Before we go back to the present, there is one more thing that I want to talk about: the first day of school following the incident. Yes, we’re going back a bit, but only to the 27th, which is when the fourth term was about to end. I had every right to stay at home, since I was too traumatized, and yet I still went to school.
It started like a usual day of school, but a neat little discussion sparked out of the blue regarding the incident.
“Welcome back, gals!”, said Christine, saluting everyone who came back from Ireland.
“Good to see you, Chris,” Ava responded with a grin.
“You look like you enjoyed the moment.”
“…about that.”
“What’s wrong?”, Christine began asking.
The moment I got into the classroom, everyone who was already present was astounded.
“Gee, Pete, what happened to you?”
“It’s a long story,” I answered.
“I can only imagine.”
“Let’s just say it could have been better, perhaps so much better without a certain someone in the picture.”
“What he said,” Ava agreed.
“Wait, so you’re blaming it all on Luke?”, Christine asked again.
“Not all of it, but, yes, most of the blame goes to him.”
“Speaking of him, where is he? Why hasn’t he come with you?”
“He is arrested.”
“What?!”
“He is accused of theft, assault with a deadly weapon, kidnapping and murder intent, not to mention attempting to burn me to death. That’s five accusations.”
“Good lord…”
“Right now, he is under arrest for 30 days, and investigations are done both in the Parker residence and in the Donovan residence back in Ireland, since it all happened there.”
“And what did the twins do?”
“They initially succumbed to his plan, but then gave up. They’re accomplices, unfortunately, but they surrendered to the police and confessed. If they want their sentence reduced even further, they have to testify against him, which is what they want to do.”
“Testify?”, said Ava in surprise, “wait, hang on, are we going to have a court case?”
“Yes. Whether it’ll happen now or within the next few months or years is a different question, but we are going to have a court case, and he does not seem to have any way of walking away. Either way, thank goodness he’s not here to torture me again.”
“Does that mean that your friendship is over?”, Christine asked.
“It is. I honestly don’t even know if I should call it a friendship, seeing as he used me more as a punching bag than anything else, and he revealed his true face when he got the chance to kidnap me. Had it not been for the twins calling Mark, I would have not been alive right now.”
“Good riddance,” said Ava.
“Indeed.”
Nothing else happened at school throughout the day. Rather than going home immediately, I informed my mother to go to the park for a little bit of relief, and she agreed. I walked, then sat on a bench for a bit, and then walked again. Everything went fine.
However, my eyes could not believe it, and I bumped into the very man I met almost four years ago, when Luke was the one who bumped into him and pushed him by accident, while still putting the blame on him.
“Oh, sorry, sir!”, I said.
“It’s not a problem…wait…you look familiar…”, also said the man.
“You too…”
“Hm, aren’t you…Peter?”
“Yes! Yes, I am, and you’re Connor!”
“I sure am!”
Following this short dialogue, we gave ourselves a big hug.
“It’s been almost four years, I haven’t thought at all that we’d see each other again! How have things been?”, I asked.
“I’ve graduated law school, and I’m now a lawyer,” said Connor.
“Oh, really?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, I see…when was that?”
“Not long after we met the first time, back in 2019.”
“Interesting.”
“I see you don’t look well…and you are injured too.”
“So, you noticed the scars…”
“Yes. I’ve been informed by the police.”
“So, you’re a prosecutor?”
“That is correct.”
“That’s amazing!”
“It is, but I had to put in a lot of effort, and I encourage you to do the same when you get to college.”
“I sure will.”
“So, you’re not friends with him anymore?”
“No. I mean…I do have my classmates, and I’ve just met the Irish, but I can’t spend time with them. The Irish are so far away from home, while my classmates say that they already spend enough time with me almost every day.”
“I understand. My brother is in the same situation.”
“Wait, you have a brother?”
Connor takes out a picture of him and his brother from his bag, handing the picture to me. It looks like they were at an amusement park a few years ago.
“Whoa…you two do look very close.”
“Well, did, the picture is from 2018.”
“Interesting. He looks like he is 15 years old here.”
“Your guess is correct, the picture was done on his birthday.”
“So, he is about two years older than me?”
“Assuming you’re born in 2005, yes.”
“I am. Well, my birthday is in less than two months…”
“I see…here’s the issue. Even to this day, he still has difficulties making friends. The moment he gets a friend, that person quits and leaves him alone.”
“I do need a new friend…”
“What do you like to do in your free time?”
“Either go out in the park like what I’m doing right now, playing video games, or simply editing all kinds of pictures and videos.”
“You’re not as different from him as I expected. I think you can get well with him.”
“It won’t hurt meeting him one day.”
“With pleasure. How about we go at a restaurant near the park this Friday? You’ll meet him here. Besides, it’ll be the end of your term, right?”
“Of course! I’ll gladly come!”
