Stay, Forever

17

The school bus comes to a stop a block from Clay's house, and he already has his backpack slung over his shoulders in anticipation. As soon as the doors creak open, his worn sneakers hit the pavement and he breaks into a run towards his house.

Not so long ago, he used to dread coming home from school to an empty home. But now, he has a new best friend and something exciting to look forward to every day. He hasn't been alone too much since he met George, and seeing him after school is usually the best part of his days.

His sneakers thud against the pavement as his house comes into view, but he slows as he draws closer. His mother's car sits outside the house; beat up, weathered and extremely out of place in the middle of the day. She's supposed to be at work, she's always at work when Clay gets home from school.

His heart thrums nervously for a second, and he wonders if something is wrong. He takes cautious steps up the front path, fingers curling securely around the straps of his backpack. The house looks dark from the outside, and he wonders if maybe she's sick.

As he climbs up the front steps, he notices that the door sits ajar. His mother is nothing if not paranoid about locking up the house when no one's home, and he knows for certain that she would never leave the front door open under any circumstances. His stomach tightens into a knot, but he works through the nerves and pushes the door open anyway.

The minute he steps inside, he can tell that something isn't right. The television plays although no one is watching it, and the table that sits in front of the couch is knocked over onto its side.

His heart beats hard in his chest, and he tries to call out, "mom?"

There's no answer, and his backpack slides to the floor with a muted thump that he barely hears over his own pulse. He takes slow steps forward, but he stills when he hears a crash coming from the kitchen. His mother screams, and the sound echoes towards him as he instinctively races forward. But he doesn't reach the kitchen.

Just outside the arched doorway, a woman stands in his path. She has brown hair and is wearing red lipstick, and there's a pair of expensive looking sunglasses perched atop her head. She smiles at Clay, but it only makes him feel more nervous. He thinks she looks familiar, but he can't quite place where he's seen her.

"Hello, Clay," she speaks his name in a soft accent, and Clay stumbles back a step as familiarity takes hold of him.

He hasn't seen her in person before, only in a photograph that sits atop the dresser in George's bedroom. He doesn't understand why she's here, as if this were just a casual, everyday visit. She's never there when George needs her to be, and part of him already hates her for that, even though he's never met her until now.

He tries to peer around her, but she blocks his view with a smile that he can tell is forced. He swallows, blinks up at her, and stumbles over his words as he asks, "is my mom in there?"

She opens her mouth to answer, but a man appears suddenly behind her. It's the same man that stands beside her in the photo on George's dresser. Clay's mouth runs dry, and he takes another cautious step back. George never talks about his father. He's never mentioned how tall and ominous and scary he is.

The man glares at him, and mutters in a low voice, "we have to go."

The woman nods, and Clay shrinks back against the wall. There's no sound coming from the kitchen now, and his body feels cold with unease. He just wants to see his mom, and he tries to move close enough to get just a glimpse of her.

He looks past the woman's legs, and he just barely sees strands of blonde hair splayed out across the tiled floor. His heart rate picks up, and nausea claws at his stomach. Tears sting his eyes, and he tries to push past the woman to get to her.