This was written in about two days, so sorry if it's a bit rough around the edges.
Soundtrack : Bring Me Down, by Apulanta
Worthless
"She's beautiful, ain't she ?" Came the voice of Willa Grey. She was a small and thin vixen with heavy bags under her eyes, and a loving smile on her face. She was currently resting on the hospital bed, her newborn daughter in her arm. The cub was already sleeping, occasionally making bubbly noises.
A fourteen years old Gideon Grey was twisting his fingers in a mix of anxiety and excitation. One of his eyes was slightly swollen from a scuffle he had been in a few days prior that he hoped his parents wouldn't notice. Of course, they had noticed, and the usual consequences had ensued. But right now, he didn't care about that.
"Yeah, Ma. She is… She's sumthin'." He smiled nervously.
The vixen could see her son was hesitant.
"Do you want to hold her ?" She asked.
"I..." He drew his paws up, before putting them back down. "No… I might hurt her."
She shot him a soft smile. "You won't hurt her, Giddy."
The fox looked at his paws. They were made to fight, to claw. He wasn't sure he should touch her with these paws. "I..." He hesitated.
Will scooted to the side of the bed and with one paw, she reached for him. "She's your sister. I know you won't hurt her."
He let her grab his paw and approach him from the small form between his mom's arms. Part of the young fox wanted to pull his paw back. Then his finger touched the thin fur of the cub. It was electrifying. Like something inside him had woken up.
He was a bad mammal, he was mean, he was short tempered, and part of him knew that. The other kids didn't like him, they avoided him or fought him, they thought he was a worthless fox and a bigger part of him believed that. But at that moment, and for a couple of seconds, he ceased to be Gideon Grey, the terror of the schoolyard, the big bully, the bad seed.
He was Gideon Grey. The big brother.
"Hi, Hailey." He whispered. "I'm Gideon. I'm your… I'm your Big Bro."
The small cub yawned and stretched her small arms, before grabbing his finger. And large smile spread on the fox's features.
"Mrs Grey ? I've just been informed that your husband arrived." A sheep nurse had put his head through the open door. "He should be here any minute."
The two foxes turned toward the nurse but he had already disappeared. They then stared a eachother in silence, the tension slowly rising.
"Where's my lil' girl ?" Came a voice from outside the hospital room. It was approaching and Gideon could see his mother scooting back toward the middle of the bed, drawing her daughter closer to her chest.
Gavin Grey, a pudgy fox fox that usually seemed like a permanent scowl was plastered on his face, appeared in the door frame. If not for the few strands of greying fur, him and Gideon could have looked like brothers. He was sporting his usual overall and chequered shirt, and was holding his cap in his paw.
"There she is !" He exclaimed, pacing toward the bed. "Oh, she's beautiful ain't she ?" He said, while his son stepped out of his way. He reached for the small vulpine and Gideon could see the slight tremble in his mother's paw when he took her. "She looks just like you !" He said to his wife, rubbing a blunt claw against her cheek.
Willa smiled. It had been years since she had seen her husband smile like that. Maybe this knew addition to the family would prove to be an even better thing that she hoped.
"I'm afraid it's going to be detention again, Mr Grey." Came Principal Woolstein's stern voice from the other side of the desk. "It was your second fight this week, and I cannot turn a blind eye over it."
Gideon was glaring at him, even though he knew the caprine was completely impervious to intimidation.
"If you keep up with that attitude, I'll end up with no other choice than expel you for a week."
The vulpine winced. That would be bad. Very, very bad.
"You know, your father too went through my school. I was only a teacher at the time, but I clearly remember him having the same attitude. You're quite similar in a way."
Gideon's snout crumpled, and he barely kept himself from snarling. He didn't know what made him more angry, that the principal was badmouthing his father, or that he was comparing them.
"Think about it, Mr Grey. Get your act together. The alternative is ending as a factory worker, or worse, and none of us want that."
He wanted retort that there was nothing wrong with being a factory worker. His father was a factory worker. But there was plenty wrong with his dad, wasn't it ?
…
The young vulpine was staring at the detention sheet.
He had two choices, either show to his dad right away and be done with it, or try to hide it, and hope he'd be able to intercept the one that would come through the mail in a couple of days. Of course, he could still hope that his mom would be the one to find it, but it was a gamble.
And if his dad discovered that she had covered for her son, the two of them would suffer the consequences. And Gideon couldn't have that.
