Hush

Jack: Memory lane

He wasn't much older from his birthday, but his eyes no longer had any spark of happiness within them, that event on his birthday had changed him, eyebags made him look tired and older than he was and he was sporting a bruise on his cheek that he vaguely recalled receiving, but his mind wanted his attention on this particular memory. His mum and dad were dressed glamorously as they chatted excitedly about his dad's work promotion and making good impressions. Jack sat halfway down the stairs watching through the railings of the banister as they got ready to leave. The doorbell rung out, ending their conversation and making Jack flinch, he had recently been living on nerves and anxiety, the smallest of sounds instilled discomfort and stress. And yet, he was able to hide this all so well in front of his doting, yet clueless parents. He peeked through the railings, his dark hands a contrast to the cold white paint of the bars that he gripped tightly, his heart pounded as his mother opened the door and in stepped a teenage girl, her clothes borderline inappropriate but covering her enough to pass as acceptable to most western homes. He recognised her. Dyed black hair, blue eyes, framed with thick black eyeliner. She was the goth girl who stopped a couple of boys from pushing him on a walk home from school recently. Relief flooded through him, but it quickly evaporated when his mother could be heard questioning the girl's taste in clothes, gesturing at her platform boots and chain accessories at her waist.

'It won't do.' He heard her say.

'Honey we don't have time.' His dad replied, sounding exasperated.

'I will not leave my son in the care of Satan's follower.' She shrilled, and he watched as his mother grabbed the house phone and dialed a number, waiting for an answer and explaining over the call that she needed a babysitter and asking if Lola would do it.

No, Jack's heart sank, not Lola. That was Bradley's sister.

'Uhuh... yes....' He listened with sagging shoulders as his head rested against the banister, watching as the goth girl waited for a verdict, her eyes scouted the room then found him, she smiled slightly, and he saw the disappointment in her eyes before recognition flickered, and she lifted her hand to her hair in a discreet wave, accompanying a smile that didn't quite meet her eyes. Jack mirrored her, only he was unable to conjure the smile.

'Excellent.' His mum piped delightedly, then making a shooing motion at the goth girl she nodded to the door, dismissing her coldly, watching as the girl left the house, closing the door quietly behind her.

His mum hung up the phone and smiled at his dad fixing her intricate braided up do that ended in a thick, black, braided bun. 'Lola will be right over.' She linked her arm in his and kissed his cheek.

'I don't think Lola is a suitable person, Dear.' His dad said. 'Jack-'

'It's just for tonight,' His mum interjected, 'and besides Bradley and Jack get along so well, his sister will probably be perfect for the job.'

The doorbell rang and his mum pulled free and opened the door to let Lola through, her dark hair in a long braid and her face clear of make up, she stood in the doorway in a pair of jeans and a loose top, casual, and not at all like the goth.

'Come in.' His mother gushed full of happiness, and Jack sneaked back to his room, the sound of his mother explaining babysitting rules left behind as he threw himself on his bed.

That wasn't the only time she babysat me. Jack thought darkly. She knew Bradley bullied me, and she started doing so too.

As if prompting his memories, Jack watched as another time she stayed he sat on the stairs in the same spot as before. Lola had presented herself as a chaste girl after realising his parents were religious, and willing to pay good for a proper babysitter, despite Jack's protests about being old enough to be left alone. She turned up this time in an oversized outdoor coat and carrying a backpack, and as she removed it she spoke in an apologetic tone. 'I hope you don't mind, I thought since it was an all night job tonight I would come over in my night wear and crash on the sofa, I brought clothes to change into tomorrow.' She revealed a long night top and Jack noticed she was wearing pink bunny slippers. 'I got dropped off by Mum, and she said to give you these.' She handed a tub of cookies to his mum with a smile and glanced around, 'Mr. Perry is away again?'

A long pause, 'Yes, he shall be back in a day or two, thank you for the cookies, Lola.' Jack's mum said, taking the cookies. 'Just be sure to have something to eat and don't stay up too late, I'm sure Jack will not be a bother, he stays in his room a lot these days.'

Lola's eyes flickered to Jack's momentarily and he saw the wickedness in her eyes as she returned her attention back to his mum. 'Of course not, he is always so well behaved.' She smiled.

The memory skipped forward, the same night, a few hours later, the doorbell didn't ring but a gentle knock on the door before it opened made Jack slowly open his door and sneak to the stairs where he saw Lola kissing a guy holding her in one arm and a bunny mascot head in the other.

He heard them muttering, together and the sound of wet kisses made him cringe as the door was pushed shut.

'Is the brat asleep?' He heard her boyfriend speak between kisses.

'Yeah, and his alcoholic mother is out on the piss again.' Lola replied in a breathless giggle stepping back, Jack watched as she unbuttoned the top part of her nightdress revealing her cleavage and a hot red bra.

Jack's face flushed, and his body felt weird at seeing this. He let out a gasp a little too loud and their attention turned to him.

'Ew,' she covered herself instantly, 'you nasty little pervert.' She snatched the bunny head from her date and threw it towards Jack, the banister blocking him from being hit. He rushed to his room hearing them both pounding up the stairs eager to capture him and do whatever their sick minds wanted.

Jack recalled this wasn't the first or last time they had been together on babysitting duty, last time her boyfriend Michael, had came over with the bunny mascots head and proclaimed it a token to beating the mascot bloody, a tradition he had said, as if to free him of the truth that he had bullied the poor kid in the outfit. If the team lost, the mascot had to feel the pain of their defeat and until the next game the head would be severed from its body and stay at the captains house. It must have happened again. Last time Michael and Lola had used the bunny head to scare Jack awake in the dark using ketchup as fake blood, Lola screaming in his face with a knife.

This time they pounded on his door, now locked from inside, a secret DIY job on Jack's part without his parents knowing, because he was scared of his now regular babysitter and her boyfriend and sometimes friends who would drink and like every other kid, make him their scapegoat.

'Leave me alone!' Jack screamed in his room, not trusting the heavy duty lock he had fitted that week. 'I wasn't peeking.' He felt the door thump behind his back.

'You little shit,' she screeched back. 'Open this door right now.'

'No.'

'Babe come on, we can't break his door down, how would you explain.'

A silence for a moment. Then Lola's voice rang out in a sing song voice. 'I don't think Jack's parents know he has a lock on his door, Michael.' A pause, 'Jack?' she sought his response.

He shook his head but swallowing his fear he said. 'Yeah they do, my dad put it up for...' he thought quickly, 'he said I was growing up so needed privacy.'

His lie was met with a snort and a thump on the door.

'Come on Mikey.' Lola purred, 'I can't wait to tell his parents that he tried to touch me inappropriately then ran to his room and locked his door when I woke up from his dirty touch.'

Jack didn't understand her implication, but he knew it meant trouble if his parents were being mentioned. He looked across his room, the window had been locked after Lola had said he tried to sneak out one night on her watch, earning him an undeserved smack, a loss of dessert for three days and a locked window, he hadn't tried to deny it. Lola had threatened him with Bradley if he told, his life was already bad enough. If that window had been open that night maybe things would have been different.