Fences
Lying
That night, at dinner, I thought about all Lily and I talked about. I wanted to tell my mom about her, but I was afraid. I was afraid of how she would treat me…how she would react.
“Mom, have you ever met the neighbors?” I asked, tossing around my spaghetti.
“Yes, I have.” She was reading her romance novel...at the dinner table.
“All of them?”
She put her book down, squaring her eyes at me, “Franklin Iero, what are you getting at?”
“Have you ever met the Romeros?”
She raised her brow, “I’ve met the mother. I don’t want to catch what they have. You better stay away from them.”
“Why?”
She gave me an irritated glance, “I don’t want my son to get what they have.”
“But—“
“As long as you keep a safe distance from them, you won’t get it.”
I raised my brow like she had done, “Get it?”
“The AIDS.” She snapped at me.
“How far is a safe distance?”
“500 feet. I’ve been trying to get them kicked out of our neighborhood since they moved in, but the police say it’s not against the law to have AIDS.” My mom shook her head, “We are raising good, God-fearing children here! We shouldn’t have Gay loving homos in our neighborhood.”
I felt sick hearing her talk this way, “But, they aren’t gay…I mean, not only gay people get AIDS.”
“I know that, Frank, but they are the ones who started it.”
I rolled my eyes and played with my food, ignoring everything she had just said. I swear, she’s a class a idiot.
“I mean it, Frank. You stay away from those people.”
“I watched Medicine Man last night,” Lily sat beside me on her back stoop, eating an orange creme sickle, “I like to think that the cure for everything lies in plants.”
“You could be right,” I had a fudge ice cream, “remember, the guy who found the cure for aspirin found it on moldy bread.”
Lily just smiled at me, and I smiled back. I was going to suggest that we go to the pond, but then she hissed. She dropped her ice cream and held her chest; I jumped up, dropping my own ice cream, “Lily, what’s wrong?”
Lily started to cough and bend, I patted her back, hopping it was just a heavy cough. Her breathing was erratic, fear swept through me, then she stood, pacing slowly, then her coughing calmed. I relaxed and stood in front of her, “Are you okay?”
“Fine.” Her voice was hoarse, “Happens all the time.”
“When, exactly? That hadn’t happened since I’ve met you…”
Lily’s face was flushed, she just waved me off, “Not all the time, per se, just whenever it feels like it.”
“Well, you’re okay now, right?”
Lilly nodded, “Slight headache, we’re all out of aspirin.”
I furrowed my brows, “We have some! I’ll be back in a sec!”
Lily sat back on the stoop, I took off towards the front and to my house. Our parents weren’t home; both at work. I ran inside, up the stairs and to the bathroom; I pulled open the medicine cabinet and found my mom’s pill stash. My mom always took these pink pills that made her feel better, I just hoped that Lily wouldn’t pass out like my mom usually did.
I went back to the stoop and gave the two capsules to Lily. She eyeballed them, “What’re they?”
“My mom takes these after she’s gotten drunk off wine. She takes like 5 or 6, so like 2 would be cool for you.”
“But, what are they?” She looked worried.
“I don’t know.”
“I don’t know if I should take them,” she looked at the pills, “I don’t want them conflicting with my medication.” She used her other hand to rub her temple.
“Don’t worry about it, your head is hurting.”
She smiled softly at me, “Thanks, Frank.”
I nodded, watching her down the 2 capsules and grimace. She looked at me wearily, “What?”
“They taste really gross. I need some water.”
Lily and I went into her house and sat at the counter. Lily got a water bottle and nearly downed the entire thing. We hung out for a little while, until her mom came home, and then I was off back to my own home.
My mom as soon as I stepped through the door.
“Where were you?” She asked.
“With…some friends.”
She raised her brow, “Friends? Who?”
“Mikey Way and his brother.” I lied.
Mikey Way and I haven’t been friends since middle school.
“Oh, you two are talking again?” She watched me, reading me, seeing if I was lying.
“Yeah.” Lie.
She hummed, I had a strange feeling that she knew the truth. My heart raced, wondering if she’d hit me or if she was just doing this to fuck with me.
“Maybe you can invite him over, I haven’t seen him in a while. His mother, Donna, she saw me after work today…she was quite hesitant to say hello to me.”
