Blighted Soul

Caleb and I entered the dining room where his parents were already seated. We took our seats at the other side of the table. I tried my best to not let the smile slip off my face. Even if this seemed like a lost cause, I was determined to try; for Caleb.

“Dad, it’s nice to see you,” Caleb said unconvincingly, “This is my boyfriend, Evan. But I’m sure she’s already told you that.”

He sent his mother a sardonic smile. His father cleared his throat in that same uncomfortable way that his mother had. “So the Anderson’s daughter…”

“Not nearly my type, as you can imagine,” Caleb said bluntly. “We should eat.”

And so plates were passed around and food was served. My stomach was too much in knots from Caleb’s parents’ disapproval to eat much of anything. For the most part I ended up pushing my food around my plate. Finally, the silence was broken by his mother.

“How’s Debbie?” She asked his father disdainfully. Beside me, Caleb rolled his eyes.

“Here we go,” he muttered.

“Debbie’s doing great, Clarissa. Thank you for asking,” Caleb’s dad said tightly.

“That’s interesting. She hasn’t left you for someone her age, yet?” She was looking at his father with what appeared to be genuine curiosity.

“Clarissa, you’re being inappropriate. Caleb has a guest.” His father said in a calm voice.

“You know what’s inappropriate, Robert? The fact that you’re dating someone young enough to be your child.”

“Clarissa—”

“You wanna know what’s even more inappropriate?” She said, raising her voice. “Cheating on your wife!”

Suddenly, Caleb’s father threw his fork down and stood up. “I’m not going to sit here and take this. Caleb, we’ll arrange something where your mother won’t be present, since she can’t be civilized.”

“Oh, you can take your civility and shove it up your ass!” His mother cried.

“Come on,” Caleb said to me, standing up. As I gathered myself and stood up, still wide eyed from what I’d just witnessed, he turned to his father. “Don’t worry about it, Dad. I’m pretty sure there’s nothing either of you could say to take back how crappy of a parent you’ve been.”

He took me by the arm and led me outside. He deposited me by the passenger’s side of his car. His silence was stony and unchanging. “Where are we going, Caleb?” I asked in an uneasy voice, hugging my arms to myself.

“I’m taking you home,” he said in a carefully leveled voice. My heart beat was racing. I didn’t like the way he was acting at all. This is yet another side of Caleb I’d never seen. He pulled his door open and was about to get in when I panicked.

“Could you—just wait! Caleb, talk to me,” I said, tears leaking from my eyes. I don’t know why I was crying. Maybe I felt bad for him for having such terrible parents, or maybe it just hurt to see him like this.

His eyes caught mine over the top of the car. “I don’t want to talk, Evan,” he said in that same leveled voice.

“But you’re hurting. I know it.”

“But I don’t want to talk about it!” He yelled, catching me off guard. I flinched visibly.

“Then what am I here for, if you can’t even talk to me?” I asked in a cracked whisper, tears leaking down my face freely.

“I don’t know,” he said coldly. It was funny how those three little words nearly broke me. For a moment it was all I could do not to fall to my knees right there. I wiped beneath my eyes hastily, shaking my head more to myself than anyone else.

“Okay then,” I said in the calmest voice I could muster. “Screw you. I’ll walk home.”

Even though it felt like it would kill me, I turned my back on him and left.