If I Knew Who You Were

That evening, dinner was awkward. I don't think my mum knew about Frank yet, and Mikey obviously had no clue.

"So, dear, how was your day?" My mother asked, in her sickly sweet voice, that she'd only really use when dad was around.

"Same old, same old," My dad answered, shoveling food into his mouth. Because of him, Frank could be out there somewhere, starving his guts out, and my Dad was acting as though nothing had even happened. I could feel anger coursing through my veins, but remained calm anyway.

"You normally throw sixteen year olds out onto the street all the time then?" I asked casually, moving my food around my plate with my fork. Mikey stopped mid-mouthful and looked at me, eyebrow raised.

"What are you talking about?" My mother said, pulling the same expression as Mikey.

"Tell them Dad." I said, glaring at him.

"You know it's for your own good, son,"

"Dad! Look at this weather," I said, pointing out of the window to the raining streets. "He's out there in this, and it's for my own good? What the fuck are you on?!"

"Gerard, mind your language," my mother said, before turning her head to look at my dad. "What is he talking about?"

"Frank, okay?" He snapped. Mikey just continued to sit there looking confused and my mother just sighed slightly, looking agitated at the situation.

"Gerard's met him then?"

"Yes, so I kicked him out," My mums eyes turned the size of basket balls as he said this.
"Donald! What were you thinking?"

"I don't want him around our children," he stood up.

"One is twenty and the other is seventeen, they can look after themselves! You can't control who they make friends with forever!" At this, Mikeys eyes went even wider.

"Okay, Mum, Dad - What the fuck is going on?!" he said, standing up as well.

Neither my mum nor my dad said anything, so I leant back in my chair. "There's been someone else living in this house the whole time. Y'know Linda?" Mikey nodded. "She had a son, but Dad didn't want us to know this. He didn't want us to meet him, because he doesn't think that he was worthy of our friendship. That's why we go to the best schools - so we can make the best friends," I said, clearly. Everyone around the table looked shocked.

"That's why you didn't like Alicia?" Mikey shouted at Dad. "Because she's not from some snobby private school?!" he added, before storming up to his room.

"How did you know that?" Dad asked, shamefully, looking at me as my mum left the room after Mikey.

"Frank is no longer under your threatening control. He can tell me what he wants."

"Listen. There's more to it than that,"

"Then explain," I said, making myself comfortable in my seat, and pushing my plate away, before looking expectantly at him. He hesitated for a second before sitting where Mikey was originally sitting - right across the table from me. He leant his elbows on the table, and looked me right in the eye.

"I took over from my own fathers business, which is why we have the amount of money we do, so when I was younger, I too had the easy life-style that you have. I lived in a big house, and I could have pretty much what I wanted but my Dad still wanted me to have some normalcy in my life, so he sent me to an everyday public school. Everyone there knew about my fathers money and didn't like me, assumed that I thought I was better than them. They said that I shouldn't be there and that I should fuck off to some rich kids school.

"I tried to make friends, but some people just aren't that accepting of others. I got bullied throughout my entire school life, and on the last day they ganged up on me, and put me in hospital. I couldn't let that happen to you and Mikey - I had to send you to a school where you would be the same as everyone else so you wouldn't have to go through what I did," I was pretty shocked, because as far as I knew, my Dad had a good childhood. Also, I guess that it partly made sense, but it still didn't really explain the Frank situation.

"Well that's all pretty tragic Dad, but do you really think that Frank would bully Mikey and me...in our own home?"

"No, that's a different matter. I didn't allow him to go to a public school, in case they found out where he was from, and did to him what was done to me, and I didn't want to pay for him to go to your school because you'd ask too many questions,"

"Unless you let us know him since his birth!"

"That wasn't an option,"

"WHY?!" I wailed, standing from my sheet, and pinching the bridge of my nose between my thumb and my forefinger attempting to compose myself.

"I don't know. At the time, it seemed like the right thing to do, I guess it was just my mind telling me not to trust people who don't have backgrounds like ours - but I regret it,"

"If you regret it - then why'd you kick Frank out?"

"Because I'm in charge around here," he boomed, catching me off guard. "If someone makes a deal with me, I carry it through, no matter what - or in this situation who will actually suffer the consequences. I do not answer to you Gerard, or Frank or Linda. I answer to myself. I make the rules around here, and the only person I answer to is myself. Now go to your room!" He pointed at the door.

"Wow Dad, telling your 20 year old son to 'go to his room'? Good one, real punishment there," I said sarcastically, storming past him and out of the room.

Just another peaceful evening at the Way residents