Ebenezer trudged outside the school, fresh out of the Principal’s office, and with more misery added to this horrible day. Given how unsympathetic the teachers were to Ebenezer’s plight it wasn’t shocking to find Principal Wade was equally apathetic. That didn’t make the sudden suspension any easier to swallow. Ebenezer barely walked into her office before the Principal dressed him down like he was fresh out of juvie. She went on a brief tangent about how important etiquette and decorum were for the students’ education before suddenly slapping him with a suspension. Ebenezer couldn’t even defend himself before being forced out of the office and told to leave the grounds.
The boy grabbed his things before shuffling out of the school in a hopeless stupor. He stood outside the building and stared into the horizon with lifeless eyes as he awaited for his doom. As bad as things were, it would only worsen when his father found out. Sure enough, a few seconds later, Ebenezer received a text from the man in question. It was a one-sentence message that said “Come Home Now”. To an outsider, this message wouldn’t mean anything, but to Ebenezer, it’s the confirmation of his death sentence. That simple message was the calm before the storm.
Ebenezer’s father preferred to have his victims standing in front of him before tearing into them. To reserve his anger for the confrontation, he reaches out to his target with quick and simple messages; then waits for them to come to him before screaming in their face. Knowing what was waiting for him, Ebenezer almost broke down then and there. Somehow, he managed to keep himself together and automatically made his way home. Ebenezer lived 10 miles away from school, so it would take a bit for him to reach his destination. The fact that the boy’s father told him to walk home instead of waiting to be picked up meant this was part of his punishment. Apart of Ebenezer hoped that this meant the other half wouldn’t be so bad, but he knew better.
Sullenly walking through Poppytown, Ebenezer was glad that it was the middle of the day when most people were at their jobs or other obligations. There would always be people out and about though, and those individuals threw judgemental stares at the teenager not in school as they assumed the worst. Their glares made the boy’s walk of shame burn more with every glance. He tried to take his mind off of his impending doom by looking at the city sights.
Poppytown’s main draw for Americans was that it was one of the few “normal” places left in the country. While other places like New York and Chicago have adapted to their Gifted citizens, Ebenezer’s hometown has made it its mission to stay a traditional American city no matter what kind of outsider moved in. There was no special Gifted gym with extra durable equipment. No clothing stores with items that could accommodate mutations. No eateries that could provide food for people with unusual diets. Poppytown only catered to Avers, the normal people, and if the Gifted wanted to live peacefully in this place, they had to pretend they were normal too. That being said, even Poppytown needed the new necessities the modern world required.
Ebenezer’s thoughts were interrupted by a crowd of people fawning over a man in a silver and blue jumpsuit, slicked-back hair, and a dazzling smile. Paragon of the Crusaders, Poppytown’s local superhero team, was doing a meet and greet with his fans. Or he was addressing the public after completing some heroic feat. Or maybe he was doing an interview and decided to make it a spectacle. Ebenezer wasn’t sure what the man was doing but honestly didn't care.
The boy didn’t keep up with the life and times of superheroes and that was by his father’s design. The man loathed the Gifted, didn’t matter if they were Hero or Villain, and made sure his house was free of their “influence”. It was the one redundant rule that Ebenezer didn’t mind, as he believed that anyone who wasn’t a member of Providence was either an upstart or a sell-out. Given the many brand logos adorning Paragon’s suit, it wasn’t hard to see what he was.
“Paragon!” Someone in the crowd called out. “What are you going to do about all the new villains popping up?!”
“There’s no need to worry!” Paragon’s booming voice exclaimed with the confidence of a man who knew he was on top of the world. “Rest assured, dear citizens, The Crusaders will stop any villain that dares to harm this fair city!” The crowd cheered happily at his words, and Ebenezer wondered if anyone noticed that he never answered the question. Ebenezer wouldn’t be surprised if the Crusaders dragged their feet in investigating the influx of villains. Since they’re the ones who usually fight them off, they’ve been getting a lot of publicity so it would make sense to keep the villain problem around. Shaking his head at the thought, the young man returned to his own issues and restarted his trek home. As much as he dreaded what awaited him there, delaying the inevitable would only cause more pain in the long run.
