"Please!"
How had it come to this? Seth was so ashamed of his actions. She had trusted him. She had gone with them out in the forest after sunset because he had assured her nothing would happen. He had abused her trust, all because he was too scared to stand up to Baron. They all were. Seth, Tye, Sami, AJ and Daniel. Baron was so much larger than them, and they all feared he would beat them up. And Baron was the popular kid in school. They would become outcasts if they went against his word, and that was a fate worse than death in a 17 year old's world.
"I wanna go home!"
Seth looked up and caught her stare. Her light brown eyes were begging him for help. Another fist to her face, and more blood added to her blonde hair. She was on her knees, not allowed to get up despite her many tries.
"Please!" She whispered instead of begging now.
Baron had it all planned out. Seth was gonna lure her into the forest. Baron was gonna get her drunk, fuck her up against a tree, and leave her there. He would then go on to brag about deflowering another virgin in school. Only problem was that Natasha had passed on every drink Baron had tried to give to her. Even peer pressure from all six of them hadn't worked. Finally Baron had snapped and screamed at her. Screams that turned into slaps. Slaps that turned into punches. No one dared to stop him. The others even laughed and encouraged him to continue. Seth was the only one who kept quiet.
"What are you looking at him for?" Baron yelled. "Seth isn't gonna help you. Are you, Seth?"
"No," Seth looked down again.
"See! You're all alone, Natasha. What are you gonna do, huh? What are you gonna do?" Baron taunted.
"Give it to her!" Sami laughed.
Baron grinned at Sami before lifting his foot and kicking her in the face. She blacked out from the blow, and fell down on the ground. Baron raised his arms victoriously. He was proud of what he had done. Seth looked at her. She was still breathing. She was just passed out.
"What are we gonna do now?" Daniel asked.
"We're gonna kill her and hide her body," Baron answered.
"What?" Seth finally opened his mouth.
"She'll tell on us," Baron looked at all of them. "And we'll all go to prison. Not just me. You were all here. You were a part of it."
"Seth?" She whispered.
They stared down at her. She was coming to again. She struggled to move up on her hands and knees. Her eyes slowly opened, but she didn't look at anyone. Baron looked around in desperation until he found a solution. He grabbed a rock from the ground, and smashed it down on her head. One, two, three times. Seth couldn't look away.
"Shit!" Baron mumbled.
"I got a blanket in my car," Seth said.
"Go get it. We'll hide her in the cave. And throw away this rock while you're at it," Baron said.
Seth grabbed the bloody rock and ran to his car. He didn't throw the rock away. Instead he hid it in the trunk. He ran back with the blanket. All five of his friends stood there without doing anything. They just stared at her. Seth crouched down, wrapped the blanket around her, and lifted her up.
"Do you need any help?" AJ finally asked.
"No, I got this," Seth answered.
He didn't want anyone else to touch her. They had done enough. They were all as guilty as Baron, himself included. He wanted this over with without her being stained anymore than she already was. They walked to the cave in silence, and everyone stopped outside.
"Just far enough inside so that no one will see her," Baron said.
"Hurry up. I wanna catch the bonfire," Tye said.
Of course no one was gonna come inside. They were all as scared as Seth. He carried her inside, and as he put her down, he heard a faint mumble coming from her. She was still alive. He leaned down to whisper in her ear. He might be alone in there with her, but he couldn't risk anybody hearing him.
"I'll come back for you," he promised.
He hurried out of the cave again where his friends were still waiting. Friends. He was really starting to reevaluate that word.
"Let's go back," he said.
"Everyone stay cool," Baron said.
"Nothing happened," Sami said.
"She was never with us," Daniel agreed.
Seth drove them all back. The bonfire was still burning bright with everyone in town around it. The yearly bonfire party. All their friends and families were there.
"I'm gonna head home," Seth said.
"Why?" Baron asked.
"Headache," Seth lied.
As soon as his five friends were out of the car, he drove back to the forest. He ran through it as fast as he could. He reached the cave and found her inside. Her breathing was shallow, but she was still conscious.
"I'm here," he grabbed her hand. "I'm here, Natasha."
"Seth?" She whispered.
"Yes, it's me," he said.
"Why?" She whispered.
"I don't know," he started crying. "I didn't know he would do this to you. I swear. You were supposed to get drunk and have sex with him. Not this. I never agreed to this. I'm gonna take you back now. It's all gonna be okay."
It wasn't gonna be okay, and he knew it. He wouldn't give up though. He lifted her up, and carried her out of the cave. Halfway to his car, she stopped breathing. He dropped to his knees, held her close, and cried down in her hair.
"No, no, no, not now. Come on, Natasha. Breathe. Just a little longer. I'm getting you help. You can't fucking die on me!" He begged. "Breathe!"
But she didn't breathe. Not anymore. He got back up, and carried her the rest of the way to his car. He gently placed her down on the back seat. Baron was gonna pay for this. They were all gonna pay for this. Seth was gonna pay for this too. He drove back to the bonfire, left his car door open, and strode fast towards them all.
"Baron!" He shouted.
He jumped on the bigger man to everyone's surprise. They fell to the ground, and not once did Baron fight back. Seth's fists hammered into Baron's face and chest. Suddenly he couldn't understand why he had been so scared of Baron for so long. He might have the size advantage, but he didn't fight back. Not once. Someone pulled Seth off Baron. Adults. Parents. Their families. One of the town's cops, a man named Shane, stepped in front of Seth.
"What are you doing, Seth?" Shane asked.
"He killed her!" Seth shouted. "He killed Natasha!"
"Shut up!" Baron growled.
"What are you talking about?" Shane asked.
"She's in my car," Seth started crying again. "Baron killed her. I tried to save her. I tried to get her here in time, but she died in my arms. I tried, Shane. I tried. You gotta believe me."
Shane walked over to Seth's car, and one look through the window showed the dead girl in the back seat.
"Clear the area!" He yelled. "And arrest the boys!"
"What? I didn't do shit!" Baron yelled. "I'm gonna fucking kill you for this, Seth!"
"He killed her," Seth had shut down into his own little bubble. "He killed Natasha. I tried to save her. I tried to help her. I tried..."