Chapter 7: Forget and Forgive

Chapter Seven

Forget and Forgive

 

 

 

 

 

     Around the same time the football game was going through a lock down, the police officers guarding the exits and investigating the crime scene, Ritch was going through something much worse. Therapy.

     He had just dealt with his mom when he got in from school. She had had to leave work and pick Ritch up at school. The whole way back home she was yelling, even cursing a few times. Ritch knew not why he had done such a stupid thing.

     The yelling didn't end there. When they got home, plenty of punishments were added to her lecture. Ritch was almost glad when he got to go to therapy.

     He was suspended from school for four days. He was grounded for what he considered enternity. The only place he could go was to therapy. The only things he could do were chores, eat, and whatever other punishments his mother came up with. His phone was taken away from him. He wasn't allowed to play video games. He felt like he was in prison.

     Once he got in the therapy room alone with Dr. Palamen, he breathed a sigh relief. Ritch's mother had told Dr. Palamen what Ritch had done in school earlier that day, so there was an awkward silence among them for a brief period of time.

     Finally, Dr. Palamen broke the silence by saying: "So you got into a fight today, Ritch?" Dr. Palamen grabbed his notebook from off his desk and sat across from Ritch in his chair.

     "Yes, sir," Ritch replied.

     "And what for?" Dr. Palamen said.

     "He had hit one of my friends. A girl. His girlfriend."

     "I see. So you were sticking up for her?"

     "Yes, sir." Ritch kept his eyes focused on the floor.

     "I can understand that. But was it the real Ritch doing the fighting?" Dr. Palamen said.

     "No, sir," Ritch said.

     "Ah. An aggressive Ritch, eh?"

     "Yes, sir."

     "I see. We need to try and get rid of that Ritch," Dr. Palamen said. "He's not a good one to have."

     "No. He's not," replied Ritch.

     "So how do you know this boy hit your friend?" Dr. Palamen asked, scribbling something down in his notebook.

     "I don't. " Ritch took a quick glance into Dr. Palamen's eyes when he said this, then looked back down at the floor. "But I'm sure of it."

     "So," started Dr. Palamen, "you got into a fight with a boy because you think he hit your friend?"

     "Yes, sir. I guess that Ritch was also stupid?" Ritch faked a grin.

     "Or perhaps he was very smart." Ritch considered this. He nodded his head slightly. Then Ritch looked up at Dr. Palamen with a concerned expression and said, "Can you let my mom know that that wasn't the real me? It was....a fake me? A phony? I wouldn't ever get into a fight. Not the real me. If you told her that, maybe she won't be so angry."

     "I believe she already knows that, Ritch. But she is your mother. She is punishing you because she believes punishing you will help solve the problem. Help solve that Ritch's anger issues."

     "Can it?" Ritch asked.

     "Can punishment help? Not likely. Not for young ones with MPD, atleast," Dr. Palamen said. Ritch nodded.

     "So...I'm screwed. That wasn't me fighting out there, yet I'm paying for it. That...that sucks."

     Dr. Palamen smiled and said, "I'll see what I can do to help you out, Ritch."

Ritch looked up at Dr. Palamen, surprised. He grinned and said, "Thank you. Oh, and tell your daughter I'm sorry for what-"

     Dr. Palamen interrupted, waving his hand and shaking his head, "She understands, Ritch. I told her about your illness. She forgives you. I forgive you. No need to worry. But if you want to apologize, apologize to her."

     "I will. I would have told her today, but I...got suspended before I saw her." Ritch grinned, a real one this time.

 

 

. . .

 

 

     Dr. Palamen lowered Ritch's mom's anger slightly. Ritch didn't know what he had told her, but she didn't have that motherly "I'm-gonna-whoop-your-a*s" glare in her eyes any longer. But lowering it "slightly" wasn't enough for Ritch.

     When they got home, after another long lecture in the car, Ritch was given a list of things to do by his mom. But thankfully, for Ritch atleast, she stopped mid-speech when something on the TV caught her attention. She found the remote and turned up the volume.

