It's Like Running Away

"Yeah, well, I bet I just got more done than you ever did in your whole life with that guy," Dodge muttered. "Do you even love him? I don't think I could."

"I--He's my dad...And, you know, he wasn't always that bad...So, yeah, I do love him, just...not as much as a son probably should. For a good reason, obviously," Ai half muttered and half stuttered. His hand suddenly came up to wipe his eye and he realized then that he had teared up.

Dodge had never felt more awkward or disgruntled in his life. Half of him wanted to turn back and find a way to beat the man into the ground; the other half just wanted to stop letting Aiden hurt, no matter what that took. He didn't know how to deal with any of this. Instead he leaned in closer to Aiden and sat there in silence with him, not sure how he could fix anything or if he even could.

~Le Next Day~

Too early. Everything was always too damn early. This was Aiden's only thought line as he dragged himself out of bed. He just wanted to sleep for...one, two, eighteen more hours. He hadn't slept at all the night before due to the events of the previous day, and now he was expected to get out of bed for classes! Slowly, and completely missing breakfast, he did just that.

Dodge's conscience weighed heavily on him that night as well as the next morning. He didn't regret the things he'd said to Aiden's father because they were true, but there probably could've been a better time or place. He'd done nothing but make Aiden more upset when he'd just started to seem a little better after his first encounter with the man. The day dragged by unusually slowly and Dodge felt almost sluggish.

By the time classes were over with all Aiden wanted to do was fall onto his bed and sleep. But, he discovered there was a letter waiting...wherever for him and so made to get that first, even though he had a good guess what it was. Well, that and he recognized the handwriting on the envelope. Going back to his room, letter in hand, Aiden sat on his bed and opened it. Eyes going over the contents, Aiden frowned. There was absolutely no way...

Folding the letter back up, Aiden got up and went to find Dodge, thinking that the other boy would like to know just what the letter said about him.

Dodge jumped a little when he felt his phone buzzing in his pocket. He was halfway through his second roast turkey leg and he quickly sat it down and wiped his hands before checking his texts. Apparently Aiden was looking for him. He quickly texted back that he was in the cafeteria and went back to his turkey, hoping that Ai just wanted to see him instead of there being something important going on.

He waved the other boy over when he saw him come in and ushered him to sit down. "What's up?"

Walking in the cafeteria and sitting down in front of Dodge, Ai held up the letter. "I got a message from our most favorite person ever," he said. "He is not happy and I figured you'd like to see just what he had to say about you in said letter." He held out the letter for Dodge to take (and the next post will just be the letter, neither of you kill me).

Dodge stared at the letter warily, in no hurry to put his turkey leg down. "I'm....really not sure I want to know what that says," he muttered around a mouthful of meat. Eventually, though, he put his food down and grabbed the letter, not bothering to wipe his hands and getting greasy fingerprints all over it.

Aiden,

As the heir to the Hartland name, there is much to be expected of you. Since the day you became an important member of this family, you have been made aware of these expectations, so that you could cater your development to best serve the family and our reputation within the magical community.

It is with this in mind that I have sent you to Salem Academy of Sorcery, with the hope that you will both learn educational skills and become more aware of the ways of the world. It is an expectation that you will connect with other important magical families, so as to build strong bonds for your future endeavors. I remember my days at Salem Academy of Sorcery quite fondly, as I greatly enjoyed the networking opportunities that it allowed, which my own father, of course, encouraged.

Thus, let me express my severe disappointment in your lack of abilities to select suitable classmates with which to spend your time. When we met in the cafeteria during my visit to the school, I was rather pleased to see you had finally managed to secure the confidence of at least one of your classmates, which was a vast improvement on what I had assumed to be your friendless existence. However, upon conversing with Mr. Hayes, I was severely disappointed to discover that you chose your acquaintance very poorly.

Mr. Hayes was boorish and rude in person, with no respect for his elders or for his powerful superiors. In his defending your inadequacy, he was grievously offending not just your father, but your entire family, as my opinions represent the family’s as a whole. I was appalled to discover you engaging in a relationship with such an unfortunate young man, who seems to lack both social graces and common sense.

However, even more disturbing was what I discovered after returning home from Salem Academy of Sorcery. Upon further examination of his family’s history, he is also a complete and utter nobody. I was alarmed to discover that you were “friends” with such an appallingly uncouth and unimportant character, although I suppose I should not expect much from you, Aiden. You do not seem to be able to live up to any of the goals set for you by the family, and I am seriously disappointed.

