Chapter 7: The Real World: Home sweet hell
~~~~~Meanwhile everyone was asleep~~~~~
Chihiro couldn't sleep that night. She was on her back on the hospital bed and every 15 minutes, she tossed and turned. Finally, she stopped when she lied on her right side facing the empty side of the room with a wide horizontal window that was covered with white shades. She gave a sigh and let go of her blanket. She kicked her feet out, pulling the faded blue blanket down at the end of the bed.
"This is too different from home..."
She muttered with her hands cupped over at her mouth.
"I miss my teddy bear..."
She complained again and closed her eyes tightly.
"I wonder how everyone's doing.... I hope I didn't make anyone too worried about me. And did what happen... really happen? Please tell me this is all a dream!"
She said once more and sat up. Sweat was formed on her forehead from tucking herself under the blanket too much since it was summer after all. She leaned toward her left where there was a small little table and two seats and grabbed a pink scented tissue as she wiped it against her forehead. Chihiro looked exhausted then as pulled her hands back down to her lap, something caught her eyes.
"Not a dream.... I wonder if, the world I was in 4 years ago; did it have any effect in my own world?"
On both her arms, she noticed it was wrapped in castes and on the back of her hands were little cuts. She held her arms up but she kept her hands hanging from the bone of her wrist. She leaned forward and raised one brow then stretched out her skinny legs. She looked down at her thigh, little cuts as well as on her calves.
"It can't be though.... Nothing has crossed back over except for.... me, where I belong, right?"
She questioned herself. Her toes wiggled then she placed her hands on her cheeks as she fell back on her back.
"So many cuts! Ah!"
She turned around on her tummy, pulling the blanket over her body and head once more and hid under the covers. Her complaining was muffled so no one heard her and she was pretty quiet. Chihiro cringed every time she felt the cuts on her skin. It felt odd and from the looks of it, it looked like she got into a big accident. She didn't want others to worry about her too much or cause any problems so she slipped out from her bed at 4 A.M. and when her feet touched the floor, she instantly landed on her knees.
"Ow!!!"
She shrieked then cupped over her own mouth as she found herself lying on the floor. She made a face that showed she was in pain and struggled with her arms to push herself up to sit down on the floor. When she did, a sharp pain ran through her arms and she cringed again. No sound. It was only her in her own quiet room and finally, she pushed herself up in a swift motion and landed on her tushie.
Swinging her hands up and down, she wanted to bark out in pain but she kept it to herself.
(This is harder than I thought...)
"Pretty impossible for me to leave too... Hmmm, now how do I get back up?"
The door creaked open and a young nurse that looked only to be 16 walked in and looked down at Chihiro.
"Oh dear, sweet heart, why are you out of bed at this time? You know you should be sleeping."
She said in a light sweet voice that sounded almost like a tune. The nurse bended down and looked at Chihiro, eye to eye.
"We'll, I just fell out of bed ma'am."
Chihiro lied.
"Let me guess, a nightmare? Look at the sweat from your forehead... You poor thing"
She smiled, and Chihiro slightly frowned; being treated like a little 8 year old kid wasn't exactly much fun to her. Anyhow, the nurse helped Chihiro up and tucked her back into bed wear she felt hot again. It was summer, was this nurse any odder to keep a blanket over her?
"Thanks."
Chihiro said innocently but inside of her head, it could have been said with A LOT of sarcasm but she didn't. She watched the nurse step out and Chihiro was back where she started. Never did she even get anywhere in her condition, maybe it was best to wait, that's the way she felt at that moment. But she was eager to find out if it had anything to do with the other world too... especially if it meant seeing Haku again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~The Day After The Incident~~~~~~~~~
Gavin fluttered his eyelashes when he opened his eyes and a sharp bright light shot into his face. He shook his head from side to side and lifted his head up from the back of the old plastic chair that he slept in the waiting room of the hospital. He rubbed his eyes and glanced around. To his surprise, everyone was gone. It was only himself sitting in waiting room all alone at 7 A.M.
He didn't make a comment, didn't say anything but now he thought was the time to go home. The sun was already up and more workers for the hospital arrived, some taking the place of another like for the desk clerk and the nurses that completed their night shifts.
