“That’s awful,” Cathy said as she placed a reassuring hand on the top of Scott’s head. “Is my son hurt?”
“I don’t think so,” Boffman said to her before turning his attention to the boy. “It doesn’t hurt anymore, right?”
Scott shook his head slightly but remained silent.
“These things happens sometimes,” Boffman said reassuringly. “The staff told the other boy off, and he missed the rest of practice. We had the trainer take a look at Scotty, and there’s no apparent injuries. He should be fine.”
“Alright,” Cathy said while tugging at her son’s shoulders. “I guess I’ll take him home now. Thanks again for staying with him.”
“No problem,” Boffman said to her. He gave the boy a gentle nudge. “Don’t worry about it, Scotty. I’ll see you at next practice, okay?”
Scott didn’t answer as Cathy led him towards the car. She waved goodbye to the coach before unlocking the vehicle. The boy threw the gym bag with his cleats into the backseat before he slid into the front passenger side.
Cathy got into the driver’s seat and glanced at her son. “If you don’t want to say anything that’s fine.”
Scott wore a pair of thin glasses, and his soccer uniform had minor stains of brown dirt and grass on it. “Where’s Dad?”
Cathy sighed. “He’ll be working an all-nighter in his office again, so he says.”
The boy made a low whimper, then he started to cry, the tears flooding the rims of his glasses.
Cathy placed a hand on his elbow. “Hey, what’s the matter?”
“I hate this school! Everybody picks on me.”
“If they do that then report them to the dean or the principal or something,” Cathy said.
The boy looked away. “Joey said he didn’t like me, that’s why he hit me during practice. If I tell on all of them then they’ll just use it against me.”
“Okay, well I’m going to have a talk to the principal about that,” Cathy said. “Bullies should never go unpunished.”
“No! If you do that then everyone will think I’m a snitch. They’ll hate me even more.”
“So what do you want me to do then?”
He started to stammer. “I… I-I… c-can I maybe, uh.”
“Maybe what?”
“I saw on TV that people can do homeschooling,” Scott said. “I don’t want to go back here anymore.”
Cathy shook her head. “Homeschooling? Look, I don’t know how that would even work. And I don’t have the time to be your teacher. If I’m not doing housework then I’m out selling houses. You know that.”
Scott gritted his teeth. “Please! I hate it here.”
“What about all your friends? You don’t want to see them anymore?”
“I don’t have any!”
She could feel a tension headache coming, and it was the last thing she wanted on her mind. Cathy rubbed her temples, hoping the pain would only last for a few seconds. “I’ll talk to your dad about it when he gets home.”
Scott stared out into the California sunset. “He’s never home.”
Cathy was about to say something when she felt her phone vibrating again. Taking out the device and looking at the unfamiliar number calling her, she wondered who it could be. “Hello?”
“Good afternoon, am I speaking with Mrs. Cathy Dirkse?”
“Yes, this is her. Who is this please?”
“This is Officer Ruiz from the Sheriff’s Department. I understand your daughter is a Kimberly Dirkse, is that right?”
Her stomach dropped. “Y-yes, is there a problem?”
“Sort of. Could you drop by the station, please?”
7
PAST MIDNIGHT, AND Nick could see two other vehicles in the driveway, so he decided to park his car out by the street instead. The client had been impressed by the software build, and had insisted they join him for dinner and a drink. Naturally, Nick couldn’t say no. A couple of beers at the local bar soon turned to a dozen, and time flew by quickly. Nick stayed on his feet, but Art couldn’t, so he decided to drive his partner home just to be safe.
Walking up to the front door of his house, Nick smiled to himself. Goddamn Art, two beers and he’s out like a light.
Fumbling the keys out of his pocket, he managed to unlock the door and strode inside. The kitchen light was still on for some strange reason, so he walked over to it after closing the door behind him.
The moment he got past the divider and peered inside, he noticed Cathy sitting by herself at the kitchen table, seemingly staring out into space. She turned and looked into his eyes but didn’t say anything.
Nick let out a loud burp before flashing a triumphant grin. “Sorry I’m late, but whenever Art drinks just a little he falls asleep. I had to drive him home. We got the deal done.”
Cathy’s jaded expression didn’t change. “I tried calling you nonstop all evening. Where the hell were you?”
Nick reached for the phone in his pocket before remembering he had left it on silent mode back in his cubicle. “Whoops. Sorry about that. I had to do an impromptu software presentation at the office this evening, and it looks like I forgot to bring my phone with me. But guess what?”
“What?”
He pumped his fists in triumph. “We got it, babe! The client is keeping us.”
Cathy looked at her watch. “You’re telling me you were in a meeting this whole time? Your breath smells of alcohol.”
He shrugged. “Look, the client asked us to have a drink with him so we did. Just a couple of beers.”
“Don’t lie to me, you’ve had more than ‘just a couple.’”
Nick’s bright enthusiasm quickly melted away. “Look, I wasn’t keeping count, okay?”
“If the cops had pulled you over you’d be in jail right now.”
The long hours and the residual effects of the alcohol in his system began to fray his temper. “I can hold myself together and still function. You know this.”
“Yeah, I know you alright.”
Arguing with her was proving to be exasperating. “What is this, Cathy? An interrogation? I just told you we were able to retain a big corporate client, this is a big deal for our business. What did I do wrong?”
Cathy grimaced. “Did you even know your daughter was pulled over by the cops this afternoon?”
“What?”
“No, you obviously didn’t,” she said softly. “Because you turned off your phone and left it in the office. I even tried calling your landline but it went to voicemail.”
Nick let out a deep breath. “Please tell me what happened.”
“Kim caught her boyfriend in bed with another girl, that’s what happened. She was so upset she was doing all sorts of traffic violations, and the cops pulled her over.”
“Oh god. Where is she now?”
“She’s in her room sleeping,” Cathy said. “She’s lucky the police didn’t press charges when they found her, and they called me to clear things up. Your daughter could have gotten into a serious accident and I couldn’t even contact you.”
He looked down at the linoleum floor. “I’m sorry, babe. I—”
She held her hand up. “Stop saying that! You know what? All you ever say is sorry. This has been going on for years. I have to be the one to deal with all this, while you go out and have a good time with Art. Perhaps you should have married him instead.”
Nick shook his head slowly. “Come on, Cathy. This isn’t fair. I work my butt off to provide for you and the kids.”
“So do I, Nick! We’re supposed to be equal partners in this, and you throw everything at me, expecting me to do it all by myself.”
“I know I haven’t been around lately, but I needed to put in time at the office. Things are starting to turn around so all our sacrifices—”
She interrupted him again. “I’m the one making all the sacrifices here! Your daughter is devastated, and I spent most of this evening consoling her. When was the last time you even talked to Kimberly?”