ZZZ

"Mom? Dad?"

Becky couldn't get back home fast enough, college be damned. She was at a party when she got a call from her parents, and assumed that it was just them being worried about her going to school overseas and was ready to reassure them. She wasn't ready for her fathers somber tone, or what he told her.

"Becky?" Her mother asked. Both of them looked up at her, with heavy bags and exhaustion in their eyes.

"Hey. Sorry I couldn't get back sooner, I took the soonest flight I was able to get," she said quietly. It was hard to look away from her little brother laying so unnervingly still in the hospital bed, drowning in the machines and tubes attached to him. "How, uh, is he? How's everything?"

She listened as her parents explained what happened. She sat on the other side of the bed, taking everything in. There was a lot that she missed. She and TJ weren't ever that close, but to say that they didn't care about each other would be completely wrong.

"Have you two been here since Friday?" Becky asked. "Maybe you should go home and get some rest."

It took a bit more persuading for Becky to get them to agree to leave for a bit. She would stay, and promised to call if anything happened. They were no use if they were tired and hungry. Becky sighed.

"Hey, T-Jerk," she half-heartedly joked. She leaned forward with her folded arms against the bed. "Bet you didn't expect to see me again. I didn't expect to see you like this." She took his hand into her own. "A coma, huh? I hope you wake up, soon. There are people waiting for you to open your eyes. I have to take this psychology class for college, but I don't have to listen to my professors lectures to know that people who do what you did don't think nicely about themselves. Maybe you think that people don't care about you, but we do. We care about you so much, you dork. So you should wake up so we can show you how much.

"Your birthday is coming up, you know? 13th birthday, that's a big deal for you. It's your Bar Mitzvah. Probably the biggest party you'll have until you're all grown up," she said. "If there's a big present that you know on any other birthday or Christmas you wouldn't stand a chance of getting, your 13th is the time to ask for it. I was dumb and asked for this cool ear piercing. I got it, but I should've asked for something else. Maybe a computer, or to dye my hair, or a whole new wardrobe. Just take that as a warning to really think about what you ask for." Becky paused to wipe the tears coming to her eyes. "I don't know what you'd ask for. You already have a puppy. I'm sure you can think of something, but you have to wake up first."

She looked up at him. TJ remained still in the bed, but she hoped that he still heard her.

ZZ

Like they expected, some people came up to them with questions, but Randall, Menlo, and Ashley refused to answer any of them. These people stood back and watched everything. They pointed and laughed and spread rumors and were a part of the problem. As far as they were concerned, they could go fuck themselves.

There was only one group of people they were sharing that information with.

"So it's true, then?" Today, the three of them opted for joining Colten and his group at their usual table. That didn't last for long as the two groups got away from the lunch room and went to the goth kids usual spot behind the school for privacy.

"Yeah. We don't know everything, but that's how much we do right now," said Randall. Colten nodded, taking a slow drag of his cigarette. "CJ found out because she was going to walk with him to school yesterday."

"Why?" Owen asked. "He told us he was going to be home schooled starting this week because of that asshole."

"Home schooled? He never told us he was going to be home schooled!" Menlo nearly shouted.

". . .Maybe that's because he thought it wasn't going to happen anyways," Ashley whispered. "Maybe he was planning this for a while and wanted to let us keep thinking that things were okay."

". . .That makes perfect sense," Randall said. "Even then, he was still thinking about others. Look, we'll try to keep you guys updated."

They headed back inside before the bell rang.

ZZZ

Although about half of the middle school didn't recognize the former King Bob, the other half did, so him waiting outside of the school at the end of the day earned a few stares. Robert didn't care about their curious looks in his direction. He was here for one reason; he was just waiting for that reason to walk out of those double doors.

Robert was busy with high school, but despite the age and grade difference, he still considered Detweiler a friend, and was deeply regretting not hanging out with him more. He might've been able to see if something was up and say something before it got to this point. This uncertain moment where none of them could say if he was alive or not.

The former monarch took a deep breath. He couldn't think like that.

He remembered what that good for nothing, smug-faced, shit nugget looked like, so when he finally stepped outside, Robert marched right up to him, gripped his upper darm as tightly as he could, and dragged him away.

"Hey! Hey, what the hell are you doing?!" Austin shouted. He struggled to get out of Roberts grasp, to no avail. Such a sight caught the attention of the students, and some of them followed, curious eyes wanting to know what was going to happen.

Robert dragged him to a vacant lot and tossed him onto the dirt. He cracked his knuckles while the middle schooler scrambled to get back on his feet.

"What the hell is your problem?" Austin shouted.

"I thought I told you to stay away from Detweiler," Robert said. "Or are you too thick in the skull?"

"You're that high schooler from down at the lake!"

"That's me you little shit," said Robert. "I told you to leave him alone, and you didn't listen. Guess what's going to happen now?"

"So what, you're going to beat up a middle schooler?" Austin scoffed. "Don't you have anything better to do-"

Robert sent him back to the ground with an audible punch to the face.

"How does it feel?" He grabbed Austin by the collar of his shirt, lifting him up just enough to punch him back down. "It's not so great being messed with by someone bigger than you is it?"

Robert stood over him, noting the blood coming out of the guys nose.

"Get the fuck up," said Robert. "GET THE FUCK UP."

Robert watched him stumble back onto his feet again. He only have the middle schooler a few seconds before punching him square in the chest.

"I can't stand people like you," Robert sneered. "Bullies. You only pick on people smaller than you because you're too much of a bitch to pick on someone your own size. You pick on someone smaller to make yourself feel big, fucking coward. You're lucky I'm not your age, or else I'd put you in the hospital. Do your parents know what a piece of shit you are? That they raised a monster? I wonder what they'd say if they knew you drove a guy to suicide."

Robert kicked him in the side. Whether or not he broke that little shit's rib, he didn't care.

"What's the matter? Can't fight someone bigger than you? You had no problem with it when it was the other way around," Robert said. HE watched Austin cough. "That's how it always is with people like you. Pathetic."

"At least we're the same age," Austin snapped. "You're like, 14! You'll go to jail-"

"Why? Because you'll snitch on me? That's rich. The bully is suddenly a snitch because he's getting his ass beat. Go ahead, snitch on me. And I'll tell them what you did to Detweiler." Robert put his hands in his pockets. "I wonder which one of those things is worse."

Robert turned and started walking out of the vacant lot. He came and did what meant to do. For now. If he got news TJ was gone, then he'd find Austin again, beat him to a pulp, and call 911 himself. Juvenile hall or jail be damned.

ZZZ