He gathered all his things together: his bag, jacket, and sunglasses, and headed straight for the door dragging his feet. His mouth felt grimy so he popped in a certs mint and continued walking. When he thought about getting home, he wondered what his old man was going to say to him. It was the awkward silence or the million of questions that would be thrown in his face all at once. His old man is different ever since Gavin's mother was gone. They distanced and never spoke much, even if Gavin tried to make an effort to talk to him, his old man, as Gavin often called him, would started another pointless argument out of no where. That gave him major migraines so he never quite looked foreword to "home sweet home" as Naomi would say.
As he made his way slowly down the sidewalk, he could hear the birds chirping singly but he frowned at the fact he had to face to his old man. Right when he walked through the front door, he found the living room empty.
"He's off getting drunk in depression at the bar again...?"
He suggested as a thought.
The empty living room was a mess.
Books were scattered everywhere and the Persian mat was just plain dirty now. It was soaked with liquor and did I mention bottles of liquor were also spilled? The table had some burnt matches on top along with black ash staining the table.
He shook his head in disgust and this time, instead of cleaning up as he always did right after he came home, he marched into the kitchen and holy cow... plates were flipped over and some were broken on the floor. It looks as if they had been robbed or their house was run over by a stampede. Knives were scattered everywhere and plates of food had roaches crawling all over it and crunching off pieces. He shuddered and proceeds to the next room....
He walked out from the kitchen and into the living room and turned to his right where there was a long corridor and arrived at his father's room. Disgusting was the word for it.
It was a total pigsty.
Drawers were opened with clothes spilling out and his room reeked of 3- month-old clothing that hasn't been washed. The dresser with the mirror was cracked... and on the sites were taped photos of Gavin's mother.... Even on the little night table, there was a framed photo of her, untouched and the only things in his room that had been neat.
He marched out of his father's room and walked down the corridor back as he walked in the bathroom. First thing he saw in the toilet, he made a face and he pulled down the seat quickly pushing the flush button. He kept walking and walking, hoping there was something good at the end of the hall... and there was he, his room.
"Finally some place that is surprisingly clean, out of the whole house."
He muttered under his breath and turned the doorknob. When the door had creaked open, he could smell the fresh air that came through the window. He sighed with relieve then walked in and threw his stuff that he carried onto the stool. Gavin then turned around and walked towards his bed, when he got near his bed, he turned around and fell on his back on the dragon-designed sheets that was neatly set on the bed. His eyes darted from side to side when he faced up to the ceiling and then he tossed his head back even more so he looked right at the window upside down.
The sky was very sunny and birds had chirped happily, Gavin was even able to hear the cheerful shouts of children playing right on his black. If only things were like this for him, if only he could smile, but all he did was frown and he felt very hurt inside.
A sudden slam of a door came down through the corridor. Gavin still had the door creaked open so he heard the door slam shut. Next was a constant sound of grumbling, a drunk man grumbling.
"Ga.... Gavin!"
He hiccupped loudly then burped.
"GAVIN!!!!!!"
A shout came into his ears and Gavin turned so he lied on his side. His eyes were closed and he tightened his hands into a fist. He hated his father, when he turned like this; it pissed him off to see him like this. His inner feelings would burst out every moment and each time he did, he felt like breaking into pieces inside.
"Ignore...him, Gavin."
He muttered with his teeth clenched.
"GAVIN, Get your ASS the HELL out here and cook something for me! I'm hungry god-dammit!"
His old man shouted again, this time louder that he could have sworn the floor vibrated. Gavin remained still, like a stone gargoyle that stood on the edge of a building. Heavy footsteps started to approach and the floor shook. Gavin's door suddenly flew open so fast and hard that it slammed into the side of his dresser creating a dent. A man that looked kind of bulky marched in. He stood 5'10'', dirty blonde hair that was short and reached down to the back of his neck and he stood there with a stained loose navy blue shirt.
"Didn't you hear what I said, GAV?"
Gavin didn't respond. Now, he had his head tucked down between his arms.
"Get your lazy ass off that bed!"
