Home Alone 1

Chapter Six

"Yes, we can, Kevin. You never had to ask to go into a church." I comment softly.

Kevin stays still for a few seconds before walking forward. Kevin takes off his hat and gloves while looking around our surroundings when we get inside. Kevin decides to sit near the front. He looks around while undoing his scarf, sees Old Man Marley, and gasps.

Old man Marley sees him and looks around before standing up and walking to where we are sitting. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," I say with a smile.

He smiles back. "May I sit down?" Kevin nods his head, a surprised look still on his face. Old man Marley sits down next to Kevin. "That's my granddaughter. The little red-haired girl. She's about your age. You know her?"

Kevin looks at her and shakes his head. "No."

"You live next to me, don't you?" Kevin nods his head. "You can say hello when you see me. You don't have to be afraid. There's a lot of things going around about me, but none of it's true. Okay? You've been a good boy this year?"

"I think so," Kevin says hesitantly.

"You swear to it?" He queries.

"No," Kevin admits.

Old man Marley nods his head. "Yeah, I had a feeling. This is the place to be if you're feeling bad about yourself."

Kevin looks up at him, confused. "It is?"

"I think so." Old man Marley says.

"Are you feeling bad about yourself?" Kevin asks.

Old man Marley shakes his head. "No."

Kevin is silent for a few seconds before talking. "I've been kind of a pain lately. I said some things I shouldn't have. I really haven't been too good this year."

"Yeah." Old man Marley says.

"I'm kind of upset about it because I really like my family. Even though sometimes I say I don't. Sometimes, I even think I don't. Do you get that?" Kevin question.

"I think so. How you feel about your family is a complicated thing." Old man Marley admits.

Kevin nods his head. "Especially with an older brother."

"Deep down, you'll always love him. But you can forget that you love him. You can hurt them, and they can hurt you. And that's not just because you're young. You want to know the real reason why I'm here right now?" Old man Marley offers.

"Sure." Kevin agrees.

"I came to hear my granddaughter sing. I can't come hear her tonight." Old man Marley mutters.

"You have plans?" Kevin asks.

"No. I'm not welcome." Old man Marley says.

"At church?" Kevin exclaims, surprised.

"Oh, you're always welcome at church. I'm not welcome with my son." Old man Marley admits. "Years back, before you and your family moved on the block...I had an argument with my son."

"How old is he?" Kevin asks.

"He's grown up. We lost our tempers, and I said I didn't care to see him anymore. He said the same, and we haven't spoken to each other since." Old man Marley comments.

"If you miss him, why don't you call him?" Kevin asks, confused.

"I'm afraid If I call him, he won't talk to me." Old man Marley admits sadly.

"How do you know?" Kevin queries.

"I don't know. I'm just afraid he won't." Old man Marley admits.

"No offence, but aren't you a little old to be afraid?" Kevin asks sheepishly.

A smile appears on Old Man Marley's face. "You can be a little old for a lot of things. You're never too old to be afraid."

Kevin nods his head. "That's true. I've always been afraid of our basement. It's dark. There's weird stuff down there, and it smells funny. That sort of thing. It's bothered me for years."

"Basements are like that." Old man Marley agrees.

Kevin turns his head to look at him. "Then I made myself go down there to do some laundry...and I found out it's not so bad. All this time, I've been worry about it, but if you turn on the lights, it's no big deal."

"What's your point?" Old man Marley questions.

"My point is, you should call your son," Kevin says.

"What if he won't talk to me?"

"At least you'll know. Then you could stop worrying about it. And you won't have to be afraid anymore." Kevin points out. "I don't care how mad I was; I'd talk to my dad. Especially around the holidays."

Old man Marley lets out a sigh. "I don't know."

"Just give it a shot," Kevin says before looking away. "For your granddaughter anyway. I'm sure she misses you. And the presents."

"I send her a check." Old Man Marley comments.

"I wish my grandparents did that. They always send me clothes. Last year, I got a sweater with a big bird knitted on it." Kevin comments.

"Oh, that's nice." Old man Marley comments.

Kevin shakes his head. "Not for a guy in the second grade. You can get beat up for wearing something like that. Yeah. I have a friend who got nailed...because there was a rumour he wore dinosaur pyjamas. "

Old man Marley smiles slightly. "You better run home where you belong. You think about what I said. All right?"

"Okay." Kevin agrees and stands up.

"It's nice talking to you."

"Nice talking to you."

Old man Marley and Kevin shake hands. Kevin and I stand up and get out of our seats. "What about you?"

"Me?" Old man Marley repeats.

"Yeah. You and your son." Kevin says.

"We'll see what happens. Merry Christmas." Old man Marley says softly.

"Merry Christmas." Kevin and I say at the same time. As we began walking out of the church, the clock struck 8:00. We ran home. We both lean against the door once inside. "This is our house. We have to defend it, right Bella?"

"Yes, we do," I say, nodding my head.

We rush about coming up with a plan, and setting said plan up. They won't know what hit them. After setting everything up, we put our meals in the microwave. I waited to eat mine until Kevin's meal was cooked. The microwave pings, and Kevin gets it out. 

We both place our hands together. "Bless this nutritious, microwavable macaroni and cheese dinner...and the people who sold it on sale. Amen."

Before we can eat, the clock chimes to show that it is 9:00. Kevin blows out the candles and arms himself with Buzz's gun. I hid behind the counter while Kevin stood beside the door.

/Thank you for reading this chapter. Please leave a review. Your opinions are appreciated.\