Matlak, Sin 1

Corey Matlak
4208 Baltimore MD, 21229
443-635-7299
hueandkry@gmail.com
A Face Like Sin

Yeah it was great. I saw it; I saw the whole thing that night. It was few
years back, when I was still in highschool. It was just after school hours, late
April. Damn the breeze felt so good, like it should to any kid walking home
after being cooped up in a stale classroom. Me and Benjamin, or as most the
kids called him, Benjywe were walking home from school like we did every
day well, everyday Benjy didnt cut class early; if he cut, Id just take the
bus. Benjy wasnt one of them delinquent-type tough kids; he was more like
a runt really. But somehow he cut school and the teachers didnt seem to
notice much. Anyhow, we were walking home. Man, the sun glistened
through this one path we liked to take. It took a little longer to get home, but
we took it anyway. Beams of light seemed to bounce of those tree leaves
more so than any other path Ive ever been on.
Benjy turns and says to me Say, Will you think you might wanna
watch something later?
I told him, That all depends, your place or mine?
I struck a nerve on him right there. I did it on purpose you know,
fucking with him the way kids do. I knew he didnt want to go back home.
See, sometimes Bens uncle liked to pick up loose women down by the local
bar and today was Thursday, Bens uncle always felt extra lucky on

Matlak, Sin 2

Thursdays and Benjy didnt want to be there for the action this time.
Anyhow, I told him yea, suremovie sounds great, but thats when it
happened. Right after I said that Leroy comes zooming past us on his bicycle.
And right as he passes us, almost ramming into us shouts out Faggots! and
he holds that word out as hes fading out into the distance. That little prick
right? Thats what we were thinking. So whatever, hes gone, we think
nothing of it. But when we turn the corner at the end of the pathguess who
we see all tangled up in a bike crying? The little prick hit a curb. He couldnt
move either, he was just lying their bleeding on the sidewalk. So we did the
usual, kicked him a little, called him a little bitch. I mean eventually we
helped him up, but we got a few good kicks in firstin retrospect, that
wasnt the brightest idea.
Leroy started shouting at us. You assholes! You asshole faggots!
I flicked a piece of grass off my sleeve and looked right back at the kid.
Shut the hell up Leroy. Get that piece of shit bike up and get outa here, and
stop sniveling. I crammed my hands into my Yankees windbreaker; I used to
be all about baseball back then. I just started smoking then too; I was
digging around the inside of my pockets looking for a cig; I was probably
feeling nervous.
Meanwhile Leroy kept mouthing off to us, saying all sorts of shit. I
remember he told us he was gonna make us pay. He was gonna make us
both pay.

Matlak, Sin 3

I just told him to shut his goddamn mouth. Goddamnit Leroy was a
phrase frequently escaping my lips. This kid just never knew when to keep
his mouth shut.
Benjy liked to play it cool, he just shook his head. He also stuck his
hands into his jackethe usually sported a worn flannel pattern. It didnt do
much for him; although, I admit, it was a hellova lot cleaner than mine; mine
was covered in glorified grass stains. I was damned proud of those stains. I
played hard and it showed.
I was still digging around for a lone cigarette. I kept pulling out random
shit that got my hopes up. A pencil, a lightergoddamn thats the most
annoying thing when you need a smoke.
By now Leroy was remounting his bike and hadnt stopped pestering us
with his bullshit. Youre both in deep shit. Im talking elephant shit!
That line I was just sick of this little pricks mouth, man. I broke. I was
spewing hate. Goddamnit Leroy, last fucking time! I told em. Then, I
kicked the back tire of the bike, right as Leroy was taking off. You ever had
that happen? It fucking sucks. He spilled off that bike in the worst way,
landing face first on the pavement.
Ben lost his cool right there. The kid skipped class every other day, but
he wasnt the type that got into fights. He was good at dodging those kinds
of situations. Oh fuck, Will! Leroy lifted up his head, dear God, it was a
bloody mess.

