HUH?

Paula knocked on the door three times. She could tell Jesse was nervous; if the fact that he was trembling was anything to go by. She stared at her eleven-year-old son and sighed; letting out a small fog into the night air.

Long pause.

She ignored  Jesse tugging at her sleeve. This had to happen, she thought; this had to be done.

She knocked again. 

No one came, and the crickets kept on singing.
More tugging at her sleeve. She ignored him and pounded the base of her fist against the door.

That did it.



She saw movement  from one of the windows then the door was unlocked and then opened.

Frederic had a  smile on his face. smiling was  his default expression -- like bored look on an owl's face.

"Hi!"

"Hello," she replied softly.


"Hey, what happened to your eye?" he frowned at Jesse.


The youngster awkwardly covered the bruise and opened his mouth to say something ---
"Can we come in?" Paula blurted out.
"Is everything okay?"


"No, its not." She said simply.


"What's going on, dad?" Teks peeked out from under his father's armpit.


An uneasy silence passed.


"What are you doing here?" Teks' animousity towards Jesse was clear.


Fred gently pushed his son aside to give way for Paula.








FEW MINUTES LATER.
"So what can we do for you?" Fred said still smiling. "Can I get you something?"


They were seated in the living room; Jesse took his place next to his mother on the couch facing Fred. Teks remained standing.


Long Silence.


" See that bruise over my son's left eye?" She said finally.


"Nasty," Fred winced, "What of it?"


"Guess who did it?"


Long pause.


Fred was a little confused. He looked at his son.


"Who, --- Teks?"


She nodded.


Jesse shifted uncomfortably in his seat.


"Is this true?" Fred asked his son.


Long silence.


Teks said something that was barely audible.


"What was that?" Fred leaned towards him.


"Yes, it is,"


"Yes it is, what?" Fred said sternly.


"Yes it is --- sir!"


Fred's eyes returned to Paula. His smile had vanished when he said:
"What happened, Teks?"


Teks hesitated for a few seconds then said:
"He's always picking on me at school," he was talking fast. " His friends beat me --- so today I punched him after he slapped m-,"


"That's a lie!" Jesse was on his feet." He attacked me today for no reason,"


"I did not!"


"Did too!"


"Did ---!"


"Enough!" Paula's  voice was like a clap of thunder inside the room. She glared at her son until he  shrunk back into the seat beside her.


Long silence.


"As you can see," she turned her gaze to Fred. "This is fucked up."


"Language, Paula, "He frowned. "This is just a small misunderstanding. Boys fight all the --- ,"


"You call this, a Misunderstanding?' She roughly grabbed Jesse's head and twisted his face towards Fred.


"Hey, -- that hurts --- !" Jesse winced.


"A misunderstanding, ---- SERIOUSLY?"


"There's no need for all this, P. Let's just --- "


"Don't call me that!" She said with ice in her tone, "Don't --- ever call me that!"


Teks and Jesse exchanged looks but maintained silence.


"Paula," Fredric said calmly. " I know you're upset,"


He shot Teks a look that could've frozen sand-grains in the Sahara desert.


" I promise you," he continued. "I'll deal with my son."


"That's not enough."


Fred suddenly wore a curious expression.


"So what exactly do you want?"


Long pause.


"Jesse's a face-model for a weekly magazine, did you know he's also taking acting classes?"
 She said with her voice under control again.
"Yes, I know."


"Do you know what they told him  at his photo-shoot?"


"No -- idea," Fred said casually; he seemed almost bored.


Paula's  eyes turned to slits and her face became like the WANTED photo of a crazed killer.


"They told him," she was grinding her teeth.


"That they were going to cancel his  contract due to his injury --- do you know how much his contract was?"


Fred stared at Teks awkwardly, but said nothing.


"Tell me!" She was like a volcanic mountain on the brink of an eruption.


"Look, Paula I know you're upset --- ,"


"ANSWER THE FUCKING QUESTION!!!"


"Hey, there's no need for that type of language in my house."


"Your house?" She looked around as if there were more than four of them in the room.


"You call this pig-shit a home?"


"Okay, Paula," Fred stood up. "Take your son and leave my house!" He started moving towards the door.  Paula  suddenly reached into the back of her shirt and pulled out the Service-Pistol tucked there.


"Whoa!" Fred suddenly placing himself between her and his son. "W-what are you doing?"


"M-mum -- ?" Jesse's voice said hesitantly.


Teks fearfully moved behind his father.


