When Eli's hearse broke down in a dangerous neighborhood, Clare and her friends thought they'd find safe shelter in an abandoned home―they were wrong.
"Here kitty, kitty, kitty…" "Eli?" "No. I'm Fitz. Was Eli that guy with the belt? Cause it's mine now. And if you come now, I'll make your death real quick, so you won't feel it when we eat you."
-oOo-
"Shit happens," Eli grumbled in the driver's seat.
"Now's not the time, Eli." Adam sighed in frustration
But he's right, Clare thought, gazing out of the passenger window. Eli is right. There's no reason to it. Sometimes, events just sin out beyond our control. Sometimes, no matter how careful we are, no matter how much we try sticking to the script or routine, our day gets off track, and nothing we say or do will fix it before night comes around. Shit happens. And when it does, things get fucked up.
Like now.
However, while the situation they were in now was indeed fucked up, it wasn't simple case of "shit happens"―at least, not entirely. Perhaps some of it could be blamed on fate, but the rest of it was purely Drew's fault.
-oOo- 45 Minutes Ago
They'd driven from the suburbs to attend a Dead Hands concert. Eli and Adam convince the girls―Clare and Fiona to come with. Clare and Fiona agreed under one condition― that Alli and Drew were invited. If they were going to have a group date, bring the whole crew, right?
Eli and Clare
Adam and Fiona
Drew and Alli
When the concert was over, all six of them had piled in Eli's good o' Morty, the hearse. Nearly deaf from the concert, and adrenalized by the late hour, they'd driven out of the parking lot with windows downs, laughing and shouting at one another, sounds great right? Until that certain shit happened.
20 minutes after pulling out of the parking lot, Drew wanted to visit an old friend of his on the other side of town. No one in their right would go to that side of the town. Drew swore he knew what he was doing. All he wanted to do was get baked because his friend, Bianca De Sousa had great weed.
Drew navigated Eli through a maze of city streets, insisting he knew where we were heading. Despite his insistence that he knew where he was going, Drew got flustered when the road he needed was under construction and closed.
"What the fuck is this all about?" Frowning, Drew pointed at the large, dented ROAD CLOSED sign.
"It's blocked off," Adam told him
"I know it's blocked off, idiot. Thanks for your help."
"You need a GPS," Fiona said. "My mother bought me one for my birthday last year. I never got lost."
Drew's frown deepened. "Your parents buy you everything, princess."
Fiona shrugged. "Well, if you had one we wouldn't be sitting here now, would we?
"I'm surprised you know how to program the fucking thing."
"Hey!" Adam shouted, trying to defend his girlfriend. "Chill the hell out, Andrew."
"Shut the hell up, Adam. You're always trying to tell me what to do. You are not my fucking mother."
"Mother? Mother! What the fuck is that suppose to mean? Huh? Say it Drew. Tell me, what did you mean by that?
"Dude, I didn't mean it that way." Drew claimed
"You know what you meant!" Adam shouted. During this fallout Eli, Clare, and Alli stayed quiet.
"Adam, please… just calm down," Fiona said, attempting to calm her boyfriend.
"No, he knows what he meant and I want him to say it," Adam said clenching his jaw.
"Please? For me?" Fiona took this chance to use her big brown chocolate eyes to convince Adam.
Adam's features pinched together for a second, and Fiona saw him trying to control his temper. In Private, when it's just the two of them, Adam would be really sweet.
"I'm Sorry,"
"Yeah, whatever."
Silence filled the car.
Drew spoke through the silence. "It's all good. I can get around this. We just have to go down one block and back track."
Unfortunately, the little back track took them to the wrong side of town. Hookers roamed the streets, looking hollow and emaciated. A woman―hooker is more appropriate―gave them the finger as they passed by. Huge herpes sores dotted the corner of her mouth. Adam, in a better mood, smiled a huge grin and waved. Fiona nudged him with her elbow.
The road was jutted and cracked. The hearse bounced over a gaping pothole, thumping and rattling in ways that it would surely breakdown.
"Fuck me," Eli mumbled under his breath.
"You wish," Clare replied
He smirked, but there was no humor in his expression. The smirk soon faded when Morty's engine light came on and steam began billowing out from the hood, covering the windshield with dust.
"Shit!"
The engine sputtered, and then died along with the headlights and the radio. The speed decreased from 40 miles an hour to five. Morty rolled a few more yards and then came to a stop.
