THREE-ZERO-DARK-THIRTY
The squelching sound of Hauola's walkie ripped me out of my sleep.
It disoriented me to the point where I stumbled around aimlessly in my room, shaking and not being able to form a word. I heard it again, but this time it went through the whole house. I slammed my door open and barged down the hallway to Hauola's room. "OLA! OLA! Turn off your walkie for chrissakes; you're waking up the whole damned house!" The walkie crackled in response from inside his room, and it pissed me off even more. "OLA! Turned that damned thing off!""Melinda," a deep voice came in over the walkie.
"OLA!" I pounded on his door again, not quite registering what I'd just heard. "Turn your walkie off!"
The walkie squelched, "Melinda, is that you babes?"
I practically jumped away from Hauola's door; I didn't know what to make of what I'd just heard, especially after everything. "Hello?"
The door pulled back, and a wide-awake Hauola with headphones stood in front of me. I could see his laptop and PC were on; he was streaming some military games on both computers. "What is your deal??!! It's three in the morning!" He hissed.
"Your damned walkie talkie is on, and it's waking up the whole house! That's what my deal is!" I hissed back, practically spitting through my teeth. He reached for something next to his door and showed me both walkies, "You mean these? The ones that haven't been on all night?" He rolled his eyes at me, shook his head, and before he could shut his door, I pushed my way in and got up in his face. "I'm still your mother, you little piece of shit! You watch how you talk to me!"
"Or what?" He challenged me. "You disappear for six years, and the first thing you want to do is beat my ass? You gotta earn that privilege, MOM,"
I didn't realize that our little exchange had woken up my father; he was coming into the Hauola's room when he caught that last part. He went right past me in a flash and slapped Hauola across his face, I screamed and put myself in between my father and my son, "Dad stop! What are you doing?!"
"She's still your mother no matter what, and long as you're living in my house, you'll treat her with respect," my father's voice was cold and calculating when he was mad. He never abused us growing up, but we all knew there was a line we couldn't cross. Disrespect for your parents was one of them.
"I'm sorry, grandpa," Hauloa moved his jaw around while simultaneously rubbing his face.
"You apologize to your mother, not me," my father pointed at me, letting Ola know that he had better do what he was asked because there was no room for negotiation.
"I'm sorry, mom," Hauola muttered, but he made sure for his grandpa's sake that he looked me in the eye. My father and I left the bedroom and walked to the kitchen for a drink and a late-night snack.
"You didn't have to hit him," I said while pouring him a glass of milk.
"I didn't want to," he stated his case clearly. "Tonight is the first time I've ever had to do that. Up until now, he was fine, but once you got home, he became a completely different person."
"You're saying his behavior is my fault?"
"Of course not, but you have to understand what he's been dealing with this whole time. After Pi'i's death, he needed you," my father shrugged his shoulders.
"All right," I threw my hands up. "I'll pack my things, and I'll be out tomorrow. I'm sure I can stay with Pi'i's parents."
"You're not abandoning your son a second time," my father said in that calm way of his. "I understand how Pi'i's death affected you, but it impacted a lot of other people too, including your son. He lost his father, and his mother walked out on him."
"But dad,"
"It doesn't matter how you try to sell it, Melinda, you left him, and now the two of you have to find a way back to each other so you can both heal," he stood up and took his glass of milk and his plate of pop-tarts to his bedroom. "Don't even think about sneaking out in the middle of the night."
~
4 am
In the dream, I hear the squelch of the walkie talkie; it's Pi'i. "Babes, you have to talk to him, he won't listen to reason. Talk to him, Melinda,"
I press the button down and answer, "Talk to who?"
"Our son," Pi'i replies. "He's in a lot of pain; he needs your help."
"What kind of pain?"
"He's hurting Melinda; he's hurting so bad, he won't listen to me," I've never heard that sound in Pi'i's voice before, it was fear and desperation. "Help him."
I'm sitting up in bed, trying to think of how I could talk to someone who hates me? Someone who'd rather I not exist, how to do I break through that barrier?
~
6 am
There was a massive online gaming community to which Hauola belonged. Then there was the sub-community or the dark realm as they called themselves. That's where Hauola was able to purchase a few guns and cans of ammo. He was dressed and ready for school, but he needed to load all of his clips first. The .45 especially, that's his favorite, the one he practiced with the most. Once he was done, he opened the large floor safe and placed the clip next to the other clips that filled the safe. "Pretty soon," he said to himself. "Pretty soon, dad,"
...to be continued
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