Matlak, Sin 4

Oh fuck me! We were both freaking out right now. I rushed down to
try and help him up, but Leroy continuously flailed his fuckin limbs, he
wouldnt let me help him. I told Benjy hey, help me out here. We gota do
something with this kid.
He was lookin pretty nervous though; hed never imagined himself in
this situation. Like what? He said.
I didnt know, the whole situation was fucked really.
And there was Leroy leaned up on the curb, spewing out obscenities
and threats under his crying, and moaning breath. -Both pay, fucking
assholes-pay. He kept sayin.
And thats when I really lost whatever cool I had left, man. I started
sayin shit. We wont fucking pay, know why? Because youre a sniveling
little shit, and you had this coming, ya little prick! You dont tell anyone shit,
you hear me? You hit a curb and fell because youre a clumsy fuckup, we
were never here. I kept tryin to get it into the kids skull. We were never
here. But Leroy wasnt having it.
No, you assholes owe me! Goddamn, you think Bens voice is highpitched? This motherfuckers voice was piercing.
But this was when shit got freaky. Bens demeanor suddenly changed.
His face became stern, and his eye twitched a little bit. I thought I was
looking at fuckin Rocky Balboa over here. Ben went fishin around in his
pocket and pulled out a five dollar bill. He pulled it out, crumbled it up, and
dropped it next to that bleeding pile of flesh and metal that was clinging to

Matlak, Sin 5

the curb. Bens voice got real serious. I never heard this kind of tone before;
he said, There, we paid. It was worth it.
That was some shit I didnt expect. Jesus, man, I didnt know Benjy
could be so cold. Seriously, that was like some old-school gangster shit. Me, I
was fire up, I wasnt expecting Benjy of all people to pull that kind ofI
mean, that shit scared me. The funny thing is we needed that fucking five
dollar bill. See, about two blocks down the road we realized that besides
some bum-change in my pocket, that was the only money we had, and we
had to rent a movie. Benjy was trying to talk me into re-watching one of my
tapes, but cmon, how many times can a couple kids re-watch Star Wars: The
Empire Strikes Back before they get tired of it. The answer is a lot. But it did
happen; we couldnt put that one back in. If the other two tapes worked we
couldve at least watched the whole series. No, we had to either get some
money for a tape, or we go to Bens house. We were desperate.
I started interrogating Ben a little bit. I told em Why the fuckd you
give him a five? We coulda used that.
Ben wasnt paying any goddamn attention to our situation, he asked
me On what?
Then I told reminded him, Oh I dunno, maybe a movie rental, ya
asshole. Got any more money? I have change, thats all.
Benjy just shook his head. Just that five.I was just sighing at this
point. Ben kept goin, Alright. New plan then.

Matlak, Sin 6

Alright, watcha got in mind? And I told em, Swear to God if you
say StarWars
Ben says, We bum some cash from my uncle, or maybe dads back
early.
That was good enough for me. Hell maybe we can squeeze a ten out
em. You know how kids think. And then it hit me; whyd the kid have five
extra bucks anyhow? So asked him if his old man gave him too much lunch
money that day; and then Speaking of which I didnt see you in the
cafeteria.
Ben was looking a little trancey or something. He was really
focused on the path in front of him. His eyes didnt deviate from the road at
all. He told me Cut and came back.
So naturally, as a fellow student, I was offended. I said why in Gods
holy name would you ever come back?
I wanted to be there for last class today. He says.
I confirmed With misses Bachman? Whatpsychology right?
Ben nodded. Yea, I like psych.
There was only one response I had for em. I like those tits. I aint
kidding, this woman was smuggling cantaloupes up there. I didnt really get
the response he wanted out of Benjy though. I just kept talking, I said But
still, whered you run off to today? I started mimicking the voice of one of
those movie trailer narrators, you know the type. I said something like,
What adventures did Benjamin Garth have today? Tune in now!