“That’s what I want to hear. Well, I’m afraid I have to go. See you later,” said Connor, ready to go as he had some problems to solve.
“Wait! Please, one more minute!”
“Hm, anything else you want to say?”
“May I please get your phone number, or anything to contact you or him?”
“Sure. Here’s my card. It has my phone number in it. Just send me a message so I know that it’s you, and then we’ll talk.”
“Thank you, and I’m sorry for insisting this time, around…”
“It’s not a problem. Anyway, see you soon.”
“See you soon!”
After meeting Connor, I became ecstatic, and went straight back home.
Outside of the meeting at the park, nothing happened for the next few days. However, the 31st was the last day of the term, and the restaurant was the best way of celebrating it. After school, the first thing I did was to tell my mom, again, that I wasn’t going straight home, and she, again, accepted, as it was beneficial to spend some time elsewhere besides home and school.
I arrived at the restaurant. I think I got here a little too early, since Connor was nowhere to be seen, and neither was his brother. They did arrive several minutes later through car, since Connor knows how to drive. As they stopped, Connor got out of the car.
“My salutations, Peter,” Connor greeted me.
“Good afternoon,” I said.
“Well, remember when I said that I have a brother?”
“I do. Is he here?”
“Yes, and he is delighted to meet you.”
Connor then does a gesture towards his brother to get him to step out of the car, and so he did.
“Pete, this is Andy. Andy, this is Pete. I’m sure you’ll get very well together.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you, too,” said Andy.
I do have to admit, I did believe Connor when he said that Andy had trouble meeting new people and forming friendships, but I didn’t think that he was actually that shy. Most people I met of his age were most definitely not this shy. Now, of course, not everyone is the same. I know it myself. After all, my former friend got arrested for trying to commit a crime that almost worked. With that said, though, there are a few expectations. Regardless, Andy seemed pretty interesting, and I wanted to spend some good time with someone and have fun anyway.
So, here we are, sitting at a table, and everyone is acting natural, as much as they can, anyway. I’d be much less agitated under normal circumstances, but trauma is trauma. However, even Andy noticed this, and he began asking questions. Not all of them were comfortable, so I tried keeping my cool.
“Hey, why are you shaking?”, Andy asked.
“Anxiety. I’ve just experienced something,” I answered.
“What have you experienced?”
“Violence.”
“What kind of violence?”
“Physical violence. It was really unpleasant, and I don’t think I want to scare you by talking about it.”
“Did you get whipped?”
“Huh?”
“I see some scars.”
“Oh…yeah, I did get whipped....”
“Did you do something bad?”
“Perhaps for whoever whipped me, because everyone else believes even to this day that I haven’t done anything wrong.”
“And who whipped you?”
“Someone who just got arrested.”
“Is it your father?”
“Oh, no. I know that parents who abuse their children still exist, even though they shouldn’t be around anymore, but it wasn’t either of my parents who whipped me.”
“You sure are putting a lot of questions, Andy. Maybe slow it down,” said Connor.
“No, it’s fine.”
I’m surprised even now how I was able to keep it cool. Then again, it was rather curiosity that got Andy instead of just trying to be as annoying as possible. How am I defending someone who is two years older than me? I have no idea.
“I’m sorry if he acts like this.”
“No, it really is fine. If he wants to know me and this is his method, I can’t go against it. In fact, I appreciate the initiative.”
And this is when both smiled. For Andy, it was unbelievable that someone was honest to him and appreciated what he did. As for Connor, he couldn’t believe that a bond was already forming between him and another person. Well, it was me of all people, so I did have some experience of making new friends.
About an hour later, all three of us drank juice, ate our meals and were ready to pay. Interestingly, Andy asked me a question that I thought nobody would ever bother asking.
“When is your birthday?”, he asked.
“It’s on the 25th of May,” I said.
“Oh, so you’re a Gemini?”
“Uhm…yes…I think…yeah, I’m not good at zodiac signs,” I said, with confusion…
“Cool!”
“Oh, speaking of my birthday. I do want to host a party, but I’m a bit short on who to invite. Care if you two come?”
“You know what? Why not? That way, we get to know each other even better, and Andy may meet some new people,” Connor responded.
“That’s what I thought. Anyway, glad to meet you, Andy, and it’s nice to see you again after so long, Connor. I have to go.”
“Oh, this soon?”, Connor asked.
“Sadly, yes, although it was fun while it lasted.”
“Of course, of course. Alright, we’ll see each other again soon, hopefully.”
“Definitely.”
“Take care, Pete.”
I stood up and left the table. Just as I was about to leave the restaurant, I was told one more thing.
“Pete, wait!”, Andy exclaimed.
“What’s the matter?”
“Send me a message when you get home!”
I smiled, knowing that someone finally cares for once.
“Alright, I will. See you two later.”
