Worthless:
The first time someone told him he was worthless, Caleb turned the other way, a smirk tugging at the corners of his thin lips. The other boy shoved him; Caleb shoved back - fighting in the way that young kids do. By the next day, Caleb was sharing his ham and cheese sandwich with the boy, unaware of the way that word, worthless, should have made him feel.
But the boy hadn't said it tauntingly, while his nails dug into the skin of Caleb's throat, leaving crescent moon marks on his neck. The word didn't roll off the boy's tongue like sin, hot and sharp, slicing through Caleb and causing him to recoil.
That's the way it seemed when Kevin said the word. He screamed it at Caleb, his fingers digging into Caleb's neck. The 14 year old boy had squirmed, daring to look into the malevolent blue eyes that glared into his. Kevin slammed Caleb's back into the wall again, then dropped the boy, laughing as he fell to the ground in a crumpled heap.
"You're a worthless piece of shit," Kevin repeated, turning away from Caleb and grabbing his beer from the counter across the room. The young boy waited until the man was gone before he curled in on himself, his forehead resting against his knees. The linoleum floor was cold; it raised goosebumps on the exposed skin of his side from where his plaid shirt had come up. Tentatively, Caleb raised his shaking fingers to brush over his neck. He could feel Kevin's fingernail indentions.
"I'm not worthless." Caleb muttered to himself, pushing himself up off the ground. He sat up on his legs and wiped his nose. At that moment, his stepbrother Hudson walked into the kitchen, casting his eyes to Caleb and scoffing.
"Made him mad, didn't you?" Hudson asked, reaching his hand up to run through his blonde curls. Caleb was merely able to manage a small nod.
"Well," Hudson started, "guess you'll be more careful next time."
