Chapter 7: Duel, part 1
It's the next day already (thank goodness yesterday's over). I'm currently putting my stuff into my locker and I'm still pretty upset with what happened yesterday. Those guys have absolutely crossed the line. It's unforgivable. I don't even care anymore. Next thing that comes outta my mouth and the next action I take against those scumbags won't be filtered. I'll say what I wanna say and do what I wanna do. And speak of the Devil, here they come now.
"Well look who it is, it's Pottyhead," Knuckles said, followed by another wave of laughter from everyone… save for Sonic who just had this… typical mean look on his face…? …what?
Y'know, what's up with this guy!? Just yesterday, I heard him say "sorry" before dunking my head into that bowl, as if that word even meant something to him, now he's trying his best to save face by not laughing at their crummy jokes, but at the same time, he never hesitated to shove me into my locker and into that trash can! Just what does this guy want!? He's being a half-assed bully, but at the same time, he's also being a half-assed "friend" who just shuts up and does nothing whenever he sees his friend being pushed around! Just… aaargh! It's frustrating as hell!
Anyway, after hearing Knuckles' irritating voice, I slammed my locker door shut real hard. I could feel that it was loud enough to get the attention of nearly all the kids in the hallway. Knuckles then opened his mouth again, although I wish he never does again. Forever.
"Whoa-ho, look out. Somebody's on edge today. Better hope ya didn't forget the homework this time."
"No, I didn't forget."
"Attaboy. Where is it?"
"In the middle of the sea."
"…wait, what?"
"Yeah, that's right. I chucked 'em all from the pier yesterday. Maybe next time, you'll at least show some respect to the guy who's willing to do your homework only because he's gonna get beat up otherwise. Oh, hang on, but I still get treated like crap, even though I've done exactly what you asked for! Just like the math homework from last time! So what's the point, huh!? If that's how it is, then I'm better off throwing away your worthless books to sea! It's not like you'll ever graduate with your jockstrap mentality, anyway! Tell you what, though: next time, how about you try doing your own homework for once so that you can maybe put that brain of yours to good use? Oh, wait a second! You don't have any inside that thick skull of yours! You're all just a bunch of braindead morons whose only "redeeming" quality is picking on weak kids! Just drop out already! This world would be a much better place without you!"
After that long, hateful rant, I immediately walked away. I swear, every single kid in the hallway, especially those four, started to look at me with their mouths wide open and looking surprised in general. Normally, I hate it when a lot of people are staring at me, but in this case? Good. I want everyone to hear what I thought of those brutes. Maybe then the other kids would stand up to them too. They really need to be schooled, and not the kind that they're already going through.
A few seconds later (because they're probably so dense it took them seconds to process everything I just said), those jocks all walked towards me while Knuckles shouted "HEY! You tryna disrespect us or somethin'!?"
I turned around and said "Yeah, so? Bite me, bitch," before continuing to make my way to class. I could hear some people in the background gasping at what I just said.
"Alright, that's it! You're dead!"
Knuckles walked fast behind me, grabbed my arm, but reflexively and out of spite, I quickly shook off his hand, turned around, and drove my fist into his face, much to the other three's shock. He fell down pretty quickly while covering his nose too. At this point, everyone in the hallway started to gather around me and the jocks, murmuring to themselves and probably hyped at the possibility of a fight breaking out. And yes, that's exactly what I wanted.
"Oh, dead, am I!? What are you gonna do, huh!? Gang up on me 4-to-1!? Hah! Figures for a bunch of cowards like you! You guys only have the guts when you're all huddled up together like sissies! How about I take on your best man 1-on-1, huh!? Then we can settle this like men!"
Knuckles, his nose now bleeding, got up with Vector and Jet's help and said "Oh, our best man, huh? That'd be the star and captain of the football team, our QB, Sonic."
Huh. I expected it to be Knuckles himself, but y'know what? Sonic will have to do. In fact, if anything, Sonic's the bigger jerk here compared to the other three. At least those guys never had to pretend that they never met me in their entire life, despite having been friends years ago, unlike a certain somebody.
"Pfft! QB or not means nothing to me! Bring it, jerkface!"
