Golden Boy

T H R E E

It was 2 am, I couldn't sleep, and my parents had just gotten home drunk from their dinner party. They were making too much noise, laughing and then shushing each other so that they wouldn't wake me. I didn't want to be alone anymore, so I went downstairs to the kitchen where my parents were eating the leftover mac and cheese I made after school.

My mom was on top of one of the counters as my dad leaned against the opposite one. They looked like highschoolers, giggling to themselves and stuffing their faces with cold pasta.

"Do you know what time it is?" I folded my arms over my chest and pretended to be angry as if I was waiting up for them.

"Shit, we've been caught," said my dad as he pulled himself away from the counter and towards the fridge, where he got a water bottle. My mom giggled and hopped off the counter.

"What are you doing up, sweetie?" My mom walked over and wrapped her arms around me, engulfing me in a hug. It was nice. She smelled like sweet wine and was warm despite the chilly weather from outside.

"I couldn't sleep," I said, unwrapping myself from my mother. She was starting to sway, and I had a feeling she was close to falling asleep. "It's harder when I'm alone for some reason."

"Aw Will, I think she missed us." She ruffled my hair, and my dad, who was a bit soberer, guided her to a chair at the island.

"Who would have thought. Our youngest daughter is wanting to be with her parents. Does this mean you don't think you'll be able to survive at UCLA without us?" asked my dad with a hopeful glint in his eyes.

"No, I think I'll be able to manage." My dad faked his hurt, and my mom didn't hide her frown. "Hey dad, so do have any security cameras set up?"

"No, we don't. Why?"

"Oh, no reason, I just heard that Dayna from down the block had a home invasion, so I just wanted to know. I think we should get some to be sure."

My dad eyed me suspiciously and moved to grab my mother, who was falling asleep on the kitchen counter. "I'll look into it tomorrow. Go get some sleep; we have to go into the City early tomorrow."

I audibly groaned to show my disinterest. I hated going all the way to New York City because it was always crowded and I hate crowds. "Define early?"

"Before noon, so go rest up. I'll wake you up at a reasonable hour." I groaned again and shuffled my feet up the stairs. My dad soon followed, my mom passed out in his arms. "Goodnight," my dad yelled from the top of the stairs.

I went back to bed and shifted around until I finally fell asleep, knowing that I was no longer alone in this house.

I had another dream about an uninvited guest in my room, and I woke up in a cold sweat after I heard knocking on my door. I sat up and immediately looked over at my window where the curtains were shut and placed exactly how I had the night before. My dad's voice sounded through the door, causing me to forget about my dream. "I'm not leaving until you confirm that you are up, Elliot."

I groaned out a response and dropped my head back against my pillow. I feel as if I got two hours of sleep, and the idea of getting up was the worst thing right now.

I heard my phone ringing, saw that it was Cami and picked up. "Hey, what's up?" I said through a mouth full of toothpaste.

"Hey, I was thinking about our little operation to take down Jace as the school's Golden Boy. He's throwing another party tonight at 8 pm, and I thought we should go and see what he does."

"Ugh, I can't go. My parents are dragging me into the city today, and I don't think I'll make it back in time. You should drag Dave with you. That way, you can still gather evidence if he happens to slip up in any way."