Chapter 2 - Consequences To Stupid Plans

The drive back was quiet yet screaming with tension. Amara was no longer on the phone and just kept her eyes on the road. Dante looked at her and observed her body language, something he had to pick up on he'd never know what his parents were thinking. Amara had curly chocolate hair packed into a high ponytail. She had red rose lip gloss on and wore a beige business suit Her features were rather young for someone in her early forties. She says it's 'just an advantage of being brown.' Her crows feet near her eyes were noticeable though, which Dante recently realized she'd been trying to hide with foundation.

When they arrived back home, Dante just looked up at the mansion and sighed. To someone like Boedrick this place would be a holiday. I mean, a stand alone, three-story house with a balcony and the spare rooms you want? Not to mention the the main three bedrooms are suites? Yeah, it's fine, but to Dante it was the bane of his existence. He never complained before because he'd just sound like another rich kid story trope, but when people see this house and then meet his parents (who couldn't take a chill pill to save their lives), they get scared and leave him. Or they get greedy and use him. Which explains why Boedrick is his only real friend.

Within minutes Dante and his mother were out of the car and in front room with his father. It had a red kind of theme to it with crimson sofas and cushions, rose walls and reddish-brown mantle piece at the top of the room. Both parents had extremely disappointed looks on their faces. The kind of look where it just made you wish they screamed at you instead. "Well?" Dante broke the heavy silence. "Aren't you gonna interrogate me or something?" His father was so taken aback by the sarcastic comment he almost backed into and fell on the luscious crimson sofa. As surprised as Dante was with his dad's reaction, he wasn't gonna swallow his pride. "I'm not sorry." He stated coldly.

Amara began pacing restlessly with anger across the red, floral patterned carpet floor. "How?" She asked. "And why?"

"Easy," Dante explained casually. "Boedrick and I walked into 'Ladies lovelies' at the mall, picked out a pack of sanitary pads and booked it without paying." He may have sounded like he didn't care, but inside Dante was beside himself with dread. But hey, they were looking at him, talking to him, he got what he wanted.

"Dante...we can't keep bailing you out of all this nonsense. Money doesn't grow on trees you know!" Amara exclaimed. Dante wanted to correct her and say that if money is made of paper, and paper comes from trees then technically the SOURCE of money grows on trees. But he thought better than to interrupt when his mum is raising her voice.

"This bad attitude of yours, it's too much." His father backed up his wife's statement.

"Wait, so you're gonna PUNISH me??" Dante was bewildered. Usually the pay off of his mistakes and give him a warning, now their actively punishing him?? This was WAY more attention he bargained for.

"We're not punishing you...eh, Clifford?" Amara looked to her husband for help.

"Oh yes! Think of it as...fixing you?" Dante's dad replied.

Amara face-palmed and tried to save it. "Re-habilitating?"

"Correcting?"

"DISCIPLINING!" Amara snapped her fingers in triumph. "This is just so you know you can't make these mistakes anymore. For Pete's sake you're a Fairheart. You shouldn't be making these mistakes in the first place."

"So what are you gonna do? Sell me or something?!" Dante snapped and slumped in his crimson armchair.

His parents looked at him, each other and said in unison. "Boarding school."

Dante jumped right out of his chair and stood. "WHAT?!"

"We've actually considered it for a while," Clifford explained. "Since that time early this summer when you snuck out in the middle of the night to tag the school wall."

"Everybody at one point or another has tagged the school wall!" Dante protested. "It's a literal requirement at this point!"

"Dante enough!" Amara snapped, forcing Dante to shut up. "In truth, we both always knew you could do better than that school. We only kept you there because of you friend Botherdrick-"

"Boedrick!" Dante corrected.

"-Whatever. In any case he has proven to be a bad influence and is no longer worth our money."

Dante couldn't believe what he was hearing. He wanted them to listen to him, not ignore him and punish him to THIS extent. This was ridiculous and he let his parents know it. But they were set in stone about their decision. So much so they'd already picked out a school for him to attend. "What can I say? We were long prepared to do this," Amara said when she noticed Dante's pouting face. "Clifford dear, you enrolled him and payed for his spot at Relive, Rebuild Secondary right?"

Dante's father suddenly scrunched up his face in an "Oh I screwed up" face, but quickly hid it from his wife. "Um yeah totally! The one where the actual name was...um.."

"Laronda's, dear?"

"Uh-huh! That one. All enrolled and ready to go!" Clifford fibbed through his pearly teeth. Amara smiled looking content before picking up her phone to continue her work with her associate. Once she was out of sight, Clifford grabbed Dante and pulled him outside into the car.

"What the- Dad what's going on?" Dante asked completely baffled. Clifford looked at him, his black eyes shining with fear. "Oh nothing son. We're just enroll you in a boarding school, that's all."

