A Life Worth Knowing

This man grew up in a broken home, he tried to hold himself together, traumatized by his own family and the bullying and mistreatment but yet again born in 1965 is a different era, different style to actually make a family work, yet, he grew not needing much except a mother and a father.

Years into a childhood of rebellion and many missteps he met a woman, Steve a mere 20 years old met this 24-year-old woman named Rachel, but the day he met her was at night on a park with multiple other people that were all using drugs, he in his 20’s decided to impress this woman so he joined the group and used drugs with them, he and her were into each other, always looking at each other and avoiding many talks until most of the other people went home, where he engaged into conversations with her as he learned she was a rebel, coming from a big family of 5 were only one, herself was the middle child, she grew up not needing much as himself but life was always bringing new issues to their life’s. He took no hesitation to request a phone number from her and from that night on they started dating, turns out she was actually dating a different man, she fell pregnant and Steve was devastated, but, in a weird turn of events the man who gave her a first born child disappeared and Steve saw this as an opportunity, an opportunity to impress this woman and by impressing her meant he had to do what he could to help her raise this child without the biological fathers support, so he did, with a government job on his side and being able to cover the costs of their living at that time he managed to intertwine his life with hers and helped her live better her life, the child was born and was named Emma, he grew 5 years with Steve and Rachel and suddenly Steve decided it was time to tie the nod and propose to Rachel, she accepted and they got married, in the wedding day many things were happening from behind the greatness, bad things but no one ever knew, it wasn’t until Emma turned 7 years old that a new boy came to the family named Drew, Drew was born into a world he would never imagine but yet he is only a toddler. When Drew turned 3 years old he was conscious enough to remember the separation like if he was 8, the fighting his father and mother had, he was looking under the door of his room, his older brother Emma was protecting him but the child’s curiosity overcame him and he heard and saw most things from the tiniest of holes available, how phone was smashed and plates broke, he saw how they yell at each other and even though he did not understand the argument but he knew it was a complicated situation, he was unease, he was confused but he had to follow the order his now lone mother would place on the house, his older brother knew better, seven years older and now he sees the ever changing situations, Drew grew quick and not long after he turned 7 years old, he lived in a home with a mother who was a drug addict now, she became a prostitute, she was out of control, father paid child support and paid for Drew’s medical coverage but had not physical custody of the child, he had a joint custody with every other weekend taking Drew with him for a good time mostly, Emma in the other hand kept on trying to build himself up and always tried to make money working as packer, car washes and always grinding himself to learn about cars as a mechanic, with dreams of becoming a chef and low-key trying to give a good example to his younger brother he never thought twice on backing down his idea of bettering himself before his mother, Rachel would come completely out of control.

Within the first few months of Drew turning 7 years old he was caught in an abusive routine coming from his mother, every time she did not have her dose she would go berserk, furious and beat up on Drew and Emma, she would always threaten Drew and Emma to never speak about what was going on on the house, she wanted to make sure her vices and routines would be kept a secret because she knew she did not have control but she was becoming paranoid, unease, until at the school Drew used to attend, a teacher saw one day markings on his body when he was playing, the teacher reported that to the office and the very next day they had social services on the school speaking to Drew, asking him questions about his mother, he knew little but innocence answered with full honesty saying his mother would beat him up and his brother, social services communicated with his father at work and gave him the news Drew would be removed from his home, the father knew but had no evidence and Drew was always quiet, following his mother's wishes in regards to not speak but one more day passed when Drew was placed in his grandparents home, away from his mother and a new story started not long before soon.

Merely second grade he started attending a new school, he knew nobody, not the teachers nor the students as he would always be picked by bullies, beaten and bruised always arriving home with dirty clothing and lacking school materials, he was always trying to hide the fact he was being bothered and bullied and his grandmother was too naive to understand what was really going on, months started to pass as his mother was slowly winning the fight to have Drew back, his father would pick him up every weekend to entertain him and give him a different task to do but so much could his father do for his son, suddenly on March of the next year his mother took full physical custody of Drew, he was back at the house were all the nightmares came from, his mother filled his eyes with cable tv and toys and video games, his father was not happy but it was a family war ongoing none stop. His mother knew that having Drew with her was a monthly income to fuel her vices, she knew she wanted to avoid Drew leaving because it was complicated for her to maintain a social standing while being an addict and Drew became a money sign for her, now on the other hand, Emma is witnessing all of this, trying to stay shut as he learns in silence how his mother works the world around them, Emma’s father passed away a year prior and although he never met the man he got social security coming to him due to the passing, giving his mother Rachel the best opportunity to maintain her vices, getting money for both children while receiving free housing and food stamp was a perfect crime without needing to move from the comfort of her home and a never-ending supply of drugs.

