Free The Perfection Paradox by LaurenVDW Page A

the stairs to his room,
intent on avoiding his mother.
    “ Matt? Is
that you?” he heard her call from the kitchen. Her footsteps grew
louder.
    “ Yeah… I’ll
be down in a minute, I need the bathroom.” He answered, trying to
keep his voice even and deep.
    “ Matt…” his
mother replied, concerned. She knew him too well. “Matt, come
here…” “Please just let me go to the bathroom Mom,” he pleaded,
tears burning his eyes.
    “ Matthew!
Come down here right now!” her voice was at the foot of the stairs
now, he could feel her eyes burning into the back of his scalp. He
bowed his head, trying to hide his face from her.
    He glanced up
at her quickly. She had her arms crossed worriedly over her stocky
frame. Her round shiny face, which was so often jolly and smiling,
looked tense and florid with angst.
    When he
reached the bottom of the steps she placed her hand under his chin
and tilted his face up with a stout finger.
    She gasped,
pulling her hand away to cover her mouth.
    “ Oh Matt…”
she said sadly. “Why? Why do they do this to you? Oh sweetie, I’m
so sorry. I’m going to call Principal Andrews first thing tomorrow
morning…”
    Matt stared
at her earnestly, shaking his head. There was nothing she could do
to stop this, calling would only make it worse. Matt would just
have to put up with it, hoping one day it would just become boring,
and he would become invisible.
    His mother
gave him a long hug and sent him upstairs to shower and change
while she prepared dinner.
    As he hobbled
out of the shower (he had a bruise the size of a fist developing on
his pelvis from where Hunter had thrust him into the lockers) he
was caught off guard by the smell of barbecue wafting through the
open window. He glanced out shyly, shielding his body from view
with a large white towel. Sure enough his neighbours were gathered
around a large circular barbecue, waiting for their burgers and
spare ribs.
    The smell of
fire took Matt back to that fateful day, the worst day of his
life.
    It had been
at a house party, about half way through junior year.
    Hunter, who
had over the last couple of months spent more and more of his time
picking on Matt, stopped him on his way out of school on a Friday
afternoon.
    “ I think
we’ve gotten off on the wrong foot man” he started, more calmly
than he’d ever heard Hunter speak before, though concealed beneath
the calm some hidden excitement shone from his eyes.
    Matt
should’ve known it then, but he’d been too naïve. Matt had stayed
quiet, unsure of whether he was faced with an impending
wedgie.
    “ I mean it…”
Hunter reassured him when he saw the conflict on his face. When
Matt didn’t respond Hunter clapped his hand on Matt’s
back.
    “ Listen,
there’s a get together at my friend Taylor’s house tonight” He
nodded over his shoulder at a burly boy twice as tall as Matt and
three times as wide. “You should come.”
    Matt
instantly shook his head. “I couldn’t.” he insisted uncomfortably,
“I can’t.” “Don’t be stupid man, of course you can…”
    Even then
there was a hint of a threat in Hunter’s quasi-belligerent voice
that Matt had chosen to ignore. Hunter’s grip on his shoulder
tightened.
    “ Meet us here
at 9pm, we’ll pick you up…” and without another word he turned on
his heels and strode away. Taylor hurried after him, while Ryan
swayed on the spot for a moment, his handsome face scrunched into a
thoughtful frown. 
    Matt had
debated with himself for hours about what to do, managing to
convince himself to go and stay in equal measure.
    When it got
to 9pm however, there he was, stood outside the main entrance to
Rosewell High School, in dark baggy jeans that were too short for
him and a navy blue math club hoodie.
    He waited
with baited breath, half exhilarated, half worried.
    What if they
didn’t show up? Or even more panic inducing, what if they
did?
    The digital
watch on his skinny wrist read 21:07 when a silver pick up