The Burden of Secrets

Chapter 1

The day went like it always did.

Get up, dressed, eat and out.

Pound the pavement to school.

Smile my way through the school day, buttering up the teachers and laughing with my mates.

After school; something football related: a kick about, training or a match.

Mosey on home. Fit in some homework in between eating like a horse and then catch up on some COD.

Standard stuff.

But not today.

Today wasn't standard.

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Naked.

Naked and cold.

Scrap that: naked, cold and caked in mud.

That was me, in the middle of the hallway on a Wednesday afternoon.

I left behind the pile of muddy footy kit on the floor and tiptoed along the cool tiled floor to the downstairs shower room clad only in my boxers.  After the first few muddy footprints by the front door, I figured the best way to avoid more mess was to strip off there and then.  Mum would already freak if she saw the mess by the door, but hopefully it would only be DEFCON 1 now.  I would clean it up later, right now my cold and muddy muscles could only think of the beat of warm water on them.

The bathroom mirror showed that I really was covered in it.  I had near perfect lines along my arms and a wide slash of mud from where the top of my socks ended and the bottom of my shorts began.

It had been a wet week and the pitch was a huge mosh pit.  The game probably should have been called off but the coaches were old buddies and it was a bit of a grudge match between our teams.

The pace had been fierce and I had been taken to ground a few times by the other team's over enthusiastic defender - hence the current mud outfit.  It hadn't made a difference, our team won 3-1 and I had assisted with two and scored the third.

Good day for me.

I twisted the tap on and the water thumped out of the power shower.  My neck clicked as I stretched it from side to side waiting for the water to warm.  I was about to step inside its cocoon of warmth when I heard my name being called.

"Zeke!"

"I'm getting in the shower Mum." I called back, running my hand under the rapidly warming water.

"Zeke...I need you to come here now."

Her tone was strained.  She must have seen the pile of dirty clothes.  She was a total neat freak.

"I promise that I will sort the clothes out when I'm clean Mum," I shouted back.

"Zeke Edward Beckford, get in the living room NOW!"

I flinched as I heard Dad's deep shout. What was he doing home so early? Shit, had I done something wrong? The only time he'd ever been home from work this early was when I got suspended once for fighting.

I racked my brain trying to think what I might have done. Maybe they realised that I had replaced half their vodka with water when I went out to a party last week. I thought it had been a safe bet. Mum rarely drinks and, though Dad is a borderline alcoholic, his favoured tipple is whiskey.

Shit, if Dad was getting involved I was really in for it.

I turned the shower off. Better get it over and done with. It didn't pay to keep Dad waiting.