I was doing nothing but staring at the four walls of my bedroom as I spun in my desk chair, waiting for the time to quickly pass by. The weekends fly by when I’m able to actually do things; now that I’m grounded, it seems like time is just slowly going by. It feels like it’s been Saturday afternoon for 5 months now.
I hear someone knock on my bedroom door which makes me stop spinning in my chair. I look at the door and notice my dad standing there.
“Hey, bud,” he simply said. I turned my chair away from him, annoyed to even see him come into my room after what happened yesterday. I hear him sigh. “Milo, we need to talk.”
“I don’t wanna talk,” I snapped back. “I’m tired of talking.”
“That’s because you refuse to listen the first time we had this talk,” my dad emphasized. “Milo, how many times are you going to get into it with someone your freshman year of high school? And of all people, with Mollie? She’s supposed–“
“No, she’s not,” I quickly turned around to face my dad, knowing exactly what he was going to say next. “A best friend will not call you out in front of the entire class like she did. She didn’t have to chime in and say anything–“
“After you called out another student in the class?” my dad noted, crossing his arms. “You are not a victim in this situation, Milo.”
“I’m not trying to be the victim!” I shouted at my dad. “I swear sometimes I feel like you come in here to just push me down further into the ground!”
“Because you are better than this, Milo,” my dad raised his voice, which echoed the entire bedroom. “You know better to not do anything you don’t want happening to you back. You know better than to use my class as a way to seem like this big, tough guy with Aaron Serrano. I told you this weeks before you started school that I will not treat you any different than another student in my class because I shouldn’t have to look out for you. You are simply better than the behavior than what you are distributing out these days.”
“Clearly, you’re never going to be on my side so what’s the point in even trying to reason with you?” I turned my chair around once again away from my dad; this time, he turns it around to face him again.
“I will always be on your side; you are my son,” he said in a softer tone. “But being on your side also means holding you accountable for your wrongdoings.” My dad sits at the edge of my bed to look at me. He sighs before he continues to say anything else. “We need to talk about you and Aaron Serrano.”
“Ew, why?” I quickly snapped. It was like a reflex to say it.
“He’s been the reason since you’ve gotten in trouble this entire school year,” my dad mentioned. “What’s going on between you two?”
“He’s a bully,” I said, ending it there. “He thinks he knows me so well and what I do and he has never anything nice to say to my face.”
“And what does this have to do with your screaming match with Mollie yesterday?” he asked me. I didn’t want to say anything to my dad knowing that it would possibly go back to Jennifer. Wait… why do you care if it goes back to Jennifer? Mollie has not looked out for you once since she’s stated dating this asshole. “Milo?” my dad said.
“Mollie is dating Aaron,” I admitted, not looking at my dad. I felt like I was betraying Mollie, but it was too late now. “That’s why she said what she said in vocal class.”
“That much I can figure out,” he said. I looked up at him, wondering what he meant by that.
“You knew?” I asked my dad. He nodded his head, as if this was common knowledge of some sort.
“It was obvious that the two were dating, but it’s none of my business to say anything about it.” What I’m more concerned about is why them dating is affecting you in any way?”
“Because Mollie is supposed to be my best friend!” I was now getting annoyed with my dad. “Seriously, dad; didn’t your best friend date someone that you absolutely hated because you knew he or she was a piece of shit?”
“Yes,” my dad calmly answered. “Jennifer dated this guy in high school that had no business in being with her. Of course she didn’t listen to me and still went to date him. He ended up using her to take her virginity and then went to tell the whole school what they did.” I looked at my dad, wondering if maybe he knew that this story did not make me feel any better. “I wasn’t happy, but I had to let her do what she wanted to do. And in this case, you have to let Mollie do what she wants to do.”
“But he’s clearly making her go against me–“
“You are showing her that you’re going against her by treating her the way you are because of him,” my dad defined. “What Mollie does with her life should not affect you in any way, regardless about how you feel about her boyfriend.” It’s not that simple, dad.
“Whatever,” I dismissed, not wanting to talk about this anymore. “Is that why you came in my room for?”
“No,” he answered. “I came in here to tell you that this is your final warning of the school year,” he continued to say. “The next time you get into trouble with anybody at Waverly, I’m personally revoking your dual major status.”
“What?” I said, not expecting this would happen and definitely not coming from my own dad.
“I said it once, and I’m not saying it again,” my dad said in a stern manner. “I cannot continue to justify your actions any longer if you continue to act out in this way. Most dual majors get one strike and then they are out permanently. I had to fight Principal Hughes to keep your status after the confrontation with Aaron the second time. Next time, I will be in favor of his decision to terminate your status.” My dad gets up from the bed to start walking out of my room. I still couldn’t believe what was being said. I couldn’t believe that my dad was not on my side when it came to my dual major status. How did you fight me so hard to fucking even apply as a dual major yet is willing to take away from me?
“What happened to being on my side, dad?!” I shouted, not being able to hold in my anger and frustration anymore. “Was that all just bullshit? Why do you continue to make my life a living-fucking-hell hole?! Does it make you feel any better? Huh?”
“Watch who you are talking to, Milo,” my dad said in his usual, stern voice. “Be careful with the words you are using–“
“It’s always me that gets the backlash on everything!” I continued to shout, knowing there as no going back now. “Micah legit does everything in his power to make things harder than they need to be! Jennifer is always at his school picking him up and binging him home because he did something disruptive and yet as soon as he gets here, it’s like nothing happens. The girls can literally do something bad over and over again after being told to stop doing it and no one fucking bats an eyelash! But let me stand up for myself, let me not take shit from any guy or girl from school and al of a sudden my status is being threatened! So what is it, dad?!”
“Milo–“
“Like do you hate that mom is gone and are punishing me for leaving me behind with you? Am I fucking up the little family that you have with Jennifer by being your bastard child?!”
“That’s enough!” my dad yelled. My dad’s voice made it feel like the entire apartment shake for a moment. I hear my baby twin sisters cry from the other room. I can hear Jennifer calling our my dad’s name. I could hear Micah call out for my mom in a panic. The answer was yes, Milo; you are the outsider in this situation, just how you are in school.
Jennifer paces to the front of my bedroom door where my dad still stands, looking at me. She looks at him and then looks at me. She’s confused in what was going on. My dad doesn’t say anything; he turns around and walks out of my bedroom, past the door and past Jennifer.
“Milo?” Jennifer asked.
“Just leave me alone,” I said, turning my chair around, way from the doorway, and away from the rest of my family.
Letters From Liz. 