Butters hopped off the bus and walked over to his house. He grabbed the keys from his bookbag and unlocked the door. Luckily for him, neither his mom nor his dad was there yet. He let out a sigh of relief. The last time he entered, he walked in on his parents fighting and got badly bruised while trying to avoid them and walk upstairs. A faint bruise still lingered on his pale, lightly freckled face. He ran upstairs to get started on his talent show act.
After an hour of rummaging through his closet, he found it. The light yellow ukelele with painted on flowers that his old girlfriend gave him on his birthday a year back. Since their breakup, he hadn't touched it. He held the instrument delicately in his arms and began to strum, attempting to jog his memory of how to play. He wasn't even ten seconds in when he heard his mother yelling. He put the ukelele down and went to the railing overlooking the downstairs area. Just as he thought-his parents were arguing.
"You can't keep doing this, Stephen!"
"Yes the HELL I can, Linda!"
"You're gonna tear this fucking family apart!"
"NO I'M NOT!"
Butters sighed melancholically. He knew what this was about. His dad had a drinking problem since before he was even born. He had both physically and verbally abused him and his mom for years. But lately, it had gotten worse. Butters had to wear a shirt at all times to hide the bruises and cuts that his dad had given him. He felt empathetic towards his mom. She wasn't nearly as bad, but she'd been putting up with his shit for many more years than he had. Tears began to fall from his eyes and onto the wood floor he was listening to his parents from. Butters went back in his room and turned on some music. He had to calm down somehow. He lied on his bed and covered himself with blankets. After a while, he fell asleep from the fatigue caused by his crying.
He woke up again a while later, still hearing the bickering of his parents. They hadn't stopped. For three. entire. hours. He wondered when it would end. He decided to read a book from the bookcase he had in his room. He picked "The Legend of the Paladin". Butters found it at a secondhand library, and was intrigued by the cover, which had a picture of a boy with a teal outfit, a war hammer, and a silver circlet around his forehead. He opened the book and began to read from where he last left off...
"Traveling through this blizzard will get us killed!" a swordsman yelled from atop a horse. Paladin Leopold walked forward, deep in thought. He surveyed the mountain in front of him and his scouts. "If it's for Princess McCormick, it's worth it," he said, pointing to the trail ahead of him. He began to hike up the snowy mountain, and the scouts reluctantly followed.
Butters was absolutely mesmerized by the story. He adored the paladin's bravery and commitment to his mission to save the princess. He managed to finish the book, which had a compelling ending...
"Take that, wizard!" Leopold shouted triumphantly, holding the Princess in his arms. The sorcerer shrieked in pain as he slowly faced his demise. A blinding light took over the room, and the wizard was gone in an instant. The Paladin let Princess McCormick back onto her feet. "Thank you for saving me, brave Paladin. May the Kingdom of Kupa Keep look upon you as an outstanding and remarkable hero." the Princess said sweetly and kissed him on the cheek as a sign of gratitude.
Butters wished he was Paladin Leopold. He was sure that the Paladin never had to deal with arguing parents, or people who pushed him around constantly. Oh, how he wished. He began to feel drowsy. He put the book down on the table next to him, and fell back asleep, embracing one of his stuffed animals.
That morning, Butters woke up to silence, which he was surprised by. He wondered if his parents even slept. He drowsily got out of bed and went to go make breakfast. He decided to make cereal, and opened the cabinet in order to get a bowl.
Butters sat on the couch and turned on the television. To his surprise, Terrance and Phillip was on. 'This early in the morning?' he thought to himself. He turned up the volume and began to watch the cartoon. A few minutes later, he heard footsteps come down the stairs, and he turned around to see his mom. He ran over and gave her a hug. "Hey, sweetie," she said softly, "why are you up so early? You could sleep for another hour before you have to get ready for school." Butters shrugged. He didn't see that it was only 5:00. He looked back at his mom, and saw that her face was newly bruised. He gasped in fear. "Mom, are you okay?" he asked, teary-eyed. His mom nodded, and began to cry too. The hug grew tighter as they comforted each other. "I wish Dad wasn't like this..." Butters whispered, wiping his tears on his arm. "I know, sweetie. If I could do anything to stop him, believe me, I would. But nobody stopped him when he was younger, and now he won't listen to anyone." she responded. She said that she was going back to sleep, and told Butters to get ready for school. He finished his cereal and went back to his room.
While he was getting ready for school, he heard his phone buzzing. It was his good friend Philip, or Pip to most, trying to contact him. He smiled and began to text his old pal.
4:00 am
Pippy: Hello Leo, are you up? I mean, it is very early. You probably aren't up yet, ha! Well, text me when you can.
5:00
Pippy: Sorry, I fell asleep. are you up now?
Butters felt bad that he didn't respond the first time. He began typing right away.
at 5:15
Me: Yeah, I'm up. What do you wanna talk about?
Pippy: Well, I saw you in the hall yesterday, and you were signing up for the Talent Show. But then I saw Cartman bully you. I just wanted to see if you were alright.
Me: Yeah, I'm fine! I was just a little hurt at first. You learn how to put up with him eventually, don't worry.
Pippy: Ugh, tell me about it!
Butters laughed to himself. Pip was always a nice person to him, and he was always nice back. They were able to relate to each other almost all the time.
Me: Are you gonna sign up?
Pippy: Oh, I really can't decide. I'm not sure what to do for it.
Me: Same here.
Pippy: Got any ideas?
Me: Well, you are good at teaching your dog tricks. Why not do that for the show?
Pippy: That's actually a very good idea! Well, I have to go, see you soon!
Me: Bye!
*Chat Ended*
Butters put his phone back down, and pulled on his jacket. He brushed his blonde hair to the side of his face like he always did. He picked up his bookbag and walked back downstairs and out the door to get on the bus.
Yet again, the school day rushed by. The only thing that Butters seemed to remember was when Mr. Garrison went on a rant about the show Mean Girls. Butters ran home to find the door unlocked, and his mother crying on the couch. He ran over to her in shock. "Are you okay, mama?" he exclaimed. "Sweetie, your father left this morning." She responded, then cried into the pillow.
No wonder the car wasn't there...
"Is he coming back?" He asked. "I'm not sure, sweetie. And if he doesn't, we'll do everything we can to survive." Butters hugged his mom, and began to cry himself. Not because he missed his dad, but because he couldn't believe what he did to his mother.
Butters later explained the Talent show, and his mom was delighted to hear that he signed up. She told him to go and practice, which he happily obliged to.
He then began to write the song he was going to sing
(Holy hell, I've never written this much in a chapter. woah.)
