Heart in A Cage
trois
By the time I slipped into bed on that dreary Wednesday night, I’d met the whole Walter family. After Deon and Lukas had left the house and I’d decided that I really didn’t want to spend my evening cooped up in the rather depressing guest room, I’d come downstairs to see if I could help around the house. Of course, Aunt Karen refused to let me do anything and made me sit on the couch while she asked me if there was anything special I’d like to eat for dinner. I made sure to tell her that I really didn’t care what I put in my stomach as long as it filled me up, and then watched a rather boring game of football that had me napping on the comfortable sofa after only a few minutes.
Around seven that evening, I woke up to find my body draped in a rather bright pink blanket. The TV was on, although the volume was set on ‘Mute’, and the lights were dimmed. As I groggily yawned and rubbed at my eyes, shifting uncomfortably around in my jeans, I noticed that I wasn’t the only one present in the living room. Sitting in an armchair with his eyes glued to the TV screen was my fifteen-year-old cousin, Nelson. At first I thought he didn’t realize I’d woken up until he mumbled a quiet “Hi, Connor” that made me blink stupidly at him.
“Uh, hey,” I croaked, clearing my throat slightly. “What’s up?”
He turned to me and shrugged. “Nothing.”
I nodded and got up to go to the bathroom. After I’d washed my face and looked at least more presentable than before, I went to the kitchen and saw Uncle Jeff sitting at the dining table, his pale skin glowing under the bright lights overhead, and his red hair a little messy. When he noticed my presence, he turned his serious eyes to me and gave me a startled little smile.
“Connor,” he said, standing up as I approached him. He wore a wrinkled white shirt and black pants. When I was directly in front of him, I noticed that he still towered over me so I had to look up to talk to him. “How are you?” His hand squeezed my shoulder gently as I gave a quiet laugh, not really sure how to answer this question I’d been asked so many times. I decided to go with the half-truth.
“Alright, I guess,” I said, shoving my hands into my pockets.
“I’m very sorry,” he told me, giving me a pat. I nodded as he took a seat again. “Karen is gone upstairs for a moment,” he told me, his eyes sliding back onto the newspaper. “I’m sure she’ll be back soon.”
And that was as far as the conversation went that evening. I’d skipped out on dinner, claiming that I had a really bad stomachache, and even though Aunt Karen had basically begged to me to join them, I just couldn’t get through another awkward conversation with any of the Walters.
Needless to say, I had a very hard time sleeping that night, in that strange guest room which screamed at me to get out before I went insane.
*
I woke up the next morning sweating and swearing under my breath, glaring at the window which was letting in way too much heat for my liking. The September sun was beating down on the pavement outside with stubborn rays, bright and unbeatable. Yawning and stretching, I looked at the small alarm clock sitting on the bedside table: in annoyingly bright green letters, the time read 9:54. I groaned.
After looking through all my stuff for a while (which was still all packed up in the suitcases), I decided on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts I’d fortunately bought along, despite the fact that we would soon be heading into winter. As I opened the door and stepped out into the hallway, I noticed that the house was unusually quiet, almost as though nobody was home. Of course there’s no one here, I thought suddenly, rubbing at my damp forehead. It’s Thursday – unlike you, people have places to be. The thought depressed me but I pushed it out of my head, instead focusing on the cold shower I badly needed.
When I finally came downstairs, feeling much better, I took in the quiet of the house and wondered what I would do. If this were a normal Thursday, I would be at school, like almost every other sixteen-year-old boy, going through classes with my famous bored expression on my face. However, it seemed that I would be taking a little time off, as Aunt Karen had said that I didn’t have to start school again until Monday. That left me with three days of moping around the house and eating junk food… Not that I was really all that eager to be the “new kid” in town.
In the kitchen, I leaned against the sink and gulped down a glass of orange juice. My stomach seemed to jump at the idea of anything filling it up. Skipping dinner, apparently, wasn’t such a good idea. As I was about to turn around and grab some bread from the fridge, I noticed movement in the backyard. Bent over a small, barely noticeable garden in the corner was…Aunt Karen, the cuffs of her pants rolled up and her sleeveless shirt ruffling slightly in the warm wind. What’s she doing home? I wondered, changing my mind about food and opening the door that led to the back.