Dante knew his dad lied to his mum from the get-go. He just didn't snitch as he saw it as a perfect opportunity to get out of this mess. "Dad, it's okay you forgot to enroll me in a new school, how's about we forget to enroll me all over again! Didn't mind the first time, don't mind now!"

"Oh no buddy." Clifford drove at an above average speed down the road. "You're mother's gonna mind. So weather you like it or not your going to Laroonta's and that's that!"

"You mean Laronda's?"

"Whatever!"

Within minutes they arrived at a catchment area where you can get booklets of far away boarding schools to enroll your child in. Except this place was looking a little more run-down. When the father and son entered they were greeted by an acne-ridden face that mumbled, "Afternoon."

"Just to be clear," Clifford said to the crater-face. These schools are FAR away right?"

Dante didn't retort, he just made a mental note to try steal his dad's credit card tomorrow.

The 'shop' you could call it, was extremely old with wallpapers peeling off the walls, shelves as dusty as time itself and an ancient grandfather clock sat at the darkest corner of the shop. Dante walked over the least dusty-looking and picked up a leaflet for one boarding school in Donegal. Lamroba's Secondary School for Special Ability Enhancement: Drafts Year is what at the top with swirly lime green font and a picture of the school itself. Looked pretty posh, Dante had to admit to himself. But he'd much rather stay here. His thoughts were interrupted when a bigger, darker, wrinkled hand swiped the leaflet from his. "HEY, DAD!"

"Is this the one your mum wanted?"

Before Dante could answer, his father's phone unleashed a horrid ringtone. PICK UP THE PHONE! PICK UP THE PHONE! PICK UP THE PHONE! Amara's voice chanted annoyingly through the speaker. Clifford swiftly answered in his most monotone voice. "Yes, sweetie?"

"Where are you and Dante? You've files to attend to and Ophelia wants to see her brother."

"Coming now, dearest. Donny and I just wanted to get some, uh, ice-cream!"

The sound of ice-cream sounded good to Dante, maybe he could coerce his father into getting some on the way back. Clifford quickly bought the leaflet and left the decaying building. with Dante lagging behind. "Now, son, THIS. NEVER. HAPPENED."

"What never happened?" Dante cheekily played along in hopes of getting his favorite treat.

His dad winked at him. "Exactly."

"Can we get ice-cream, dad?"

"No."

"Argh! Why not?!"

"Don't have time, got to enroll you and sort files. Can't have pit-stops."

Dante spent the rest of the ride home sinking into his passenger seat.

****************************************************************

When they arrived back Amara was waiting for them in the foyer. "No ice-cream?"

"Ate it on the way back...sorry." Clifford lied again. Dante just rolled his eyes.

"As long as you didn't stain the car seats," Amara turned on her heel and practically strut up the stairs. "Get to those files soon, honey!"

"YEP!" Clifford did an awkward salute even though Amara's back was turned. The father and son soon heard crying from upstairs. "Go take care of your sister." Clifford ordered before running down the hall, past the staircase, to his office.

Dante trudged up the marble stairs listening to the sound of his sister's wails. What could be wrong this time? he wondered.

When he reached the top he opened the soft pink colored door and was in Ophelia's room. Smallest of the bunch but to anyone else it would be freaking huge. He walked across the room and peered over into his sister's crib. She looked at him and almost immediately stopped crying. "Donny!"

Dante reached in and swooped Ophelia into his arms. "Opie! How's my little banker doing?" It was Ophelia's dream to be a wealthy banker, just like her mother.

"Bank is clear. All money's here!" She said with a wide grin. Another thing: for being only two years-old, Ophelia's pretty observant. She noticed the glum look on her brother's face almost instantly. "What's wrong Donny?"

That's when it hit Dante that he'd have to tell Ophelia what he did, how their parents were mad at him, and how he'd have to go away to boarding for a whole year and barley hang out with Ophelia. It sort of crushed him, but one reason he and Ophelia got on so well is because he didn't baby her in a condescending way like their parents. He'd treat her like a regular human and not do that stupid baby voice adults always so when talking to toddlers.

"I did a bad thing Opie."

"Oh no! Dis you rob a bank?"

"No, but it was really bad. Mum and Dad are really angry and have decided to punish me."

"By sending you to rob a bank?"

"No, Opie. I'm being sent to boarding school."

Ophelia gasped in horror before pausing to stare at her brother blankly. "Is that a type of bank?"

Dante tried his best to explain everything. From the really stupid plan to mum and dad's decision. By the time Ophelia properly understood what was happening, she gave Dante the biggest hug with her timy arms. "I don't want you to leave, Donny."

Dante hugged back, trying not to let Ophelia's crying get to him. "Me neither."