text: Note: This is my first short story I have written since high school. I know the writing isn't great, but this is also my first draft so let me know how to improve and what you think. “Brandon wake up” “Brandon we gotta get going wake up” “Here’s your socks and coat, we gotta get going now to get you enrolled bud, lets go” Brandon stumbled out of bed, confused, but following his mothers orders and she prepared him for the day. He gazed around the room. Brandon had an impressive collection of model bridges and buildings. “Brandon, get teeth brushed, and put on deodorant ok?” His mother said. Brandon did as he was told. Brandon looked in the mirror, surprised for a moment, forgetting his mother had buzzed off his curly brown hair the day before to about a half inch in length. He ran his fingers through it before grabbing his toothbrush and bubblegum flavored toothpaste. He loved bubblegum toothpaste. He wouldn’t use any other kind. “Brandon we got 5 minutes before we have to leave.” His mother called from the room over, “Finish up in there quick ok bud?” “OK mom!” Brandon shouted from the bathroom. Brandon didn’t talk much. He didn’t make friends at school too well. He was always much bigger than the other boys at school and he hadn’t quite grasped how to maneuver his large body yet. Brandon fumbled out of the bathroom, teeth brushed, deodorant on, and grabbed his coat, his eyes still foggy from a good night’s sleep. Brandon’s bed time was 8:30 and he always fell asleep fast and deep. Brandon slept only on his back, he snored loudly, and he could not sleep without his blanket. “Ok hop in the van Brandon” Brandon did as he was told. He always listened to his mom. “We are ready to go.” Brandon said to his mom with a smile. His mom hopped into the driver’s side of the 4 door, gray minivan. “Did we brush teeth?” his mom asked, “Let me smell.’ He breathed into his moms nose, proud he knew she would smell his bubblegum toothpaste. “You did good bud. Promise me you will be good today?” “We promise!” “Ok.” Brandon’s mother said with a slight smile “ Can you take this please?” She reached out with two small green pills in the palm of her left hand and a water bottle in her right. Brandon grabbed the pills and swigged them down with water as he had done many times before. He finished the whole bottle. He always finished his water bottles. Pills mean mom is serious, he thought to himself. He would try his best to be good. “Brandon really? Wake up bud.” Brandon’s mothers voice rang in his ears. He had fallen asleep on the way to their destination. The pills always made Brandon sleepy. “Just take these ok?” His mother said as she handed him 3 small white pills and his water bottle. He threw all three of them in his mouth, and then washed them down with the whole bottle of water. He always finishes the whole bottle. The white ones made him excited. He liked those ones better then the green ones. The green ones made his eyes feel funny and made it hard to walk straight. His mother took him by the hand into a large grey building. Brandon recognized it as the building where he went to class last year. She led him down a hall, doors on either side. The hallway had the long white lights. Brandon hated that kind of lights. He liked yellow light bulbs better. He looked into the windows of each of the classroom doors, trying to get a glimpse of the blocks and toys he knew he would be able to play with after school started. At the end of the hall his mother turned a corner and knocked one of the wooden doors. The only door without a window, Brandon noticed. It’s different from the other ones. A women led the two of them into a small room with cushioned chairs. He, his mother, the woman who answered the door, who was now sitting behind a small desk, were the only ones in the room. A second door on the opposite side swung open and a man walked out. Brandon remembered the man from his previous school year. He knew if you saw him you were in trouble. He avoided eye contact. “You must be Brandons mother” the man said , grabbing his mother’s hand and shaking it firmly. “Follow me. Brandon, your mom and I are going to talk for just a few minutes ok?” Brandon was very worried for his mom. Nobody talked to that man for a good reason. The door slammed back shut and Brandon read the word, **PRINCIPAL** “Mom’s in trouble” Brandon whispered to himself. “Mom’s in trouble, mom’s in trouble, moms in trouble” The woman behind the desk offered him a candy from a wooden bowl. “Mom’s in trouble” he continued, ignoring the offer. He could hear parts of the conversation coming from inside the room. “Brandon has a histo.....and violent.........” The mans voice floated through he thin door “He just doesn’t know his