Caleb had found nonsense in his father’s files. It was recipes, letters to his mother, letters to his grandparents, but nothing substantial. There were references to his grandfather’s discoveries but even cross-referencing those archaeological sites, it was nothing out of the ordinary. “Dammit,” he cursed as he looked towards the boxes sitting behind the chest. “How cliche would it be for Dad to have some secret panels hiding something in the chest?” he thought out loud as he examined the chest once more.

But rather than some codex or cipher, Caleb only found a ring of keys. “No dice,” he said as he noticed the keys were all marked to go with their corresponding box, “Well at least Dad was organized.” Caleb picked a nearby box and after brushing off an inch thick layer of dust from the lid, he opened up the lid to find a variety of books. “Great,” his eyes already seemed to strain and ache as he flipped through some of the old texts. Even at just a glance, Caleb knew most of these materials were beyond his current comprehension.

He knew his father to be a jack-of-all-trades so whatever these books were, it might either be good or complete nonsense. Even as faded as his memories were of his parents, Caleb still pictured the memory of sitting in his father’s lap and listening to him read whatever his father had with him at the time, while Caleb stared off into the distance. The words would seem to dance and twist in his vision, causing Caleb no end of grief. Even now, despite his best efforts, his eyes would still strain to keep the words in focus and on the page, at least now he could read and even shared his father’s voracious appetite for it.

Caleb glanced down at his phone, it was already late. He packed everything back where it was and left the attic. He’d have to dig into his father’s belongings some other time when he could at least organize everything.

Once he was back in his room, he fell fast asleep after kicking off his boots and crawling under the sheets. It was one of the first nights in a long time, that Caleb slept without a single nightmare. It was a brief respite but welcomed nonetheless.

Sunday arrived, and Caleb woke up early to prep breakfast for his grandfather, though Arlan wouldn’t wake up until around noon, which was fine. It gave Caleb time to clean and tidy up the house before his uncle would return tomorrow. Whenever Arlan arrived to visit, Dunn scurried away until the start of the next week when Arlan inevitably had to leave.

Once Arlan had gotten up and had breakfast, he and Caleb headed into the backyard. An old punching bag, held together by multiple layers of tape, creaked as Arlan delivered a half-decent punch. “Still practicing I hope. I taught you as much as I could,” Arlan rubbed his knuckles before walking over to a small closet and withdrew a pair of striking pads.

“Let’s see what you’ve got,” Arlan challenged with a grin on his face. Caleb chuckled and walked past him, reaching into the closet once more.

“You’ll need this as well,” Caleb showed off a belt with thick padding that once on, protected the core of the wearer.

“Oh? What’s that for?”

“Belly pad, its meant for kicking at least front kicks,” Caleb demonstrated by kicking at his grandfather, the ball of his foot making a solid impact on the padding, jostling Arlan backward.

“Holy hell, how did you learn that?”

“Practice, and just like you said, I tried adding bits and pieces of other styles.” Caleb then had his grandfather bring the striking pads close together, “Holding them like this lets me do round kicks, so just throw it into the combinations.

Arlan shook his head, allowing his grandson to guide him in how to hold the strike pads. The two worked through a variety of drills. While incorporating the kicks, Arlan had little knowledge beyond boxing. “Keep your hands up,” “Tighten that guard,” “Put your whole body into the strike” were his go-to phrases. His eyes scanned the boy’s form from top to bottom, as he held out the pads for punches and strikes. He watched Caleb’s feet closely, knowing everything started at the feet.

While Caleb was a little shaky on the retraction of his kicks but did his best. He was still new to adding kicks into his combinations, and while the power was there, easily pushing his grandfather back, had the proper form been there, Arlan could’ve easily ended up on his butt. A handful of times Caleb missed, sending himself to the side of his grandfather or causing the belt to spin around Arlan’s waist. He cursed at himself each time it happened and did his best to rectify his mistake.

After two hours of learning and practicing, Arlan was satisfied at the progress Caleb made on his own. “Let’s break for now and wash up. What’s for lunch?

“I dunno, anything in mind?” Caleb opened up the pantries seeing he still had quite a bit of food to work with. He checked the fridge following that and saw plenty of fresh veggies.

“Why not keep it simple and have some sandwiches?”

Caleb smiled and nodded, “Works for me,” Caleb ascended the stairs and took the time to shower quickly before dressing and heading back downstairs to prep their late lunch.

