Introvspect

Chapter 17 (Indecision)

Clyde could not believe the reality that he was witnessing.

He now lived in an apartment in a large complex along with his parents.

He just remembered being in that farm just moments ago about to be attacked by an arsonist. His parents were handicapped by those unrelenting bandits.

What had he done?

All he did was innocently form scenarios in his mind but mysteriously they came true. However, they were not how he expected them to be.

He had his own bedroom and his mother just mentioned about her working late that night and complained about how his father was still jobless. Presumably, his father was now a househusband.

They were supposed to be more prosperous and discerning the situation they were in now, they had to pay monthly rent and all the other fees that they did not have to worry about in the past.

Clyde wanted to observe his own sleeping space while he was still not needed by his parents.

The room was a tad smaller than what they had in the farm. There was his bed, a tiny desk, and that closet he came from with a built-in mirror.

He dragged his feet on the velvety carpet and this he evidently fancied. Even though he much preferred the squeaky uneven floor that can suffice as a horror feature.

If he focused on bringing it back, would it work?

On the other hand, he would not risk it. He might end up having a floor filled with cracks and holes.

He left his room to see his father being comfortable on their couch maybe having a movie marathon. How did he become so lazy?

His round stomach was bulging underneath his shirt. It was something out of the ordinary for seeing his father so chubby. He was also holding a bag of chips and munched on them slowly and controlled. As if doing that could let him be immune to gaining more pounds.

“Papa, how did you get so big?”

His father was so nonchalant about his weight being questioned.

“This is nothing to be surprised about. Eating is my stress reliever, Clyde. How else could I deal with me being an unemployed useless geezer?”

He did not mean to contribute more damage to his father’s self-image. But as he was still skeptical about the whole thing, he could just act however he saw fit.

“Well, I think this suits you more. Besides, I’ve never seen you so comfy before.”

His father furrowed his eyebrows and wanted to feel offended but he was dispirited at his current state. His wife was a police officer and he thought that he deserved to be punished for just being unproductive, refusing to put his skills into serious work.

“I don’t want to be like this but I’m searching for a job at the moment. You can count on me for it. By the way, I’ll be the one driving you to school tomorrow okay? Your mom would be very tired from her night shift.”

Now, that was something to worry about.

“Wait. I’m going to school? Me? Didn’t I say that I don’t want to?”

Clyde believed that those moments of which he voiced out his own opinions to his parents may have taken place.

How could his circumstances change completely?

“Clyde, it’s already the second semester. You’ve been doing extremely well. Do you want to end up like me in the future? If you quit now at this age, you’ll never make it, ever.”