What About Loyalty

Chapter 10

You can't imagine how upset I was that Mrs. Ludot wanted to believe that I wasn't what she thought I was. Come to think of it, a lot of people in school had a distorted image of me, so it hurt me a whole lot more that a school adult had that image too.

When I finally reached my house, I got the mail and unlocked the front door. I put the mail (and my suspension slip) on the table for either Mom or Dad to see, then I went directly to my room to read a novel, because there was no way in hell I was gonna watch television after what happened.

This next scene in this story is not for the faint of heart.

A few minutes later, I heard the front door open and figured it was Dad because he's normally home when I get dropped off by the bus. The first thing he probably saw on the table was my suspension paper, because he shouted at the top of his lungs, "HAAARVEEEEYYY!"

I must say, that was actually unexpected of him. Then I figured he probably had a bad day at work and that I must've pissed him off even more. He then barged into my room with a look on his face that looked like he wanted blood (my blood).

"What's the meaning of this?" Dad exclaimed while pointing at the slip.

"I got suspended today," I answered nonchalantly.

"WHY?!"

"Mrs. Ludot thought I sexually harassed some girl in school when I didn't."

"Listen, young man, if Mrs. Ludot said that you harassed a girl, then you most likely did harass a girl!"

That's when I resorted to shouting back at him. "Don't you be assuming stuff, too!" I said to him as I got off my bed. "I've had too much of it today as it is!"

"I don't know what you do in school during your free time," Dad told me, "but when something like this comes up, what am I supposed to believe?"

"Come on, you're just mad because you had a shitty day at work, you dumb f**k!" Then neither of us spoke a word. I had never in my life cursed in front of my parents before this. Not once. I was actually afraid that they might break me physically if I did. I guess this fear was justified, because shortly after I said this to Dad, he turned into a madman.

(Okay, before I go on, I just want to say what I had just realized before I inevitably got my ass beat; if Dad was mad because he had a bad day at work, I was probably mad because I had a bad day in school. Maybe if he'd known this before I cursed him out, this next part wouldn't have happened.)

What happened next resulted in my general erosion of trust in my parents. Dad, now more P.O.'d then ever, punched me in my mouth, and boy did it hurt! The force of his blow knocked be back onto the bed. Dad saw this as an opportunity to hop on my bed and repeatedly punch me in the face. In just a few hits, I lost a few teeth, got a black eye, and had my nose broken (not to mention bleeding). He then picked me up and tossed me like a ragdoll against the wall, causing me great pain on my back.

I soon saw him walking towards me with a grim look on his face. Before I could make a run for it, he grabbed me by the neck with both hands and proceeded to strangle me!

"I shoulda known you were nothin' but trouble," Dad said through gritted teeth. "Gettin' the nerve to act tough in front o' your folks? Let's see how tough you are after I crush your fuckin' throat!"

It soon occurred to me that my own father was going to kill me. I wasn't about to let that happen. Without thinking, I kicked my dad in the balls with all my might. Of course, he felt it and let go of me to tend to his hurt testicles. This was my chance to run from him and lock myself in the bathroom, where I stood in the bathtub and called 911. It took several seconds, but someone finally picked up.

"911, what's your emergency?" a female receptionist with a warm voice queried.

"You gotta help me!" I yelled. "My dad's tryin' to kill me!"

"Calm down. Describe where you are."

"I'm locked up in my bathroom! I'm in here so I can talk to you guys!"

"Describe your current state, if you will."

"I lost a few teeth, I feel like I have a black eye, my back is killin' me, and I think my nose is broken."

It was then that I heard a pounding on the door accompanied by a deep, loud voice. "Harvey, get outta there!" Dad yelled. "Come out and take your punishment like a man!"

I'm not gonna lie; I was frightened out of my wits by this point. "Just send some guys over and quick," I told the receptionist over the phone.

"Don't worry," she assured me. "The police have tracked your call and are on their way. All I ask is that you stay on the line."

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!" I proceeded to sit down (mainly because I was starting to get cramps from standing too long). That's when I heard the sound of shattering wood. I looked at the door and saw my dad's fist poking through a newly developed hole. I saw his fingers go towards the doorknob and twisting the lock so the door can open once more.

"He undid the lock. He undid the lock," I whispered, but only so low so that I and the receptionist can hear.

"It's okay," she told me. "Just stay on the line. Help is almost there."

"Pardon my language, but could they hurry the hell up?"

"They're doing the best they can. Just stay on the line and relax."

There was just one problem with that: how was I supposed to relax when my f*****g father is about to destroy me?

Then the door opened and the man I was supposed to call Dad slowly walked towards me. I could hear his heavy breathing, accompanied by his stomping. Just as he was about to tear out my throat, I could her distant police sirens. I guess Dad did, too, because he stopped dead in his tracks. I could see the fear in his eyes.

Two police officers came in to arrest my father. After being put in handcuffs, they walked them over to a cruiser. One of the officers, after helping the other put my dad in the back seat, came over to comfort me.

"Wow, he must've roughed you up pretty bad, huh?" the officer told me as he examined my face.

"Well, he damn near strangled me to death," I said. "I can't believe I thought him to be my father."

"Me neither. We'll make sure his sentence is long and rough." After he patted me on the back, he got back into his car and drove off.

(I later learned that Dad was to serve five years in prison for attempted murder. However, watching him get hauled off by the cops was the last time I would ever see him.)