Following their lunch, Caleb took the time to work on some assignments for school, though rather than spend the time locked away in his room as per usual for him, Caleb sat in the living room with his grandfather chatting with him between assignments.

Sunday passed into the evening and Caleb patted his grandfather on the back, “I’ve got school in the morning, so I should try to get some sleep,”

Arlan nodded, “Want to drive to school? Might as well get as much practice as you can,”

Caleb thought for a moment, “You’re right, you okay with getting up at 6 in the morning?”

Arlan nodded as he reached into his pocket and set an alarm for himself in the morning after fiddling on his phone for a moment.

The two called it a day and went to bed. Once more, Caleb was given a brief respite from his nightmares, though he loathed the upcoming Monday.

Morning came, Caleb prepped himself breakfast and lunch while Arlan took his time getting ready. By the time they reached the road, the school bus passed Caleb’s home and a wave of middle fingers poked out from the windows. Caleb sighed and shook his head as he allowed the car to warm up before taking off.

Predictably, the Gran Torino drew attention as it pulled up to the front of the school. Parents, students, and teachers gawked at the impeccably kept car, their disbelief only exacerbated when Caleb stepped from it. He exchanged a hug with his grandfather, “Hope to see you soon?” he asked before Arlan patted him on the shoulder.

“Hopefully this summer, you’re old enough now that I can at least bring you abroad without jumping through too many hoops.”

Caleb beamed at this, his hopes soaring. Arlan grinned and fixed Caleb’s jacket for him. “One step at a time. Get through the school year and pick up a part-time job, I’ll pay for your ticket but your expenses are in your hands,” he challenged, remembering Hector’s offer to his grandson.

Caleb nodded, “Will do,” the school bells interrupted their goodbyes as they hugged one last time and Caleb rushed to class, dodging the inquisitive stares and jeering from the more vocal of his peers. Nothing, he hoped, would bring down his mood today.

While the day dragged, Caleb made it through his classes. Math, being the first class of the day, was a combination of being the most difficult as well as being the easiest for Caleb to focus on. Unfortunately, due to poor placements and poor performance in his freshmen year, Caleb was stuck in the remedial math course, trying his best to boost his grades. Luck, however, was on his side. After two weeks of absence, the regular teacher had finally made his comeback, and the fallout from the past two weeks came crashing down on the students. Only a handful of students completed any of the work that he left behind.

“Last time I was gone, I made it clear that if I ever needed to be out and you guys didn’t cooperate with the substitute there would be hell to pay. Guess what?” The older gentlemen slammed his hand on the table, “All the athletes here, your grades were already in the red, well good luck explaining to your coaches you won’t be playing,” And with that, the floodgates opened. Cries and pleads for leniency fell on deaf ears. Then came the threats, as children often resort to, which were immediately responded with several thick files being placed on the desk. “This is every late assignment, every failed test, including the retakes, and every report I’ve made,” The room went quiet as Caleb sat there attempting to tune out the chaos around him.

When the room had gone quiet, it prompted him to look up and meet the gaze of the furious teacher, “Caleb, take this to the athletic director’s office. IF he is not there, stay there until he gets back. I will hold on to your stuff and if the period ends before you’re back, I will write up the pass to your next class.” Caleb only nodded and went to the front of the class, taking the crate full of folders into his arms. A course of “teacher’s pet” and other jeers would’ve begun had it been any of the other teachers. Caleb ignored the whispered insults the best he could.

“F*ggot,” he heard from the boy sitting with his phone in hand, and without a second thought, Caleb smacked the phone down onto the solid tile floor. With a satisfying crack it fell, and Caleb left without a word, as the teacher began his tirade once more, preventing the other boy from giving chase or retaliating in any way.

Caleb easily spent a majority of the class period waiting for the athletic director, and when he did show, Caleb handed him the crate before he could even get the door open. The director eyed Caleb curiously before Caleb realized his mistake. Once inside his office and asked, “What’s that for?”

“Coach Gil wanted me to give these to you. It's for all the athletes in his classes,”

“Oh boy,” Picking a random file and passing through it made him go pale, “Shit, well not like our seasons this year are going to get any better.” He looked back at Caleb, “Why aren’t you on any of the teams? You could do baseball or basketball well enough,” Caleb raised an eyebrow at him.

