The Burners

Chapter 9

'You're just pissed off, because she got you to admit something you didn't want to.' Andrew tells Claire when she hadn't stopped glaring at Allison.

'Okay fine, but that doesn't make it any less bizarre.' Claire mutters.

'What's bizarre? I mean we're all pretty bizarre! Some of us are just better at hiding it then others, that's all.' Andrew says.

'How are you bizarre?' Claire asks, Andrew pauses not answering.

'He can't think for himself.' Allison says for him.

'She's right,' Andrew agrees, 'Do you guys know what I did to get in here?' Andrew asks, we all stay silent some of us shaking our heads. 'I taped Larry Lester's buns together.'

'That was you?' Brian asks as me and Claire start laughing.

'Yeah, you know him?' Andrew questions.

'Yeah, I know him...'

'Well then, you know how hairy he is right? Well, when they pulled off the tape, most his hair came off and some, some skin too.' Andrew explains.

I cringe inwardly at the mental image in my head while I hear Claire say, 'Om My God.'

'And the bizarre thing is, is that, I did it for my old man. You see I wanted him to think I was cool so I tortured this poor kid. He's always going on about when he was in school and all the wild things he used to do. I got the feeling he was disappointed that I never cut loosen on anyone.' Andrew says his voice filled with guilt. 'So I'm sitting in the locker room, and I'm taping up my knee. Larry's undressing a couple lockers down. I think, yeah he's kind of skinny, weak, and then my thoughts go to my father and his attitude about weakness. And the next thing I know, I jumped on top of him and started wailing on him, my friends, they just laughed and cheered me on. Afterwards, when I was in Vernon's office, all I could think about was Larry's father. And Larry having to go home and explain what happened to him.' Andrew explains choking up on the last part. 'He must have felt so much fucking humiliation. It must've been unreal, I mean.' Andrew stopped talking and began crying. 'I mean, how do you apologise for something like that? There's no way, it's all because of me and my old man. Oh God, I fucking hate him!' Andrew yells, he pauses taking calming breaths. 'He's like this mindless machine that I can't even relate to anymore.' He stops then starts talking in a deep voice imitating his father. 'Andrew, you've got to be number one! I won't tolerate any losers in this family. Your intensity is for shit! Win. Win! WIN!' Andrew shouts, now crying harder, going back to his normal voice he finishes, 'you son of a bitch. You know, sometimes, I wish my knee would give, and I wouldn't be able to wrestle anymore. He could forget all about me.'

'I think your old man and my old man should get together and go bowling.' Bender jokes trying to lighten the mood.

'It's like me, you know, with my grades.' I hear Brian says, 'like when I step outside of myself, kind of, and when I, when I look in at myself, you know? And I see me and I don't like what I see. I really don't.'

'What's wrong with you?' Claire asks.

'Why don't you like yourself?' I add on.

'This sounds stupid, but I'm failing shop. We had this assignment, to make this ceramic elephant, and we had eight weeks to do it, and we were supposed to, and it was like a lamp, so when you pull the trunk the light was supposed to go on, my light didn't go on. I got an F.' Brian explains only stuttering slightly. 'Never got an F in my life, when I signed up, you know, for the course I mean. I thought I was playing it real smart, you know because I thought, "I'll take shop, it'll be such an easy way to maintain my grade point average" I guess I was wrong.'