Sitting at the kitchen table he heard light steps coming from behind him.
"Hey Giddy."
"Hey mom."
His mother was carrying a sleeping Hailey in her arms, and he ruffled the fur of her head.
He felt her paw on his shoulder, and the light peck his mother gave to his cheek.
"Is this a detention sheet ?" He could hear the unsaid 'again' in her voice, as well as the tinge of disappointment.
"Yeah." He barely kept his voice from breaking.
"I'll go get a pen." She sighed. He grabbed her arm and stopped her before she could leave.
"I'll have dad sign it."
"Gid-"
"He'll go easy on me if I'm the one showin' it to him."
The both of them heard the door open. "I'm home." Came a tired and disgruntled voice.
Gideon winces, his dad wasn't in one of his good days. "Go take care of Hailey." He said to his mother in a resolute voice.
She gave him a kiss on the forehead and left the room. As she made her way upstairs, the vulpine was sure he heard a sob.
The older fox entered the kitchen to find his son with his ears down and a paper in his hands. "Hey son."
"Hey dad." Gideon answered.
"How was yer day ?" He asked, going to the fridge and taking out a beer bottle.
The young fox sighed and slid the sheet of paper toward him. Gaving took it and read it, freezing and slowly putting down his beer on the counter. "What is dis ?" He asked in a calm and detached voice.
"A detention sheet. I-I need ya to sign it."
The older fox slowly put down the sheet of paper on the table. He seemed calm, and maybe it would go over well. "I bust my ass off all day. I give everything…" His fist hit the table, making Gideon jump. "EVERYTHING ! TO PUT A ROOF OVER YER WORTHLESS HEAD !" He gripped the table and threw it aside. "TO PUT FOOD ON YER FUCKING PLATE !" He grabbed his son by the collar and shoved him against the wall. "And I come home to this. You're doing on purpose, aren't you ?" His voice was calm and controlled again. Gideon started trembling. "Yer nothing but a disappointment."
...
Gideon painfully heaved himself from the ktichen floor. He was in pain, bruised, and he wouldn't be surprised if one of his rib had been cracked. But it had been far from his worse beating. To be quite honest, he had become good had taking them.
Offer the side to the punches, go backward with the uppercuts, hit the wall with his the back, slide while protecting the head. It was a lot of stuff he had picked up over the years, and the bruising was easily covered with the fur. The hardest part was hide away the pain when he moved, but at that too he had become skilled. At least, he hadn't used the belt. Detention wasn't worth the belt anymore. Getting expelled did, but he was careful not to let that happen.
The young fox sniffled, and wiped away the tears from his face before making his way toward the bathroom. At least his father rarely went for the face.
Gideon thumped his head against his math book.
"Worthless." He muttered.
He couldn't understand a thing, not that he really wanted to. His grade were still way to low, and he couldn't afford to retake another year. He still remembered last year, still felt it, really. He had had to spend a week in bed before being able to move again, and in his mother's opinion he should have gone to the hospital.
But if he had, there would have been questions, inquiries he couldn't answer. The answers weren't worth the trouble.
So he was sitting in the kitchen, as his small room didn't have a desk, and was trying, and failing, to do his homework.
The numbers were dancing before his eyes, taunting him, mocking him. Each line of text was like a slap on his snout, an evidence of how stupid and worthless he was.
His mom entered the kitchen, her fingers brushing the side of his face.
"How are you doing ?"
"Fine." Came his answer.
She shot him a look that made it obvious she saw right through him. "Show me."
She was almost seven months in her maternity leave, but she still had her accountant degree. Willa Grey had always been good with numbers.
"Hm, Second degree equations… They're not that hard."
The fox ears pinned themselves down. "I can't get rid of that f- freaking x squared."
"You need to calculate the delta first." She explained. "There, let me show you."
It had been a long time since his mother had helped him with his homework. In fact, she had stopped doing so right after he had enter highschool, as she had been forced to start working again. But he realised that even though taking care of Hailey was a full time job, if he helped around when he was home, she could have time to help him too. At least until she would start to work again.
As she explained, he started to understand. She showed him the visual representations of his equations and he felt a bit stupid. He was pretty sure the teacher had gone over that, but he could never bring himself to listen during class. There was always something else to do, some stupid bunny ear to yank, some paperball to throw.
"See, you did it." She said, as he finished the third equation on his own.
