Array
(
[text] =>
I sob quietly as I rock back and forth on the bed. The nightmare felt so real. It really felt like I was back there, back with them. I feel so alone right now which just reminds me more of being there. There’s a shuffle from across the room and I jump in fright.
“Kellin? What’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Vic croaks, sounding half asleep.
“I-I had a nightmare.” I choke out feeling like I can’t breathe.
He switches the lamp on and sits up.
“Are you okay?” He asks.
I shake my head whilst trying to stop myself sobbing. He pulls back the covers and stumbles out of bed. He sits on the edge of my bed and gently places his hand on my arm but I flinch away in fear that he’s going to hurt me.
“Hey, it’s okay.” he whispers. “You’re alright.”
He rests his hand on my knee and squeezes it comfortingly. I nod stifling a sob trying to calm myself down. I get my breathing under control and squeeze my eyes shut just wanting to disappear.
“See, you’re okay.” Vic whispers.
I look up at him and he’s looking at me sadly.
“You should go back to sleep.” He suggests but I can’t help the fear of being left alone in the dark.
“I-I can’t. I’m scared.” I mumble feeling slightly embarrassed.
He gives me a sympathetic look before nodding then standing up. He holds out his hand and I look at him confused.
“Come on.” He whispers.
I search his eyes for any sign that he’s going to hurt me but I find none. I shakily grab his hand and he gently pulls me up out of bed. He pulls me over to his bed before he gets in.
“It’s alright. I’m not going to hurt you.” He whispers and I nod climbing in next to him.
He drapes his arm over my waist and for the first time in my life, I’m completely comfortable being touched.
“You’ve got nothing to be scared of, okay? Nothing bad is ever going to happen to you.” Vic whispers and I nod.
He reaches over and switches the lamp off. I lie on my side facing him and he does the same. I look into his eyes that twinkle in the dim light and down at his lips that are slightly parted as he breathes through them.
“You feel better?” He asks. I feel his breath tickle the end of my nose as he speaks.
“Yeah.” I smile. “Thank you.”
He smiles back and the mere sight of it makes my stomach flip.
“Why are you being nice to me?” I mumble quietly and he frowns again making me miss his smile.
He looks around avoiding my gaze as he gently runs his fingers across my hip. I notice his eyes become glassy and I start to wonder if I said something wrong.
“Just, just go to sleep.” He whispers clearing his throat and blinking away the tears.
“Okay.” I murmur and he forces a smile before letting go of my hip then rolling over.
I close my eyes and shuffle closer to him, still feeling a little scared. I let the strange comfortableness of his presence lull me to sleep.
—
I yawn as I wake up and open my eyes. The first thing I notice is that I’m not in my room. I let my mind catch up with me and I remember everything that happened, again.
I think back to late last night when I had had the nightmare. I fell asleep next to Vic in his bed but I see no Vic, though I’m still in his bed. I sit up and look around then realize that the room is empty. He must have woken up a while ago and left.
I get up and make the bed before leaving the room. I walk downstairs and into the living room where I can hear talking. As soon as I walk in, I want to walk right back out. Mama Fuentes and Papa Fuentes are talking seriously to Vic who has his head in his hands. I go to turn around and leave but Papa Fuentes notices I’m there.
“Kell, you slept through breakfast. You hungry?” He asks politely and I nod truthfully.
“Alright. Sit down, watch some TV. I’ll make you something soon.” He explains handing me the remote for the TV.
I thank him and sit down on the sofa. I turn the TV on but I’m not interested in watching it. As rude as I know it is, I’m more interested in what they’re talking to Vic about.
“Honey, what are these? I thought you were doing good in school.” Mama Fuentes asks Vic whilst holding up a piece of paper but he just shrugs.
“You’re failing math, you’re failing literature, you’re failing history, geography; heck Vic, you’re even failing music class.” Papa Fuentes explains with concern laced in his voice. “Does this have anything to do with what’s going on with you right now?”
“There’s nothing going on with me!” Vic snaps through gritted teeth.
“Vic, you’re a completely different person. You’ve just changed. Your whole life you were this sweet boy who would enjoy going to school and coming home. You were happy and you’d actually communicate with the rest of the world. Then one day you just changed completely. Your father and I hate seeing you like this. We miss you Vic. What happened?” Mama Fuentes asks but Vic doesn’t reply.
There’s a long silence, the only noise coming from the TV.
“What if you invite a few friends over? Have some fun.” Mama Fuentes suggests breaking the silence.
“I don’t have fucking friends.” Vic spits but his voice wobbles a bit.
“Honey, what do you mean you don’t have friends? I thought you had plenty of friends. What about Alex? He used to come around here all the time.” She says and Vic sighs.
“We stopped being friends over a year ago.” He mutters standing up.
“This is exactly what I’m talking about Vic. I don’t know this stuff because you don’t talk to me anymore. I just want my son back.” Mama Fuentes whines seeming desperate.
Vic says nothing more as he storms out of the room. Mama and Papa Fuentes sigh deeply in frustration. Papa Fuentes stands up and leaves the room whilst Mama Fuentes stands up then sits next to me.
“Vic told us that you had a nightmare last night.” She begins. “Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?” She asks, seeming worried.
“I’m okay. It was nothing major. It just felt so real. Like I was back there.” I explain swallowing hard as my throat goes dry.
“Back where?” She asks sounding confused.
