Date: Tue, 12 Dec 2023 12:01:40 -0500
From: ronyx@woh.rr.com
Subject: Seth on the Road to Chaos  Chapter 23

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Seth on the Road to Chaos    Chapter 23



There was a lot of tension at breakfast. When I entered the kitchen, Mom
was sitting at the counter drinking coffee. She didn't even look up at
me. I attempted to speak. "Good morning, Mom." She didn't look at me
or reply. I knew she was still upset about our angry exchange the night
before.

I muttered softly as I reached into the refrigerator to get the milk, "I
guess you are punishing me."

She scowled at me and responded angrily, "Who me? The mother you hate so
much?"

"Who me?" I answered angrily. "The son you've hated all my life."

She stood and pointed at the counter chair. "Sit down, Seth," she
ordered angrily. I started to walk out, but she stepped in front of me.
"I said sit down!" she ordered again. I considered pushing her out of
the way, but I knew it would probably end with me going to jail.
Reluctantly, I sat down.

She sat across the counter and stared defiantly at me. "I'm trying,
Seth." She reached for my hand, but I pulled it away. "I guess you have
every right to hate me." I looked over and tears were filling her eyes.
"I haven't been the best mother."

I fought back tears as I asked, "But why do you hate me?"

She rose and took a paper towel from the roll and wiped the tears from
her eyes. She then sat back down across from me. "I don't hate you,"
she replied. "You're my son."

"You've never treated me like a son," I replied tearfully. "It's
always been you and Stacy. I've always felt like I was just in the
way."

"It hasn't been like that," she argued defiantly.

"Yes, it has, Mom," I replied. "You listen to Stacy about everything.
She gets whatever she wants. Can't you see how she is?"

"It's not her fault," she replied as she wiped more tears from her
eyes.

"Stacy is spoiled rotten," I said angrily. "You let her get away with
murder. You believe everything she tells you. You always have."

She replied, "You don't understand, Seth."

"Then help me understand," I challenged her. "You and Stacy have made
my life a living hell living here."

She reached out to hold my hand, but I pulled it away. She rose and
started pacing around the room. Occasionally, she would stop and look
down at me. Just then, I heard a car horn outside. Mom walked over,
looked out the window and then walked over and hollered down the hallway.
"Stacy! Maggie and her brother are here."

A few seconds later, Stacy entered the kitchen carrying her bookbag. She
gave me an angry look, and then she went over and kissed my mother on the
cheek. She slammed the door shut on her way out. My mother turned and
said, "Maggie's brother is taking them to school in the morning."
Jeff, Maggie's brother, is a senior. He's not very popular, and he
rarely talks to anyone. Sometimes I wonder if he's being treated the
same way at home as I am.

I rose and said, "I better get to school."

"No," responded my mother. "Please sit down." Reluctantly, I sat back
in my chair. I watched as Mom paced nervously around the room. She then
stopped and stared down at me. She sighed deeply and said, "I was hoping
that we would never have this talk."

I gave her a skeptical look and asked, "About what?"

"Stacy," she replied as tears welled up in her eyes. "You see, Stacy
had a very hard birth."

"But we're twins," I said. "Did I have a hard birth too?"

"No, Dear," she said. "You didn't." She looked sadly at me as tears
flowed down her cheeks. "When you were born, Stacy was the first to
arrive. However, there were complications." I remained quiet while she
dabbed her eyes with the tissue. "When she came out, she was blue. Your
umbilical cord had tangled around her neck and was strangling her. The
doctors said it damaged her brain." I watched as my mother broke down
and started sobbing. "No one knew about this except me and your father.
Doctors said she might never have a normal life." She rose, went over to
the sink and splashed water on her face.

She sat down and asked, "Do you remember when you started school?" I
nodded my head. "Do you remember that you and Stacy went to different
schools?" Again, I nodded my head. I never understood why that happened.
As a five-year-old, I wanted my sister to be with me.

"Stacy went to a special school," she said. "They worked with her for
a year trying to get her to a level that most children your age were at.
They were fairly successful, but they still thought that she would have
difficulties the rest of her life. You see, Stacy doesn't react normally
to situations like you and I would."

"I don't understand," I responded.

"Stacy doesn't see things in black and white," she said. "She
doesn't process things like you and I would. So sometimes when you think
I'm siding with her, I'm actually trying to deescalate a problem."

"Don't you think that is unfair to me?" I asked angrily.

She began to cry again. "Yes, of course," she replied. "I only do what
I think is best for Stacy. I'm trying to protect her."

I then asked a question I had always wanted to ask. "Is that why Dad
left?" She rose, walked over to the kitchen sink, broke down and cried.

"We fought all the time," she cried. "He felt the same way you do. He
thought I was giving Stacy too much attention and that I hated him too.
One day, he just packed up and left."

