The Kilwade Tragedy Read online

  Then a few seconds later another kid walked by singing, You are Not Alone, by Michael Jackson while waived his phone at Blaze too.

  As he moved down the hall more and more people stared down at their phones and pointed as they passed him.

  He logged in to Twitter to see what the hell everyone was looking at. But he didn’t find anything – at first.

  Then he saw it. He clicked on the link that read, Rockband punk is scared to be alone.

  It was a video of himself saying ‘I don’t want to be alone’ in GIF format playing over and over. And it was set to some stupid techno beat.

  As he approached his locker, he could see something taped to it blowing from the A/C vent above.

  He yanked the note off the locker. Don’t be afraid pussy cat, the note read.

  How had finally answering Mrs. Gibbs’ question lead to all of this? It didn’t matter what he said or did. Tre and his football dopes always found a way to turn it around on him.

  Blaze swallowed hard and walked with his head down now. Hoping that people wouldn’t recognize him. But it didn’t work. They all recognized him. And they all laughed at him.

  When he finally made it to the gym, he noticed Nikki and Mark across the way. They noticed him and made their way over.

  Nikki reached out to give him a hug. “So I guess you saw the video?”

  “Am I that easy to read?”

  He reached out to high five Mark.

  “Sucks man,” Mark said. “When are they going to give it up? Why won’t the leave you alone?”

  “Screw those guys. They’re all losers, you know that,” Nikki said.

  “One day all of those assholes will get what they got coming,” Blaze said.

  Mark shoved him. “Shut up. What the hell are you going to do? You’ve never even been in a fight,” he teased.

  “You may be right, but just watch and see. I’ll come up with something.”

  “Can we just eat, please? I’m starving,” Nikki said.

  They loaded up in Blaze’s car and took off for Sonic.

  Nikki climbed up front and Mark rode in the back.

  “So Mark, Blaze tells me that you guys may get the band back together again?”

  “Do you tell this girl everything?”

  Blaze smiled up in the rearview mirror.

  “We talked about it,” Mark answered.

  “I think you should. You guys were pretty damn good. I’d pay to see you play.”

  “Well no offense, but you’re his girlfriend. Of course you’re going to say we were good.”

  “What? Is my validation not enough?”

  “You know what I mean, Nik.”

  “Actually, I didn’t tell her that we are practicing this weekend,” Blaze said.

  “See, he doesn’t tell me everything,” Nikki said matter-of-factly.

  They pulled up to Sonic and piled out.

  The trio sat down at a table outside and ordered their food.

  “Don’t you guys ever want to just pack up and get the hell out of Kilwade?” Nikki asked.

  “Why? Everyone that I’ve ever known grew up here,” Mark said.

  “That’s what I mean. There’s a whole big ass world out there and all we know is tiny little Kilwade, Texas. We don’t have a mall, we got one Sonic and one Walgreens. Hell, we don’t even have a Super Walmart.”

  “But we do have a Walmart,” Mark said. “What’s wrong with being in a town that still only has one elementary school, one middle school and one high school? Some people prefer a town where everybody knows everybody else,” Mark added.

  “Yeah well, not this somebody. I want to get the hell out of here. New York, Chicago, Cali,” Nikki said dreamily.

  “C’mon, Nik. Houston is only forty-five minutes from here and you get lost there,” Mark laughed.

  “Screw you! What about you, Blaze?” Nikki asked.

  Blaze thought for a moment. “I don’t know. I think my story ends here – in Kilwade. Hadn’t really thought about it much.”

  “Well, I guess I’ll have to get a new boyfriend then,” Nikki teased.

  Blaze shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

  Nikki laughed.

  “Not all guys can do the thing I do with my tongue,” Blaze said and winked.

  “Didn’t think about that,” she replied smiling.

  “Gross guys. Jesus,” said Mark.

  “And I don’t know. I’m kind of looking forward to my life as a plant operator,” Blaze said.

