Lying With Curt

Chapter 12

Curtis Salazar

"Curtis," I hear my name but I pretend as if I don't, one of my eyes peeking open and looking at the rectangular alarm clock on my bed side drawer, the red digits clearly said the time was 5:30 am— meaning I had another whole hour to sleep before I wake up for school.

"Fucking hell," I grumble, pulling my duvet over my head to block out the knocking sounds still coming from my door and maybe hoping it helps me disappear.

"Curtis!" My dad calls louder and bolder, losing his calm. I throw a mini fit on my bed, wondering what he wants with me this early. "I am coming in," he announces a second before the door opens and I feel him step into my room.

I stir, pulling the duvet down and pulling myself up to a sitting position. I watch him look around my room like he hasn't been here in a month, which he hadn't and I roll my eyes, yawning exaggeratedly like it was the creak of the door opening that woke me up. I look at him, feigning surprise. "Dad?"

Victor Salazar is a man that even though I've known him all my life, I can't really explain him to you because 'know' is an exaggeration here. Yes, he is my father and maybe he loves me as every parent loves their child but he's almost as distant to me as an Uncle who lives on the other side of world and you only hear of him but never really see him or to be more relatable— as a grumpy goth teenage girl who works at the cash register for McDonald's. The worst part is it's the same story for both my parents, I'm even closer to Miss Liu, Timmy's mom than I am with them. At least she knows I love cheese and hate pickles. If I were to pick who loved my more among both my parents, I'd strangely pick my dad.

Yes, he occasionally gives me a slap or two when I misbehave and he imposes his dreams and goals on me and I have to follow his rules and way of living all the time but... At least it shows he cares and wants what he sees as the best for me. My mom doesn't care; I don't even think she'll care if I stop breathing today, as long as I do it low-key without embarrassing her or the family's name.

My father walks to the curtains and pulls them open, exposing the awakening sun's rays into my room and making me squint a bit, getting adjusted. "Don't you think 5 am is too late for you to be sleeping in so deep like a drunkard?"

"Sorry, I had a late night," I lie. I didn't have any late night and even if I did, 5 am is too damn early for me to be awake for Christ sakes. "Good morning." He is already dressed in his impeccably ironed suit, shining shoes and dolled up hair.

He doesn't reply and instead throws a calendar that I didn't even notice he is holding until it lands on my duvet. I immediately frown, knowing what it is and picking it up anyway. "The season is picking up already, isn't it?"

"Yes," I answer, my voice low with an anger and sadness I couldn't control. More sadness than anger.

"Right, so I added a lot more ice time to your schedule. You plan on getting drafted this year, don't you?" He asks, like it's my fault and decision for not getting drafted earlier. Well to be fair when I told him the disappointing news of how I didn't get drafted, before he could get pissed I had stupidly said to my defense, 'well, there's still senior year'. At that time it looked like it won't come, at least not in the next ten years but then here I am a year later. Is this Karma? I'm not sure. I don't get a chance to answer him though because he continues, "because as you know, there's no other year after this one. This is your last chance."

"I know," I say, biting on the insides of my cheek, feeling this nauseousness that usually came with tears.

"Well," he sits on my bed and doesn't say anything else until I'm looking at him, eye to eye. "Stick to your schedule and we might all get what we want, isn't it?" I nod, he does to. "I spent a lot of time on it and I'm getting you a cook and giving her your diet plan," his hand comes around and holds me firm around my neck, forcing me to keep looking at him. "I'm doing all this for you and your future. Nothing can come in our plans, ey? Not after all our hard work. Just a little more and the sky would be your limit, get it?"