End of the Line

by Ottilie Weber

“Are you kids morons?”

  I bolted up after hearing someone bellowing. After I got my eyes to focus, I saw this old man standing there scolding us. He had white hair and a small white beard with beady brown eyes. He wasn’t really that tall and had a beer belly that was stretching his worn out shirt a little.

  “What do you want?” I asked, hearing the snap in my voice. Closing my eyes for a moment, I pushed my hair back. I woke up too fast and was not ready to deal with another person.

  “Well, apparently someone never learned manners!” His eyes were stern and focused.

  “What are you talking about? You were the one who woke us up!” I glared at him.

  “Well, it isn’t my fault you kids are morons and went to sleep on the ground!”

  “Well, last time I checked there wasn’t a five star hotel around here,” I spoke dryly.

  What was with this guy?

  “Shameful! Then to top it off you guys are teenage parents!”

  “What the hell are you talking about?!” I really didn’t get this guy, and what did he mean teenage parents?

  I really did not have enough sleep in me to be woken up like this. I had no sympathy for him under those conditions.

  “Those two little ones belong to the one sleeping in your arms!”

  “That’s her brother!” My voice sounded strange, stressed and shocked as it came out of my mouth, the words were quick.

  “Sure, I’m sure that’s what you just tell people! I’d get that red headed one checked though to see if she’s really yours.”

  “Look here man—”

  “No respect for their elders these days,” the man spoke, shaking his head slightly, not in a rush to let me get a word in.

  “Did you not take your medications this morning?” I asked with one eyebrow raised.

  “You’re a teenage parent and you’re questioning me?”

  “What is your problem?”

  “My problem? I wasn’t the one having sex on the ground!”

  “I wasn’t having sex with anyone!”

  “Oh.” His face relaxed, eyebrows rose looking at the ground. “So you’re in the dog house?”

  I just looked at this man shocked and aggravated. My mouth gaped, not sure what to say for a moment. Were the lights on and no one home?

  “I’m not in the dog house because I’m not with her. She’s sick!”

  “You got her pregnant again! What are with young people and having sex these days?”

  “Young people and sex—that’s all you have talked about to me, you crazy psycho!” I threw my words at him, a bite in each word, not able to hold back my rage toward him anymore.

  “You can’t talk to your elders about sex!”

  “Why, that’s all you have talked about?!”

  “Yes, but it’s my right as an elder, to do whatever I want!”

  It was official; I didn’t want to grow old if this was what was going to happen. I’ll take dying young over this.

  “You can’t make up the rules as you go!”

  “I’m an old man and you’re on my property so yes I can!”

  “Aaron…”

  I looked down to see Lauren and the others starting to wake up. Apparently, our voices were rising without me really noticing. Her eyes were unfocused and her movements were stiff; she was disorientated

  Lauren spoke, “Sorry, sir, we’ll get off your land.”

  She sat up slowly then tried to push herself off the ground. It wasn’t working out too well for her. Lauren’s arms shook and she wasn’t able to get off the ground.

  “Lauren, lay back down,” I responded tenderly, trying to help her lay back down, which I could tell she didn’t want to do.

  “No. I’ll be fine. This man wants us off his land.” Her voice was hoarse and I had trouble hearing her as she talked.

  She finally stood up, using my body to help her to rise. She fell again, but this time I caught her. I held her close to my chest as she used my body as a crutch.

  “I got you,” I whispered in her ear, my head resting on top of hers.

  “Is the girl alright?”

  I turned to the old man, but he was kinder this time.

  “She’s sick.”

  “I’m fine, just tired.”

  “You’re sick. Admit it, girly, before the jerk gets you into an argument. That would be a waste of energy in your state. My house is just up ahead. You all can stay there ‘til you’re better.”

  “Are you sure?” Lauren questioned; all of her weight rested on me as her arms stayed around me.

  “Well, the fact that you can’t walk and you have all these kiddies with you, I’m not lying. I don’t lie to a lady, to jerky over here maybe, but not to you.”

  Just great, this guy was nuts. Not only was he nuts, he was only nice to girls. Please let this guy not be a sicko. We followed the man.

  “Nut Job, do you have a name?”

  “Aaron, be nice!” Lauren disciplined me from my arms. She sounded a little angry, but mostly drained with her head on my shoulder.

  “Yeah, Aaron, listen to the little lady. My name isn’t Nut Job by the way, it’s Ed.”

  “Thank you very much, Ed,” Lauren said politely, her voice was weak.

  “You may stay ‘til the time is right.”

  We saw his log cabin-like home just a couple of feet up ahead, which didn’t seem to have been touched by this whole disaster. He climbed up the stairs and held the door open for all of us to get in.

  “You can put her down in that room, it used to belong to my daughter.”

  I started to feel bad for the guy right then and there as I walked into the room, placing Lauren down onto the bed. I was a real jackass.

  “I’ll be right back,” I whispered as she started to close her eyes while attempting to get comfortable.

  As I was walking out, the two little ones passed me to go into the room to be with Lauren. Cole collapsed onto the couch while Jill and Mandy were on chairs in the same room. I went into the kitchen to find the man.

  “Thank you for this,” I spoke with difficulty because I so didn’t want to apologize to him. My voice was softer than earlier, but still stiff.

  “You’re the boy they’re looking for, aren’t you?” he asked, looking me dead in the eyes, making sure I was paying attention to him.

  I raised an eyebrow.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “There was a man who stopped by here the other day, by the name of Dean Manson. He said he was searching for this boy and if I saw him to call the number on the card. He claimed his phone still worked. He kept talking about how he wanted this boy. He had a bone to pick with this boy."

  I let out a big sigh, then turned to gaze out of the window. If Dean Manson was spreading the word, I was doomed. I didn’t think I could find the words.

  “I thought so. You’re safe here,” he said, knowing what my pause meant.

  I looked back at the man shocked.

  “Are you serious? Then why did you give me a hard time back there?” I inquired. My eyes ready to fall out of my head from how wide they were.

  “Several reasons. One, I had to see if you were the boy. Two, to find out why you were with the girl and children since the man didn’t mention them. Three, I had to make sure you weren’t a spineless coward, and finally, I was bored,” he spoke nonchalantly with a shrug of his shoulders.

  I let out a snort out of disbelief.

  “Now go to sleep in that room with her,” Ed said, before continuing. “Also I have one rule if you are to keep on eye on her.”

  “Which is?” I asked even though I had a feeling I knew what he was going to say next.

  “No sex.”

  I just rolled my eyes knowing I was right. What was with this man and sex?

  “Trust me, that will not be happening,” I responded, rolling my eyes.

  “Are you gay?” he asked, very straight forwardly.

  “No, why?” I was taken aback by this and I didn’t h
ave a problem letting him know this by my tone.

  “You have a beautiful young lady and you won’t have sex with her!”

  Hanging around this man made me want to smack my head against a wall—a nice big thick brick wall.

  “What happened to no teenage sex?”

  “Eh, just testing you.”

  “Yeah,” I spoke trying to keep down the frustration. “Night, Ed.”

  I walked out of that room before Ed could say anything else. With Lauren, Paige, and Sean on the bed, there wasn’t room for me. There was barely room for them, so I sat on the chair in the a corner of the room to fall asleep. It might not have been the most comfortable, but it wasn’t the ground. I looked over at the three of them snuggling together. I missed the bed in our last place. It was comfortable and we were able to stay close together.