Dimensions

Chapter 6

Dad sat at his drawing board in the entryway when I walked in the door. He had his reading glasses perched on the end of his nose and the room smelled like pencil shavings.

"Hey Charlie," he said, not looking up from his papers before him. "Good day?"

"Uh huh," I muttered, hitching my backpack up higher and rushing past him. I was still flustered from my encounter with the construction worker and just wanted to go splash my face with water and lock myself in my room.

"Make any friends?" He asked, in a voice that sounded almost mocking.

I turned back around dramatically and let out a heavy sigh. "Oh, so many friends, Dad, I can't even count them! Everyone wants to be my friend and I loved everything about my new school."

Dad took his glasses off and levelled his eyes at me. "No need to take that tone with me, young lady."

I rolled my eyes and began to stalk off down the hall to my room.

"Hey, come back here!" Dad shouted after me. "Come on, talk to me properly."

"Nope," I said, still walking.

Once I got to my room, Dad hot on my heels behind me, I slipped quickly inside and slammed the door in his face. I heard him sigh and after a few moments, walk away.

It's not that I particularly wanted to shut him out, but he wanted to talk about thoughts and feelings for the first time in 7 years and I needed that 7 years ago; too little too late, buddy.

I thumped my bag down by the door and threw myself into my desk chair. Opening my laptop, I began composing a letter detailing my escape from Columbus and my triumphant return to Dewey Beach, where I would take up fishing and live with Kevin Richardson. All my stuff was still in boxes so it wouldn't be hard to choose the most important possessions and pack them into a few bags.

About an hour later, just as I was wrapping my tear-jerking goodbye, I heard the front door open and then slip shut again. Murmured voices signalled to me that Sally was home and Dad was slobbering all over her. Then I heard a giggle, some snickers, and the sound of teetering heels and carpet slipper clad feet running up the stairs. I made a disgusted face and slammed my laptop lid shut, pulling up the hood on my jacket and grabbing my headphones from the bedside table.

This wasn't my escape from Columbus just yet. This was my escape from listening to squeaky bed springs and muffled moans. Once again, Dad had moved on quickly from his problems with me so I thought I'd attempt to do the same and head out for a walk.

Unfortunately, the only route I knew was the way to and from school. In my haste and anger, I'd forgotten about my ban from the construction site route and before I knew it, I was striding towards the temporary fencing. I had nowhere in particular to be, so I decided to stop there for a while and see what it was all about.

With my hood up and my headphones firmly wedged in my ears, I felt extremely angsty.

Damn that construction guy. I can hang out here if I want. It's a free country, and I'm doing nothing wrong.

So I loitered. I leant against the fence and scrolled on my phone and stared up and down the street when cars drove past. Yeah, I was a hooligan, what of it?

It wasn't long before a guy in a high visibility vest and a bright yellow hard hat sauntered out of the site whistling. This guy was skinny, looked like a rat, and had a stale cigarette hanging out of his mouth. He carried a huge grey tube over his shoulder, which fell to the ground and cracked as he noticed me, startled.