“Sorry to disappoint but I don’t have an interest,” Caleb bit his tongue, trying to avoid saying anything that might upset the man with as much gold in his office as Fort Knox.

“Fair enough, go ahead and get back to class,” With that dismissal, Caleb quickly returned only to find the class still in the middle of an argument. I’ll wait out here until this is over.

Luckily before anyone could question Caleb, the bell rang and while Coach Gil was still on his tirade with the majority of the class, he allowed innocent parties free to go about their day. Caleb ducked in and grabbed his things, after letting the coach know the director received the files. The boy near the door stared daggers at Caleb as he left in which Caleb dismissed completely.

Aside from the volatile morning events, Caleb found the rest of the day uneventful. Word got around quickly about the files and gossip filled the hallways. By the end of the day, Caleb was sure someone was going to pull some kind of stunt. When the final bell rang and students began their parades to their cars or the buses, Caleb just waited in the library as he preferred. He walked home, even during the winter and blazing heat of August and September. He’d rather bear the brunt of the weather than ride on a school bus.

Once the crowds had settled, Caleb made his way up the steep roads leading back to the comfortable neighborhood his parent’s house sat in. And to his surprise, his grandfather’s Gran Torino sat in the garage still while his uncle’s car sat on the curb. “What the hell?”

Caleb approached slowly as his ears began to catch the sounds of arguing.

“HOW THE FUCK CAN YOU BEAR BEING AROUND THAT SON OF BITCH?!” Dunn screamed as Caleb peaked his head through the door, slowly sneaking his way in.

“Unlike you, he is a decent human being and he is still a young man,” Arlan was calm in the face of his second son, though the veins in his neck began to show.

“HE’S A FUCKING MONSTER, JUST LIKE HIS FUCKING MOTHER, HE’S NO BETTER THAN THE THUGS AND CRIMINALS THAT TRY TAKING EVERYTHING FROM US!”

The air seemed to go still, “Dunn watch what yer about to say,”

“HE’S A FUCKING SP*C, SON OF A FILTHY BITCH THAT USED MY BROTH-” Dunn’s glasses shattered as Arlan punched him square in the face.

“Auryn and Ixchel, they loved and cared for each other. If ya didn’t have yer head up yer arse, ya would’ve seen it. And now you’ve fucked up, you’ve pushed him away from you, just like you pushed me away,” Arlan hoisted Dunn up and looked over to the side to see Caleb, “ Ey, lad...your back,”

“Yeah...didn’t expect to see you here.” Caleb glanced over at Dunn, “Don’t bother explaining, I don’t want him here,”

Dunn glared at his nephew and his father through eyes that slowly began to swell shut, “Fucking monsters, the both of you.” he growled, “I’ll get every penny from this place and from you.”

“Oh no you won’t,” Arlan pulled on Dunn’s ear as if he were a child, “You might take me for a fool, Dunn but I know what Auryn’s will says, and your brother being the savvy man that he was, he has so much red tape around this place that you’re on the bottom of the totem pole,”

“I’m sure some Nigerian prince has more claim to this place than you do, Uncle Dunn,” Caleb chimed in.

“Shut up, you fucking wet-” Arlan smashed Dunn in the face once more.

“You keep diggin’ your own grave. I’m through playin’ nice with ya, Dunn.” Arlan tossed the misshapen man out the door. “I’m not going to argue this with you anymore.” When Dunn was shoved through the door, his wife quickly ran out from the car, and before she could start screaming bloody murder, Arlan chimed in, “If you want to make a scene, do be aware I have a witness here,” she only nodded and quickly got Dunn onto his feet and carried him into the car.  

“Surprised that you have it in you to do that to your own kid,” Caleb said, trying to play off what he just saw. It was unsettling to see his grandfather’s face twist into the same expression of anger that crossed his own face.

“It isn’t commendable though,” Arlan sighed as he felt his face untwist from the look of rage it wore, “I just wish it didn’t have to happen like this.” The guilt began to weigh down his shoulders once more before Caleb rested his hand on Arlan’s shoulder.

“Come on, let’s go ahead and see if we can reschedule your flight. I doubt Dunn will come back for a few days and I still need a guardian.” Arlan chuckled and nodded, trusting his grandson to make the necessary flight arrangements while he fixed his plans with the university.