A Family Crumbles 

 

A young heavy set girl and younger twiggish boy sit on the sunken in couch of their living room. The place is dank, dreary and like

every other can in the park, lacks any real privacy. Thick wine-red curtains hang in front of the windows blocking out the morning light. The curtains hem folds just over the grey stiff carpet blotched with discolored patches where juice beer and even just water had spilled and not been cleaned quick enough. Thin walls barely muffled the fight in their mother’s bedroom, her temper once again taking the lead. This time there was no rebuttal, no response. They both turned when the door opened, hinges complaining loudly. Both stared quietly as the man they’d gotten used to stepped out with a bag slung over his shoulder. Long black box braids pulled into a knot to hold up his ponytail, tall and rail thin though still muscular in his shoulders and arms. The man was standing there in the sparse living room looking at the ceiling as he tried to steady his breathing. He wiped a hand over his face and down his small straight beard.

 

“Hector?”

 

The girl asked softly, glassy brown eyes looking at him with so much anxiety and fear. Her unusually mousy voice wavered before failing her, she pressed her mouth into a thin line as she just looked at him. He smiled reassuringly as he paused in front of them. 

 

“Yea, I’m sorry mija. I… hey you guys wanna go have breakfast before school? If we leave now we’ll have time.”

 

“Yea…”

 

The boy mumbled as he looked down at an old bloodstain on the carpet, he pulled his hand out of his older sisters hold and shimmied off the couch. The small pair grabbed their worn and faded backpacks from off the carpet by the front door. Hector held the door open for them.

 

Again the pair stood quietly as he took a key off the small chain attached to his wallet, setting it down on a  small table by the door before shutting it. As he turned his back he could hear the lock tumble into place, he found his eyes locked with theirs as the second lock loudly slammed into place.

 

“Come on guys, we got time to hit the waffle place-”

 

“The school bus isn’t here yet, we can just catch the bus again you know.”

 

“Shut up”

 

His sister gave him a hard push almost throwing him into the gravel, unsurprisingly Hector reached out to catch him by his arm. Hector helped him back up and herded the pair of them over to his faded red ford. An old truck, still made of steel; one long wide bench seat waiting as he held open the heavy door for them.

 

“C’mon none uh that shit now alright.” 

 

The boy jumped and scrambled into the set, settling in the middle while his sister climbed in. The axels groaned as she settled in while he lightly shut the door. The two refused to look up as he walked around the front of the truck, keys jingling in the driver's side door before he tugged the handle to force it open.

 

“Want the heater?”

 

He didn’t expect them to answer, so he shoved the key into the ignition forcefully turning the stubborn mechanism. Twice more before it roared to life, a minute longer for it to warm enough for him to turn on the heater. He tried not to hear the small patting sound of heavy tears hitting their laps.

 

He glanced into the rearview mirror before letting the old metal beast lurch down the gravel and into the dirt road between the disorganized cluster of trailers. Behind them, their mother peered out the blinds watching them roll around a corner. She turned the spare key in her fingers and looked around her small kitchen. A long counter a fridge, microwave, double sink and no dinner table. She pressed her lips into a line as she told herself this was better.

 

Hector and the children that weren’t actually his sat in the warm rumbling truck while they waited their turn to pull into the parking lot of a small breakfast diner. A giant yellowish-brown square with nine square indents turned slowly on a big black pole, announcing the small diners' most popular dish. An opening came and again the boy piped up.

 

“ We’re not hungry, can we just go to school.”

 

He paused and looked over at the pair of them.

 

“You sure? You can have anything you want- even the big waffle with the sprinkles..”

 

“No thanks.”

 

Hector worked his jaw as he flicked off his blinker and returned to the main stream of traffic. Just a few minutes later the vehicle rolled to a stop in front of a weather worn building that used to be a shopping plaza. Together the three sat in silence once he turned off the engine.

 

“Guys…”

 

“Why didn’t you fight back!”

 

Hector twisted in place to look at the girl, heavy tears spilling down her freckled face. Her fists clenched in her lap, shaking as she looked over at him.

 

“I didn’t have a reason to-”

 

“Don’t you love us?! Aren’t we a reason?!” 

 

“Mija I’d go to war for you guys, I really would I promise. I love you two- Jolene, Bilby.”

