A/N: Ah I had a brain block for a while. I hate when you're writing a story and you know how you want it to end, but get stuck on how to get there…you get it? Lol sorry I don't make sense. Anyways, here's the 10th chapter. Hope u enjoy!
A note about this chapter: There's a flashback here when Bobby, Angel, and Jerry were fighting about the insurance payments (remember?). And I know that this is where Jack gets shot, but yeah I changed it. Because I can. So there. Lol
Chapter 10: Special Needs
"Thank you so much. Oh and I'm really sorry about my brothers. They're…well…they're idiots." I apologized to the man from housing. He nodded, but I could still see the fear in his eyes.
"I swear," I started, fixing the housing papers I had and turning back to my brothers. "you four should NEVER be able to talk to people."
"Hey you would still be in that line if we didn't pull a couple of strings." Bobby reasoned, his hands in his coat pockets.
"Yeah, yeah." I mumbled. They followed me all the way to my dorm room, which by some miracle, I got to have all to myself.
We stopped at the door. I turned to all four guys. They all seemed very uncomfortable. Makes sense…macho men don't get weepy when they have to say good bye.
"I'll be fine. I promise. Security already knows about my 'special needs'. They've got a camera on my door and bullet proof windows. I assure you, none of you need to stay." I said as genuine as I could. Jerry started twitching and turned around. When I was about to question why, Angel stepped up and gave me a bear hug.
"I'm gonna miss you soooo much!" He said. The tone of his voice wasn't Angel-like, but at the moment I didn't care.
"I'll miss you too Angel." He backed up and tapped my nose.
"Be good." Then he left. I noticed in the corner of my eye Bobby punching Jerry, but was then distracted when Jack stood in front of me.
I looked into his blue eyes. There was so much innocence there. Jack was the only one of us five who was still uncomfortable with all the violence that we tend to cause. He tried to act nonchalant about it, but I knew better. Given his childhood, I'm not surprised. Another reason why Jack and I were so close: I was always there to give him a comforting hand whenever I sensed he needed it.
Flashback, Grilling Jerry
Angel, Me, and Jack sat on the couch, waiting for Jerry to come home. Bobby was in the kitchen. It was dead quiet until Angel spoke.
"I'm gonna kill him…"
"Calm down Angel," I said. "We don't know the full story yet. