The Hog

Chapter 10

I sit in the school library reading. I like to avoid going home as long as I can. Jeremy is sorting some things out this afternoon because I'd usually hang out with him. He told me to go home and reply to Amy's emails and letters but that just makes me feel like the worst person in the world. I've been avoiding Amy for some time now. I'm not too sure why but it just seems selfish of me to keep talking to her when all that I have in my life is Frank. Frank was drunk again- that's all I can ever tell her about my life.

"Hello Francisco." A deep voice I recognise says from behind me. I turn to see a face I haven't seen in almost two weeks. My school is pretty big and we do live in polar parts of it so that's understandable.  Thomas pulls up a chair next to me and grabs the book I'm reading.

"Let's talk about cancer." He reads the title out loud. Then he gives me a 'really?' look.

"It's a good book." I defend myself.

"Books about cancer aren't ever good." He puts my book marker inside the page I was on before closing the book.

"That is not true, lots of cancer books are good like..."

"Wait." He lifts his hand to stop me, " if you list a book that made you cry then I rest my case."

"What's wrong with crying?"

"Nothing, lots of books can make people cry. Heck I nearly lost my shit when Joffrey died- best paragraph in the entire series. But just because a cancer book makes you cry doesn't mean its good. Cancer makes people cry in any case so it's not like the authors achieved the unachievable by rousing emotions within you."

"Okay but see this book is good." I point at the copy in front of me. "It's about this guy who has cancer and he leaves his job, his wife and kids to go teach in India but things don't work out too well for him so he ends up sleeping in shelters and stealing. He even sleeps with some old British lady for money. He's nearly arrested but he runs away into mountains where he finds Hindu monks and...it's wonderful. He does all of this with a throbbing fist size ball of cancer in his stomach."

Thomas turns it around in his hands for a while then shruggs.

"I take it you've read it before?" I nod, "then I'll take your word on it."

I take the book and put it away. Thomas watches me the entire time. His eyes are blue as ever but they seem tired. I want to ask him why he looks like he's been carrying the world on his shoulders but I decide not to. We haven't spoken in such a long time that I'm not sure if we could just go back to telling each other things. Then again we didn't tell each other much. I still don't know what's up with the random holes.
" Well yes I'm reading it for the third time now and it is excellent. Now what are you doing here? Don't you have football?"

" Nah no game this weekend so coach let us off." He shrugs and leans back in his chair.

" So shouldn't you be out there charming the knickers off some unsuspecting girl?"
There is a flash of annoyance in his eyes but it doesn't linger as a playful smirk fills his face, "I wouldn't call you an unsuspecting girl but if you insist."

I roll my eyes at him. I sling my bag over my shoulder and stand up.

"You headed home already?" His serious face asks. I give a small smile and a nod as response. " Hey why don't you come hang out at my place for a while? No digging hole in my back yard, promise."

"That sounds exciting really, but I have to go home." I see worry in his eyes?

"Come on Francisco, just hang out for a few hours and you know we have lots of extra rooms...if you find yourself too tired to drive home." He stands in front of me blocking my path out of the library.