Part 2 – Breaking Point

                John woke up slowly, and yawned as he sat up. He looked to his side to see Kate still sleeping. He smiled to himself, and stepped out of the bed. He stretched his arms, causing his joints to crack slightly, and he sighed. He picked up a packet of cigarettes and took one out. He placed it in his mouth, and picked up the lighter next to the packet. He raised it to the end of the cigarette, then paused. He looked back to Katie, then at the packet. He put the lighter down again, and took the cigarette out of his mouth. He dropped it into the ashtray, and stood up. He put his jeans on, and walked out of the room.

                Kelvin's alarm clock buzzed loudly, waking him up. He groaned, and reached his hand out blindly towards the source of the irritating noise, desperate to cease it as quickly as possible. After a few seconds fumbling around for the button, he found it. The noise stopped, and the room was quiet again.

                "Come on, Kelvin," his mother called to him from downstairs. "You'll be late for school!"

                "What a shame that would be." Kelvin muttered to himself, and slowly got out of bed. He looked down at his bare arms and rubbed the scars that covered his wrists. He felt tears well up in his eyes, but stopped himself from crying, and reached down for his uniform.

                "Morning, sweetie." His mum said as he walked into the kitchen.

                "Morning." Kelvin replied quietly. He took a box of cereal, and poured some into the bowl already on the table. He put the box down, and walked over to the fridge to get some milk. There was none in there. "We're out of milk, mum." He stated, closing the door. His mother opened the door again, and looked inside.

                "Damn…" she muttered. "I'll make you some toast."

                "Thanks." Kelvin replied.

                "You get ready for school." She stated, taking two pieces of bread from the bread-bin. Kelvin nodded, and walked back to his room.

                Katie woke up to the smell of frying bacon. She sat up and looked around. John wasn't in the room. "John?" she called out, still tired. The door opened, and John poked his head around the door. "Ahhh. Good morning." She said, rubbing her eyes.

                "Morning." John replied. "You like bacon?"

                "Who doesn't?" she answered, laughing slightly. John smiled, and walked back into his kitchen. Katie sat up, and reached down beside the bed for her clothes. She put them on, and followed John into the kitchen. He was standing in front of the frying pan, poking at the rashers of bacon sizzling in the fat. "Smells good." She said, walking up behind him. John turned his head as Katie wrapped her arms around his waist. She kissed him on the cheek.

                "I haven't used this thing for a while." John told her. "Normally I just eat crisps or toast, or if I'm feeling adventurous, a Pot Noodle." Katie laughed.

                "What about takeaways?" she asked. John shrugged.

                "Yeah, but they're already made for you." He told her.

                "So are crisps." Katie reminded him. John laughed, as did she.

                "Good point." He said. He turned over the bacon, then turned around to put his arms around Katie. He kissed her. "I'm sorry if I was a bit of an arsehole before." He stated. Katie gave him a puzzled look. "You know, at the pub the other night."

                "Don't worry about that." Katie told him. "I'd only just met you." They kissed again, then John turned back to the bacon to check on it. He reached over to the bread, and took four slices out. He walked over to the fridge, took the butter out, and placed it beside the bread. Katie walked over to the table nearby and sat down as John buttered the bread. "So, what do we do now?" she asked.

                "Have breakfast." John replied, and brought over two bacon sandwiches.

                "No, I was talking about us." She said. John sat down and looked at her. "Are we an item, or was last night…"

                "We're an item, if that's what you want." John told her, stopping her before she could finish her sentence.

                "Is that what you want?" Katie asked. John nodded. "It's what I want, too." She added. They both smiled at each other.

                "C'mon. Eat up before it gets cold." John said, nodding at her sandwich. Katie laughed, and took a bite of it.

                A screwed up ball of paper hit Kelvin in the back of the head as he sat alone on the bus to school. He turned around to see Gary heading the small gang sat up the back of the bus laughing and pointing at him. Kelvin turned his head and tried to ignore them. The same thing happened every day to him. He had no friends, and that didn't bother him as much any more. He just wanted everyone to stop tormenting him, just because his father had left him and his mother when he was a baby to live with a twenty year old woman in America. He was fifteen now, and on the verge of breaking. He wished for Gary and his friends to die horrible deaths, but there was nothing he could do about them. His mother didn't understand, and didn't know about them. He wasn't going to tell her, either. She wouldn't understand.

