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The Boy Behind the Mirror Chapter 1 |
| Written by August Blackwood | |
| Friday, 04 April 2008 | |
 I was rinsing my hair one morning and I noticed a small scratch on the skin of my hand. I never noticed it before, so I didn't know where it came from. It wasn't much of a scratch, only it was pretty noticeable on my fair skin. My skin was one of those types where, you know, green veins and stuff like that are easy to see. I don't get acne very often, but when I do, oh boy, do they stand out. I'm pale down to my hands. I never go to the beach or anything, so my skin is white down to where the sun don't shine, as they say it. My mother called for me right after that, telling me it was time for my breakfast before High School started. It was my first day in high school. Yes, my first day. I was darn exited about that. I didn't have nice experiences with middle school, but high school would probably be better. At least, I hoped so. The name of my High School is Silence High. I have heard that it was a really wild one, but my parents couldn't afford to send me to a private school and this high school was the closest to our house. So, I decided to go there, unfortunately. And I actually expected my high school to be a pleasant experience? Well, at least it would probably be nothing close to what it was like in Middle School. The kids there were MEAN. I mean, they were demons! (I was one too, but let's just keep that a secret, shall we?). I walked into the kitchen and I sat on the bench by the table. Bench? Why a bench? Why not a seat? I don't know. It's actually a really nicely polished picnic table. My mother brought me some scrambled eggs and scooped them out of the cooking pan. The smell of freshly cooked eggs was very...nice. This was a little unusual, because I usually got oatmeal instead. But, I guess she wanted this to be a special occasion, so she took the time to prepare this for me. I smiled up at her and she kissed my cheek, saying, "My little boy got so big and he's going to high school. You don't know how proud I am of you." I know. At least, I think so. Maybe she's more proud of me than I'm currently assuming. She looked into my eyes and grinned widely. Her teeth were white as usual. But, her mouth didn't stink. That was pretty unusual. I don't know why, but I felt so happy when she looked at me like that. I could feel how much she loved me. A lot of my friends in Middle School kept telling me how much they hated being "loved" by their mothers, even when no one's looking. Then, my dad entered, fixing his tie. "Honey! I'll be gone for most of the day," he said. He's been saying that everyday for almost a year now. When will he learn that my mother already gets it? Damn! How thick is he? Everyday when he said that, I got the urge to just take one of those kitchen knifes to see if his head was hard enough to dull the blade edges. That, I must admit, was a very interesting thought. It was very unusual as well. But, heck, he's my dad. I know he'll probably think I'm joking, ... if he wasn't so serious-looking all the time... My mother glanced towards dad, but seemed to look more at the wall behind him...or maybe the clock. She looked like she was daydreaming, but I knew she wasn't. Daydreaming people didn't smile in that sort of way, not with that sarcastic look. Mother was always so clever in avoiding a fight. My dad had a tendency to be over-controlling. She was always so patient. I don't really know if she was actually patient, because she was obviously not enjoying it. It's showing on her face and my dad's stupid enough to not notice it. I looked up at my mom's face and then back at dad, who was putting his shoes on. Ignorant was the only word I could think of at that moment. "Have a nice day, sweetheart." My mother said, with less than half a heart. "See you tonight." His voice was colder, maybe even reaching freezing point. I could just imagine the open front door crackle and snap in half from the cold as he passed by it. ----- I walked down to the door of the school. My mom led me the way there. She looked just as nervous as I was. I was her only son, so it wouldn't have surprised me that much on how anxious she was about this special occasion. I remembered the first day I went to Duxburry Middle School. Oh, how strange she acted that day. Now that I am fifteen, I sort of expected her to let me go, even if a little bit. She's a very loving mother, but she can be too much sometimes. "Have a great day, sweetheart." she said. I winced, feeling that I've heard those words before and in the wrong way. It reminded me of him. She kissed me on the cheek and I could feel my face growing hot red with embarrassment. What if the other kids see me like this with my mom? I mean, what high school boy wants to be smooched all over as if he were still her baby? She told me once that I was still her baby. It's nice to act like this in the house, but definitely not in public. My mom let go of me and walked back to her car. Finally. I turned away and walked up to the school door. This is going to be the most awesome day of my life, I thought to myself. An awesome...day. I stepped through the front door, anxious, while other students hesitated, waiting until the last minute as they talked with their friends outside. I couldn't wait. I'm not a hesitator. The scratch on my hand started to itch. The air inside the school was warm and comforting. It was noisy, with some students laughing and being wild. Well, at least it was better than middle school. Or maybe, it could be worse... I looked around, noticing the decorations on the wall. There was one painting of the palaeontology time-line all the way across the wall. 'Brilliant', I thought. I didn't think that it would be this bright. The lights were on to the extreme. When I mean extreme, I mean EXTREME. I could feel the heat radiating off the bulbs even though they were about 5 feet above my head. I don't think they use any heating system here. This seemed adequate enough. I thought of my mother and how she would have criticized the intensity of the lights. She would have said, "My boy is going to have to get glasses if you don't keep the lights dimmer. If you don't, I'll sue this entire school." Yup, that would be her, same old mother. Looking at the lights made my head dizzy. I wouldn't blame this school for being so wild. Everyone must be out of control. I just hope it wouldn't be as wild as Duxbury Middle School. Actually, I think it IS going to be worse. One girl walked past me, wearing a pair of sun glasses and letting her bangs cover the front of her face. She probably didn't get a hair cut recently. She was even looking down. It's Fall, so I didn't bring a hat, so there's nothing I could really do about this. It's strange how the school kept their lights dimmed during the parent-student orientation. What's up with that? I looked down at the paper explaining the designated locations of the rooms in which the classes were held. I sighed. The hallway was so bright, the paper reflecting it was too much for me to handle. My eyes hurt just by looking at the instructions. I looked away from the paper and saw a boy who was probably a new student. He was at his locker and screamed when he saw the mirror in his locker, covering his eyes and cussing quite loudly. He was yelling, "My eyes! My *&)_*! eyes!!!" Wow. Strong language. I wondered if I'll be able to make it here. Something told me that my dreams and aspirations of a high school were just about to turn out wrong, completely wrong. This was not what I heard from my seventeen-year-old cousin. This could become a nightmare. My cousin lied, I know it.
Copyright 2008 August Blackwood |
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