Thirteen's Thirteenth (NANOWRIMO 2019)

Chapter 4 - You're A Monster

Chapter 4 - You're a Monster

Listening to: No Shame by 5SOS

"I didn't realize the significance of what this meant until I was ten years old," I began while Eddie sat attentive, still inspecting my wrist. "Back when my father was working at the construction site, he came home one night bloodied and bruised. His sleeve had gotten caught in some machinery and torn. When his coworkers saw the tattoo," I paused, grimacing as I recalled the memory, "well, they made sure he knew what they thought. It took a while to nurse him back to health, but my mother managed. My father couldn't go back to that job, though, and he adored that job. Loved the people, loved the environment, loved the worked. Yet in the blink of an eye, all that turned against him, and he was left to rebuild his life somewhere else. That was the night I learned I couldn't trust people. I always had a wavering sense of trust, but I never grasped its magnitude till that night."

Eddie looked up at me now. "I remember that night," he spoke, his voice reflective. "I remember you knocking on the door in tears, asking if we had any band-aids. I... I had no idea."

I nodded. "That was the point. For the sake of my family, I needed to keep our suffering to myself. I couldn't tell you, Caroline, or anybody else as long as I didn't want to end up like my father."

Eddie's whole body tensed. "I would never do that to you!" his voice raised in alarm, and he dropped my wrist. "I'd never hurt you. I wouldn't..."

"I know you wouldn't," I cut him off. "But who's to say you wouldn't hate me, or be afraid of me. Who's to say you wouldn't tip us off to the police, or tell everyone at school. I didn't know what to expect, and I couldn't bear the thought of losing our friendship. My parents showed me how dark our fates were, but you were the light guiding me on a different path."

He was quite of a few moments, pensive. As I waited for his response, my stomach tied itself in knots, and I bounced my foot against the floor. "I don't hate you," he decided, after what felt like an eternity, "and I'm not afraid of you."

A breath I didn't know I was holding rushed from my lungs. "You don't? But I've just told you..." My shoulders sagged in a sigh of relief, but something in the back of my mind still wasn't convinced.

"Vee, if you had any ill-intentions towards me, I think something would have happened in the past decade I've known you." His tone was sincere, much to my disbelief. I didn't expect him to tear me apart, but I did think this was going to be a revelation he couldn't move past. Wherever we moved on from here, the ink on my wrist would forever haunt our friendship. "I've still got questions, though."

"I'll answer them the best I can," I said, still trying to wrap my mind around his acceptance. After seventeen years of being told no one would ever understand, I was in disbelief at Eddie's sincerity. He defied every warning my parents gave.

"Does anyone else know?"

"No, no. Absolutely not." I shook my head. "Well, except for my father's coworkers who found out. But every time that happened, he changed jobs."

"Left wrist. It came from your father's side?" It.

"Yes. Thirteen, and my mother's was one hundred and fifty-six."

He frowned at that, and I could see him helplessly trying to figure out how to ask about the car crash. His eyes darted around the room, hopelessly trying to find the words. "Yes, they're dead." My jaw locked. "The news this week, that was all about them. They were on their way home from work when something went wrong, and the car went into a tree."

His hard gaze faltered. "Is that why you were crying?"

"Not exactly. I found out three weeks ago."