Blandview High Musical

74. Proposition

Tommy was sitting at the kitchen table, spooning cereal into his mouth. He was scrolling through his Instagram, liking several photos of girls (and guys). He was mostly thinking about Joe. He had wanted to spend some time with him, just the two of them, but Joe had gone out of town with some extended family and wouldn't be back until after Spring Break. Tommy figured he could wait; it wasn't like they were dating or anything. His uncle sighed loudly, coming into the kitchen. He went straight to the fridge...for a beer no doubt. Tommy simply ignored him. His Uncle Wayne had never been nice to him. He had made it very clear that he had no obligations to Tommy, but he raised him because there was no one else that would. Tommy could live with it. Sooner or later, he'd be the fuck out of this house and never have to come back.

He let out a loud sound after taking a swig of the beer. It was followed by several choked belches. "That girl...who is she?" He asked. "None of your business." Tommy said, not even looking at him. "I think I have a right to know if my nephew is screwing some girl in my house." Tommy's eyes moved from the screen to stare at his uncle. "Or is she just a friend? Is that what it is? You hiding from the fact that you're a fag?" He asked. Tommy just narrowed his eyes. "You really think if I wanted to fuck a girl, I'd bring her here? I'd scrape money together for a hotel room, or I'd just fuck her in my car." His Uncle Wayne scoffed. "For all your talk about hating your daddy, you're just like him." Tommy slammed his hands against the table. "Shut your mouth." He said, shooting up from the chair.

Wayne reached over the table, grabbing Tommy by his shirt. "You don't ever speak to me like that, you little son of a bitch. I'll knock those goddamn teeth right down your throat like when you were little." He seethed. "Let me go." He ordered. Wayne let go of Tommy's shirt, shoving him back. Tommy shoved the chair out of the way, storming towards the door. "THAT'S RIGHT BOY! RUN AWAY! YOU'RE JUST LIKE YOUR FUCKING FATHER!" the words echoed heavily in the back of Tommy's mind as he slammed the front door shut. He couldn't contain the tears that were running down his face. He didn't even take his car. He just started running down the street. He wouldn't stop running until he was far away. He didn't care how far, just far away from his uncle.

"I like that one." Donnie said. He was looming against Jade's shoulder as she was looking through a fashion magazine. "That's such an ugly color." She giggled. "Well, I'm sorry they don't make everything in pink." He said. His hands were perched on her thighs, moving up and down. Her legs were draped over his. He could get used to this. Lawrence came to the middle of the staircase, stopping and leaning against the railing. "Donnie?" He said. "Yes, sir?" Donnie said, snapping to attention. "A word in private?" He asked. Jade started to open her mouth to protest. "It'll only take a second, pumpkin." He said. She sighed. "Fine." She said, moving her legs from Donnie's lap. He didn't hesitate getting up and moving towards the stairs. He didn't want to let Lawrence know that he was terrified of whatever this conversation was going to entail.

When they reached the top of the stairs, he followed Lawrence to a room at the middle of the hallway. He opened the door and waited for Donnie to go in first. "Have I done something wrong?" Donnie asked as he walked into the room to see Jason sitting in front of the desk. "Not at all." Lawrence said. His tone was questionable. Donnie walked over to one of the available chairs and sat down. Lawrence sunk down in the chair. There was a tension that was hanging over the air. It was insufferable. "I have a proposition for you, Donnie." Lawrence said.

There was a knock at the door. "Christ, can't a girl shop in peace?" Jade asked, getting up from the couch and going to the door. She opened the door to see Tommy standing on the other side. He was out of breath. "Can-Can I come in?" He asked. She sighed. "Come on." She said, stepping out of the way. "Just be quiet." She said, leading him into the kitchen. She filled up a glass with water. "No ice?" He asked. "It'll give you stomach cramps." She said, pushing the water towards him. "Try to take some deep breaths. Where the hell is your car and why are you..." He drank all the water before handing the glass back to her. "I just—just needed to get away from my uncle for a while. We got into a fight." "So you...ran all the way here?" She asked. He sighed, his breath catching up to his lungs. "Sort of." He said, flashing that stupid grin. "Here." She said, walking around the island. Tommy froze for a second as she reached out. She pushed her hands under the jacket he was wearing and slid the material off his shoulders.