Matlak, Sin 7

Then he told me he was at a diner. And he told me a really fucking

weird story; it went something like this:

Two shadowy dudes were sitting down the diner bar and they noticed
Ben sketching em.
Hey Mike, you see this kid? They were sitting on some bar stools
sipping their coffees. Yea I see em, why whats he got? That a pencil? Ben
noticed them noticinggot a little scared and started scribbling faster, he
was getting nervous. These two men, they got up and started walking
towards him. He hastily shut his sketch book, pencil inside the pages still.
Kid, whatcha got there? One of em says.
Ben was real nervousremember how I said he had that real highpitched voice? Well this situation wasnt really helping with that. Ben says
Nothing! Just drawings! But his voice cracked bad, real bad.
The same man leans in, says The fuck was that? You are a boy aint
ya? Mike, listen to this kid, he sounds like a girl. So kid, whatcha got in that
book huh? I figure if youre drawing us youd better let us see what you got?
Ben didnt know what to do; he thought for a second and slid the book
over to them. The bigger man, Mike who was silent up until now picked up
the book. He says Let me see The fuck! Jack look at this shit!

Matlak, Sin 8

This guy Jack, he held the sketchbook and examined the page. Bens
face probably looked like a strawberryI bet it was glowin like Rudolphs
nose.
Is this a fuckin dildo sticking out of my coffee?
Mike confirmed. Jack, that is a picture of you sipping at a fucking
dildo.
Jack said You think this is fucking funny kid? The mans voice spiked
up. Ben couldnt talk. His eyes began to tear and he couldnt talk. Its-it-its
But then the dude says This is fucking hilarious. The man sat back
down and put his arm around Ben. Oh, yeah. This is real fuckin funny shit
you got here. You know why? Because its so fucking good. Where you learn
to draw like thishow many dicks did you have to study to get that level of
detail. Goddamn, youre a funny little fucker. How old are you kid?
Ben told him he was seventeen.
The man responded Bullshit seventeen! You cant be past fourteen
okay fifteen, Ill give ya fifteen, but you aint no seventeen year old, bullshit.
But you can draw and youre a funny motherfucker, but you cant keep that
bullshit putting a fuckin dildo in my coffee.
Ben loosened up a little bit, but he still couldnt make eye contact with
these guys. I dont blame em.
Here. Jacked slapped down a five dollar bill on the table. And the
ripped the drawing out of his notebook. Take that, you earned it ya insane
little fuck. This is funny shit, real funny shit, lets pin this fuckin Picasso to the

Matlak, Sin 9

wall. The boys will get a laugh out of this. These two guys grabbed their
coats of the coat-rack Ben told me they were expensive looking coats. Jack
spins around real quick, says Hey kid, never lose those balls, but do yourself
a favor and get them dicks off your mind. The two walked out the diner and
Ben took a deep breath.

Ben tells me thats exactly how it went down. He had my full attention
but he was still focused on the road to his house.
I told him Hot damn, Benjy... ya know what those guys were? I bet
you fifty bucks those two were gangsters. I mean, the boys will get a laugh
out of itthats what you said right? Thats the evidence right there! The
Boys? Those are definitely gangsters. I believed it too.
Ben started saying stuff like, How can you be so sure? and Have
you ever seen a gangster Will? I doubt youve seen a gangster.
I thought for a brief second and then said this with full certainty, I
most definitely have seen gangsters. I bet youve seen gangsters too. See
Benjy, gangsters arent obvious. They try to blend in. So I bet youve seen a
thousand of them and never realized it. I still believe that.
Still, Benjy was getting irritable. He replied Then how the hell can you
tell that these two were gangsters, huh? Just from my story, you think you
can tell who is and isnt a gangster. If theyre so good at blending in then
how and Gods name Will, can you tell me who is and isnt a gangster when
you havent even seen the men? Tell me that Will, go on!

