Page 62 of The Only Seconds that Matter
“I gotta be alone a minute,” Johnny muttered, shrugging off Sarah’s hand and then following his sister’s path down the steps and toward Victor’s truck.Victor and Sarah watched him go, making no effort to stop him.Instead of hopping inside the truck, Johnny walked to the tailgate and crouched out of sight.
“Should I ask?”Victor asked.
Sarah sighed.“Johnny hasn’t told you?”
“About what?”
“The family drama.”
“Uh, well, I’ve gleaned that his dad was… not great.”
“I figured he woulda told you, considering how you two seem close.Then again, he won’t talk about emotional stuff unless you make him.All I’ll say right now is that he left home at sixteen when Kayla was twelve.There was some stuff that went down a few years later, and his dad was killed by a shot to the head.It was in the news and everything.”
Victor could feel his face slacken.“His dad wasmurdered?”
“Yeah, by his friend Chuck.I don’t wanna get too much into it, but if you’re real curious, you can look up articles online.”Sarah glanced back at the house.“Let’s get to working.This mess isn’t going to clean itself, and I think Johnny deserves some place to sleep by tonight.”
* * *
They were able to make a dent in the mess, but it was still nowhere close to where it needed to be for Victor to feel comfortable leaving Johnny there, so they headed home around nine at night.Victor promised to buy Sarah some pizza and beer at a more cheerful time, and Sarah promised to take him up on it.She also gave Johnny a hug and told him she’d be back tomorrow to help with the rest.Johnny was even less talkative now than he’d been hours prior and judging by the look of utter defeat on his face, he was desperate for a drink.Victor would have to keep a close eye on him in the next few days to make sure he was behaving himself.
Victor mulled over the next course of action for a bit before finally making the decision to pull the truck off the road and park it beside a soybean field.
“What are you doin’?”Johnny asked, annoyed.
“You’re going to tell me what all that was about with your sister.”
“I don’t wanna talk about it.”
“Sarah told me it was in the news.So do you want me to read about it online or do you want me to hear it from you?”
“That bitch,” Johnny muttered under his breath.“Now why’d she have to tell you that?”
“She wantedyouto tell me.She gave me some very general details, but I want to know about all of it.I’ve known you long enough that I feel like I deserve the truth.”
Johnny scowled and stared ahead for a few seconds before throwing the truck door open and jumping out.
“Hey!”Victor protested, scrambling to follow him.Thanks to Johnny’s long legs, he got in a few strides down the road before Victor caught up to him, grabbed his elbow, and yanked him to a stop.“You going to walk home?”
“I guess!”Johnny shot back, shaking Victor’s grip loose and muttering something under his breath as he took another step forward.
“Stop being such an idiot and get in the truck.”
“Try ‘n stop me,” Johnny snapped.“Need the exercise anyway.”
“Pinche idiota,” Victor grumbled, clenching his hands.“Quiero golpearlo alguna vez.”He trotted a few steps to catch up.“Get back in the truck, Johnny.”
“You ain’t the boss.Drive on home without me.”
“You know I won’t be doing that.”
Johnny twirled around so fast that Victor nearly collided with his chest.By now they were too far away from the truck’s headlights to see much, but Victor could still see a vague outline, helped by the nearly full moon overhead.
“You want me to reveal all my darkest secrets, hmm?Why don’tyougo first then?What’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to you, huh?Who have you failed in your life?”Johnny growled, throwing his arms out.
“I’ll tell you anything you want to know.That’s the point of being friends.You tell each other things,” Victor replied with a pang of guilt, because he knew he hadn’t told Johnny everything, primarily that he’d only been named Victor for ten years.
“Then be a friend and understand I don’t wanna fuckin’ talk about it.Why the hell do you think I drink?It’s the only way I can fuckin’…” He looked down at his hands a moment before scowling.“Ain’t no point in dwellin’ on the past, that’s all.”