About 3 hours later, Ebenezer approached his home with resignation and dread. His home was nothing special regarding suburban housing, but right now, Ebenezer saw the place more akin to a prison than a home. Slowly, Ebenezer approached his door, as if taking his time had the chance of making all of his problems go away. His trembling hand finally grasped the door and opened it, revealing the cold interior waiting for the young man. With a shaky step, Ebenezer stepped inside and readied himself for the inevitable.
“I’m home,” he said, forcing himself to let out a casual call instead of a meek whisper.
“Living room,” came a cold voice. “Now.” Repressing a shutter, Ebenezer followed the order and entered the living room. Menelaus Giroux stood in the middle of the room with his hands on his hips and his back to his son. Standing in the middle of the sitting area, he had the air of a preacher about to give a sermon. His own slight frame made him look impossibly tall, and with his head staring at the ceiling, it looked like he was asking God for strength to handle an impossible task. Ebenezer walked up behind his father and meekly stood in place, waiting for the hammer to come down. Menelaus turned on his son and glared down at him, his beedy green eyes making him look ghoulish which did nothing to ease Ebenezer’s dread.
“Suspended,” Menelaus spat. “How did that happen?!” Ebenezer didn’t speak, didn’t try to defend himself. Menelaus didn’t want to hear excuses, no matter how justified they were. When he thought something was wrong he wanted to scream at the offenders to make sure they knew they screwed up and how much their life was worse now. Any other details concerning the accused’s lack of accountability were to be considered later, if at all. Ebenezer knew Menelaus didn’t care about how the suspension happened, only that it did and how it was going to cause issues for them.
“Do you have any idea how this is going to affect your chances to get into college?!” the older man growled. “Why am I paying for you to go to school for if you're just going to fuck around and cause trouble!” If he hadn’t broken down in class today, Ebenezer might have collapsed in tears then and there. His father’s words stabbed into the fresh wounds in Ebenezer’s soul. He tries so hard to make everyone happy and this is the thanks he gets. One slip-up, one bad day, and he’s treated like a waste of space. Ebenezer suddenly felt tired, like he was forced to stay awake for the past two days.
Menelaus went into a long winded rant about what Ebenezer did wrong and how it would ruin his life. Normally the kid would listen intently to avoid angering his father further by seemingly not paying attention. But now, Ebenezer was too weary to care. Besides, all of Menelaus’s lectures had the same moral no matter the topic; “Man Up”.
Masculinity was very important to Menelaus and he made sure his children knew the importance of it. For whatever reason, Ebenezer wasn’t epitomizing Menelaus’s idea of a masculine son and tries to correct that by hammering out any kinks he finds. That usually meant berating Ebenezer for any weaknesses he had and expecting him to get stronger afterwards. So far it hasn’t worked, though given what today showed Ebenezer, he just might not be good enough to appease his father.
“And don’t think while you're here you can sit around in your room all day,” Menelaus sneered. “Since you clearly need a large dose of discipline, all the household chores will be your responsibility until your suspension is over. If this house isn’t the model of perfection 24/7, there will be Hell to pay, do I make myself clear?” Ebenezer nodded meekly, not a single peep of resistance leaving his tightly pressed lips. Feeling satisfied in his chastisement, Menelaus dismissed his son with a wave of his hand, like half-hearted swatting a fly. He then sat down on one of the couches before turning on the TV.
Ebenezer quickly left the area and went to his bedroom. He was more than happy to get away from his father after all of that, even more so because he knew what he would do next. Part of Menelaus’s decompressing ritual was to watch his favorite movie, Fight Club. Ebenezer didn’t care for the film, especially given the effect it had on his father. The way he stared at the screen, enraptured when the Club Members started planting bombs and terrorizing society, made Ebenezer uncomfortable. Whatever the movie’s message was, it flew over the teenager’s head, but he doubted his father knew what it was either. If anything, he seemed determined to take the exact opposite lesson from it. Why else would he be so enamored with the parts involving people who were clearly the bad guys?
