Fathers, Sons, Sisters and Siblings – Chapter 4
I really have to get the rest of these boxes unpacked. Dante thinks to himself while digging through yet another box looking for his baseball card collection he promised to lend Morgan. A pounding interrupt his search and Dante turns towards the door, surprised he finds his brother Michael standing there looking like a lost puppy dog.
"Can I come in?" Michael looking at his brother unsure of whether or not he should really be there.
"Sure man, you're welcome to come over any time. Actually you may want to call first just in case Lulu is here."
"Yea, sorry about interrupting you that time at the hospital."
"Just kidding man. I want you to know that you can come to me any time you want." Dante says placing his hand on his brother's shoulder. "I mean it if you need anything I'm here, whether you want to sit and talk or just hang out, I'm here."
Michael takes a step back and looks around at the surroundings. "This place is awesome but it looks like you still have a lot of work to do."
"Yea, Lulu was helping me but then she got called in to work. Why don't you give me a hand unpacking some of these boxes? Unless you have to be home or something?"
"Sure I can help." Michael says walking over to one of the boxes.
After working in silence a while Dante stops and looks over at Michael who has stopped working. Michael is holding Dante's signed Yankees baseball bat in his had starting off in to a dream world. Dante watches Michael's expression change over from of daze and shock to one of anger and hate. Dante slowly walks up behind his brother. Reaching over Michael's left shoulder he takes the bat from his hand. Michael doesn't move from his position. After placing the bat on the other side of the couch he walks back over to his little brother. Slowly he places his hand on Michaels' shoulder.
"Michael? Hey?" Still no response from Michael. "Michael, hey it's me Dante. Come on little brother talk to me."
"Dante?" Michael says snapping out of his trance and looking over at his brother.
"Yea, Michael. You ok?"
"Sorry I spaced on you there for a while."
"No problem man. You want to talk about it?" Dante asks. Michael moves over to sit down on the couch without responding to Dante. Dante moves over to sit next to him. "We don't have to talk about it now. We can…"
"It wasn't dad." Michael interrupts quietly, looking down at his hands.
"It wasn't dad, what?"
Michael looks up and at Dante. "He didn't kill Claudia. I did."
Something about that look in Michael's eyes, Dante can tell he's telling the truth.
"I didn't mean to. It was an accident now dad's going to go to jail for it." He says starting to cry. The pain radiates from his brother and not knowing what else to do Dante places his arms around Michael and just lets the young boy cry until he can't anymore.
What seems like a life time later the crying stops and Michael picks his head up off his brothers' shoulder. "I'm sorry." Is all he says.
"Talk to me. What happened?"
"I swear it was an accident. I didn't mean it."
"I know you didn't buddy. Just start at the beginning."