"Dude, he's dissin' your title! Ya gonna take that or what?" Knuckles said to Sonic.
"…hell no. You're on," Sonic said.
"Yeah! Maybe then, you'll leave me, my friends, and everyone in this school alone!"
And immediately after saying that, I could hear people in the back going "Yeah!" and… honestly, I was surprised. I'm guessing those were the kids who had been bullied by these guys too at some point. I mean, I know this school had a bullying problem, but I didn't expect it to be this bad for this many people to be supporting me.
"Hah! Only if ya win, tho. What if ya lose?" Vector said.
"Ooh, I know," Jet said. "If you lose, then you're officially ours. You do whatever it is we tell you, and we get to do whatever we want to you, until all four of us graduate. How's that sound?"
…oh crap. That's at least a year or two, even worse if they get held back (which actually has a high chance of happening with these morons). No way I'm gonna be their slave. But… I can't back down now, not after that show I just put up. Everyone's watching too. I'll be the whole school's laughingstock if I back down now.
"Come on, wimp… we're waiting for ya," Knuckles said.
…ah, dammit. No other choice, huh? Fine. After breathing in and out and pulling it together, I took up their offer.
"Deal."
"A'ight, then. It's settled. Come to the pit after school. Just remember, it'll be your funeral, dorkwad," Knuckles said as he walked away with the rest of his clique, shoving away anyone who got in their way.
Hmm… the pit, huh? Wonder where that is… I guess I should ask- hey, why are all these kids still staring at me!?
"What are you looking at, huh!? Get lost!"
They all then dispersed, just like I said. …except for Silver, who looked like an absolute nervous wreck. He ran over to me, grabbed me by my shoulders, and shook me repeatedly.
"T-Tails! Do you have any idea what you've just done!?"
"Yeah, I picked a fight with some dumbass jock, so what? Now chill out," I said, brushing off his hands from my shoulders.
"B-but that's no ordinary jock! That's the very person that once took out two older, much bigger students than him! Are you insane!?"
Huh. So the rumors are true. But as if that's gonna stop me.
"So, he beat up other people in the past. So what? I gotta stand up for myself this once. If I keep sucking up to them, they'll just find an excuse to beat me up one day."
"Yes, but… you're betting a lot on the line for this fight! Are you sure you're okay with being their, umm… "whipping boy" for the course of their time in this school? I-if you lose, that is…"
"Aww come on, you don't have to remind me of that. Are you trying to bring me down or something?"
"N-n-no, no! No! I'm just… worried for you, that's all. After all, you're a good friend of mine. I don't want you getting the short end of the straw."
"I'll be fine… thanks for your concern. By the way, do you know where the pit is?"
"Y-yes, it's behind the school, in the woods next to the football field. Normally, I can't stand violence, but… since this is you, I'll take you there and watch for your safety. I'll bring Blaze along too, should any, umm… unfortunate incidents happen. N-no offense…"
"Right… okay then. Thanks a lot, Silver."
"You're most welcome."
And with that, I walked away to get to class. But then…
"Oh, and Tails?"
I turned around to look at him.
"Good luck. I'll be rooting for you."
I smiled and nodded at him before leaving the hallway.
I got into class, sat next to Charmy, and told him everything that's about to happen. And of course, he was as equally surprised as Silver. He said he'll be there to back me up with a first aid kit that he'll borrow from the soccer team in case anything nasty happens. He said he'll try to bring Cream as well.
Anyway, first and second period went by in a flash. It's lunch time now and when I entered the cafeteria, I swear I could hear all the other kids murmuring about me as I passed them by.
"Look, that's him! With the two tails!"
"That's the guy who's gonna fight the QB after school, right?"
"Yeah. About time somebody taught him a lesson. But… this guy doesn't look that tough, though…"
"I sure hope he knows what he's getting himself into."
Well, it's official: the fight just became the talk of the school, which is no surprise really, considering the act I just put up this morning. To be honest, I don't think I've ever felt that angry in my entire life. I completely let myself go back there and now I'm paying the price. Also, hearing all these terrible whisperers gossiping about me kinda tanks my confidence down. Only then did the realization came to me that this is probably not a good idea. But of course, it's too late to step down now. I gotta finish what I started.
