off his clothes and meets my eyes. His are yellow and empty. He’s his own karma, that’s for sure. Going to the bar and drinking himself into a coma every night is slowly catching up to him. He can barely stand up straight.

“You stay here and I’ll go fill a bag of your clothes. I’ll box up the rest of your shit by the end of the week and shove everything on the porch for you to pick up.”

“Why can’t I just go get what I need myself?” he asks snidely.

“Because you can’t be trusted, for one, and for another, it ain’t your fucking house anymore.

“This is ridiculous. It’d be much faster if you just let me in. You don’t even know where everything is.”

I look him up and down with my face wrinkling in disgust. “I’m sure anything I give you will be better than what you’re wearing.”

“I need my good jeans for the new job I got. My work boots too.”

I pause for a beat. “You got a new job?”

“Yes. A good one too. With room and board. It’s a ranch hand position. Then I’ll be able to help your momma catch up on old bills.”

“I’ve already been helping her. She doesn’t need you. All you’ll do is hold it over everyone’s head.”

“How about we leave what she needs up to her,” he remarks, and I seethe.

“I’m getting your stuff and then you’re leaving. I’m glad you at least found a job. Now you can stop stealing from her everywhere you can.”

“I gave her everything I have.”

“Everything you have? What about your new boyfriend? Have you started taking from him too?”

He spits between us, rubbing the back of his neck. “Will you get what I need so I can go? I didn’t come here for small talk.”

I scoff. “You were doing just fine until I mentioned him. Where is he anyway? Is he gonna be staying at your new place of work with you too?”