Basement Royalty

Chapter 3

The rest of week seemed to pass quickly. Ray wore long sleeves to hide the large purple bruise that had bloomed on his upper arm. He didn't tell any of the other guys, nor did he mention it to his mother. He didn't want them to worry; he could do that all on his own. Even over the weekend, he was distracted, constantly looking at the bruise, watching the purple fade to green and yellow, thanking his good luck that he hadn't bumped into Blaine again.

His mom woke him up earlier than usual on Monday, gently shaking him awake. He pulled the covers over his head and groaned.

"Wake up, honey. Don't you know what today is?" Ray racked his brains. Was there a field trip he was meant to be going on? Was he late?

"No?" He replied groggily. His mom sighed.

"Happy birthday, Ray." Ray pulled the covers off his head. It was his birthday. How did he forget that? How did he forget that he was turning sixteen? He sat up.

"I forgot it was my birthday."

"Figures. You've been busy with school, it's distracting. Come on, get a shower and come downstairs. I've got something for you." She left his room and he got out of bed, collecting clothes and getting ready for the day.

When he got downstairs, his mom was sitting on the couch, an envelope and a package wrapped in green paper on the cushion next to her.

"You ready to open these then?" She asked, smiling.

"I guess so." He sat down on the opposite end of the sofa and picked up the envelope. He tore it open carefully and looked at the card, embellished with a large number sixteen. Smiling as he read his mom's message, he put it aside and focused on the package, a small but heavy oblong box. He tore the corners of the paper and pulled it off, finding a plain cardboard box underneath. Slightly confused, he fumbled to open it. Underneath a layer of polystyrene, he found an Xbox controller, painted with a dark red pattern and his name printed beside the D-pad. He looked at his mom in awe.

"This is so awesome!" He said, grinning. "Thank you!"

"You're welcome, sweetie. I know you wanted a custom controller and I've heard how you throw your old one around. I figured you could use a new one." She smiled back. "See, I'm not so technologically illiterate I couldn't organise this for you."

"It's so great. Thank you." He repeated, before getting up to hug her.

"Now, I've got to go to work. I wanted to give you this before I left. Make sure you eat breakfast, and don't be late, alright?"

"Sure. See you later mom."

"Bye, Ray." She ruffled his hair, picked up her bag, and left the house. Ray ran up to his room and put the card and controller on top of his dresser. He would try it out when he got home. He did as his mom had asked, eating breakfast quickly and leaving the house on time. It wasn't until he was halfway to school that his mood dropped. No one at school knew that it was his birthday. How could they? He hadn't remembered himself; there hadn't been chance to tell them. So it wasn't going to be a different kind of day at all. Just another day. He should have known.

By lunch, most of Ray's positivity had drained away, to be replaced with bitterness and headache. The day was pretty much the same as any other. He had finally encountered Adam in a class, one he hadn't noticed him in the previous week, but been too afraid to approach him. He hadn't seen Blaine since the Tuesday at the school gates, but he was still scared that he would walk around a corner and bump into him. As he sat at the cafeteria table with Michael and Gavin, he felt a little sad. This wasn't how he'd dreamt his birthday would go.

Ryan sat down at the table a few minutes later, bumping Ray's arm; unknowingly, right where it was bruised.

"Oh, shit. Sorry, Ray." He said.