Array
(
[text] =>
“Kellin get up.” My eyes snap open and I leap backwards my head hitting a wall. I groan grabbing the back of my now-aching head.
Suddenly I realize that I’m not at home. Where am I? I frantically look around at my surroundings and my eyes land on the annoyed-looking Vic. I then remember all the events of yesterday.
“Breakfast is ready.” Vic mutters before he leaves.
I yawn and stretch before getting out of bed. I honestly think that was the best sleep I’ve ever had. I walk out of the room and can immediately smell something amazing. I walk downstairs and follow the smell and the sound of clatter into the dining room.
“Morning Kiddo.” Mr. Fuentes grins pulling out a chair at the dining table next to Vic and motioning for me to sit down.
“Good morning.” I murmur quietly before sitting down.
Vic gives me an annoyed look and I anxiously start picking at the hole in my jeans. Did I do something wrong?
I notice a plate of bacon and eggs in front of me and my stomach growls. Not sure if I’m allowed to eat, I just stare at the food hungrily.
“Vic, can you come shopping with me and Kellin later?” Mrs. Fuentes asks Vic who’s now eating but that annoyed look hasn’t left his face.
“No.” Vic says simply as he continues to eat.
“Please. I’ll buy you a CD.” Mrs. Fuentes bargains.
“Make it two.” Vic replies and Mrs. Fuentes sighs nodding. I wonder why she wants Vic to come with us so badly.
“Aren’t you going to eat, Kellin?” Mr. Fuentes asks.
I nod and pick up the knife and fork before I start eating. I think I’ve eaten more in the last two days than I have in my whole life. Okay, that’s an exaggeration but in all honesty, my parents would only feed me every few days. Sometimes they’d forget to feed me for a week straight and I’d pass out from hunger. My parents always told me that I had to earn the right to eat. I guess eating is just a daily occurrence in the Fuentes home.
“Would you like something to drink Kellin?” Mrs. Fuentes asks.
“Can I please have some water?” I ask quietly and she nods before walking off into the kitchen.
“So what do you like to do for fun, Kellin?” Mr. Fuentes asks.
I try to answer the question but I can’t. I don’t do anything for fun. I wasn’t allowed to have a phone or videogames or toys like any other kids. I usually spent the day staring up at the ceiling thinking. Sometimes I had to do chores but that wasn’t fun, it was nerve-racking. If I didn’t do something to my parent’s expectations, then I’d get beaten. If I so much as breathed the wrong way in their presence or looked them in the eye, then I’d get beaten. It was hard growing up with them but I guess that was normal, right? Most people’s parents were like that, weren’t they?
“I don’t know.” I murmur answering the question.
“Well, I suppose we’ll have to find something for you that you enjoy.” He smiles and I nod smiling back.
Mrs. Fuentes walks into the room holding my glass of water.
“Here you go, Honey.” She says as she hands me the glass of water.
“Thank you.” I whisper taking the glass.
She smiles at me and sits down. I bring the glass up to my lips and take a sip of the water. Halfway through my mouthful I feel something hit the back of my head and the glass slips from my hands landing on the floor and smashing. I instantly freak out and push my chair back.
“It’s okay, Honey. I’ll clean it up.” Mrs. Fuentes says while Mr. Fuentes yells at Vic for hitting me or something.
With everything happening at once I burst into tears and pull my knees up to chest.
“I-I’m sorry.” I sob. “Please don’t hurt m-me. I’m sorry.”
Mr. Fuentes grabs Vic by the arm and drags him out of the room while Mrs. Fuentes walks cautiously around to me.
“Kellin, no one’s going to hurt you.” She lulls kneeling down next to me avoiding the shards of glass.
She raises her hand and I flinch away sobbing harder.
“Hey, hey, Sweetie, I’m not going to hurt you. It’s okay.” She whispers raising her hand towards me again.
There’s just something about her calming voice that relaxes me and I don’t flinch as she runs her fingers through my hair.
“There’s nothing to be sorry about, okay?” She whispers and I nod. “Take your food then go sit in the living room and eat. I’ll clean this mess up and bring you in another glass of water.”
I nod and stand up grabbing my food. She ruffles my hair and smiles before I go into the living room. I awkwardly sit on sofa that I sat on yesterday and start eating my food again. A minute later Vic comes into the room with Mr. Fuentes following behind him. He stops in front of me looking exasperated.
“I’m sorry for hitting you.” Vic says rolling his eyes.
“It’s okay.” I whisper. “I’m sorry for annoying you.”
Vic looks at me shocked for a second before sneering at me.
“So you should be.” He spits before storming out of the room.
“You didn’t have to apologize Kellin, you didn’t do anything wrong.” Mr. Fuentes frowns.
I just shrug and continue eating. Mrs. Fuentes walks into the room holding a glass of water. She hands me the glass and I take it gratefully. I drink some water before resting it on the coffee table in front of me. Mr. Fuentes sits down on the floor in front of me as Mrs. Fuentes sits down next to me.
“Kellin, Vivian and I want you to understand something.” Mr. Fuentes begins. “We’re not going to hurt you. We won’t hit you if you do something wrong. We’re not those type of people. We’re not going to make you do chores all day and we’re not going to starve you. You can do what you like, within reason of course. You can eat what you like, whenever you like, even if you’re feeling hungry at three in the morning. And if you ever need anything, don’t be afraid to ask. You got that?” Mr. Fuentes says and I nod tearing up a little.
“No one’s ever been so nice to me before.” I whisper. “Thank you.”
“It’s our pleasure Honey.” Mrs. Fuentes smiles as she gently squeezes my shoulder.
Mr. Fuentes smiles before he stands up.
“I’m going to give Vic some chores to do.” He speaks nodding at Mrs. Fuentes. “That’s another thing. He’s not allowed to hit you like that Kellin.”
“It’s okay. It didn’t hurt, it just scared me.” I explain honestly.
“Okay, well if he does it again, make sure you tell us.” Mr. Fuentes smiles.
I nod and he leaves the room.
“So Kell, we need to make a list of stuff we need to get you while we’re out.” Mrs. Fuentes says grabbing a pen and notebook off of the coffee table. “Okay, what size are you in shirts?” She asks and I shrug.
“I don’t know.” I whisper.
“That’s okay, we can work it out when we get there.” She smiles. “We’ll get you a toothbrush and some other toiletries.”
She continues to list things that I need and she asks me a few questions; not that I’m any help. By the time we’re finished she has a big long list of things.
“We should get going.” She says standing up and I nod doing the same.
“Vic, we’re going.” Mrs. Fuentes calls and minutes later Vic appears.
I smile lightly at him but he just stares blankly at me. I wonder what I did to make him so annoyed with me. I decide to not dwell on it too much. My parents did spend most of their time being annoyed with me so it’s not a big deal.
I follow Mrs. Fuentes and Vic as they leave the house and go to a car parked in the driveway.
“Would you like to sit in the front seat?” Mrs. Fuentes asks politely and I nod with a smile.
She opens the door for me and I climb in before putting my seatbelt on. She then goes around to the driver seat as Vic gets in the backseat. She starts the car and drives off. I look out the window watching all the different houses and shops go past. Being outside so much is a whole new experience for me. I rarely went outside let alone shopping when I lived with my parents.
I turn to Mrs. Fuentes who’s lightly tapping her fingers on the steering wheel to the tune of the song on the radio.
“Mrs. Fuentes?” I ask softly.
“Please Kell, call me Mama Fuentes.” She smiles and I nod smiling.
“Mama Fuentes, will I ever see my parents again?” I ask and her face falls into a frown.
“Probably not.” She says hesitantly. “Would you like to see them again?”
I think over her question for a minute. Would I like to see them again? I mean, they didn’t like me and to be honest, I didn’t really like them all that much. They weren’t nice to me like Mama and Papa Fuentes. They would always hurt me and say mean things.
“No.” I answer simply.
She glances at me with a small smile on her face.
“Well, you’ll never have to see them again Honey.” She smiles and I nod a smile falling onto my face at the thought. Am I supposed to feel this way about my own mother and father?
I shrug off the thought not wanting to look too much into it. I go back to looking out the window. I notice Vic scratching his arm through his sleeve in the rearview mirror. He sees me looking at him and glares at me so I continue to look out the window.
Soon we arrive at a huge building with lots of cars and lots of people. The thought of being around so many people scares me but I attempt to brush it off so I don’t bother Mama Fuentes or Vic. I follow them as they get out of the car and start walking towards the building. We enter through an automatic door and I instinctively grab Mama Fuentes’ hand. There’s so many people. She smiles lightly at me, gently squeezing my hand as if to say ‘it’s okay’. I take a deep breath as we start walking.
We go into a shop which is a little less crowded. It has shelves and racks of all different kinds of clothes.
“Vic, can you help Kellin find some clothes? I’m going to buy some groceries.” Mama Fuentes asks Vic and he nods.
She hands him money and my eyes go wide. That’s a lot of money. Mama Fuentes lets go of my hand before walking off. Vic stuffs the money in his pocket before turning to me.
“I’m assuming you don’t have any clothes whatsoever.” He says and I nod.
He nods seeming to understand and walks towards a shelf motioning for me to follow him. I do so and he picks a pair of jeans off of the shelf.
“Your style?” He asks unfolding the black skinny jeans and I nod.
He looks through sizes and finds one before holding it up to my waist.
“Looks like it should fit.” He mutters. “Go try these on.”
He points to a sign that says ‘changing rooms’ and I nod taking the jeans then making my way over. I go into a small cubical and lock the door. I notice a mirror on the door and frown at my reflection.
It’s been a while since I looked in the mirror. My hair is untidy and needs to be trimmed. My skin is pale and my face is sunken. I have a bags under my eyes, not that you could tell because there’s a purple bruise around my right eye. My bones stick out and until recently I thought that was normal. My skin’s dry and I look sick, although I feel fine.
I take my torn jeans off and change into the other ones. I look in the mirror confused. They’re the perfect size but they’re so loose around my waist.
“Do they fit?” Vic calls from outside the door.
“I don’t know.” I mumble unlocking the door and stepping out.
He looks just as confused as I am as he starts tugging at the waistband of the jeans.
“You’re so goddamn skinny.” He says and I instantly feel bad about myself. I don’t know why I all of a sudden felt bad at myself by something that he said. My parents used to call me horrible things and it rarely bothered me.
“We’ll get you a belt.” He says and I nod.
I go back into the changing room and get changed back into my old jeans. When I come back out Vic’s looking through racks of shirts. He finds a few and tells me to go try them on so I do. Once again they’re the right size but they’re too baggy. When Vic sees me he sighs frustrated.
“Does anything fucking fit you?” He scolds and I bite my lip trying to suppress tears. Having everyone be so nice to me then Vic being angry with me makes me wonder if I’ve done something wrong.
Vic notices the tears in my eyes and looks at me blankly.
“Sorry, I just hate shopping.” He mutters.
“It’s okay.” I whisper and he nods.
I go back into the changing rooms once again and get changed back into my shirt. When I come back out Vic is holding a red and black plaid flannel.
“Try this on.” He says smiling lightly, the first smile I’ve seen on his face. And to be honest, I kinda like it.
I nod and take it before going back into the change rooms and changing into it. I attempt to do the buttons up three times before I give up. I never really learnt how to do it so I’ve now got button’s in the wrong holes and buttons in no holes. I leave the changing room and Vic looks at me amused.
“Kellin, how old are you?” He asks.
“Sixteen.” I mumble.
