Star Light Star Bright

Chapter 3

Chris stayed in his room for the rest of the day until dinner. I had no idea what he could be doing in there, but then again I didn’t really care. At dinner time my mother told me to go and get him.

I was just about to knock when I heard a voice on the other side of the door.

“Yeah mother, I know,” I heard Chris say then paused to let his mother speak.

“Fine,” he said, clearly upset, “but how long do I have to stay?” I heard a gasp and then he yelled, “all summer!?  But I hate it here. Why couldn’t I just come with you?” he sounded….sad. “Alright, love you too mother. Bye” as soon as I heard him slam his phone down on his dresser I knocked on the door.

He threw the door open with such a force I expected it to come flying off of its hinges but it stayed in place.

“What do you want?” he said fiercely.

“It’s dinner time you idiot, don’t think I’m talking to you because I want to.” He looked upset but I brushed it off. I walked towards the kitchen with him trailing on my heels.

            He got his dinner and started to walk back to his room.

“You’re not going to watch TV with us?” I asked surprised.

“Heck no,” he replied and walked back to his room, slamming the door closed.

“That kid has issues.” My father shook his head.

“Tell me about it,” said my mother, laughing. This made my sister and I laugh also.

Other than those two comments, Chris wasn’t brought up again. Dinner was normal. We watched a TV show that we had recorded earlier that day, and of course took forever for us to get through it because we couldn’t stop talking about other things.

By the time the show was over we were all laughing, and had all but forgotten Chris sitting just a few rooms away. Then the Fire alarm went off.

“Oh my god!” yelled my mother, over the beeping.

“Everyone out,” said my father, trying to stay calm. Everyone rushed out of the house and my father called the fire department. Then I remembered Chris was still inside. Why hadn’t he come out when he heard the alarm?

“Chris!” I yelled to my parents. They stared at me wide-eyed as I ran back into the house. Surprisingly the house wasn’t at all smoky.

I opened Chris’s door and was just about to yell to him that he had to get out, and my jaw fell open. In his hand a lighter flicked on and off as he grinned cockily at me.

He looked up from his iPod and gave me a look that said, “What do you want?” I was so angry I stomped over to him, took the lighter and put it out in the glass of water he had next to his bed.

“HEY!” he yelled. The Fire alarm stopped going off just as the firemen arrived.

“Where’s the fire?” he laughed. I gawked at him. How he could think it was funny? I just stared, wide-eyed.

“What are you two doing in here?” asked the first fire man to come in the door.

“I’m sorry, the fire was a false alarm,” I told him, “my friend here.” I pointed to Chris, “thought it would be funny to hold a lighter right underneath a smoke detector.”

The fireman just rolled his eyes and walked back out the door.

“YOU ARE SUCH AN IDIOT!” I yelled at Chris.

“So I’ve been told,” he said, glaring at me. “Multiple times today.”

“And each time you seem to get stupider and stupider.” I whispered, just loud enough for him to hear.

I found my parents outside in the drive way apologizing to the head fireman, and seeing them off.

“Where is that boy!?” shouted my mother, as soon as they left.

“In his room,” I said calmly.

My father walked up behind me and touched my shoulder, “snitch,” he whispered in my ear. I just laughed and shrugged it off.

When I walked inside the house I couldn’t see her, but I could hear my mother yelling at Chris. I would have hated to be on the receiving end of that. My mother didn’t yell much, but when she did, it was frightening.

I walked around the corner and saw them. My mother was standing on one side of the bed and Chris was on the other. He was smart to put some distance between them. My father was behind my mother trying to calm her down.

“YOU ARE SUCH AN UNGREATFUL LITTLE –,” yelled my mother

“Honey calm down,” said my father taking my mother’s hand and turning her around to face him. While he had the chance, Chris didn’t waste any time. He grabbed his iPod and bolted out the front door. I started to go after him, but my mother said that unless I wanted to be grounded, I shouldn’t take another step out the door.

As my father walked my mother back to the living room, he looked back at me. He smiled at me and nodded his head towards the door , but I just gave him a confused look. Then he did something that surprised me. He mouthed the word “go” and winked. He normally didn’t undermine my mother, but I wasn’t going to wait for him to change his mind.