own strength.” His mother was raising her voice. Brandon didn’t like it when his mom raised her voice. She only did it when he was in a lot of trouble, or she drank mommy’s grape juice. “Your son” Now the principal was raising his voice. When Brandon raised his voice indoors he had to take some of the green pills and go to his room to calm down. “Your son, injured 3 students last year alone. He is a liability. I’m sorry but we can’t let him continue to attend our school” He could hear his mother begin to cry. “How am I supposed to work? I can’t keep him at home.” Brandon knew what this meant. His mom really was in trouble with the principal, and it was his fault. I needed to explain. He could be good! He got up and started pounding on the office door has hard as he could. “How am I supposed to work? I can’t keep him at home.” His mother continued to cry. “Im sorry but there is nothing more I can do...” Brandon heard the principal say as his fists continued to collide with the door. The door opened swung open and Brandon found himself face to face with the tall, imposing man that was the principal of his school. He saw his mom sitting in a chair, crying. Brandon had sat in that chair before. He knew what the principal was like. He was a bad guy. He had to help his mother. Brandon suddenly swung a fist at the principal, his knuckles colliding with the side of his principals nose. “BRANDON” His mother’s angry voice rang out as she stood from the chair. She grabbed him by the hand and led him out the door they had come in. “You can’t act like that Brandon.” “We didn’t mean to!” Brandon raised his eyebrows and tears started to form in his eyes. “No there is no we this time Brandon. YOU did this. And now what are you going to do Brandon, huh? What are we going to do?” “Just take these and get in the van” She said to him as they reached their van. She handed him 4 more of the green pills and 2 of the yellow ones. He didn’t get the yellow ones very often. He took them, climbed into the passenger seat, and before the van had begun to lurch forward, his eyelids grew heavy and he was asleep. Brandon’s eyelids fluttered open. He felt the weight of the seatbelt across his chest. Looking out the windows he realized he was still in his mother van, but now he was alone. And it was dark. Brandon was afraid his mother and left him. He unbuckled and stumbled out of the car. He knew this place. He was his driveway. He walked to the front door and saw his mother through the window. He knew he was safe. Brandon opened the front door and saw his mom laying on the couch. He called to her without a response. He looked around the room, and noticed several tall glass bottles on the floor. He recognized them as the grape juice that he wasn’t allowed to drink. He knew his mom drank them when she was really sad. Mom was mad at him. That much he knew. But she still needed to read him a story and tuck him in before bed. He shook her reluctantly. He never liked physical contact much. He shook her again. He would live through the touching if it meant he got his story. “Brandon...” His mother muttered as she slowly came to. She sat up suddenly and began to raise her voice, ”Brandon what the FUCK are we gonna do know. Hm? I cant work if youre not at school! We are going to FUCKING STARVE Brandon. You almost broke the principals FUCKING NOSE Brandon, what were you thinking? NOTHING Brandon when do you EVER think? I don’t even know if you CAN.” She was standing up from the couch now, and grabbed one of the bottles from the floor. She walked around the back of the couch that took up most of their tiny living room. She fumbled up the small wooden steps into the kitchen. She opened a drawer and pulled out a small orange pill bottle. Pouring a handful small green pills from the bottle into the palm of her hand she to the now shaking Brandon. “Just fucking take these.” She said handing the four pills and the green bottle to Brandon. “No story Brandon...’ she hiccupped out. “No more stories. Mommy is too sad for stories tonight Brandon. Just take them.” Brandon did what he was told. He took the green pills and washed them down with the strange tasting juice from the green bottle. He felt warm. He watched his mother stumble to her room and begin to snore. Brandon continued to drink. He didn’t like the taste, but Brandon couldn’t take his pills without finishing the bottle. &#x200B; In all of Brandons 25 years, he had never felt like this. His eyelids were growing heavier. He was finding it hard to see straight. Like the green pills only much stronger. His arms and legs were getting warm. He kind of liked the feeling. His breathing slowed, and he drifted slowly off to sleep, on the couch, without his bedtime story.