Some Boys are Monsters

Mother and Child

Tweek's Song of the Day: 9 Crimes by Damien Rice

Craig's Song of the Day: Done all Wrong by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

We walk into the Tucker's kitchen, bringing with us the bitter cold as we shake snow off of our clothes. A tall, blond woman stands from the messy kitchen table. Her body is covered in a silky, floral gown, and her usually dolled up face is devoid of painted color. There are two kids sitting at the table with her. One is the familiar face of Craig's younger sister, Ruby. The other is not so familiar.

Craig's mother comes rushing forward with anger and relief mixed on her features. She had obviously been up all through the night, or at least that's what the slight purple bags under her eyes insinuates.

"Craig? Where on earth have you been!? What part of come home at nine doesn't make sense to you?"

My friend looks down at the floor shamefully, and I immediately find myself feeling guilty.

"This is getting ridiculous. I don't understand why at the very least you didn't text me. How am I supposed to know if you're okay if I don't even know where you are?"

"I'm sorry..." is all he manages to reply with.

She seems to still be in a panic despite having her missing child standing before her. Her fists are clenched tight at her sides, and her eyes look on the verge of spilling over. Still, she steps forward and yanks him hard into an embrace. He seems at a loss at first. His hands hover on either side of her before he wraps them around her torso.

I never realized how much taller he is than her now.

"H-hey," he mutters. "I'm fine, mom. It's alright."

Thomas watches them from behind me in the doorway. His expression is blank and unreadable, just as his son's tends to be.

Craig's mother takes his face in her hands, cupping his rough cheeks in her firm palms.

"Never do that to me again," she demands.

I guess she never knew about all the times he'd snuck out in the middle of the night to come see me throughout our lives, because he'd left without telling them quite a lot on my account. I suppose this time is different since he was already in trouble.

"Yes mam," Craig replies quietly, looking down at his mother with apologetic eyes.

Clyde is standing by the kitchen counter now. He's in pajamas, blue ones with light sabers on them. I can tell by the look on his face that he was caught in the midst of the family's chaos. I'm sure he got drilled for answers seeing as how he left with Craig, but came back Craig-less. It wouldn't have done them any good to try and pry Craig's whereabouts out of Clyde. He didn't have any idea where we were going when we left Token's.

Thomas steps forward before placing a hand on his wife's shoulder, his wife who is still squeezing their eldest son as if someone was about to rip him from her arms.

"We're the only family we have, Craig," I hear her whisper over his shoulder. "If we don't stick together, we'll have nothing left."

He nods slowly, his frame falling low under the weight of her arms.

"Come on, Aliena," Thomas utters while easing her away from her son. "Coddling the boy ain't gonna do 'em no good."

The angry gaze of Mr. Tucker falls onto the boy. Craig seems a lot smaller now. The giant is hunched as he backs away with a few uneasy and shameful steps.

"Okay... Okay," Mr. Tucker begins. It seems to me like he's trying to will himself to speak kindly. "I ain't gonna holler. I'm just gonna tell ya. Our patience has been running thin for a long time, boy. You're an adult now, and you don't even know what that means... You still do all the dumb shit you did when you were fifteen. Stealing, lying, sneaking out, trouble at school- it's all gotta stop."