Chapter 4:

"Scott? Scott. Wake up, Scott. It's time to wake up."

The camera moved into a dark bedroom. The blinds were pulled upward, flooding the room with sunlight. The camera paused on a beautiful day outside and then turned toward the large mound under the covers. A hand reached out and shook the body tucked tightly underneath, and a groan was heard. The camera zoomed on brown hair resting on the pillow, and again, a hand reached out to wake him.

"Come on, Scott. Wake up. It's a special birthday today, so wake up, sleepyhead."

"Mom, can we skip this please," he begged from underneath the covers.

"Come on, Scott. You're eighteen today. We should celebrate that. I let you go to that party last night."

"That was a mistake," Scott said and then groaned after that.

"Why was it a mistake, Scott? Did something happen? Scott? Scott, I'm talking to you. What happened last night?"

Scott threw the covers off of his body. He rubbed his eyes and then shook his head. He moved his bare feet onto the carpeted floor. His gray boxers brushed against the sheets, and he nervously pulled at his white undershirt. Then, he slowly looked at his mother and started to cry.

"Scott, what happened last night?"

"I screwed up. I got drunk, and… I didn't mean to," and Scott looked toward the window, trying to steady himself.

"Scott, look at me," and he did. "What did you do?"

A loud knock was heard against the apartment door. Scott quickly turned off the dvd and closed his laptop but not before checking the time. It was two p.m. Barry was four hours early, but was it Barry knocking loudly on his door? No, it was Tina holding a brown bag of food and a dvd in her hands.

"Hey, Marc. I thought you might be hungry, so I got us some bagels. And I brought over The Terminator. It's a good movie," and she waved the dvd at him. "Is this a good time?"

"Uh… Yeah. Come in," and Marc opened the door for her. "I am heading out at six, though."

"Oh. With who," and Tina walked into his apartment.

"Barry. My neighbor. We're going to a bar."

"Mind if I join," and she turned to look at Marc. "If that's okay?"

"Sure," and Marc rubbed the back of his head. "I guess. Let me get us some plates and napkins. You want orange juice?"

"Just water," and Tina placed the brown bag of food and dvd on a small coffee table near the tv. She moved over to his laptop and started to open it, but Scott hurried over and took it away from her. "I'm sorry," Tina said, backing away a little. "What's so important on your laptop?"

"Nothing," Marc replied and handed her a bottle of water. "It's just personal stuff. That's all."

"Okay," but Tina glanced at the laptop. "If you say so. You want to watch the movie?"

"Sure. Can you set it up? I'll be right back," and Marc carried the laptop into his bedroom.

It was close to four when the movie ended. Marc always liked the original Terminator. He also loved the second one. The third was not a favorite of his, and he hoped that there would be no more Terminator movies. But he was sure that there probably would be.

"I feel bad for Sarah Connor," Tina said suddenly. She looked over at Marc, who sat a short distance away from her on the couch. "Don't you?"

"Why would I feel bad for Sarah Connor?"

"Because she didn't choose to be a soldier, the mother of the boy that would save the world. She didn't want that, but it was forced upon her. It's not right, and on top of that, she lost the love of her life. They had one night together, and then he was gone. Just like that?"

"I guess you're right," and Marc thought about his mother. "They had ordinary lives until it happened."

"They," Tina asked. "What do you mean by it happened? The Terminator," and Marc laughed at that. "You lost me, Marc."

"I'm sorry," and Marc looked at her. "So, what do you want to do for two hours?"

"Ice cream?"

"Ice cream," Marc repeated.

"Yeah, let's go get some ice cream. Then, we'll come back here and hang out until six."

"Then, what," Marc asked.

"Then, we go out with Barry? Remember?"

"Right. Okay. Let's get some ice cream," and Marc moved away from the couch as Tina followed him.

Six p.m. Barry was not happy that Tina had tagged along. The deal was that it would be just him and Marc. He was hoping for some excitement tonight, maybe a little bar fight to kick off his adrenaline, but how could he do that with Tina there? He didn't want to hurt Marc or get him into trouble, but Marc had called the police on him once for making too much noise in the middle of the night. He wanted a little revenge for that. Maybe, he would still go through with it, despite Tina being there, which was why he insisted on driving to the bar.