     Ritch, standing behind his mother, watched the screen in horror. The face of the boy who had kicked Ritch in the stomach during the fight, the boy that had bullied Meko and Zach with Terry and their other friends for so long, appeared on the screen. Beside his picture was his name, Jack Terrence, his age, and the school he went to. Then the reporter told how he was murdered. A slash of a knife through the throat.

     Behind the reporter were several people with their hands over their mouths, looking around in panic. Cops guarded the entrance, allowing no one in or out. It even looked like several cops were arresting a few people in the background.

     "The cops are here right now doing their very best in searching each and every person at the game," the reporter announced. "So far, there has been no success in finding any evidence towards who killed Jack Terrence."

     Ritch couldn't believe what he was hearing. First Meko. Then Zach. Now Jack Terrence? And Jack was murdered? Who would do that? And why?

     All these thoughts were running through his head as he watched. Then, the news anchor switched to a different subject, and his mother went to her phone. Ritch took this time to go to his room and make a call on his phone.

     He normally texted, but he couldn't right now. Literally. His hands were shaking too much. He didn't know why he felt so scared. It was almost like he knew something he didn't know he knew. Something only his subconscious knew. Something buried deep within his mind, lost in a pile of events.

     Megan answered the phone: "Ritch?" she said.

     "Hey," Ritch said frantically. "Did you see the news?"

     "Yeah. Oh my God, Ritch. This is so horrible." She almost sounded like she was crying.

     "Yeah, I know. Who would-," he paused for a second, "who would want to kill Jack?" Then he thought to himself, "Everyone."

     "I don't know, Ritch. Oh, this is so bad. This is so bad."

     "I-," Ritch started, but then he heard the foot steps of his mom coming towards his door. "I've gotta go, Meg. Talk to you in a bit." He hung up and put the phone back on his desk before Megan had time to say bye.

     His mom walked in his room, looked at him, spotted the cell phone on his desk, walked over to it, grabbed it, and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

     "Damn," Ritch thought.

 

 

. . .

 

 

     Ritch lied in bed beneath his covers. He had become so bored, and tired from his mother's list of chores, which he believed were not as many compared to if she had never seen the television, that sleep became the only thing he felt like doing that he could do. But he did not fall to sleep quickly. He doubted anyone who went to his school and had seen the news was able to go to sleep. And so he lied there, staring at the endless darkness above him.

     "Who would do that?" he would think to himself. Then a list of suspects would come to his mind. A list of people who had been bullied by Jack for years. And then, one by one, he began doubting any of those suspects were capable of murdering someone. None of them had been bullied severely enough to actually want to kill him.

     Because he couldn't think of who the murderer was, or atleast come up with a good suspect, he went on to a different question. "How did the murderer get away with it?" He squinted his eyes in the darkness, thinking. "Going in the field house, into the bathroom, killing Jack, and leaving seems way too easy. But how else would it had happened? Must have been a football player. How else would the killer have known where Jack was?"

     He then began thinking of football players who would have any reason at all to be angry with Jack. No one came to mind.

     "Why am I doing this? Let the police handle it," he thought to himself. "They'll find out who it was soon enough." He closed his eyes.

     The slight tapping sound of rain began to sound on the roof and his windows.

 

 

. . .

 

 

      Ritch was at Selina's party, watching Selina and Megan sing together. A blur of time passed and he was singing with them. Then suddenly, Zach and Meko were on the ground. Terry Vac had pushed them down. They left the party together. Ritch did nothing to help them.

 

     His surroundings changed drastically. He was no longer in Selina's house, with the partiers dancing and the music playing, but in a quiet, peaceful kitchen. Before him, he saw Meko with a knife in his hand. Then, with a sudden jerk of his hand, Meko slit his own throat and collapsed to the floor.

 

     Ritch was on a bridge. Zach was beside him, looking down at the rushing water. He tried speaking to Zach, but no words came. He tried reaching out to grab him, but he did not move. Zach began to tilt over the side of the rails. Before Ritch knew it, Zach was falling through the air and splashed into the water below.