“Aunt Karen?” I called, standing in the doorway with my hand shading my eyes. Upon hearing my voice, Aunt Karen turned to me and waved, quickly brushing her hands together and walking towards me. Her bare feet were covered in dirt.
“I see you’re awake!” she said, smiling as she rinsed herself off under the small tap outside. “I didn’t expect you to stir ‘till at least noon.”
“Uhm, no,” I said, feeling a little stupid for thinking I was alone. “Aren’t you supposed to be at work?”
“Not until Monday, no,” she said, shaking her head. After drying her hands on the small towel she had over her shoulder, she wiped her feet on the mattress and walked past me into the kitchen. “I took a week off after I heard about your father, darling,” she told me, sighing a little. “I thought I would help get you used to things around here.” She turned to me and gave a dry chuckle. “And, of course, I never give up a chance to work in my garden.”
I nodded, not really sure what to say. “Well… is it okay if I go for a walk?”
She looked at me and smiled, patting me slightly on the arm with her damp hand. “Yes, of course,” she said, moving towards the fridge. “Just be back by at least noon; I’m about to make some lunch for the two of us.”
“Alright,” I mumbled, grabbing an apple from a small fruit basket nearby, and walking towards the front door. As soon as I was outside, I let out a huge breath, and then started my rather lonely walk down the deserted street.
*
“Are you sure you don’t want to go with us, Connor?” Aunt Karen asked for the millionth time, patting down her hair. She was wearing a deep green top with a flowing black skirt, and had her hair in a loose bun at the back of her head. “Grandpa Byron would’ve loved to see you.” Her concerned eyes roamed my face.
I sighed inwardly and shook my head, avoiding Aunt Karen’s gaze and instead looking at Kelvin bounding down the stairs in a shirt that looked a little too big for him. “I’ll be okay here,” I assured her, nodding a little. “I’m waiting for Tyler’s call, and I need to take care of some things anyway.”
Aunt Karen, finally seeming to give in, nodded and pulled out her keys from her purse. She came over and placed her hand on my head, messing up my hair slightly. “If you need anything, just call Grandpa’s house or one of our phones; the numbers are all in the kitchen.”
“Sure,” I responded lightly, giving her a smile. Kelvin waved at me from the doorway and proceeded to drag Nelson outside, who was grumbling to himself. Uncle Jeff gave me a smile and started to walk down the driveway with Deon, who was – from what I could see – trying to explain something about his truck, by pointing at it and making wild hand gestures.
As soon as the door closed, I went upstairs and into the guestroom (no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t really call it “my room” just yet). I walked over to the closet and started to look through my unpacked stuff. Grabbing an armful of clothes and chucking them onto the bed, I started to search through them for a normal-enough outfit for my first day of school. After all, it was already Friday, and I’d learned from experience that weekends had a tendency to fly by, and things were always left until the last minute… So I had already decided that I would need to prepare myself beforehand for everything.
Needless to say, the next hour and a half moved by in a painfully slow manner that made me want to smash my head against the wall.
After finishing and (finally) unpacking all my stuff and setting it around the room, I came downstairs again, my stomach rumbling in protest. Grabbing myself a glass of fruit punch and some chips, I walked over to the couch and plopped down, blocking out everything and turning on the TV.
Not even five minutes had passed of me watching a new episode of CSI: Miami that I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. I turned down the volume on the TV and grabbed my phone from my pocket. “1 New Message” flashed on the brightly lit screen. I quickly pressed “View.”
cant call 2nite, working overtime again
I sighed and threw the phone onto the cushion beside me. As another meaningless infomercial flashed onto the TV screen, I lay my head back and took in a deep breath. The hard edge of the wood dug into my neck, but I ignored it, instead focusing on the light blue patterns on the ceiling. The lightly brushed vines curved and arched into each other, creating curly designs. If I closed my eyes long enough and then opened them again, the curly lines would become surrounded with dots that meshed into each other and created disfigured blobs.
