You're On Fire Pt 5

The Mustang comes to a stop. Your father looks at you. What do you think?

You will be ten years old by the end of the summer, a longtime survivor of your father’s expectations; you know exactly what to do, squinting and taking a long look at the two-story with its white siding and black shutters and wrap-around porch, counting to ten in your head because that seems like long enough. I like it, you say, carefully. It’s exactly what you deserve.

You heard this in a movie last month and immediately ran to write it down. It works like a charm; your father’s face lights up and he punches you in the arm. Exactly, he says. You better believe it.