"Why didn't he visit us," I asked as tears filled my eyes. Even though
I was young when he left, I still missed him at the time.

"You'll hate me more," she cried. "I wouldn't let him. I was afraid
he would try and take Stacy from me." She started crying louder. "I
just wanted to protect her!"

I rose and grabbed my bookbag beside me on the floor. "I'm going to be
late for school," I said as I headed for the door. I didn't want to
continue hearing what my mother had to say. She could rationalize her
behavior all she wanted, but she was wrong for the way she treated me and
my father. She may have been trying to protect Stacy, but she had harmed
her more by protecting her than getting her professional help. By doing
so, she had ruined three lives.

"Seth!" she cried out. I turned and she said tearfully, "I've never
hated you."

"Goodbye, Mother," I replied as I closed the door. By the time I
reached my car, tears were falling down my cheeks.

I was filled with rage on the way to school. I couldn't believe what my
mother had confessed. In one conversation, she ruined my life. I don't
know if we will ever be able to reconcile. When I said I hated her
yesterday, I said it in anger. Now, I really feel deep contempt for her.
She intentionally treated me badly to protect Stacy, as she said several
times. Never did she consider how it affected me. I grew up thinking I
did something wrong. At times, I even felt I was the reason my father had
left home since he never tried to contact me.

And what has she done to my sister by not getting her professional help?
I think she thought that doctors might take her away. She even let my
father leave to protect Stacy. And what about Craig? Why did Mom let her
date him knowing what Stacy was like? If she was trying to protect Stacy,
why would she leave her alone for so long with a boy? She must have known
that they would have sex. It doesn't make any sense to me. Was she just
using Craig? Maybe she suspected he was gay, and he wouldn't have any
sexual interest in Stacy. It would serve her right that Craig fell in
love with me. Now, she must suffer the consequences of her actions.

My mind was a mass of confusion by the time I arrived at school. There
was a bright spot that took away some of the chaos. Ty was waiting
outside the entrance door with a wide grin on his face. "Hey," he said
as he looked around. "I'm glad you came to school today." He looked
around again and leaned toward me and whispered, "I wish I could kiss
you right now."

My face reddened as I replied with a smile, "I wish you could too."

Just then, Craig approached from behind laughing. "God," he said. "You
two need to get a room and fuck for an hour." Ty's face turned a bright
red. Craig elbowed me and added, "I get to watch."

Ty grabbed my arm and led me inside, "Come on," he said as he pulled me
down the hall.

Craig rushed up beside him and stopped him. "I'm just teasing you,
Ty." He looked at both of us and smiled. "You two make a cute couple.
It's all good." He laughed as we continued to walk down the hallway
towards the cafeteria.

Entering the cafeteria was more difficult than I thought it would be. As
soon as we walked in, the room became silent. Students watched us
intently as we made our way over to the table where Jennifer and Sherman
were sitting. It would be my first day back at school, and I wasn't sure
how they would react. They looked up nervously at us and said hello.
Sherman gave us a timid wave with his hand as he looked around to see if
anyone was watching.

As soon as we sat down, Roni rushed over to the table to sit beside
Craig. We sat nervously looking at each other. No one knew what to say. I
could hear students talking about us, but I couldn't make out what they
were saying. Jennifer tried to break the tension by talking about an
assignment we had in literature, but everyone ignored her.

My heart stopped when Mr. Montgomery, the school's principal, entered
and looked around. When he spotted us, he walked our way. He stood over
us and said, "Seth and Craig. I want to see you in my office
immediately." He turned and walked away. Craig and I looked nervously at
each other. Reluctantly, we rose and started to follow him from the
cafeteria. I heard Stacy and Maggie laughing uproariously off to my left.
I wanted to say something, but I didn't. I don't know what Mr.
Montgomery wanted, but I didn't want to add anything more.

When we reached the office, Mr. Montgomery was waiting for us. He pointed
to his office and said, "This way, Boys." I looked down the hall and
saw several students watching us. They were probably hoping we would be
suspended.

Mr. Montgomery closed the door and told us to sit in two seats facing his
desk. He sat down and folded his hands. "I have to be careful what I say
here," he said. "This is not a punishment hearing, and no parents are
involved." He paused and stared intently at us. I wanted to crawl under
the table.

"What happened Saturday was not a school function," he said. I glanced
quickly at Craig. My face reddened because I was embarrassed that Mr.
Montgomery had found out what occurred. "However, I'm sure there will
be repercussions from it here at school. "Craig." Craig jumped when he
said his name. "You're a star running back for the school, so I'm sure
that I will have to deal with some issues concerning your behavior
Saturday night."

