"Son?" This word is echoing in Zach's ear again and again.
It's been so long since he didn't hear anyone call him son. And now he couldn't hold his tears anymore so he let it out.
"Who's this young man again?" The woman beside him asked.
"None for your concern." The man said.
"Dad?" Zach sobbed and tried to sound normal again.
The woman just starred at Zach.
"Dad.. where were you all this time? I thought you were..." Zach is looking down to hide his tears and all those emotions.
"Dead!" Zach's dad finished the sentence and Zach looked up at his dad's face.
"But you're not." Zach said. "Where were you all this time!? I thought I killed you & mom." he started sobbing again.
"I'm sorry, Zach." Mr John said.
"Tell me John who's this!?" the woman asked again. "Why's he saying he is your son?"
"Because he is my son!!!" John shouted.
Zach looked up at his dad's eyes and Stella was watching the whole situation from behind.
"Was...was my son." John corrected himself. He knows Zach would want him back being emotional so he said that Zach was his son once but not anymore.
Zach stared at him so confused. "W..was?" He stuttered. "Why didn't you showed up all these years!?" Zach asked pulling his right collar. He became angry again, thinking about all those pains. "Tell me why!??" He is going mad.
"It's because we didn't want you! Nor your brother!" His dad yelled back.
Zach left his collar and stepped back a little. He is in shock.
"I didn't want any kid. But both of you were born accidently. You were born because she took the pills late. And your brother was born though she had the pill at right time. You're mother had strong immune system, so strong that it beat the pills as well." John stopped a little.
Zach is wanting to have more information. Anyone could tell by looking at his face.
"She was so young when both of you were born. She didn't wanted to raise you. It was really hard for her because she was still a student and I, most of the time used to be roaming around from this country to another. It was really hard for her to raise you guys alone. I didn't even helped as I didn't want kids either... she always used to quarrel with me about you and your brother. I hated my life for you guys! Though it wasn't really your faults."
Zach has become a statue. He just didn't utter a single word.
"But one day I yelled at her a lot that..." John continued.
Zach looked up at his face. He can see a tear on John's cheek. "That?" Zach asked.
"That you're mother couldn't take any more pressure. So... she tried to kill herself by fire but when I saw that, she already lit up the lighter, I snatched it from her but the fire had already started to burn the kitchen. That's when I told you guys to flee away from there and.... and even after trying so hard I couldn't save your mother. She screamed so much in pain but she had locked herself up in the kitchen. And I added some scream as well so that you guys think I died too."
"But you didn't." Zach said it in anger yet a calm voice.
"Yes, I didn't. I just faked my death by burning a corpse and putting it close to your mother. Because if I was alive I could have been in jail. Either in the police station or in my own house, with you and your brother. Also I didn't wanted to see your or your brother's face ever because you guys are the one who are literally responsible for their mother's death!" John finished it yelling at him.
Accusing him for no reason at all.
"You guys gave birth to me in a Heaven called home, then left me in a hell called world, without any parent. I wasn't born on my own, was I!?" Zach asked.
John said nothing. It's pin drop silent now. Darkness is taking its toll over the little light that's still helping them see each others faces. It's almost evening.
"Come on, tell me!" Zach broke all the silence. "Was I a bad son!?" Zach held John's collar again. "Answer me!? Was Nick a bad son?"
"You are not even my son!" John pushed Zach away.
Zach came back almost running and punched him direct on his face so hard that he fell on the ground.
Stella and that woman saw everything and put their hand on mouth in shock.
"You deserve more than this but you should be grateful because Peter taught me kindness." Zach said. "Now I know why I was not raised in my own father's home." He stopped to think, if what he was gonna say would be right or wrong. It took him less than one second to think. "It's because he didn't have enough humanity but I had. That's why I left my brother on the right hands. Unlike you!"
Zach cried again. He felt like tearing up the whole wide world but he just screamed like a monster.
Stella held his hands while the woman was trying to help John get up.
"Hey, are you..." Stella trued to ask if he was okay but Zach snatched his hands away from her grip and went away like a storm.
"Hey! Zach! Stop!" but he doesn't. "Please!?" still he doesn't. He just went away from her.
"I don't wanna hurt you Stella." he whispered on his own then started walking like almost running.
Stella on the other hand don't know what to do about Zach's cycle. She is trying so hard not fall down off her cycle while holding Zach's cycles handle.
"Uh Stella?" Ron asked. "Is that you?"
Stella looked at the boy who's asking for her. "Ron! Hey.... how've you been?" she asked and fell on the ground with both cycles.
"Be careful Stella!" Ron helped her get up and asked "Why two cycles?"
"It's a long story." Stella didn't wanted to tell him about Zach.
"I have enough time." Ron wanted to listen. And so Stella started to tell him and he listened everything what happened while walking with her.
"Now can you help me to take this cycle to the lake?" Stella almost plead.
"Sure, why not?" Ron asked. "But I'll ride yours and you ride Zach's, deal?"
Stella nodded and hand him over her cycle while Ron hand her over Zach's cycle.
They rode it again while smiling at each other. Ron is memorizing his old memories with Stella. It has almost been a year since he last went to cycling with her.
"You wait here, I'll be right back." Stella said after reaching outside the lake in front of the bushes.
"Are you sure it's safe?" he asked.
"Yeah. Be right back!" saying that Stella went to the bushes with Zach's cycle. She parked it outside his house as she found the door was locked. She tried to peek inside from the window but everything was so dark inside she almost got scared and came out almost running.
"Done?" Ron asked.
"Yes, thanks to you my friend." Stella patted on his shoulder. "Now get off my cycle cebause I needa get to home, really fast." Stella almost started jumping in hurry.
"Bye..." Ron got a little sad.
"Bye-bye. Hey we can hang out sometimes if you want." Stella tried to cheer him up.
"Okay I'll call you or you tell me whenever you need me." Ron smiled.
Stella smiled back but when she turned around her smile vanished in a minute, thinking about how Zach must be feeling. Also she was a little worried about mum as its been late to go home so she used the ladder to go up in her room after parking the cycle beside her old horrible red cycle. She went down after changing into comfortable clothes and asked Beth, "Where's mum?"
"She has went to the market." Beth replied without even looking at Stella while watching Tom and Jerry in the TV.
Stella let a sigh out. Then Jerry, their cat came to Stella meowing at her.
"Aren't you the cutest cat Jerry?"
"Meow"
"Aww... " saying so Stella took him in her arms and went upstairs.
Zach is still walking on the roads. He's heading to a bar, for sure. His head and face is literally boiling in anger. He opened the door and went inside.
"Give me a full bottle of Irish." he ordered.
His eyes have turned red from the corners.
"What happened to your eyes Zach?" someone asked from beside.