STARGIRL

65. Reset

Carefully, he rolled the corners of the thin mask inward with the tips of his fingers until the dried-up face mask was off his face.

He washed the remainder of the specks with cold water and then applied a generous layer of his favorite hydrating moisturizer.

Abel stared at himself in the mirror to see if the mask had really helped reduce his face's puffiness. He had barely gotten any sleep, and he would have to be at school in less than an hour.

Deep down, he wished his summer wouldn't have ended because he wasn't looking forward to another school year where his father had him on a short leash.

The 18-year-old had spent his summer vacation in Australia with his mother. She was working on a project for her job while Abel spent his time playing basketball and video games as well as swimming and eating.

For his birthday, he got to pet and bottle feed a baby kangaroo. He believed that was the highlight of his trip and possibly even his life.

Other than that, it was a neutral and dull summer, but overall, it was a nice vacation from his life with his father.

Abel applied cologne one last time before grabbing his backpack and heading downstairs to grab something for breakfast before he had to leave.

His father was already sitting at the kitchen table with his newspaper in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other.

Abel set his backpack down on the kitchen counter and began to make himself a bagel, although he could feel his father's unwelcoming presence begin to disturb him.

His father looked over at him. Steven Rogers has not spoken a word to his child since he had left for the summer.

Out of his three children, Steven found his youngest to be the only one who disappointed him. The man, a Princeton graduate, was very proud of his older children — Maya and Jordan, who were both from his first marriage.

Abel disliked his half-siblings because they often made rude remarks about him being mixed, or they'd give insults in the form of compliments regarding his educational standing.

Nevertheless, Steven Rogers wanted Abel to be like his older kids: successful, responsible, and respectful.

Abel kept stacking cream cheese spread on the top of his bagel slices with a steak knife while his father began to fold his newspaper up in his eerily neat fashion.

"Your schedule, what does it look like this year?"

Abel was shocked that his father had spoken to him, but it also made him angry. Just hearing his stern tone bothered him. Harsh and unloving.

"They put me in the English class for dumbasses," Abel's voice was dull and unenthusiastic.

Steven kept his face straight as he reached for his mug of coffee, "What? Do you actually believe the faculty made a mistake?"

Abel didn't bother to answer his father's rhetorical question. He started to put away the bag of bagels, and the cream cheese spread when his father got up from his chair.

Abel felt himself tense up.

Steven adjusted the sleeves of his white collared shirt, "Go. You don't want to be late."

Abel's throat dried up, "Yeah, I'll be gone in a bit."

Steven went to put his dirty mug in the kitchen sink. Abel was quickly trying to get out of there, but not before his father's hand came crashing down on his right shoulder.

Abel's entire body became rigid, and for a short moment, he thought about it.

He thought about how easy it would be for someone of his height and physical strength to hit him.