Once inside the temporary sanctuary that was his room, Ebenezer placed his backpack on his desk and sat on the floor. His spiritual exhaustion became a silver lining then as Ebenezer had no desire to cry over his situation. If his father heard his son crying that would only make things worse, nothing was weaker than a “crybaby” after all. Ebenezer knew his peace would be short though. With Menelaus’ punishment in place, it’ll only be a matter before someone comes to give him a chore list, and then he’d be expected to serve on hand and foot for his own family. Essentially trading one form of indentured servitude for another. If there was one bright side to this situation it was that Ebenezer would be getting a break from all that extra homework. He was still on the hook for the projects Dream and Christian talked him into but compared to his usual workload, two projects were practically a vacation.
A few seconds later, there was a knock at Ebenezer’s door. When he opened the door he saw his mother, Thekla, standing in the hallway. She didn’t say anything, but the slight scowl on her face told Ebenezer everything he needed to know about what she thought of his suspension. Worldessly she handed him a piece of paper that was no doubt his chore list before walking away.
Glancing at the list Ebenezer let out a tired sigh at the numerous tasks on the paper. He didn’t doubt his father would keep his word about giving him all the household chores but seeing the full extent of tasks the house needed doing, he might as well be the live-in maid for the Girouxs. From vacuuming the house to reorganizing the attic, Ebenezer was expected to clean the house from top to bottom and then organize everything all neat and tidy. With one last resigned sigh, Ebenezer went back downstairs and got to work.
By late afternoon, Ebenezer had half the list taken care of. While he was upset about his punishment, after a while he started to lose himself in the menial tasks. Something was calming about doing menial labor, where you didn’t have to worry about complex topics, stuff your head full of research, or constantly remind yourself of the different instructions for each paper. The chores may have been hard but they were simple and Ebenezer found himself relaxing while carrying out the simple tasks.
Menelaus had also calmed, watching Fight Club had that effect on him, but seeing his son take his punishment without complaint also helped. He was always happy to see his sons respecting his authority. As Ebenezer, got on his hands and knees to scrub the bathroom floors, his father passed by and surveyed him for a few seconds before leaving with a small smile on his face. As a child, Ebenezer had thought that meant he gained some form of approval from the older man, he knew differently now…
“A man takes what’s coming to him without question,” Menelaus had once said when Ebenezer had mustered up the courage to protest his penance. Strong words from a proud man, but it just confused Ebenezer. Menelaus would also talk about how a man had to stand up for themselves, and that was what Ebenezer was trying to do. The boy would get these moments of courage to question his father’s decisions and hopefully lead to a discussion that change his punishment to something that felt fair. But every time Ebenezer tried that, his father would shut him down and make the sentence worse. That one time Menelaus explained his reasoning for blocking any bit of defiance led to Ebenezer’s grounding going from one week to one month, and that was one of the tamer escalations.
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That was how Menelaus Giroux ran the house, hard punishments for those who did anything wrong, and if you tried to resist in any way the punishments only got worse. Ebenezer wasn’t sure what aspect of masculinity involved grinding any perceived resistance into the dirt but Ebenezer had given up on the idea of being “masculine” years ago. While his father claimed to be masculine incarnate he constantly contradicted himself on what that meant, not to mention he made being masculine seem… unpleasant.
As Ebenezer got older he had to face some ugly truths about the world, and one of those truths was that his father was mean. Ebenezer can’t remember a time when his dad was happy, and he only ever saw him smile when his sons did his bidding. If being masculine meant he had to be natsy to the people he was supposed to care about, then Ebenezer wanted nothing to do with it. But if he wasn’t going to be masculine, then what would he be? His original answer was to be the “Nice Guy” as that was his natural state and he liked being nice, but after what happened at school, the idea of being nice to everyone lost its appeal. But if Ebenezer wasn’t going to be a “Nice Guy” any more then what was he going to be?
