A/N-So another quick update, hope you guys are enjoying this story so far. This chapter is as long as the last one, but it's a very important chapter so I think the events make up for the shortness. Another thanks to the people who have been giving me feedback...it's gratefully welcomed.
Dislcimaer-I own nothing! I may love Indy and all, but I sadly do not own him...same with everyone you may recognize.
Chapter 3
The sound of a fist pounding on his bedroom made Mutt jerked awake, his skin ripping from the page he had used as a pillow for the night. He stretched as a yawn escaped his mouth, the pounding causing a headache as he staggered to the door.
"Good, you're up." Was the words that greeted him as he opened the door for his mother. "I'll be gone for most of the day helping Ox with something. I don't want you to leave the house, Henry."
Before Mutt had a chance to say anything, his mother was out of sight and out the door. He stood in his door way and listened to her car leave the house, realization that she was still mad at him hitting him.
"Good morning to you too," he grumbled to the house as he made his way to the kitchen, deciding to make some toast for him (the only thing he knew how to cook).
As he waited for his breakfast, the teenager fixed his hair as best he could for the moment before checking his hand. He unwrapped it and grimaced at the wound, quickly wrapping it back up as his toast was done. Mutt didn't bother to grab a plate, he ate his breakfast over the counter and pushed the crumbs on to the floor before getting ready for his day.
Just as he pulled his shirt over his head, a knock on the front door echoed throughout the house. The 17 walked towards the door, combing his hair back, and opened it to be greeted by Ben and Steve.
"C'mon Mutt." Ben said as he made to leave the house.
"I can't," he said, noticing that Riley was missing. "Where's Riley?"
"Broke his leg..." Steve started.
"What do you mean you can't?" Ben interrupted.
"I got into serious trouble last night and I can't leave the house."
"Since when did you listen to your mom?" Steve wondered as Ben came back.
"Since last night...at least until we're back on good terms." Mutt muttered. "I'll see you guys later,"
He closed the door quickly, knowing that he talked them any longer he would leave the house. The teenager looked around the house, trying to think of ways of entertaining himself until his mother came home. For a while, he just stood in front of the door and just thought.
"Now I wish I was at school." He sighed as he walked into the living room and flopped on to the couch. "At least I'd have something to do today,"
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Mutt had been laying on the couch, reading the same book from the night before, for a few hours and he was almost finished with the extremely thick book. He let out a yawn as he placed the book on his stomach, his eyes looking around the room. It wasn't that he found what he was reading boring, he just couldn't read all day. After a few moments, the teenager picked up the book and dog-eared the page before placing it down on the table. He sat up and looked at the floor, trying to think of something to do.
He got to his feet and made his way to his room, stopping as his gaze fell on the door that led to his mother's room. There was something about the room that appealed to him, almost as of there was something that was calling him. Mutt hesitated before walking towards his mother's room, wanting to satisfy his urge to go where he wasn't allowed. As the teenager began to turn the door knob, he felt a rush of adrenaline pump through his veins at the thought of going in the room. He knew it was childish, but he wanted to know what secrets she kept in her room.
The door opened and he stood in the door way, taking in the room. A photo on the bed side caught his attention as he took a step into the room, a sad smile drying on his face once he realized it was a picture of his parents from their wedding. Mutt picked up the frame and looked at the image the glass protected, almost forgetting why he had entered the room as he looked at his parents' smiling faces. Almost. Placing the picture back on the wooden surface, the 17 year old walked over to the closet and opened it. His eyes searched the small area as he moved aside his mother's clothes, not finding anything of interest.
Normally he would have given up, but there was something that kept him from leaving. He gazed up and saw a few boxes on the top shelf, one of them not labeled. Reaching for the box, Mutt was sprinkled with dust as he pulled the box down, coughing as he stumbled backwards. He sat down (once he caught his breath) with the box in front of him, the top slightly tilted. Mutt looked around the room, as if his mother would appear out of nowhere, before taking the top off and looking inside.
Disappointment settled in him as he saw a bunch of hand drawn maps, papers, and so on...stuff that Ox kept. But nevertheless Mutt shifted the papers aside as he looked inside, not bothering to ready the papers or look at the small photos. He was about to give up when he saw something gold at the bottom, sparking his interest. The 17 year old pulled it out of the old box and grinned, running a finger over the carved symbols in the gold before touching the stone in the middle.
"Looks like a ruby," he whispered as he got to his feet, placing the medallion (at least that's what it looked like to him) on the bed.
Mutt put the top back on and put the box back in its rightful place. After he closed the closet, he grabbed the gold and made his way to his room as he continued to stare at it. He sat on his bed and turned it over in his hands, examining the symbols. Did he know what it was? Of course not, but that didn't mean he didn't have to not like it. There was something about it that made it that more appealing to him.
