Melissa had a son, twelve years old at that. And she had a teen daughter similar age to Solum she was 17 a year older, but they were still in the same grade.
Solum despised her, some days he wished his father would- but then he would stop himself from thinking further as his body would go cold.
When they first met she was a quiet girl, but after moving in officially, she wore very short clothing, cursed a lot, and would pop gum loudly. She even dyed a rebellious colour in her hair. She surely liked spending.
They were both abusive, but appeared to be angels when Cary returned home again, always talking in a bird like tone. Solum thought they were like actors. Actors acted the roles they were given all for the good of their career.
They were like Clowns, when the put on their suit and paint their faces no one would be able to tell if they were black or white.
His new younger brother on the other hand wasn't all that bad, he wore glasses and was a straight forward and blunt person. He wasn't controlling, but at the same time Solum couldn't bring himself to like this boy.
Tuesday night
The family was gathered at the dining table having dinner. Cary was making silly jokes that Melissa would snort loudly at, but deep down she thought his jokes were staler than an expired snack.
Solum's sister Ami laughed loudly at a few jokes half of the time and the other half of the time she was surfing her fingers over her phone screen.
The little boy Simon interjected himself within a joke telling everyone he score a perfect hundred percent on the pop quiz they did today, he even complemented that the other students were truly stupid for getting below 80%.
Solum was quiet the entire dinner, but this wasn't unusual this was how he had been for the pass few months.
Solum picked at his food as usual. Every night at dinner his mind was preoccupied, the dinner he eating use to taste better. But who use to make his dinner?
This was a question Solum usually asked himself, but when he started searching his head for answers everything was black.
" Son?" Cary was calling Solum for the third time now.
" Yes?" Solum answered on the forth call. Ami muffled her laugh as she thought Solum had mental illness and she found it funny how he often zoned out.
" Stupid," Simon muttered making his word sound like 'sandwich'. Ami fought to hold in the laugh and her mother pinched her under the table.
" Why aren't you eating? Aren't you hungry?" Cary asked sounding caring as usual.
" No I'm not hungry," came Solum usual departed voice.
" Well you should eat. Your mother worked very hard in preparing this meal," Cary smoothed in.
' Mother' this word. To Solum it was like a secret text that held hidden meanings, meanings he couldn't find. Solum tried remembering himself having a mother, but never was he ever successful recollecting those memories.
Not her Age, her Birthday, her appearance or even her Name. He knew nothing, he remembered nothing. The memories were surely floating in his head, but he couldn't reach out to them, if he tried they would vanish into thin air.
But he couldn't remember the feelings so of course he had a mother, but he couldn't remember.
The family ate in their words of fakeness and Solum listen never attempting to engage himself. This was a usual act from Solum and so they didn't attempt to get him involved. If they did it was to laugh at him, not Cary though he only made sure Solum was aware of them.
They were now clearing the table after a heartly fake laugh.
" I hope you all are ready to leave tomorrow,"
" For real Cary?"
" Yes Ami," came Cary's polite response with a laugh in it.
" But I thought we were staying I have my friends here," she semi- protested.
" Well I have work daughter so we can't. And I'm like those shopping Mall stuff and getting manicure and pedicures done, and those aren't cheap. So if we stay you'll have to say no to those," Cary explained calmly as usual.
Ami could feel her mother at her and so she said nothing more.
Cary had informed the family last week and yesterday, Solum had his things boxed and packed as they would be leaving very early the next morning.
Wednesday the family was up early as the stuffed their most important belongings into the car trunk. While doing so the ate breakfast at the same time. This took them two hours.
Ami didn't want to leave she had met so many friends and it had only been like four months, but she didn't want to voice her opinions too much. She couldn't afford Cary to break up with her mother. She pouted folding out her bottom lip before hugging her father saying ok.
After two hours they set out on the road and none them expected it the trip to last too days. Ami was fumming but kept under control by using her phone and blasting music in her ear drums. Simon and Melissa play 'I spy ' with Cary. But Solum remained quiet counting the trees, the cars he passed, the signs, the birds that he saw flying.
At night Solum, Simon, Melissa and Ami drifted to sleep; no one thought of it, but come to think of it, they had been driving for two days and not once did Cary stop to sleep or rest.
The car's windows were wound down a bit letting the cool night air in, Cary hummed beautifully behind the steering wheel. The car drove smoothly along the road never getting faster or slower. And a soon to be full moon was shone above in the sky.
Any normal person would say the moon was full, but with a glance from a person with knowledge they would tell you it wasn't full. With an atmosphere such as this it could probably cause a dinosaur to sleep