He shouted again at the top of lungs and finally, he really lost it. He went over to Gavin's bed, reached his thick hands towards Gavin's arm and wrapped his fingers tightly to his arm and attempted to drag him down. Gavin's eyes shot open; he lifted his feet off the bed and he tucked them in swiftly then quickly kicked them back out into his old man's stomach where he tumbled back onto his bum. Gavin sat up, glaring at him as he rubbed his arm. His father had quite a strong grip and he had inherited it. He didn't seem to have a reaction when he struck him but he looked down at him, curled up in a ball and holding his arms over his kind of flabby belly.
"Don't touch me."
He said in a cold tone.
"You should really take care of yourself, because without me, you'd be dead."
He walked off in silence, stepped over his body and walked out to the kitchen to cook some food for dinner...
~~~~~~~~~Two Days Later . . .~~~~~~~~~~
"Get the hell out of here! "
Shouting came from Gavin's home that was 12 blocks away from Chihiro's home. Gavin was just walking home from the library with Masahiro when he saw a bald headed man, around 50's, standing right in front of his home with his arms flailing over his head and shouting. Masahiro looked at Gavin who seemed motionless again every time he went home.
"Dude, what's been up at your place lately?"
He asked out of curiosity.
"One word. Chaos."
He responded. He stared into space for a moment while Masahiro just raced off towards his home deciding to see if he could be of any help. When he arrived, he waved to Gavin's father and gave a respectful greeting. Gavin's father didn't seem happy, he looked very dead and sleepy, almost like he had a hangover. Masahiro's eyes darted to the bald headed man that was the landlord.
"You're HIS son?"
He questioned with his old wrinkly hands under his chin and examined him.
"Oh, no, I'm just a friend of his son."
He retorted.
"I thought so; his son must be a god-damn rebel to live with his old fool! His son is probably just as bad as his father, doing drugs, smoking weed, what all BAD teenagers do!"
He shouted to Gavin's father and Masahiro whose face had a nervous cracked smile.
"Uh, sir, you're wrong on that."
He pointed out.
"Oh come on! Don't be joking to an old man, I know how you teens are these days! There are only a few good kids these days."
Masahiro bit his bottom lip and when he wanted to say another word, the landlord cut him off again then got right back on topic.
"Now YOU! You BETTER PAY rent by NEXT week or your outta here, with you and your stinkin' son!!!"
He marched off quickly while Gavin's father just stood there. He looked like he hadn't absorbed any info into that thick skull.
"Um, sir, maybe you should get in for some rest..."
Masahiro lead the way back into the home and Gavin finally approached them and followed in his hands tightly into his pockets. When they entered, Gavin's father was set on the sofa where he quickly fell in a deep sleep.
It was an awkward moment. Masahiro wasn't exactly close to Gavin so he didn't know what exactly to say since he found out about the landlord complaints on the rent. His eyes glanced around and he tried not to look eye wide when he saw the condition of the house. Everything really looked like total crap. Finally, Gavin spoke.
"Welcome to my "home-sweet-hell""
He said sarcastically, getting up from the little stool that he sat on.
"Umm... Is this how it's always been, man?"
He shrugged and looked at Masahiro.
"Can't say."
Gavin said with his eyes narrowing to the floor and he started fidgeting with his zipper of his hoody.
"Things happen, things change and if you want somewhere cleaner, my rooms the actual cleanest place from this dump."
He got up and walked down the corridor.
"Try to not glance in the rooms; I don't want to blind your eyes."
As he said that, he continued to walk down the corridor with Masahiro following behind him. Masahiro did as he was told... but he was eager to look around and when he did, he regretted it. When he entered into the floor, his jaw dropped open and he stood a sniff, a scent of fresh air. Gavin took a seat on his bed and Masahiro sat on a stool.
"So, how is your father going to pay the rent?"
"My old man can't do anything; he's like a disabled simpleton child. I'll manage to get some rent by next week, through a few connections."
Masahiro's eyes looked at his. He wondered how he could speak of his own father this way.
"No drugs included?"
Gavin shot a glare and his smirked.
"Man, you know I don't do any of that crap!"
Masahiro chuckled and scratched the back of his neck.
"Yeah...."
"You doubting on me?"
"Of course not, you're responsible from what I've seen I guess. But.... In the past, I must say, you were quite a short tempered boy when I passed you by on the street."
Gavin for quiet and smirk faded from his face.
"Past is past, so... let's leave it that way, okay?"
