The Boy Next Door (Mavin)

Chapter Twenty: Everything's Changed

Chapter Twenty:

Within a week, everyone knew.

Whispers and gazes followed me everywhere I went.

"Gavin Free is Meg's baby daddy!" I heard that line so many times.

It was painful. I didn't ask for this at all. I was forced into sex and now I was suffering for it. Meg tried to be supportive but she would rather bombard me with her own problems.

I couldn't blame this on her either. It was harder for her than it was for me. She was the mother, she had to give birth to this... child.

Mother...

My mother had been furious when I told her. She wouldn't talk to me for a total of three days before she finally broke down and began blaming herself again. I had held her while she cried, whimpering that she had failed me as a mother twice now. I didn't know what to say. Had she?

No... this was my own damn doing. I knew better.

"Gavin?" Meg questioned, holding out her backpack to me. I sighed and grabbed it, lugging it over my shoulder. Apparently the doctor had told her to take it easy so I was always her pack mule before and after school.

She walked alongside me, rubbing my shoulder in what I interpreted as 'sweet'. There was nothing sweet about this though. I was fifteen and going to be a father.

Walking out of the school, I searched the crowd of gathered students, finding the familiar red hair. I felt my stomach twist when I saw a second pair of dark red hair standing next to him. Lately Michael had been hanging around a chubby red head. She was about the only reason he came to school anymore.

Passing them was difficult. I heard both of them hush after recognizing the 'guy who couldn't keep it in his pants'. The girl leaned up to Michael and whispered in his ear. To my surprise, rather than laughing like I was expecting, Michael shook his head and turned away, refusing to look at me or Meg.

"You alright Gavin?" Meg asked. I grunted a reply, simply shifting the backpacks more evenly on my shoulders.

Meg sighed and opened a car door for me to set her things in. She stood by the passengers side door and waited expectantly, perhaps for the kiss she'd been waiting for since she told me about the situation. But I simply bent down and hugged her, telling her I'd see her tomorrow. She seemed disappointed but smiled none the less.

I backed away and turned towards my home. Sending a final glance towards the disappearing red heads, I started the path home, being reminded of just a couple weeks ago, when Michael and I held hands on this very same path.

I missed him.

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey, Gavin. Mum and I want to talk to you," George said, poking his head into my room.

I looked up from my homework before nodding and following him downstairs.

"Late night again?" He asked me.

"Yeah, Meg wanted to talk about the coming months so... I didn't get started with homework until around nine," I told him. George smiled sympathetically.

Walking into the kitchen, I saw my mum sitting at the bar with a couple papers in her hands. I walked over to her, sitting opposite of her and eyeing the papers.

'Job Application' was printed at the top in big bold letters.

"So, Gavin, George and I have been thinking, and we've decided if you're going to support a baby, you need to get a job," My mum started, handing the papers to me. I held them in my hands, feeling my heart jump into my throat.

"O-okay... where is this applying to?" I asked nervously. A job? I wasn't even old enough to get one yet, was I?

"It's at the place I work at. I managed to convince my boss to hire someone to do odd and ends things. It'll be easy, boring, and tedious work but you'll get paid none the less," George said. I scoffed slightly. George hated everything about his job, why would he want me to work at a place like that.

"You don't have much of an option here. You're technically not of working age yet so the fact that I could even get you a job speaks volumes," George said when he saw my displeased look.

"I'm grateful, believe me. I just thought you hated your job. Why would you want me there too?" I asked, feeling my voice crack. I didn't want to start another argument.

"Sorry to break it to you, Gav, but you're always going to hate your job. It doesn't matter what you do, you're just meant to hate what you do to make money," George said bluntly. I sighed and looked back down at the pages reading the amount of hours I'd be getting.

"Twenty to twenty five hours a week? That's a lot, isn't it?" I asked.

"For a minor, yes. You'll be working after school and on the weekends," George said.

"Wait, what about basketball? And soccer?" I asked, looking between George and my mother.

I felt my heart drop when I saw them exchange a look. My mother was the one who finally broke the silence.

"I'm sorry sweetie but you'll have to give those up. A baby is more important than sports," My mother told me, grabbing me hand. I immediately ripped my hand from her grasp.

"So not only do I have to be working all the time when I'm not in school, but I have to give up sports too? This is completely unfair!" I argued, finally feeling all the anger I had ever suppressed come bubbling up.

"Maybe you shouldn't have had sex with that girl. Maybe then you wouldn't need to do any of this," George growled, spurring my anger into high gear.

"It wasn't my fault. I was forced," I retorted, feeling my eyes blaze with anger.

"Right, like she just asked you to get her pregnant," George snapped. I quickly tried to come up with a response but he cut off my thoughts as he yelled at me.

"You should be bloody grateful! I got you a job and it wasn't easy either. God dammit Gavin, you're so bloody selfish sometimes," George growled.

That was it.

I stood from my seat and marched to George, shoving him as hard as I could. He hit the refrigerator, knocking off various things from on it. His eyes blazed with anger as he tackled me, pinning me to the floor.

My mother was yelling at us to stop but we didn't hear her. I reached my arms up, attempting to choke my brother before he slammed my shoulders down on the floor, making sure I couldn't get up. And in that moment, all I could do was scream.

So that's what I did.

Eventually he let go and I scurried back upstairs, slamming my door and pushing a chair against it. I could hear my mother crying downstairs but she could take care of it herself for once. I wasn't in the mood to deal with her sadness anymore.

I sat on the ledge of my window, breathing in the colder air from outside. Angry tears filled my eyes but I refused to let them fall.

From across the street, I saw a dark silhouette sitting in a window as well, a small, smoking, white object in between his fingers. I watched him, being reminded of the first days of our friendship.

"You know, smoking is very bad for your health," I muttered out. The silhouette looked up at me, slowly nodding before throwing the cigarette away.

"Thanks Gavin," Michael told me as he slipped back inside.

That was when the tears fell down and nearly drowned me in my own pain and sorrow.
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Short chapter but eh, enjoy it.