“You’re sixteen and you don’t know how to do your buttons up.” He snorts.
I shake my head feeling slightly ashamed. I half expect Vic to hit me for being so stupid but instead he laughs.
“Come here, you idiot.” He chuckles and I walk closer to him.
He starts undoing the buttons that I attempted to put in the right place. When all the buttons are undone, his face falls as he sees my bruise-littered abdomen. He stares for a little bit longer than he should making me slightly uncomfortable. People act like they’ve never seen a bruise before. Vic manages to snap himself out of it and straightens my shirt before he starts buttoning it up properly.
“Why do you hate me?” I ask quietly.
Vic glances up at my face looking sad for a minute then his face goes blank again.
“I hate everyone, don’t take it personally.” He mutters and I nod.
When he’s done with the buttons, he smooths the shirt out before taking a step back.
“You look nice.” He says smiling lightly. “We’re definitely getting this one.”
A smile falls onto my face hearing the compliment. It’s very rare someone says something nice about me.
Vic tells me to get changed so I do. We pick out a few more things before I help Vic carry them to the counter. The clothes end up being nearly three hundred dollars making me feel bad. These people are so nice to me, I don’t need them to spend so much money on me. They’ve given me so much already.
Vic pays and then we leave the store with a lot of bags. I honestly don’t think I’ve had this much stuff in my whole lifetime.
“I need to go to the record store then we’ll go find Mama.” Vic explains and I nod.
I follow Vic as he walks to the record store.
“Can you take these?” He asks holding out the bags he was carrying and I nod taking them. “I’ll be two seconds.”
I nod and Vic disappears into the store whilst I wait outside holding the bags. I watch people as they walk by, most of them in a hurry. I watch a family walk past curiously. The man is carrying a young boy on his shoulders and they’re both laughing about something. The woman is holding hands with a little girl who’s smiling brightly. That’s not how I remember my childhood. Am I really that different from everyone?
I continue to watch them until I feel someone shove me and my side smacks into the wall then I fall onto the hard floor with a thud, hitting my head on the wall. I look up to see two kids around my age, laughing and hi-fiving each other.
“Hey assholes, leave him alone.” Vic yells appearing from out of the store.
“Aww, the faggot has a boyfriend.” They mock, laughing harder, giving me the impression that they know Vic personally.
Hurt flashes across Vic face but he quickly masks it with a blank expression. The guys continue to laugh as they walk past Vic, shoving him into the wall. They soon disappear before Vic walks over to me and kneels down. I grab the back of my head feeling it throb.
“Are you okay?” Vic asks softly and I nod. “Sorry about them.” He mumbles.
He gives me a sincere apologetic look confusing me. Why he being so nice to me? Doesn’t he hate everyone?
“It’s okay.” I whisper.
Vic stands up and holds out his hand. I hesitantly take it and he helps me up.
“Thank you.” I whisper.
“It’s fine. Let’s go find Mama.” Vic mumbles and I nod picking up a few bags. Vic picks up the rest and I follow him as he walks off. I ignore the throbbing in my head and the pain in my ribs. I’ve been hurt worse so this is nothing.
We soon bump into Mama Fuentes as she’s walking out of the grocery store.
“Hey boys, did you get enough?” She asks and Vic nods.
“Yeah, we got plenty.” He mumbles.
“Were you nice to Kellin?” She asks warningly.
“Yes Mama.” Vic groans.
“Kellin honey, is he telling the truth?” She asks and I nod.
“Yes ma’am.” I say instinctively.
She gives me a curious look before nodding.
“That’s good. You boys ready to go home?” She asks and Vic and I nod.
We then leave the building and go back to the car. I put the bags in the trunk before getting back into the front seat. Mama Fuentes drives off and I stare out the window.
“Kell, how do you feel about going to school on Monday.” Mama Fuentes asks from beside me. My head snaps towards her and I give her a curious look.
“School, like high school?” I ask feeling stupid. I am stupid.