                Kelvin got off the bus outside school, and started walking towards the entrance. He suddenly felt something ram into his back, and he fell forward onto his face. He picked himself up, and looked at his wrists. They were grazed from the fall, and he heard Gary and his gang laughing again. "Enjoy your trip?" Gary asked, wearing a big grin on his face. Kelvin wanted to wipe the smile of his cocky mug, but instead walked inside the school building. Gary laughed some more, when he saw a teacher walking towards him. He stopped laughing, and he and his friends followed Kelvin into school.

                Katie had just left to go to work, leaving John alone in his apartment. He sat in front of his television, and turned it on. The television flickered to life, and John reached over to his packet of cigarettes, the craving becoming unbearable. He'd decided not to smoke in front of Katie, but not to give up completely. There was a News broadcast on, and John decided to watch it. There was a story about a murder at a local club, and John recognised the victim. It was the man that had raped Katie. "Scumbag had it coming…" he stated, about to light his cigarette. He paused again, and decided to put the cigarette back in the packet. He changed the channel over to BBC2, and considered watching four grown men prance about in colourful alien costumes with a vacuum cleaner, but quickly chose to watch a chat show instead. Not that he was interested in it, he just felt more comfortable with some background noise.

                Boredom set in, and John stood up. He wanted to smoke, but fought the craving. He walked into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of orange juice. He poured the cold liquid down his throat, and placed the glass next to the sink. He walked around his apartment, trying to think of things to do. He decided that he may as well rent out a video until Katie finished working, because he told her he'd meet her after her shift was over. He walked over to where his trench-coat was hanging, and put it on. He placed his cigarettes and a lighter in his pocket, just in case, and switched the television onto standby. He picked up his keys, and walked over to the door. He stopped as he reached the door, then looked back at the television. He walked over to it, and switched it off properly. "That's better." He said to himself, then left his apartment.

                Kelvin was walking down the corridor, thinking to himself, when Gary stood in his way. Kelvin looked at him briefly, then moved to the side to walk around him. Gary moved over to block his path again. "In a hurry, freak?" he asked, pushing Kelvin back. Kelvin looked up at him again, resisting the urge to retaliate, knowing full well that Gary's friends were standing behind him. One of them pushed him forward towards Gary. "Hey, watch were you're going, arsehole!" Gary stated, punching Kelvin in the stomach. The blow winded him, and he held his stomach to help stop the pain hurting as much.

                "What do you want?" Kelvin asked, standing up again, but trying not to look imposing. Gary smiled.

                "We just wanna know why you're such a twat, that's all." He said. His friends laughed, and Kelvin looked at the ground beside Gary's feet. "Well?" Gary asked.

                "Leave me alone." Kelvin muttered. He felt his arms and legs starting to shake.

                "Pardon?" Gary asked, taking a few steps towards him. "Didn't quite hear ya."

                "Leave me alone." Kelvin repeated. Gary and his friends laughed again.

                "What's the matter?" Gary asked. "If only your dad was here to help you." Kelvin looked at Gary, suddenly full of anger. "Guess he couldn't stand being near you, either." Kelvin clenched his fist tightly. "Wonder how long it'll be before your mum decides to go, as well." Kelvin swung his fist at Gary's face, and sent him flying backwards to the ground.

                Gary's friends tried to grab Kelvin as he jumped over Gary, but missed him. Gary jumped up. "Get him!" he shouted, holding his bleeding nose. They all chased Kelvin as he ran out of the school entrance, and down the road.

                John walked down the road towards the video rental shop, and saw a young boy running across the road and down an alleyway. He started to walk over to the alley as a group of six other boys followed the first boy. John realised what was going on, remembering his own childhood. He ran over to the alley, and peered around the corner. It was a dead end, and the lone boy stood in front of the wall. Another boy started walking towards him. "You're in for it now, freak." He said, wiping the blood from his nose. John walked down the alleyway.

