Title: My name is Luca.
Summery: Just how much abuse can one boy take?
A/N This story takes place before Craig comes on the show until the end of season two. I'm not sure if I'm going to kill Craig's father off because I kind of like that story dynamic.
Rated PG-13ish for violence and language.
Disclaimer: Degrassi and characters not mine yadda, yadda, yadda....
Craig Manning looked unseeingly down at the closed suitcase lying on top of the stripped mattress. He was dimly aware of the sounds around him, the young male laughter, the sounds of car horns and calls of goodbye but his main thoughts were strictly on the luggage in front of him.
It was new. Part of a going away present from his father, for his fun filled adventures at the boys summer camp. It was strange now how he had loathed the idea of coming here. When he had first seen the suitcase with its strong smell of imported leather, the shiny gold latches winking in the fading afternoon sunlight he had instantly protested going. Now the idea of leaving the camp was what filled him with dread; the feeling that filled his stomach with knots and made his forehead and palms break out into a cold sweat. Soon his dad would be pulling up and taking him away from the laughter, the lazy filled afternoon hikes, the thrill of competing for the finals in the field games. His father would be pulling him back down into the quiet. Into the strained silence filled with darkness and tension.
He swallowed back a cry of alarm when a hand suddenly tapped him on the back of the shoulder. Frantically he spun around, his hands instantly coming up in a defensive gesture, only to find his cabin mate Mark giving him a funny look.
"Dude, chill. I just wanted you to know your dad is out front waiting for you. Man, you are so lucky! That car of his is badass. I would kill for all that money! You must be wicked spoiled!"
"Ya," Craig muttered. "Wicked." The feeling of dread began to make him feel slightly nauseous as he realized his father had been waiting outside for him for God knew how long. What if he had been waiting out there for a long time while he just sat there gazing down at his bags and contemplating the end of summer camp? His father would be angry for having wasted his precious time. Frantically he began gathering his things. Slugging his backpack over his shoulders, and grabbed the heavy suitcase with both hands heaved it onto the ground where he could take advantage of the rollers on the bottom of the bag.
With a sigh he gave one last glance at what he had come to think of as his safe haven and dragged the bag behind him into the bright late afternoon sun. He swallowed when he saw his dad leaning with a causal pose up against the black Mercedes convertible. Much to his surprise his dad's face broke into a huge grin.
"Craiger! Hey bud, how was summer camp?"
He almost didn't know how to respond, so great was his relief that he almost doubled over with the joy of it. His father must have just arrived! He hadn't kept him waiting long and the car ride home would be filled with tales of his summer adventure and not icy silence and hot angry stares.
He smiled at his father and leapt into his enthusiastic tales of boyhood summer. "It was great dad! I can't wait to show you the pictures I took from our hikes. And my team actually won the basketball tournament! There were a total of nine teams!"
His father laughed, "That's great Craiger but let's get your stuff in the trunk and get going. I have to be at work early tomorrow so I'd like to get going as early as possible. You can tell me all about it on the way home."
Craig hastily took off his backpack and shoved it in the trunk. While his dad rearranged the bags to his liking, Craig plopped down in front seat and fastened his seatbelt. A moment later his dad climbed in next to him and gave him a smile. "It will be good to have you back home, Craiger. I've missed our evenings together."
Despite himself Craig felt his pulse leap and his thoughts fill with hope. Maybe this was what his dad needed, a summer away from his son to chill out and relax. Maybe things would be different from now on.
"Me too, dad. I'm glad I'm going home." He smiled up at his father and took one last look around the camp, his mind photographing the scenery around him. This was a good moment, one he wouldn't forget.
"Mr. Manning?" Craig's thoughts were startled by a quiet female voice. 'Oh God, he thought what does she want?
"Mr. Manning. I'm Denise Watson the nurse for the boy's camp. I was wondering if I could have a moment of your time."
Craig glanced uneasily at his father to measure his reactions. The only indication that Albert had any sort of reaction was the knuckles on the steering wheel whitening.
"Actually," he said pleasantly, "I'm in a bit of a hurry."
"I understand that sir, but this will only take a minute of your time."
God, what in the hell is she doing? Craig thought in a panic. Don't ruin this, don't ruin this. His heart began to pound faster and he wiped his palms on his jeans. What did she want? Why was she trying to ruin this perfect moment with his dad?
Albert continued to put off Nurse Watson by waving his left hand at her and with his right leaning over to start the car.
