Chapter 85
“This is a goddamn terrible idea,” Joel said, standing his ground once again to Bobby, who was insistent on coming with him to visit his parents.
Bobby decided to fuck with his friend a bit in that moment. He put on his pouty face, “But I’m just a lonely orphan boy. Would you deny me the opportunity to see how a nice, normal, Midwest family operates?”
“Seriously, man, it’s a bad idea. My family really isn’t great,” Joel said, his level of annoyance rising by the second.
Bobby put his hands up in mock surrender, “Okay, okay, man, clearly, this is a sore subject. I was just goofing around.”
Joel exhaled dramatically. As the breath left his lungs, he felt the aggravation subside a tiny bit. He felt his muscles relax. The occasional meditation he had practiced with Ken and Jax had apparently been paying off. Knowing that this visit with his parents was upcoming, he had ramped up the consistency of the calming sessions. He wanted to do everything he could not to let their selfishness and negativity affect him.
Bobby, noticing his friend’s frustration, waved his hand, rolled his eyes, and walked out of their bedroom.
Joel kept his eyes on Bobby until he was sure the sneaky ex-bartender was indeed gone. But, of course he wasn’t. Bobby knew how to cling to the shadows so that people would let their guard down in the assumed privacy of solitude. But Joel knew his roommate too well.
“Fine! You can come,” Joel spoke into the void, adding under his breath, “you annoying brat. But you are there as an observer only. No speaking unless spoken to. My family is, well, complicated.”
***
On his way to his parent’s house, Joel realized that he didn’t at all miss his home: what he now referred to as “fake” Eden. He used to think of it as a quaint American small town. But that authenticity had been stripped away with the reveal of Meta-Eden. Now, he could only see a front, a shell filled with working-class pawns and scapegoats. It turned Joel’s stomach to think of all his family friends and schoolmates, living the Heralds’ lie. NPCs in their game of world supremacy. He got more and more worked up thinking about how many lives all of the technology in Eden could have improved and even saved. And the fucking selfish-ass Council couldn’t give less of a fuck. They kept the masses sedated and locked away in Fake Eden, toiling away in this Sisyphean nightmare prison. If he could just win the competition and occupy The Seed’s seat, he could change so much for so many.
Joel looked over at Bobby as he stepped up onto the front porch of his childhood home and turned the doorknob on the front door to enter. He took a deep breath, steeling himself for the emotional and psychological journey that was about to begin. Was bringing Bobby here a mistake? He could never understand–
“Look at this! Our own resident big-time celebrity finally decided to grace us with his presence!” Joel’s dad’s booming gruff voice announced his son’s arrival so that all the neighbors could hear. He then forcefully shut the door behind Bobby, glaring at the unexpected visitor as he warily entered the Allen home.
Joel sighed as he approached his father. “Dad, Bobby. Bobby, Dad.” he said as a quick introduction. “Now, can-” Joel’s dad interrupted him, yanking his son by the wrist and leading him to the surprise party in the backyard. A row of grills was set up on the small ground-level deck that was attached to the modest house, each flaming hot, cooking a plethora of steaks, burgers, and sausages. It only took moments for Joel to take in the rest of the bustling block party barbeque that was in full effect. Not once in his whole life had this many guests been invited into his home.
Without speaking another word, Joel’s father started a slow clap and applauded his son, making a huge show. The neighbors stopped and stared, just like his dad intended. “Welcome home, the conquering Herald! Who knew MY SON was a powerful Herald all along?” He then turned to a balding man stuffing his face with a condiment-drenched hot dog. “See, he’s NOT a worthless mooch. Go fuck yourself, Doug. How wrong were you, buddy?”
Doug, who Joel had always considered to be one of the nicest people in the world, simply mumbled through his full mouth incomprehensibly and averted his eyes. Why his dad felt the need to verbally attack the poor man was beyond Joel, so he turned to Doug and attempted to apologize. “I’m so sorry for-”
“Shut up and get inside. Now!” Mr. Allen shouted. His pride morphed into anger as if a switch was flipped. It was at this moment that Joel finally looked his father in the eyes for the first time since returning home. The veins in the middle aged man’s temple bulged under the red trucker cap pulled low on his forehead. The silhouette of a skyscraper, the symbol of The Tycoon, donned its center with the word ‘Fight’ written over it in bold white print. His lips were pursed, and his hands were balled into fists. This wasn’t the first time Joel worried his father might lash out physically, but to his credit, he never had. And surely he wouldn’t today, not in front of all these people.