And so, that is the end of my entire series of flashbacks and awful memories. We’re now back in the present day, near the end of May of this year, 2023. At this point, you’ve already remembered what has happened to me over the last couple of months, and, as I said, I only have a few days left until I am no longer considered a child. That in itself is not very important, but I fear it might matter within the following days.
But, yes, due to all of these experiences, I’ve just lost a friend. However, I believe I have no fault in this. My classmates don’t believe that I have a fault either, and those from the other side agree. Even Connor and Andy, who have just barely met me, believe that I had no fault whatsoever. I also believe that Luke is getting what he deserves, exactly what he told me when he punched me in the stomach for the second time. At the moment, he serves his second term under arrest for the sake of investigation. The first one was 30 days long, and the Judge has given him 30 additional days. These thirty days are yet to be done, although they’re soon ending, and me and my family had already been announced that a trial will certainly begin at some point.
Since he is under arrest, Luke is no longer able to actually go to school, and if he wants to continue schooling, he has to do it from prison.
All that was left, however, was to get a call, and that’s what I got. I answered.
“Uhm…hello…?”, I asked.
“Mr. O’Brien?”, said a man with a fairly deep voice. It wasn’t a fake, though.
“Peter O’Brien here.”
“Alright, sir, we’re informing you that you shall be present at the trial against Luke Parker. We’ve gathered every bit of evidence and the investigation is over, so the process can begin. You’re asked to come at exactly 10:00am on the 25th, and not a minute later.”
Wow, that’s tomorrow, so does that mean that I go to trial on my birthday? Such news is unlike anything I’ve heard previously, and yet I received exactly this!
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. See you in court.”
“See you.”
The call was brought to an end, and so was the day.
And so, Judgment Day arrives, May 25th, 2023, the trial against Luke, and the battle to put an end to the whole 4-year war. It had to happen, after so long. Oh, and it’s also my birthday, how neat. Of course, it’s that time of the day when people give you messages and calls, wishing you a happy birthday. This time, some sauce was added, as the Irish also wished me a happy birthday.
Even if it is otherwise a normal day of school, I had to inform the teacher that I couldn’t come, since, well, I was called to come to the court.
I enter the court. To my surprise, I got to see Connor again.
“Hello, sir,” I said, greeting Connor.
“Oh, you’ve been called to get here?”, Connor asked.
“Yes. After all, I’m the victim of the incident.”
“Right, right. All you have to do is to keep your calm. I’ll handle the situation.”
“Given the accusations and witnesses, I don’t think it’ll be easy at all for Luke to get away.”
“Nope. Harsh cold evidence will prove that too. Alright, let’s go, the court is about to begin.”
It is 10:00am. The entire courtroom is shrouded in silence. The Judge enters the courtroom, and everyone stands up as soon as the bailiff signals the audience.
“Court may begin. Everyone, sit down,” said the Judge.
The entire room is dead silent. That’s not a good sign, considering that the one being accused is supposed to be present already.
“Is the defence ready to take the case?”
“Yes, Your Honour,” said the defence attorney.
“Is the prosecution ready to take the case?”
“Yes, Your Honour,” said Connor, who represents the prosecution.
“Right, before we begin the case, I want you to talk a bit about it through your opening statements. The prosecution may begin.”
Connor plays around with his throat for a bit before beginning his opening statement.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I’ll introduce myself as Connor Murphy, representative of the prosecution in this case, and I am pleased to be part of this case. It seems that this case is about a young man, the defendant right here, Mr. Luke Parker, whose deadly sins, such as greed and lust, got the better of him, wishing for true dominance while, at the same time, using the victim and plaintiff, Mr. Peter O’Brien, as a punching bag just to barely control his anger. This is a special case, since the specific action did not actually take place within the boundaries of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, but rather within the boundaries of our only neighbouring country by land, the Republic of Ireland, as the parties involved are both British and Irish. To elaborate, on the 25th of March of this year, 2023, while in their last few hours before the flight from Dublin to London, the defendant knocked the plaintiff unconscious, obtained the assistance of twins to carry his body to their residence, locked him in the basement in harsh conditions, and, upon the plaintiff waking up, tortured him with a whip and almost killed him with gasoline and a lighter, which would have not just burned him, but would have also burned the rest of the basement and, beyond a reasonable doubt, the whole residence. Apparently, this was not just a one-time problem, as it was rather something planned, and there had already been a fierce relation between the two sides. The prosecution believes that these accusations are true, and will support it with the help of a couple of witnesses and even harsh cold evidence, the primary weight in this case. The prosecution asks for a verdict of guilty.”
Whoa, that was pretty long. Then again, the prosecution does have to give it all to get his opponent to what is considered a fair verdict. That guilty verdict isn’t given without a good reason.
“The defence may begin their own opening statement.”