"I'm concerned about your son's bruising, Mr. Manning."
The silence that followed was excruciating. It seemed to Craig that the world had momentarily titled on it's axis and he made a feeble attempt at grabbing the car door. Finally he heard his father's voice ask coldly, "Excuse me?"
Now that his father wasn't going anywhere Nurse Watson launched into her tale. "When your son first arrived here his legs and arms were covered in bruises. I'm very concerned. Is there something wrong at home?
"Are you accusing me of something?"
Craig almost laughed at the ridiculous questioning. Come on, dad of course she's accusing you of something! What do you think she's implying?
"Well I don't know... I mean... How did those bruises happen to get there, sir? There was quite a bit of bruising. Not just one or two."
"Well, Nurse Waters, my son happens to play a lot of sports at home. Wrestling. It causes a lot of rough physical activity, and he can be a bit of a klutz, right Craig?"
Craig, looking startled, glanced from his dad to the nurse. "Umm ya, right. I'm really clumsy. I always run into stuff at home, doorknobs... fall down stairs..." He let out a laugh, surprised at how hollow it sounded. Not like laughter at all. Like tears.
His dad looked at him and when Craig saw his eyes he shut up and managed to smile what he hoped was a reassuring smile to Denise.
"Mr. Manning I don't think..."
"That's right you don't think. I sent my son up here for a good time and now all I'm getting is people trying to accuse me of things. Is this the way you run your camp? Maybe I won't donate any money towards your camp next year if this is the way you treat people."
Craig saw with some detached amusement the nurse's mouth open and close like a baby bird. His father sure knew how to put people in their place. There was nothing like a threat to withdraw donations to the camp's charity fund to shut a person up.
"Now if you'll excuse me like I said I have an early appointment." With that Albert started the car and peeled out leaving a cloud of dust billowing in the startled Nurse Watson's face.
The silence in car seemed to stretch into forever as they drove for hours without speaking a word to each other. Craig could see the tension radiating in waves from his father's body and his grip on the steering wheel was so tight that he was surprised that the bones hadn't split the skin around his knuckles. He wasn't sure how long they had been traveling before his father turned abruptly into a gas station. When the car rolled to a stop and Albert went into the gas station to pay Craig looked out the window to the fast approaching darkness. He could make out his father's figure leaning over the counter to look at the change the cashier was handing him, and for a moment something like depression settled over him. Nothing was ever going to change. The car ride home would continue in silence and when they got home he would have to face the consequences of some fault his dad thought he had caused. Craig found his hand had unconsciously settled on the door handle and longing swept over him. Maybe he should run. He could do it. Just open the door and sprint off into the night like some criminal. But then reality set in, he had no money and soon enough his dad would call the police on him. And besides it was still his dad. The only one he had. With his mother gone his ties to family were few and he needed that connection. If only that connection didn't often result in bruises.
Craig sighed as his fingers slowly let go of the door handle and he settled back down in his seat. If he could just make his father see that he had nothing to do with the nosy interfering nurse maybe he could get away bruise free. It wasn't his fault that the stupid camp two days after he arrived required a uniform to play in the basketball tournament. A uniform of shorts and a tee shirt that showed off the last beating he had received from his dad before he left for camp. The gasps from his classmates still echoed embarrassingly in his ears as he had fumbled to make up excuses about having a run in with a gang and wow you should see the other guy! He had to make his dad see that he had nothing to do with the nosy nurse that had later pulled him aside and told him he could tell the truth that no one was going to hurt him here and he was safe. Angrily he had informed the nurse that he didn't need her help because he wasn't in any danger. That some school bullies had beat him up right before he left for camp. It made him feel ashamed to play the wimp but he had to protect his father. Couldn't rat him out and tell the truth. And even if he was tempted there was Angela to consider. Angela.
Just thinking of her hit him hard in the gut. Like someone had sucker punched him in his solar plexus. He had to go home because at home was Angela. And she needed her older brother to tell her how life worked and to remind her of the great mom the two of them had. And so even if he had really wanted to consider running away it could never be an option because he couldn't leave Angela alone in the world. Craig looked up to see his father approach the car and with him seem to bring the falling darkness of the coming night. He thought maybe he could try to make things right before they arrived home. Before he was alone in an enclosed space with his dad.
"Dad I just wanted you to know that I didn't say-"
"We'll talk when we get home." Abrupt. Cold. And with a sinking feeling Craig knew that what awaited at home was much more then just a talk.