Chapter 10: Emotional Triggers
It was Saturday morning at the Henderson residence and Clyde was in the kitchen, making some breakfast for his mother and himself since he already made his father breakfast as usual.
"Oi...you..."
Clyde jumped a bit and quietly turns to see his dad near the kitchen door with a beer bottle in his hand; Clyde can clearly see that the old man was completely drunk now from those four bottles of beer Clyde spotted near the floor when he gave his father breakfast this morning.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Kenny firmly asked.
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked softly.
"Don't play stupid with me; why aren't you at school?" Kenny asked sternly yet drunkenly.
"Today's Saturday dad, I don't have school on weekends" Clyde explained.
"Don't lie to me boy, you're skipping school, aren't you" Kenny growled.
"I'm not skipping school" Clyde shook his head.
"Now you just listen to me, boy" Kenny angrily started.
"Dad, please just stop it, you're drunk" Clyde pleaded.
"I'm what? Excuse me?! What the hell did you say to me?" Kenny coldly asked.
"Dad, it is seven am in the morning and you're drunk again!" Clyde replied
"Don't tell me if I'm drunk or not, you little shit" Kenny firmly snapped as he threw the bottle at Clyde who dodges it in time.
"Dad, just stop! just leave me alone please" Clyde panicked.
"Get over here right now, you lazy son of a-!" Kenny growled.
Clyde's anxiety over his aggressive father triggered his telekinetic powers as the fridge forcefully swings open, hitting Kenny's left leg hard on impact.
"God damn it!" Kenny yelled out in agony.
He then limps out of the kitchen, groaning and hissing in pain before he goes to his bedroom and slams the door shut; Clyde let out a sigh of relief from getting away from his father's constant abuse for now before the teenager then took the chance to give his mother her breakfast.
"Good morning mom" Clyde greeted his mother in her room.
"Is your father still giving you grief?" Sarah asked.
"Yeah...as always" Clyde nodded.
"Honey please talk to someone who can help us; this has to stop! He cannot control our lives like this especially yours" Sarah begged.
"Mom, even if I did told someone about the way Dad treats us, Uncle Daniel will always find a way to let him go; I don't want to lose you too because of me...He'll just only make us suffer more,..He won't let us go until we're dead" Clyde sadly explained.
"Clyde..." Sarah started as she wishes that Clyde can too be strong and stand up to Kenny like she can at times but she fears the same too for her son.
Clyde then notices the purple mark on her face as he cringed in sadness to see the nasty bruise that Kenny gave his wife last night.
"Are you OK mom?" Clyde asked.
"I'm fine, I can handle your dad's crap" Sarah assured Clyde.
Soon Kenny enters and grabs Clyde out of Sarah's room as he locks the door before he hissed: "Quit wasting your mother's time and do some goddamn chores around the house boy"
"Yes sir" Clyde nodded before he watches his father left the house before locking his family in and heads off to work.
The young lad wanted to try something since the old man was at work again, he uses his powers to try and get everything clean by making the vacuum work and move by itself, levitating the feather-duster around to dust the area around. He even gets the bathroom, kitchen and his father's bedroom clean via telekinesis on everything he could use to clean up the place.
Soon he manages to unlock his mother's door and soon peeks in to find her sleeping to ease her bruises from her abusive husband. The young man quietly uses his powers and get Sarah's room clean without waking her up. He then quietly leaves the room before he packs everything up and goes to his room to finish up his school homework before researching more about his powers on the library books he borrowed
The next day, Kenny forced Clyde to walk to the store and gets some groceries for the family which was lucky for Clyde since he had enough money from all those home jobs he did for Mr Jones while he was out doing gigs with his friends for a weekend or so.
As Clyde was shopping in the store, he then sees an empty trolley and decided to have a test; he uses his powers to make the trolley move by itself as a man tries to stop it and then the trolley crashes near one of the shelves. knocking some of the items down.
"Oops, I better get going" Clyde whispered as he quietly walks to the counter where the woman on the counter gave one look at Clyde and asked:
"Are you that Henderson kid from the accident years ago?"
"Um...yeah" Clyde quietly nodded.
It didn't went well for Clyde when she gave the boy a look of discomfort and judgement before she hands him his receipt when Clyde paid for the items. Clyde walked out of the store as he can hear the two employers at the counter talking about Clyde behind his back, much to his disappointment due to the fact he can tell they were being judgmental on Clyde for something he didn't even do to his sister and mother.
Clyde then started to walk home with the groceries in his bag as he heads for the shortcut where the park is located on the way, it wasn't long before Clyde was interrupted by three junior high students on their bicycles.
Trevor Samson, Walter Gibbs and Jake Edwards once used to go to elementary school with Clyde and bullied him too like Bobby does with his gang as they reckon Clyde looks a creepy homeless homosexual but since they are now in the Diego State Junior High School, they always come around to the park to hang out in the park where Clyde sometimes passes by to head home and bullies him there
"Hey Creepy Clyde, what brings your ugly face here?" Trevor mocked, after seeing him by himself.