"Shit happens," Eli grumbled, and pulled the hood latch from under the steering wheel.
"Now's not the time, Eli." Adam sighed in frustration.
"Stay in here," he said and walked to the front of the hearse.
And now they were stuck with a broken down hearse in the middle of a bad neighborhood.
Drew's fault.
Clare shook her head and sighed.
Alli finally speaking up nodded in agreement. "You just had to get your weed, didn't you? Especially from that, boyfriend stealing bitch, Bianca."
"I thought we settled this, Babe. You're the only one for me and I'm not going to screw this second chance up." Drew said.
"Keep talking to her and you won't have a third, I don't like her―stay away from her," Alli's eyes were filled with pure hatred. Drew nervously nodded and spoke "Sure, anything for you."
Adam chimed in with a cough "WHIPPED!"
"And you are one to talk, making kissy face with, Princess FiFi." Drew retorted. Both Adam and Fiona's face blushed with a rosy pink red shade.
"Touché, Bro." Adam chuckled
Outside the teens heard Eli cursing and growing with anger.
"Maybe we should go out and help him," Drew suggested
"Non-sense, Eli is a motor head when it comes to Morty, but its dark and he doesn't have his tools," Clare spoke up
"And besides he said to stay in the car." Clare frowned
"Screw that, it's hot in here and there's no way I'm rolling the windows down." Adam stated, obviously agreeing with his brother.
"You're afraid to roll down the windows," Alli said, "but you'd rather stand outside with Eli?"
"Yeah, what's that about, bro?" Drew said
Smirking, Alli adopted a baby-talk tone. "He knows Eli will beat up the big bad drug dealers if they mess with us. He's afraid."
Adam's ears turned a dark red. Instead of responding, he opened the door and got out.
"You know," Fiona said, turning to Alli. "That was a real bitch move."
Alli's smile died. "I was just kidding."
"Well, Adam's sensitive. You know that."
Sighing, Alli and Drew got out of the car to apologize to Adam. Fiona remained seated, rummaging through her purse.
"You need make-up at a time like this?" Clare snorted.
"No silly," Fiona said pulling out her pink cell phone and flipping it open. "My parents. They've got Triple A. They can send a tow truck for us."
"Hold off on that. Let's just wait a minute to see what's wrong with the car first."
"Screw that." Fiona said "I'm not sitting around here waiting to get mugged. Have you look around here, it's like Bagdad."
Clare slowed rubbed here temples, she could tell a headache was forming.
"Please, Fi? It'll piss him off even more than he is about Drew getting us lost," Clare pleaded
"I don't care, I don't know why you even put up with him and his shit," Fiona said. Clare wasn't happy that she was talking about her boyfriend like this. "I mean like, he dresses odd, he drives a hearse, and he has temper problems. If Adam was like that, I would have dumped him long ago."
"Adam let's you walk all over him. He's done that since you were fine about his FTM secret. He's a pushover."
"Maybe, Adam is sweet and treats me the way I should be, like a princess," Fiona bragged. "He respects me. Like I said, why put up with Eli and his problems?" Fiona said.
"Excuse me? Eli sure as hell respects me and he doesn't have problems. He just needed help letting go of his past," Clare replied, and Fiona snorted.
"It's so easy for you, isn't it?"
"Huh?" Fiona said closing her phone putting it back in her purse
"Pretty little rich Fiona, who gets everything she wants. Some of us don't have it that easy, Fi. You're supposed to be one of my best friends. I don't need shit from you about my relationship. You gave Alli shit for picking on Adam, but then you are turning it around and picking on me? Real mature, you spoiled bitch."
Scowling, Clare opened the passenger door and stepped out onto the street. She felt the cool misty breeze of the night blow on her face and through her red sandy curls. Fiona quickly followed her, offering sincere apologies. They joined the others huddled around the open hood. The guys peered down engine intently. Steam rose from the radiator smelling of motor oil and antifreeze.
Eli looked up from Morty's hood and glared at them. "I thought I told you guys to stay in the car. Doesn't anyone listen?"
"It's hot in there," Fiona flipped her hair. "Want me to call my parents, they have Triple A?
"No," Eli turned his attention back to the busted engine. "I can figure this out"
"Yeah," Fiona flipped her hair again. "Cause you are doing a great job so far."