I laughed it off nervously, “She’s just odd, ma, you know that.”
She nodded, “Yeah. Well, go wash up, I’m actually going to cook tonight.”
I was dismissed and I happily ran up the stairs.
It was about 9pm, I was lying in my bed, listening to my walkman when I saw red and blue flashing lights fill my entire room. The sirens were drowned out by the Smashing Pumpkins. I turned it off, hearing loud banging on our front door, I jumped up, worried that something had happened to someone close to me. I went towards the stairs, seeing my mom open up the door, her wine glass in hand. I saw Mrs. Romero once the door was opened.
“I need to see Frankie, he-he gave my daughter—“
“Frank? What the hell did Frank do?” My mom snapped.
“He gave—“ She stopped when she saw me by the stairs, “Frankie, what did you give Lily? She said you have her some pills, what were they?”
I ran back to the bathroom and grabbed my mom’s pills. I rushed back down, surpassing my mom and gave them to a frantic Mrs. Romero, “These. I gave her two, she had a headache, I didn’t know—“
“It’s alright, thank you.” Mrs. Romero rushed back to the police car, then to the parked ambulance.
I grew frightened at what I had done. I might’ve killed her.
We, all the neighbors too, watched the ambulance take Lily and her mom away. The entire neighborhood seemed to look at us, that’s when I remembered my mom.
“Get your ass in the house.” She spoke quietly, but it was filled with anger.
I slowly turned around and walked into the house. My mom came in, closed the door, and that’s when I felt her hands hit my head. She was slapping me around, and I expected it. She was drunk.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?! Did I not make myself clear, Frank? What were you doing with that girl? Are you fucking crazy? Are you trying to kill yourself? And me?!”
I shielded myself from her blows until she gave up. She gripped my forearms, making me look at her and cry out in pain.
“When your father and his wife get back, you are going to go live with him! I cannot take your disobedient behavior, and the fact you chose to be around that filthy girl, when I told you not to! You go give them that sickness!”
“But, you—“
“Frank, do you not understand?!” She screamed at me, “This is not the flu, or measles, or chickenpox! This is AIDS! I’ll be damned if you give it to me! Get upstairs!”
She slapped me upside my head once more before I retreated back to my room.
“Mom, have you ever met the neighbors?” I asked, tossing around my spaghetti.
“Yes, I have.” She was reading her romance novel...at the dinner table.
“All of them?”
She put her book down, squaring her eyes at me, “Franklin Iero, what are you getting at?”
“Have you ever met the Romeros?”
She raised her brow, “I’ve met the mother. I don’t want to catch what they have. You better stay away from them.”
“Why?”
She gave me an irritated glance, “I don’t want my son to get what they have.”
“But—“
“As long as you keep a safe distance from them, you won’t get it.”
I raised my brow like she had done, “Get it?”
“The AIDS.” She snapped at me.
“How far is a safe distance?”
“500 feet. I’ve been trying to get them kicked out of our neighborhood since they moved in, but the police say it’s not against the law to have AIDS.” My mom shook her head, “We are raising good, God-fearing children here! We shouldn’t have Gay loving homos in our neighborhood.”
I felt sick hearing her talk this way, “But, they aren’t gay…I mean, not only gay people get AIDS.”
“I know that, Frank, but they are the ones who started it.”
I rolled my eyes and played with my food, ignoring everything she had just said. I swear, she’s a class a idiot.
“I mean it, Frank. You stay away from those people.”
***
“I watched Medicine Man last night,” Lily sat beside me on her back stoop, eating an orange creme sickle, “I like to think that the cure for everything lies in plants.”
“You could be right,” I had a fudge ice cream, “remember, the guy who found the cure for aspirin found it on moldy bread.”
Lily just smiled at me, and I smiled back. I was going to suggest that we go to the pond, but then she hissed. She dropped her ice cream and held her chest; I jumped up, dropping my own ice cream, “Lily, what’s wrong?”
Lily started to cough and bend, I patted her back, hopping it was just a heavy cough. Her breathing was erratic, fear swept through me, then she stood, pacing slowly, then her coughing calmed. I relaxed and stood in front of her, “Are you okay?”
“Fine.” Her voice was hoarse, “Happens all the time.”