"Nothing much, why are you guys here?" Clyde sighed.
"None of your business, freak" Walter scoffed.
"Don't call me that" Clyde firmly said.
"Or else what? You're gonna make me cry, Creepy Clyde" Jake mocked.
"Why do you guys call me that?" Clyde asked.
"Because you look like a creepy hobo; plus I hear from the kids at your school that you murdered your sister" Trevor replied.
That is not true!" Clyde sternly snapped.
"Ooooh! Creepy Clyde is going to get us" Trevor mocked.
Clyde just walks by the boys until Walter and Jake ride by Clyde and snatched the groceries from him
"Hey, give those back!" Clyde snapped.
Clyde chases after the junior high bullies who then throws the groceries on the ground then climbed up one of the tree in the park as Trevor then mocks: "You can't catch us Creepy Clyde"
"You three are assholes!" Clyde snapped as he goes to get his groceries from the ground.
"Somebody call the police! This guy is trying to kill us!" Walter mocked out.
"He's going to murder us like he murdered his own sister" Jake also mocked
"Creepy Clyde! Creepy Clyde! Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Trevor bullied.
Clyde got so mad at the boys that his anger triggered his powers to make the branch Trevor was on snapped as the boy fell high from the ground, screaming and landed on the hard ground.
"Trevor!" Jake screamed.
"Holy shit!" Walter panicked.
"Oh my god!" Clyde gasped in horror.
Walter and Jake quickly climbed down the tree and rushes to Trevor who was howling and screaming in agony before Clyde can see that Trevor's left arm was broken from the impact.
"My arm!" Trevor screamed in agony.
Clyde felt very horrible for what just happened; sure he was angry at the junior high students for bullying him but he didn't want to make the branch break and allowing Trevor to get a broken arm from the fall.
"What have I done?! My powers are really connected to my emotions" Clyde gasped out before he looked at his hands and stuttered in fear.
Clyde rushes away with the groceries as Jake and Walter tend to their crying injured friend. It seemed that Clyde was in the clear when he arrived home and Kenny just ordered him to pack the stuff up. Clyde wasn't sure if the kids told the adults about what they did to Clyde to make Trevor fall and broke his arm or they come up with a story to get them out of trouble.
"My anger made my powers loose and now looked what happened...I got to more careful; I need to find a place, some place where I can practice my powers and learn how to control it but I need to do it somewhere where I can't be seen"
Clyde was in his room, watching the rain from his window as he plays with his telekinetic powers from making pencils and pens float up and down to making the pens sword fighting each other.
He then focuses it on the books at his desk and said to himself
"OK, So far my powers are growing increasingly and I need to control it more otherwise I may do something risky without warning. I seem to be getting stronger because from the beginning since I had this power, I was able to lift one book but now I think I can lift ten books"
He uses his powers to make the books float in the air as Clyde cheered:
"I did it"
Suddenly he heard a bang on the door as he heard Kenny sternly growling
"What the hell are you doing in there, boy?"
Clyde didn't want his drunken father to know of his powers as he makes the books go down and replied:
"Just doing my homework, dad"
"Well shut the hell up, I'm trying to watch the football game" Kenny shouted as he bangs the door hard with his fist.
Soon Clyde hears Kenny walking away from his room as he then waits for a few minutes for Kenny to be distracted by the football game on the television and soon Clyde carefully moves his bed away and goes to the floor to take a loose wooden board off the floor.
Inside the loose board was money he got from doing errands from Mr Jones and finding change that on the ground when he was out of the house. He saves it up for groceries and other things to get for his mother and himself so that Kenny won't use it to buy more alcohol which is also lucky for Clyde. because Kenny never find the loose board under Clyde's bed.
"I really do have a good hiding place for all my precious items including money" Clyde whispered to himself.
Clyde looks out of the window later on to see Kenny getting into the car and driving off from the house. Clyde didn't care where Kenny went even if it was for his police work; all he cares was that he was free to do as he please for now.
The teenage boy goes to his locked door and uses his powers to unlock the door from the other side; He then opens it and goes to his mother's room to check up on her. Sarah was asleep comfortably and healing a bit as her medication was slowly working on her bruises. Clyde smiles as he uses his telekinesis to make the blankets cover her body except for her head and soon he left the room to get something to eat.
Later on, Clyde was focusing on two forks and knifes into which he made them dance on the table.
"Now that's entertainment right there" Clyde chuckled.
Soon he makes empty beer bottles on the ground, fly in the air in rhythm to create a jazzy musical moment in his mind
"It's like CGI coming to life in reality" Clyde laughed.
He soon stops his power play when he heard a car pulling up, knowing it was Kenny coming back from work, he quickly puts everything away and heads back to his room before he uses his powers to lock the door from the other side so that Kenny doesn't find out he was out of the room.
Clyde started to finish his homework when Kenny swung the door opened and looks at Clyde who nervously looks up and said:
"Yes dad?"
"It's night time so go make my dinner, boy" Kenny grumbled.
"Yes sir" Clyde nervously nodded and quickly leaves to the kitchen.
