Read Achilles :: Ep. 6 My Start #2

Kai was my teacher that I met after one of the times my mother had been hospitalized at the age of 12. At first, he taught me the various basics and what kind of workout I needed to do every day. To make sure the drunk didn't find out I started my workout at 4:00. My workout consisted of 100 push-ups, situps, squats, and a 10km (6 mile) run, at first it felt impossible I thought I would break but each time I thought of quitting I remembered what I was training for, to set mom and myself free from the bastard with my own hands. As time went on I exponentially increased my training, by the time I was 14 I did 350 push-ups, situps, squats, ran 40km (24miles), and started sparing with the coach on weekends while on weekdays I had an old rope tied around a tree in the back yard I would practice what coach taught. This continued until my 15th birthday, my mom made sure to come home a lot earlier than usual, I heard the door open then slowly close which told me it wasn't the bastard. I came out of my room from doodling to see my mom holding a small piece of a cake surrounded by a plastic cover that only allowed that piece in my mom's hand.

"Hi honey, I know you are not used to seeing me so early but I got you a little something after all it is your 15th birthday," she said as she placed the cake on the counter, she had a gentle and kind voice fitting her personality which only made me furious that I haven't yet saved her from the piece of shite or that she didn't just leave.

"Thanks, Mom!"

Though I knew one day I would and the kindness she and Kai showed me kept me going. Tears of happiness rolled down my face

"Oh, don't cry"

she gripped me in a bear hug. The door opened and then slammed shut as the towering man of my father came in, rage in his eyes as he caught sight of mom.

"WHY ARN'T YOU AT WORK!!" he roared as he lunged a hand towards her grabbing onto her by her hair I was still too frightened of the man to react

"I-I just thought that since it was our son's 15th b-birthday I could come home early to spend some time with him" she stuttered out with fear in her voice turning it shrill

"WHAT!!" he screamed as he raised a fist, she closed her eye preparing herself to receive the punch, seeing this broke me from my petrified state and I grabbed onto his fist before it could come close to hitting her. She slowly opened her eyes before they snapped open wide seeing the fist held back in my hand. I threw the fist back knocking him off balance and dropping mom onto the floor.

"WHY YOU LITTLE UNGRATEFUL SHITE!!!," he roared getting back to his feet with a stumble

"Please don't do this, you'll only get yourself hurt!" she cried out with tears in her eyes

"Maybe" is the only thing I said as I felt a slight tremble throughout my body, fear still holding me back. A flash of the memories of all he did to mom and me ran through my mind, rage overcame fear, and I steeled myself. I shot a jab out towards the bastard's head as he barely dodged it. The main reason I trained so hard in the first place was that he wasn't just some lousy piece of a shite father but back in the day used to be a pro boxer before several concussions led to brain damage stopping him from boxing again in any real capacity but he was still a boxer one I would best. I came back at him with a few jabs to the gut and chest that he didn't dodge or block before he came at me with a right hook that I dodged swiveling my torso to the left while losing a right hook of my own to the head that he blocked with his left arm but was too weak and drunk. The punch knocked him off his feet and he fell to the ground with a loud bang. I got on top of him delivering blow after blow to his face even after I saw blood splattering and heard bones start to crack only stopping when I was too tired to even move my arms

"AHAHAHAH" I screamed at the mess that used to be a face in front of me still feeling no better than before only now a depression of unending emptiness welling up inside of me. I looked to the side of me on the floor my mom was no longer there but in the kitchen using the home phone

"Mom you don't have to worry he won't mess with us anymore" I said not with happiness but with both mental as well as physical exhaustion and slight uneasy. as I finished this sentence I saw her look back to me in pure horror.

"Mom" I got up and started walking to her blood dripping from my blistered hands but before I could even make it halfway

"STOP!" that was the first time she ever yelled at me like that. Like I was him, I stopped dead in my tracks.

"What's wrong?" I asked with worry and fear in my voice, fear of what I already knew

"Stay Back, I already called the police they'll be here any minute," she said trembling, she was scared of me. As these realizations hit me it felt like a vale was lifted from my eyes showing me the light. I was Just as bad as him. I turned around and slowly walked past the body towards the door, grasped the doorknob, and turned it as I opened the door white light shone and covered me then I woke up. Gasping for air in a panic until calming down into light breaths a few seconds later

"Are you alright Achilles!!"

"I'm, fine," I said with a solemn face

"Just some bad memories Aqua," I looked into the sky seeing it was about mid-afternoon. I slowly got up on my wobbly legs leaning against a tree for support till I was standing then after gaining some confidence that I wouldn't fall, I started walking.

"Let's try finding some shelter for tonight, ok"

"Ok! but I wouldn't mind if you said my name, Aqua, every time you addressed me"

"ok, let's go"

"Really, you're not going to say it"

"Nope".

This content is intended for mature audiences for the following reasons.