Ebenezer was pulled out of his inner thoughts when the door burst open and a lumbering mass in a letterman’s jacket entered the house. A big smile on his face that clashed with Ebenezer’s sullen mood.
“I’m home!” Arnold Giroux exclaimed happily.
“Hey there, champ!” Menelaus cheerfully greeted from within the house. In an instant, his brooding disappointment was replaced with reserved joy as he came out to greet his eldest son. “How was school today?”
“Awesome!” Arnould replied, his smile growing wider. “The team and I are totally in sync! We’re gonna crush those Wombats at the big game next week!”
“That’s great, sport!” their father said with a proud smile on his face. He was so busy basking in Arnold’s physical glory, that he completely missed his youngest son, Thor, slinking into the house. He gave the two older men an annoyed look before moving past them.
While Ebenezer may fail in all aspects of masculinity, his older brother excelled in them, which was why Menelaus favored him above his other sons. Arnold was big, strong, a talented football player, and just all-round perfect in his father’s eyes. His brain was a bit underdeveloped in Ebenezer’s opinion, but that was a plus too as far as Menelaus was concerned.
The youngest brother, Thor, was the exact opposite. Small, wiry, and unskilled in every physical activity you could think of. That should have made him another target for Menelaus’s ire but Thor was given a pass because he was smart. Not just Straight A student, top-of-the-class smart like Ebenezer was. Thor had the genius level, next big thing type of smart. The kind that could go on to lead world-changing companies and make a fortune. Thor was already taking college-level Business Courses despite being in Middle School, so he was already on track to become some lucky corporation’s brilliant CEO. Apparently, you can be as unmanly as you want so long as you're guaranteed to become rich.
Ebenezer wasn’t proud to admit that he resented his brothers. Arnold was his father’s favorite so it was natural not to get along with him, but Thor was a lot more like Menelaus than either of his sons. He and Ebenezer should be natural allies, but since their father didn’t attack Thor the way he attacked Ebenezer, Thor still considered himself above his unfortunate brother. He was the type of genius who took pride in his intelligence, and anyone who couldn’t keep up with him was just talking monkeys, which included his family. Not even in his own home could Ebenezer find people to relate to.
Ebenezer couldn’t talk to anyone about school and ask how to deal with it. Arnold wouldn’t understand, Thor wouldn’t care, Menelaus would just tell him to “man up”, and maybe punish him for whatever reason, and Thekla would just follow her husband’s lead. Ebenezer had to be the one to figure out how to get out of his situation, yet everything he tried somehow back-fired on him.
“Ebenezer,” Thor called, snapping the boy out of his thoughts. He was currently vacuuming the living room while watching Menelaus praise Arnold for everything he did when Thor came up to him. He faced Ebenezer with the slightest of scowls before showing him a large folder.
“This was next to the front door,” he stated. “Don’t leave your things out for other people to trip on.” Thor shoved the folder into Ebenezer’s hands before slinking off. Ebenezer stared at the folder with a feeling of dread. It was a simple brown package, but it seemed to be bulging with its rectangular contents. Almost like it’s stuffed with paper, just like his backpack this morning.
‘They didn’t…’ Ebenezer thought in horror. ‘They don’t know where I live… they can’t just send me this…’ With shaking hands, Ebenezer slowly opened the folder. As he assumed, the package was stuffed full of paper, and sadly, that wasn’t the only guess he got right. Inside the folder were various worksheets and papers detailing assignments, only a small percentage of them belonged to Ebenezer. They actually did it… his classmates sent him their homework just like always as if nothing had happened. Like his breakdown had nothing to do with them so they figured it was business as usual.
