The crashing of the bowling pins hitting the floor was exceeding loud and seemed incredibly unnecessary. The bowling alley had an exceptionally exasperating vibe to it and it was driving Drake insane.
It was Josh's fault that he was there. Josh just had to point out that Drake had no plans for tonight which of course had to be a Friday night. It wasn't Drake's fault that the girl he was planning to see cancelled at the last minute. Josh was just trying to be nice when he invited Drake to go bowling with him and his friends. It was just a polite gesture, and with some effort Josh convinced Drake to tag along.
And that is exactly was Drake was, a tag along. Josh's friends were extremely offended when they saw Drake walking slowly behind Josh into the bowling alley. Josh's friends were smart, witty and all shared the same humour. They despised Drake for his laid back manner and too cool for school attitude.
"Hey guys!", Josh said to the crowd which included his genius girlfriend, Mindy. The crowd smiled back and eyed Drake down.
"Oh, yeah…hi" Drake said reluctantly looking at the girl behind the counter. Maybe this wasn't going to be so bad, the girl was pretty hot. Maybe he could ditch Josh and his friends and go to a movie or something.
"You looking at my girlfriend, Parker?" Drake made eye contact with Paul. Paul was one of Josh's new friends and was much larger then Drake. Drake couldn't be bothered to fight tonight. So he just decided to forget her.
Drake shook his head, looked at his feet and sighed. Josh nudged Drake a little harder then intended and leaned closer to Drake's ear.
"Come on Drake, please just…try and fit in"
"Dude I'm trying, but…" Josh cut in.
"Try harder" Josh then gently pushed Drake over to the shoe hire area. Once Drake had got his shoes and was making his way back to Josh's friends the teams had already mean sorted out.
"Okay Drake, you're on the other team, with Paul and Mark" Josh instructed. Drake could tell he was having heaps of fun but Drake just couldn't bring himself to be happy. They made there way over to their booked alley and began to set up.
"So, um…yeah just to clarify something, I well…you know…have never bowled before" Drake said to his other team mates. It was rather a said fact, that at 17, Drake Parker had never been bowling. He just never got the opportunity. His real father had never taken him bowling, or anywhere for that matter.
"You must be kidding?!" Said Mark a little louder then intended which make Drake flinch and take a step away from him.
"We want to win Drake! I don't like loosing, alright? And we won't loose right?"
"Man, I'll try but…I just…" Drake trailed off when he saw the fierce look in Mark's eyes.
"Okay names are in the computer, so let's start" Josh exclaimed to the group. "Drake you're up first!" Josh gave Drake a discreet smile which got Drake off his seat. Josh knew that Drake was completely miserable but figured that Drake Parker, who was good at everything he did, was going to be a great bowler.
Drake picked up his ball and made his way over to the line. Drake looked down at the pins then at his feet a look an elongated breath. He held the ball up to head just like he had seen in the movies, stretched out his arm behind his back and swung it forward and let go. As soon as the ball was rolling down the aisle it immediately rolled into the gutter. Drake slowly turned around to the group looking at his feet.
Mindy and the rest of Josh's team mates burst out laughing. Josh felt sorry for Drake; he was up there all alone with people taunting him. But Josh couldn't do anything about it, these were his friends and he couldn't, no wouldn't, jeopardise that.
After half an hour of taunting, laughing and mocking, Drake was feeling worse then ever. Every single ball that he bowled was a gutter ball and it was infuriating. In the whole game Drake didn't score a single point for his team so he was so glad when it was over.
"Drake, Drake, Drake…" Mindy started.
"Shut up Mindy!" Drake's words were just above a whisper and he seemed to be very interested in floor all of a sudden.
"Aww…come on Drakey, it's just a game". Mindy persisted with her mocking tone, and then started putting her arms around Josh's waist. Josh turned around and started kissing her keenly. Drake was about to snap. He was sick of being made fun of, he was sick of being second-best to Josh, he was so overwhelmed and the last thing he wanted to see was his step-brother making out with a stuck-up cow.
