"Wake up, sleepy head!"

"Huh?" Drowsely, Mark finds himself being shaken by his father.

"Time for bed. It's almost midnight." His father tells him.

Still half asleep, he looks over at the television and finds it has already been switched off.

Must be late!

"'Kay, Dad. Goodnight." He says as he gets up to go to bed.

"You okay, Mark?" His father asks him.

Okay? He thinks to himself, his mind still sluggish.

"About what you and your mom will have to do?"

Oh! He had almost forgotten.

"I guess." He says, pausing. He is not sure how he feels nor does he really want to talk about it. Not now. Not with his dad.

"You know that your mother and I really love you, don't you?"

The boy nods.

"I know this is tough for you. Hell. It is tough for all of us." He hears the small chuckle but somehow he doesn't think his dad finds it funny. He doesn't.

"But it has to be done." His father continues. "We have no choice."

"Yeah. I understand, Dad." Though he is not sure if he does.

"Anyway, Mark." There is a pause. "Your mother and I feel that the two of you should get...erm...started tomorrow. So you won't be going to school."

Tomorrow?

"Erm...okay, Dad." He says.

For a few minutes, they just stand there, quiet, not saying anything. In the end, his father says 'goodnight'

The boy goes upstairs to bed and a sleepless night...