Keeping Tabs

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

“She gonna be ok?”

“She's fine. Look, she's coming out of it now.”

“What happened to her?”

That last voice was almost enough to send me back over the edge. I think it's actually kind of funny now that I look back on it, but even that early on, I could already recognize when it was Colin, and when it wasn't. I had to force myself to say something.

“Mmm fine.”I muttered. That was really the best I could do. It felt as though I'd swallowed a few bags of cotton balls as I opened my mouth to speak. My head was throbbing, but all I could think of was the embarrassment I was feeling. I couldn’t imagine how stupid I must have looked. And that thought was enough to remind me.

“You sure about that?”

I couldn't be certain, but I was reasonably sure that it was Seth that asked. I was about to reassure him that I was, when the entire room burst into laughter. I could feel my face burning with embarrassment, and in that moment I wanted to melt into floor. And then the front door slammed roughly, followed by a steady stream of curses. As I opened my eyes, I could see that I wasn't the only one that wanted the floor to swallow them whole.

“Micah! Where are you, boy? Get in here! NOW!”

“I'm coming, Mom!”Micah looked around desperately, tears already welling in his eyes. My heart broke into a million pieces for him right then and there. I sat up only an instant before Colin was hauling me to my feet, dragging me toward the closet. My first instinct was to fight him, but I stopped struggling as I noticed the other guys hiding throughout the tiny room.

I realized that what I was witnessing must be a fairly standard practice for them. Colin released his hold on my arms when the closet door was closed behind him, and he gestured for me to be quiet. I nodded to show him that I understood, and I tried my best not to stare at him as he pressed his ear to the door. I soon found out that there were things in this world that could actually distract me from such a beautiful face.

“Why are these boxes out of place, boy? What have I told you about movin’ my things?”

“Mom, I was just making room to walk!”

A loud slap rang out across the house. I could hear Micah's quiet sobs, and a new kind of anger burned in me. I wanted to kill the owner of that harsh voice. I wanted to fix the entire situation, and I had never felt so helpless.

“Don't talk back to me, you little faggot! I told you about that! Now put the boxes back where they were!”

“Yes ma'am.”Micah's watery voice hurt me just to hear it, and made me hate his mother even more. One look at Colin told me that he felt same. And I wondered just how many times these boys had hidden from this beast that herself a mother.

I could hear the shuffle of cardboard sliding across the floor, then there was a tearing sound and Micah's startled apology. One of the boxes had torn, and judging by the sound of his voice, this was a major problem. I was horrified by what I heard next.

“Don't be such a careless little twit! Why did I ever give birth to you? You're worthless! Your father was a two-bit good for nothin’ queer, and you're just like him!”

There was a long period of sharp, snapping noises that sounded unmistakably like leather hitting bare skin. Micah's cries became a bit more muffled, and Colin was gripping my hand so tightly I could actually feel bruises forming. I really wasn't sure how much more of this any of us could take.

“Hey, mama. Thought you were gonna be gone until tomorrow.”

My ears pricked up at this new voice. Very young, feminine, and smooth. Deceptively smooth. I assumed that this must be Micah's older sister, Makayla. The one flicker of hope that I held for Micah died in the next instant.