He leaned forward and said, "I'm not going to ask you boys any personal
questions. However, rumors are rumors, and I have to deal with them. I
asked to see you because I want you to know that I want you to come to
see me personally if you have any problems with either students or staff
members. I don't want anything to escalate into a serious situation.
I'm also asking you boys to ignore anything said to you. I know that
won't be easy, but you know that it is to be expected. Don't fight
anyone. The last thing I want to do is suspend one or both of you for
fighting. Do you understand?"

I looked at Craig, and we nodded our heads. "Mr. Montgomery," said
Craig. "I won't be playing football anymore. I'm going to ask Coach
Abernathy to cut me from the team."

Mr. Montgomery shook his head. "Don't act too quickly, Craig," he
warned. "Give it a few days. You're a valuable member of our team, and
perhaps your teammates will react better than you expect."

It surprised me when Craig said, "They won't want to play with a gay
teammate."

Mr. Montgomery replied, "You might be surprised. I've already spoken to
Coach Abernathy about the situation." He stood and walked around the
desk. We stood and faced him. "Remember what I said, Boys," he
commented as he patted us on the shoulders. "Deescalate, don't
escalate." We followed him from the office as he walked over to his
secretary and told her to write us a pass to our first period class.

I was surprised that the morning went better than expected. No one said
anything when I entered. Mr. Stevenson gave me a nervous smile and told
me to have a seat. I sat next to Roni. We didn't speak, but I noticed
her staring at me several times.

When I went to second period, Ty was waiting outside the door for me.
When we sat down, he pulled his seat a little nearer to mine. We smiled
and giggled at each other all period. When class was over, he walked me
to my third period class and then rushed off to his.

I heard a few comments in the classes, mainly by boys, but they weren't
threatening. Most students seemed amused that Craig and I had been caught
by my sister. I heard them mention pool noodle a few times, and then they
would break out into a laugh. A couple of students who had been at the
party gave me a dirty look. I guess they felt that I was the reason for
them getting detained Saturday night.

As I was heading to the cafeteria for lunch, I jumped when someone walked
up beside me and grabbed my arm. I was afraid I was going to get hit.
Instead, it was Amber. She had a worried look on her face.

"Seth," she asked excitedly, "Have you seen Blake?"

"No," I replied. "Not since his parents took him from my aunt's house
Saturday."

She gripped my arm and pulled me to a closed doorway. She looked around
before saying, "He's ran away again." She began to cry. "No one knows
where he is."

I was afraid this would happen. I knew Blake would never stay with his
parents. He hated them. I asked Amber, "What happened?"

"I don't know," she said. "His father called Mom last night. She said
he sounded really angry." She hugged me tightly. "If he gets in contact
with you, tell him to call my Mom. She promised me she won't call my
uncle." She kissed me on my cheek and walked away.

I was worried about Blake. I wanted to leave school and try to find him.
He might be at the warehouse. Although this time, he may have left town.
Either that, or, he might have hurt himself. I didn't want to think of
what had happened. I just hoped that he would contact Uncle Steve or Mr.
Ellis.

When I sat down beside Ty and Craig, I leaned over and whispered to Craig
that Blake might be in trouble. He looked extremely upset. "We gotta do
something," he said worriedly.

"What's wrong?" asked Ty. I told him I would tell him later.

Craig rose from the table and headed out of the cafeteria. He stopped
when he noticed Mr. Montgomery standing there with his arms folded
watching students eat. "Over there," Craig said as he pointed to a
table. We walked over and sat down. "What's happened to Blake?"

"I don't know," I said. "Amber stopped me a few minutes ago, and she
said his father said he ran away again."

"Shit!" hissed Craig.

Just then, Ty walked up and sat down. "What's happened, Guys?" I
looked over at Craig.

Craig asked, "How much does he know?"

"A lot," I informed him. He had already figured out that I liked Ty. He
probably knew that I had told him about him and Blake.

He nodded and told me to tell him. I gave Ty the short version of what
was happening. The bell was getting ready to ring shortly, and Craig and
I needed to decide what we had to do. We agreed to meet after school and
see if we could find Blake. We would check out the warehouse first.

Ty begged, "Can I go with you?" I looked at Craig, and he shrugged his
shoulders.

"Meet me at my car after school," I said. "We'll follow Craig home to
leave his car, and we can ride around together." Craig thought that was
a good idea. At least we would be together if we did find Blake.

I was worried the rest of the afternoon. I kept checking my phone in case
Blake tried to contact me. I had it silenced so it wouldn't ring. If it
did, a teacher would confiscate it from me. I was in enough trouble. I
didn't need to add more troubles.

Craig, Ty and I are in the same geometry class fifth period. There was a
test scheduled. Craig tried to talk the teacher out of taking it since we
hadn't been in class. However, Mrs. Yarborrow said that was our problem.
We should have attended. I wasn't sure if she was aware of what had
happened, and it was her way of punishing us.

I was glad when the final bell rang. We had made it through the day
without any serious problems other than a few crude comments and giggles.
When we met at my car, I asked Craig if he should be at practice.