Drake interrupted the apparent love birds rudely. Drake pushed Josh away from Mindy and pulled him by the collar so he could whisper in his ear.
"Josh…I want to go home. Now!" Drake said trying not to yell.
"Dude, just wait…"
"No! Josh! I want to go home! You're driving so let's go! Now!" Drake continued.
"Drake... Listen to me. Just wait. Why do you want to go home so quickly?"
"Josh…I just…"
"Well?"
He was getting increasingly more upset, which would normally end up him yelling. Except on this occasion Drake was becoming much quieter and felt the hot tears starting to form in his eyes.
When Josh realised this his tone became more serious.
"Drake? Dude…why do you want to go home?" Josh was getting closer to trying to coax Drake in.
"I just…I …Josh…please?" Drake looked at Josh with teary eyes and immediately looked back at the floor.
"Okay, okay…we'll go. Come on man." Josh put his arm around Drakes shoulders and walked over to his friends slowly.
"Okay, Drake and I are off. See you guys at school. Mindy I'll call you later on tonight" Josh gently told the group then glanced down at Drake softly. Drake sniffed loudly which drew the group's attention onto him.
"You alright, Drake?" It was hard to decipher whether Mindy was being sincere or not.
It was at that exact moment that something came over Drake. All the attention was too much, the tears that were threatening to come out did along with heart-wrenching sobs. His knees buckled and Josh quickly held onto him before he fell to the floor.
Drake spun around and clung to Josh burying his head in Josh's shoulder. Josh could feel Drake shuddering and gasping for air but couldn't do anything but hold him with one arm. Josh was shocked. What on earth could make his brother act like this? Surely it couldn't just be that he is a bad bowler.
"It's alright Drake…" Josh whispered into his ear hoping that the others wouldn't hear. Josh was concerned of course, but also extremely embarrassed. These were his friends, and his girlfriend and they were all watching Drake go through a random spontaneous breakdown.
Drake continued to sob and began to wet Josh's t-shirt with his tears. His friends were all staring at Drake particularly confused as to what had taken place.
"Calm-down-Drake". Josh continued to whisper into his ear although these words came out a little harsher then meant they were meant to, which just escaladed Drakes hurt.
"Alright, come on, we're leaving Drake…see you guys later, yeah?" Josh questioned the shocked group.
"Yeah man sure… See you soon." With that the group departed leaving only a dishevelled Drake still clutching onto Josh and a very concerned Mindy.
"I'll walk you guys out" Mindy stated as Josh tried to persuade Drake into moving towards the car. When they got out side the cool winter air brushed past. It was late, which meant that they would have to face their parents.
"Okay, Drake…sit down here for a second while I find the car keys" Drake did what his brother told him and sat on the wall near the car. Drake was still crying and couldn't bring himself to stop.
Josh directed Mindy away from Drake so they could be alone.
"Josh, what is wrong with Drake?" Mindy exclaimed nearly accusingly.
"Mindy, I have no idea, but how could he do that? He just embarrassed me in front of all those people" Josh's voice was rising.
"I knew I shouldn't have invited him"
"Josh, I know you're mad, but Drake needs you alright? I'll call you tonight to ask how things went. Alright? I love you Joshie"
"I love you too Mindy" The couple shared a goodbye kiss and then both went their separate ways. Josh slowly walked over to where Drake was sitting.
Josh grabbed Drake by the shoulders soothingly and lightly pulled him up into a standing position.
"Okay Drake, ready to go home?"
When Josh didn't receive an answer he assumed that meant yes. They both climbed into the car in silence and just sat there since Josh didn't start the ignition.
"Now Drake, I'm not driving us home, until you tell me, what's wrong?" Josh said with concern in his voice.
Drake's crying increased again, yet this time Josh was not going to calm him down. Drake wiped his eyes and nose with his sleeve and persisted to look out the window.
"Drake! Come on! Did something happen at school? Did something happen with your girlfriend…Jenny?" Josh hoped that was the latest one, there was so many it was hard to keep up.
