Chapter eight.
“I’m thankful you’re the shy and polite guy.” She gave me a smile, and I gave one back.
“You know, I’m surprised you don’t have several guys chasing you. You’re so pretty, I guess I got lucky- didn’t I?”
“I wouldn’t say lucky, there’s a lot of girls out there, Jack, you just got to find them. And thank you.”
“You’re one in a million. If I wanted one of those stuck up cheerleaders, I’d have one. You’re perfect in every way. I don’t know if anyone has ever told you, but… You make me feel like I exist, and that feeling is incredible.” I saw her blush a little, and look around the room.
“Thank you. I’m sorry others don’t make you feel like you exist. I feel the same sometimes. I’m not really.. as you say ‘chased’ by guys, I’m a nerd. I don’t even know why Scott likes me.”
“What isn’t there to like?” She looked down as she blushed- her face turned three shades darker.
Harley’s point of view.
I looked down blushing as I did. Then I found a hand on top of mine. A smile curled around my cheeks, staring into his beautiful, deep blue eyes. He stared me down with lustful eyes. It’s like we were talking through our actions, and reading each other’s minds. Then my thoughts were stopped by the sound of his father’s voice.
“Alright kids; soups on.” He laid a plate of tacos in front of me.
“Mr. Perry. Why don’t you sit down and eat with us?”
“My name is Greg, Greg Melcom. And don’t mind if I do, sweetie.” I saw Jack’s eyes grow a little large.
“Oh my mistake, I thought you were a Perry, Jack.”
“No.. I’m a Melcom.” He said a little nervously.
“Then your mother must be a Perry?”
“Uh… I’ll explain everything later.” He answered.
“Well. So your name is?” Mr. Melcom looked toward me and asked with a small smile.
“Harley Carter.”
“Harley’s a beautiful name.” He took a bite of taco.
“Thank you, I was named after my great grandmother.”
“How lovely.” He said with a sweet smile. Then he looked over at Jack. “Jack, you’re very quiet. Why don’t you say something to your wonderful date?” Jack’s eyes grew a little large again.
“Jack’s like that around me. It doesn’t bother me.” I said with a smile looking over at him. So after we all ate and talked about ourselves, me and Jack went to sit on the porch swing. And Jack began to explain to me about the whole Perry and Melcom thing. As we talked, I felt the cold air of the night brush against my face. And the smell of the night air was so refreshing- along with the grassy smell of what looked like a football field behind us. “It’s so big. The land of this place is huge.” I thought looking back unnoticeably. The cold air made me sit next to Jack even closer as it hit me in the face.
“All my life I have went by a Perry, but I’m really a Melcom. After my mother was pregnant with me; my dad Greg had to do some kind of mission for the government. And my mom knew he wouldn’t be coming back anytime soon; so she wanted someone to raise me as a father, and she got married to Jackson Perry. And all this time I thought he was my father, but really Greg is. I’m glad Jackson isn’t my father though.”
“Wow.. how do you live like that? Knowing the man that raised you isn’t your father? I couldn’t take that.”
“Well, Jackson isn’t much of a father to me; he never was. But Greg, he’s something more than a father- he’s a friend.”
“I’m glad you got to know him. My father died when I was six months old; he was a police officer… he was murdered.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what I would do if I lost one of my parents.”
“It’s hard. I can’t remember that much about him, maybe some of his features and appearance, but I never got to know him.” Jack then put his arm around me.
“It doesn’t seem fair, does it? To lose someone you love- by murder, I don’t know how anyone could live with they’re self for killing a cop, let alone a regular person. Police risk their lives for us every day, and to kill one, that’s just sick.”
“I’d love to know where you got your compassionate morals. That would make any girl fall in love with you.” He looked down at me as I ran a finger down his cheek.
“I can tell we’re two people that deal with something every day. I want to help you face them, just as you do for me.”
“I don’t know, it’s just something about you- I think you go through more than everyone thinks, more than I think.”