"Yeah, ah' did." He smiled proudly. Of course, math wasn't the only course he struggled in, but the confidence boost went a long way.
She made her way toward the stove and he noticed the slight limp in her step, a remnant of her and his father's last disagreement.
As the sun was setting down on the horizon, the young fox sighed. He had finished all his homework, his chores, and had even helped his mother around the house. He felt tired but happy. In fact, it had been months since he had felt that good.
Then he heard the noise of a car engine coming up in the driveway, and he realised why he had been feeling so good lately. Since his dad had started working the afternoon shifts, they barely saw each other. He slept until late in the morning before leaving after lunch, working until late in the evening. With a scowl he turned the lights of. The last thing he wanted right now was to ruin this good day by being in contact with his father.
It was late when Gideon came home. His mother had insisted that she could take care of everything while he hung out with Travis, and he had accepted to leave. Now, the sun was starting to set on the horizon. He pushed the door and entered, to find his mother hanging some clothes.
"You're home that early ?" She asked.
"It's 9 o'clock, ma'."
The vixen froze. "It's… Oh my god. I need to start cooking !" She rushed to the kitchen and Gideon followed her. The both of them busied themselves over the counter, expecting to hear the rumble of the car engine at any second.
When it did, the pastas were still the pot, and the oignons had just been thrown in the pan. "Nick, go to your room."
The young fox made a couple of steps toward the door before stopping. He knew his dad, he knew what was going to happen. The last time she had forgotten to cook, it had earned her a broken leg, and split lips. He took a controlled breath.
What would someone not as worthless as him do ?
What would a brave mammal do ?
He turned around and grabbed his mother by the shoulder, almost picking her up, pushing her toward the stairs. "Take Hailey and get in mah room. Leave the lights off."
"Gid-" She tried to protest.
"Now, Ma' !"
He heard her steps on the first floor and in his room as he got back to the kitchen. Then the entry door opened. "I'm home." There already was anger in his voice. The beating would have come for them anyway. He would have found a reason. He always did find a reason.
"Hey Da' !" Greeted Gideon with what he hoped was warmth, as he kept preparing the food.
His father entered the kitchen, and the young vulpine could hear his steps stopping only after a couple of steps.
"The food isn't ready." It wasn't a question. It was a statement.
"Sorry I-"
"She forgot the food."
"Da', it was my-"
Gavin snarled. "She has one job. One goddam job, and she fucks it up ! SHE FUCKS IT UP !"
Gideon flinched, and made himself smaller. She wanted to out, away, far from here. He wanted his father to forget he had seen him.
"WHERE IS SHE ?"
"M-m-" Gideon hesitated. He almost had told him to check his own room. "Her room. W-With Hailey. It's okay dad, it's almost ready."
"No, it's not okay. She doesn't respect me. I tried, son, I really tried, but I can't teach her. She's too FUCKING STUPID !" He stormed out of the kitchen, Gideon in his steps and rushed upstair, kicking his bedroom door open. Gideon, for his part, had gone and placed himself in front of his own door. Soon, his father reappeared in the hallway.
"You lied to me." Gavin's voice was calm and composed again. He was staring blankly at his son. "I understand son. It's yer Ma, ya don't want anyone to hit her. But it's for her and yer own good. She need to be taught. Move aside."
"N-no."
"What?"
"I s-said no."
Gavin took a pair of deliberately slow step toward his soon. "Did you just say no to me ?"
"Y-"
He never saw the punch coming, It caught his jaw and the young fox was thrown off balance, barely catching himself to the wall. As a reflex he shoved his father away, which only barely made him move.
"You want to fight Gid ?"
"Da, please…"
"You want to fight me ?"
"Da, stop." Gideon brought his fists up in a defensive position. He was going to go down, and he knew it, but he would go down fighting. Like the brave mammal he wished he was.
"YOU WANT TO FIGHT ME ? YOUR OWN FATHER ? YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF TRASH !"
The fist easily got past Gideon's arms and caught him in the gut. The next one caught the side of his snout, but he was able to cushion it by turning his head. He felt the taste the blood in his mouth, but it was cut short by a sharp pain in his ears. His father had caught him by them, and used them to bring him down and shove his knee in his jaw. Gideon barely manage to stop the attack with his arms, which kept his jaw from being fractured, but then he felt his head connect with the wall. He lost his footing and fell on all four, before a strong grip caught his collar and dragged him to the stairs.