"Right."
He answered back reluctantly.
"But back to the rent thingy."
"What of it? I said I could handle it."
Masahiro leaned forward his elbows on his knees and his hand under his face.
"I'm just saying, it's only a possibility. You're only fifteen, not even at the acquired age to get a job in this area."
"I'll go further."
He shook his head at Gavin.
"No, it's not safe."
He shot at him.
"I need the rent money to live here, I don't want my ass to be on the streets!"
He shouted at him as he stood up and pointed out the window, on the block across the street. Masahiro sat right back up; back straightened and his head jerked back in a bit of fear.
"Calm done, I'm only trying to help."
His waves his hands up and down in front of him.
"I don't know.... Doesn't feel right taking help from others. I got nothing to return."
Gavin mumbled.
"That's what friends are for..."
Masahiro responded.
"... I'll solve this matter tomorrow on my own and I'm not willing to take any offers from you guys, just doesn't feel right."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Everything went on awkward for the next few minutes until Gavin decide to change the topic and bringing up bout the incident at Chihiro's house. He then told his friend bout inspecting the room one more...
Masahiro turned away from the computer and faced Gavin. He leaned back on the chair and glanced at him.
"State your plan, my good friend."
He said with an english accent and a smile on his face.
"I don't have one."
Masahiro nearly fell off his chair.
"So how are you going to get in? Break in?"
Gavin shrugged.
"We'll see when we get there."
"Who is we?"
"Who else but my good friend, Masahiro?"
Gavin said with a devious grin, a grin that always meant trouble.
~~~~~~~~~~~ Next Morning~~~~~~~~~
Gavin woke up, finding himself on the floor with his pillow on his back.
(I must have rolled out of bed again.)
He pulled himself up and sat on the edge of his bed, looking out the window. Surprisingly, it was a terrible weather. The news said that tomorrow morning would be sunny with no clouds or showers; it's like the most complete opposite. Gavin had already seen the drizzling out the rain and slid over his bed, to the other side to slam the window shut before any more rain got in.
He then stretched; raising his arms up into the air then cracked his neck by turning to the left pretty quickly. He cracked his knuckles, walked around his room for a while then lifted the phone, dialing Tiffany's number.
"Hello?"
"Yeah, this is Gavin, I'm looking for Tiffany."
"This is she..."
(I wonder why Tiffany's parents never pick up... Did I ever even meet them before, just once or saw them on the street???")
"Did Masahiro tell you about it?"
"Yeah, so what's the pl-"
"We'll see when we get there. Go to 54 street, 15 minutes to 11"
He cut her off then hung up. Tiffany shook her head, wondering why he was always so rude like that sometimes.
Gavin did his daily morning things: Shower, brushing teeth and dressing up, then, right out the door! This time with a few acceptable needed items. When he walked out his room, he made his way quietly down the corridor and past his drunken old man who smelled like serious turd. He held his breath and when he opened door, he turned around to look at his old man.
"Maybe things will be getting better between us..."
He whispered.
(I really do hope so, just clean yourself up and be like the old you, the old you that loved his family.)
Gavin walked out, no smile, just walked out and determined to find something bout the incident as he made his way to 54 street.
~~~~~~~~~
Tiffany was in her own little home. Nice and clean, and a safe neighborhood. She did what every normal person would do... we'll, some things can be done by humans! Before she knew it, she walked out her front door like any normal person and Masahiro, being the one who lived only a block from her, waited outside.
"Eep!"
She squealed when she walked out, seeing Masahiro's face only a few inches from hers.
"How come you never fly out...?"
"Because... it's strange... and yeah... You think it's cool, right?"
"Yeah."
Masahiro sighed and gestured for her to walk first.
As they walked side by side, Masahiro spoke to her about being prepared because Gavin had some crazy ideas in his mind, he knew him we'll enough to be cautious just when you're going somewhere with him. Tiffany nodded in agreement and she hoped nothing "strange" would occur much today... From the looks of the weather, it felt unsafe, a feeling and a feeling that she needed to keep her eyes peeled open and be really aware of her surroundings.
Last time the weather was like in the other world.... Trouble stirred up pretty wildly by, "Mavis", some so called assassin that was like partial demon and human. Her where abouts? Not known by Tiffany...
