Come Find Me (boxboy)

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

*Eight years ago*

That weekend went by in a blur. Halloween came and went and even my lame plans were not followed through with. To be honest, I couldn't open my right eye for the whole two days. The whole side of my face was black and purple and swollen beyond measure. My so called "plans" of binging horror movies was a dream of the past.

It was until Sunday morning that I had even left my bedroom besides using the bathroom of course. Seven in the morning, on the dot, my mother knocked on my door sharply three times before saying, "Bentley, the Lord is waiting for you." as she did every Sunday morning at the same damn time.

When I didn't respond, she pushed "I'm not very impressed with you young man. You have been in bed this whole weekend! Our Lord does not appreciate laziness!"

I groaned in response. My parents hadn't seen me yet. They were at a fundraiser at the church when I got home Friday afternoon and I kept careful the whole day before. I would finally have to face them now. They knew I got bullied, how could they not? I came home battered and bruised more often than not, but they didn't push it when I wouldn't talk more. Not because they weren't the prying kind, but because they tried their best to teach me how to me a man. Getting bullied? That was weak to them. Though they didn't say it exactly like that, they did say they couldn't understand how kids "let" themselves get bullied. Just stick up for yourself, they would say. Don't be so soft, my dad would say.

Without saying another word, my mother burst through my door to scold me. Through my left eye I could see that she had her red, shoulder length hair adequately and classically curled around her face, she wore a light pink floral dress that went down past her knees. It had buttons at the top with a collar. She looked like any proper Southern, church-going wife.

Church is where my mother rules the world. I thought the church was supposed to be the Lord's castle, and if Jesus was king- my mother tried her damn hardest to be queen.

"What on heavenly earth happened to you, Bentley Gabriel?" She demanded, walking into my room and in front of my bed.

"Kids from school," I replied in a flat voice. Her brows furrowed as she took a better look at me, examining my face with the tips of her fingers.

"And just why would you let them do this?" She sighed, her lips pressed into a thin line. I frowned at this. As if anyone would just let this happen to them. What a stupid question. I couldn't say that though. My cowardly teeth bit back the distasteful words I wished I could've said and I took a minute to find ones to replace them with.

"Well, it wasn't a choice. There was like five of them and they were older than me." I tried to explain but the slow, shake of her head cut me off. I could see the disappointment in her eyes. I could see the concern there too, she wasn't an absolute monster, but she made it so obvious that she didn't want to deal with my issues.

"I don't understand why these kids are always picking fights with you," She muttered underneath her breath before standing up and laying down the skirt of her dress to flatten on the nonexistent wrinkles in the fabric.

I didn't say anything because there wasn't anything I could say. I couldn't tell her that I was getting beat up at school because I was gay. I couldn't tell her that the bullies seemed to know my darkest secret just by looking at me. How could everyone know my only secret when I had never whispered a word of it to anyone before? The thought bit around my brain like a ravenous creature feeding on any ounce of confidence I could muster.

"Ruthord!" My mother's voice yelled down the hallway to where my father presumably was. I sighed loudly, but I knew I would have to face him eventually. "Come take a look at your son!"