Primary Colors by Kathryn Shay

Author:Kathryn Shay [Shay, Kathryn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2015-04-23T04:00:00+00:00

Rafe was in their ugly apartment, at the sink, cleaning up. She’d gone into a rant about the messy house, just after she surprised him with a brand new winter coat that he’d wanted forever. At ten, he’d outgrown the old one. Now his hands shook, and he tried to man up. Finally, the pile of dirty dishes was clean and he mopped the floor. When he finished, he tiptoed back into the living room, where his mother lay passed out on the couch. As quietly as he could, he cleaned the messy table where beer cans and cigarette butts that made him gag littered the surface. He managed to right the area and not wake her up. Slowly, he donned his new coat and left the apartment with her still asleep.

The trek to Jonas’s studio was only ten minutes down the street. It was early, but maybe Jonas would be awake. Rafe went around back. He saw Jonas in the kitchen, at the coffeepot. He knocked quietly. A smile wreathed his savior’s face, and he crossed immediately to the door. His expression died when he got a glimpse of Rafe.

“What the hell?” He tugged Rafe inside. Drew him to the table, then sat in front of him. He tipped up Rafe’s chin. “Son of a bitch,” he said when he saw the purplish bruise on his cheekbone.

Trying not to cry, Rafe bit his lip. Another adult’s recognition that how he was treated wasn’t right always did that to him. Instead of questioning him, Jonas drew him into a hug. “I’m so sorry, Rafael. I wish I could do something about this.”

Rafe buried himself in the soft fleece, which smelled like paint and Jonas himself. The scents calmed him. When he pulled back, Jonas’s face was red. He was mad all right. “Tell me what happened.”

“I cleaned her bathroom and bedroom up when she left last night. But I was tired and fell asleep before I got the kitchen done. When she came home this morning, she brought me a present.” He tugged on the peacoat. “She told me I was the best boy in the world and she loved me so much.” He battled back the tears. He’d been so happy. He was every time she did something nice for him. “Then she went into the kitchen and flipped.”

“And hit you.”

He sniffed. “Uh-huh.”

“Rafael, this is not okay. We should call the authorities.”

“You said they won’t let me live with you.”

“They won’t, boy. A single man, living in this place. Maybe if Marta and I got married, I could adopt you.”

“Can I stay here a while?”

“Sure. I’ll take you out to breakfast.”

Rafe couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten. “Okay.”

Jonas held him by the shoulders. “I love you, son. As if you were my own.”

Even at ten, Rafe knew that was all that mattered right now.

He jerked upright in bed. He looked around, expecting to see Jonas. Instead, skylights and slatted blinds let in the sunlight. Pretty teak furniture. He was in his own bed, an adult now.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.