"Dad, please." He begged.
"You want to fight like a real predator, but you beg like a prey." He spat before shoving him toward the stairs.
Time slowed down, and Gideon curled up to try and limit the damage. His head took the first hit, followed by his back, one of his knees. He ended his course by falling one of his arm with a loud crack. The pain that followed was agonizingly familiar. A funny thought entered his mind. At last he would be able to honestly say he had broken it by falling down the stairs. He rolled to the side, cradling his broken arm against his chest.
The form of his father was still upstairs, and for a few moments, Gideon feared he was going to follow him down. Instead, he did even worse.
Gideon saw his father's silhouette slowly turn toward his room, while he unbuckled his belt. His Ma was in there. His sister was in there. He couldn't let it happen.
"Ya hide behind yer son now, Willa ?" Gavin asked, taking a first step toward the door.
He was in pain, he couldn't move, his body felt like a ton of brick. What could he do ?
What would a brave mammal do ?
"Ain'tchu gonna finish the job, you fuckin' worthless piece of shit ?" He heard himself shouting, in an imitation of his father that was way to close to the real thing.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY ?"
He heard the rumble of his father's step rushing down the stair, before a first lash of his belt caught his snout.
"WHAT"
Whip
"DID"
Whip
"YOU"
Whip
"FUCKIN'"
Whip
"SAY"
Whip
"TO"
Whip
"ME ?"
Lash after lash, the pain grew stronger, overloading Gideon's mind. He had curled into a ball and started weeping. His mind was slowly going numb and he felt a strange feeling surround him, like his body was turning into cotton. He was starting to lose consciousness. Suddenly there was a loud crack and the house door flew open.
"Police ! Gavin, put the belt down and step away from the kid !"
After one last hit of the belt, the pain stopped. In a haze, Gideon saw his father freeze and stare at the pair of cops that had just entered.
"Get off of my property ! This is my home, and I'll punish my son as I see fit ! What I do here is my own business."
"No it's not." Retorted the cop. "Now put your paws behind your back, or I will taze you." Given his tone, it was obvious he hoped the fox wouldn't comply, just so he could apply some swift justice in the form of a 10000 volt zap.
There was a noise in the staircase, and Gavin turned around to see his wife holding a phone in a trembling paw.
"You did this." He snarled, before pouncing at her, and stumbling down as a paw caught his leg.
Despite the pain, Gideon had found the strength to move and grab his ankle. "Don't… Touch-"
He was cut short by a deflagration of pain. One the cop had shot his weapon, not having taken into account that as they touched, both foxes would get electrocuted.
Aside from the broken arm, most of the vulpine's wound had been rather superficial. He had tried to play it off in front of his mother, but it hurt that not a single mammal had come to see him in the hospital. There wouldn't be a need for reeducation, and the young fox was used to walk off this kind of injury.
Then, he had left the hospital to be thrown into a courtroom to make his statement, under the hateful eye of his father. The trial had been short to say the least.
Gavin's lawyer had basically thrown the ball when his client had decided to plead not guilty, and had assure minimal service.
Still, a couple of question had been thrown toward Gideon. Had he provoked his father ? Had he thrown the first punch ? Why hadn't he tried to fight back afterward ?
All of them were painful to him, and part of him wondered if he wasn't the one being responsible for everything. After all, if he hadn't put himself in his father's way, he would never have been beaten that badly.
But the prosecutor had been without mercy, easily tearing down any argument Gavin's lawyer had tried to use.
From then on, it had been only a formality. Gideon's father would spend the next five years in prison, which would be followed by a restraining order that would keep him away for good.
In any other circumstances, Gideon would have been glad to be in Zootopia, if only to stroll around in the street, but he couldn't focus. On that
"We're going to be okay."
Sitting next to him on a park bench, his mother was cradling Hailey in her arms. "I'll just have to find a someone to keep your sister and I'll start working again."
He didn't answer and kept staring into nothingness.
By all account he should feel happy. His father was gone, and he would never be able to hurt him or his mother again. He would never get to hurt his sister.
But inside, he felt only emptiness.
"That's it ! Run away !" Gideon was waving his fist at the three bunnies that were fleeing him, one of them holding one of his mate's arm over his shoulder while he limped away from the fox.
He dusted his overall with a satisfied grin, before pocketing the few coins they had tried to hide from him.
"How much did they have ?" Asked Travis as he reappeared from where had hidden himself during the scuffle.
