A Human Element Read Online Free PDF Page A

The light hovered dim, the globe full of dead bugs. Ben counted nine empty beer cans scrunched up on the table.
    "Want something to eat?" he asked, to gauge Frank's mood. He opened the fridge.
    "If I wanted something to eat, don'tcha think I'd be eating it?" Frank spat out. Grimacing, he dropped his head on his arms and started to cry.
    Ben stood still. The sobbing bounced off him. He shifted from foot to foot the longer Frank cried. He forced himself to move nearer and placed his hand on Frank's thick shoulder.
    "We'll be okay. You'll see." Ben tensed and snatched back his hand in disgust. As he turned back to the fridge, Frank touched his bottom. Ben stopped mid-step. He held his breath. He told himself it was just a light pat. Until the pat became a caress. It lingered. Soft in its want. He darted to his room, not looking back.
    He dragged out his backpack from beneath his dusty bed and filled it, keeping one ear cocked for Frank's approach.
    And it came.
    He shoved the backpack under his bed. The door swung open, and there stood Frank.
    "Don't ever walk away from me. You hear?" Frank leaned on the doorframe, his shirt clinging to his gut.
    Ben nodded with his head down, hoping Frank would leave. He had a terrifying vision of Frank throwing him on the bed, pulling down his jeans, and mounting him like a pig. He clenched his buttocks together.
    "Why don't you answer me?" Frank staggered into the room, his face red and sweaty. He grabbed Ben by the shirt. "Get up!"
    Ben shook off Frank's hand. "Leave me alone! You make me sick."
    Frank's eyes narrowed. He shoved Ben down. He kicked him in the back, then the head. Ben curled into a fetal position.
    "Who do you think—you—are?" Frank delivered a kick with each word.
    Fury exploded through Ben's brain. Enough! He grabbed Frank's foot mid-kick, throwing him off balance, and punched him hard in the chest as he fell. Frank made a loud whoomph as he landed on an elbow. He slowly stood and clutching his elbow, took a shaky step toward Ben. But then Frank's red face suddenly turned pale and he grabbed his left shoulder. He contorted in a twisted dance. With a gruesome grimace, he stumbled out of the room.
    Ben touched his forehead. Blood oozed slick. He wasn't sure what just happened. But he was glad it did. His hands trembled. His back knotted with pain. He had to get out.
    He pulled out a boot from under his bed and grabbed a roll of money he had been pilfering from Frank's top drawer over time. He had enough for a bus ticket and a cheap room for a few days. He'd find a place where no one could hurt him again. If he was found and brought back to Frank the beating might be more than he could take. But he had to face this fear. If Frank did more than beat him he would want to die anyway.
    He swung his backpack over his shoulder and looked back at the bare room. He had never belonged here. He fought off self-pity and pushed open the door to listen. The television's ghostly light poured from Frank's bedroom and murmured old comedy.
    Ben tiptoed to the door. Frank sat in bed, his eyes shut. He had passed out, an arm spread out on his leg, newspapers strewn around him. A cigarette hung from his fingers, the ash still glowing. The television flickered, canned laughter filled the room. Ben kept his gaze on the cigarette. The ash grew. Then the cigarette slipped. It quivered. It tumbled in slow motion. Nothing happened. The sheets smoldered. Laughter rang out again. Ben looked at the television. Some character ran around a kitchen. His gaze returned to the fallen cigarette. Minutes passed like hours to him.
    He needed to choose. Run, or pick up the cigarette and prevent the certain fire? If he did nothing and Frank died, would he be a murderer? But Frank could have killed him just now. Might still kill him, or worse, if he ever caught him. He continued to stare where the cigarette fell.
    The flames burst up from the newspapers and sheets and fanned along the comforter. It framed Frank in