“Yes, sir.” Joel rolled his eyes and obeyed, just as he had always done. Once he walked through the sliding back door and into the kitchen, he saw his mother. They made brief eye contact before she stood up straight, put her nose in the air, and walked silently out of the room. This had become typical behavior when she was upset. Joel, of course, didn’t know exactly what he had done to upset her, but he knew she was mad about something. “Hi, Mom,” Joel offered into the now vacated space.
“Hm!” Joel’s mom angrily huffed from the other room. This was yet another tactic she deployed when in one of her moods. Instead of using words, she often huffed, puffed, or even grunted like a cave person. It was then that Joel remembered Bobby. Where had his friend gone? And why hadn’t anyone even acknowledged the young meta’s presence? He had been away at The Spire long enough to lose his tolerance for the particular psychosis that pervaded his home so paranoia threatened to overtake him.
Joel’s father made his way into the house from the backyard a few minutes later to find Joel, head in hands, sitting on the couch in the family room. “How dare you disrespect me! I raised you better, you disrespectful little-” Mr. Allen caught himself before the curse exited his lips. The man undeservedly praised himself on a discipline that often let him down. “When I saw that little punk kid with you, I knew he was a bad influence on you.”
“You’re blaming Bobb- Kidd Grimm?” Joel realized that he didn’t have The Show’s tech to mask Bobby’s identity, so he had to be much more careful than usual. He puffed up his chest. “And, I wasn’t being disrespectful, sir. You were. Now that I’m on the show, I can’t let you piss people off in public.”
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“You’re big timing me?” Mr. Allen’s face was getting redder and his words were weighed down by indignation. “You? My son? My deadbeat dropout son? I can’t believe you would have the nerve to big time ME!”
“Okay, I’m done.” Joel wasn’t in the mood to put up with his dad’s insecure rantings. “Have you seen Mr. Bad Influence? Cuz, I need find him and get the fuck out of here.”
“Great. Not only did you bring that no good heathen over here, but you let him wander the house unmonitored? If anything is missing…”
“You don’t even know him. You always do this. If people don’t fit into your little box, you assume they are evil.”
“I don’t have to assume. I watched your little program. I heard all of the wise-ass, disrespectful, vile things he said about The Tycoon and every other council member he met. The kid is a delinquent and I hope America votes him off the show this week. Maybe then you will treat your father with a little respect.”
“Yeah, that’ll do it,” Joel muttered under his breath as he got up and turned to leave the room.
“What did you just say?” Mr. Allen screamed. “You really need to show some gratitude, yourself. The Show gave you a chance even though you don’t have powers. -ow you fooled everyone is beyond me, but you and I know you’re lying somehow.”
Joel realized where the anger was coming from. His dad was confused... So, he backed down. “I’ll find my deadbeat friend and get out of your house.”
“When you realize that I’m right, and have learned how to treat your father, you are welcome home. Until then-” His dad calmed a little, but negative emotions were still leaking into his words as he left the threat hanging.
“Don’t hold your breath. Or do. I don’t really care anymore.” Joel answered as he exited the family room and made his way upstairs to look for Bobby. He couldn’t get out of his childhood home fast enough. At the top of the stairs, there were two doors on the left and one straight ahead. The first door, which led to a small bathroom, was closed. The second, which was open, led to his old bedroom. When he peaked in, Joel saw Bobby flipping through a stack of old vinyl records.
“Looking for blackmail material?” Joel joked as he stepped through the doorway into his past life: a life that had changed so dramatically for the better in just a matter of months. Posters of soccer players and art prints hung on the walls over his unmade bed. A bookcase housed books, records, and knick-knacks representing the emotional timeline of his life before Eclipse.
“Actually, I came up here to avoid that.” Bobby joked back. “Man, you weren’t kidding about your family.”
“Still jealous?” Joel asked with a wry smile.
Bobby answered earnestly, “Honestly, yes.”
