Why am I Alive?

Chapter Fourteen

"Isaac" my father called out as he saw me sneaking in the house late at night. I knew from his voice he was probably waiting on for me.

"Hey dad." I said thinking how would I get out of this now and walked into the kitchen where he was sitting. "Isaac's here?" my mom called out as she heard my dad and she walked out of her room as if she was standing at the door all the time.

"Hi mom" I said clearly confused "Thank God you're okay. We were so worried"

"Why?" I asked

"Well first you left quite early without letting anyone know. Second, you left your phone too. Then we called your friends and none of them knew..."

"Wait, you called my friends?" I asked not letting her complete.

Then my dad spoke "Fourth" he counted, as if making bullet points for something. "18 hours and we don't know where you are, how does that sounds?"

"I'm sorry, won't happen again" I said meaning it.

"Where were you?" he asked gritting his teeth.

"With a friend"

"And who is that friend; we called and didn't tell us about you?"

"You don't know that friend."

"Well tell me"

"I said it from happen again."

"Who's that friend Isaac?" he shouted. "Alyna" I answered.

He stared of me "Let me tell you one thing, you can go missing for 18 days or 18 years nobody cares, but I don't want to hear that there's a girl who is missing with you too. My family's name is very important to me, you'd go missing; I won't care, my name goes missing; then trust me, I will kill you myself" he shouted

I smiled, listening such things from your own father; but I smiled because I knew nothing like that would ever happen again.

"I'm sorry. I know how important your name is to you, it won't happen again, you no longer have to worry about me. I'll fix everything, I'm sorry again" I said like an obedient little child.

"I don't know however you'd fix everything. I don't expect much. In fact I've stopped caring, you can't be my son, you're a boy who lives by his own screenplays..." he said

"Stop it now, please go easy on him" my mother interrupted him

"I don't know why do you even listen to his shit" he shouted banging his hand on the table.

"Isaac go to your room" my mother told me

"You don't know, you don't know how I carried out the pride of our family. I did everything. And look at him, he does not even care, why didn't I just let him die..." I heard him say as I climbed the stairs to my room. My mother tried shushing him but what I heard was enough for me. I finally got my answer.

****

I knocked the door,

"Isaac come on in" I heard and I walked in.

"How did you know it was me?" I asked

"Sixth sense?" he shrugged "Sit" he mentioned towards the chair "Haven't slept last night?" he asked.

"Two consecutive days actually and yesterday was quite a busy day" I said

"Okay a busy day but what about the night?"

"I was working on something last night" I said sliding a few sheets of paper to him

"You know, half of the college magazine is filled with you words, the students think it's favourism(?), but they too end up loving it. It's your last year here and everyone is going to miss your words" he smiled and picked up the papers I gave to him, he slid his glasses up his nose, and shuffled the pages before starting to read.

He looked up at me;

"You... you wrote it?" He asked.

I nodded.

"You always end up doing the unexpected" he proudly said, "I'm going to put this on the magazine this month, they need to read about the other side as well. This is the 50th issue and I'm seeing to this one myself, all contributions were sent directly to me. This one will probably be a bit different" he said as he got up from his chair "I'll just send it to the publisher."

No, he cannot do that I thought.

"I guess you should read it first, there are a lot of mistakes" I said.

"My publisher does that for me" he smiled and turned on the fax machine.

"I don't think that's a good idea."

"You're telling me that" He said clearly excited.

"You should read it first" I repeated

"iI will, after it gets out in the magazine" he said, already sending it, "next week."

Just then the bell rang

"I have a maths class. I should go"

"Oh yes, yes have fun." he said, he was quite happy.

I didn't go to my maths class instead I left the college and went home.

I texted Alyna on the way;

Me: Coffee shop, tonight. 10:30 ?

Her reply came on minutes later;

Alyna: looking forward to it!