“When, exactly? That hadn’t happened since I’ve met you…”
Lily’s face was flushed, she just waved me off, “Not all the time, per se, just whenever it feels like it.”
“Well, you’re okay now, right?”
Lilly nodded, “Slight headache, we’re all out of aspirin.”
I furrowed my brows, “We have some! I’ll be back in a sec!”
Lily sat back on the stoop, I took off towards the front and to my house. Our parents weren’t home; both at work. I ran inside, up the stairs and to the bathroom; I pulled open the medicine cabinet and found my mom’s pill stash. My mom always took these pink pills that made her feel better, I just hoped that Lily wouldn’t pass out like my mom usually did.
I went back to the stoop and gave the two capsules to Lily. She eyeballed them, “What’re they?”
“My mom takes these after she’s gotten drunk off wine. She takes like 5 or 6, so like 2 would be cool for you.”
“But, what are they?” She looked worried.
“I don’t know.”
“I don’t know if I should take them,” she looked at the pills, “I don’t want them conflicting with my medication.” She used her other hand to rub her temple.
“Don’t worry about it, your head is hurting.”
She smiled softly at me, “Thanks, Frank.”
I nodded, watching her down the 2 capsules and grimace. She looked at me wearily, “What?”
“They taste really gross. I need some water.”
Lily and I went into her house and sat at the counter. Lily got a water bottle and nearly downed the entire thing. We hung out for a little while, until her mom came home, and then I was off back to my own home.
My mom as soon as I stepped through the door.
“Where were you?” She asked.
“With…some friends.”
She raised her brow, “Friends? Who?”
“Mikey Way and his brother.” I lied.
Mikey Way and I haven’t been friends since middle school.
“Oh, you two are talking again?” She watched me, reading me, seeing if I was lying.
“Yeah.” Lie.
She hummed, I had a strange feeling that she knew the truth. My heart raced, wondering if she’d hit me or if she was just doing this to fuck with me.
“Maybe you can invite him over, I haven’t seen him in a while. His mother, Donna, she saw me after work today…she was quite hesitant to say hello to me.”
I laughed it off nervously, “She’s just odd, ma, you know that.”
She nodded, “Yeah. Well, go wash up, I’m actually going to cook tonight.”
I was dismissed and I happily ran up the stairs.
***
It was about 9pm, I was lying in my bed, listening to my walkman when I saw red and blue flashing lights fill my entire room. The sirens were drowned out by the Smashing Pumpkins. I turned it off, hearing loud banging on our front door, I jumped up, worried that something had happened to someone close to me. I went towards the stairs, seeing my mom open up the door, her wine glass in hand. I saw Mrs. Romero once the door was opened.
“I need to see Frankie, he-he gave my daughter—“
“Frank? What the hell did Frank do?” My mom snapped.
“He gave—“ She stopped when she saw me by the stairs, “Frankie, what did you give Lily? She said you have her some pills, what were they?”
I ran back to the bathroom and grabbed my mom’s pills. I rushed back down, surpassing my mom and gave them to a frantic Mrs. Romero, “These. I gave her two, she had a headache, I didn’t know—“
“It’s alright, thank you.” Mrs. Romero rushed back to the police car, then to the parked ambulance.
I grew frightened at what I had done. I might’ve killed her.
We, all the neighbors too, watched the ambulance take Lily and her mom away. The entire neighborhood seemed to look at us, that’s when I remembered my mom.
“Get your ass in the house.” She spoke quietly, but it was filled with anger.
I slowly turned around and walked into the house. My mom came in, closed the door, and that’s when I felt her hands hit my head. She was slapping me around, and I expected it. She was drunk.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?! Did I not make myself clear, Frank? What were you doing with that girl? Are you fucking crazy? Are you trying to kill yourself? And me?!”
I shielded myself from her blows until she gave up. She gripped my forearms, making me look at her and cry out in pain.
“When your father and his wife get back, you are going to go live with him! I cannot take your disobedient behavior, and the fact you chose to be around that filthy girl, when I told you not to! You go give them that sickness!”
“But, you—“
“Frank, do you not understand?!” She screamed at me, “This is not the flu, or measles, or chickenpox! This is AIDS! I’ll be damned if you give it to me! Get upstairs!”
She slapped me upside my head once more before I retreated back to my room.