Not to demonize Ben's parents,
BUT, if someone like MAVERICK can admit the adults in his life failed him, I can too.
This drives me insane.
I have SO many questions.
Why did Shane want Ben to be in his group? Yes, he's tall and intimidating, but surely he's not the only one in their grade who fits that description. How long did this go on for? Aiden said It happened "every day," but how many days is that? How come Aiden literally can't remember if this happened in 6th or 7th grade? Where did the bullying take place? At school? How did he leave the building with those injuries without an adult noticing that something was wrong? How come his parents didn't say anything to the school board when their son came home, covered from head to toe in bruises? And if they did, why was nothing done?
"Clownin44, that's a little harsh. Give them the benefit of the doubt!"
He (11-13 year old boy) was sneaking out of the house, coming home late, and getting into STREET fights. The main and only reason he stopped was because he put his family in danger, and while I understand you can't help someone who won't accept help, they had EVERY opportunity to help him before it got to that point. He is a child. They are his parents. What if Ben never fought with the young boy whose older brother was in a gang? How long would this have gone on for? I don't know if you know anything about street fighting, but experience matters. This wasn't an act of rebellion. This was incredibly dangerous.
The worst part about it all is that Shane got what he wanted. Sure, Ben didn't join his group, but he did "fix" what he thought was wrong with Ben and inadvertently taught him how to fight. He wasn't expelled for putting him in the hospital. He wasn't expelled for bullying him or for getting his "group" to gang up on him, too. Shane was still in school by the time Ben recovered, and he would've continued to go to school with him if he hadn't moved in with his aunt and uncle. The entire thing was a disaster from start to finish.
Now, consider this; Ben has a younger sister he is incredibly protective of that he doesn't get to see very often. He physically can't be there for her if she ends up going through the same things he did. How can he trust that their parents won't fail her, like they failed him?
side note; the fact that we don't see Ben interacting with his parents, while Lily is basically racing into his arms, hurts me so bad. ARE THEY NOT CONCERNED? DO THEY NOT MISS HIM? DID I MISS A PANEL OF THEM OR SOMETHING? GOSH!!!
I get that it might not be that serious, and we never got to see how his parents handled the situation, so maybe they really were just doing their best, but I had to rant about this because I'm sooo sick and TIRED!!