Clyde eventually makes his father dinner before he gave it to him on his tray table before Kenny grabbed Clyde by the arm and grumbled:
"Why the heck didn't you get any beer from the store?"
"Dad?" Clyde stuttered.
"Answer my question, boy" Kenny snapped.
"I didn't know you were out of beer, I never open your fridge in your room and even so, I can't buy alcohol because I'm not legal of age yet" Clyde replied, trying not to anger his abusive father.
"You're useless, kid" Kenny groaned.
"Well get it yourself then" Clyde scoffed a bit.
"Excuse me?" Kenny growled.
Clyde begins to walk away when Kenny got up and grabbed Clyde, pulling him to his face as he angrily exclaimed:
"You telling me what to do? In my own house?! Huh?! I'm the man in this house, not you! So don't you go ordering me around, boy"
Clyde looks away sternly as his blood begins to boil, his head was pounding as if the power wants to rip Kenny to shreds but Clyde tries to pull back out of fear that he's not strong enough. He would rather let Kenny scream in his face whenever his manhood and ego was "challenged" by Clyde. It was stupid and childish for Kenny to do so with Clyde but Kenny would do anything in his power to crush whatever hope and spirit Clyde has to ensure his dominate position in the family and to avoid the truth about Kenny's crimes.
Kenny smacked Clyde in the face to get the boy's attention as Kenny bellowed: "You look at me when I'm speaking to you"
Clyde suddenly let loose of himself as he shoves Kenny and shouted: "Get off me!"
Furious at the retaliation of his accident of his son, Kenny grabs Clyde roughly, angrily drags him of the cellar and pushes him to the ground.
"You stay down here boy and think about what you done!" Kenny growled.
Kenny closes the cellar door and locks it as Clyde tries to uses his powers to get out of the cellar but soon stops as he knew that he wouldn't be strong enough to stand up to Kenny yet.
"I hate you" Clyde hissed quietly
Suddenly Clyde's anger made his powers lashed out as the television in the living room exploded like a fire cracker. It wasn't long before the boy can hear Kenny raging and smashing the broken TV in anger before the older man slams the front door and all was quiet.
Clyde looks at his hands, stuck in the cellar, angry and scared as his powers are making everything in the cellar float in the air.
He was too scared to even unlock the lock of the cellar due to Kenny who may hurt him again or even harm his mother as he sometimes threats, should he call the police or tell anyone about Kenny's treatment with him, if he comes out of the cellar without Kenny letting him go but one thing is for certain and to his high hopes, Kenny is not going to be away with his bad treatment with Clyde.
"My powers...they're going stronger and so am I...but...am I changing in a good way or a bad way? What if I become worse than Kenny?" Clyde thought to himself.
He looks to one of the broken glasses on the ground as it reminds Clyde one of the dreadful times when he was fourteen which was two years since his sister passed away; He was getting a present for his mother's birthday and he got her a snow globe for Sarah but when Kenny found out about this especially since he ordered Clyde to get groceries that day, he was not thrilled about this at all.
Kenny punched a fourteen year old Clyde in the face as the boy cries out in pain before the older man yelled
"What the hell is this shit, boy?!"
"I-It's a present for her! It's her birthday" Clyde cried.
"Kenny! Please stop it!" Sarah angrily screamed.
"You shut up, woman" Kenny snapped at his wife.
"I-I was only wanting to make mom happy" Clyde whimpered.
The older man kicked Clyde in the stomach before he growled "You selfish little brat, you caused your mother to be like this! You ruined this family and now you're just buying shit like this instead of stuff for us to have in this house; you're a screw up, you little shit; do you understand me?! You're a disgrace to this family"
"I'm sorry" Clyde cried and coughed in pain.
"Now where's the groceries like I told you to get?!" Kenny demanded as he grabbed the boy, lifting him up by the hair.
"I couldn't buy any! You took the money for it" Clyde cried.
"The fuck did you say to me?!" Kenny yelled.
"You took the money, dad; you should have brought those groceries!" Clyde cried loudly.
"Why you little shit!" Kenny hissed as he denies what he's done and drags Clyde away.
"No; Kenny leave him be!" Sarah cried out in tears.
Kenny drags the crying boy into the cellar and shoves him down there before he grabs the present Clyde brought for his mother and throws it down the cellar, smashing the snow globe to pieces.
"You will come back up when you learn to stop being an ungrateful little shit" Kenny barked at Clyde as he slams the cellar door shut and locks it.
The young boy sobs as he curls up to a wall, weeping in the darkness as he wished none of this was real and wished that something, anything, can happen to save Clyde from the horrific abuse from Kenny.
"One of these days, that fat low life bastard will pay for all he's down to me and my family" Clyde growled as he then suddenly begins to worry about the changes in him.
What if he becomes someone worse than Kenny? What if his powers could turn him into a monster? So many questions and so little answers for the poor boy. Nevertheless, Clyde was not determined to give up; if he could learn to use his powers on his own then surely he can try and figure to control the power within him through his emotions and his own welfare.
What happens next?
Stay tuned to find out!