“Back with my parents.” I whisper and she shakes her head sadly.
“They really did bad things to you didn’t they?” She asks and I shrug.
“I don’t know. I thought what they were doing was normal.”
She rests her hand over mine that’s sitting on my leg, then sighs.
“Nothing they put you through was normal. You were never supposed to be treated the way you were. You deserve someone who loves you and puts your needs before their own. Not someone who hurts you and neglects you. You’re a wonderful kid Kell.” She sighs and I nod.
It still seems so surreal. Like practically my life is a lie.
“Thank you.” I whisper and she squeezes my hand.
“It’s no problem.” She replies softly. “Now, I called the school and they said that they should be able to organize someone to come down to the house. Basically you’re going to do an exam‒”
“What’s an exam?” I ask quietly.
“It’s a test. You just have to answer a few questions.” She explains and I nod, now understanding. “So you’ll do a test and they’ll work out your academic level to see if you’re allgeable for public school. If not, then we’ll enroll you into a private school so you can get the extra learning if you need it. You understand everything I just said, right?”
“Yeah, I think so.” I nod, assuming that I understand properly. “So I’m going to answer some questions to see whether I have to go to a public school or a private school?”
“Yes, exactly.” She clarifies seeming proud.
“W-what if I need extra learning? Does that make me stupid?” I ask suddenly feeling self-conscious.
“Of course not Honey. It just means that you’re a little behind. But if you do need extra learning, which I doubt you will, it just means that they’ll help you catch up. Whether you go to a public school or a private school, I’ll still get you a tutor just so someone can help you with the subjects you don’t feel that confident with. Besides, I’m going to organize to get Vic a tutor as well. I just want you both to make the most of your education.” She explains and I nod feeling a little better.
Papa Fuentes then walks back into the room holding a plate with a sandwich on it. He hands it to me and I thank him. I start eating as Papa Fuentes sits down next to Mama Fuentes before leaning close to her ear.
“He’s locked himself in the bathroom again.” He whispers to her.
“Again? How long do you think he’s going to be in there?” She asks.
“I don’t know. Last time he did this, he was in there for twelve hours.” He mumbles back.
She sighs and nods. Then the doorbell rings.
“That’s probably the man from the school.” Mama Fuentes smiles and gently squeezes my leg before she stands up and leaves the room to answer the door.
She comes back with an elderly man. He’s wearing a suit and has spectacles that sit at the edge of his nose.
“Kellin, this is Mr. Watson. He’s the counselor at the school.” She explains and I nod standing up.
He reaches his arm out and I instinctively flinch back before I realize that he just wanted to shake my hand. I smile feeling embarrassed and shake his hand. Mama Fuentes gives me an ‘are you okay’ look and I smile reassuringly at her. They lead me into the dining room and tell me to take a seat. Mr. Watson places two booklets in front of me, as well as a pencil and an eraser.
“This booklet is the academic booklet. It’ll determine how you achieve in subjects such as mathematics, English, science and so on.” He explains pointing to one booklet. “And this booklet here is a moralized booklet. It’ll determine how you follow rules and how you act in certain situations.”
He then goes on to explain the rules of the test and tells me how long I have to do them before asking me if I have any questions. I shake my head, although I know I have many questions, I just can’t tell what they are yet.
They set a timer for four hours before they leave me alone in the room. I open the first booklet, the academic one. I read the first question and don’t understand what it means in the slightest. I groan and hit my head on the table. This is going to be a long four hours.
–
Two hours have gone by and I’m on the brink of tears. I tug at my hair feeling more frustrated than ever as I take a deep breath letting a few tears spill from my eyes. I’m so stupid. I can’t do this.
I hear the dining room door open and my head instantly snaps to it. Vic walks in and gives me a confused look.
“You okay?” He asks taking a seat next to me.
“No. I have to do this stupid test and I’m so stupid.” I huff, my bottom lip trembling as I try not to break down.
“Hey, you’re not stupid. You shouldn’t say that about yourself.” He says gently. “Here, let me see.”
I hand him the booklet and he reads the question.
“You can do this.” He smiles. “The question is just worded stupidly.”
“Describe an occasion when you were under an abundance of pressure. What was going on, and how did you deal with the situation?” Vic reads aloud and he looks thoughtful. “So basically, think of a time in your life when you were under a lot of stress. Then you have to write that down. Then think about how you got through that time and write that down too.”
“Oh, I understand now.” I grin in realization. “Thank you.”
“No problem. You just have to word the question a different way. It’s nothing to cry over.” He smiles reaching forward and wiping the tears off of my face. I blush a little and he stands up. “Good luck with the test Kell. I’m sure you’ll do fine.”
He goes to walk out as I remember that he’s been locked in the bathroom for a few hours.
“Vic.” I say hesitantly and he turns around.
“Yeah?” He asks and that’s when I take notice of the tear tracks down his face and the puffiness in his eyes.
“Are you okay?” I ask genuinely worried.
I half expect him to yell at me or tell me to mind my own business but he doesn’t.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks for asking.” He smiles and although I can tell that he’s lying, he seems grateful that I asked.
I nod and he turns back around before walking out of the room. I sigh and pick up the test noticing that I don’t have that much left. Though once I’m done, I’ll probably go over it all and re-answer some questions.
I answer the question with ease and move onto the next one. I feel like I have a clearer mind now and that I’ll be able to get through this quickly.
[text_hash] => 7a22cda8
)