The Ways of Patching Up | ✓

Eighth

For the first time since Mom left, Elliot slept alongside Dad, who had been constantly hiccuping for no reason.

Obviously the child lacked the strength to carry Dad upstairs, so they settled down in his room. Furthermore, he had been doing strange things throughout the night, such as laughing at first and then crying the next. The next thing Elliot knew, he was loudly snoring as if nothing happened. Even though the child had no idea about what made Dad suddenly change, there was no way he wanted to leave him to tend by himself, especially when he was acting weird.

As morning came into being, Elliot was the first to rise and shine. He rubbed his eyes and stretched his arms up high, before looking over to Dad, who was fast asleep. He had stopped hiccuping, and he wasn't being strange anymore, much to the child's relief. However, when the man suddenly groaned as he rolled over to the side, Elliot quickly took notice.

"Hey Dad, are you alright now?" He instantly asked without second thoughts. Dad's exasperated eyes then fluttered open, wandering towards his concerned son. At the sight of his awakened father, Elliot decided to throw him a small smile. Even though the scenes last night were upsetting, at least Dad now knew Elliot would never leave him.

Lawson moaned as the throbbing pain mercilessly pounded against his skull. He struggled hauling himself up from his position, and placed both of his hands on his head, clenching them tightly. Nausea was the only thing he tasted on his dry throat, but he tried holding it back. "Ugh... my head..."

"Dad, what's wrong? Is your head hurting?" Seeing his father in pain always hurt Elliot inside. He leaned closer, watching Dad baring his teeth as he glanced over to his child, "do you need any help?"

"I'm fine, I don't need any help," Dad grunted as he rubbed his temples, "besides, why aren't you sleeping in your room?"

"Well, that's because you've been acting really weird," Elliot reasoned as he subconsciously fidgeted his fingers, "you've been laughing and crying for no reason, and then you keep on hiccuping. You've also been talking about a lot of... sad things."

He knew Dad would get angry if he brought up something directly related to Mom, so he tried to change the words into something else. The time when he burst out back at the basement lab still haunted Elliot, repeatedly reminding him that talking about Mom wasn't a wise idea.

"Just be prepared for school, Elliot," Dad breathed out in exasperation as he got out of the bed, completely ignoring all of his son's explanations. The child was slightly comforted to see Dad returning to his normal self, but... he wasn't eased completely.

"Dad, don't you remember what happened last night?" Elliot questioned as he began following his father out of the room. At the question, Dad unexpectedly stopped on his path, but he remained quiet and still. The silence continued for a few seconds, before he resumed walking towards the living room, but this time, Elliot didn't pursue after him and simply stood there.

What's happening...?

Why is Dad not saying anything?

It seemed that he had forgotten everything that occurred last night, shrugging it off like nothing happened.

Maybe, he doesn't want to talk about it?

Elliot wanted to catch up after him, but Dad's previous words stopped him. He was correct; he should be getting ready for school right now, otherwise he would be considered tardy. Biting his bottom lip, he ultimately turned the opposite way and strode up the stairs.

Yeah, I guess it's better not to bring it up...

While he was taking a shower and putting on his clothes, Dad had occupied most of his mind. Thoughts about his friends, school work and what he would do today were pushed to the back of his head. Wrapping the scarf around his neck, he briefly stared at his reflection on the mirror before he marched out of the room.

For breakfast, Elliot poured a small amount of cereal into the bowl before gently filling it up with milk. As he scooped some of the food and devoured it, he glanced up to see Dad staring blankly at the table, barely touching the slice of bread that he had prepared. He would typically eat at least half of it... but this time, the bread was completely unbitten.

"Dad, you should really eat something..." the child advised once he swallowed his crunchy cereal, "or else you'll get sick."

"I'm just gonna eat after I dropped you to school. I don't have much appetite right now," Dad responded with a gruff voice, still gazing low, "just finish your own food, kid. I'd be fine."

I'm sure he's not. He has been getting headaches and he seems so tired. Elliot contemplated. Maybe... I should let him stay at home while I take the school bus instead. Hmm, that sounds like a great idea!

"No Dad, I think you should just rest," Elliot shook his head, "I'm gonna start using the bus from now on. You don't have to drop me or pick me up again, and then you can focus more on your work. I'm already big, Dad, so I wanna do this all by myself. I wanna practice on my own."

His son's suggestion promptly drew Lawson's attention in no time, in which the man narrowed his darkened eyes, "I might be incompetent, but I can still drive you back and forth, you know. The world's dangerous out there."

"I know, but I'm gonna be alright if I didn't do anything bad and crazy," clearly Elliot didn't seem to understand. The child, however, shot up from his chair and stared straight at his father, "trust me Dad, I'll be fine."

I'm gonna prove to Dad that I'm responsible.

Dad didn't seem to respond as fast. He leaned his back against his chair and tapped his fingers on the table. He then let out a deep profound sigh before he finally concluded, "do whatever you want then. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Dad's words somewhat made Elliot flinch a little, especially in the end, but he cleared those thoughts off. He then placed the empty bowl on the sink where he could wash it once he went home from school, "thanks Dad... Okay, I'm gonna go now or I'll miss the bus. Bye!"

Lawson only nodded in acknowledgement as he watched his son struggling to put his small boots on at first. When he finally managed to slip both of his feet in, Elliot lastly turned around to wave his hand at Dad, before he clicked the door shut behind him, and off he went.

Once he was sure his son had disappeared, the man looked back to the piece of bread in front of him, where it was waiting to be consumed. He then shut his eyes, trying to remember what the hell happened last night that had driven Elliot to be like that, but it induced even more headaches. He kissed his teeth before gritting them together, as he felt something strong welling up in his chest.

What the fuck was I saying to him?

Why can't I remember anything?!

WHY?!

Lawson could feel his blood starting to boil, as his muscles tensed and his mouth dried up. He proceeded to slam his fist on the table, producing a thudding noise that echoed throughout the house. The plate in front of him trembled loudly under the pressure.

"Ugh!" The man shot up from his seat and stormed towards the fridge. He forcefully pulled the door open and grabbed a bottle of beer that he didn't manage to finish last night. He used a bottle opener to open the cap, and found himself gulping all of its contents at once.

Nah... I shouldn't have given a shit anymore...

He found himself grinning at the thought.

The world can fucking rot for all I care...