 

     Ritch was in an unfamiliar place. A small restroom with only one other person in it. Jack Terrence. He saw Jack come out of the stall, be killed by a knife passing through his throat, and collapse to the floor, just like Meko. Ritch could not see the murderer.

 

     Ritch had seemingly travelled back through time. Jack came out of the stall, was killed, and collapsed to the floor. But this time, Ritch focused on the killer.

He saw a red baseball hat on top of a darkened face.

 

 

. . .

 

 

     Ritch woke up, sweating. He didn't know where he was. Then, after a few seconds, he realized he was in his room, lying in his bed. It was raining outside, and the dim sunlight shone through his window. He took a few minutes to lie in bed and contemplate his dream, or nightmare. He then got out of bed and went into the kitchen where his mother was pouring herself some cereal.

     "Good morning," he said to her.

     "Good morning," she replied. Ritch walked past the stove and to the cabinet that held the cereal boxes. Before opening the cabinet door, he turned around and looked at the clock on the stove. Something about it had caught his attention when he passed it. Something about it wasn't right.

     It was nine o'clock.

     "It's nine o'clock! I'm late for school! Why didn't you wake me up?" Ritch said to his mother.

     "You're not going to school, Ritch," his mother said to him. She stopped pouring her cereal and paused to look at him. He had a confused expression on his face.

     "Why not?" he said in a curious tone.

     His mother took awhile before replying with: "You got into a fight, Ritch. With Terry Vac. You're suspended." Her brow furrowed as she stared at him.

     "What? Are you-w-what are you talking about? I didn't get into a fight."

     He could see in his mother's facial expression that she wasn't lying.

 

 

 

Author's Note

I know this chapter is pretty boring, but what was said and done needed to be said and done. I tried making it as interesting as possible, but it was pretty hard to do. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it. Review please?

Reviews

[0_o Abbie]

It wasn't boring. But I know who did it!!!! Or at least I think I do... Maybe. Anyways I'm not gonna say it just in the slight chance that I'm right I don't want to ruin it for somebody else. :D But I liked this alot. Not the most entertaining chapter, but we all have those chapters to write.

Criticsm. Okay so in the beginning. You say "Ritch was going through something much worse. Therapy." But then you go on to explain how it wasn't that bad because it was an escape from the house. I think it's just a bit contradictory. But it's not TOO TOO bad. So you can leave it if you like it.

uh... Oh yeah. The very last part after he walks in. OKay so. He has time to walk in and stare at the clock, figure it's nine, then realize why that's bad, and say "Why didn't you wake me?" before his mother stops pouring her cereal? And it didn't even sound like she was done. Anyways same as the first thing. Not too too bad so leave it if you like it. :D

Anyways really good. You have a knack for really getting into his head. Which I like. It's something that alot of writers have trouble with. But it seems to come naturally to you. Good job. :D Can't wait for the next chapter. :D

[Miss Sally Sunshine]

This chapter wasnt that boring :P It was a good chapter, the only thing that I find a little off, I guess, is that when Rich fell asleep he kind of saw the killer, and noticed that he had a red baseball hat on his head. If he goes to the police or some one later, they aren't going to believe him because he saw the hat in a dream...

I understand that you said earlier that Rich sort of knew, and that it was burried deep in his subconsience, and usually when you dream that stuff becoms unlocked, but I don't know, it just seemed a bit unlikly for this story.

But besides that. I really liked this chapter and I still can't wait to read more!!

[~Lizzy♬]

Blakey, this wasn't boring. I really loved the dynamic of all the characters throughout the book so far; it really makes them all pop from the book. Maybe Terry did it... I don't know, but that's my guess. You really are an amazing writer and it was very well written. I only saw a couple of changes you can fix, but right now it's late and I don't feel like saying the one... Anyway, it's a great chapter and I love it! :)

~Lizzard~

[halflives]

O.o That was awesome! Very suspenceful. Please write more now!!