~~~~~Meanwhile everyone was asleep~~~~~
Chihiro couldn't sleep that night. She was on her back on the hospital bed and every 15 minutes, she tossed and turned. Finally, she stopped when she lied on her right side facing the empty side of the room with a wide horizontal window that was covered with white shades. She gave a sigh and let go of her blanket. She kicked her feet out, pulling the faded blue blanket down at the end of the bed.
"This is too different from home..."
She muttered with her hands cupped over at her mouth.
"I miss my teddy bear..."
She complained again and closed her eyes tightly.
"I wonder how everyone's doing.... I hope I didn't make anyone too worried about me. And did what happen... really happen? Please tell me this is all a dream!"
She said once more and sat up. Sweat was formed on her forehead from tucking herself under the blanket too much since it was summer after all. She leaned toward her left where there was a small little table and two seats and grabbed a pink scented tissue as she wiped it against her forehead. Chihiro looked exhausted then as pulled her hands back down to her lap, something caught her eyes.
"Not a dream.... I wonder if, the world I was in 4 years ago; did it have any effect in my own world?"
On both her arms, she noticed it was wrapped in castes and on the back of her hands were little cuts. She held her arms up but she kept her hands hanging from the bone of her wrist. She leaned forward and raised one brow then stretched out her skinny legs. She looked down at her thigh, little cuts as well as on her calves.
"It can't be though.... Nothing has crossed back over except for.... me, where I belong, right?"
She questioned herself. Her toes wiggled then she placed her hands on her cheeks as she fell back on her back.
"So many cuts! Ah!"
She turned around on her tummy, pulling the blanket over her body and head once more and hid under the covers. Her complaining was muffled so no one heard her and she was pretty quiet. Chihiro cringed every time she felt the cuts on her skin. It felt odd and from the looks of it, it looked like she got into a big accident. She didn't want others to worry about her too much or cause any problems so she slipped out from her bed at 4 A.M. and when her feet touched the floor, she instantly landed on her knees.
"Ow!!!"
She shrieked then cupped over her own mouth as she found herself lying on the floor. She made a face that showed she was in pain and struggled with her arms to push herself up to sit down on the floor. When she did, a sharp pain ran through her arms and she cringed again. No sound. It was only her in her own quiet room and finally, she pushed herself up in a swift motion and landed on her tushie.
Swinging her hands up and down, she wanted to bark out in pain but she kept it to herself.
(This is harder than I thought...)
"Pretty impossible for me to leave too... Hmmm, now how do I get back up?"
The door creaked open and a young nurse that looked only to be 16 walked in and looked down at Chihiro.
"Oh dear, sweet heart, why are you out of bed at this time? You know you should be sleeping."
She said in a light sweet voice that sounded almost like a tune. The nurse bended down and looked at Chihiro, eye to eye.
"We'll, I just fell out of bed ma'am."
Chihiro lied.
"Let me guess, a nightmare? Look at the sweat from your forehead... You poor thing"
She smiled, and Chihiro slightly frowned; being treated like a little 8 year old kid wasn't exactly much fun to her. Anyhow, the nurse helped Chihiro up and tucked her back into bed wear she felt hot again. It was summer, was this nurse any odder to keep a blanket over her?
"Thanks."
Chihiro said innocently but inside of her head, it could have been said with A LOT of sarcasm but she didn't. She watched the nurse step out and Chihiro was back where she started. Never did she even get anywhere in her condition, maybe it was best to wait, that's the way she felt at that moment. But she was eager to find out if it had anything to do with the other world too... especially if it meant seeing Haku again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~The Day After The Incident~~~~~~~~~
Gavin fluttered his eyelashes when he opened his eyes and a sharp bright light shot into his face. He shook his head from side to side and lifted his head up from the back of the old plastic chair that he slept in the waiting room of the hospital. He rubbed his eyes and glanced around. To his surprise, everyone was gone. It was only himself sitting in waiting room all alone at 7 A.M.
He didn't make a comment, didn't say anything but now he thought was the time to go home. The sun was already up and more workers for the hospital arrived, some taking the place of another like for the desk clerk and the nurses that completed their night shifts.