Lunch went by in an even quicker flash as we moved onto the third and fourth period. I swear, I had a hard time trying to focus in class. I was all tensed up for the big fight, thinking about all sorts of possible scenarios, like what if they betrayed their word and jumped on me all at the same time? What if… oh God… what if what Knuckles said is true, that this would be my funeral? Or what if-
"Miles Prower!"
"AAAH! W-w-what!?" The teacher's shout startled me from my pondering.
"Are you paying attention?"
"Y-yes, sir…"
"Then come forward and prove it. Solve this problem."
I got up from my desk, looked at the blackboard, and was glad because I've seen this problem before. Should be a piece of cake. All you gotta do is take this bit right here… multiply it with that… move that to the other side of the equation, convert it into negative, and… there we are. I'm pretty sure that's right.
The teacher briefly scanned my writing on the blackboard and said "That's correct. But next time, try to respond immediately when I call your name. Understand?"
"Yes, sir. Won't happen again."
"Good. Back to your seat, Prower."
Phew. I got lucky back there. Imagine if- wait, hang on… oh crap, I hope I didn't just use all of my luck back there, I still need some for the big- …hey, wait a minute, since when do I believe in that kinda superstition!? Or… am I just that desperate? …bah, whatever. I gotta focus if I don't wanna get yelled at again.
After some time, I looked up at the wall clock in front of the classroom again. Only a few minutes left to the bell… this is it. Hope I'm ready.
And… there it is, the end-of-school bell. Hearing that sent some chills down my spine. Once the teacher left, Charmy and I went out to find Silver, Blaze, and Cream to guide me to the pit. Everyone (yes, everyone) in our class followed suit. Later on, the crowd that formed behind us would get larger and larger. After some time walking through the football field, going into the woods, and following a dirt path under the dimly lit tree canopy, we finally made it. Another crowd was already forming there. I think it's safe to say that the entire school came to watch. Once they saw me, they moved outta the way to reveal…
The pit: a literal, octagonal, wide concrete pit that was probably meant to be some kinda sewer. Half of its 8 walls, which are all covered in graffiti, have dark tunnels leading deeper into this mysterious "sewer" but are blocked by metal bars. I have no idea how a place like this could even exist to be honest, especially in the middle of the woods like this. There's a ladder attached to one of the walls leading down to it. I climbed it down, and there he is… Sonic the Hedgehog, waiting on the other end of the pit, talking to his lackeys above him. He stopped to put his attention on me once I was in his sight.
"You made a big mistake coming here, Tails," he said.
"Oh yeah? Why is that, huh?"
"'cause now I'm gonna have to kick your ass." Sonic took off his letterman jacket and put his dukes up. I instinctively did the same too with my flannel shirt.
"Hmph. We'll see about that."
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hoo boy, I think that's the first time I had to split a chapter into two parts. I kinda wanna keep them together, but in that case, then the length would be 5,115 words which is nearly more than double the average chapter length so far (3,011 words, yes I did the math lol) so I think it would be tiresome for you guys to read in a single go. Hopefully that's alright with you guys. But, obviously, to compensate, I'm posting both at once since I hate cliffhangers (who doesn't? lmao).
Anyway, a reply to this review:
"I do my reading on my tablet, never been good with touchscreen devices.. Anyways, I just wanted to let you know that I really appreciate all the time you give up to write updates! I really love your style, by far one of my favourite writers! It's very strange, I dislike the movie, tv shows, and games, yet I love the characters to no end! Tails would be my favourite, just love seeing him put it tough positions for some sick reason.. Keep on the good work, very sorry for not leaving reviews before, I have indeed read all you have posted on this site so far! Love your work to pieces, hope to see another update soon! :o" -Ebonite27
Thank you very much for the kind words, mate. And yeah, I can kinda relate to you about the games (not exactly for the movies and TV shows tho). I know I said this before, but I've never finished a single Sonic game in my entire life, so my knowledge of the canon can be pretty limited, hence this 'almost freeform' AU, lmao.