 

He looked over, reaching out to press his fingertips to the boys chin, forcing him to meet his eyes. Red tear swollen eyes looked up at him.

 

“You know I got your six, you know I do. You got my number both of you- you know where to find me. I’ll always be here for you. You know that mijo- you know that right?”

 

Bilby took a deep shaking breath before her threw his arms around Hector and bawled.

 

“Then don’t leave! Stay- stay with us!”

 

“ I am with you- I promised you I’d always be there for you okay. I just- I’m not at the dinner table anymore but I’m still here okay!”

 

Jolene hiccupped as she cried, Hector reaching to pull her close as well. His long arms held them both tight while he tried to stay composed. To no avail, he felt like a monster, a liar. After they found enough calm in each other they let go only to look at each other and for a moment wait, for a question. An answer.

 

Hector worked his jaw as he waited, Jolene asking quietly.

 

“Mom… mom found someone with more money didn’t she?”

 

Bilby closed his eyes and put his hands over his face, it wasn’t an implausible accusation at all.

 

“ I just know she already has a new guy, that’s all I got. If she wants someone else, then I can’t force her to love me or want me. Your mom works hard, she deserves to be happy you know. If I don’t make her happy anymore then, I guess that’s it.”

 

“Yea, but you deserve to be happy too.”

 

Hector leaned back and thought for a moment, he laid his arm across the back of the bench seat as he looked back and forth from Jolene to Bilby.

 

“Yea and you know what would make me happy right now?”

 

They both stared at him with focus.

 

“What?”

 

“Waffles”

 

Jolene grinned at him.

 

“You hate waffles.”

 

“Coffee?”

 

“The gates aren’t even open yet.”

 

Bilby observed as he leaned forward to look around his sister at their school. His sister suddenly started laughing before asking.

 

“Can we still have breakfast then?”

 

“You got it mija.”

 

Almost an hour later the truck came back the school, this time when he opened the door for them, the gates were open wide with masses of students pouring in. Jolene and Bilby waved excitedly to Hector as they both carried in their milkshakes to the school.

 

Standing at the gate a tall woman with black hair pulled into a bun looked through her cat eye glasses at them. She rolled her eyes assuming they had brought in more of that ridiculous coffee everyone seemed to be obsessed with.

 

“You had better finish those before you get inside!”

 

A while later Hector sat in the parking lot of his shop hunched over gripping the steering wheel when a sudden tapping at his window got his attention. He jolted upright turning away to wipe his face before rolling down his window.

 

“She dump you again?”

 

A small red headed woman with tattoo sleeves all down both arms and her hands on her hips as she looked at him with disinterest. Her voice stalled as she caught him wiping his face.

 

“We gotta open up, c’mon man. you can’t just sit out here all morning.”

 

“Shut up- it’s my store I’ll open it when I want.”

 

“You have an appointment in 30 minutes, for an armed guard qualification.”

 

“Shit.”

 

He rolled the window back up stepped out and slammed the door so hard his window rattled.

 

“Crap- did we clean up the range?”

 

“Yea and I changed the targets last night.”

 

She trotted after him to keep up with his long strides as he rolled his keys in his fingers before rattling the lock open.

 

“Did you call to get us a new lock?”

 

“Four times, they’re blocked up cause christmas is coming so we gotta pay a priority fee or some shit.”

 

“Since when? What bull shit is that?!”

 

He held open the door as strolled inside, immediately going to open blinds while he locked the place back up. She pulled open another blind and turned around to find him sitting on the floor with his back to the door.

 

“What? It’s not that bad I bet we can get someone else to change the locks or just call-”

 

“Christmas, we had to fuck everything up right before christmas!?”

 

“Dude what the hell? You guys break up all the fucking time- you’re always back in like a week or two or whenever her electric is due.”

 

“She got someone else, I gave back my key.”

 

“Oh shit.”

 

Hector pushed himself back to his feet, walked across the shop to sit behind the register. Small steps plodded behind him as his friend tailed him.

 

“What about the kids?! Did you talk to them?! Did she?! Like holy crap-”

 

“Yea, I took them to breakfast this morning, they’re gonna be fine.”

 

She just looked at him heartbroken, knowing how happy he’d been to be a part of that little family. How much happier he’d been taking the lot of them out to watch wrestling or movies. 

