Page 103 of Voices

I pull the blankets off my head and yell out, “I’ll be down in a minute Jeffrey.”

“Please don’t be late, Charlie,” he whispers through my door.

I’m not sure if I was meant to hear him but I know Father will blame him for not getting me to where I need to be on time.

I roll out of bed and stretch. I look down and freeze. I can’t believe I forgot to take off Shane’s hoodie. What if Father had seen it? I quickly take it off and ball it up, shoving it under my pillows.

With my heart beating in my ears, I grab a solid black hoodie from my closet and pull it over my head as I open my door,stopping when I see Benji leaning against the wall. He pushes off as I close my door and slowly walk past him.

“He’s not happy with you,” he says as he walks down the stairs next to me.

“When’s he ever happy with me,” I mumble to myself making Benji laugh.

He slaps me on the back as we hit the landing and turn towards the dining room.

“Maybe if you put some effort into your life, he wouldn’t have to push you so much to do better. It’s really not that hard Charlie.”

Easy for him to say when he’s good at everything he does.

I let him walk in first so I can duck behind him as we walk to our seats. The table is obnoxiously large for four people. We sit on one side with our mother across from us and our father at the head of the table.

Servers come out with our plates. I pick at the top of the mashed potatoes as I watch red juice flow from the round piece of meat. I lose my appetite the second it touches the potatoes. I set my fork down and reach for my glass of wine. I hate wine but it looks like this is the only part of dinner I’ll be able to hold down without gagging. I take a small sip of the dry red wine, wincing at the flavor. I wash it down with a sip of water as my father clears his throat.

“Where were you earlier, Charles? I expected to have both of my sons greet me when they arrived, not just one.” He cuts into his red filet, and I do my best to hold back any reaction.

“I took a nap. I didn’t sleep that well last night.” I reach for my wine again, taking a big gulp.

“That’s unacceptable, Charles. I am to be respected in this house, by everyone.” His stern voice makes my shoulders rise to my ears. “Look at me when I’m speaking to you!” He raises his voice.

I turn my head but look over his shoulder as he keeps talking.

“Tomorrow is a very important day for me and you will not ruin it by being disrespectful. I trust you have afemaledate for tomorrow’s event?”

My eyes snap to his. Date? Since when do I need a date to go to Thanksgiving dinner?

Benji chuckles next to me. I look at him, confused.

“I have a limo being sent to pick up my date. She’ll be here right at six,” Benji comments. He glances over his shoulder at me with a smirk before going back to his food.

“Very good Benjamin. Charles?”

I look back at him, lost for words. I shake my head and then look at my mother when she releases an irritated huff.

“Honestly, Charles. Can’t you do anything on your own?” She picks up her phone and types something quickly. Less than thirty seconds later, a stiff smile crosses her botoxed face. “All done. Ashley will be here at six. She’s a model so expect to show her off and introduce her to everyone.”

The blood drains from my face as I look down at my plate, feeling sick.

Why did she have to pick Ashley? She hates me.

They talk around me as I stare at the blood on my plate for so long that it starts to blur.

“Are you finished Mr. Charles?”

I blink rapidly and slowly nod my head. I watch one of the servers take my plate as the silence in the room hits my ears. I glance over at the table and see that everyone is gone.

They just…left me here.

I shouldn’t be surprised at this point but sometimes I wish someone would see me in this house.

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