And now we get to the other opening statement…and it’s a boring one, and it’s not even a strong one to begin with, making it all the worse.
“Good morning, ladies and gentleman. The name is Robin Preston, and I have the pleasure to represent the defendant, Mr. Luke Parker, in this very important case. As the prosecution pointed out, the case is about him and the victim. However, the defence believes that our client rather did this out of self-defence while also not having the mental capacity that was needed to acknowledge what he was doing, so we ask for the fair verdict of not guilty.”
“Thank you. The case may now begin. However, I only want one single thing from the court case, to make it short, simple, and clear for everyone,” said the Judge, “I want the defendant and the plaintiff themselves right here, right now.”
“As you wish, Your Honour,” said Sir Preston.
I was called to the plaintiff’s stand. Here I am, full of confidence, without any fear, ready to confront Luke for the last time. Soon after I got to the stand, Luke came, too, with handcuffs and an officer behind his back, but he seems to be incredibly mad this time around. Furious, in fact.
“Bloody hell, why do I have to see you again?!”, Luke exclaimed in anger.
“Silence!”, said the Judge, hitting the gavel.
The court suddenly turns dark, as the Judge is ready to unleash his fury, whereas the audience remains in astonishment.
“After two months, you still fail to admit your own wrongdoings, defendant?”, the Judge asked.
“What kind of wrongdoings, sir?”, said Luke in response, trying to have some nerve.
“Hmm, it seems that you’ve got a lot of nerve, defendant. Let me tell you something: normally, I’d be completely impartial and the court would have proceeded as normal, with witnesses, evidence, statements, examinations, everything that you can imagine happening in a courtroom. Am I correct?”
“Who cares what is correct?”
“That is not the attitude I am expecting. Furthermore, you’re already on your first strike. I could have given you one right away for acting rude towards your plaintiff, but it would have been too early, so I let that slide for now.”
“Excuse me, Your Honour, may I present the evidence?”, Connor asked.
“I would like to see it,” said the Judge in response.
Connor proceeds to give the Judge the entire suitcase. Inside the suitcase, there are tens of pictures of the Donovan residence, especially the basement. Since the gasoline could have not been retrieved, pictures were the only solution to present them. However, the whip and the lighter are there, with revealed fingerprints from Luke. Interestingly enough, there was also a bit of blood and some ripped clothing in the residence itself. The blood may have been the nosebleed from the twins, whereas the clothing was mine.
“You did not mention anything regarding the blood and the ripped clothing, Mr. Murphy,” the Judge pointed out something.
“The ripped clothing was not mentioned because it was within the actions the defendant had done, hence why he is also accused of theft.”
“I see. What about the blood?”
“The blood didn’t come from the plaintiff, Your Honour. It actually came from the twins, who admitted to the Garda on the day of the crime that they were accomplices.”
“So, why were they involved in the first place?”
“The crime was not entirely done by the defendant. Once he hit the victim unconscious, someone had to carry his body, and he needed help from two people. The closest people to him at that time were the Donovan twins, Patrick and Leonard. The crime also took place in their house, since they had no other hiding place.”
“And how did the police find out about all of this?”
“According to the police officers themselves, they were informed by some of their friends, who got the messages and call from both twins, effectively giving away the details.”
“Objection, Your Honour! One of the officers told us that only one of the twins called!”, said the defence attorney.
“Objection sustained. However, it barely changes anything,” said the Judge.
“Hm, even if that is true, the information still got to the end.”
“Alright, there is only one more detail to point out, and it involves the plaintiff. After which, the verdict will be decided.”
“Yes, Your Honour?”, I asked.
“It has been two months since the incident. How do you feel after all this time?”
“I still don’t feel good. I’ve only gotten slightly better because my classmates and my friends tried making me feel happy, especially since I managed to find a new friend, who treats me far better than Luke has ever treated me.”
“Interesting. Uhm, sorry for asking, how old are you?”
“I’m turning 18 today.”
“Well, happy birthday. I’m aware that you acknowledge that responsibilities change when you turn 18.”
“I am. I don’t feel old, though.”
“Indeed. After all, when the crime was committed, you were still a minor.”
“I believe everything, every event that had me and Luke involved in some capacity or another lead up to this.”
“Your belief is not to be disputed.”
“I don’t think this was a spark that came out of nowhere. Luke and I had known each other for almost four years. Ever since I met him, I had had nightmares. I saw him acting aggressive towards other people, and even towards me, even going as far as punching me in the stomach in October because I won a tournament fair and square, and he punched me again in March, one day before the incident.”
“I see…and what is your wish?”
“I wish I didn’t get to see him ever again. I want this court case, this very moment, to be the very last one I see him. I’ve endured too much, seeing him act so mean to everyone, and even resorting to physical violence just to gain any kind of dominance. I was about to succumb to death because of his greed.”
