MH: Robby's Breakdown

He was seeing red, everywhere. Of course, being color blind, that was sometimes the case. But this wasn't due to his eyes; no this was due to his anger.

"Hey, so what did you want to talk about?"

"Robby, I...I wanted to be the one to tell you this before it started getting spread around school. I figured hearing it from me would make things go way smoother."

"Quinn you're...you're not pregnant are you?"

"What? Oh geeze no Robby! No, no nothing like that. Geeze really?"

"Sorry, sorry, my bad. But you know the set up and all..."

"I get it, let's just move on ok. Robby, I wanted to tell you that Avalon and I are dating now. I swear, nothing happened while we were together. Really, it was our parents setting this up over the summer, and the more we hung out, the more we just sort of, you know, connected. So we figured, why not give it a shot; it'll get our parents off our backs after all, plus it just, well works."

"I see. So you lied then."

"What do you mean?"

"When you broke up with me, you swore it wasn't for him."

"It wasn't! I didn't lie at all. I told you, that happened after we broke up."

"Yeah right. Just like it wasn't your father that made you dump me either."

"Robby! Now that is unfair and you're being very childish about this."

"Childish? How is being upset about getting my heart ripped out of my chest for a second time childish??"

"Robby...did you really think we'd end up together forever?"

"I, I don't know, maybe."

"This is high school Robby, nothing in high school lasts forever."

"Right, because "forever's not long at all" right."

"Robert Goodfellow, you are a better man than this and we both know it. You will find someone who will love you forever the way you deserve to be, I know it. They obviously won't be as hott as I am, but they are out there. You really are a great man, and you know, even my father was starting to warm up to you. But you and me, we're just too different, and we were never meant to last. I loved you Robby, honestly and truthfully, and you'll always be dear to me. But that was last year, you need to move on."

"..."

"Good bye Robby, and good luck."

Good luck indeed! He cast another wide spray of his acrylic aerosol, not paying attention to color, not even really paying any attention to what he was really drawing. Art had always been his outlet, and after he tried to play down his anger the first time (which had blown free at the worst possible moment) he wasn't about to let that happen again. He was not a violent type by nature, but this situation, that girl, she just dug so deep under his skin and twisted and wrenched so hard, it drove him to this.

He threw that can down, not even bothering to look at the color he was pulling out of his sack next. He just popped the top, pulled the bandanna up over his nose again, and started adding more to his work. Wide broad strokes, making him leap and jump to reach the edges of his glass canvas. He didn’t care, he just had to paint, and he had to let it out.

This had been going on for an hour now. After that conversation, he’d hopped a bus the 2 hours to his old stomping grounds; no reason why, he just had to get away, he had to get space. He’d walked the streets, fuming in silence for awhile until he saw this large picture window in the front of a pawn shop. It was closed, so there were no lights within, but the black glass had spoken to him; it felt just as empty as he wanted to. So what better way than to plaster his rage upon it.

He was equally as coated in paint as his canvas was, but again it didn’t matter. He panted, stepping back from the window, looking up at the master piece he had just poured himself into. It had no form, looked mostly like regurgitated chicken scratch; most certainly not one of his better pieces. But it was what he’d needed, and yet…he wasn’t satisfied with it.

A siren came from behind him, accompanied by shifting red and blue lights. He cursed under his breath as he heard the engine turn off and a car door open.

“Alright son, drop the can,” he heard a faceless policeman call out to him.

His anger started to rise again; he didn’t need this, he needed solitude. No matter what he did, he knew he wouldn’t get that; he couldn’t make this feeling go away. He’d been here before, on the streets, nabbed by the cops. It’d happened before, thus why he’d had to switch schools, and now, he doubted the school would be happy with this. So now, his world quite literally was torn away; he had lost everything.

“I said drop the can.”

“Oh I’ll drop it,” he hissed under his bandana.

He curled the can at the painted window with enough force to go crashing through it. The glass sheet fractured and pieces scattered both inside the building and outside, littering sharp shards everywhere. An alarm sounded loud and piercing, and in what he was sure was record time, he felt a set of hands roughly grab him from behind. But he didn’t care; he just didn’t care anymore.

After all what else did he have to loose at this point?
***
It was during the car ride to the station that he started to get his sensibilities back. He had just enough time to send a quick text to Chad saying he was going to jail; he knew the cryptic nature of that would freak his friend out, but it was better than just disappearing right?

The next hour sat him in the station, cuffed to a desk, his phone and other paraphernalia confiscated. His father had also been called.

Robby and his father weren’t exactly the best of friends; there was a reason why he lived on campus after all. When the infamous Puck arrived, the police were fairly pleasant, explaining what had happened and stating very clearly that he could take custody of his son, but that he would have to keep him in the area because charges were being filed. They might not have been able to tell, but Robby certainly could see that his father was not happy with that.

They left after he’d been at the station for a total of 3 hours (most of the time spent waiting for his father to arrive). And surprise, surprise, they checked into a motel. His father remained acting nonchalant and friendly towards the manager as he signed them in, but Robby still could tell the man was fuming on the inside, just waiting for them to get alone before he cracked down on him. Room keys were exchanged, and down the row of doors they went.

Room 115, How ironic, Robby thought to himself. Inside it was typical plain motel décor; nothing flashy, nothing memorable. Two beds, a night stand between, a TV that cost quarters in a corner, and a bathroom without a door.

“Wow, you went all out for accommodations here hu.”

“Don’t start getting smart with me kid,” the older man snapped. “What were you thinking doing that, honestly!”

“I just needed to blow off steam ok, geeze!”

“I’m not talking about the graffiti and vandalism,” Robin growled. “I’m talking about wooing the Goblin King’s daughter.”

“No one says “wooing” anymore old man,” Robby rolled his eyes, and sat on the edge of one of the beds.

“I don’t care what you call it, what were you thinking! You do not engage with royals like that. You any idea how much I’ve had to hear about that from Oberon?”

“Well if you knew and disapproved why didn’t you step in sooner hu? You know, like a dad should.”

“Because I figured you were smarter than that and it wouldn’t be anything.”

“Well news flash Robin, I’m not you. When I fall in love, it’s for longer than a day!”

They were locked in stare down at that; both knew the other’s fuse was running short, and it would only take one nudge for either to explode. Seconds ticked to minutes, until finally one spoke when the tension had lessened.

“I’m sorry she broke your heart.”

“Wow, a real heartfelt sentiment,” the red head mumbled, rolling to face away from his father.

Robin bit his tongue to stop himself from lashing back at the boy. “But that’s not an excuse to loose your head. The deal was, I’d take responsibility for you, as long as you stayed at a school.”

“And didn’t have to deal with me.”

He bit back his rebuttal again, but it was getting harder. “You’re too young to be out of the realms on your own, so if this school kicks you out like the last one did, you’re going back to be with your mother.”

“You can’t do that! I have a life here!”

“Unless you can get yourself into another school where you’ll live, that’s it kid.”

Robby just growled and rolled back over, facing away from his father. Robin waited a bit to see if his son would say more, but when nothing was offered he just muttered to himself, going for the door.

“Where are you going?”

“Out.”

“Can I have my phone back.”

“No. from now until this is sorted out, you’re on lock down.”

He sat and spun around fast to glare at the older man, “You can’t do that to me.”

“If I have to be stuck here and miserable, so do you,” Robin looked back with a serious look, “You wanted me to start acting like your dad, well you just got your wish.”

He left, the door shut with a light click. Robby just threw himself against the bed, face first.

This was not going to end well.