MARCUS (ongoing)

Chapter 5

A couple of hours later.

Girl: [walks in] hey Clare?
Clare: hey Trish, how was class today?
Girl 2: argh don't even....... [Trish walks to her room while girl 2 sits]
Clare: [laughs] I can just imagine, damn class is so exhausting I can't wait to get to clinical years and get done with this.

It's quiet like for a minute.

Clare: oh um, Marcus this is Abby and that's [pointing at her who just steps out of her room] Trish. Girls this is Marcus Blakeston.

Trish: nice to officially meet you......
Abby: hey Marki [laughs] can I call you Marki short for Marcus? Like I'm Abigail but I prefer to be called Abby.
Marcus: well, nice to meet you both and I prefer Marcus it's short enough.
Clare: don't mind her she's usually a little delusional sometimes [laughs].
Marcus: [smiles] it's okay. So you're all students like she is?
Trish: yeah. Clare where's the food I'm starving?
Clare: I placed it in the oven.
Abby: so, how old are you Marcus?
Marcus: six.
Abby: wow, cute. Where are your parents?
Clare: Marcus, go into the room please before Abby starts to ask all sorts of things.

He leaves.

Abby: you just love to kill the fun.
Trish: just come here and eat.
Abby: [goes there] so miss Theresa what did he say happened?
Clare: Abby please would you just let it go.....
Abby: okay, listen you know how people or rather how people of our age are, so nosy. How long do you think we can keep him here before the school finds him?
Clare: okay, I'll move in with Chris.
Trish: now you want to move in? [Laughs]
Clare: what else I'm I supposed to do?
Abby: where are his parents anyway? You've barely told us anything; you just arrive late at night with a kid, bring him in, you don't say a word about it to either of us and then..........
Trish: Abigail! For goodness sake would you just let it rest? Why don't you ever just let stuff rest for once?! The boy hasn't spoken a word about it since he came, none of us know a single thing about him. So please just get your damn food, shut up and eat!
Clare: [laughs]
Trish: damn holder [walks to the table and sits]
Abby: you're so mean sometimes.

After their meal.......

Trish: hey Clare, you need to be careful.
Clare: I will, thanks Tee.
Trish: I'll be at the library. Hey Abby! [Calls out for her, she's in her room]

Abby: yo! Hold up. I'm coming [she comes out]. Clare ain't you coming?
Clare: I'll catch up.........
Abby: hmm so you want to stay back miss Theres.....
Trish: [pulls her] let's go.
Clare: see y'all!!

Knocks and enters the room.......

Clare: hey Marcus.
Marcus: did you just Knock?
Clare: yeah I did.
Marcus: in your own house?
Clare: it's polite to knock whether or not it's your house or room. The fact is there's someone else in the room.
Marcus: ..........
Clare: are you okay? You don't seem okay or happy.
Marcus: [smirks] how would you know how I would be when I'm happy?
Clare: you seemed, I could say half-happy [laughs] earlier today when we were eating. So measuring from that I could tell you could get happier than that. Also comparing how you were earlier, you look low.

Marcus: wow, the last person who could read me like that was my mom.........and dad too. Amelia could when she spends some minutes talking to me she'd tell. You could tell by just looking at me.

Clare: it's kinda easy to read people's emotions by one look sometimes even without talking to them or knowing who they are.
Marcus: won't you have to stare for a while?

Clare: [laughs] you know for a six year old, you're quite smart. Anyway, no of course yeah that'll be weird; how do I say this? Okay, when you look at someone you can tell if they're having a good day or not, sometimes. Plus we learn a little psychology in med school, so that also adds up.

Marcus: It's just hard to get past the fact that I'm no longer in Kingson's keep........ it feels like a dream, it feels too good to be true.
Clare: [sits next to him and puts her hand around he's shoulder] with time it will set in. You've gone through so much psychological trauma it will take a while for your mind to accept.
Marcus: you didn't tell them about me, why? I overheard Abby asking.
Clare: [sighs] yeah. In life and in med too there's a theory I learnt it's not my place to say anything about your life. Yes you're six but you still have the right to your story, but I told Trish last night while you were asleep and she's the only person I can tell. Trish is good with secrets Abby is a little too loud [laughs] but she's a great person.
Marcus: okay.

Clare: if there's anything you'd want to talk about you can trust me only me. Trish sometimes can be a little yeah........
Marcus: [laughs] I get.

Clare: speaking of people, um I have a boyfriend Chris. He stays off-campus so I was thinking you and I move in with him its more private, people in school are pretty nosy.
Marcus: [low tone] oh...
Clare: okay I know you don't trust that, how about this; I tell him to come over so you can meet him then he can show you pictures of where he lives so you feel safe?
Marcus: [short laughs] really?
Clare: yeah [smiles] you didn't seem settle or okay with it.
Marcus: you're right I kinda wasn't, but I'm good we can go.
Clare: are you sure? Marcus you don't have to.......
Marcus: for real though, it's good [smiles].
Clare: okay, okay. Let me just get ready [About to stand]...

Marcus: Clare. Thank you.
Clare: Marcus you don't have to keep thanking......
Marcus: my parents died in a car crash.
Clare: [saddened tone] what? Oh my, Marcus [hugs him] I'm so sorry about that.
Marcus: [sheds tears, she wipes them] we were going on a road trip then we got into an accident. Everything went black, when I woke I saw them both lying down all cold and I was in the middle of the woods. I walked to a nearby town then everything went black and when I woke I found a man smoking in my face calling me lil' man.

Clare: that's Kingson I presume?
Marcus: yeah. He fed me, gave me clothes and let me freshen up. I wanted to go to a police station but they didn't let me leave and said it'll cost me. So I had to do his errands for about two years [cries] then you came around.
Clare: how about Amelia and the other women you mentioned?
Marcus: Amelia was intentionally abused in the street then passed out, later she was picked up by Kingson. When she woke, he was next to her calling her my queen. The other Frida she was kidnapped and Marren's story was similar to Amelia's. Kingson planned them all.

Clare: did he plan your accident too?
Marcus: no, no he didn't. It was miles from the town.
Clare: I really hope so because they are talked about a lot on the news this community stuff of theirs.
Marcus: I hope so too [sad tone].
Clare: [hugs him] just let it all out [he cries out]. Listen, you remember that looking up you told me about?
Marcus: yeah...
Clare: just keep up the hope and the faith someday it will all pass and everything will be okay. Listen, thank you for trusting me with this.
Marcus: [nods]
Clare: just give me a few minutes we'll be leaving soon.