SHORT-STORY


His understanding of the situation was good but not full. He did not need to know everything of what was going on even though he would have liked to. He was too young to be o that level of fully understanding. Is there eve a way a kid his age could understand, probably not.

He watched as his dad stared at the judge. He and his family sat in the very back row of the seats in the first three. His dad was in the aisle seat as to be convenient when he was his case was called, his mom in the seat next to him, and the boy in the seat next to her. He felt his blood boil as he saw the cop that arrested his dad walked into the room and sat in the other half of the seats in the courtroom.

The judge made his was to his seat next. He was a tall man, standing about 6’2 and weighing roughly 210 pounds. He was white, had glasses, gray hair, and his face was red as if he was embarrassed. The boy knew that that was a sign of an alcoholic because his dads face was red a lot and his dad was definitely an alcoholic. The judge’s gown was pure black and crisp. He looked professional, he had to of course.

The door to the left of the judge, to the right just in front of the audience’s seating, was the door that inmates were brought in when their case was called. It caught his attention when it opened and an inmate made his way to the defendant desk escorted by a cop. The inmate was Hispanic, about 5’10 170 pounds, dark brown skin, and his arms were sleeved. The boy struggled from that distance to make out what the tattoos were of. He did make out one and it appeared to be a cross on the man’s right forearm.

“Now calling the case of Fernando Vs. the State of California.” The bailiff said to the courtroom. The inmate now stood facing the judge behind the table.

The inmate’s attorney stood up next to him, fixing his tie. The judge let both sides present the opening arguments, and the case was on its way. The Judge ended up ruling in favor of the State. The inmate hung his head and the cop escorted him out the door to the right. The boy couldn’t imagine how the man must have felt when the judge made his ruling,

The boy was tired from the night before. Staring at the door to the right as it closed, he fell into a daydream. He slipped into it as he slightly slouched in his chair to where the base of his skull rested on the tip of the chair. He couldn’t help but be as exhausted as he was.

As he dreamt the thoughts that ran through his head, his mind gave its up most attention to them. They were flashbacks of all of those sleepless nights at home, his dad yelling and breaking almost anything in his path of anger. The countless times of his mom screaming in agony and sorrow, and the boy in his room most of the time in complete darkness and silence. There was no place to get away for all of this or he would get in trouble. The closest place was probably being asleep.

All he could ever do was sit there and watch, if not, hear everything that went on in their house. And the worst part about it was he was alone, no one to talk to. If he was getting yelled at he was in his room by himself, scared out of his mind. He was terrified of his dad. Every time he thinks of his dad’s face, the face of the devil comes into his vision. He can’t help it.

He was always scared as ever when his dad used to yell at him at the top of lungs, He never knew what else to do but what he was told.

All of these thoughts flashed before his eyes. His last thought was his dad yelling at him,, worse than he’s ever been. It startled him and he grabbed his arm impulsively. As he woke up he saw his dad at the defendant table standing behind it and the judge talking to him. He wondered, if all his dad’s early life actions and some of the way he treats his mom and him would come back to bite him. His dad only did those things such as yell and abuse to discipline them. Other times he was just being an ass. He knew no other way of getting things across because of his anger.

Adrenaline rushed through the families veins as the judge grew closer to making his decision, it was now almost silent in the courtroom, all sounds were cut off from the boy’s ears. The boy sat up in his seat and his eyes were locked on the judge.

“I hereby find the defendant, not guilty.” The judge said. The boy drooped back into his chair; relieved.