"Fuck football," he replied. "We gotta find Blake." Ty and I followed
Craig to his home. He asked if we wanted to come in for a minute, but I
was in a hurry to see if Blake was at the warehouse. Craig ran in and
changed clothes while Ty and I sat in my car.

Ty reached over and gripped my hand. "Are you okay?" he asked
worriedly.

Tears welled up in my eyes. "I'm so scared," I admitted. "I'm afraid
that Blake could be dead."

"He'll be alright," he replied. He squeezed my hand tighter. When I
started crying, he pulled me into his chest and rubbed my back. For the
first time all day, I felt safe.

Craig ran out to the car and jumped in. He asked Ty if I was okay. Ty
assured him I was. After a quick kiss on my cheek, I sat up and drove
away. Craig kept talking about how worried he was. Several times I had to
wipe tears from my eyes.

We arrived at the warehouse, and I parked in the back behind a dumpster.
When we got out, Craig walked over and looked inside. I think he was
afraid that he might find Blake's body inside. Ty asked why we were
here, but we both ignored him.

The outside door creaked when we opened it. I gave Craig a worried look
when we noticed some blood on it. "Fuck!" hissed Craig. He ran to the
room where Blake called his home. He pushed the door open and rushed in.
"Blake!" he called out as he ran around. Blake was nowhere. We stopped
suddenly when we came to the makeshift bed. The top blanket was soaked in
blood.

"Blake!" I screamed out as I looked into some closets in the room. Ty
and Craig ran around knocking over boxes looking for Blake's body.

"He's been here," cried Craig. "There's blood everywhere." I fell
to my knees and started crying hysterically. Ty tried to comfort me, but
I was past the point of being consoled. Blake was hurt, and we didn't
know where he was. I stood and began running around the room hollering
out his name. We rushed into the hall and began searching some of the
other rooms. I stopped when I thought I heard a low moan coming from one
of the smaller rooms.

"Over here, Guys!" I hollered out. I entered what appeared to have once
been an office. There were two rusted metals desks and a couple of filing
cabinets inside. I told Craig and Ty to remain quiet while we listened
for any kind of noise. We then heard another low moan coming from under
one of the desks. Ty rushed over and fell to his knees.

"Oh, God!" he cried out. Craig and I rushed over to where he was. He
was pulling Blake's limp body from under the desk. I gagged when I saw
him. His face was bleeding and bruised. Ty's shirt was soaked with blood
where he was cradling him in his arms. Craig and I fell to our knees and
began crying as he touched Blake and hollered out his name.

"We've got to get him help," said Ty urgently. "I'm afraid he's
going to die." He continued to cradle Blake in his arms and rock him.
Blake appeared unconscious. I thought he was already dead, but Ty assured
me Blake still had a pulse. Ty told me to call 9-1-1. I couldn't get
reception, so I hurried outside, hoping I could get a signal.

"What is your emergency?" asked the person on the phone. I explained
the situation, but I had no idea what the address was. I looked around
and described it as best as I could. Finally, the woman said she thought
she knew where I was. She told me that help was on the way. I ran back
inside to see if Blake was still alive. I cried for several minutes
before going back outside and waiting for the ambulance to arrive. When I
exited, there were two police cars with their lights flashing. I told
them to follow me, and I showed them the room where Blake was. I then ran
back outside to wait for the ambulance. It showed up minutes later. They
removed the gurney, and I told them to hurry as they followed me inside.

The next few minutes were chaotic. They made Ty, Craig and I stand off to
the side while they tended to Blake. His body was limp, and he didn't
respond to anything they were doing. They cut off his blood-stained
clothes. His face was damaged so badly that we couldn't recognize it was
him. He also had bruises on his arms and back. One of the officers walked
over and began interrogating us. We were so emotional that we couldn't
answer his questions. Fortunately, Ty kept a level head and could answer
some of them.

We rushed over to the gurney when they put Blake's limp body on it and
covered him with a sheet. I tried to lean down and hold him, but one of
the medics gently pushed me back and warned me that I could hurt him
more. We cried uncontrollably as they took his body out. We couldn't
leave because the two officers wanted more information on what we knew.
We provided him with Blake's name and ours.

When they asked if we knew who might have done this to Blake, I spat out
angrily, "His father!" A few minutes later, they gave us permission to
leave.

When we got to my car, we stopped and hugged each other. Ty was covered
in blood, and it got on us, but I didn't care. Craig said, "We have to
get to the hospital."

"Wait," I said. "I'm going to make a phone call."

It rang three times before someone answered. I shouted into the phone.
"Mr. Ellis! Blake has been hurt bad! They're taking him to the
hospital!"

We jumped into my car and raced to the hospital. I kept praying that we
wouldn't be too late.

**********

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