Joel’s cheeks reddened in embarrassment. “Sorry. That was so insensitive of me. I thought being an orphan might be looking better and better,” he couldn’t help but dig his hole deeper and deeper, but Bobby’s lack of reaction seemed to indicate that he didn’t care.
“So, where are all the participation trophies?”
“You have to participate in something to get a trophy,” Joel shrugged. “I had too much going on to add getting bullied for sucking at sports to the equation.”
“I get that. I always wondered what it would be like to play soccer or baseball or something. Luckily, I had music, the bar, and Jerod.” The quaint homey ambiance seemed to have inspired Bobby to reminisce about his own unconventional upbringing.
“You know,” Joel gently nudged, “You have talked alot about the bar, and Jerod and your bandmates and friends, but you never really talk about who raised you.”
“Yeah. For that, there would have to be someone to talk about.”
Joel knew that Bobby had an adopted parent, but he clearly didn’t want to open that window to that past, so he tried to deflect from the line of questioning. “Well, that may not be the worst thing. You just heard what my non-adopted dad was like.”
“About that.” Bobby walked over and looked out the window to the backyard, ensuring the elder Allen man was outside and unable to hear what he was about to say. “Have you noticed anything different about your dad? Has he always been such a fan of The Tycoon?”
“Oh yeah!” Joel rolled his eyes. “He even lost all of our savings one year a while back after reading Diamond’s book.”
“Ah, yes. The seminal ‘The Way To Make Millions’.”
“Yep, that’s the one. My dad read it and decided to buy a plot of land in North Dakota to start a mining company. Let’s just say not all land has oil or coal underneath.”
“So, it would be out of character for your dad to spend money frivolously?” Bobby asked
“Very. I never asked or anything, but I’d be surprised if, after paying bills and mortgage, there was a whole lot left over.”
Bobby looked deep in thought. “I only ask because the steaks looked like prime cuts.”
Joel laughed. “That’s what has you all worried? Look, we aren’t rich or anything, but the man takes his grilled meats seriously.”
“So you’ve always had four top-end BBQ grills?”
This made Joel think for a moment. “No. That’s definitely new.”
“And the five thousand dollar watch he was wearing?”
“How do you know it isn’t fake?” Joel was starting to get more annoyed. Bobby never took things very seriously. Even when they were dealing with conspiracies and high-stakes political maneuvering, his roommate always had a talent for making stressful situations feel less like life and death. The seriousness with which he was questioning Joel’s father's lifestyle was troubling. “He has always wanted to keep up with the neighbors.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“Look man, I’m not having the most awesome day. Maybe we can table this?”
“Sure. Sorry.” Bobby apologized. “I didn’t mean to pile on. I’m just concerned that The Tycoon may be behind the fight and maybe the party. If the Council is pulling strings, maybe he is trying to influence you through your family.”
Before Joel could respond, a voice came from outside his room. Joel’s mom had appeared in the hallway, peeking around the corner through the bedroom door.
“How dare you, young man! How dare you disrespect the man who is giving you this opportunity!” Then, she turned her attention to her own son, “You humiliated me at church, do you know that? I could barely show my face! The way you spoke about that great man on television is… Well, it’s not how I raised you!”
Joel was at the end of his rope. The fuse was gone. “You didn’t raise me!” Joel couldn’t take it anymore, after years of this gaslighting he finally decided to stand up for himself.
“Excuse me?” Joel’s mom screamed, “I did everything for you!”
“Name three things you did just for me,” Joel demanded.
“Everyone shut up, when you’re under my roof, I’m the boss,” Mr. Allen barked as he made his way up the stairs toward the ongoing fight. Apparently, the yelling had alerted Joel’s dad to the confrontation. He marched aggressively toward his son. “Watch your mouth! Just because you’re on some silly show doesn’t mean I can’t beat your ass,” he hissed.
Joel clenched his fist. He knew his dad was just trying to feel powerful, but his life had been so much better without them at The Spire. Joel couldn’t take this level of chaotic emotional manipulation. There was no way he would be dragged back into this dysfunction. He didn’t need this in his life anymore– not unless something changed. Joel unclenched his fist and exhaled the breath he didn’t realize he was holding. He nodded at Bobby to leave and then delivered his final blow. “I’m leaving. I’m not coming back; you no longer have a son.”