"Where are we going," Marc asked as he realized that they were driving out of Chester. "I thought we were going to a local bar?"

"We're going to Newberry," Barry replied.

"Newberry," Tina said as she sat in the backseat. "That could be a rough place. Maybe, we should stay local."

"It's fine," Barry waved her off. "It's a little bar not too far into Newberry. Trust me," and he noticed that Marc and Tina exchanged looks. "If it gets too hairy, we can head back. I know Marc doesn't like to stay out too late either."

"No, I don't," Marc replied as he reached into his pocket. "If things get out of hand, we're out of there. Okay, Barry?"

"Okay, Marc," Barry replied with a small smile.

The Crimson Dove was a small bar off the edge of Newberry. For the most part, it wasn't too bad. There was a round of drinks, which included sodas for Marc. Barry wanted him to drink, but Tina had blocked any chance of that happening. And then there were darts and pool, which was kind of fun. Still, Barry was itching for a little trouble, and just as he started to think that there would be none, the ten o'clock news came on.

"Oh, come on," a large, Black man exclaimed as he watched the television set above the bar. "Can't they leave O.J. alone? Now, they're going to arrest him for kidnapping and armed robbery? What the hell, man?"

"They should have arrested him for murder," his friend, a smaller, white guy replied.

"Don't make me beat your ass. The police need to leave O.J. alone. It's bullshit," and he turned just as Marc moved past him, and his drink was knocked out of his hand. "Watch it, white boy."

"I'm sorry," Marc said. "I didn't see you there."

"Well, I see you," and the large, Black man towered over Marc. "Maybe, you'll be seeing me in the parking lot outside."

"I said that I was sorry," and Marc started to move away from him.

"Is that supposed to mean something coming from you," and he grabbed Marc by the arm. "I'm not afraid of you."

Marc was going to say something. Instead, he pulled his arm away and hurried over to Barry and Tina, who were sitting at a table nearby. He could hear the man shouting at him, but he tuned him out. It was definitely time to go home, but when he told Barry and Tina that, Barry disappeared into the bathroom. And he was in there for a long time.

"It's okay, Marc. He's gone," Tina said.

"Who?"

"That man at the bar. He's not there, or his friend."

Marc looked over his shoulder and saw that Tina was right. Still, he would feel a lot better once he was in the car, heading away from here. Where the hell was Barry? Why was he taking so long, but then Barry finally reappeared. And he smiled at Marc, but Marc did not return his smile.

"Marc, it's fine. Let's go," and Barry turned around and headed outside. A moment later, he saw that his car had a flat tire. "Shit! I think there was a phone back at the bar. Wait here, and I'll call a tow. I'm glad it's not too late. We should be able to get a tow," and Barry hurried back to the bar.

"Shit," Marc cursed under his breath as he looked around the dark alleyway. This was a bad spot, and he knew it. "Maybe, we should go inside."

"It'll be okay, Marc," but then Tina screamed.

Marc was suddenly punched in the face. He crumbled to the ground and was kicked in the stomach. He managed to look up to see the smaller, white guy holding Tina in his arms, and then a large foot made contact with his face. Marc spat out blood as he heard cruel laughter from above him.

"I told you that I'll be seeing you." Hot breath flooded over his skin. "And your girl will be watching me kick the shit out of you, and then she and I might have some alone time." And again, Tina screamed.

Marc reached into his pocket. His hand folded over the gray orb. He closed his eyes as another kick landed in his ribs. His mind went blank, and he heard Tina scream. He opened his eyes, and the large, Black man was thrown backward into the brick wall. And his friend took off running.

"Marc." Tina ran toward him. "Marc, you okay?"

"Not really," he replied as Tina helped him sit up.

"Marc," and he looked at her. "How did you do that? I saw a blue glow, and then that man went flying right through the wall. How's that possible?"

Marc turned to see Barry standing nearby. He could tell by the gaping mouth and wide-eye expression that Barry had witnessed the event too. He closed his eyes and shook his head. Now, he would have to leave because the questions would start coming, and he couldn't answer them. And as it was, they would know that he was here.