Dodger Hayes is, and will continue to be, a bad influence on you, and I hereby forbid you from having further contact with him. With people like him surrounding you and serving as your only visible companions, it is suddenly clear why you have seemingly neglected the family’s best interests. You have no ability to weed out the improper, childish pupils of yours. I suggest you continue your search for companionship elsewhere, in avenues that will further promote the Hartland reputation. Do not let Mr. Hayes convince you that you are a success; as long as you forsake your family, you are a failure in the eyes of everyone who matters.

Sincerely,
Emory Hartland

Too uninterested in the man to bother reading every word, Dodge skimmed through the letter, picking up the most important parts. He was rude; well, yes, that was very true. He was a nobody; also true, since even his mother's family wasn't very old or established. He was a bad influence; there was no doubt of that, and he was proud of it. Reaching the end of the letter, Dodge couldn't help himself. He burst out laughing, setting the letter down to put one hand to his face.

"Does he...does he even know how stupid he sounds?" he asked between wheezes. "Who does he think he is?"

"I have no idea. And, he doesn't sound nearly as intimidating on paper." Aiden sighed. "Would you like to help me write the reply or shall I handle it on my own?"

Taking a swallow of his water to soothe his throat from all the laughing and subsequent coughing, Dodge shrugged. "I don't know if I'd be much help. My letter'd be something like, 'Dear pompous jackass, your son won't give you any biological grandchildren, haha, joke's on you. Sincerely, Dodge.'"

Aiden had to laugh for a moment. "Okay, I'll do it alone then," he said with a nod. "Best not say that to him." He shrugged. "My letter will be fun to write anyway. I'm angry at him now."

Dodge lifted an eyebrow. "You, angry? Fun. What are you going to say?"

"It's easy to be angry at him and act brave when I don't have to actually look at him when I'm telling him things," Aiden said with a shrug. "Don't I seem angry? Anyway, I'm not sure what I'll say yet...Maybe I'll show you before I send it if it's any good."

"Of course it's going to be good, you nerd." Dodge paused, wondering what seemed out of place about all of this. "Why aren't you more....upset? Seems like you'd have holed up in your room the way you did when I...well, y'know." He glanced around to make sure none of the other students were close enough to hear. "Tried to eat you face off for the first time," he finished, laughing at himself. He still couldn't get over how stupid that kiss had been, despite everything turning out well.

"There is no guarantee that I won't end up doing that," Aiden said trying not to think about that happening. It didn't solve anything after all. "But, right now, I'm just sort of...I don't know. I think I might be converting how upset I am at him into the anger and stuff." He shrugged.

"Well, that sounds healthy," Dodge said around a mouthful of his greasy food. "Better to get angry than to just be more afraid of him, though." Sometimes he was surprised at how lucky he was that his father had just backed out of his life instead of staying to cause trouble. "Anyway, did I mention zombies yesterday? Swore I did. Mom mailed me the newest installment in the series. I think there's bazookas in this one!"

"I just don't see how he could enforce the whole not being allowed to associate with you part, seeing as he isn't exactly here or anything," Aiden muttered. Then he raised an eyebrow. "Bazookas? Why on earth...who would let a zombie near a bazooka?"

"Well, I mean, there are other magic schools. He could ship you to Mexico. Or overseas even." Dodge shrugged; he knew a good bit about other schools thanks to his mother being a teacher. "Doesn't matter though. I don't think he'll do it. And obviously the video game makers thought it was a good idea to give bazookas to zombies. And if it's half as fun as I imagine, then I agree!"

Aiden simply shrugged. "I don't think he would. I'm really close to home this way. Or well, closer than I would be if I were in another country on a different continent." He laughed. "Zombies with bazookas is never a good idea. But, hey, you can think that for yourself when they blow you to pieces or something."

"Hey, don't just judge the zombie bazookas before you try them." Dodge wiped his mouth and stared down at his wrecked plate full of picked-apart bones and bits of gristle, plus the remaining smears of everything else. "Do I want more food or do I want to attack the living dead?" he asked Aiden, wearing his most serious face.

"What you need Mr. Hayes is food that you can eat while battling against the living dead," Aiden replied with a decisive little nod and a smile on his face. "That way you can have both of the things you want without having to have them at different times. It's a win-win situation that way."

Dodge grinned, remembering that there had been a whole section of tea sandwiches and other finger foods to choose from. "I'm so glad I'm dating someone smart for once," he said gleefully, probably a little louder than necessary. He bounded up from the table and sweet-talked the lunch ladies into getting him a to-go box and began picking out his food, occasionally glancing over his shoulder to see if Ai had followed.