Suddenly, flashbacks of what happened in 2019 appeared again, but only briefly. I continued talking.
“That’s not true!”, said Luke.
“He said he wasn’t the guy to bully people just because they’re nerds or good at school,” I persisted, “he was acting quite friendly at first. It took me so long to realize that he, in fact, was just like my classmates, if not worse, wanting my destruction, alongside our friendship that no longer exists.”
“I didn’t say that at all! You’re lying!”, Luke exclaimed.
“Mr. Parker, that’s your second strike! One more, and you’re escorted from this court!”, said the Judge in anger.
“I want to get out of here, anyway!”
“I’m not offering you this satisfaction just yet. Mr. O’Brien, continue.”
“However, that specific day, exactly two months ago, was truly a bad one, and it’s a day that I don’t want to any of my enemies, regardless of how rude and disrespectful they were, but never had I met a person as crude as Luke. I only hope that, if he gets arrested, and when he gets arrested, the moments he has to spend in prison will change him as a person.”
“You bastard…”
“I should have listened to my classmates and my friends from Ireland, and end the friendship earlier. Had that happened, we wouldn’t have been in this situation, and maybe, only maybe, I would have reconsidered giving him a second chance much later and rebuild our friendship. His attitude over the last couple of months, however, proved that he wanted my death and nothing else.”
“Shut up!”, Luke shouted and rushed towards me, trying to hit me again. The officer stopped him at the very last brink.
“It seems that your temper is a little bit on the short end, Mr. Parker,” said the Judge, “and you know nothing but prejudice, greed and lust. I have no idea who taught you to act like this, especially to someone who seems to have done nothing wrong to you whatsoever.”
“Oh, yes, he did!”
“I’m giving you the third strike, Mr. Parker. Before you go, however, I do want to make you acknowledge one very important thing.”
“There’s nothing else to unveil that hasn’t been unveiled already! He’s only spouting lies!”
“He is spouting truth beyond a reasonable doubt, Mr. Parker. The universe does not revolve around you at all. You almost killed an innocent person, torturing him with a whip, beating him multiple times, stealing and destroying his objects, and you even almost burned him to death, not to mention that he had to endure humiliation all of the time, coming from you, and he didn’t fight back physically, unless it was for the sake of self-defence. This is the kind of person that had the spiritual strength that you simply haven’t had, and you demonstrated exactly that through your actions. With this evidence and many people knowing what you did, there is no way that even the best attorney has the capability of defending you. I want you to realize that there could have been many other ways of solving the problem of your broken friendship. If you really didn’t want to be friends with him anymore, you could have simply said that you were done with him, plain and simple. Nonetheless, you didn’t choose the path of peace and diplomacy, and you instead only went for the dangerous path, for the sake of seeing your former friend suffering, even after he had given you many chances. I personally wouldn’t have done the same.”
“Me neither, Your Honour,” said Connor.
“I have to agree with the prosecution here, Your Honour,” said Robin.
“I’m glad both sides are on the same boat,” said the Judge, “because, unfortunately, someone else always disagrees, even if everything is right in front of him, and he proceeds to act immaturely instead of accepting the truth. Mr. Parker, as a judge, a magistrate of the country, I can’t say that I have not seen cases of people torturing one another, or cases that took place in other countries, only for the responsibility to go to us, because we have to handle the situation, as it was between the citizens of our own country. A case that combines both? Not at all. As a human being, I am absolutely disgusted by your attitude and the lack of one that is more appropriate to a human than to an animal, unless you are a werewolf and we didn’t know of it beforehand.”
The audience laughs, to Luke’s dismay.
“Why is the audience laughing? This is outrageous! I did not sign up for this!”, Luke exclaimed in fury.
“It is to show you that you need to accept humiliation coming from others, something that it seems that you haven’t had part of it, and you have to acknowledge that not everything has to go your way, and, furthermore, you shouldn’t resort to violence whatsoever, especially for such matters. I’m not just disappointed that people like you exist, I am absolutely thwarted, and I hope that you’ll learn your lesson after this court.”
“Amen,” said Connor.
“Amen,” also said Robin.
“Amen,” said the police officer as well.
“The court is brought to recess, we’ll come back as soon as possible,” said the Judge, and everyone is put into recess.
Luke tries for one final time to go after me, but this time, he is completely blocked by the officer.
After the short recess, everyone is brought back to court.
“Has the jury reached a verdict?”, the Judge asked.
“They voted unanimously,” said the bailiff.
“So be it. After the events of today’s case, determining if he receives a life sentence for theft, murder attempt, reckless use of fire, kidnapping, and assault with a deadly weapon, I hereby declare that the defendant, Mr. Luke Parker, is…”
The court is in deep silence. The drums inside my mind are rolling, everything being held in suspense. However, for me and everyone else, that was all. Meanwhile, Luke is about to have part of something that I had two months, and it is the very bite that was given back to him. His entire life went through his eyes and mind, day by day, hour after hour, and each and every second, very briefly, as if his fate in this court case was a moment of life or death. At some point, he began groaning in his own misery.
