20 Questions

Chapter 133

Hunter

To my brothers,

If you are reading this, it means my father won. No matter how hard I trained or how many preparations I made, it wasn't enough. But despite what happened, I don't regret trying. I had to take the chance because if I didn't, he would continue to rule my life.

I want each of you to know that you have been and will always be my family. You've been there for me since I was eight years old, through the good and the bad. I'll never forget the day I came to the orphanage. Dirty, abused and terrified. I pushed you away. I pushed everyone away. I couldn't trust another human being and I swore that would never change. When I walked into that bunk room, I didn't know what to expect but I remember it clear as day.

Patrick: You sat on the bottom bunk, on the left side of the room. Your bright red hair caught my eye first and then your arms. Cigarette burn marks. Bruises. Scars. They looked like mine. It was then that I knew you would be my person. You lived through hell and so did I. You looked up at me as you flipped through your baseball cards and then offered me a quick wave. I saw the sadness in your eyes and I recognized it from every time I looked in the mirror. You didn't judge the way I looked or ridicule me for the holes in my dirty clothes. You handed me a baseball card. I flipped it over and then back to the front. I had never seen one before and it fascinated me. When I tried to give it back, you held your hand up and told me it was mine to keep. Just so you know, I still have it and it means more to me than you'll ever know. You were my first friend and will forever be my best.

Bryson: You were laying on the floor, on some shaggy green rug. You were tossing a ball in the air and never looked my way. I watched you as I sat on the bed with Patrick, wondering what your back story was and how you arrived at the orphanage. You didn't care if I stared at you and I envied that confidence because it was something I never had. You turned your head and raised your eyebrows at me, but I was so backward that I looked away. You shot up from the floor, walked over to me, glanced at the Randy Johnson baseball card and rattled off every stat without ever looking at the back. I was amazed at how smart you were at the age. You intimidated me and frequently aggravated me, but I've always appreciated how bold you are. When Carl Dunes took my sandwich at the lunch table in sixth grade, it was you that punched him in the stomach and made him go get me another. I've always admired how protective you are of your family and I'm thankful to have you on my side.

Kevin: You sat at the desk in the corner of the room, big coke bottle glasses covering half of your face and your nose in some book. I nudged Patrick and pointed my chin in your direction, trying to get a read on you. Patrick whispered to me that you were studying, you were always studying. For as long as I've known you, you have always valued education and found ways to better yourself. You've always found ways to better everyone around you as well. It was a week and a half before I heard you speak for the first time and when you dropped the f bomb three times in three sentences, I couldn't stop laughing. You've always had an edge to you and I always thought that made you the coolest person I'd ever know.

And when you made out with the quarterback's girlfriend under the bleachers while he was in the game, I knew I wanted to be just like you when I grew up. You took me under your wing and taught me how to be brave.

Justin: Oh, my crazy, free-spirited brother. You've always been a puzzle to me. When I walked into that bunk room, you were hanging upside down from the top bunk, reading a comic book. You looked up and smiled at me with at least four missing teeth. Something in your comic book made you laugh hysterically and I held my breath, terrified that you were going to fall on your head. I'm still convinced you fell on your head more than you ever told us, but you have always been the light in our group. You have always been the one to make us laugh with your infectious smile and crazy antics. You don't take yourself too seriously, always see the good in things and will forever march to the beat of your own drum. Even when the world is crashing down around you and all we knew was heartache, you were the good in a sea of negativity. Nobody ever gets the opportunity to laugh at you because you beat them to the punch. That is a trait I always admired in you and wished I could have. Not matter where life takes you or what curveballs are thrown your way, always stay true to yourself because you are perfect the way you are.