“Hey, Eb,” he heard Arnold call out. “Are you alright?” Without knowing it, Ebenezer started hyperventilating, and Arnold, being the kind soul that he is, took notice and expressed concern for his younger brother. It was one of the reasons why Ebenezer hated himself for disliking him. Arnold was kind, unlike their father, and he’d look after his siblings given the chance. It was the natural thing to do in his mind, but Ebenezer resented him anyway. It wasn’t fair, it wasn’t Arnold’s fault that Menelaus favored him above his other sons, but that’s just how Ebenezer felt, and he hated it.
“Don’t mind him, Arnold,” Menelaus reassured him. “He’s just tired from his chores.” Menelaus leveled a cold glare at Ebenezer, which made the boy’s mouth instinctively shut. “Which is a shame because he’s got a lot more to do. Why don’t you get started on the attic, son?” Not trusting himself to speak, Ebenezer scurried upwards until he found himself in the attic. There he left the folder drop onto the floor and allowed himself to curl up into a ball. The panic, pain, and despair he thought he left behind at school came rushing back. Nothing had changed, if anything things were much worse now. Ebenezer still had to handle everyone’s homework while also handling the massive amounts of chores his father pushed onto him. He was barely managing before but now… was even he going to survive the week?
Ebenezer bit his lip to keep himself from crying. The last thing he needed right now was for his father to hear him and punish him further. With no idea of what to do next, Ebenezer got started on cleaning the attic, hoping his mind would just shut down while he focused on the menial labor.
The Giroux attic wasn’t different from anyone else’s attic. It was dusty and full of boxes and random knicknacks the family didn’t have a place for. Ebenezer was supposed to dust and then organize the various odds and ends in the room. Ebenezer didn’t see the point of that last one, but he had to guess his father added that on just for the extra difficulty.
After dusting the place, Ebenezer spent the next hour opening boxes and organizing the contents. He would simply make sure the stored items were packaged neatly before resealing the containers, but while the work itself wasn’t challenging, the number of boxes Ebenezer had to deal with made sure he was mentally exhausted halfway through. Granted, that was the state he wanted to be in, but the responsible side of Ebenezer’s mind kept reminding him that if he wanted any sort of sleep tonight, he’d need to get this done and soon. Forcing himself to continue, Ebenezer opened the next box and then found himself staring at the contents in surprise. The box was full of old books, which was strange enough, no one in the family aside from Thor was an avid reader and all of his books were in his room.
What really got Ebenezer’s attention was that the books that had Chinese characters on the spine. Against his better judgment, Ebenezer took out one of the books and opened it. Sure enough, the pages were filled with Chinese handwriting, meaning these must be someone’s diary.
Once, Ebenezer had done a project for school that involved looking into his ancestry and found out that his family not only came from France but from China too. At the time, the boy thought he made a monumental discovery, but to the other Girouxs, that fact mattered to them as much as what they had for dinner last week. It might have been an interesting fact in conversations about ancestors but the Girouxs weren’t inclined to care about their Chinese heritage. No one in Ebenezer’s family looked remotely Asian and as far as Menelaus was concerned, his family were Americans, and nothing else.
Ebenezer examined the pages and he took in the messy scrawl, his mind slowly scanning the symbols and digging up their meaning. Ebenezer liked learning about languages and found it interesting to compare the differences and similarities of the different dialects. This hobby of his was brought on by Ebenezer’s strange affinity with Eastern Languages. For whatever reason, Ebenezer could easily understand Asian speech and writing, even though he’s only been taught English. Ebenezer could spend a few hours looking up Japanese Kanji and end up fluent in the language by accident. The only explanation Ebenezer had for this odd talent was that it was a Gift, a superpower. A very underwhelming superpower, if he was right, but not every Gifted was running around in tights.
Ebenezer desperately wanted to know more, to see if he was special, even if only by a little bit. If he knew that then he’d be able to endure all the pain and injustice, knowing later he’d have an advantage in life that would save him. At the same time, he didn’t dare try to find out while he lived with Menelaus. Ebenezer didn’t know what that man would do if he found out that his son might have a Gift and wanted to be a Gifted, but he was terrified to find out.
