“Where did you go…?”

He never explained where he would go. Before he left or after he came back. We all figured he just went to the bar, seeing as money was gone from his wallet most of the time. Sometimes we could hear him shoot down tin cans in the far end of the property. We knew he was there but no one ever dared go near there. All of us kids were scared.

            He was never bad to mom. We’d hear them fight but when he got really mad is when he left. She would sit on the porch knitting or cry sometimes when she thought we weren’t around. We all thought it was normal for them to fight, and that we were too young to get involved. Not anymore. I was almost 17, and felt like I was old enough to stand up for mom.

“…I went out”

“Dad, I mean it – where did you go??”

All I got was a shrug as he turned and walked towards the den. I wasn’t ready to give up. Mom cried really hard this time. Enough was enough, right?

“Don’t just brush this off, do you know what you did to mom?! Does she know whe---“

            I don’t think I’d ever been hit so hard in my life. I looked up at him and I could feel the blood running down the side of my lip, my cheek pulsing and swelling. I didn’t know what to do so I just stood there. He turned away again, sat on the couch and didn’t say a word. I left for my room. I knew I would try that again, but probably not for a little while.

            He started leaving more. Him and mom would just talk normally and he’d still leave for a few hours every night. One night mom asked him where the money was going. That’s the night it got really bad. People in the next state over probably could have heard my dad’s voice as he yelled at my mom. He was the one working. His money – his decision. She only asked because my little brother was about to start school and needed some things. Our family wasn’t poor or anything, it was just a little extra for Jason to start school. He left for the whole night. Didn’t come back until after work the next day. He looked like he hadn’t slept in months even thought it was just one night. No one even bothered asking. It seemed like the worst night of them all. After that we all just let him go.

             Grade 11. Not really a change from last year. I never had much to do with school other then the actually classes. Dad always gave me a list of things to do on the property. Cut the grass here; get rid of trees there. I liked being outside so it never really bothered me, plus with how much dad was gone – it had to get done. Not to mention that my brothers were too young to help really. I got home from my first day. Mom asked how it was and I said it was just like any other day really. The only thing that really bothered me was when everyone asked everyone else how their summer was – and I had nothing to say. No trips, no adventures with friends – nothing. It didn’t matter though, because no one would ask again after that day. Our school was fairly small. Everyone knew everyone else and it was fairly easy to spot when a new kid came around. From what I saw – there were a couple new kids, but none that really looked like they would stir up some trouble.

            After I spoke to my mom, she told me that there was a list on the fridge. New things to do around the house. We had about 60 acres, but I never had anything to do on the further half of the property. There was a road that went straight through it to town, but that’s that half that no one but dad went back to. That’s the road he’d leave on every night. The first thing on the list was to fill up the shed with firewood. I got it from the same spot every year. It just seemed to burn better. I grabbed the wagon and an axe, and started walking. It only took about an hour to split and stack all the wood in the wagon, so I just sat down in the small clearing for a while. I pulled my old t-shirt up over my shaggy brown hair and wiped all the sweat off my face. Normally this far away from the house was dead quiet, but there were a few sounds that didn’t seem to fit with where I was. I could hear something moving. Something bigger then most animals you could find around here. I started looking around and locked my eyes on another pair inbetween the trees, but only for a moment before a truck engine roared. I looked away for a second and the eyes were gone. I could see the sun start fading in the distance and decided it was best to head back.

            When I got back, mom had dinner ready and on the table. We ate in silence except for the few times that Jason and Adam tried to lighten the mood. We all laughed a little, then looked back down at our food. It was just enough to let them know whatever they needed to, to be happy for the moment. Mom and dad spoke quickly after dinner and then he was gone again. I looked out my bedroom window and saw his lights fade out into the far end of the property.

            The halls in the school seemed a little empty today. They always were when the weather was nice out. I never really paid attention to the other people in the halls, but I couldn’t help it today. I said hi to the people I knew, and just walked past the ones I didn’t. I stood outside the doorway to a classroom, and watched as an unfamiliar girl walked towards that same doorway. She stared at her feet, her dark hair falling over her face. I shook my head and looked away, I had no intention of staring, but there was something about her I didn’t quite know yet. She was so focused on her feet that she almost walked into me so I grabbed her arms and stopped her before she knocked us both over. When she looked up at me, she had the most incredible green eyes I think I’ve ever seen. I just smiled and stuttered, then quickly turned and moved into the classroom.  I sat down and closed my eyes for a second – the image of those green eyes felt like they were burned into my memory. Then I remembered. Then it hit me. Those were the same eyes I saw in the forest.