"It's gotta be worth a lot," he told himself as he continued to look at it, not able to take his eyes from it. "I could sell it and Mom would never know. I doubt she even knows what's in that box..."
He let his sentence trail off as he shut his door, trying to keep out the world from what he had found. Minutes went by and all Mutt did was stare at the medallion, oblivious to everything else. His mind went back to the books Ox had given and he began to think of a way to sample some of that fortune and glory. At the sound of footsteps walking down the hall, the teenager's head snapped up and his eyes locked on to the door knob as it began to turn. Quickly, Mutt shoved the gold piece under his mattress and jumped to his feet as the door opened.
"Mutt, didn't you hear me calling your name?" were the first words out of his mother's mouth.
"Sorry, Mom. I was just waking up from a nap." He replied as he followed her into the kitchen. "How was work?"
"It was fine," it was obvious she was still mad at him.
"What did Ox want you to do?"
"Same as always," she answered as she walked back into the living room, picking up his book and shoving it into his chest. "How many times have I told you not to leave your things lying around the house?"
"A few times," he muttered as he looked at the leather cover.
"I'll call you when supper's ready." It wasn't part of a normal conversation, it was a dismissal.
Mutt just nodded his head and began to walk away, only stopping when a thought occurred to him. He knew his mother, and this could go on for days if not weeks. He didn't think he could take another night of no dinner.
"Mom," he said as he turned around, thinking of something to say. "I am sorry...about everything."
"So you've told me, Henry." He cringed at the fact she went back to calling him by his real name.
"I am trying, honest. It's just that..." he sighed as he set the book down on the table and leaned against the wall. "You know what I'm like. I can't just stay still. I need excitement, and all these rules I have to follow..."
He stopped to allow her to say anything, continuing when she went on preparing dinner.
"I know what I did yesterday was wrong and I know you worry about me, but..." he was trying to find a way a putting what he had next to say. "I just can't be like Dad, I can't be the perfect person who does what he's expected to do...I mean I'll do that, but I have to draw the line at some point Mom."
"Do you think that you can just run off and have adventures like the ones you were told as a child?" her voice was distant, but he took no notice. "Because let me tell you something Henry Williams...life is not an adventure story. You can spend your whole life looking for excitement and sure, you may find it Henry but it won't be how you imagined it to be."
Mutt looked at the floor and let her words sink in. He opened his mouth, but closed it; not wanting another argument.
"But I can't just stay here and be someone I'm not, Mom." The words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop himself. "And doing what I'm supposed to do like go to school, get a job, get married, and so on...it's boring! What if I don't want to go to school or get married?"
"Why would you say that?" she was looking at him now.
"It'll take the excitement out of life because...because..." he stopped to think about what he had to say, careful to avoid anything that would get him into even more trouble. "Because going to school is basically saying 'Yeah, I don't really care about who I am. I'm willing to change that because society says I don't belong'. And getting married? It wouldn't matter if I wanted to or not,"
"And why is that, Henry?"
"I wouldn't be able to find a woman who would be willing to put up with me and my desire for excitement. If I did get married, it probably wouldn't work out." He finished, not really sure how anything he had just said related to the fact that he was trying to be a good son. "The point is Mom, I'm sorry about who I am. But I really am trying to be half the son you want me to be,"
There was a moment of silence before Mutt was enveloped into his mother's arms as she held him close.
"I don't want you to be anyone else, Mutt." She told him as she looked at him, smiling. "I wouldn't want you to behave any other way,"
"But you're always complaining..." now he was confused.
"Yes but you keep my life exciting, Mutt. I've plenty of adventures before you were born, but raising you is my best adventure by far." He was pulled into another hug.
"Mom, please." He laughed as he ducked out of her embrace. "It's getting to mushy for me,"
All she did was laugh as Mutt combed back his hair, having realized that it had gotten messy within the last 10 minutes. The 17 year old turned to leave the kitchen, wanting to make sure the medallion was well hidden.
"And Mutt," her voice stopped him in his tracks.
"Yes?" he looked back at his mother, who was still smiling as she looked at him.
"You are every bit like your father," she assured him. "Don't ever think differently."
"I won't," he promised as he left the kitchen, grabbing the book on his way out.
He threw the book on to his bed once he entered his room and pulled the medallion from under the mattress. He just couldn't believe that something so valuable (not doubt) had been in his mother's closet the whole time for who knows how long. A small grin came to the teenager's features as he thought over his plans for the next day, knowing perfectly well how he was going to spend his day.
"Fortune and glory..." he whispered as he placed the gold back under the mattress.
Mutt grabbed the book and made his way back into the living room, planning on finishing his book before he went to bed.
I can't think of anything witty to put here expect that if you review, you'll get a cool something that is so cool I can't even think of what it is.
Reviews are welcomed...and so is constructive critism.
S.M.Hoffman