This was previously released under my account, but I always felt that it was AlternativeAnon's story. The original story idea and the characters were his creation, and I had only hoped to help him shape his story into a more polished final product. I failed to include some elements we had discussed and it showed in the original version. Many of the criticisms of the original version were valid, and I hope this edited version addresses those issues.
-LexxRuthless
This version of The Outsider further develops the family dynamic of the original story, and addresses many of the constructive criticisms provided. This story is a collaborative work between Lexx and I, and I would like to thank Cassie for her editing and criticism. I hope you enjoy.
-AlternativeAnon
* * * * *
The doorbell made me jump. It was unexpected, and regardless of who it was I knew it had to be trouble. I slowly made my way over to the front door, trying not to make a sound. It probably wasn't the police, though part of me would have preferred that. A glance through the peephole in the door revealed what I had dreaded.
My mother was standing outside. She was wringing her hands, and her face bore a deeply anxious look. I withdrew from the door and swore under my breath. I didn't know how she'd found me. If she was here, Uncle Chuck and Dad had to be nearby. Part of me expected them to just kick down the door.
My gut reaction was to fucking book it out the patio door and hop the fence, to just run. I felt a slight weakness in my legs as I considered it. I had nowhere to go and the sun had already set. If I tried to find a hostel I could probably stay there a few weeks, but I'd eat through my savings in no time.
The doorbell rang again, followed quickly by an intent knocking. She was hardly going to quit.
"Peter, please let me in," she begged through the door. "I just want to talk, and I won't make you come home if you don't want to. I came alone. Nobody else knows I'm here."
I blew out a huge breath and stared blankly at the doorknob. My expression was grim as I flipped on the lights and opened the front door to let her inside. Mom looked as nervous as I felt when she walked through the doorway and looked at me. It was tough for me to look her in the eye after what I had seen the past month. I kept picturing her naked and sweating as she...
I closed the front door and locked it, doing my best to block the images of my mother as I led her to the living room and turned on the overhead lights. She looked around and nodded in approval before taking a seat on the couch. I sat on a recliner facing her across the coffee table.
"You've kept the place tidy," she commented.
Her chuckle was hollow, and she was trembling visibly. My mother's discomfort was contagious. I bit my lip nervously and nodded, feeling the knotted muscles in my lower back as I leaned forward in my seat. I was ready to leap out of that comfortable chair and make a run for it if I had to. Mom knew me well enough that she could tell I wasn't in the mood for small talk. She sighed and nodded.
"I'll get to the point," she said. "I'm sorry you had to find out the way you did. Maybe we should have told you, but I really wanted you to have a chance at a normal life. Don't get me wrong; I love the life I have with our special family. But it comes at a high cost. I never wanted you to have to pay that price, Peter."
She had said something to that effect a week earlier. I still wasn't buying it. She looked at me and shook her head sadly before letting out a long sigh of exasperation.
"I guess I have to tell you the whole story before you'll understand," she said. "You know how my parents died, and how Chuck took care of me afterwards."
* * *
I had heard the story so many times I could picture it clearly in my mind. It felt like I had been there. My mom and her older brother, Chuck, were standing forlornly next to the graves of their parents. A drunken trucker had dozed off behind the wheel of his big rig, swerving across the median and obliterating my grandparents. My great-aunt Margaret and my great-grandmother had been in attendance for the funeral. They were all of the family that was left.
Margaret's ex-husband had been an insurance salesman. He had sold insurance to everyone in the family and all of their friends before he bailed on his wife. The house was paid off by that insurance. Great grandma wanted to sell the house and have my mom and Chuck move in with her. My mother was still in shock, unable to stop crying. Uncle Chuck was only sixteen, and he flat-out refused to sell the house.
"It's all we have left of them. I'm not about to let it go," he insisted.
"Don't be a fool, Charles," Great grandma scolded. "Think about your sister."
It was exactly the wrong thing to say. I can just picture him losing his shit. Sorry; I guess I should say, "I can picture him coming unglued," or something like that. But if you knew Uncle Chuck...he lost his shit.