Just a Little Push

Part 28

It couldn't have been him. That bastard wouldn't dare show his face around here after what he did. You would have to be a complete idiot to show your face after doing something like that to someone as precious as Lovina.

Antonio was vaguely aware of voices calling his name. They were muffled, though, and he really didn't care to answer them. No, every thought and intention now was trained on following that bastard.

He was going to kill him. He'd kill him and then he'd hunt the other one down and kill him too.

The boy had immediately darted off, as soon as he saw Antonio running towards him. He'd run off—coward—into the forest, losing himself amongst the trees. Antonio had followed, but he, unfortunately, didn't know the area as well. So now, he was just wandering around, sharp eyes searching for any sign of the other boy, listening carefully for any sound that would alert him to his position.

"Amigo, where are you hiding?" He kept his voice light and airy and happy, even if he really felt like absolutely destroying the other boy. He could have killed Lovina... He could have killed Lovina and she would have been gone forever. And there hadn't been a reason either. He would have killed her just because he could...

And Antonio was startled by a soft crack from behind him. Like a twig being stepped on. He spun around...

And was immediately down, an intense pain spreading from his jaw throughout his entire face.

For a moment, he just lay there, attempting to figure out what had just happened. And then... he'd just been punched.

The boy was standing in front of him, smirking down. The blond... Drew. Not the one that had pushed Lovina into the pond, but he hadn't stopped him.

"Hey, Spic. You wanna fight?"

Antonio blinked up at him for a few seconds, rubbing at his jaw. It didn't feel broken, thankfully, but it would definitely end up bruising.

He really didn't like fighting. His Mamá had always told him that fighting was wrong and that he should try to talk out his differences. He'd always try as hard as he could to keep from getting into fights... Partly because of that and partly because... sometimes he lost control of himself when he got into fights. Especially when the fights involved protecting Lovi or Francis or Gill.

But, he couldn't get out of this one. Because this boy and his friend had hurt Lovi... Could have killed his precious Lovinita.

Antonio slowly rose to his feet at this, taking his time as he stared at the other boy, sizing him up. They were pretty equally matched height-wise, probably weight-wise...

"Come on, Spic." Drew was standing with both fists raised in something that looked like a mock-fight pose. More like he was mimicking movements that he'd seen done by actual fighters than like he actually knew what he was doing. Antonio frowned, hesitating...

And then the boy suddenly darted forward and took another swing towards his head.

Antonio ducked without really thinking, spinning his own arm out to block the punch. He was very glad now that his uncle had taught him how to fight when he was younger, telling him that—even if he never used it—it was important to know how to defend himself and people he loved.

The boy whirled around and swung again, barely allowing himself time to recover. Antonio blocked, taking a step back to better balance himself.

"Come on, fucking Spic. You gonna just stand there like a fucking pussy or ya gonna fight me?" He snorted and then spat onto the forest floor. "Or are you disappointed that your slut girlfriend isn't here to watch you get your ass kicked?"

And that was it.

Antonio now darted forward, much faster than the other boy had probably expected, and slammed a fist right into his cheek. Which probably would have knocked him to the ground if it weren't for the tree behind him, which he used to catch himself.

Drew just stood there for a moment, looking rather surprised. And then he lifted his head and flashed him an amused smirk. "Huh, you pissed 'cause I called your girl a slut?"

Antonio was barely aware of his own actions in the next few seconds. He knew that he started running forward to punch him again, this time right in that smug expression...

But he was stopped in his tracks when something hard suddenly smashed into the back of his head, hard enough that he immediately fell onto his knees... possibly blacked out for a few seconds.

"Come on, Spic. Get up. You wanna make your whore proud, right?"

He'd just hit him with something... That was the only fact that was managing to make its way through Antonio's mind. That and the fact that he kept insulting Lovi. Calling her a whore. Sweet, lovely Lovi. No one should talk about her like that. And he was having trouble focusing... There was something in front of him, shining amongst the dirt and rocks...

He slowly reached forward, grabbing at the object. A piece of metal, rusted and jagged... Part of something at some point in its life. He vaguely wondered what it had been...

"Get up and fight us, fucking Spic!"