 

“Hector I’m so sorry-”

 

“Priss now ain’t the time- go get range one set up and have the forms ready to go.”

 

He popped open the register to count out its contents, glowering as he did.

 

Seven hours later Roxanne stepped off the bus to look out into traffic and see her kids sitting in his truck again. She jerked her head back in bewilderment, unsure of what was happening. She trotted out all the way to the corner where he made his turn and headed for their trailer park.

 

“ what the fuck are you doing!?”

 

She shouted, purse flopping about on her hip as she held her arms up and out. Some parents behind her pulled their kids a bit closer as they waited at the bus stop pretending not to see her.

Turning around she realized she was making a fool of herself right in front of their school and decided to cross the street.

 

“What the fuck was that about?! You guys let him bring you home- I went all the way over there for you and you guys where with Hector?!”

 

Jolene looked up from her dinner tray all covered with her homework packet and colored pencils, confusion riddled all over her face.

 

“What?”

 

Bilby stepped out of the bathroom wiping his hands on his pants as the toilet hissed behind him. Their mother slammed the door shut behind her and stomped in to look at him. Just as she stopped to glare down at him the microwave beeped loudly in the kitchen.

 

“What the fuck?!”

 

She whipped around stomping in her wedges all the way over to the kitchen and picking up a tv dinner box from the counter, then looking over at them.

 

“Did you guys steal this?”

 

She asked in a low whisper, panic all over her face as she stared at them. Bilby crossed his arms, upset at the accusation.

 

“No, Hector stopped at the store to make sure we had food for dinner.”

 

“We have food!”

 

She dropped the box and went over to yank open the fridge, mostly empty take out boxes, half a gallon of milk. She opened the freezer to find a grocery bag of box dinners and ice then shut it before going to the cupboard and opening it to find cranberry cans crackers and another bag, this time filled with canned ravioli.

 

“How did we not have food?”

 

She closed the cupboard door and thought to herself, she was sure they always had food.

 

“Hector always made dinner for us ma.”

 

“What? no.”

 

She looked at her children indignantly.

 

“I cook for you!”

 

“Mom when was the last time you cooked without the microwave?”

 

Bilby asked, she seemed to flounder before just looking at them sheepishly. Her daughter sat on the couch in pajamas she couldn’t remember buying, doing her homework. Something she used to have to fight with her about so much. On another dinner tray was an open math book and a pile of crumpled papers, Bilby was struggling again.

 

“Whats going on here?”

 

She walked over to open one of the papers seeing so much frustration in the writing. Roxanne looked over to her son with worry.

 

“You were doing so well, what happened?”

 

“ Hector was helping me with my homework while you were at work before, aren’t you late?”

 

Roxanne watched him walk over and get a plate out of the microwave and ran to her room to change. She stopped in the mirror then grabbed her long coat, wrapping its belt tight as she stepped out.

 

“I have to hurry now but I have my phone so call me if anything happens- lock the door, both locks and don’t open it for anyone ok.”

 

“We know ma.”

 

Jolene said as she looked over at the bright red boots that went all the way up under Roxanne’s coat. Roxanne caught the look and smiled, gripping the coat shut tighter.

 

“ Hey, tomorrow you get off early- I’ll pick you up and we can go to the store and get a cake mix- we can bake together like we used to. Everything is gonna be okay- okay?”

 

They both looked at her quietly for a while before Bilby set a plate down over his sisters homework.

 

“I talked to the office today, the school bus doesn’t come out this far anymore...so we asked if Hector would still bring us home. He said it was okay so... He’s gonna bring us home.”

 

Roxanne turned to grab the door handle smiling over her shoulder at them.

 

“I’ll just try and bring one home tonight then okay. That’ll be fun right?”

 

“Sure ma.”

 

The door shut lightly this time, as she stepped down the little warped wood stairs in her cherry red boots. The sound of the heavy locks

 

turning seemed so much louder in her mind. She walked along not hearing the way her neighbors whistled, they always did. She stood

 

at her bus stop, unable to remember how long it would be before it showed up. A lump formed in her throat as she realized how long it

 

had been since she had to take the bus to work. She closed her eyes tight not wanting tears to ruin her makeup. She couldn’t

 

remember if the liner was waterproof or not.