After two whole minutes of full verdict analysis, coming from the bailiff, the prosecution, the defence attorney, the clerk, and the Judge himself, two minutes that felt like an eternity for Luke, as he began to sweat. His skin turned pale with goosebumps all over, his body began shaking in fright, and it felt like it wasn’t him anymore.
“…guilty,” said the Judge, at last, hitting the gavel right afterwards.
“You’ll pay for this, O’Brien! Death! You hear me! Death!”, said Luke, laughing like a maniac.
However, things went pretty painful for him once the officer hit him in the groin.
“Gwoh!”, he grunted.
And mere seconds later, he began screaming in pain, and he was then taken out of the courtroom.
“As for you, Mr. O’Brien, we will try as much as possible to pay you for all of the damages and trauma that you had to go through,”
“Well…I’m having a birthday party, though I don’t think I’ll be able to host it today since it’s only Thursday, so I’m leaving it for tomorrow,” I said.
“That’s nice. We’ll sure come and give you gifts. For the time being, we’ll say to you: happy birthday. Court is adjourned.”
The court case ended in an overwhelming victory. As I stepped out of the court, Connor touched my shoulder, and I turned.
“You did a wonderful job keeping your cool and showing courage against Luke,” said Connor.
“I did?”
“Absolutely. I appreciate that you did this and you’ve shown no signs of fear like he wanted you to. You’ve shown strength, and in the court, mental strength is important.”
“It turns out to be the case, heh.”
“So…when is that party, again?”
“Tomorrow evening. You can come with Andy if you want.”
“We’ll make time for it. See you then.”
“See you soon!”
And this is the last time that I got to see Luke. Sadly, things haven’t gone well for him at all since the incident, and even less so after the court case. He’s been sentenced to life in prison without any parole. Remember when I said that his parents were fighting and wanted to divorce? Well, since their son is in prison, they actually divorced, leaving them both in ruins as well and ruining the entire family. The friendship between them and my parents also ended, putting all of the blame on their son. Last but not least, the Parkers, now divorced, also lost almost all of their wealth for the psychological damage. Money, however, cannot ever purchase scars or life, no matter how hard one tries.
Just after the court ended, I got a call from Ava.
“Hey, Pete, happy birthday!”
“Thank you so much!”
“I heard that you got involved in a court case. What happened?”
“You won’t believe it if I say it…Luke actually got arrested for good.”
“Wait, really?”
“Yes!”
“Oh my god! That really is the best birthday gift you’ve gotten!”
“You know, after all that happened over the last four years, it really does feel like it’s the best birthday gift I’ve ever gotten.”
“Right. So, what do you want to do now?”
“I’ll just go home. By the way, tell everyone involved in the project that they’re invited to my birthday party.”
“When is that?”
“Oh, it’s tomorrow evening.”
“Perfect! Thanks for the invite, I’ll tell everyone else!”
“You’re welcome. See you tomorrow at school.”
“See you!”
The call ended.
Unfortunately, out of unfairness for himself, shortly after the court case, Luke entered into a grave depression, thinking of all bad things possible in his cell. Despite being in prison for less than a day, after he had his dinner in prison, he couldn’t take it anymore. And so, at exactly 12:00am, he committed suicide, and died of blood loss. The officers informed the whole Parker family regarding this. While he was given a funeral, it would not happen until much later. I was not invited, but, perhaps, it was for the better. I’m not a person who dares to disrespect the dead, but I had already decided that my life would no longer be about Luke’s. After all, I had a birthday party to host.
In the end, a parallel line was drawn, which separated the two worlds. A few people who felt important to Luke’s life were invited to the funeral, booked for the 27th, and it would be the final time the Parkers would show up united as a strong couple, but otherwise weak and divided, but it wasn’t a small funeral. Meanwhile, a party was to take place right on the 26th, and whoever felt important to me was invited. While I did see this very line coming, it was no longer a matter that I had to solve, and everyone agreed on that.
In the afternoon of the 26th, just after school ended, a plane arrived from Dublin to London. It turns out that the plane was full of people involved in the cultural project, who were ready to join the birthday party, as a huge surprise for me. Later that afternoon, Connor and Andy were the first to arrive at the party, alongside Connor’s girlfriend, who goes by the name of April.
“Happy belated birthday!”, said Andy.
“Thank you! Come in!”, I responded.
“Right, where do I put this present?”, Connor asked.
“You can put it near that shelf, there is some space for presents. I’ll open them later, assuming we’ll have more guests.”
“Smart thinking. Are you expecting someone else?”
“A few of my classmates and those from the other side.”