"…Josh…I…" Drake was hiccupping out words and couldn't continue but resorted to sobbing louder then before.
"Take it easy… come on breathe in and out slowly…just focus on your breathing"
"Josh…I'm sorry…I… … and… I…I" Josh waited for Drake to pull himself together. It took a good 10 minutes until Drake had finally calmed down a little bit.
"Okay, feeling better?" Josh asked, not really caring as to what the answer would be since in that ten minutes he had received a text from Mark which was ridiculing his brother.
"…Josh…please…can we…go home?"
"No Drake! We can't! You just embarrassed me in front of my girlfriend and friends, I am getting an answer out of you and I don't care how long it takes!!" Josh always tries not to yell at Drake when he can, but he knew that he would have to if he was going to get an answer.
"You want to know what's wrong?" Drake yelled back at his brother.
"Yes…I do"
"Fine! My life sucks Josh…It really does. You have all these friends that like you for you! My friends couldn't give a shit about me! They just hang around me 'cause I'm in a band and have great hair! You have a girlfriend who truly loves you! I get girlfriends who just want to have sex! And they keep coming because I give it to them! I don't even think about the fucking consequences because I'm that thick! Most of the fucking girls, I hate! I hate them! Josh I fucking hate them! But I can't stop! But it's not just girls either! I've slept with guys Josh! And the worst thing is, I fucking liked it!! And I do it 'cause I have nothing better to do with my time!! Unlike you, your smart, witty and good looking and actually do things that matter in life! While your entering competitions and making a difference! I'm out late at night getting stoned and smashed off my face! When you were little, I'm sure your dad taught you how to ride a bike and maybe even how to bowl a fucking bowling ball! Mine didn't Josh…"
Drake had tears streaming down his eyes and was beginning to choke on his words.
"Mine…mine…fucking beat me! All the time! He wasn't even drunk when he was doing it! He did it for fun! I wish that if he had been a proper fucking father then maybe I would have turned out better, you know?! Maybe someone like you… maybe I wouldn't be failing school, or already have things on my criminal record or…or… maybe might not have fucking embarrassed you in front of all your friends that I know hate me. I know they hate me Josh. They hate me because of what I am! I don't even know what I am…"
"…Drake…" Josh began but he couldn't speak, he was shocked, about everything.
"I…I…I can't-t take…take it-t any more. It's so fucking stupid, I know…but…I…can't…I can't-t…"
Drake's crying was worse then before, the tears were coming thick and fast and his sobs were so loud, Josh swore the people inside could hear him.
"Jesus Christ…Drake…Drake?...Drake!" Josh couldn't get his attention; Drake was too wrapped up in his own thoughts to even listen to Josh. Josh opened his car door and walked around to Drake's. He opened the door and pulled the broken boy out of the car. Drake was so upset he couldn't even support his own body, so Josh just held him. He held him for what seemed hours. When it comes down to it, it probably was.
After more time went by Drake began to calm down, and rested against Josh's chest. It was colder now, Josh looked down at his watch; 12:17.
"Hey, let's get back in the car, there's a heater in there" Josh helped Drake back into the car and went around to the drivers side and sat down.
"Drake, I didn't know, but…but…we're going to sort it out. Your friends, they don't hate you, if they do, get new ones, you're the most popular guy in school, and anyone will want to hang out with you. And…well…ah…about the girlfriends, if that's all they want, then their not really there for you are they? And maybe try just try to not have sex with all of them, especially if you hate them, man. It's not worth it. And…um… about…"
Josh was trying so hard to do this without making it awkward or make Drake feel any worse about himself, it was a hard effort though.
Josh sighed and continued.
"Having sex with men, if you're enjoying it then maybe…"
Drake looked at Josh with so much hurt in his eyes, it broke Josh's heart, but he knew he had to say it to help his brother.
"Maybe… you're gay?"
The car filled with silence, until Drake sniffed and cleared his throat.
"…Josh…I…I…can we…I don't know…forget I said that?"