“Yeah, what do you think?” She asks sparing me a glance.
“I-I don’t know. I’m too stupid for school.” I admit feeling ashamed.
“Kellin, you’re not stupid. What makes you say that?” She asks concerned.
“I only finished fourth grade then my parents pulled me out.” I whisper, not really sure why I’m whispering. I guess I just don’t feel comfortable talking about my parents, or talking at all really.
“Oh, did they homeschool you?” She asks seeming surprised.
“No, but I did teach myself how to read.” I mumble.
She gives me another concerned look.
“Okay, I’ll get someone to come around and test you tomorrow so we can determine whether you’re allegeable for high school. If not, we’ll get you a tutor. How does that sound?” She asks and I nod although I didn’t understand half the things she just said.
The rest of the car ride is silent until we get back to the Fuentes home. Vic and I get the bags out of the trunk and Mama Fuentes tells me to go and unpack them into a drawer. I follow Vic into the house and upstairs, back down to his room. Vic throws the bags on my bed and goes over to his nightstand. He opens a CD player and puts a CD in before closing it. Music starts playing and Vic flops down on his bed.
I empty the bags of clothes and start neatly folding them. Once I’m finished, I put them in my drawers making sure to sorting them from shirts, to pants, to jumpers, to underwear and socks. Then I make sure that they’re color-coded. It’s not that hard since most of my clothes are black but I still make sure to separate them from the greys and whites. My mother would’ve freaked out if my clothes weren’t set out perfectly.
Once I finished, I sit on my bed awkwardly. I look at Vic who’s doing something with his phone and he glances back at me. He goes back to looking at his phone and I kick my legs back and forth to entertain myself. Vic glances at me again and sighs before throwing his phone at me. I instinctively flinch even though the phone lands softly on the bed beside me.
“Play with that for a while. I’m going to take a shower.” Vic explains standing up and leaving the room.
I bite my lip and look at the phone curiously before picking it up. I notice there’s a game on the screen. It says Temple Run. I look at it confused and I press the play. A guy starts running from these monsters and I tap the screen trying to work out what to do.
It takes me a while but I figure it out. You have to avoid the obstacles and collect coins. It’s really hard.
There’s a knock on the open door so I look up seeing Mama Fuentes standing there smiling at me.
“Dinner’s ready Hun. Come downstairs when you’re ready.” She smiles before leaving.
I love being able to eat every night, it’s nice. I hope it’s like this all the time. I stand up and set Vic’s phone down on his bed before I happily bounce off out of the room.
Through all the excitement, I forget to watch where I’m going and run right into someone; Vic. I cower away expecting him to hit me but he looks at me confused before walking around me.
“Watch where you’re going next time.” He calls back and I nod before heading downstairs, a little shaky. I don’t like when people touch me. I think that they’re going to hurt me.
I walk into the dining room and there are boxes of pizza on the table. I’ve never had pizza before but I’ve always wanted to try it. Mama Fuentes motions for me to sit down at the table so I take a seat waiting patiently for my next instruction.
“Take as much as you want Kells.” Mama Fuentes tells me gesturing to the pizza.
I nod and grab a slice. I take a bite and an amazing taste oozes through my mouth.
“Mm this is good.” I practically moan.
“You’ve had pizza before, right Kellin?” She asks and I shake my head.
She just nods smiling sadly. Vic soon appears beside me. He takes some pizza and starts eating, seeming distant from the group. I noticed it was the same at breakfast this morning. Is it always like this? Does he hate his parents or something? I think they’re great people and he’s lucky to have them.
“Did you enjoy shopping today Kellin?” Papa Fuentes asks.
“Mhm.” I hum before swallowing my mouthful of pizza. “I had lots of fun and I got a whole heap of new clothes.”
“That’s sounds exciting.” Papa Fuentes grins and I smile gratefully at him. I know he doesn’t really care. He probably gets new things all the time. But it’s nice that he’s acting excited for me. I really appreciate how nice everyone has been to me.