“If you only knew.”
“You can tell me anything.” He pressed his forehead against mine and answered, “And same for you.” I then started to peck his lips as he wrapped his arm around my waist. And I saw something in the corner of my eye, and pulled away from him.
“Jack, I like your dad, but one thing.”
“What’s that?” He sounded a little confused.
“He’s watching us.” Just as I said that, Jack jumped off me, and onto his side of the swing. And then his dad came out.
“You guys are too cute.” He chuckled.
“I’m sure your parents did spy on you and mom!” Jack sounded upset.
“No they didn’t. Cause we was grown men and women.” Jack began to groan at him.
“Calm down, boy. I have to get home anyways.” So then we all headed to the car, and Jack and Greg took me home.
“Want me to turn my head?” Greg asked.
“Why?” Jack answered.
“So you guys can kiss.”
“Nope, no need for that.” I spoke up and kissed Jack on the cheek very quickly. “Night, Jack.” I got out of the car.
Jack’s point of view.
“Thanks, dad. You made this the best.” Then my dad took me home. My dad pulled in the drive way of my house, and I offered him to come in.
“Can you come inside for a sec?”
“No.. it’s getting late, and Jackson might be in there.” So then I got out of the car as the cool air hit my face softly, it was mid-October. I walked up my old and nearly broken steps of my house, and walked through the door. One step in and I took off my blue-jean-jacket, and ran my hand over my dark black hair as I said,
“Mom, I’m home.” I looked around, and the room was silent. Some things in the room looked a little out of place; there were things in the floor- like cups, or things that should sit on the table. I looked over at the little side table; it was lying on its side, and the leg of it looked broken. And laid beside that was a lamp; that was supposed to sit on the little table.
“Mom? Why is the table broken?” She still wouldn’t come out, and it’s getting late so she should be looking for me. I walked into the kitchen to find her lying in the floor, with a bloody head. “Mom!” I ran over to her.
“Mom! Are you okay?” She had been knocked out by something. She started to come to me as she groaned in pain.
“Jack?” She said trying to rise up and I helped her.
“Mom what happened?” All she could say was, “I must have been out for hours.”
“What happened?” I sat her on the old yellow couch. Her eyes lined as if it was hard to see, and she started to look around the room in remembrance of what had happened to her.
“Your father.” She whispered out of her dry mouth, and she could barely speak, but that’s all I needed to know he must have come home drunk. “He hit me in the head with something… I think it was a baseball bat.” She finished. Then anger began to rise up inside me; my breathing became faster as I breathed in and out with fury. He must know when the best time is to hurt his is when I’m not around.
“Do you know where he is?!” I asked with an angry tone in my voice.
“I.. I don’t know.” She tried to get out of her beaten voice.
“You know I have to find him.”
“Don’t you’ll…” She tried, but groaned very loudly in pain as she grabbed her head. “Are you okay?!” I asked her as she held her head.
“I’m okay… He’ll hurt you, just leave him alone.” I sat and stared at her, and ran a finger down her cheek as I said,
“I love you, mom.” She smiled so sweetly with pain in her eyes as she said, “And I love you.” After about an hour of sitting with her, I had to break down and ask what he got so angry about.
“Was he just drunk, or was there something that inflamed his anger?” Then she looked, a little worried as she hesitated to tell me.
“He wasn’t drunk..” She sounded very scared. “Mom, what’s wrong?” I asked nervously.
“He found my pregnancy test.” She started to cry softly and I looked shocked as could be.
“Pregnancy test?!” She started to cry much, much harder.
“I’m pregnant, and Greg is the father.” She continued to cry as she covered her mouth. My heart sank like a broken ship; the last time Jackson thought my mom was seeing another man, he about killed all of us. What would be even worse if he found out I wasn’t his child, then I would be his target. Now I really don’t know what to do; Leave home and run for my life, or stay and protect the ones I love- risking my own life.
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