“Fuck you, pa’!” The words were spat at nothing with a specific breed of childish venom laden heavy with alcohol, a bottle of something heavy and intoxicating in his hand; been waving it around since he started wandering the bayou-- the swamp-- the shitty woodlands he knows near better than a swamp ranger. Fingers were curled loose around the neck of the bottle, wrist near limp, arm swaying as he trekked and sending the bottles contents spilling on the back of his hand.
No fucking pigs to arrest him for smelling like whiskey and wandering around like some fucking freak. It’s the fucking outdoors! What kind of trouble could he cause beyond tracking mud and getting wet? There was always something.
Fuck-- his goddamn phone. Why the fuck can’t he use it at the table? The hand not holding the whiskey bottle slowly rose, touching his cheek; it still burned raw from the slap to it, bruise blooming on his cheekbone, fingers were but a cool relief to its stinging. He ain’t some child anymore. ‘Least whiskey provided a better relief.
The chorus of hissing bugs and croaking frogs would have been fucking annoying, would have if he hadn’t gotten so used to it: a violent, raging buzz. Maybe there was something there, could use bugs for something. At least they were useful, telling him if someone was around. Probably wasn’t the best idea to drink far from the House, knew it was practically fucking stupid, but he’s got a notched belt of drinking out here for years. “Goddamn old man don’t know shit.”
Wandering was better than being in that House with Zoe. Wandering was better than being called a pervert, being slapped around for a fucking phone. Dumb sons of bitches didn’t know shit: he was trying.