Maybe it was because I was tiring out my eyes by staring at the ceiling too hard, or maybe it was because of the soft music that had started playing on the TV, but I found myself closing my eyes, and falling asleep pretty quickly.
Around seven that evening, I woke up to find my body draped in a rather bright pink blanket. The TV was on, although the volume was set on ‘Mute’, and the lights were dimmed. As I groggily yawned and rubbed at my eyes, shifting uncomfortably around in my jeans, I noticed that I wasn’t the only one present in the living room. Sitting in an armchair with his eyes glued to the TV screen was my fifteen-year-old cousin, Nelson. At first I thought he didn’t realize I’d woken up until he mumbled a quiet “Hi, Connor” that made me blink stupidly at him.
“Uh, hey,” I croaked, clearing my throat slightly. “What’s up?”
He turned to me and shrugged. “Nothing.”
I nodded and got up to go to the bathroom. After I’d washed my face and looked at least more presentable than before, I went to the kitchen and saw Uncle Jeff sitting at the dining table, his pale skin glowing under the bright lights overhead, and his red hair a little messy. When he noticed my presence, he turned his serious eyes to me and gave me a startled little smile.
“Connor,” he said, standing up as I approached him. He wore a wrinkled white shirt and black pants. When I was directly in front of him, I noticed that he still towered over me so I had to look up to talk to him. “How are you?” His hand squeezed my shoulder gently as I gave a quiet laugh, not really sure how to answer this question I’d been asked so many times. I decided to go with the half-truth.
“Alright, I guess,” I said, shoving my hands into my pockets.
“I’m very sorry,” he told me, giving me a pat. I nodded as he took a seat again. “Karen is gone upstairs for a moment,” he told me, his eyes sliding back onto the newspaper. “I’m sure she’ll be back soon.”
And that was as far as the conversation went that evening. I’d skipped out on dinner, claiming that I had a really bad stomachache, and even though Aunt Karen had basically begged to me to join them, I just couldn’t get through another awkward conversation with any of the Walters.
Needless to say, I had a very hard time sleeping that night, in that strange guest room which screamed at me to get out before I went insane.
*
I woke up the next morning sweating and swearing under my breath, glaring at the window which was letting in way too much heat for my liking. The September sun was beating down on the pavement outside with stubborn rays, bright and unbeatable. Yawning and stretching, I looked at the small alarm clock sitting on the bedside table: in annoyingly bright green letters, the time read 9:54. I groaned.
After looking through all my stuff for a while (which was still all packed up in the suitcases), I decided on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts I’d fortunately bought along, despite the fact that we would soon be heading into winter. As I opened the door and stepped out into the hallway, I noticed that the house was unusually quiet, almost as though nobody was home. Of course there’s no one here, I thought suddenly, rubbing at my damp forehead. It’s Thursday – unlike you, people have places to be. The thought depressed me but I pushed it out of my head, instead focusing on the cold shower I badly needed.
When I finally came downstairs, feeling much better, I took in the quiet of the house and wondered what I would do. If this were a normal Thursday, I would be at school, like almost every other sixteen-year-old boy, going through classes with my famous bored expression on my face. However, it seemed that I would be taking a little time off, as Aunt Karen had said that I didn’t have to start school again until Monday. That left me with three days of moping around the house and eating junk food… Not that I was really all that eager to be the “new kid” in town.
In the kitchen, I leaned against the sink and gulped down a glass of orange juice. My stomach seemed to jump at the idea of anything filling it up. Skipping dinner, apparently, wasn’t such a good idea. As I was about to turn around and grab some bread from the fridge, I noticed movement in the backyard. Bent over a small, barely noticeable garden in the corner was…Aunt Karen, the cuffs of her pants rolled up and her sleeveless shirt ruffling slightly in the warm wind. What’s she doing home? I wondered, changing my mind about food and opening the door that led to the back.
“Aunt Karen?” I called, standing in the doorway with my hand shading my eyes. Upon hearing my voice, Aunt Karen turned to me and waved, quickly brushing her hands together and walking towards me. Her bare feet were covered in dirt.
