You're Going to be Okay
Chapter 1
Kankri's POV
It was quiet. I liked quiet but this was too quiet. It had been a while since I saw any of them and I was getting scared. Was this the calm before the storm?
I quickened my pace as I passed the park. I just wanted to get home safely for once. Maybe even complain about the trigonometry homework like every else. What made them hate me? Why was I a bad form of different in their eyes? Different was supposed to be good.
Stopping suddenly, I thought I heard whispers. I held my breath, listening intently. All that was heard was the trickling of the park fountain. I could feel the cool, crisp fall air nipping at my skin through my bright red turtleneck. My hair blew in the wind and I could now hear crunchy leaves drag across the ground. I was so tense that if one hit me in the face, I'd run screaming.
Returning to my fast walk, I rounded the corner to come face to face with her. "Hello runt." she spat, reeking of booze and obviously drunk. It was all I could do to keep from gagging on the smell. "What do you want Meenah?"
"Nothing," she lied, giving me an evil smile then grabbing my shoulders and holding me in the air, "Other than to give you what you deserve!" I struggled in her grasp, desperately wanting out of it.
Pushing me into the wall of the park's basketball court, Meenah continued to smile. "Where are the others?" I asked, fearing for my life. She was never this drunk when her and her friends beat on me and after those beatings, I barely escaped with my life. "Don't worry. They're here!"
Before I knew it, I was thrown in the air and into someone's arms. I looked up to see nothing but clown makeup and I felt myself pale. Kurloz made a soft honk before tossing me to the next friend- Aranea.
I was tossed around between the three friends, feeling sick to my stomach. "Alright guys," I heard a voice come from the tree above, "Let's just do what we were planning to do before someone see's us. What do you think doll?"
"let us drown the kid already" I heard a girl voice come from the tree in a thick Japanese accent.
"Wait, what?" I asked, getting more terrified by the minute, "what do you mean drown?" I could only make out that word and I knew that today I was going to die.
I saw Aranea, who was holding me at the time, smile and show her pointy teeth. "Come on kiddo, let's go!" the spider girl mocked. My eyes went wide and I did something I was taught not to do; I punched her. The moment she dropped me, I ran for my life.
Running- feet pounding, arms pumping, heart racing, eyes darting, body ready to change direction at any moment. I tried to get as far away from that fountain as possible but what I did probably marked my death; I ran towards the ocean. Realizing quickly the possibly fatal mistake I just made, I tried to change directions but I was surrounded.
Quickly stopping, I watched everyone's momentum keep them going and turned around to run the other direction. As I turned, I was grabbed by the back collar of my turtleneck. I gagged as it choked me. "Not so fast. We're not done playing." Rufioh said, slamming me face first into the ground and tying my hands together above my head and feet behind me. He handed me off to Kurloz, who immediately slung me over his shoulder. "We were going to do the drown in fountain," Damara said in broken English.
"But thank you for the great idea!" Meenah added. I could smell booze on all of them now.
I opened my mouth to start shouting, but as if Aranea read my mind, she tied a rope around my head, gagging me. I made muffled sounds, trying to ask why they hated me so. No one paid attention to me as they walked towards the ocean. Kurloz's fingers were jabbing me in the side; it hurt a lot.
Once we reached the ocean shore, Kurloz let me fall to the ground. I let out a hiss of pain, not paying attention to their cruel laughter. I knew it was all over. There was no way I'd get out of this alive. It would take a miracle.
I felt my feet weighed down by a weight Damara tied to them. Rufioh, being the strongest, had to carry me out into the ocean. The others followed, smiling all the way. Untying my gag, Rufioh let the rope fall in the water. "Any last words mutant?" he asked. I knew it was rhetorical but I answered anyways.
"Wh-why do you hate me so much?" he laughed,
"Why not? You're annoying, worthless, and let's not forget you're the reason my Horuss died!" I saw anger in Rufioh's eyes. Ever since the accident, he was never the same.
"I told you, it wasn't my fault!" I said, feeling sympathy for him again, "I wasn't even driving! Mituna lost his life too!"
"Then why you? Why did you get to continue living?" I could see tears in his eyes; tears that refused to fall.
"I don't know. They were both drunk like you guys are now. I already said how sorry I am that had to happen."
"That's not good enough!"
I heard another shout come from the beach and heard everyone except Rufioh scatter. Rufioh wanted revenge, he wanted blood. He was hurt and it was my fault. "Put him down Rufioh!" a familiar voice screamed.
"Put him down?" Rufioh laughed in response, not turning around and blocking my view, "Gladly!"
I felt Rufioh throw me into the deeper part of the ocean. Hitting the water hard, the weight Damara tied to my feet bringing me down. I didn't have time to hold my breath so I was running out of air fast. I struggled against the ropes.
My lungs filled with water as my body breathed in. The feeling was one of the most horrible things imaginable. My body tingled, not just from the cold water, but from the lack of oxygen as well. The last thing I saw was a silhouette swimming towards me. I reached my tied hands towards it before blacking out.
Cronus's POV
I loved having a house on the Oceanside; being in the water always felt right to me. Now I'm happier than ever that I was so close to the ocean.
I was doing my debate homework. I was having trouble so I thought Kankri could help me. He was always good at that subject. It was one of the many classes I had with him.
Picking up my cell phone, I hit his speed dial number and listened to it ring. "Kankri, chief," I said, hearing a click, "I have a qu-"
"This is Kankri's phone." I heard his voicemail say, making me smile, "Sorry that I didn't answer my phone. Please leave a message and I'll return the call. Promise." the phone clicked again as I stood up and walked to my window that was facing the ocean, "Hey chief, it's me. Had a question about the debate homework. Question number..." my voice trailed off as my eyes went wide.
In the moonlight, I could just barely make out five- no six- bodies; one of those being in the arms of another. The body was being held roughly and the person had a bright red sweater on. "Actually," I said, remembering the voicemail, "scratch that. I have to go beat someone up." I ended the call and quickly emptied my pockets onto my bed. "I'm coming Kankri," I muttered to myself, running down the hallway, past my little brother's door, and out the front.
"Hey!" I shouted, running across the sandy shore as fast as it would let me. Four people looked up and scattered, splashing water as they ran from the water. "Put him down Rufioh," I demanded, forgetting how deep we were in the water. It's a good thing I emptied my pockets because the water was up to my chest. "Put him down?" I heard Rufioh laugh, refusing to turn around, "Gladly!"
As Rufioh threw Kankri out farther, I tackled him. "You drunk, son of a fish!" I shouted at him, quickly diving after a sinking Kankri. When I found him, he was starting to go limp and my heart sped up. I grabbed his tied up outstretched hands and untied them. Moving quickly, I managed to untie his legs from the weight as well.
I held the small teen lifeguard style and swam to the surface as quickly as I could. Breaking the surface, I gasped for air. Rufioh was nowhere to be seen. "Chief," I said, shaking Kankri a little, "hey chief, wake up." he wasn't breathing. Taking him to the surface, I felt for a pulse to find a weak one that was fading fast. I immediately started performing CPR and after a few times, I heard Kankri cough.
Smiling, I turned him over to his side to let the water exit his body. "C-Cronus?" he asked weakly, eyes opened slightly.
"Hey there," I replied, running a hand through his hair to soothe him. "Shh, it's okay. You're safe; I've got you now."
I picked up the weak, shivering Kankri and cradled him in my arms. "You're going to be okay Kankri," I said softly, feeling him lean into me, "you're going to be okay."