Mistletoe And Wine

Tapping on the Window

Marge wasn't very interested in any of the children today. We spent the day reading (Lindy), watching cartoons (Griffon and Will), and playing tic tac toe and hang man (Paul and Emma). I mostly stayed by the window in my room, looking out at the landscape. Well...looking at Brian's house.

It seemed silly, but I hoped to get another glance of him. I had been too far away to actually see anything, though. Outside it was dusting another coat of snow. Looking out at it, I thought of how nice it would be to get out of this frozen niche of a town. Out of the state. Somewhere sunny, like California, maybe Oklahoma or Texas. Hell, I'd even take the spring weather of Oregon over this used up overly religious crap town.

My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a crash, and glass breaking. One of the children started to scream and cry in fright, and I heard Will's tale tell cries. I jumped to my feet and raced down the stairs and into the kitchen where Griffon was standing on top of the counter next to the refrigerator with fists full of candy from the bucket he had been reaching into. Will was standing looking up at him crying. A porcelain pitcher and basin had fallen and was shattered at my brother's feet.

Marge arrived and stood right behind me. She was silent a moment, looking between the child on the counter, the broken pitcher, and the child standing beside it. "My mother gave me that pitcher," she finally said.

"I'm sorry," Griffon said. Marge looked at him and her face contorted in rage. Griffon backed up, breathing hard and tears forming in his eyes. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

Marge surged forward, pushing me carelessly out of the way, and grabbed Griffon. The candy fell from his hands as he shrieked and Marge forced him to stand in the floor and wrapped his wrist in her iron grip. She picked Will up and started carrying him with her.

"Marge," I called. "What are you doing," I asked, hurridly following after them. "What are you going to do to them?"

"I'm punishing them," the woman hisses and bends them over the couch. Both little boys are screaming again, their faces going red. The other children stand back, watching with blank expressions.

"It was an accident," I try to reason as she pulls down their diapers to reveal their bare behinds.

"They were stealing from me, and broke MY property! Emma, get the belt!"

Emma nodded and ran to the desk tucked in a corner against a wall. She opened up a drawer and pulled out a long, sleek, brown leather belt and handed it to Marge.

"You don't have to do that!"

Marge ignored me and brought it down on Griffons backside twice in a row. The sound of the leather slapping on his skin made me cringe and shrink back. She brought the belt back and hit him again, but the next time I couldn't bare to watch anymore. I threw myself forward, grabbed her arms, stopping her assault.

"Let go of me, girl! Let go, I say!"

"This is abuse," I hiss. "Once was enough! He's five years old!"

"You know nothing of raising children. Get out of my way!"

"You're hitting him too hard," I cry, trying to point out the already bruising welts on the boy.

Marge glares down at me, but lowers the belt. "The baby will spend the afternoon in the corner," she relents. "Never again will you interrupt a punishment," she growls at me. "Or I'll see to it you're thrown back into the shelter."

She fixes the diapers on the kids and takes Will's wrist, showing him to the designated corner. "You will stay here and make sure he doesn't move," she says to me while shoving his nose against the wall. The boy sniffles and hiccups, crying softly.

The woman stalks back up the stairs and Griffon runs to his room. Emma and Paul and Lindy go back to whispering quietly in a circle. I stay there like I am told and doodle on paper, while making sure my brother kept looking at the wall. After an hour, I told him be was done and he immediately stopped crying and ran over to Paul. I watched him jump on Paul's back and Paul growled and started ticking Will. It was something to laugh at.

Later that night, we were getting ready for school the next day. I had my bag already packed with my school supplies and an outfit picked out. Lindy was telling me about her maths teacher and how Mr. Homme was always trying to incorporate algebra into the story of Jesus' birth. "What's that," she interrupted herself and looked toward the window.

"What's what," I asked. We were quiet again and heard tapping on glass. I moved towards the window and peered out into the dark night. I almost fell back in shock at the pair of eyes that looked back at me. I covered my mouth to keep from shouting. I opened the window and Brian pokes his head in from where he is crouched on the tier below the window.

"Oh...my...gosh," Lindy gushes. I tell her to hush.

"What are you doing here," I ask, surprised.

"Wanna go hang out with some of my buddies and I tomorrow," he asks.

"What? I'm not sure...when?"

"Marge will get angry if you don't come right back," Lindy says from behind me.

"Just skip fifth period and we will have you back by the end of 7th hour. You'll be back on time," he promised.

"I...I don't know..."

'Think about it," he replies. "It'll be really fun. Oliver is coming."

Oliver wasn't exactly a star role model himself, I Muse. The look in his eyes made my refusal die on my lips. I stare at him like a gaping fish, unable to form words. His mop of long died black hair was in his face and he batted at it so he could see me better. Brian really was attractive. His lips were large and full, and his features were pleasantly feminem, though not overly so.

It occured to me that I really did want to spend time with him, get to know him. The threat of angering Marge, though, weighed heavy in my mind. I didn't want to be thrown out. I would be separated from my little brother. Who knew how he would be treated without me there. What about Griffon? His whopping would have been much worse without me having been there.

At the same time, however, I needed to get out. I needed to pick my life up again. I needed to do what I wanted. Maybe I could get a job and save up for my own apartment and I could raise Will myself. Was this a childish and immature way of thinking? I didn't think so.

"I'll think about it," I finally said. His expression fell only a little, but he flashed me an endearing smile. 

"Think hard, Blue Eyes. I'll find you before fourth period." Brian winked at me and shut the window on himself, and I watched him climb down the side of the house, hop the fence, and go back into his own house.

"Oh...my...gosh," Lindy said again. "Brian Warner just asked you out!"

"He asked me to hang out with him and his friends," I corrected.

"Still...that's Brian Warner! He is the town weirdo! And you like him!"

"I don't even know him!" I felt my cheeks burn in embarrassment.

"Are you gonna go," she asked curiously.

I wasn't sure. If I did, should I tell Lindy? I shook my head. This was all rediculous and too risky. "No," I state matter of factly. Lindy looks down at the floor, saddened.

Even though I said no, I still held the debate inside myself.