Alicia.

oOo

Damn it.

God damn it. How could he? How... just, how? What kind of ass-bastard wants to hurt a little kid? What sick son of a bitch did this? Summer and I weren't really friends, she was too up-tight, to be honest, but it wasn't like we were enemies or anything. She was really cool in group-projects. And, she sorta ran the band, so you never wanna make waves with the manager. I mean, we could hang out in a group. And we could make small talk about "what to wear" and "what to eat" and "who to kill", but nothing major. No in-depth debates that I've seen Freddy and Zack get into.

Us School of Rockers are all pretty laid-back kids, you know? We practice, do our school work ('cept for Spazzy) and we rock out everyday. In this kind of business, you gotta expect the unexpected. Dewey always told us before an audition that things might not work out as we hoped. But, it was cool. If we got in, we'd have a party with soda and pizza and be little kids again. If we didn't get it, we'd still have a party with soda and pizza and we'd toast to the jackasses who didn't hire us. But, allow me to repeat myself, it was all cool.

Now, it aint so cool anymore. Like I said, you don't make waves with the manager, especially if you're not in the band. Even the roadies know that, and they don't even see Summer as much as we do. Out of nowhere, comes this perverted scum-ass bitch that thinks he can mess with our girl. Ah, hell no.

Well, he's in for it, lemme tell ya'. You just don't go around raping little kids, it doesn't go that way. You most definitely don't go around raping Summer Hathaway. Wanna know why? 'Cause she's got back-up. She's got loads of back-up. And, if she's scared of 'im, we sure as hell aren't. We're not afraid of getting into a little bit of trouble for arson or destruction of private property. We're rich kids, we got money! Shit, I'm sure as hell not afraid of the police.

"Ma'am, could you tell me what you're doing?"

"Sure officer, I'm kicking this pervert's ass to hell and back!"

"Any reason why?"

"Because he raped my friend, that's why!"

It kinda depresses me, though. Supposedly, we can buy anything. You always see it on T.V: "Daddy, buy me that expensive Italian sports car that would cost anyone else their house!" "Mummy, can we go shopping for real diamonds on Sunday, after we go to the social club?"

But, nothing can buy back Summer.

She was so out of it yesterday. She just sat there, staring all freaky, like that chick from The Ring. I don't want no Samara for a band manager. Shit, I don't even want a healed-over Summer with sticky Band-Aids, I want the old Summer. I want the Summer who never got raped; I want the Summer who wasn't afraid to tell us off for not practicing.

Summer was a brave girl. She had some balls, she did. When word got 'round that I was getting into fights (which I was) Summer made sure to stick close to me, so I didn't bust anymore heads. She glared at me when I told her off for doing so. Hathaway just shook her head, all disappointed. But she didn't tell the higher-ups. The important people. I don't know if I can return the favor and keep this secret from people.

People like her parents, who deserve to know.

My mom and I are tight, real close. I can tell her almost everything, but... Would I be able to tell her if I got raped? Would I be able to look in my mama's pretty brown eyes and tell her that her youngest daughter was forced into having sex? I don't think so.

I can kinda see why Summer didn't tell us straight out herself, and left it to Finn. I'd be scared too. I'd be scared shitless to tell the dudes I grew up with that I was raped. That's a nasty word. Rape. It hurts to say it, if you say it out loud.

It's kinda funny, how some words mean more to you, and hurt more, after you really understand them. Rape and abuse and murder... they're just words, until you really get into it. Once you look them up in the dictionary, and once you hear about it happening in the real world...

They're not just words anymore.

God, things got so weird so fast. Katie broke down, and that got Tomika going too, and then... God, no one touched their guitar or drums or anything that day. Everyone just sat there, crying or thinking or not-thinking. I wanted to explode. Cursing the ceiling wasn't enough. It wasn't enough to scream. It didn't bring the walls down, it didn't bring the traffic to a stop. It's too normal for what happened. Our family is shattering while the Earth keeps spinning and smiling. Something has to be broken.

Someone has to hurt... someone has to hurt like Summer... Or else, nothing can be right in this world. Nothing can ever be right in this fucking world.

oOo