                "Just fuck off!" the lone boy shouted at the bleeding one as he walked closer. John pushed past the crowd of other boys, who started to back off as they saw the tall, trench-coat wearing man head towards the leading boy.

                "Look out!" one of the called. The one with the bleeding nose turned around to see John standing in front of him. He looked up at him.

                "You heard him." John said in a deep, rough voice, put on to put more fear into the boys than his normal voice would. He took another step towards the boy, who backed up. "Fuck off." He stated. The boy turned around to look at Kelvin, frowned, then ran back out of the alley with his cronies. John watched them flee, then looked at the lone boy. "What's you're name?" he asked.

                "Kelvin." Came the reply, and the boy walked past him. "I could have handled it myself." He stated. John followed him.

                "One against six?" he asked. "Don't kid yourself." Kelvin continued to walk quickly.

                "They'll only be more pissed off." He said. "And you won't be there next time."

                "No, but those punks are cowards. If you stand up to them, they'll soon leave you alone." John explained. "You give that dickhead the nosebleed?" Kelvin nodded silently. "Not bad going. But violence isn't always the answer."

                "It's their answer." Kelvin replied.

                "But you're not one of them." John told him.

                "So they keep telling me."

                "You're better than they are." Kelvin looked up at John, feeling patronised. "Just don't let them get to you. And only use violence in self defence."

                "Thanks for the advice, Obi-Wan." Kelvin said sarcastically. "It doesn't work. Tried it. I can handle it." John looked down and saw scarring on the boy's wrist.

                "Doesn't look like it." He said, pointing at the boy's wrist. "You do that?" Kelvin looked at the scars, then stopped walking.

                "Look, I can handle it!" he shouted, losing his temper. "Just mind your own fucking business!" Kelvin suddenly broke into a run, and vanished around the corner. John was about to follow him, then decided not to. He doubted he could get through to the boy, but still felt pity for him. He turned around, and walked towards the video shop.

                Kelvin walked into his house, and dropped his bag to the floor. He pulled his jacket off, hung it up, and ran upstairs to his room. He closed the door and lay on his bed, and started to cry. His mother opened the door and walked over to him. "I heard about what happened at school." She told him. She sat down beside Kelvin, and ran her fingers through his hair. "Don't worry, I'm not mad." She told him. Kelvin sat up, and rubbed his eyes. His mother hugged him, and he did the same to her.

                "They won't leave me alone." He said, trying not to cry again.

                "People like that don't get anywhere in life, sweetie." She told him. "Trust me."

                "I know, but it doesn't stop them from bullying me." Kelvin moaned.

                "Don't worry. I'm gonna call this Gary's mum later and make sure she knows what a bastard she's bringing up." His mother stated. She let go of Kelvin. "Don't let them get to you like this." She added. Kelvin nodded quietly, and she smiled at him lovingly. She stood up, and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her. Kelvin lay down on his bed again, and looked out of the window into the cloudy sky.

                John waited outside the doctors' surgery for Katie. She worked as a secretary at the local surgery during the week. John wondered about getting a real job himself, instead of doing odd jobs for people whenever he could in order to pay off the rent, and the cost of cigarettes.

                "Hey," Katie said, breaking John out of his daydream. She walked down the steps towards him, and he smiled at her. He hugged her, and they kissed. "Had a good day?" she asked.

                "Rented out Mortal Kombat: Annihilation. Not a patch on the first one." He stated. Katie laughed. "And Rayden's a different actor. I was gonna let it rest at that, but they killed off Johnny Cage. Makes my blood boil."

                "Oh dear." Katie stated, still laughing. "They'd better watch out." John smiled, then his expression changed to a sombre one.

                "I also stopped a boy getting the shit beaten out of him in an alley." He added. Katie stopped laughing, and looked at him.

                "Jesus." She said. John shrugged.

                "But it's ok now." He said. "So, what shall we do?" he asked.