  “Boooorinnnng,” Nikki said rolling her eyes.

  The waitress brought their food out.

  “Blaze, you thought anymore about trying out for baseball this year?” Nikki asked.

  Blaze cut his eyes at her.

  Mark looked intrigued. “What? Baseball? You?”

  “Yeah, asshole. And I thought about it. I used to be pretty good.”

  “The pitches go a little faster now than when we played before.”

  “Yeah, no shit,” Blaze said. “Just shut up and eat your food.”

  “You’re good at everything you do, Blaze,” Nikki said.

  “Eww,” Mark said. “I seriously need to get me one of those.”

  “What? A girlfriend? You had one with Kaylea but you messed that up.” Nikki teased.

  “Yes a girlfriend and I know!” Mark said. “Does she always have your back like this?”

  “Most of the time,” Blaze said winking at Nikki.

  “So, why baseball? Why not try out for football? You could play that thing where they go out and try to catch the ball,” Mark asked.

  Blaze laughed. “You mean wide receiver?”

  “Yeah sure, whatever. This is Kilwade. You know they only care about football. Are you sure we even have a baseball team?”

  “You might look cute out there in your little tight football pants, baby” Nikki said.

  “Those football players are assholes.”

  “All of them?”

  “Well the ones I know. Like Tre Johnson,” Blaze said.

  “Doesn’t he play like quarterback or something?” Mark asked.

  Blaze nodded. “Yeah. That’s him, the freakin’ prick.”

  “Don’t like him, eh?”

  “No. He walks around thinking that he’s hot shit.”

  “Sounds like you may be a little jelly-”

  “I’m not jealous at all bro. The guy is just a jack ass. And he calls me Rockband – what the hell kind of jab is that?”

  Mark and Nikki laughed.

  “It’s funny to you, huh?”

  “Rockband? It’s kind of a compliment, Blaze,” Nikki said.

  “Well, he damn sure doesn’t mean it like that. Tre and all his little football friends, all they do is drink, smoke weed and go to parties looking for girls to bang,” Blaze said.

  Mark raised his hand. “Excuse me and what exactly is wrong with any of those?”

  Blaze eyed him.

  “I’m just saying. I mean we drink and smoke too. Or am I missing something? And if you didn’t have a girl,” he said pointing at Nikki.

  “It’s just different. I don’t know. And I don’t bully people every day.” Blaze said.

  “Sounds like maybe you just don’t like the guy?” Nikki inquired.

  Blaze glared at her. “Well I don’t. Is that okay?”

  “Geesh, don’t get all defensive. I mean sure it’s fine. Like him, don’t like him, I don’t care,” Nikki responded.

  “Shit. We’re late,” Mark said looking at his phone. “See now, look what you did Blaze. Made us all late talking about football and baseball.”

  “Shut the hell up and get in before I leave your ass here,” Blaze said with a grin.

  “Oh, get out of your feelings buttercup. You’re still taking me to the gun range with you, right? It’s been a few weeks and I’m having withdrawals.”

  Friday, Aug 23rd

  Chapter 6

  Nikki gripped the seat as the car slid around a corner. School had just ended
and Blaze was dropping her off at home. She’d noticed a change in him since his dad had left. Nothing that worried her too much, but there was a change. He had been a lot more aggressive lately and a lot less funny.

  “You in a rush to drop me off or something?” Nikki asked, trying not to sound rude.

  “No. Why?”

  “Well you’ve cut about five cars off and we’ve two wheeled every turn since we left the school.”

  “No, I haven’t.”

  She didn’t want to pick a fight over something silly, so she left it alone.

  “So, am I going to see you later tonight at the football game?” Nikki asked.

  “You know how much I looove going to football games. Besides, I promised my mom that I’d try this stupid family counseling thing with her tonight.”

  “What time does it start?”

  “Session starts at five.”