Long silence.


She wasn't pointing the gun at anyone --- yet.


" Just relax, P ---,"


"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" she raised the gun.


Fredric ducked and grabbed his son.


"What the hell --- ?"


"Answer the fucking question!"She held the weapon, aiming  at his chest.


"What question?"


She took a measured step towards him; both hands still holding the pistol.


"Do you know how much his contract was?"


"How the hell am I --- ?"


 In one swift motion, she raised the nuzzle and fired into the cieling. A canon-like BOOM reverberated within the walls. Fred and Teks cowered in the corner, Jesse covered his head and screamed.


"TWO FUCKING MILLION!!!" She aimed the pistol at Fred again. "Do you know what losing that kind of money means to a single mom?"


Jesse was still screaming.


"SHUT-DA-FUCKUP, JESS!" She snapped. His screams quickly became barely audible whimpers.


"Paula, please ----,"


"Do you know what that money means ---- to us?" Her voice was breaking.


Fred hugged his son's trembling  body closer.


There was another loud blast. The white flower vase on the windowsill few inches from Fred's head exploded; its fragments scattering in all directions.


"WHAT THE FUCK, PAULA???"


"Answer --- the question," there were tears in her eyes, and the gun was shaking.


"WHAT QUESTION?" Fred was clearly enraged.


" --- THE FUCK DO YOU WANT PAULA?"


"I --- want you --- to know what your son -- has done!"


"They're kids P ----"


Paula advanced towards him.


"Okay --- okay --- I wont call you that." He pleaded waving his hands wildly. "Just tell me what you want --- ."


She halted her advance and in between sobs said:
"You're --- going to write me a check for Two million --- or I start shooting."


"You can't be serious!"


She fired a shot into the floorboards in front of him. Fred jumped away from the mini-blast, as if the bullet might bounce off the floor and hit him.


"Shit -- shit ---!" Fred's voice sounded more like loud whimpers. "Shit --- !"


"I hear a bullet to the belly hurts like a bitch," she said.


"You wouldn't dare ---," he said with very little conviction. "--- not in front of --- my son."


"I wasn't talking about shooting you"


Teks hugged his dad tighter.


"I've had alot of practice, Fred --- don't mess with me!"


"Okay -- okay," he panted. "I'll -- just go upstairs and ---,"


"Bullshit --- Fred," she said. "We both know you keep it in the drawer of the center table --- I was screwing you, remember?"


Fred gulped.


Long pause.


With alot of trembling, he slowly let go of his son and made for the table. Teks looked naked, standing there by himself. He nearly seemed comical.


He pulled out the cheque-book. The tremors made it nearly impossible to hold the papers steady. He fumbled for a pen, and started scribbling.


"Make it out to --- ,"


"I -- I know your name," he said in a small voice and continued scribbling.


Seconds later, he tore out a leaf and handed It to her.


"Please --- just take it --- and go," he looked like he was about to cry.


Paula tucked the cheque into her jeans pocket.


"Lets go, Jess," the youngster scrambled to her side. She still had the gun trained at him as they made for the door. She tucked the gun away and looked at Fred again.


"I'm sorry Fred," she said. "I had no other choice,"


"Just go," Fred didn't even  look up.


She opened the door, then made a mad dash towards the car. Her heart was pounding as she fumbled for the keys.


Then she felt it.


She felt the weapon being pulled from her jeans. She spun around in panic, but Jesse was quicker.


"What the --- ?" But he was already running towards the the door. She ran after him, but in her haste she tripped and fell. She tasted dirt but quickly scrambled to her feet.


That's when she heard the shots; all five of them.


For a nightmarish moment, she felt  she imagined it. She really wanted to believe it was a lie; that her mind was messing with her. But even as she dashed through the opened door and saw the bodies of Fred and Teks, she knew this was real.


Jesse still stood with the gun trained, just like she'd thought him. He had a crazy smile on his face.


"I didn't want any witnesses," he chuckled.


There was a sickening sensation in her stomach.


"Wh-what have you done?"


"For all the times we've scammed people --- we've never had to kill anyone," The smile on his face was alien. It was like a demon wearing her son's face.


"No -- ." Was all she heard her own voice say.


"I just wanted to see what it was like," he chuckled. "Guess all those acting classes paid off,"


Then he started laughing.


She didn't know which terrified her more; the sound of his laughter, or her own screams.




LIFE IS A CHOICE MY FRIEND
SO CHOOSE WISELY
ENOUGH SAID