Eli's knuckles curled around the car's front grille, clenching it tightly. Clare and Adam both motioned at Fiona to stay quiet. Another cloud of smoke drifted up into the night sky.
"Damn it, I need my tools." Eli grumbled with his head still under the hood
Clare patted and rubbed circles in his back "its okay, I'm sure it can't be that bad. It's dark, you need light to work and the cell phones just won't do. If we can get better lighting, you can diagnose the problem and fix it in no time."
Eli looked up at her with a smirk. "You really know how to soothe a guy, but blue eyes I got this. Morty driving on a jagged road like this really fucked it up,"
Clare showed a toothy smile then turned her attention down the street―out of curiosity of where they are stuck.
Beyond the row homes was a large swath of debris-covered pavement, as if all the buildings in that section had been knocked down. The moonlight was stronger there, and the headlights of passing cars illuminated the scene. Chunks of concrete and twisted metal girders jutted from the devastation. Beyond that was a single house much larger than the rest. Clare thought it had to been at least a hundred years old, but it appeared to be Victorian styled. Maybe one of the original buildings in this neighborhood, standing there long before the slums had been made. She supposed it had once been pretty. Now it was desolated ruin―in even worse condition than the other homes. Beyond it was a vacant lot, overgrown with weeds and brambles. Behind that was a tall chain-link fence.
Clare stared at the house; it sent shivers down her spine. She had an uncanny impression that the abandon building was somehow watching her.
Eli finally looked up from the hood. "Guys, I think I finally got this situ―,"
Eli stopped talking, closed his hood, and walked pass the group. The others turned and faced to see what attracted his attention (A/N): This next part is what you call stereotypes. Don't judge a book by its cover. A group of black teens approach them. What you are about to read is what I deal with everyday. So don't feel offended or get the wrong idea, it's educational for something you shouldn't do
The group of black men approached them; they appeared to be the same age as the rest of them. Most of them were dress in athletic jerseys or white tank tops. Their pants, held up by a belt, sagged exposing their boxers. Gold watches and necklaces completed their ensemble. A few wore backwards caps and one wore a do – rag.
"Oh shit," Drew whispered. "What the hell do they want?"
Fiona whimpered. "We're going to get mugged."
Drew nodded. "This is going to end bad, really fucking badly."
"Calm the hell down," Eli said. "You guys automatically assume that just because they are black, they're going to mug us?"
"Look at them," Drew insisted. "They sure as hell don't look like they're here to see Girl Scout cookies."
Eli glared at him, speechless.
The group shuffled closer, walking with sort of lazy, loping gait. Clare's nervousness increased. She wanted to agree with Eli, but then considered the situation and their surroundings. Panic overwhelmed her. She was short of breath, thinking of what might happen. She reached for Eli's hand and clenched it―tight.
"Shit," Drew moaned. "Fucking do something!"
Adam shoved him. "Chill the fuck out. You're acting like an asshole."
When the group was about ten feet away, they stopped. The leader stepped forward and glared at them suspiciously. Slowly his friends stepped alongside him.
"The fuck y'all doing around here? You lost?" His voice was deep and surly. He stood tensed.
Alli and Fiona clasped hands and stepped backwards simultaneously. Drew slipped behind them. Eli slowly slammed the hood of Morty and faced the group. Adam walked from behind the car and joined him. Clare remained where she was. Her feet felt like they were rooted to the ground.
Another one of the teens spoke up. "The man asked you a question."
"We don't want any trouble," Eli said
Clare cringed at the strong, tensed, threatening tone in his voice.
"Well, if you don't want no trouble," the leader said grinning, "then you're in the wrong place."
His friends chuckled among themselves in response. His hand went up and immediately they stopped.
"Come into this neighborhood after dark," he continued, "then you must be looking for trouble. Or dope. Or be lost. So which one is it?"
"Neither," Eli Challenged.
"We just had a little car trouble, that's all. We just called for a tow truck and they're on the way." Adam added.
The leader elbowed the kid next to him. "You hear that shit, Danny? He said a tow truck is on the way."
Danny smiled and nodded. "I heard that, Connor. What you think?"
The leader―Connor―stared at Adam as he responded. "I think this little man here be bullshitting us, y'all. Ain't no tow trucks come down here after dark. Not to this street, that is."
Eli and Adam glanced at each other. Clare saw Eli's Adam's apple bobbing up and down. She turned to Fiona who was slowly pulling out her cell.