  “Those things usually last an hour… game doesn’t start till seven. You’ll have plenty of time to make it. Please!? Can you just come for me?” She asked as she reached over and grabbed him between the legs.

  “Don’t touch that unless you’re going to finish.”

  She smiled at him.

  The car pulled up to her house and she got out.

  “So, are you coming or not Blaze?”

  He frowned. “Sure I’ll make an appearance to this adolescent sporting event.”

  She smiled. “Okay, see yah there! We play Carter High tonight. It should be a great game and I get to spend the evening with you!”

  He put the car in reverse and pointed it for home.

  His mom’s car was already in the driveway. Now that the time was here, he hated that he’d agreed to go and talk to a counselor. Nothing was wrong with him. It was everyone else with the problem.

  “Blaze, is that you?” His mom called as he walked through the door.

  “Well it’s not the tooth fairy, mom.”

  “Can you be nice for one second? Please?”

  “Let’s just get this over with already,” he said, rolling his eyes.

  “I’ll drive,” she said.

  “No. I’m taking my own car. I’m going to the football game after we’re done. Don’t ask.”

  She raised her eyebrows. “Oh. Okay. I didn’t think you liked football.”

  “I don’t. Nikki begged me to go. Can we just leave, please?”

  “Fine, Blaze. You don’t want to talk to me, so let’s just go. Maybe you’ll want to talk to the doctor.”

  “Thank you and probably not.”

  Fifteen minutes later they pulled in front of the counselor’s office. Blaze took a deep breath and slowly got out of the car. There was a small one story building in front of them. From what he could tell it didn’t look like much.

  “Oh c’mon, it won’t be that bad.”

  “Yeah mom, it will be that bad. It’s already that bad.”

  “It’ll be as good or as bad as you make it, son.”

  But Blaze knew that he was hiding something else. Something that he’d shared with no one. Something that he’d buried deep within his conscience. Something that as he pieced the events together over the past six months, that he didn’t want to talk about with anyone.

  She led the way inside. It smelled like someone had gone way overboard with air freshener inside.

  “Excuse me,” she called, leaning over the counter. “Is anyone here?”

  Five seconds later a tall, slender, blonde woman came to the door leading from the back. She didn’t look like the type of Doctor that Blaze had in mind.

  “I’m Dr. Smyrl – and you must be Mrs. Planter?”

  She reached out her hand. “Yes, but you can just call me Steph.”

  Blaze was still trying to get over how attractive she was. She was indeed nothing like he expected. Maybe he could get used to seeing a shrink.

  She reachedher hand towards Blaze. “And this handsome young man must be Blaze,” she winked.

  His mind had gone blank, so he said nothing.

  “Does he talk?” She said laughing.

  “Yes, he talks,” Steph said shaking her head.

  “Can I have my hand back please, Blaze?”

  He looked down and noticed they were still shaking hands. Shit.

  “Yeah, sorry,” he said.

  “This way to my office,” she gestured.

  Blaze leaned down in his mother’s ear. “If I’d known she looked like this I would have said yes months ago.”

  She shook her head but said nothing.

  “Both of you can have a seat over there.” She motioned to a small couch. The room was small and very plain. The only thing hanging from the wall was a small clock.

  “Have either of you had any type of counseling before?”

  They both shook their heads.

  “Okay. Well I’ll explain a little about how this is going to work. At first, I’ll ask a few questions just to get to know you a little better. We may have a few one-on-one sessions too. Blaze, I’ve already talked to your mother and heard her side of what’s going on at home. So now I’d like to hear from you.”

  He fidgeted with his hands. “What do you want to know?”

  “Why don’t you tell me what your mother did to make you so angry at her all the time?”

  He smiled. “We only have an hour session, right?”

  “Yes. We have an hour today.”

  “Well, she made my dad leave.”

  “You mean she’s the reason that they got divorced?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well I’ve heard a little of the story and it sounds like the road to divorce was a little more complicated than that. Why do you only blame your mother?”