"No, dude, we can't, we need to get this sorted out" Josh said cautiously.
"Josh…please… I never meant to say it; it just came out…and…"
"Was it true?" the question created yet again a strong case of silence in the small Peugeot.
"…please Josh…"
"Was it true Drake? I won't judge you"
"Fuck! Josh! Of course you will! I know you will!"
"Drake! We are fucking brothers! I'm not going to judge you! Do you understand??"
"Josh I am begging you, I don't want to talk about this"
"We are talking about it Drake! Is it true?"
"Yes! Okay...fuck…its true…"
"Okay, next question, are you gay?"
"Jesus Christ Josh, I'm not answering any more of your stupid questions!"
"Drake…" Josh was trying to stay calm, but his brother was being so stubborn he found it hard to maintain.
"Look to put it simply I don't know, alright, I don't."
"Okay, we will talk about that later. And I'm really sorry about your dad, he sounds like a complete arse! Why didn't you tell me about it? I could have helped! And Drake you are an alright person, people do love you, don't worry about my friends, that's my job and all this other shit about getting smashed and stoned! Dude! Just don't do it! Have some self control! I think we are going to have to tell mom and dad about that one…"
Drake leapt out of his seat and was about an inch away from Josh's head.
"We aren't telling mom or Walter ANYTHING! Josh! Right?"
"No, Drake, I'm sorry…I'm going to have to…" Josh said looking extremely apologetic.
"JOSH! You can't! Please…PLEASE!"
"Look Drake…I'm sorry, it's to help you!"
"I don't need help! Josh!"
"Drake…I'm telling them, you can cry all you like, it's to help you."
"Josh! I don't want their help or anybody else's, I want yours…I want you"
Drake was now getting rather distressed.
"Drake…I can only help you so much, a professional will help you even-where are you going?"
"I'm fucking walking home!" Drake opened his door but struggled to undo his seatbelt.
"Drake you're not going anywhere" Josh said watching Drake still struggle to undo his seat belt.
"Drake listen…" Josh grabbed Drake's hand and held them in his.
"I'm going to drive us home now, and I am going to tell mom and dad about the drugs, I won't tell them about the underage drinking or the fact you're not a virgin nor that your dad beat you. I'm concerned about you. I'm trying to help."
"…Josh please…don't…please…p-please" Drake begin to sob again yet this time he was quieter and sounded rather exhausted. Josh leaned over and shut his door and started up the car.
By the time the two boys arrived home it was 1:00am and Drake was fast asleep with tear stains all over his face, fair enough seeing as he cried up until he fell asleep. The journey was an upsetting scene, Josh having to listen to his brother pour his heart out while he just drove in silence. Josh got out of the car, and walked around to Drake's side. He gently pulled him out of the car and carried him to the front door. Not being able to get to his keys he had to ring the door bell, and in turn facing the parents.
The door was opened immediately as an exasperated Walter stood at the door looking furious. Josh looked inside and saw Audrey watching the door from the couch with the T.V. on mute.
"Where have you been?! It is 1am, no call, no note, nothing! You said you would be back by 10:30! What's happened to Drake?" Walter was fuming.
"I'm sorry Dad, there was an issue that had to be sorted, I'll just go put Drake to bed and be back down to talk to you" Josh explained in a very mature way.
Josh placed Drake in his bed and pulled the duvet on him. Even when asleep he looked heart-broken.
"Goodnight Drake, you're a good person, remember that. I'm sorry, I have to tell" The shock of what had happened that night was beginning to kick into Josh.
He slowly walked down the stairs and into the family room where his parents awaited.
"Now, what happened?" Audrey said on the verge of tears.
"It's about Drake, we had a very long chat about some things. He was very upset and cried the entire time. He told me quite a few things, but I promised him I would keep most of it secret. One thing that got me quite concerned was his drug taking. He is taking drugs and is finding it hard to stop".
Audrey and Walter looking dazed and Audrey began to cry.
Josh sighed as the recollection kicked in that this would be a very long and hard night.