Walk a Little Straighter

Chapter 1 : "Hey Sweetheart"

     I looked down at my father as he sat in his brown leather recliner, feeling ashamed.
     "Dad." I spoke. "Dad." I repeated more firmly and I was not surprised at all when he didn't look up or even acknowledge me because most of the time he isn't here, mentally. "Do you want dinner?" I asked.
     "I w-w-want stea-a-kkk." he slurred after taking another swig from the bottle of whiskey he had clutched in his left hand where he still wore his wedding band. He then looked back at the blank t.v screen as I turned to head out to the store.
     I pulled my keys out of my pocket and headed to my Ford F-250, that I bought in October a few days after my eighteenth birthday when I got access to my inheritance from my grandfather, grandmother and my mother. I started the truck and headed towards highway 50 to go to Publix to buy steak, sweet potatoes and macaroni and cheese for dinner. I had the country station playing as I drove, drumming my fingers on the steering wheel to the beat of the songs.
     As I was driving I couldn't help but try to remember a time when my father was sober, and the only time I could think of, that I wouldn't have been old enough to remember that well, would be when my mother was still alive, which was almost exactly six years ago. My thoughts drift to the back of my mind when I park my truck and hop out and head into the grocery store.
     I go straight to the isles I need because I want to just go home, cook, clean up, shower, study, and then sleep. When I get to the cash register I put my items on the belt then pull my debit card out of my wallet, then I look up to see a familiar face.
     "Yo Cagan, what's up man?" Eric said as he finished ringing up my food and started bagging them.
     "Nothing much bro, I'm just getting some supper for me and my ole' man. How about you, you liking the new job?" I asked while swiping my card and then signing the receipt. He rolled his eyes and handed me my copy of the receipt.
     "See you at school tomorrow." he nodded. I nodded back and mumbled a 'yeah' and then grabbed my three bags and headed back to my truck.
     I drove back to my house fairly quickly and when I pulled into my driveway I looked up at my house. It was an average size house, two story, just over two-thousand square feet, painted gray with some dark hunter green trimming around the windows. I turned my focus to the bags and grabbed them then grabbed my keys from the ignition and got out of the truck, and it was then I heard an elderly female voice form my right.
     "Hello Cagan, good afternoon to ya" My neighbor, Mrs. Evans said.
     I flashed her a bright smile, "Hey Mrs. Evans, how has your day been?" I asked while putting my keys in my pocket.
     "My day has been good son. I'm about to go in and eat the meal Greg has made for me, seeing as it's already 5:37." she chuckled while looking down at her watch. "Have a goodnight." She smiled widely at me as her eyes crinkled.
     "You too! Tell Mr. Evans I said hello!" I say as I step onto my slightly creaked veranda as Mrs. Evans stops watering her porch plants and opens her front door.
     "You too sweetie!" and then she disappeared into her house, and I followed suit and shut my front door behind me and headed towards the living room to see my father passed out in the chair still clutching a bottle a whiskey.
      "Well, guess you're not eating tonight." I sighed, knowing he'd be out until early tomorrow morning. So I headed to the kitchen to put the food away and made me a few quick ham sandwiches and then headed upstairs to my room.

***

"Cagan, what's up!?"
"Hey C!"
"Bro..."
"Huh! That's Cagan?!!"
I got greeted in various ways Monday morning as I walked down the hallway of Strawberry Crest High to my maroon locker, and when I got to it I spun in my combination and opened my locker and felt a hand on my back.
"Cagan, long time no see brother." a deep voice that is vaguely familiar said from behind me, I turned around.
"Scottie?" I asked, shocked to see my best friend from elementary school who moved away in fourth grade, standing in front of me.
"Yeah, it's me." as if reading my confused thoughts he continued. "Mom moved us back here last week, and enrolled us, so here I am." He grinned and then spread his arms out wide like a bird, gesturing around him at the hallways. "and damn, these girls got hot!" he smirked as he stared at some girl's asses.
"huh, yeah I guess." I shook my head and grabbed my psychology and calculus notebook from my locker and slammed t shut. "But they're still all stuck up and rude." I made a face that showed disgust and annoyance, and then the warning bell rang, indicating that we had nine minutes to get to class or we'd be tardy.
"Well I have psychology, so I guess I'll head there." Scottie said looking down at his schedule.
"With Brown?" I asked and he nodded. "Okay, me too. So let's go." I nodded my head in the direction of the class and the two of us starting walking to class as my phone vibrated with a text from Danica inviting me to her party on Friday and I replied with a 'I'll be there' and then put my phone in my pocket and entered the class and took the only empty seat in the back row before Scottie could - forcing him to sit front row - and when I sat down I noticed the girl next to me huff under her breath, clearly annoyed that I chose this seat, so I smirked, deciding to piss her off just a little. So
I leaned across the small isle separating us and whispered in her ear,
"Hey Sweetheart."