  Blaze slumped in the seat and threw his hands up. “So, you’re already taking her side?”

  “No. I’m not here to take sides. I’ll point out things that I see, including when either of you may be wrong about something.”

  “If she would have taken care of herself maybe put on some makeup every now and then’

  “So, let me make sure I understand. Because your mother was no longer physically attractive to your dad anymore, it gave him a right to cheat?”

  He shook his head. “Not a right. But I understand. I mean if she cared how he felt, why would she not try to be pretty for him?”

  “Well there’s nothing wrong with that Blaze, but there’sa lot more to a relationship than outer beauty. Relationships are hard work. Is there anything that your dad could have done differently?”

  “I don’t know. But I don’t want to talk about my dad.”

  “Okay. So, do you want to tell me why you think you are here?”

  “Because she dragged me here,” he said, pointing to his mom.

  “So, you think that you don’t need to be here?”

  He shrugged.

  “Blaze thinks the way he talks to me is okay,” Steph said.

  “I’m surprised that you even notice.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean, Blaze?” Steph said.

  “Mom, everyday it’s Kevin this and Kevin that. You don’t know anything about me.”

  “That’s not true, Blaze. I know everything about you.”

  “Really? What’s my favorite band, mom?”

  “That’s easy, Blaze - Metallica.”

  “Mom, I’ve never listened to them. That’s one question down. How many questions can I stump you with? Shall we see?”

  “But don’t you have three posters of them hanging in your room?”

  “No. Those are other bands, mom. Okay this is an easy one… what’s Nikki’s last name? We’ve only been dating almost two years.”

  Steph looked down. A tear rolled from her eye.

  Dr. Smryl handed her a Kleenex.

  “This is such a huge waste of time. I didn’t need to come here to know what I already knew. Even when I’m home, I’m alone,” Blaze said.

  “Blaze, do you make yourself available? Or are you closed in your room most of the time?
I’ve found that most teenagers that I see don’t really give their parents an opportunity to be engaged.”

  Blaze said nothing.

  “Blaze, do you want a better relationship with your mother?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe, maybe not. I’ll be fine without her – made it this far.”

  “Do you really think you’ve made it without her help? Like I said earlier, relationships are a two-way street. You’re going to have to make an effort too. It won’t be easy and it’s going to take some time. Do you talk to Nikki about how you’ve been feeling at home?”

  He nodded.

  “Would she be a good person to talk to?”

  “I guess.”

  “Okay. Maybe you should try talking to her. Can you do that and let me know how it goes?”

  “Sure.”

  “Now, tell me a little about these fights you’ve been getting into at school.”

  Blaze looked over at his mother. “I haven’t gotten into any fights. Some arguments, yes. The guys at my school – most of them are assholes. And the teachers don’t care. Especially if it’s a football player. Those guys get away with murder.”

  “What makes them assholes, Blaze?”

  “They’re cocky. Everybody is always telling them how good they are. I mean just look at this town. Tonight is Friday, right? Where is everyone going to be? It’s like that’s the only thing people care about here.”

  “Well Blaze, there’s nothing wrong about being good at something and being recognized for it. Don’t you want your band to be good? Isn’t that why you guys practice?”

  He shrugged.

  “Do you feel like you’re always in a bad mood?”

  “Never thought about it before but yeah, probably.”

  “Do you feel like that’s normal for a kid your age?”

  “I don’t go around polling kids to see if they are angry, so I don’t know. I think I’m pretty normal. My friends think I’m normal too.”

  She looked down at her notes and added a few more.

  “Blaze, are you doing any drugs right now? Or drinking?”

  “I drink sometimes with friends. It’s nothing I can’t control.”

  “Okay. And the drugs?”

  Blaze looked over at his mother.

  “I smoke some.”

  “Smoke?”

  “Weed.”

  “Blaze!” Steph shouted in surprise.

  “What do you want me to say? You want me to come in here and lie?”