"Not much." He answered with a shrug, tossing the weasel a part of his loot. "Can't believe they fought so hard for so little money."
"It's still a few rounds at the pinball machine."
After Gideon's grade had finally found their way into the abyss, he had decided it wasn't worth the effort anymore. His mood was more foul than ever, and he lashed out at anyone that would have the bad idea to look his way funny.
The teachers, knowing what he and his family had gotten through cut him more slack than usual, and even though he landed a couple of time in the principal's office, it never resulted in any real punishment.
But even though he knew his school would accept him retaking yet another year, he had decided against it. Studying wasn't for him. He was too dumb to get the content of the books anyway, and he knew that without his father and the financial support he provided, they needed another source of income to get by.
It was a strange thought to realise that even though it wasn't for the same reason, he had ended up on the same path as his father. Flunked highschool to find work.
Despite the fact that he hadn't come to visit him at the hospital, Travis was still the only one that would hang out with him on his day out from work. All his work money was used to help his family get by, so any money that he made on the side he felt he was free to use for himself. Maybe he could be a little less selfish with it, but he felt like he deserved to make himself happy once in a while. So they still hung out, despite the fact that he didn't feel as close to the mustelid as he used to.
The two mammals started making their way toward the city center, using the back alleys to avoid being found by the mob of small bunnies they knew would now be looking for them. Having been able to find three isolated ones had been a lucky break.
"Stop right there !"
Came a female voice from behind them. A twelve years old bunny wearing a pink shirt and a white short was standing in the alleyway, her fists on her hips. Gideon groaned.
"What do ya want ?"
"I want back the money you took from my friends !" She paced toward him with a determined expression, but he could see the hesitation in her steps.
"I ain't done nothing, and you can't prove it." Stated Gideon, crossing his arms defiantly "And I haven't seen none of your friends today."
"It's the voice of a fox against three sheeps, Gid."
"They were bunnies actually." He shot back with a smirk.
"So you mean to tell me that the three mammals you told me you haven't stolen money from were in fact bunnies ?" She smirked back.
Gideon realised what he had just said and frowned. "Still doesn't prove jack."
"I wonder who's the sheriff's going to trust though. The word of three bunnies and or the word of one single fox."
"Travis was 'dere too !"
The bunny snickered. "You're making it very easy today, you know that right ?" She smiled, waving the dreaded carrot pen.
"Gimme that !" He tried to reach for it but she jumped back.
"Huh-uh. I'll erase the recording if you give me the money."
A cold sweat ran in Gideon's back. If she got to the sheriff, he would be in real trouble. And his mom had her hand full with Hailey, he didn't want her to make the trip to the station. At least, without his father in the picture, things couldn't really get that bad.
"Think I'll trust a stupid bunny ? Erase it first."
Judy could hear the slight waver in the fox's voice. "No deal. You think I will trust a worthless fox ? Give the money first !"
Gideon's frown turned into a scowl. "Who are ya callin' worthless ?" He said stepping toward her and baring his fangs. It was satisfying to see her resolve waver and her nose twitch, but his anger kept building.
"You ! I'm calling you worthless ! Don't you think your family has suffered enough already ?" She knew. Of course she knew, she always put her nose where it didn't belong.
He took a step forward. "I'm warnin' ya-"
"Is this the kind of example you want to set for your sister ?" She cut him.
The scowl turned into a snarl, the pudgy fox moving surprisingly fast for his weight. "Dontchu talk about my sister !" He shouted, grabbing her by the neck and slamming her against the wall. She tried to fight back, but the fox was using all his weight, and despite the strength in her leg, she couldn't shove him back. "Dontchu ever talk about her."
"Gid-" She said, feeling his paw tighten, completely cutting her respiration. "G-" Dark dots started to appear at the edge of her vision. Her paws started to lose strength. "Please." She mouthed silently while staring right into his eyes, with an expression of fear and despair. An expression he had seen before. An expression he knew too well.
An overprint of another image appeared. Instead of Judy's frighten face he saw his mother's, and instead of his paws, it was his father's.
Gideon let go of his victim and she fell to the floor, coughing and wheezing.
"I'm sorry." He blurted, kneeling by her side. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry." He kept repeating, putting a paw to her shoulder. He was about to help her stand, but she swatted his paw away.
"Leave me alone !" She shouted, before shoving him and running away.
