Aurelio's Dilemma

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

The first thing Aurelio remembered was his nightmare. Leslie looking between him and her boyfriend, crying, telling Aurelio that he was her Elio.

He remembered feeling like she had been trying to identify him.

Aurelio didn't know how long he had been frowning, but when he snapped out of his thoughts, Leslie's boyfriend was still standing in front of him. Still wearing that stupid smile on his stupid face.

"Elio is not your name," Aurelio said, then turned and walked away. "It's mine. It's not your name."

"...Seriously?" Leslie's boyfriend said. "Grow up, man. You really thought you're so special?"

"It's not your name."

Refusing to hear or comprehend anything else, Aurelio made his way straight to Matt's place. At some point Leslie's boyfriend got tired of following him around and trying to talk to him, so he left--thankfully, because if he had tried to push Aurelio's limits a little more, Aurelio might have abandoned any composure and thrown a punch.

When Aurelio walked into Matt's driveway, he heard his and Leslie's voice echoing from the backyard, so he circled around the house.

Leslie and Matt were sitting in outdoor chairs, and Matt had Leslie's lunchbox on his lap as he picked blueberries and ate them. When he heard Aurelio's footsteps, he glanced at him.

"I heard a vicious monster attacked you today," Matt said.

The encounter with Leslie's boyfriend rattled Aurelio so much that, for a second, he couldn't tell Matt was refering to what Leslie's mom did.

"Dude," Aurelio said, and despite how weirdly depressed he felt, he nearly chuckled at Matt's wording.

"No, it's true." Leslie glanced at Aurelio. "I told him what happened."

"I know." Dragging a third chair over, Aurelio sat down. He glimpsed at Leslie beside him then moved his chair an inch closer to her.

"I say we riot," Matt said.

Leslie shook her head, but there was a small, bitter smile on her face. "Matt..."

"I say we protest. Let's burn tires in front of her house."

"You're talking about my mom, dude. That's my house too."

"Yeah." Matt nodded. "Let's burn tires in front of your house."

Leslie sighed.

"What?" Matt shrugged. "We're just gonna let her get away with literally attacking Elio? If Elio has some God tier patience, I don't. I wish I was there when she talked all that shit. I would've given her a piece of my mind."

"I didn't let it slide either," Leslie said. "I fought her for it, but she just left in the middle of the argument. She always does that! It's so annoying. You'd think an adult would behave like an adult."

Turning his head, Matt focused on Aurelio again. "Elio," he said with a sincere voice. "Promise me that the next time someone disrespects you like that, you will cuss the hell out of them. Or punch them in the face. Whatever you like. Okay?"

Aurelio nodded.

"Oh, wow... Didn't expect you to agree so quickly..."

"Elio, no," Leslie said. "I like the way you handle things."

"Nah," Matt said. "An eye for an eye. Disrespect whoever disrespects you. Hurt whoever hurts you." Sighing, he leaned back, frowning at the sky. "That's the only way to survive."