“I see. It feels like you’ve invited the whole world,” said Connor with a chuckle.
“Well, not exactly. I was informed by the Parkers themselves that their son committed suicide. My condolences to him, but I don’t want to deal with him again.”
“Whoa, you’re not sparing him at all, are you?”
“Not my fault he was this evil.”
“Indeed. I do like your spirit, though.”
“Well, I can’t say that things are going back to normal. I did have peace before meeting Luke, but I didn’t have friends at that time. Now that I have my classmates, the Irish, and even you two, I’m more than content.”
“That’s what I want to hear!”
The conversation was interrupted by the doorbell.
“I’ll check.”
Upon opening the door, I got to see Ava, Ivy, Amber and Alice, each with their gifts.
“Surprise! Happy belated birthday!”, said all four in sync.
“Thank you, thank you! You’re so kind!”
“Ah, don’t worry, it’s your birthday after all, and a big one at that, since you’re now officially an adult!”
“Of course. Uh, the party room is there. Don’t be scared if you see a man, his girlfriend and his brother. They’ve just arrived as well.”
“Are they people you really know?”, Ava asked.
“Well, not quite. I did meet the man four years ago, when Luke was dumb enough to accidentally push him and he put the blame on him for not walking carefully and for ruining his shoes. We saw each other for the first time in almost four years following the incident and he introduced me to his brother, who is now my new friend. That’s it, though.”
“And how’s the friendship going?”, Ivy asked.
“Things are definitely going better with Andy than they have ever been going with Luke, that’s for certain,” I said with a mild chuckle.
“Well, as long as you feel good, that’s all that matters,” said Amber.
“Indeed. Right, come in.”
“About Luke…how long is his sentence?”, Ava asked again.
“Well, for theft, assault with a deadly weapon, reckless use of fire, murder attempt, kidnapping and the weight of the court, evidence, he got a life sentence, without parole.”
“Whoa…that’s painful.”
“It is. I don’t know what was in his mind that made him do everything.”
“Jealousy?”, Alice asked.
“Maybe. Uhm, may I ask something?”
“What is it?”
“Any chance some of our other classmates come soon?”
“Nancy and Christine are on their way. Not sure about the rest, though,” said Ava.
“I see…”
“Have you invited Nicholas and Daphne too?”
“I have, and they’re coming.”
The conversation was interrupted by the doorbell, again. I went to the door and opened it. This time, it was Nancy and Christine, alongside Nicholas and Daphne.
“Happy birthday!”, said all four.
“Whoa, thanks! Come in!”
“Where do we leave the presents?”, Christine asked.
“Oh, it’s simple, there’s the party room, and you can leave the presents in that spot near a shelf. Don’t worry, there are some people here too, and you’ll have the chance to meet them!”
“Do you know them?”
“Well, we do have some of our classmates, but I’m talking more about a man, a younger man who is his brother, and his girlfriend.”
“Ah, I see. Thank you!”
“No problem.”
Just as they got into the party room and everyone started to greet each other, the doorbell was heard again.
“Gee, Pete, you definitely have to deal with that a lot,” said Connor in the background.
Everyone laughed, even I did.
“Certainly,” I said.
I opened the door again, with Kevin, Phillip and Amira right at it.
“Surprise!”, said all three.
“How nice! Uhm, come in!”
“So, where do we leave these?”, Kevin asked.
“In the party room, in that one spot near the shelf. Anything else?”
“Oh, nothing more,” said Amira, “though I do have to say that your house looks nice.”
“I appreciate it.”
The doorbell rings once again.
“Connor, you certainly weren’t wrong when you said that I have to deal with this, heh,” I said.
“You sure have invited a lot of people,” Connor responded.
“Well, what can I do? It’s a big moment. You don’t turn 18 twice in life.”
“True. Check who’s waiting.”
I opened the door again. To my surprise, it was the whole Irish gang, save for the twins and the teachers.
“Happy birthday!”, everyone shouted in sync.
“Wow! I really didn’t expect you guys here! Thank you! Come in, please!”
“Whoa, that’s a beautiful home you have,” said Robert.
“Thanks. I’ve been living here the entire time, that’s all I can say.”
“Right, we got some presents,” said Nora.
“Ooh, alright. The party room is straight ahead, and you can leave the presents right on that spot near the shelf.”
“Thank you!”
“I hope there is actually some space left. I’ve not been in the room much at all today.”
“There is, don’t worry!”, said Connor.
“Well, if a man of law said so, you can’t contradict him.”
The Irish laughed, and so did I and Connor.
“Alright, well, have fun.”
“Aren’t you coming?”, Robert asked.
“I’m coming soon. I think that’s everyone.”
“Are you sure you’re not missing somebody?”, Mark asked.
“I’m absolutely sure everyone is here.”
“What about Luke?”
“Luke is a complicated situation.”