Not long after this started Drew was on sixth grade, his mother was the same monster he knew but he was so used to her that it was a normal life now, his brother, on the other hand, continue to learn and pass every grade with excellent grades while Drew lacked the smart side a bit too much, although he was very smart he rather give more time to games and fun while his older brother meticulously planned the moment he could leave the house, it wasn’t long until his mother entered in another argument with Emma, now Emma is 18 years old and he is focusing on work and making money to leave but the argument escalated to the point Rachel started to toss pans and kitchen instruments to him, he dodges and defended himself from it but she persisted on attacking him, the argument went outside of the house to a terrace they had as Drew witnessed this he did not know who to help, his mother picked up a baseball bat and was ready to strike Emma but Emma was able to disarm his mother and the bat fell on Drew’s feet and now he has his mother asking for the bat as Emma ‘screams don’t give it to her’ and in Drew's young mind didn’t knew what to do as his instincts made him toss the bat to the roof of the house and then his mother looked at him, with rage, anger like if Drew has been disowned. The argument ended with the police, as Rachel called the police on her own son and she kicked him out of the house, Drew took the news too hard as he closed himself in the room and did not wanted to eat nor get out of and so the Christmas soon to come became quite bitter as the story became about choices and of course… Consequences.

Now a week have passed and December 25 has arrived, a Saturday morning Drew awoke and found himself confused as he notices this year there are no presents under the tree, Rachel was nowhere to be found and he saw himself alone, the kitchen a mess and Rachel’s room door opened, he did not wander inside he just showered and cooked something for himself and when he got ready as he went downstairs and walked towards a house behind his, knowing his mother would often go there to have her dose of the day with a man who is a veteran, and to nobody’s surprise there he found his mother, drugged and laying on a sofa on the balcony, she had no pants nor underwear on giving the impression she did something with the neighbor but Drew was sick of it, seeing the same thing over and over again and year per year he did not wanted to see it anymore so he went home and called his father, told his father he wanted to spend Christmas with him so he wanted to know if he could pick him up but Steve wasn’t able, he was far away that day and couldn’t drive all the way there given that it was not his weekend either and Rachel would always find more ways to mess with him so Drew got all dressed up and went out for a walk just to find out he was on for a journey that had many roads to choose from.

Now Drew wanders the neighborhood aimlessly, thinking and anxious he just wants something better for himself but things are slowly drifting away as he knows inside that his family, his surrounding environment are quite depressing. Streets filled with blood and drugs, everything is addictions and revelry, trying to add some hope on the pot is not quite what he wants, he is lost inside and does not know how to make his home better, he is too young and too scared of his mother and the darkness surrounding and the one thing he truly wanted was just a normal family and a normal home, like all those kids he sees on his school arriving, saying goodbye to their mothers and fathers, being lent money for looking pretty, for simply being a child, he cries slowly as now dusk begins to set and playing with a knife he wonders if he should even go home at all but yet the fears keep him en-route to his daily basis, he comforts himself with knowing he will one day be 18 too and he will be able to go somewhere, anywhere that is not home. Now he walks back home as he nears his home he sees his brother walking towards the house, not even 200 meters away from him, he is excited to say hi to him and a big smile draws on his face soon to evaporate as an individual runs behind his brother Emma and strikes him with a baseball bat, Drew doesn’t really think too much but to draw his pocket knife and run, help his brother, as he quickly nears his brother Emma sees him and yells to back off but Drew jumps behind the assailant and stabs him in the shoulder, as the guy turns around Drew continues to stab him repeatedly with no remorse, see he is angry and he does not want to go back home and he is enacting what he sees on every movie and show, he is simply defending his brothers life but when his brother Emma pulls Drew back he sees the fruit of his doing, blood and anger flowing through the floor, 3 neighbors witness the incident as sirens are heard nearby already, he does not know what to do or think and his knife falls to the ground, as he looks at Emma with a bloodied face and bloodied hands, the eye contact, Emma is speechless and distant, Drew is shaking and crying yet motionless and so the first patrol car arrives and so the story darkens.