Barrett just about had enough. Life went downhill from then on, and it would continue going downhill from then. He let out a small groan as he shuffled up the grated staircase. Hunched over, he fumbled for the keys in his pockets, finding his efforts fruitless. In a frustrated and tired sigh, he rummaged through his lunchbox. This time, he found the small and sharp object, almost cutting his hand on the jagged edges. He faced a windowless stained red-orange and white door through the rust seeping from the rooftops overhead. “Heh… Home Sweet Home…” He remarked sarcastically, wrestling with the lock as his keys caught onto the internal workings. The door gave a long squeal as he pushed it open. A thick scent of metal hung in the air as he made his way over to the kitchen. A knot formed in his stomach, not from the smell, but the underlying feeling of dread that came over him. Barrett stared coldly at a landline phone next to the microwave. He had no idea why he bought that thing in the first place… he paid an extra ten dollars a month to keep that thing in order. The only people who called him were those annoying telemarketers, trying to get him to pay extra for something or another. It had caused him nothing but grief. …He had his own reasons. “Might as well, I doubt they’ll be up at this late hour,” he grumbled. Madly dialing in the numbers, he held the phone snugly between his neck and head and took a seat on a rickety hardwood chair. It creaked under his weight. “Bah. Gotta fix that later,” he reminded himself. A woman’s voice answered after a few short buzzes. In a somewhat tired and ornery manner, the woman stated “Meyer Household…” “Hello, can I speak to Mr. Meyer please?” Barrett asked, gritting his teeth. “Yes, just one sec,” A voice in the background, calling each other by name followed by a slight shuffle. “Hello?” asked a familiar voice, with a slight guttural yawn. “Hey dad,” Barrett answered. A long silence followed. Barrett could picture the man on the other line, with widened eyes. A calm, soothing voice followed, oddly belonging to the same person. “Well, how goes it champ? It’s been a long time,” He spoke gently “How long has it been?” “Seven years.” Barrett answered, looking onward to the street light filtering through the blinds of his window. His father continued “Well, I appreciate that you’ve finally called me… it took seven years… but how goes it?” “Fine,” Barrett answered “I’m saving for my GED, though that won’t happen for a long time… If I’m lucky, I can get started in another three years,” “Glad to hear you are doing alright… your mother…” His father paused “I mean, Chloe and I miss you, along with Chris- He really misses his big brother.” “Tell him I miss you guys too,” Barrett smiled, fiddling with the phone cable “Ya know, I was actually going to call you a year earlier, but…” He paused. His father gently addressed “I know you’ve had a hard time accepting what happened, I couldn’t really expect you to accept Chloe as I did, but I had to move on from your old mother,” Barrett eyes watered “She was… she was a good teacher, helping her dyslexic child… ya know, before the… crash,” “I remember that too, and I will never forget.” he could hear a croak in his father’s voice “How’s your arm doing?” Barrett studied his trembling limbs “Healed long ago… like the rest of my scars.” “Healed…” His voice trailed off “Son, can I ask you something?” “Yes,” Barrett’s stomach churned. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you… can you pay your old man a visit, just once?” Barrett stood in silence, “It would be a great refresher, but… I’m caught up in work,” He glanced around the room, “Maybe some other time.” “Take as much as time as you need, Barrett.” His father sighed “Chloe and I are ready to embrace our son back with open arms, it would be nice to have my son back.” “I will, dad.” Barrett set the phone on the countertop “You guys have a goodnight.” “Goodnight Barrett,” His father called. “I love you.” “I love you too, dad,” He carefully replied. After the longest time, he placed the phone back into its holster and sighed in relief.