“I see you’re awake!” she said, smiling as she rinsed herself off under the small tap outside. “I didn’t expect you to stir ‘till at least noon.”
“Uhm, no,” I said, feeling a little stupid for thinking I was alone. “Aren’t you supposed to be at work?”
“Not until Monday, no,” she said, shaking her head. After drying her hands on the small towel she had over her shoulder, she wiped her feet on the mattress and walked past me into the kitchen. “I took a week off after I heard about your father, darling,” she told me, sighing a little. “I thought I would help get you used to things around here.” She turned to me and gave a dry chuckle. “And, of course, I never give up a chance to work in my garden.”
I nodded, not really sure what to say. “Well… is it okay if I go for a walk?”
She looked at me and smiled, patting me slightly on the arm with her damp hand. “Yes, of course,” she said, moving towards the fridge. “Just be back by at least noon; I’m about to make some lunch for the two of us.”
“Alright,” I mumbled, grabbing an apple from a small fruit basket nearby, and walking towards the front door. As soon as I was outside, I let out a huge breath, and then started my rather lonely walk down the deserted street.
*
“Are you sure you don’t want to go with us, Connor?” Aunt Karen asked for the millionth time, patting down her hair. She was wearing a deep green top with a flowing black skirt, and had her hair in a loose bun at the back of her head. “Grandpa Byron would’ve loved to see you.” Her concerned eyes roamed my face.
I sighed inwardly and shook my head, avoiding Aunt Karen’s gaze and instead looking at Kelvin bounding down the stairs in a shirt that looked a little too big for him. “I’ll be okay here,” I assured her, nodding a little. “I’m waiting for Tyler’s call, and I need to take care of some things anyway.”
Aunt Karen, finally seeming to give in, nodded and pulled out her keys from her purse. She came over and placed her hand on my head, messing up my hair slightly. “If you need anything, just call Grandpa’s house or one of our phones; the numbers are all in the kitchen.”
“Sure,” I responded lightly, giving her a smile. Kelvin waved at me from the doorway and proceeded to drag Nelson outside, who was grumbling to himself. Uncle Jeff gave me a smile and started to walk down the driveway with Deon, who was – from what I could see – trying to explain something about his truck, by pointing at it and making wild hand gestures.
As soon as the door closed, I went upstairs and into the guestroom (no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t really call it “my room” just yet). I walked over to the closet and started to look through my unpacked stuff. Grabbing an armful of clothes and chucking them onto the bed, I started to search through them for a normal-enough outfit for my first day of school. After all, it was already Friday, and I’d learned from experience that weekends had a tendency to fly by, and things were always left until the last minute… So I had already decided that I would need to prepare myself beforehand for everything.
Needless to say, the next hour and a half moved by in a painfully slow manner that made me want to smash my head against the wall.
After finishing and (finally) unpacking all my stuff and setting it around the room, I came downstairs again, my stomach rumbling in protest. Grabbing myself a glass of fruit punch and some chips, I walked over to the couch and plopped down, blocking out everything and turning on the TV.
Not even five minutes had passed of me watching a new episode of CSI: Miami that I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. I turned down the volume on the TV and grabbed my phone from my pocket. “1 New Message” flashed on the brightly lit screen. I quickly pressed “View.”
cant call 2nite, working overtime again
I sighed and threw the phone onto the cushion beside me. As another meaningless infomercial flashed onto the TV screen, I lay my head back and took in a deep breath. The hard edge of the wood dug into my neck, but I ignored it, instead focusing on the light blue patterns on the ceiling. The lightly brushed vines curved and arched into each other, creating curly designs. If I closed my eyes long enough and then opened them again, the curly lines would become surrounded with dots that meshed into each other and created disfigured blobs.
Maybe it was because I was tiring out my eyes by staring at the ceiling too hard, or maybe it was because of the soft music that had started playing on the TV, but I found myself closing my eyes, and falling asleep pretty quickly.
♠ ♠ ♠
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