"You drove my mustang into the lake!" The hairs on his uncle Carter's neck stood on end as he listened to Stan, the police chief, list off every criminal activity Nathaniel had committed. From the consumption of alcohol under aged all the way to property damage.

Nate kept giggling to himself in his chair across from the both of them. His hands were still shackled together, but that didn't seem to bother him. "Yeah, I sank it." He spoke of it proudly.

His uncle stared at him, mouth agape, as he mourned the death of his most prized possession. It had taken him years of blood, sweat, and tears to acquire such a beautiful car. He'd had it for so many years, never getting even a scratch on it. That was mostly because he would never allow another human being to drive the thing. Only allowing his nephew to in the hopes of 'getting out of the house' would relax him a little.

Finally, he spoke. "I told you to hang out with friends!"

"I did though." Nate hiccuped.

His uncle rolled his head back, rubbing his neck until he felt the friction burn his nape. "You're a real piece of work. Please tell me you didn't bring the alcohol."

"Ha!" His cuffs clacked against the wooden seat. "No. I might have told them to bring it, but -"

"Whose they?" Chief asked.

"Uh…" Nate squinted as he tried to recall their names. "Sarah Anthony, and Todd Beatrice." He paused. "Y~up."

The chief wrote the names down. "Alright. I'll call their parents."

"I'm real sorry about this." Carter said. "I won't press charges for my car. But what about the other charges?"

"Well, I'm gonna have to revoke his license for a little while. Are you sure you don't want to press charges? He's almost an adult."

Carter held his hand out. "No. This is a problem between him and I."

"Alright." Stan leaned over to unlock the cuffs. "You're free to go."

Nate jumped to his feet. "Neat. Bye then!"

Carter followed behind him to his aunt's van. Before they got even a foot out the door, Carter grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "Are you insane!"

Nate smacked him away, drowsily taking a step back. "Am I insane? What about you? Huh?"

"What about me?" Carter crossed his arms, ready to hear this.

"Since the day I got here it's been do the chores, water the plants, take your cousin to school, get home by seven. I don't need to be kept in the house under your watchful eye!"

Carter uncrossed his arms. "Clearly you do!" He took a step forward, towering over his nephew. Under the shade of the street lights, he looked very intimidating. "You know how expensive that car was? Or the amount of trouble you're in for drinking under aged? I'm trying to give you stability and you're acting like I'm ruining your life."

"I don't need your help. I was doing fine before coming to live here."

"You were causing all kinds of trouble. You're grades were horrible and you spent most of your time hanging around druggies."

"It's not like I did any of it! You think I'm stupid enough to get myself addicted to any of that stuff? Yeah, it went real well for my mom. Thanks for locking her up in a nuthouse, by the way."

Carter sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb. "I didn't lock her up. And she isn't in a nuthouse. She's in rehab so she can get better for you."

Nate rolled his eyes. "Better for me? Yeah. I'll believe it when I see it."

"Are you," Carter took a step back. "Upset with her? We never really talked about it."

"Am I upset? What, that I can't have friends over because she might be rocking in her room naked on the floor with pictures of my dad circling her like some some sort of cult ceremony? Or that the only time she ever apologies to me is when she's piss drunk and full of mucus and sweat? No! Why would that make me upset?" Nate's face was red. He felt like the temperature outside had risen a few degrees, but the wind was still cold. "You wanna pretend like you get it? Like your parents were alcoholics?"

Carter looked to the sky, as if asking God for guidance. The truth was, he didn't understand. He hadn't really been around his sister all that much, either. If she hadn't called him to explain everything about the death of her husband, her alcoholism, or that she was going to rehab, he never would have known. In a way, it was sort of an eye opener. He should have been more apart of his sister's life.

Maybe if he had been there for her, she wouldn't have felt so alone and scared.

"Get in the car." He gestured, walking ahead of Nate before he could retort against him.

Nate slammed the door shut. "What's my punishment?"

"Excuse me?"

"Don't act dumb. I sunk your beloved Ford. What's my punishment?" He chuckled, still finding it funny as he sobered up. "I know your mad."

"I'm not angry with you. Just disappointed." And furious beyond all belief that his car was gone at the bottom of the lake. "You'll get a job and pay me back for the damages. You won't be able to drive, either, so you'll have to walk. Or buy yourself a bike when you get the money."

"What about my allowance?"

"Good idea. I'll take it out of your allowance, too. And we'll add to your daily chores."

"You want to work me to death?"

"No. But I will give you enough to do to keep you out of trouble."

Nate sat back, grumbling to himself. He'd wished, at least, that Carter had freaked out over the car a little more. Now it didn't seem worth it. He hadn't felt satisfied. Actually, he wanted to break more of his shit.