LIVE FAST | REDDIE

- 05 | LIVE FAST

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Eddie didn't want to talk about it with anyone. He stayed in his room, silent, and brooding. He listened to the song Ella had given him on repeat. Out of everyone, the person he wanted to talk to the least was his mother. She had been in the house when it happened. She had been up stairs, television blaring, right above where it happened.

Eddie didn't go in the living room anymore, not for anything. Stan and Mike had stopped by after school on Friday and stayed with him all day Saturday and Sunday. They brought him little snacks when he didn't want to eat a lot. They explained what they were learning in school, even though they both knew Eddie wasn't really listening. They told Eddie about how devastated his mother was, and even though he really didn't want to care, he did. He didn't want to be worried about her, but he was.

So on Monday morning, he got up extra early and made enough breakfast for both of them. He got his school stuff together, even though it was sloppy, and he brought the pancakes he had made up to her room. He left them on a tray at the end of the bed for when she woke up so that she would eat something and walked outside without bothering to eat the ones he had made for himself. He didn't bring his backpack, but the disk Ella had chosen for him at the library was placed in the car when he climbed in, starting the engine.

Stan seemed shocked when he stepped outside. Eddie hadn't told him he was going to pick him up that morning. But the boy climbed in to the passenger seat with a simple hello, and Eddie was on his way again, picking up Mike next and driving to the school just under the actual speed limit.

"We're here," Eddie said after they had been parked for a minute without turning the car off. There was a soft murmur of agreement from both of his friends, and they got out of the car together. Eddie hesitated, glancing at Ella's music, then pressed the eject button on the car's CD player. A disk popped out. He read it, and hesitated a bit longer. He made his decision and got out of the car, carrying the music with him carefully.

All eyes were on him in the hallways. Soft whispers were exchanged as he walked by.

'Was he the kid who's dad died in his own house the other day? No, that was someone else. Are you kidding? Of course that's him! Look at his expression. He doesn't have any of his books or anything. It's gotta be him.'

Eddie walked straight into Mr. Epping's classroom and sat down in his seat, glancing around himself a bit uncomfortably even though the room was empty apart from Stan, Mike, Mr. Epping, and a special guest. Ms. Dunhill was standing beside Epping, and she greeted the three of them with a winning smile, like usual.

"Hi, Miz Dunhill," Eddie greeted her half-heartedly. His voice came out scratcher than he expected it to. He cleared his throat, but he knew it had done little to help the raspiness. "Mr. Epping, are we still presenting our Homeroom Homework for the week today?" The man nodded.

"I wasn't going to enforce this one, but if you want to, sure."

Eddie nodded, looking down at the music in his hands. "Can I play the one I picked?" He asked quietly, and Epping nodded again. Eddie nodded back, and tried to relax in his seat. Silence fell upon the room, aside from the hushed teacher-whispers that the librarian and English teacher were sharing. Students started to trickle in, and amongst them, Ella, who just stared at Eddie with huge eyes as she walked by.

Eddie clenched his hands into fists, training his gaze on the desk in front of him and taking a deep breath. When everyone had settled down, he stood up abruptly and walked up to Mr. Epping's desk, hanging him the case. The man took it silently, and nodded towards his seat. Eddie paused, then headed back, sitting down. Mr. Eppimg stood up, frowning slightly.