8| Of Misery And More Misery

The Saturday morning started for Travis with a cup of coffee and a message from Zoey asking for his address. He immediately regretted the decision of inviting her to study at his house. She lived in a freaking mansion and his whole house could be fit into the lounge of her house. He wasn't ashamed of it but somehow, Zoey always manages to make him conscious.

He spent the whole morning cleaning every corner of the house to make it look more presentable. And then went to take a shower to wipe off the dirt and to dress up in the best clothes he owned.

It was almost 1 in the afternoon when Zoey's driver stopped the car in front of Travis' house. She stepped out of the car and looked around herself. She had never been to this part of the city before. The streets here were narrow and all the house were too small for a normal family to live, or maybe they were normal and she was used to being in gigantic houses too big for a family.

Sighing, she reached the door and knocked on it. After a minute or two, Travis opened the door and Zoey's heartbeat quickened on seeing him. He was wearing a black button-up shirt with jeans and the top buttons of the shirt were open, giving a peek of his tanned skin. He was definitely muscular, but not in a way someone who spends a lot of time in gym is.

"Come on in." He said and Zoey followed him inside. The house was quite neat and clean for one of its size, with everything looking immaculate and spot-free.

"You can go sit in the lounge. I'll bring my books." He said and walked up the stairs.

After he left, Zoey looked around and it didn't take her long to find the lounge. As she entered inside, her gaze landed on a man sitting by the window on a wheelchair. He had same hair as Travis and it didn't exactly take a genius to guess he was his father.

"Hello, Mr. Anderson." She walked towards him and smiled.

The man lifted his head and narrowed his eyes at the intruder. Without responding, he looked back to where his gaze was before and ignored Zoey completely. So that's where Travis gets his attitude from, Zoey thought.

"I am Zoey, Travis' um... Class fellow." Zoey said to tell him that she wasn't a thief of anything but again, no response.

"Zoey," Travis called his name and she angled her neck to look at him. "Let's go upstairs." He said.

Nodding, Zoey made her way behind Travis and followed him to his room. It was a small room that consisted of a single bed, a cupboard and a study desk. They both settled on his bed that was too small for two people, face to face and opened their books.

"Okay so will give it a second read and then present our views to each other." Travis said and focused his attention to his book.

"Second? What about first?" She asked in confusion.

"Didn't you study at home?" He asked, looking surprised, as it was something unusual to do.

"No, I had a sleepover the night before yesterday and a gala to attend last night." She cleared.

Travis took a deep breath and she could feel him trying his best not to judge her lifestyle. At the end, he just sighed and asked her to give it at least one read.

Within five minutes of reading, Zoey got bored and hopped out of the bed instead, feeling Travis' curious gaze on her. "Let me get some fresh air." She said and walked towards the window to look out of it. The window was just beside his study table and on the wall was attached few pieces of papers. He had sketched some random faces on them and the sketches looked almost real.

"Do you sketch?" She asked him.

"Unless an artist broke into my house and pasted these on my wall, I do." He said and Zoey rolled her eyes.

"Your sarcasm will get you killed one day." She muttered under her breath and assessed those sketches. One of them looked like it was an anime character and the other one looked like an actress. There was another one, that showed the back of a girl while she was sitting on a bench, her wavy hair flowing with the wind. She felt like the physique of the girl was similar to her but then she remembered how almost half the girls on the planet looked like her.

"Do you want to be a sketch artist?" She asked and sat down on the chair of his study desk.

"No, I want to be a businessman." Travis replied, reading the novel.

"Wow. Well, I haven't thought about myself yet. It's okay to not plan everything of your future and just live in the present." She said and stretched her legs.

"Well, you would rather plan your future when the present sucks." He said and the pessimism in his voice agitated her. She felt bad for him because he was smart and talented. He deserved to enjoy the moment instead of worrying about the future.

"You know, high school is the best part of your life. You should enjoy it." She said and at this, Travis frowned.

"Yeah, high school is the best, when you are at the top of the popularity chain." He replied and the pity for him changed into irritation.

"We better come back to the topic before I give in to the temptation and punch you in your face." She said and opened the notebook.

"That would be better for both of us." He said and turned around on the bed so his side was facing him now. She mimicked his action and turned around the rolling chair, facing the wall instead.

Few minutes have passed when Zoey's thoughts once again started diverting from the story. She thought about the man she had seen earlier and the curiosity arose in her mind.

"What happened to your Dad?" She asked, scooting the chair closet to the bed.

"Car accident." Travis replied.

"And your mother?" She asked. It would be a real tragedy for him if she was dead or something. "Is she... Um..."

"She is alive and perfectly healthy. Now, focus." Travis said and Zoey once again forced herself to study.

She had read almost 2 chapters when a loud sound erupted from downstairs and both of them exchanged a worried glance. It sounded like something or someone had fallen badly.

Travis leaped downstairs in an alarming speed and Zoey rushed behind him. They entered the lounge and inside, Travis' father was fallen on the ground, trying to get himself up but failing badly. Beside him, a glass was broken and the water was spilled on the floor. From the scene, it looked like he was trying to get some water but failed to do so.

"Dad," Travis moved forwards to help his father but he jerked his arm away.

"I can help myself." She heard him say in a whisper and he tried to reached he wheelchair but all in vain. The helplessness and the shame of not being able to do so was clear on his face.

"Let me help you, Dad." Travis said when a glass slashed his father's arm and forcefully pull his father up, while he kept resisting and struggling with his arms. Zoey felt out of place on watching both of them because it felt like she was intruding on someone's private life.

"Just get out now." His father shouted angrily once he was back in the wheelchair.

"Dad," Travis tried to calm him but his father looked like he was in a turmoil right now.

"Just go." He shouted once again and Travis retreated, his shoulders slumped in defeat.

When he turned around, the embarassment was clearly written on his face and looking in Zoey's eyes felt like a struggle to him. He walked out of the lounge and Zoey followed him, to the kitchen where he drank a glass of water to pacify himself.

"You are right. We should study at your house." He said without looking at her.

"Why is he like that?" She asked, not able to understand.

"The accident... It messed him up badly." Travis said and sighed, running his fingers through his dark hair. "Sorry you had to see it."

"It's okay, I understand." She replied.

"If you don't mind, can we end this study session? I am really not in mood right now." He said and a hint of guilt was evident in his voice, although this wasn't anyone's fault.

"Yeah, sure. We can study at my house some other day after your shift." She offered.

"Okay." Travis said and then walked past him. She followed him to his room, put everything back in her bag and then gave one last look to Travis who seemed exhausted, both physically and mentally.

At that moment, she understood the reason of his outbursts a little. While the biggest problem in her life was which dress to wear and how to loose the extra pounds, Travis was keeping his family together and trying to keep his grades up, all the while going a part-time job. She was in a way privileged, whether she liked to admit or not.

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Zoey get to see a deeper aspect of Travis' side today. Will it be a start of a new friendship?