A hard family's day

I can’t stop, if I stop this man escapes, and if he escapes, God knows if I’ll die or he’s just a psychopath looking for random people to kill. Everything started when I was leaving the alley nearby my old school, which now is closed and vandalized. As I was by myself waiting for that sour ammonia smell to go away, the reflection of my cell phone screen revealed a hooded guy, walking with light steps. I was totally alert but it was when he pulled his hands from his pockets with a dripping syringe that I could really act.

First, a block with my arm and then a kick on the stomach, it served to put him on the ground and make him run away from me like a gazelle. Now I’m here, chasing after a scoundrel, with my breath getting extinguished and attracting tens of eyes. He doesn’t mind bumping into old ladies and children only to find the next alley nearby. His luck was that there were no homies around, and mine was that he entered a place well known by me; the curve of garbage cans ended in a dead end.

My legs put themselves in front of each other with the last impulses of mine, like a GTA protagonist, but he had nowhere to go. When those little hands touched the grid, I threw him on the dirt just like a pile of shit. My fists were in an automatic mode of vengeance, any trial to defend himself was useless, blood splashed on my clothes. Stop, stop. He fainted, it was a young voice of a fearful man. I had no choice but to let him speak, otherwise my heart would stop.

- Your family… Talk to your family, they’ll explain to you about it.

- Why are you saying this? - I screamed, but I was a little dazed to face him, my mind traveled for tons of memories and my voice failed - Tell me.

He was smart enough to take advantage of that, and I was too tired. The man simply ran to never be seen again, and left me disturbed in panic. That would be a long way back home…

Was it because of the drugs? Was it because of the money stolen from their wallets? The amount would not even reach 60 bucks in ten years of trying. It should be just a warning sign, nothing too dangerous but traumatic. but there was the possibility that the man had just said that to generate a distraction. The yard had the grass perfectly cut, the house painting was brand new and a wooden door stood up at the entrance, but I could no longer stay like a statue and postpone the conflict.

My fingers turned the doorknob gently, I didn’t want to make any noise, my heart was still pounding and my mouth seemed to be ready to vomit, but when I looked inside… My parents jumped like a bomb had exploded, the plates danced wildly around the roast suckling pork. I could see their frowned smiles as the smoke rose up.

- Honey, I didn’t expect you to be here!

- I took more than I intended… - I said slowly, hugging my mom with that strong grip.

- What happened to your fists? - my dad asked in an emotionless tone.

- I fell.

We stared at each other for a brief moment that felt like an eternity. “Let’s eat”, my dad went to bring me a plate and glass, I was the unwanted guest. This finding was not far from the truth; I, a kind of tan skinned man, had always raised suspicions about being the real son of a caucasian man with soft hair and a blonde woman they called Marylin Monroe fifteen years ago. That night, it was not crazy to ventilate all possibilities.

Between forkfuls and sighs, Randy ran his gaze at my hand a lot and then at the glass of wine. This process was becoming so repetitive that my thoughts were being bothered, I had to speak.

“What was the story of my birth?”, “What really happened to your hand…” we both intertwined our questions. Silence overcame us at the table.

- Why do you wanna talk about it now? Your mom is here.

- I just want to remember. - I responded calmly.

Randy cleared his throat.

- I told you, next to Johnson Park there was a great wall of division where people stop to pee and other things, we crushed the car and then we got out in panic, you were already with a part of your body showing up.

- What’s funny about this is that I don’t know anyone who saw this wall.

- Well… This means you are going there, boy. Smoking and drinking, right?

- You didn’t answer me, dad. - I used the most petulant tone I was able.

- I don’t need to answer anything, you’re under my roof. - Randy yelled.

The woman I thought was my mom got on foot.

- I’m taking the desert, wait a minute.

She left as if nothing had happened, but the men stayed. We were playing our game of power, where only the strongest wins. Randy was not a blockhead, he knew something was off, and so did I.

I went to use the bathroom in the middle of the corridor. My hands were sore, the sweat made them slippery, but I stayed long enough to recompose my energy and think; my new strategy was to attack, attack until they had a good excuse to get me out of there. What I didn't expect was that they would help me…

With no apparent sounds I walked back to the dining room with a strange feeling, and to support my paranoia no one was there. Calling them would only reveal my position, I had to arm myself but they had taken all the cutlery. My weapon was a glass broken to form a sharp surface.

All I did was imitate my earlier executioner. From room to room, I inspected corners to see if an enemy was hidden behind anything, but a thunderous clash made my defenses be broken. “Bam!” It was what I heard from the office ahead of me, before my false mom jumped in my neck with a knife. I grabbed her and put the glass to graze her throat, but Randy came out from behind the wall and had his gun pointed at me with a silencer.

- Drop the gun or I’ll kill her.

I was afraid, but I would do that. With a cold expression, the gun shot directly at the woman’s belly.

- Don’t run, Paul.

I disobeyed and took refuge behind the thick walls, but above my head, plaster particles were flying.

- You’re not our son, I think you’ve noticed it.

Randy shot twice more when I ran from the kitchen to the piano room.

- Monica and I took you from Jose Goyceira. - he kept walking half crouched like a military man - You’re my vengeance over him. Taking my sister from me has no pardon, but it’s gonna be good to kill an insolent creature like you.

Our eyes met and he shot into the dark room, but I ran again. Randy turned back, he wanted to catch me on the other side, next to the table, but I hid on a wall in silence, waiting for him. The glass had gone, but the jar next to me would have to be helpful. The moment I saw the barrel of the gun I threw the object at his head, but as he lost his balance he pulled the trigger and a shot grazed my leg.

“Aaahhh”. So much pain. So terrible agony. A red cascade gushed from him, his anger was felt from afar. He aimed the gun at me, ready to kill but in a blink of an eye, his whole body was trembling.

Suddenly, the door simply opened in a rush and a pair of heavy boots entered and grabbed me while another one went to check my dad. He put me in front of the house, sitting and headed towards a car, where a bald man of the same skin color of mine was getting out.

No police, no sirens or distinctives. I was about to scream in despair, such was my horror, but that enigmatic figure let his voice be heard out loud.

- Son… Come hug your dad.