He gathered all his things together: his bag, jacket, and sunglasses, and headed straight for the door dragging his feet. His mouth felt grimy so he popped in a certs mint and continued walking. When he thought about getting home, he wondered what his old man was going to say to him. It was the awkward silence or the million of questions that would be thrown in his face all at once. His old man is different ever since Gavin's mother was gone. They distanced and never spoke much, even if Gavin tried to make an effort to talk to him, his old man, as Gavin often called him, would started another pointless argument out of no where. That gave him major migraines so he never quite looked foreword to "home sweet home" as Naomi would say.
As he made his way slowly down the sidewalk, he could hear the birds chirping singly but he frowned at the fact he had to face to his old man. Right when he walked through the front door, he found the living room empty.
"He's off getting drunk in depression at the bar again...?"
He suggested as a thought.
The empty living room was a mess.
Books were scattered everywhere and the Persian mat was just plain dirty now. It was soaked with liquor and did I mention bottles of liquor were also spilled? The table had some burnt matches on top along with black ash staining the table.
He shook his head in disgust and this time, instead of cleaning up as he always did right after he came home, he marched into the kitchen and holy cow... plates were flipped over and some were broken on the floor. It looks as if they had been robbed or their house was run over by a stampede. Knives were scattered everywhere and plates of food had roaches crawling all over it and crunching off pieces. He shuddered and proceeds to the next room....
He walked out from the kitchen and into the living room and turned to his right where there was a long corridor and arrived at his father's room. Disgusting was the word for it.
It was a total pigsty.
Drawers were opened with clothes spilling out and his room reeked of 3- month-old clothing that hasn't been washed. The dresser with the mirror was cracked... and on the sites were taped photos of Gavin's mother.... Even on the little night table, there was a framed photo of her, untouched and the only things in his room that had been neat.
He marched out of his father's room and walked down the corridor back as he walked in the bathroom. First thing he saw in the toilet, he made a face and he pulled down the seat quickly pushing the flush button. He kept walking and walking, hoping there was something good at the end of the hall... and there was he, his room.
"Finally some place that is surprisingly clean, out of the whole house."
He muttered under his breath and turned the doorknob. When the door had creaked open, he could smell the fresh air that came through the window. He sighed with relieve then walked in and threw his stuff that he carried onto the stool. Gavin then turned around and walked towards his bed, when he got near his bed, he turned around and fell on his back on the dragon-designed sheets that was neatly set on the bed. His eyes darted from side to side when he faced up to the ceiling and then he tossed his head back even more so he looked right at the window upside down.
The sky was very sunny and birds had chirped happily, Gavin was even able to hear the cheerful shouts of children playing right on his black. If only things were like this for him, if only he could smile, but all he did was frown and he felt very hurt inside.
A sudden slam of a door came down through the corridor. Gavin still had the door creaked open so he heard the door slam shut. Next was a constant sound of grumbling, a drunk man grumbling.
"Ga.... Gavin!"
He hiccupped loudly then burped.
"GAVIN!!!!!!"
A shout came into his ears and Gavin turned so he lied on his side. His eyes were closed and he tightened his hands into a fist. He hated his father, when he turned like this; it pissed him off to see him like this. His inner feelings would burst out every moment and each time he did, he felt like breaking into pieces inside.
"Ignore...him, Gavin."
He muttered with his teeth clenched.
"GAVIN, Get your ASS the HELL out here and cook something for me! I'm hungry god-dammit!"
His old man shouted again, this time louder that he could have sworn the floor vibrated. Gavin remained still, like a stone gargoyle that stood on the edge of a building. Heavy footsteps started to approach and the floor shook. Gavin's door suddenly flew open so fast and hard that it slammed into the side of his dresser creating a dent. A man that looked kind of bulky marched in. He stood 5'10'', dirty blonde hair that was short and reached down to the back of his neck and he stood there with a stained loose navy blue shirt.
"Didn't you hear what I said, GAV?"
Gavin didn't respond. Now, he had his head tucked down between his arms.
"Get your lazy ass off that bed!"
