Finding Forever

Prologue~

Being beaten everyday at home and school was hard, but tolerable for Charlie. He had lived with it ever since he had come out with that boy. When it came to his home life, it was his father that would beat him. His mother, on the other hand, was okay with his preference; yet she did not stop her husband from beating their son unconscious, mainly because she was lead to believe that the man would merely ignore and scold the boy. Another reason Charlie's mother did not interfere, or talking sense into her husband, was the chance that he would take his anger out on her; and with the multiple times that he had almost killed the woman, it was understandable why she stayed quite. At school it was continuous name calling, shoving and beatings for Charlie. His teachers' always said he was a joyful child, then one day he closed off. To everyone they saw Charlie as "clumsy" and because he was clumsy that was why he would show up with cuts and bruises. Charlie did not counter the suspicion that he was clumsy, he let people say it, he let them believe it.

"Don't you dare bring a boy home Charlie!" His father scolded the morning before Charlie's world came crashing down. Charlie nodded sheepishly before his father slapped his as if to ensure that it got through to him.

Charlie ran out of the house after just wanting to run into his boyfriends' arms. Although school was not supposed to start until another forty minutes, Charlie made it in five, knowing his boyfriend, Kevin, should be there by then. He went straight to the spot that he always met up with Kevin, that day felt different though. Charlie felt an awful pang in his chest with the pain spreading across it like electricity but it spread like molasses, he felt this before he turned the corner and saw it. There, leaning against the tree he had leaned against many times before, was a familiar brunette that was making out with Charlie's boyfriend. Kevin had the girl pinned against the tree as he slid his hand inside her shirt, she let out a soft moan when she saw Charlie standing there with tears running down his cheeks in rivers. Charlie did not care that his cheeks were wet with tears. Kevin turned when he heard the girl gasp and spotted Charlie.

"Sh*t. Charlie, you're early." Kevin breathed pulling away from the girl, like he wasn't just making out with her, and rubbed the back of his neck. He glanced at the girl and sighed. "I'm sorry Charlie, I'm not gay like you." There was a slight disgust in his voice when he said this to Charlie, then he added: "I did it for Harlie," he motioned toward the girl, "because I love her." Harlie's cheeks reddened and she turned her focus to Charlie.

"I'm sorry Charlie," she gave a sad smile, "I wanted to see you happy, so I asked Kevin to try to, you know, make you happy. We didn't plan for this to happen. I'm still your best friend Charlie, it was just," Harlie trailed off, she knew it wasn't a mistake. Kevin's and her love was true and pure. She cared for Charlie but she knew she couldn't blow off her feelings. Harlie also knew that until today, or really the month that her and Kevin had been seeing each other behind Charlie's back, there were only about four people that treated Charlie like a human. Now two of those people, Kevin and her were now guilty of treating him poorly.

Instead of answering Charlie turned on his heel and went inside of the school, questioning why he had stayed and listened to their explanations. His love life was just proven to be a complete lie, his friendship as well. Harlie and Kevin attempted to talk to Charlie throughout the day but he avoided them like the he avoided the people that would shove him into lockers and pour food on him. Charlie thanked the world it was Friday and that next week was finals, that he was exempted from, so he did not have to see his ex-boyfriend and ex-best friend. He initially hated the end of the year, but Charlie knew he wouldn't see the people that made him feel this horrible emptiness in his chest that was accompanied with sharp, stabbing, pain.

When Charlie arrived home that day, his mother was at the store and his father was waiting for him. "We're moving. Go pack your sh*t!" Charlie's father roared at him and Charlie nodded a little too happily, now he wouldn't have to see Kevin and Harlie next year. Soon a vase was smashed against Charlie's head for not moving. "NOW!" The man yelled and Charlie ran upstairs, quickly starting the task of putting his items in boxes that were placed in his room by his mom. Charlie then remembered that his mother did mention the move the night before.

The new house was a two story like the Woodsmith's old home, although this new home had an attic. Charlie began taking the boxes that were labeled his to his new room on the second floor. As Charlie was bringing the last box into the room his father walked up behind him and slammed the boy's head against the door frame. Charlie dropped to the box and collapsed on the floor, holding his head from the sudden pain. His Father kicked Charlie's stomach and roared out a word. "Your!" He then kicked the boy's chest and screamed: "Room!" Charlie rolled from the force of the kick, his back now facing the man. His father landed another kick to Charlie's back and his shoulder making him roll again. "In the!" The man yelled after his kicks came into contact with his son's body. Finally the father aimed a last kick to his son's face, to his disappointment the kick hit Charlie's hands that covered his face in time to block the kick. The father roared the final word to his statement: "Attic!" Charlie's mother then peeked from the staircase, hearing the commotion, she wanted to make sure her son was okay. She gasped at Charlie's bloody state as her heart dropped. In that moment she realized that it was her husband of twenty years that was hurting her son.

"Henry," she called walking down the hall to were her husband and son were, "this is going too far." The man was furious, with his son and wife.

"He needs to learn to be a man!" Henry yelled. "I will never accept this queer, he is not my son." The man spat out. Although Charlie had heard it many times before it still hurt him the same, more even.

"He," Charlie's mother motioned to her son, "will be our son no matter what, his preference does not matter. Charlie, go up to the attic, I will take up your stuff in a minute." The woman gave her son a warm but sad, worried, smile.

"Akita," Henry growled at his wife, "he will never learn to be a man if you treat him like that." Charlie crawled away while his father was distracted and went to the attic. "You're treating him like the person he is trying to be is not wrong. A man is meant to be with a woman." Was the last thing Charlie heard as he entered the attic and closed the latch on the floor door. he looked around and saw dust and old boxes piled high. He sighed realizing two things. The first thing was that he had a lot of cleaning to do, the second thing was that he will have to be careful his senior year.

An hour after his mother sent him up she came and brought him some blankets, pillows and two boxes that were full of his clothes. She was bruised, her face and the parts of her skin that showed out of her sun dress were spotted with purple, black spots. "Do you need anything else honey?" Akita asked sweetly. Charlie asked for some cleaning supplies and his mother smiled and came back with anther box and the cleaning supplies. The box had some more of Charlie's clothes and a few of his possessions. Akita told her son that she would bring the rest of his stuff in the morning. Charlie thanked his mom and she went back down, leaving her son by himself.

Charlie cleaned an old rocking chair he found amongst the old stuff and placed a blanket on it. He then grabbed two of the pillows and placed them on the seat and back of the chair. He grabbed another blanket and crawled into the chair, there he fell asleep trying to ignore the muffled sounds of his parents arguing.