He could barely think, fury starting to take over. One of the only things managing to break through the pain throbbing through his head. They'd hurt Lovi. They kept insulting her. He was going to kill them.

Now, he stood, a little unsteady on his feet. His fingers clenching around the rusted piece of metal. Ignoring as it cut into his palm...

Rick was standing a few feet away, holding a thick branch in his hands like a baseball bat. Smirking. Taunting. The other was back in his fighting position...

And he ran forward again, toward Rick. The one who had kissed Lovi. Who had thrown her back into the pond. Tried to kill her. The boy swung, but he hit it out of his hands and then slashed the jagged metal across his arm.

"Ow! What the fu—!"

He could see red, dripping from the long gash across almost the entire line of his bicep. He turned, slicing again. This time across his cheek...

And someone was trying to grab him from behind. Managed to throw an arm across his windpipe, forcing his head backward as his air was cut off. Both were screaming. One pained... Antonio could see red dripping down his pale cheek...

"That fucking bastard has a knife!"

Drew was attempting to wrestle the piece of metal from him, but he fought back, kicking and struggling. Attempting to free himself... To breathe.

And he finally managed to break free, strength fuelled by a rush of adrenaline. And he immediately spun around, striking again. Blood again. A harsh yelp of pain...

And now he could hear another voice, shouting. Someone grabbed him again, this time around the waist. Holding him tightly, yelling at him, the words incomprehensible. He struggled, lashing out... The arms squeezed tighter, but he heard a harsh hiss from behind as he managed to cut at the arms holding him. They refused to release.

"...Antoine! Antoine! It's me, Francis! Antoine! Calm down!"

Francis... He kept struggling. The name sounded familiar. Francis... Struggles weakened. Francis...

"Antoine..."

Franny.

And now they ceased. Suddenly Franny... Francis was here, holding him. Hands now moving up to his arms, gently rubbing as he crooned to him soothingly.

"Antoine, it's me. You're all right."

Franny...

"Let me have it, Antoine?"

And he immediately released the piece of metal when a hand pressed against his fist. He hadn't even been aware that he was still holding it, even though it had cut into his fist. His hand was now sticky with blood...

"I'm here, Antoine. Shh..."

The other boys were gone. He could see now; his vision had become hazy in his rage, but now he could see that they were standing alone. He just stood there for a moment, breathing heavily. And then he turned his head to see Francis standing behind.

"Fran—"

A finger pressed against his lips, cutting him off. And Francis smiled slightly. Tenderly. "Non. Non. It's okay. They attacked you, oui? It's okay. You were just trying to defend yourself..."

"S—sí..."

"We'll go back to the others now, oui? And we can look at your hand."

And Francis's arm was cut too. Antonio's eyes were immediately drawn to the gash standing out against his pale skin. Blood slowly seeping out... He'd hurt Francis. He'd hurt—

"Non." And suddenly his chin was being pushed upwards, forcing him to look into his friend's eyes. Away from the wound and blood. "Non. That wasn't your fault, Antoine. It's nothing. We'll go and get it all fixed like new, oui?"

Antonio nodded, unsure exactly how to respond, his eyes still drawn back to the wound that he'd just inflicted upon his best friend...

But then his hand was being squeezed gently in Francis's grip. And he was being almost-forcibly dragged away, leaving him with nothing to do but follow. Follow as he felt his stomach twist nervously in a mixture of fear, horror, and shame.

"It'll be okay, mon cher. Everything will be okay."


A/N: Yep, I brought Rick and Drew back. Because you guys kept asking about them. Yeah... I kind of had forgotten about them, actually. Haha.

And, obviously, it was another scene from Antonio's POV. Because it worked out best that way, since otherwise, it was supposed to be Feli and it wouldn't have really worked near as well...

And I finally got to write a fight scene in this! Haha. Although poor Tonio :( Oh, and Spic is a racial slur that refers to someone of Hispanic origin.

Oh, and here's a question for you guys. So a few of my friends have been asking me to put Leon and Johnson from Round & Round into this story. Which I wasn't planning on doing, but I figured I'd leave it up to you guys. There is a way that I could do it (which would be easy and wouldn't affect length or anything), so if people want me to put them in, they could make a short appearance...