Matlak, Sin 10

I propped his hands back behind my head. I told him all cocky-like, Ah
Benjy, if you only knew my ways, then you too would possess the acute
senses needed to detect such an obtuse occurrence. I remember that, dear
God I was a stupid kid.
Ben pointed it out too, he paused for a second. I dont think you know
what you just said.
We walked up the sidewalk to Benjys townhome.
When we were inside, Ben tossed his backpack on the couch and
sprinted up the stairs. So I just kinda waited around. I heard a little bit of
stomping around upstairs. There had to be at least four people up there
including Ben. I plopped down next to Benjys bookbag. I thought hed be a
little while so I went through it and pulled out his sketchbook. And damn
thats when I saw it. Flipping through the pages, I landed smack on a
masterpiece. It was his psych teacher, Ms. Bachman. It was a drawing of her
standing at the blackboard. Ben was a good artist; I knew immediately whose
ass that was turned to the class. There was no doubt in my mind.
Then there was a knock at the door.
Ben shouted down the stairs. Hey will grab that. Ill be down in a sec.
I opened the door and saw a face like sin. Leroy looked pissed.
He started off soft enough. Wheres Ben? I told em to fuck off, we
were sick of his bullshit. But he wouldnt have it. He threw the five dollar bill
at my foot and spit at me.

Matlak, Sin 11

I tackled him straight out the front door onto the front sidewalk. We
rolled up and down the concrete taking jabs whenever we could. I got one
real good one in on his face. The dried blood from the biking incident gave
way to fresh new blood. And then the fucker bit my ear. He bit the shit out of
it. See this line? Yeah, that aint no piercing. After he bit my ear, he hit it with
a surprisingly hard strike. I pulled off of him and stood up. My left ear was
ringing like the pope was coming to town and all the fuckin churches where
ringing their bells next to my skull. And then as a second passed, I felt
burning. I mean real burning. I turned my head half expecting to find Benjy
holding a lighter under my ear.
I turned around and saw Ben standing in the doorway looking whitefaced. Leroy picked his bike off the ground and took off. He shouted
something but goddamn, the ringing in my ear was filling my head. Ben bent
down and pocketed the crumbled up bill. Then he came over and put his arm
around me. We started walking. Eventually the shock wore off. I asked him,
where we heading Ben. I dont want a hospital, Im fine man. I never caved,
Ben knew that; he smiled and said were going to the movie store.
Ben got ten bucks. Five from his pop and five from Leroy. I want two
movies he said.
I laughed Movie marathon? So your place or mine.
Yours, definitely yours. He said.
I pushed him, you know your place is closer to the shop right?

Matlak, Sin 12

He paused for a second and said a few syllables that caught me

completely off-guard. Ms. Bachman.
I should have thought out my next phrase a little better. What the hell
does Tittysaurus -Rex have to do with this? Now, I know what youre
thinking, I didnt pick that nickname, it was well circulated between the guys
at schoolone of those things we just all agreed on. I mean, those things
were, man Anyhow, turns out Benjys uncle was nailing her. I didnt push
anymore. My place it is.
We went to the video store with enough for two tapes, so we got the
first and last movies to the Star Wars trilogy. We watched that whole damn
series front to back. And then we watched it again the next day at the
hospital. No, not for my ear, I didnt give two shits about that, actually
thought it looked cool. Stupid kid, right? I coulda gotten rabies. Nope, it was
just goddamn Leroygot hit on his bike. Two dudes tore out of a parking lot
after holding up a jewelry store. Landed on his face again, broke open all his
scabs and scared em up pretty gooda rib mighta been broken or
something. They never caught the guys.
So, we sat up there in the hospital room with the little bastard. At first
we just wanted to rub it in. He really was a clumsy little fucker. But Ben had
the tapes in his bag and hell... we just popped em in and watched together.
He had a pretty sweet T.V. set in that room. Leroy annoying as ever said
What the fuck is up with this text? Why are there words flying through
space? How is this fun? I snapped back as if it was habit Goddamn it Leroy!

Matlak, Sin 13

Shut the hell up for two goddamn seconds will ya. Heh, I guess it was
habbit.
HereBenjy made a few sketches of us at the hospital; let me show
you; a few of em are pretty damn funny. He made me a Jedi in this one. He
gave me a lightsaber. Leroy asked for a picture too but instead of a
lightsaberyeah, it was a dildo.