the fairy | john bender ✅

nineteen

"What are we having?" Bender asks Brian, sitting beside the boy.

"Uh, it's your standard, regular lunch I guess," he shrugs.

Bender digs his hand into the brown bag, taking a thermos and placing it on the table. "Milk?"

"Soup," Brian corrects. Bender digs his hand in again. The boy tries to grab the bag, only to get smacked by John. Julian bites his lip, forcing his laughter from his throat to dissolve from the acid in his stomach; he sits on his table again, doodling on his paper again, which he found on the floor with his pencil.

"PB & J with the crusts cut off...Well, Brian, this is a very nutritious lunch, all the food groups are represented. Did your mom marry Mr. Rogers?"

"Uh, no. Mr. Johnson." Julian and Andrew chuckle silently, shaking their heads at Brian's ignorance.

"Here's my impression of life at big Bri's house." He stands between the six tables, taking a moment to get into character before speaking.

"Son!

"Yeah Dad?

"How's your day, pal?

"Great Dad, how's yours?

"Super, say son, how'd you like to go fishing this weekend?

"Great Dad, but I've got homework to do!

"That's alright son, you can do it, on the boat!

"Geee!!!

"Dear, isn't our son swell?

"Yes Dear, isn't life swell?" Bender mimes the parents kissing placing a smile on everyone's face before he pretends to punch the mother, wiping everyone's smile away. Julian lip begins to quiver but traps his lip between his teeth to stop it.

"Alright, what about your family?" Andrew questions.

"Oh, mine? That's real easy." He rubs his jaw as if he has scruff before speaking, voice deep, scratchy and loud.

"Stupid, worthless, no good, God damned, freeloading, son of a bitch, retarded, bigmouth, know it all, asshole, jerk!

"You forgot ugly, lazy and disrespectful.

"Shut up bitch! Go fix me a turkey pot pie!" He smacks the air, making Julian flinch. Tears begin to cloud his vision. Allison looks at the male, concern on her face.

"What about you Dad?" he asks, being himself.

"Fuck you!

"No, Dad, what about you?

"Fuck you!

"No, Dad, what about you?

"Fuck you!" He punches the air, pretending he's being hit. Julian covers his ears, eyes shut tight. He jumps off the table, sprinting towards one of the study rooms in the back of the library. Everyone is distracted by Bender, so no one notices except for Allison, who eyes follow his form until it disappears.

"Is that for real?" Brian questions.

"You wanna come over sometime?"

"That's bullshit. It's all part of your image, I don't believe a word of it," Andrew states, making Bender give a look of hurt, only for it to turn to rage. Slowly, he walks over to Andrew, before pulling up his sleeve, showing a circular scar.

"Do you believe this? Huh? It's about the size of a cigar. You see, this is what you get in my house when you spill paint in the garage.

See I don't think that I need to sit here with you fuckin' dildos anymore!" Moments pass as he walks backward before he lets out his anger; he screams, throwing maps and books off the table beside the stairs, before climbing up the side of the stairs to the second-floor balcony.

Everything quiets down, Bender getting his breathing to normal. He turns around, looking for Julian, only to see nothing; he's not sitting where he was before. He looks around, confused at where he went.