“My parents—my father especially—and brothers always told me I was too much. And as the youngest, I was often ganged up on a bit. They said I was too emotional. Too excitable. I’ve never been organized, never good at being on time. I’m kind of full of chaos if you hadn’t noticed.”
I watched him closely. “I suppose I have.”
“My father wanted me to work for his business. He’s obsessed with the ‘family legacy.’ My brothers are the same way. But building homes sounded so incredibly boring. I wanted adventure.I wanted to shape young minds and actually do something in the world. Teaching is perfect for me. But they don’t see it that way.”
“It seems our parents have a much different definition of success.”
“Indeed. I was a hyper child. I guess I’m still that way to some degree. I get bored easily. Can’t sit still to save my life. You should see me when I’m teaching. I’m all over the classroom. My office is a disaster. I can’t ever find anything I need. But my students love my classes. And I love their enthusiasm. So yes, the word ‘dramatic’ is a bit of a sore spot for me.”
My heart ached at the notion of Liam’s parents telling him he was too much. While I initially felt that way, I’d learned over the last few weeks that he was just himself. And there was nothing wrong with being a little disorganized or wild. I could use some of that in my life, I supposed.
“I know what it’s like to be called too much,” I said softly. He watched me intensely. “Not in the same way as you. But I’ve had people say the same thing about me. Except I was too strict, or too severe. Too uptight.”
He was quiet for a long time, the fire at last burned to coals. I wrapped the fish in a leaf as we sat there together. Breaking the silence, he said, “We are very different, you and I. And yet the same.”
I thought for a moment. “Yes. I suppose we are, aren’t we?”
Chapter 18
Detonation
Liam
Mud squelched beneath my boots as we pushed through the jungle. We’d been lost for days, with no indication of anyone nearby. Where the fuck were we? Maybe I was wrong. Perhaps we should have stayed put and waited for the search party. But it was too late now and we needed to keep going.
Luckily, we hadn’t come across anything too perilous yet. Biting flies and the abhorrent leeches that still made me shudder when I thought too hard about them. But otherwise, things were going smoother than I imagined they would. I hoped it wasn’t a sign the worst was yet to come.
As if my worrisome thoughts had triggered it, a loud crash of thunder rumbled in the distance.
“Great,” I muttered.
“Liam? Do we need to worry about flooding again?” Cerise asked from in front of me, voice panicked.
“I don’t think so. We’re on higher ground than before.”
“All right. Good.”
“Just a little further and we’ll find a place to camp.”
She nodded and kept on.
Our talk the other day about my family had me pondering. I couldn’t stop thinking about it, bombarded with memories of mychildhood. And as we continued our path through the dense vegetation, my mind wandered.
“Stop runningthrough the house and get in here!” my father boomed.
I burst into his office, breathing heavily, joy on my face from playing tag with my sister. But the moment I saw my father’s expression, I paused. At thirteen years old, I was full of energy. Of life. But he didn’t seem to like it.
“Your teacher called today. She said you can’t sit still. That you’re out of your seat all day, visiting with the other students and playing pranks.”
I remained silent, unsure what to say, tapping my foot.
“What will it take for you to learn to pay attention, boy?”
“I don’t know, papa. It’s just so boring. My teacher talks and talks and talks. It’s not fun. I want to do experiments and projects.” I continued to fidget.
“Godsdammit, Liam. Be still for once in your life. School isn’t supposed to be fun. Figure out how to follow the rules or there will be consequences.”
A bird chirped outside and my gaze immediately went to the window.
