Just a Bet

It Was Just a Bet

Pull! Climb... pull.. climb! I climbed the side of my house. Well, that was a big waste, I thought. The party was a total waste of my time. Hale said Jenny Walter would be there but was she? Hell no. The girl was giving me mixed signals. One minute, she'd be all over me, saying stuff like I really like you and giving me peppered kisses but the next second, she'd ran away from like I had an STD or something. I'm STD free by the way ladies. Wink.

            I gripped the edge of my window and tried to push the glass up. Weirdly, it was locked. Crap! Who locked my window? I let go of the ledge and landed on my feet. A dull sting ran through my legs. Oh, cramp... cramp! I pressed my back against the side of my house and crawled toward the back entrance. Mom was going to kill me if she found out I snuck out again. Dad would be even worse.

            I peeked through the glass door. The kitchen lights were off. I pulled the spare key out of the plant next to the door. I unlocked the door, put the key back and slowly turned the knob. I stepped in and closed the door behind me. I snuck around the kitchen and hurried up the stairs.

            YES! I stepped into my room and closed the door, a sigh of relief escaping my lips.

            "Well, it's nice to see you're back, Liam." I heard my mother's voice. I felt a shiver go down my spine. Crap, I'm dead.

            I turned around and turned on my charm, "Mom, what goes on? You look so pretty today. What do you do?"

            Mom grinned, her short red hair pulled back into a ponytail. She had some weird green crap on her face. Apparently, it's supposed to make her look younger. Like that's possible, "Cut the charm, Liam. This is the tenth time you snuck out this month! What is the matter with you?"

            Is it wrong for a guy to want a girl? Damn, "It's not like I'm doing anything bad. If you noticed, I always come back by 12."

            She raised her eyebrow. Oh crap, "You little.... If you sneak out again, Liam Hill Gold, you will not live to see tomorrow."

            I perched my lips, "If I sneak out the day after tomorrow, am I okay?"

            She jerked at me, threatening. I jerked back, scared.

            Dad walked into the room, little Jacquelyn in his arms, pulling at his black hair, "Tedi, don't yell at the boy."

            I smiled at my dad. He always had my side.

            "He snuck out again, Jack! You can't be serious that this is okay?" Mom argued, obviously pissed that Dad took my side.

            Dad shrugged, "He's just a boy, babe. I used to do this when I was young."

            "Yea!" I chimed in and Mom glared at me. Okay, bad idea.

            Mom batted her eyes at Dad and bit her lip, "But Jack, this is like the tenth time. He needs to be punished."

            "Punished?" I gaped, "Harsh words, Mom."

            Dad smiled, "How about we ground him for a month?"

            Mom pouted, "Actually, I was thinking about whipping him with your favorite belt."

            My jaw nearly dropped, "MOM!"

            Four year old Jacquelyn started chanting in Dad's arms, "Whip him! Whip him! Whip him!" Dad laughed, patting her curly dark red hair. Jacquelyn clapped her chubby hands together and giggled.