“It was.” I whisper smiling lightly before eating some more pizza.
“There wasn’t any problems was there? Everything went well?” He asks and I hesitate. I wasn’t going to tell him what had happened with those boys but the memory crossed my mind distracting me.
I notice Vic give me a warning look and I shake my head.
“No, everything was great.” I smile and he nods.
I continue to eat hungrily until I’m certain I can’t fit anything else in. It’s a weird thing to have eaten so much that you don’t want to eat anymore. It’s rarely happened to me but it’s been great when it has. I hate being hungry. But as long as I’m here with Mama and Papa Fuentes, then I don’t think I’ll have to feel hungry ever again.
“So Vic, how was your day?” Papa Fuentes asks seeming skeptical but also hopeful.
Vic just shrugs and Papa Fuentes says nothing more on the subject. Mama and Papa Fuentes exchange saddened looks. I glance at Vic who has stopped eating and is now scratching his arm through his sleeve again. He glances at me before pushing his chair back. He gets up and storms out of the room.
“Did I do something wrong?” I ask quietly.
Mama Fuentes shakes her head quickly.
“No, no, Kell. This is just Vic. He’s going through something at the moment, so how he acts whether it be towards you or someone else, it’s not your fault.” She explains and I nod feeling a little better. But there was a part of me that wanted to know what was wrong with Vic. He has so much yet he seems so sad.
I thank Mama and Papa Fuentes for dinner then excuse myself from the table. I go upstairs to Vic’s room and I notice that he’s in bed under the covers although I can tell that he’s not asleep. I go over to my drawers and pull out a pair of pajamas that I had bought today. I then grab the bag of toiletries that Mama Fuentes bought for me. I leave the room and go down the hallway to the bathroom.
I switch the light on when I enter and close the door behind me. I sit my clothes and the bag of toiletries on the counter before going over to the shower and turning it on. I adjust the temperature and get undressed before stepping under the warm stream. The refreshing water washes over me and my eyes flutter shut in relaxation.
This is pure bliss. I haven’t showered for days and I feel gross and I smell gross. I open my eyes before grabbing out the shampoo and conditioner. I wash my hair and then grab the shower gel. I lather my body up before washing it away with the water. I notice the water turn a light brown color and I scrunch up my nose in disgust. Gross. That’s just disgusting. I decide that I should double wash myself, just to be safe.
Once I’m sure that I’m completely clean, I stay under the water for a little while longer then decide that I should get out. I dry myself quickly then get dressed into my new clothes. It’s been a while since I’ve had new clothes so the feeling is complete ecstasy. It sounds stupid that something as little as that can make me happy but honestly, if there’s one thing I’ve learnt from living with my parents, it’s that the little things matter.
I quickly brush my teeth and comb my hair before, I collect my dirty clothes and all my toiletries. I leave the bathroom and happily skip downstairs. I go into the living room where Mama and Papa Fuentes are watching a movie.
“Uh, excuse me Mama Fuentes?” I ask quietly and she looks up smiling lightly.
“Yeah Kell?”
“What do I do with my clothes?” I ask.
“Just throw them in the bin. You’ve got new ones now.” She smiles and I nod. “Do you want to watch a movie with us?”
I shake my head hoping that she won’t mind.
“No thank you, I’m pretty tired.” I explain and she nods seeming to understand.
“Well, go get some rest. Goodnight Hun.” She beams.
“Goodnight. Mama Fuentes. Goodnight Papa Fuentes.”
“Night Kiddo.” Papa Fuentes replies and I wave goodbye to them before leaving and going into the kitchen.
I throw my old clothes in the rubbish bin before going back upstairs to Vic’s room. I put my toiletry bag away before turning off the lamp and sliding into bed. I let out a content sigh before closing my eyes and drifting off into another comfortable sleep.
[text_hash] => d9bb0eae
)