“Did you actually end your friendship?”
“It goes beyond that.”
“What is it, then?”, Ruby asked.
“It is something that Connor knows. I’m not sure if April or Andy know as well, and it’s a tragic one.”
“Oh…what happened?”, Ava stepped in.
“As much as I shouldn’t care, after all of the drama that happened between the two of us over these four years…he’s not with us anymore.”
“What?”
“He got arrested and, out of despair, he committed suicide at midnight.”
“And aren’t you going to his funeral?”, Ivy asked.
“I am not invited, and it isn’t because the Parkers hate me, but they thought that it will be better for my sanity if I don’t go there, as I’ll have to experience everything all over again. It shows that they still care for my wellbeing, after all that had been done.”
“Well…you can’t blame them.”
“They have their reasons, and they happen to be those. It’s a wise decision.”
“Alright, well, maybe we should open the gifts before we start the party,” said Ava.
“Sure.”
But just as I was about to head into the party room, the doorbell rang once more.
“Uhm…that’s weird…”
“You said that everyone is here,” said Amber.
“Is there somebody from your own group that is missing?”
“No?” said everyone at once.
“I’ll have to check. One second.”
“Wait!”, said Andy, trying to stop me.
“What’s the problem?”
“I want to come with you!”
“Oh…sure.”
“I’ll come as well for the sake of your safety,” said Mark.
“Alright, you two come with me.”
The three of us left the party room. To my absolute shock, the one who was in front of my door wasn’t actually a person that I knew. I opened it.
“Uhm…hello?”, I asked.
“Hey…”, said the young girl.
“I don’t know you, how may I help you?”
“Oh, sorry. I am Shannon.”
“Shannon…Shannon who?”
“Shannon Parker.”
“Don’t tell me you’re related to Luke.”
“As a matter of fact, I am.”
“Look, I’m so sorry for your loss. I know it’s hard and sad to even think of it.”
“I didn’t come here for that.”
“Oh. Why are you here, then?”
“I’m his sister.”
“Do you seek vengeance?”
“If I was exactly like Luke, then, yes, I would seek vengeance, but I am not.”
“Whoa…well, I didn’t even know he had a sister. I was told the entire time that he was a single child.”
“He wasn’t, except that the little twat did everything to hide me from people. Our parents did not notice it at all until after he was put under arrest in March.”
“Gee…that’s bad.”
“And to top it off, he hurt me physically, but I said nothing.”
“And how come you didn’t call the police?”
“I didn’t want our parents to notice, but since you got back in the country with a police officer, the job was already done.”
“I see…well, again, I’m sorry for everything.”
“No, you don’t have to be. I came here to apologize. I take his fault for everything he had done to you over the last four years, and I’m sorry that you had to endure it all this time. You didn’t even get to see me at all until today.”
“I feel bad for you…especially since you aren’t the one who was supposed to apologize. It’s now too late, since he’s dead.”
The girl went close to me and she kissed me, all of a sudden.
“Whoa…that was…something.”
“It was.”
“Since you’ve come all of the way here, if you want, you can come in and stay at the party.”
“I want that.”
“Great! Have fun!”
Shannon enters the house, and gets straight to the party room, where she greets everyone.
“Alright, everyone, let’s unpack those presents, eat some cake and get the party starting!”, I exclaimed with a lot of excitement. The party actually began.
Surprisingly, the party went on better than I expected. Everyone had fun, and not a single moment of the party was bad, not even the music, where everyone was either dancing or admiring the way other people were dancing, which was great. A few party games were hosted too, including the classic pillow fight, which was the most fun, just to make it all the better. Nobody felt ignored or isolated, which is all that mattered, not even Shannon, who arrived last, or Andy, who normally felt like this when he went into various different places, but this was also the first party he was invited to, after many years.
Eventually, the most important part, the actual birthday celebration, arrived. Out of honour, Robert and Andy held the large cake with its 18 candles, while Mark was responsible with the bottle of champagne. Plenty of photographs were taken and hugs were given. It was as if I really deserved a party like this, after so many days of dread coming from Luke. I only dreamt of such a party happening, and yet it was still wonderful to see it in action, let alone with issues, as everyone got along extremely well.
It is, by far, and even now, the best day of my life, and I’m still glad that it happened, especially after meeting some of the best people I’ve had the chance to see, guiding me to a path of freedom and self-control.
These people, being my classmates, my friends from another country, even people who were complete strangers at first, are true examples of how friends should be, and whatever experiences I had with Luke, whether he is around or not, should not be completely ignored, but rather treated as an anti-example. This is something of utmost importance to take into account when meeting new people, especially if I don’t want to face terror in any way, shape or form, as it was the case for Luke. So far, the formula works flawlessly for Andy, who is now my new best friend.
However, only time will tell if our friendship remains just as strong in the future.