He shouted again at the top of lungs and finally, he really lost it. He went over to Gavin's bed, reached his thick hands towards Gavin's arm and wrapped his fingers tightly to his arm and attempted to drag him down. Gavin's eyes shot open; he lifted his feet off the bed and he tucked them in swiftly then quickly kicked them back out into his old man's stomach where he tumbled back onto his bum. Gavin sat up, glaring at him as he rubbed his arm. His father had quite a strong grip and he had inherited it. He didn't seem to have a reaction when he struck him but he looked down at him, curled up in a ball and holding his arms over his kind of flabby belly.
"Don't touch me."
He said in a cold tone.
"You should really take care of yourself, because without me, you'd be dead."
He walked off in silence, stepped over his body and walked out to the kitchen to cook some food for dinner...
~~~~~~~~~Two Days Later . . .~~~~~~~~~~
"Get the hell out of here! "
Shouting came from Gavin's home that was 12 blocks away from Chihiro's home. Gavin was just walking home from the library with Masahiro when he saw a bald headed man, around 50's, standing right in front of his home with his arms flailing over his head and shouting. Masahiro looked at Gavin who seemed motionless again every time he went home.
"Dude, what's been up at your place lately?"
He asked out of curiosity.
"One word. Chaos."
He responded. He stared into space for a moment while Masahiro just raced off towards his home deciding to see if he could be of any help. When he arrived, he waved to Gavin's father and gave a respectful greeting. Gavin's father didn't seem happy, he looked very dead and sleepy, almost like he had a hangover. Masahiro's eyes darted to the bald headed man that was the landlord.
"You're HIS son?"
He questioned with his old wrinkly hands under his chin and examined him.
"Oh, no, I'm just a friend of his son."
He retorted.
"I thought so; his son must be a god-damn rebel to live with his old fool! His son is probably just as bad as his father, doing drugs, smoking weed, what all BAD teenagers do!"
He shouted to Gavin's father and Masahiro whose face had a nervous cracked smile.
"Uh, sir, you're wrong on that."
He pointed out.
"Oh come on! Don't be joking to an old man, I know how you teens are these days! There are only a few good kids these days."
Masahiro bit his bottom lip and when he wanted to say another word, the landlord cut him off again then got right back on topic.
"Now YOU! You BETTER PAY rent by NEXT week or your outta here, with you and your stinkin' son!!!"
He marched off quickly while Gavin's father just stood there. He looked like he hadn't absorbed any info into that thick skull.
"Um, sir, maybe you should get in for some rest..."
Masahiro lead the way back into the home and Gavin finally approached them and followed in his hands tightly into his pockets. When they entered, Gavin's father was set on the sofa where he quickly fell in a deep sleep.
It was an awkward moment. Masahiro wasn't exactly close to Gavin so he didn't know what exactly to say since he found out about the landlord complaints on the rent. His eyes glanced around and he tried not to look eye wide when he saw the condition of the house. Everything really looked like total crap. Finally, Gavin spoke.
"Welcome to my "home-sweet-hell""
He said sarcastically, getting up from the little stool that he sat on.
"Umm... Is this how it's always been, man?"
He shrugged and looked at Masahiro.
"Can't say."
Gavin said with his eyes narrowing to the floor and he started fidgeting with his zipper of his hoody.
"Things happen, things change and if you want somewhere cleaner, my rooms the actual cleanest place from this dump."
He got up and walked down the corridor.
"Try to not glance in the rooms; I don't want to blind your eyes."
As he said that, he continued to walk down the corridor with Masahiro following behind him. Masahiro did as he was told... but he was eager to look around and when he did, he regretted it. When he entered into the floor, his jaw dropped open and he stood a sniff, a scent of fresh air. Gavin took a seat on his bed and Masahiro sat on a stool.
"So, how is your father going to pay the rent?"
"My old man can't do anything; he's like a disabled simpleton child. I'll manage to get some rent by next week, through a few connections."
Masahiro's eyes looked at his. He wondered how he could speak of his own father this way.
"No drugs included?"
Gavin shot a glare and his smirked.
"Man, you know I don't do any of that crap!"
Masahiro chuckled and scratched the back of his neck.
"Yeah...."
"You doubting on me?"
"Of course not, you're responsible from what I've seen I guess. But.... In the past, I must say, you were quite a short tempered boy when I passed you by on the street."
Gavin for quiet and smirk faded from his face.
"Past is past, so... let's leave it that way, okay?"
"Right."
