Falice

5 Months Later

FP shoved a last jacket into his duffel bag before zipping it up and setting it down in the corner. His mother had watched him pack from the kitchen. He turned to see a frown on her face.

"Mom," He knows she was keeping herself from crying. She walked up to him and pulled him into a hug. "Mom, don't do this. You know I can't stay."

"You're leaving just like him," She whimpered.

"I'm not," He shook his head. "This is different."

"How? I want my baby boy home."

"He left because he gave up on us. Hell, I'm glad he's gone. Look at the pain he caused us." FP hated his father. The man was a nasty drunk who had the nerve to lay a hand on the both of them. "That's why I need to go." His eyes interlocked with his mother's. Hers were far beyond broken. He wanted her to understand his choice in leaving. "I've got nothing going on for me here anymore."

"You had school," She said. "You didn't need to quit like your father did. You could have proved yourself to him."

"And for what? All he cared about was forcing me to join the Serpents. And when I finally caved in look at what happened. He left! He went out for that stupid cigarette and never looked back."

"You could have done so much better than him!" His mother fought the lump in her throat. "You know that."

"I'm eighteen now. I'm capable of making my own decisions. And it's his fault." FP rose his left arm. His arm had already finished healing but he wasn't going to forget about it. "He lost me my scholarship. He's the one to blame here not me." He glared. He was angry at the fact that he lost his opportunity to go to college. "I can figure things out for myself. I had to when he threw me out of the trailer two years ago, didn't I?"

"You're really going to leave?"

FP slowly nodded. "I already enlisted into the army, mom. I read the pamphlets from that ROTC program at school. I need to do this. I leave Friday."

She didn't want him to go but she knew she couldn't make him.

•••

FP walked into the diner in the evening. He went up to the counter to grab the burger he ordered through the phone a couple minutes prior to his arrival. He was stunned when he turned around and saw Alice. He hasn't seen her in five months. Her eyes widened too.

The months without her around felt odd. They weren't on speaking terms after their break up but it didn't mean they weren't curious to know what the other was up to. He didn't know where she had gone. He just knew she was gone.

"Alice," He breathed out. He was too in shock to see her. "Where have you been?" She didn't answer the question. She remained silent.

"I haven't seen you at school," Alice eventually gained the courage to speak up. Her voice was shaky.

"I, uh, I dropped out months ago." He sheepishly confessed. She wasn't expecting to hear that. She thought he just transferred to Southside High. "When did you come back? Where were you?" He asked again.

"It doesn't matter," Alice looked away.

"Why?" He furrowed his eyebrows. "You left without a trace and show up out of the blue."

"It doesn't matter, FP." She gritted through her teeth.

"Okay," He scoffed. "I bet Cooper gets to know." He rolled his eyes. He couldn't stand Hal. For starters it was the way he treated him on the football team. He was an asshole, especially after he got cut for his broken arm. Then it was because he lost Alice to him. He hated seeing him with her at the homecoming dance five months ago. It was the last time he saw Alice.

"You can't do that," She shook her head. "Don't act like you care."

"And what if I do, huh?"

They stared each other down. The tension between them built up. She hated him but she wanted him. It wasn't too long after that they found themselves locked in the bathroom. He had her up against the wall while she kept her legs wrapped around his waist. Alice hasn't seen this man in forever and she had missed his touch. He was part of the reason she was gone. He just couldn't know. She would never be able to tell him.

"Alice," FP said as he felt her hands go to the hem of his shirt. "We can't." He knew it would be wrong. They had just seen each other for the first time since the homecoming dance. It wouldn't feel right to jump into things. He also knew she found his way to Hal before she disappeared, not that he cared about the guy.

She ignored him and lifted his shirt. She found a Serpent tattoo on his side and yanked his hand away from his shirt. FP set her down. "You joined?" She asked. She put a hand on her tattoo and got lost in her thoughts. She quit months ago before she left.

"I had to," He plainly said.

"You were so against joining."

"Yeah well my choice doesn't matter."

"I can't believe you're a Serpent."

"And that's why I'm leaving," He decided to spring the news on her.

"You're quitting already?"

"No, I'm leaving."

It took a second for her to process what he said. "You're leaving?" He nodded. "Why?"

"I got recruited for the army. I leave on Friday."

Alice was speechless. She didn't know what to say. She just got back and he's leaving. She couldn't help but shed a tear. She didn't know why she began to cry. He cupped her face and wiped her tears away with his thumbs. He kissed her lips one last time. "I'm just glad I got the chance to say goodbye. I didn't know if I would ever see you again." He gave her a tight hug before he left. He needed it just as much as he did. She watched him leave the diner. "Goodbye, FP," She softly told herself.