                "We could go back to my place tonight, so then I can treat you to breakfast in the morning this time." Katie answered. John smiled.

                "That sounds great." He said, and took her hand in his. "Lead the way."

                Kelvin woke up suddenly, and looked at his clock. It was almost midnight. He sighed, and lay down again. "You want to kill them, don't you?" a voice asked. He shot up, and stared into the dark corner. The window was open.

                "Who's there?" he asked, not sure if he was still dreaming.

                "Don't worry about that." The voice said. "I want to help you."

                John walked Katie to the surgery before her shift started. "Thanks for breakfast." He said.

                "I didn't know how else to top a bacon sandwich." Katie told him.

                "A bacon and egg sandwich just manages to beat it." John stated, smiling. "But only just." Katie laughed as the reached the surgery. "Shall I meet you here again later?" he asked. Katie nodded.

                "Sure. Around six I get off." She told him. "Then we'll decide what to do tonight." John nodded.

                "Ok. Around six, then." He stated. Katie nodded, and they kissed again. "See ya later." He said.

                "Yup, see ya." Katie replied, and walked into the surgery. John watched her disappear into the building, then walked down the road. He reached the school, when something caught his eye. A crowd of children were running out of the school, screaming.

                "What the fuck?" John muttered, and ran over to the entrance. A fire bell was ringing out, and John got the impression that this wasn't a drill. He saw a teacher running with the children, and he ran towards her. "Hey, you!" he called. "I'm with the police!" he lied.

                "In there!" she called to him, leading the children away from the school. John ran inside the entrance, and down the nearly abandoned corridor. He could her shouting coming from a nearby classroom. He ran over to it, and looked through the window.

                "Christ…" he muttered, and slowly opened the door. Kelvin pointed the revolver at him, his eyes burning with rage. John stared at him, and raised his hands. "It's me." He said. "Don't hurt anyone."

                "Too late." Kelvin stated. John looked down to the ground near Kelvin and saw the kid from the alley lying on the ground. Blood was around him. The other children cowered in the corners of the room, except the dead kid and the teacher, who was lying on the other side of the room with a bullet hole in his shoulder.

                "Drop the gun, Kelvin." John said calmly. "Nobody else has to get hurt."

                "Don't talk to me like you know who I am!" Kelvin yelled, still aiming at John. "You don't know what it's like to be me!"

                "No, I don't." John told him. "But I was once like you."

                "Oh, here we go. Get the violins out." Kelvin mocked. "That story's so clichéd, it's sickening."

                "It's a true story, though." John told him. "I didn't shoot any of my classmates, so it's not entirely the same, but I still went through the same things as you."

                "If you don't wanna end up like Gary here, you better piss off, mate." Kelvin warned.

                "Why are you doing this, Kelvin?" John asked, ignoring the threat.

                "What's it to ya?" came the reply.

                "You don't seem like the same kid whose arse I avoided getting kicked yesterday." John said. "Why is that? And where did you get a gun, more importantly."

                "He told me to." Kelvin replied, his aim lowering to the floor, like he had been possessed, but suddenly the spell was broken. He looked over to the window looking out over the school field, as did John. A shadowy man was watching them. He had short, black hair, and his eyes made John's heart miss a beat. The man smirked at him, when suddenly John almost jumped out of his skin when he heard a gunshot ring out. He looked over to Kelvin, who was no longer standing. Brain and blood were slapped against the whiteboard, and John closed his eyes.

                "You can't save everybody." Katie told him as he sat on the bench. John flicked the ash from his burning cigarette onto the ground, and took another drag. Another seven cigarette butts littered the ground in front of him. "It wasn't your fault."

                "I could have stopped him yesterday." John stated. "If I'd followed him when he ran off, I could have helped him then. Then maybe two kids wouldn't be lying on a coroner's table right now." Katie took his free hand and gripped it tightly.

                "There was nothing you could have done." She insisted.

                "It doesn't seem that way." John replied. Suddenly, the image of the man's face appeared in his mind. He didn't recognise him, but then something else crept into his head. Lucky's note from the other night.

                'Antichrist'