Chapter 24
A White Lie
“What’s this one about?” Titus held up a DVD case with batman on the front of it.
I just smiled. “About a guy who saves a city from a mental clown.”
He scrunched up his nose and put it to the side. “Sounds weird.”
I rolled my eyes and knelt beside him. “It’s good. Trust me, you’ll like it.” I put in the player and grabbed the remotes. After getting everything set up, I retreated back to the couch.
Titus joined me. “Humans come up with the weirdest things.”
“One day I’m going to show you a couple werewolves movies, and you’ll see how weird we really are,” I whispered.
He sunk into the couch. “That bad huh. I think if humans had some basic instincts, none of this would happen.”
I laughed. “I doubt that would fix it.”
“Hmmm…” He sank even lower, clearing pouting. “Can’t we do something else?”
“It’s not a bad movie. I promise.”
My mother walked in with a bowl of popcorn. “Alright that should hold you over.” She set the bowl down and looked between us. “I’ll be outside in the garden. Can I trust to leave you unchaperoned?”
“Mom,” I groaned. “You can really consider forcing us down here to being unchaperoned.”
“Limiting temptation,” she smiled and went to open the window. “Be good boys.”
Demon came prancing to her from the kitchen. “Come here.” She picked up the little dog and went toward the backdoor. “Let’s leave the boys alone.”
The door closed soon after, and I pushed play. My mother talking to Demon could clearly be heard through the window.
Titus folded his arm and glared at the screen. “Yeah we’re really alone.”
“Oh my god,” I muttered, rubbing my forehead. “I’m starting to think I should have stayed in the closet.”
“Yeah,” huffed Titus. “Me too.”
***
Titus shifted, and I opened my eyes a little. I glanced around the dim room to see that the credits for the movie were almost done.
“Aden,” said a deep voice.
I looked to the entryway to see my father standing there. My chest tightened. I sat up quickly and removed Titus’s arm from around my waist.
“Dad,” I glanced at the clock on the wall. “You’re, you’re home early.”
He nodded, staring at Titus as he scooted to the other side of the couch. “What were you doing?”
“Watching a movie. We must have fallen asleep,” I laughed hesitantly.
The back door open, and my mother appeared, holding demon.
“Quint, dinner isn’t quite ready.” She put the dog down and grabbed my father’s arm. “Another twenty minutes, so you have time to change.”
My father didn’t move. “I think it times for you to go home.”
Titus nodded and stood. “I’ll see you later, Aden.” He slipped passed my father to put on his shoes.
No one moved until we heard the door close and Titus’s car start up.
“What kind of a relationship do you have with that boy?” said my father firmly.
“We’re just friends.” I sucked in my lips.
“You’re not lying, Aden? You’re won’t hide something from me?”
I shook my head. “No. Really we’re just friends.”
“Quint,” said my mother, touching his arm. “Go wash up and leave him be.”
“Are you sure about that?” He looked me straight in the eyes.
I nodded. “Yes.”
He took a deep breath and exhaled. “Alright.”
Bowing my head, I listened to his footsteps.
After checking to make sure he was gone, my mother hurried to my side. She hugged me tightly. “I’m so sorry. Demon ran off, and I just got distracted. I’m so sorry, sweetheart.”
I laid my head on her shoulder. “It’s okay. I’ll be okay.”
She cupped my cheek. “You’re shaky.”
I forced a smile. “It startled me,” I whispered. “I-I wasn’t ready for that.”
“I know, I know.” She held my head to her chest. “We’ll work it out. Don’t worry.”
With Demon tagging along behind her, she went to the kitchen to get the lasagna she had made out of the oven. My heart was still recovering. I knew telling him was going to be a lot harder.
***
I hurried down the stairs, still pulling on my shirt. My mom handed me my lunch and something to eat for breakfast during the trip. My dad was already sitting in the truck. I climbed in and unwrapped the breakfast burrito my mom had made.
“Sorry,” I muttered. “My phone was on silent.”
With a sigh, he pulled out of the drive and started down the road. Since seeing me and Titus on the couch, my dad hadn’t said much to me. I kept glancing over at him, but received no response in return. This anxiety was making my stomach hurt. I forced my burrito down and slumped down in my seat. If I acted like everything was okay, it would be. I just had to keep reminding myself of that.
I bounced my foot. The weird silence was making me jittery. I reached over and turned on the radio. Only a couple songs played before my dad turned it off. I peeked over at him. He looked lost in his own mind.
“Dad?”
“Hmmm…”
“Never mind.” I folded my arms and gazed out the window.
The turn off for Beaver Lake approached. He didn’t slow down. I sat up in my seat and watched it go by.
“Dad, you missed it.”
He remained silent. “I’ll be cleaning somewhere else. Another person wanted that campground, so I told my boss it would be fine if you traded.”
“Why didn’t you ask?”
My father shrugged. “Didn’t think it matter. Besides this one has a nicer road and isn’t as far into the woods. The mosquitoes aren’t nearly as bad. You’ll like it.”
I just stared at him. “Why did you waiting to tell me now?”
“Like I said, I didn’t think it matter. Work is work. Doesn’t matter where it’s done as long as it is done.” He turned the radio on and went back to ignoring me.
Rubbing my face, I peered out the window. He knew. He had to know. “Dad?”
“Not now, Aden. We’ll talk about it tonight.”
“About what?” I wrung my hands together.
He leaned back in his seat and shifted his weight. “About you lying to me.”