Desperate for a distraction, Ebenezer’s tired brain latched onto the old journal and whatever story was inside of it. The journal belonged to Ling Man and it was an account of their journey from China to France. Ebenezer was having issues gaining a lot of information as Ling’s handwriting was sloppy, making some pages look like they were trampled by chickens, so all he could get was a general context from the few words he could read. That made the one page with clear writing stick out even more.
At the very back of the journal was a single page of crisp and clear script that were painstakingly written. Compared to the rest of the book, these pages must’ve been written by another person. Interest peeked, Ebenezer carefully examined the text.
Life’s burden too great
Embrace Silence, Peace in Mind
Find Flower and Fruit
Ebenezer read the words over and over again growing more confused by the second.
‘Is this Haiku?’ he asked himself. ‘That’s Japanese poetry, why’s this in a Chinese man’s diary?’ While Ling could know and write Haiku, the cultural inconsistency made the poem even more interesting. Ebenezer felt a strange connection with the haiku, like the words were speaking directly to him. The teenager tried to brush off this feeling, telling himself it was his exhaustion talking and it was only a coincidence that the words related to his current issues. Even if he did take it more seriously what was he supposed to do? The poem sounded like some sort of self-help guide or instructions on how to meditate.
Ebenezer paused as an idea took shap in his mind. The boy slowly examined his surroundings and took stock of his assignment. He barely had half of the boxes organized and the attic was already collecting more dust. Ebenezer looked down at the book and the Haiku within it, contemplating the worth of following its advice.
‘Not like I have much to lose…” Ebenezer thought. Meditation was supposed to help people relax and that was something Ebenezer was in dire need of. It wouldn’t solve his problems but if it helped him get some more rest then things would be easier to manage.
Finding a secluded corner of the attic, away from the trapdoor to hide him from any would-be supervisor, Ebenezer sat on the ground and tried to get comfortable. He wasn’t sure if he had to do some special yoga pose for meditation, but hoped that simply sitting down and being cozy would work. Next Ebenezer closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind, thinking only about peace, flowers, and fruit. Honestly, the last part of the Haiku was the most confusing for the boy. He assumed it was meant to be an analogy for happiness and prosperity or something along those lines but wasn’t sure.
For the next few minutes, Ebenezer just sat there and breathed, keeping his mind clear and just existing in peace for that moment. Honestly, the teen didn’t have much hope that the meditation would work, but he was already starting to feel calmer than he had in a long time. Even if the Haiku’s instructions didn’t work out it was worth trying just to not feel like Ebenezer’s world was ready to crush him at a moment’s notice.
Strangely, he felt the unfriendly chill of the attic turn warm and inviting like he was outside on a warm spring day. It wasn’t an unpleasant surprise and Ebenezer had to force himself not to think about it lest he break the immersion. The boy basked in the warmth and the odd feeling of… coming home that it brought. Something his actual home lacked.
Something soft brushed against Ebenezer’s cheek and landed on his nose. It felt like a flower petal but the rational part of Ebenezer’s mind labeled it a rogue piece of paper. The boy didn’t want to touch it to avoid breaking his trance, but the paper was in the right spot to tickle his nose and coax out a sneeze. Slowly and with a slackened hand, Ebenezer plucked the paper, but then stopped when he properly felt the object. The item in between the teen’s fingertips was cool, slightly damp, and had the rubber-like texture of plant matter. It wasn’t paper, and it certainly wasn’t something you’d find in his attic.
Ebenezer nervously opened his eyes, then shut them again when they were stabbed by a sudden ray of light. Rubbing the stinging sensation out of his eyeballs, Ebenezer opened them wide to see what he told himself couldn’t possibly happen. But it did happen. Ebenezer was not in his attic anymore. Instead, he was outside, sitting on a plot of gravel surrounded by a patch of trees. And if that wasn’t crazy enough, given the giant rising spire of rock nearby, he was on a mountain.
“...What the hell?”