Save my soul [Imagine Dragons Fanfic]

Be happy

Dan:

As I stand up my whole body hurts. My back still aches from fathers beating yesterday and the rest now hurts because of the beating today. But I don't show Platz or Wayne. I don't want them to think that I'm a baby or something. After exchanging telephone numbers I quickly say goodbye to them and head home as fast as my injuries allow me. I don't want to get home even later then I already am.

Just as I started walking a new thought crosses my mind. I don't have the money. Again. My dad will be furious. He always beats me up like shit when I don't have the exact amount of money he wants. I don't want to think of what he does when I come home with nothing. Just because of thinking of him makes my hands shake. I take a deep breath and try to calm myself down. What should I do? Just explain what happened or lie to him? Will he even believe me when I tell him the truth? I don't know. Why is my life so complicated? I guess he will recognize it when I'm lying, he always does.

I enter the house and my father is already shouting: "Come here!" I take a last deep breath and enter the living room. Dad is laying on the couch, on the table stands a half full bottle of whisky. Great, he is drunk again. That doesn't make the situation easier! "Where have you been you little peace of shit?" he grumbles. "I-Im s-sorry for being la-late." Damn stutter. I can't even talk normal. I guess my father is right that I'm a screw-up. "I-I got m-mugged." I try to explain myself.

My fathers eyes get small as he gets up and reduces the distance between us until he is standing an inch away from me. "You what?" he growls. I gulp. "I-I got mugged." "Which means that you don't have my money?!" he states. I nod my head, unable to talk. His voice is completely calm as he continues: "Well lets sort the information we've got my son. You came home late and don't have any money. In addition to that you didn't have the exact amount last week. What should we do??" I stare at him while he walks back to the couch and takes a sip of his alcohol. He puts the bottle down again and looks at me. "Why don't we let the world know what you are. An incompetent wimp!" He gets closer again. "In the basement now!"

...

On saturday morning I wake up pretty early due to steps on the stairs. I quickly look at my clock, 4:30. That's early even for my dad. On weekends we normally stand up around five because my father has to work and he doesn't want me to sleep longer. And I can't do that because I'm always scared that he will come back and see me sleeping... My father opens the door and I don't know what to think as I see him. He ist standing in the doorframe wearing a suit. He never wears suits at worke becasue he is doctor and has to change clothes anyway.

After a few moments he starts speaking: "I'm going on a business trip, to be exact a conference of doctors. It takes place in Dublin and I'll come back on Wednesday." I need a few seconds to understand what he just told me. He never left me home alone, not for more than a day. I have to hide my smile because I don't want to make him angry. "I talked to our neighbour Mrs. Ackles, she will check on you once a day. Don't you dare to destroy something or do something stupid, like throwing a party. Oh, I forgot, you don't have friends to invite to a party." He laughes, turns around and walks down the stairs again. Even though he said stuff like that or even worse things before it still hurts and my happiness shrinks a bit. But this is going to be the best weekend I've had for years, no for my entire life. I remain in bed and think about what I could do until I hear him drive away.

After he drove away I waited a few moments just to make sure that I didn't dream. As I didn't hear any movements I decide to stand up and make me breakfast. I sit up and a sharp gnawing pain makes its way up from my stomach. Fathers punishment yesterday was extremely painful, it still is now. I need a few minutes to cope with it, then I stand up and slowly make my way downstairs. Every step, every movement send new waves of pain through my body and as I reach the kitchen door I need a minute to get my breathing right again.

I look around the kitchen and make myself a sandwich then I do something I've never done before. I watched TV while I was eating. The way to the living room took me longer then normal, because I walked so slowly but otherwise the pain would be unbearable. I sat down on the armchair. The couch smelled like my father and there were still some bottles around it so I didn't want to sit there. I turned on the TV and watched a weird movie. Normally I'm only allowed to watch the news with my father so this is the first movie I ever watched, besides the ones we watched in school. It is about a big black guy who gets adopted by a family and then learns how to play football. At first he is pretty bad about it but then he is one of the best players and many other schools want him.

I like the movie. I wish I could be that guy, because I can relate with him in some points. He was poor at first, another kind of poor but who cares. But he finds someone he can trust and then he can live a happy life. That's exactly what I want. Be happy