He answered back reluctantly.
"But back to the rent thingy."
"What of it? I said I could handle it."
Masahiro leaned forward his elbows on his knees and his hand under his face.
"I'm just saying, it's only a possibility. You're only fifteen, not even at the acquired age to get a job in this area."
"I'll go further."
He shook his head at Gavin.
"No, it's not safe."
He shot at him.
"I need the rent money to live here, I don't want my ass to be on the streets!"
He shouted at him as he stood up and pointed out the window, on the block across the street. Masahiro sat right back up; back straightened and his head jerked back in a bit of fear.
"Calm done, I'm only trying to help."
His waves his hands up and down in front of him.
"I don't know.... Doesn't feel right taking help from others. I got nothing to return."
Gavin mumbled.
"That's what friends are for..."
Masahiro responded.
"... I'll solve this matter tomorrow on my own and I'm not willing to take any offers from you guys, just doesn't feel right."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Everything went on awkward for the next few minutes until Gavin decide to change the topic and bringing up bout the incident at Chihiro's house. He then told his friend bout inspecting the room one more...
Masahiro turned away from the computer and faced Gavin. He leaned back on the chair and glanced at him.
"State your plan, my good friend."
He said with an english accent and a smile on his face.
"I don't have one."
Masahiro nearly fell off his chair.
"So how are you going to get in? Break in?"
Gavin shrugged.
"We'll see when we get there."
"Who is we?"
"Who else but my good friend, Masahiro?"
Gavin said with a devious grin, a grin that always meant trouble.
~~~~~~~~~~~ Next Morning~~~~~~~~~
Gavin woke up, finding himself on the floor with his pillow on his back.
(I must have rolled out of bed again.)
He pulled himself up and sat on the edge of his bed, looking out the window. Surprisingly, it was a terrible weather. The news said that tomorrow morning would be sunny with no clouds or showers; it's like the most complete opposite. Gavin had already seen the drizzling out the rain and slid over his bed, to the other side to slam the window shut before any more rain got in.
He then stretched; raising his arms up into the air then cracked his neck by turning to the left pretty quickly. He cracked his knuckles, walked around his room for a while then lifted the phone, dialing Tiffany's number.
"Hello?"
"Yeah, this is Gavin, I'm looking for Tiffany."
"This is she..."
(I wonder why Tiffany's parents never pick up... Did I ever even meet them before, just once or saw them on the street???")
"Did Masahiro tell you about it?"
"Yeah, so what's the pl-"
"We'll see when we get there. Go to 54 street, 15 minutes to 11"
He cut her off then hung up. Tiffany shook her head, wondering why he was always so rude like that sometimes.
Gavin did his daily morning things: Shower, brushing teeth and dressing up, then, right out the door! This time with a few acceptable needed items. When he walked out his room, he made his way quietly down the corridor and past his drunken old man who smelled like serious turd. He held his breath and when he opened door, he turned around to look at his old man.
"Maybe things will be getting better between us..."
He whispered.
(I really do hope so, just clean yourself up and be like the old you, the old you that loved his family.)
Gavin walked out, no smile, just walked out and determined to find something bout the incident as he made his way to 54 street.
~~~~~~~~~
Tiffany was in her own little home. Nice and clean, and a safe neighborhood. She did what every normal person would do... we'll, some things can be done by humans! Before she knew it, she walked out her front door like any normal person and Masahiro, being the one who lived only a block from her, waited outside.
"Eep!"
She squealed when she walked out, seeing Masahiro's face only a few inches from hers.
"How come you never fly out...?"
"Because... it's strange... and yeah... You think it's cool, right?"
"Yeah."
Masahiro sighed and gestured for her to walk first.
As they walked side by side, Masahiro spoke to her about being prepared because Gavin had some crazy ideas in his mind, he knew him we'll enough to be cautious just when you're going somewhere with him. Tiffany nodded in agreement and she hoped nothing "strange" would occur much today... From the looks of the weather, it felt unsafe, a feeling and a feeling that she needed to keep her eyes peeled open and be really aware of her surroundings.
Last time the weather was like in the other world.... Trouble stirred up pretty wildly by, "Mavis", some so called assassin that was like partial demon and human. Her where abouts? Not known by Tiffany...