Regrets

Chapter 16 - You're Gonna Go Far, Kid

Song: You're Gonna Go Far, Kid - The Offspring

When Marcus returned from work, Thomas was sitting quietly in the kitchen, deeply lost in his thoughts.

"Hey kid, why so glum?", Marcus greeted him, sounding much more content than he ever did before in Thomas' presence. Of course he was, his boss didn't fire him for the lost day at work and only deducted his pay for that day. He was safe for now, even though he could never again dare to miss a day in the future, he knew that.

"Michael visited"

"Oh, let me guess, he told you what a jerk I am?", he laughed, clearly having expected this. Thomas looked up at him expectantly. "He's not particularly wrong, I guess", Marcus answered when he saw the look on Thomas' face.

"Why's that?"

"Mhm, I don't know. He just is. Michael just knows people", Marcus stated as he plopped down in the other chair in the kitchen that Thomas wasn't occupying.

"What a stupid answer", Thomas mumbled, instantly feeling better about staying with Marcus for a while. Maybe Michael was wrong after all.

"Maybe so, but it's the only one I have for you, Thomas", Marcus answered, and Thomas suddenly brightened up at the usage of his full name. Adults never listened to him. And up to this point, maybe there was still a little part of him that thought Marcus was just like them.

"He told me to tell you to call him. He also left some money on the counter for the workday you missed", Thomas disclosed the information he had been holding back until then.

"Michael, you goddamn fucking saint", Marcus sighed in relief as he leaned back in the chair. Within seconds, he was up on his feet again, making a beeline for the kitchen counter.

"Are you that badly in need for money?"

"Tell you what, even if I wasn't, I wouldn't feed you unless someone paid for it", Marcus laughed, greedily grabbing for the money and grinning at it. It was as if he could read Thomas' mind and then smashed his hopes and wishes.

Thomas had expected that much, but to know Marcus really didn't care all that much kind of hurt. Although, he was a stranger to Marcus after all, he shouldn't be expecting any care. But, for a stranger, Marcus really did a lot for Thomas. Sheltering him, taking care of his wounds, giving him medicine. Maybe it was just a random act of kindness towards someone in pain, but it did help him alleviate the emptiness he felt now.

"Not to be mean kid, but if you want someone to care for you for no payment, those people are called parents. I don't need you to cling to me like a duckling imprinted on a random dog that walked by cause its mom wasn't around", Marcus told Thomas nonchalantly, not turning around as he pulled a plastic cup from the cupboard and poured himself some of the leftover vodka from last night.

"I get it. This is only a temporary solution, so you don't want me to get attached, right?", Thomas grinned at him, but that really wasn't how he was feeling. Just when he thought he had found someone to rely on, life decided to be a bitch and take it from him. Maybe that was what Michael meant when he said Marcus was a dick.

"If that's what you want to hear", Marcus nodded, still not looking back as he downed the vodka in one go, thinking the two of them had reached a mutual agreement.

Thomas got up from his seat as he joined Marcus at the counter, leaning on it with his arms and balancing his head in his hands.

"Can I have a sip?", he asked cheekily, testing the waters carefully.

"Oh, he's in his teenage rebel phase", Marcus snickered as he poured another cup, sliding the clear liquid over to the thirteen-year-old. Thomas huffed at that comment and took the cup into both of his hands and straightened his back out. He took a big gulp of the alcohol and almost spit it right back out. The bitter citrus taste was barely manageable and the afterburn it left in the back of his throat as he swallowed caused Thomas to cough harshly.

"I believe it's best to make people hate something by throwing them straight into the cold water and giving them the full dose", Marcus commented as he took the cup back from Thomas, patting the kid on the back encouragingly.

"Wha-, what kind of hell liquid is this?!", Thomas coughed out, keeling over as he continued to try to calm his ragged breathing.

"Dirt cheap vodka. Tastes like crap, but it's cheap and you can get drunk on it", Marcus stated gingerly as he emptied the cup for the second time, his expression not changing once.

"I'm not ever gonna drink anything you drink again", Thomas growled.

"I didn't ask you to, Thomas", Marcus growled back, as if there was any reason to be mad at the kid for that comment.

"Asshole", Thomas laughed, his mood changing in an instant.

"So now you agree with Michael", Marcus grinned knowingly, and Thomas' face instantly changed back into a scowl.

"Do not!"

"Sure you don't", Marcus agreed with a short nod, drinking the rest of the vodka straight from the bottle.

"So you're drunk now?", Thomas asked expectantly, looking up at Marcus with big eyes.

"I wish. Far from it, unfortunately", Marcus muttered as he grabbed the piece of paper that Michael had left behind and moved over to the push-button telephone.

"What kinda dinosaur is that?", Thomas piped in, noticing the phone for seemingly the first time.

"My dino. Cute, isn't it?", Marcus mumbled as he put in the number slowly.

"Nah"

"I'll give it googly eyes and a bow when I have the money, and then you'll be sorry for that comment", Marcus stated confidently, not a trace of amusement or jest on his face, before he lifted the phone to his ear, waiting for Michael to answer.

"Thomas told me to call you", Marcus said after a while, before growing silent again, listening to Michael's response.