Episode 57: Scene Three
Forrest silently toyed with the toothpick lodged between his lips. He leaned back on the side wall of the Arboretum, his right leg raised so that the sole of his shoe could rest vertically on the brick. With his head bowed slightly, Forrest looked like he'd come straight out of the "greaser" movies of the '50s and '60s.
To tell the truth, Forrest didn't mind that similarity at all. He'd worked hard to get out the "good boy" image that his parents had glued to him during his childhood. Ever since his first year in boarding school, he'd done everything in his power to shed the memories of formal equestrian training, piano lessons, and the etiquette schools that he'd been forced to attend against his will. Forrest hated to think that others thought of him as a poster child for the upper-crust upbringing. His highly greased hair and unshaven look reflected his attempt to break past all that his parents had worked to make him when he was a child.
However, Forrest had asked his parents if he could return to Midway Prep after a four year leave of absence. They were overjoyed because they thought that he was finally beginning to return to his so-called roots, but in reality it was because Forrest wanted to be closer to his brother. He wasn't particularly comfortable with the thought of his fourteen-year-old kid brother hundreds of miles away from home all by himself. Forrest felt that Trace needed someone to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn't do anything stupid, so he had been happy to leave his stiff, uniform-wearing school for free-sailing Midway Prep. One thing that troubled him, however, was how he was going to break it to Trace. Trace had always valued his independence, so Forrest would have to carefully slip into MP so that he wouldn't jeopardize that independence.
A foreign voice broke into Forrest's thoughts. He glanced around to see who had invaded his privacy, then narrowed his eyes. Barrett Anderson was walking towards him from a couple of meters away. He was on his cell phone and his head was bent, so he didn't see Forrest. Forrest quickly and quietly slipped around the corner and then positioned himself so that he could see Barrett but Barrett couldn't see him.
"No, Father. I still think we should at least honor her with that much...No, I'm not...Father, I think you're making a big mistake...Do you want people to hate you even more? But, Father...Yes...Fine, you can go ahead and cremate her without a funeral, but you're going to have a lot of unhappy people on your back. Goodbye," Barrett slapped his phone shut. He glanced around for a moment to make sure no one was around, then about-faced and began walking away.
Forrest's back was up against the wall and his face was turned towards the sky. "Oh, man. This is bad news. This is really bad news. Trace is going to freak when he learns that Kim isn't even going to have a funeral!"
"WHAT?!"
Forrest nearly tripped over himself as he turned to face the angry voice. When he saw who it was, he clutched his heart. "Gemini, I'm not old enough to die of a heart attack! Sheesh!"
Gemini's eyes were fiery and her fists were balled tightly. "I'm going to kill him, Forrest. I'm going to take him by the neck and choke the life out of him. There's no way in h*ll that I'm going to let him get away with this!"