Lights, Camera…
The family surrounded the dinner table
Diggory sat under the fluorescent light
He looked up at the loud bulb
and wondered what made it buzz
Three weeks had passed
and no one had noticed
that he’d cut himself out
of the family
photos
If you look around… he said
Everyone stopped
surprised that he spoke
Go on… his mother said
If you look around …
you’ll notice that I’ve cut myself out
of all the family photos
His mother looked around
Got up and took a nervous lap
around the apartment
You’ve ruined the family, she said
Surely you don’t mean that, Mom, Mallory said
I only mean that he ruined the family
photos, she said
Diggory sat there staring at the wall
How am I going to replace all those photos?
What am I going to do? she asked
Maybe … nothing, Diggory said
and put soggy broccoli
in his mouth
with a fork
Up in Smoke
Diggory’s father knocked
on the pantry door
Diggory wasn’t there
he was showering
His dad flipped the mattress
up against the wall
stepped into the pantry
and grabbed his box
of Lucky Charms
He ate like a child
No one else in the house
dared touch his Lucky Charms
When he sat the red box
on the table
he noticed a dark smoke seeping
from the gaps
of the flaps
of the cereal box
He put his hands behind his back
and walked around the table
hunched over
thoroughly examining
the box
He stopped
and held his hands close
to see if it was hot
It wasn’t
He opened it and saw
a thick smoke hanging
inside the box
but there was no flame
There was no fire
The smoke didn’t smell
It was more like a vapor cloud
than smoke
When he squeezed the sides of the box
it coughed the dark vapor
into the air
It dissipated
as he waved his hands
through it
When he looked inside
he saw the cut-out
pictures of Diggory
mixed with his cereal
The pictures were somehow
evaporating
and emitting
an opaque cloud
of ruin and mystery
He ran the box under the faucet
and threw the waterlogged
cereal box into the garbage
It landed with a soggy thud
He Needs Help
Diggory heard hushed mumblings
from the other side
of his parent’s bedroom door
He stopped and put his good ear
against the door
I found the pictures, Digory’s father said
What pictures? his mother asked
The pictures Diggory cut out, he said
I found them
Where? his mother asked
He stuffed them inside my cereal box
They were burnt or something
He needs help
I called his pediatrician
and she gave me a number
but we can’t afford it
so I called her again
and she gave me the number
for the health department’s
mental health division
but they have a four-month waitlist
The doctor suggested
that we let his school know
Sometimes they can help
They have social workers
who can meet with the kids
Did you sign him up? his father asked
Of course I did, she said
When’s dinner? he asked
I’m going to make it now, she said
and opened the door
She saw Diggory standing there
Nothing is wrong with me, he said
I don’t want to talk to the social worker
Well… she started to say
He put his hoodie up
walked to his little room
and put his shoes on
for his displaced diner walk
The Intercom
The school intercom hissed to life
Will Diggory Riven report to the main office, please
Diggory Riven…
Giggles and chuckles bubbled from the class
Diggory hated that his classmates laughed
every time they heard his name
He wanted to disappear
He stood up from his desk
paused
to make sure it was okay
with the teacher
and then walked to the office
What could they want?
Is everything okay at home?
Did I do something wrong?
What’d could I have done?
He entered the office
head full of anxious questions
Diggory? the receptionist asked
Yes, he said
Mrs. Peterson
the social worker
would like to see you, she said.
Do you know where her office is?
Yes, Diggory said
And on his walk down to her office
he began to piece it all together
and felt an overwhelming
amount of
anger
toward
his mother
Alien Buddha Press 