What We Did in Gym Class

43

I go home, stunned, at the day's events. I can't focus or concentrate on anything and my mind feels as if the walls of my skull are expanding in unnatural ways. I lock the front entrance of my dad's home and slide down with my back against the door until I sit down on our hardwood floors.

I hear a ruckus from the far off hallways and some groans as someone descends the stairs. My dad soon stands before me and he pauses, eyes a little shocked as he, too, stares back. He holds a roller suitcase in his hands that lags behind his legs. He stops and brushes his hands through his hair, lightly massaging his temple with his fingertips.

"Hey, kiddo. I -- " He reaches his hand out to me but retracts it, staring at his palm. "I'm sorry. I have to do this."

"And you're just going to leave me?"

"I don't have a choice -- "

"Yes. You do. You did... but clearly you've made yours."