Around the Fire

Chapter thirty-four

I didn't give Bob an opportunity to react. Being the coward that I was, I quickly disentangled myself and returned to my fire. Later, the missing members sauntered in and the meeting began as planned. Not much had changed over the course of the week in any of our lives. Everyone requested to be enlightened as to the motive of my absence during our previous meeting, so, unable to tell the truth, I made up some poppycock about an unexpected visitor. We joked and messed around a lot though, which provided me with much-needed relief from thinking about the wreck that was currently and always had been my life. We began a general snowball fight, and, afterward, Red and I even got into a fencing match (with branches mind you). We circled around each other, occasionally attacking. After some time, we started fighting intensely and I felt plunged straight into a real sword fight. In the end, I managed to strike her in the chest and was crowned victor by the remainder of the Phoenix Society. Pouting exaggeratedly, Red walked back to her seat, apparently not suffering from fatigue. I, on the other hand, did everything in my power to hide how much the match had tired me out.

It was only once I had returned to my car that my low spirits resurfaced. I was a coward, a milksop, a sissy. Whatever you wanted to call it, it didn't change the fact that I lacked courage, that one trait I valued so highly. My conversation with Bob really made me realize how much of coward-milksop-sissy I truly was. I was too terrified of my father, of the consequences of telling the truth for both my mother and myself, to denounce him to anyone. This defect was the cause of the ruin of my relationship with Ana and, without her, school had transfigured back into the drab establishment it had previously been.

Is it even possible to fix any of this?

I desperately wished it was.

The dejection I felt persisted with me throughout the next several weeks. Although breakfast with my mom and the occasional conversation with Peggy at school did add a twinge of brightness to my otherwise dingy mood, it was the thought of the Friday evening meeting to come that kept me from drowning in my sorrow.

My father finally left for his "business trip" on a bright Thursday morning. That tore the dark veil that had been upon me for the past weeks allowing a few rays of euphoria to shine through. The sun was uncovered, the weather was balmy and the whole world seemed a great deal brighter that morning. Before he left, he told my mom "Don't forget. I'll be checking when I'm back." She answered him with a meek nod. I was too happy to give it much thought though. I watched excitedly out the window as the taxi whisked him away from my mom and me, and granted us our freedom. To add on to my elation my mom had, unbeknownst to her husband of course, offered me to escape school for the remainder of the week and spend time with her. Subsequently, time flowed as we baked piles upon piles of chocolaty pastries. We went on to savor about a quarter of all we had made during the evening as we watched a movie in our pyjamas. Taking into account the ones we ate throughout the day too, it was a miracle that none of us died of a sugar overdose. It was good to see my mom eat too because the erraticism of her eating had been worrying me lately.

The following morning, I shuffled my feet down the stairs to the kitchen as was my habit. I attempted to place myself upon a stool but, still groggy, I completely missed the seat and fell with a resounding boom! on the hard floor. The suddenness of my fall more than the pain itself woke me up for good.

'You ok, love?' enquired my mom from over the counter.

'Yeah,' I answered, getting back to my feet, rubbing the point where the impact had been met.

I succeeded in sitting down on my second try just as my mom handed me a plate laden with a piece of triple-chocolate cake, white chocolate cookies, and two dark chocolate muffins.

'Whipped cream?' she asked.

I nodded enthusiastically.

'Does it ever cross your mind that this might be a little unhealthy?' I asked her as she put generous portions of cream on my cake and muffins.

'Look kiddo. Just because this will put us in an early grave doesn't mean it's unhealthy,' she said as if she was explaining a very obvious concept to a simpleton.

'Isn't that the very definition of unhealthy?'

'Hasn't anyone ever taught you that you shouldn't talk back to your mom?'

'Nope. I think my mother failed the whole "educating your child" aspect of her job.'

She indulged me with one of her rare, crystalline laughs.

'Anyway,' she continued, 'you're going to need a lot of energy for the day.'

'Why?' I asked ungracefully through a mouthful of cake and whipped cream.

'I have a super fun activity planned for us,' she said, ostensibly cheerful and excited.

'Is it cleaning the house?' I asked jestingly.

'Bingo.'

Can't be.

'Seriously?'

'I wish I was joking love but your father asked me to clean the whole house before he returned. You heard him yourself, James. He'll be checking every room when he returns.'

'Including my room?' I asked though I already knew her answer.

'Especially your room,' she said.

No.