"Now for real," Connor said, "What y'all doing down here, ya'll lookin' to score?"
Drew stammered from behind the girls "M-maybe, w-what you got?"
Connor stepped closer. "The question is what you got? How much are you carrying?"
Oh god, here it comes. Clare thought. A big fight is going to break out.
Connor glanced at the car, then at each of them. Clare felt Connor's eyes linger on her for a bit. Then he gazed went back to the car.
"Alright," Connor started, clasping his hands together. "Let's handle this nice and easy. Tell you what, we'll fix y―"
"Fuck you, drug dealing gangbangers!"
Clare was just as surprised as Connor and his friends. She heard feet pounding on the pavement, and turned to see Drew running away toward the large abandoned house at the end of the block. A second later Fiona and Alli ran after him. Fiona's phone clattered to the ground as she fled. She didn't stop to retrieve it. Adam chased after them, shouting. Eli and Clare stared at each other for the beat of one heart. Eli picks Clare up and flung her body on his shoulder and ran.
As Clare picked her head up she heard Connor shouted after them. "Hey! What the hell did you just call us?"
"Oh Jesus," Clare gasped. "Oh my God…"
"What the hell is wrong with you guys?" Eli called after his fleeing friends.
"Yo," Connor yelled, "Get back here! I'm talking to you!"
Clare screamed as she looked back, bobbing up and down as Eli ran at a fast pace with her. Eli only paused to pick up Fiona's phone and headed on.
The chase continued down the street―Drew in the lead, followed by Fiona and Alli, then Adam, with Eli and Clare bringing up the rear. The strap of Alli's heel broke and the shoe flew off her foot. She slowed for a second and Fiona shot past her, not stopping. Crying, Alli kicked off her other shoe and sped up―barefooted. Clare noticed in horror that her best friend left a bloody footprint trial. Alli must have cut her foot on the broken bottled glasses on the road. Clare wandered if Alli realized it yet―or the adrenaline and instinct overridden the pain.
"Yo," Connor bellowed. "Get the hell back here, ya'll are just asking for trouble, man."
Eli's breathing became short and frantic. Clare can feel his chest heaving up and down quickly as he carried both their combined weight.
"Eli, I can run myself," Clare said
"What? Huh?" Eli questioned, focusing on running away.
"I can run myself, put me down!" Clare shrieked
Eli slowed his pace and gently put Clare down. Even after their situation he is still being a gentlemen Clare thought, and smiled.
Eli grabbed her hand and gently pulled her along. "Come on!"
All six teens made a beeline for the abandoned house. It loomed before them in the abandoned darkness. Alli stumbled and fell behind, Clare and Eli helped her back up. They all ran to the porch of the abandoned house and stopped. Clare stared at her friends current reactions. Eli held her. Adam's eyes were wide with panic, beads of sweat dotted parts of his forehead while the rest was covered with soaked bangs. Drew's face was set in a worried scowl, his steps drunken and dazed. Alli sat down on the ground, breathing uneven. And Fiona was mouthing the Lord's Prayer―shouldn't I be doing that? Clare shrugged off the thought.
Drew mumbled something, his voice low and on the edge of hysteria.
"Shut. The. Fuck. Up." Eli told him "It's your dumbass that got us into this mess. What the fuck were you thinking?"
Drew's jaw clenched and he stepped in Eli's face. Eli let go of Clare and faced him.
"I am not dumb." Drew stated
"Oh God, here we go again," Alli mumbled still sitting on the ground.
"Really? Cause the stunt you pulled back there sure looked like a dumb, stupid-ass move." Eli spat back
"Guys!" Adam shouted everyone looked at him. "Can we focus?"
"We pile up inside this mess of a house and call the cops."
"They'll see us go in," Alli whispered.
"I don't think so," Eli added. "We can see them back there because of the street lights. But it's dark here. I noticed as we were running up―you can't see a thing from back there.
Fiona eyed the house warily. "What if somebody lives here?"
"Look at it, Fi." Adam said. "Who's going to live inside this dump?"
Adam pushed passed them and walked to the door, the others followed. If they didn't know by now, there night has just begun.
(A/N): Did you see my point, well it's not over. You'll see another side of Connor and his group of boys.
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P.S. This is an adaption from a book called Urban Gothic. I recommend you read it. It's amazing!