Gideon was lying on his bed, wide awake, with his paws on his ears.
He glanced at the alarm clock to see it was already 5:30AM. In less than an hour, he'd have to get up and go to work at the factory. He was doing the exact same job his father had done before, and it ate at him.
The dreams didn't help either. In each he saw his own paws around a different mammals throat. Judy, Sharla, his mother, Hailey. Then he saw himself turn into his father, rage and anger filling him. Each time he woke up panting and crying, but relieved it had only been a dream.
But these last few days, the dreams weren't the reason why he had trouble sleeping. Hailey had been crying for the last three hours, and nothing his mother tried to calm her down worked. Since her fangs had begun to grow, she had been crying regularly, and even though she meant the world to him, he had started to avoid being in her presence. He was afraid of what he might do if she kept on. It wouldn't have been the first time he would have hurt a smaller mammal.
The only things in his life now were working, getting home, doing chores, taking care of his sister, sleeping and getting back to work. It was supposed to be simple. They were supposed to be happy now, without his dad. And he wasn't. He knew his Ma was, her smile was back, the fear had left her eyes, and he hoped it had for good.
It felt unfair. He had tried to do everything right, but he felt more desperate than ever.
And because his sister was still crying he couldn't sleep, which would make a hard job even harder.
The crying suddenly stopped and Gideon sighed. He straightened up on his bed and put his feet to the floor, already knowing there were few chances that he would be able to get back to sleep.
The wailing suddenly started again, even louder than before. Gideon crumpled his nose. Why was she still crying ? Life was supposed to be good now. He had made it better for her. It had cost him too much for it to be thrown back in his face. Why was this worthless piece of trash ruining everything ?
He heard a low snarl fill the room. In front of him, a face full of anger and hate stared at him. Panic filled his mind. He was back. His father was back.
Gideon was about to scramble back when he noticed the angry face wasn't moving. Then he noticed the snarl was coming from his own throat. The face in front of him was only a reflection in his wardrobe mirror.
Worthless. The word echoed in his mind.
"No." He whispered. "No, no, no, no !"
The cub was still wailing in the next room and he could hear his mother trying to calm her down. "I didn't think that ! It was him ! It was him !" He said to the mirror.
Worthless.
"I'm not like him ! I swear ! She's not worthless, he is. He's the one that wanted to hurt us, not me ! Never me ! He's the one that was-"
Worthless.
"Please, I don't want to be like him ! Please ! I protected them, I did everything ! Please, I'm not-"
Worthless.
But he was. Deep down, he felt it. The anger, the rage, the resentment. His father who should have loved him. His mother who should have protected him. His sister who he should only want to love and protect. If he had been a better fox, things would never have turned that way. And now, he was becoming what he had feared his whole life.
Worthless
"It ain't fair." He sobbed. The faces of every mammal he had ever tormented were swirling in his mind, showing all the evil he had done. "It ain't fair !" And at that moment he knew he couldn't allow him to come back. He could never let his father come back to torment them. "I won't be him ! Never !"
Willa Grey looked at the time. 5:52AM. She felt guilty for taking so long to put Hailey back to sleep, but she remembered how it had been for Gideon at her age. She couldn't tell if it had been worse, but there had been a lot of sleepless nights.
Yawning, she made her way down to the kitchen and started preparing her son's breakfast. She rarely was up before him, but when she was, she made a point to do it. She knew things had been hard for him since his father had been taken away. He hid it well, but she knew he was sad and angry. She hadn't argued when he had chosen to leave school to find work, and she sometimes felt guilty about it, but the fact was, they needed the money. Soon, she would find a full time job, and she would push him to do something else than the thankless factory work. In the meantime, she hoped he would hold on.
There was tumbling noise upstairs, and knowing how clumsy her son could sometimes be, she didn't get overly worried. However, when his alarm started and kept blaring she raised a brow. It wasn't unusual for him to push snooze, but he never let the alarm ring for that long.
Worried that the noise would wake Hailey up again, she climbed back up and directed herself toward her son's room. Through the slit under the door, she could see the light was on.
She knocked. "Son, are you okay ?"
When he didn't answer, she knocked harder. She didn't want to open the door yet, knowing that her son liked his privacy, but she ended up doing so anyway.
"Giddy, is ev-" The words died in her throat.
In front of her, in the small dim lit room, hung by his neck with a rope, was the inert body of Gideon Grey.
Some tales simply don't have a good ending...
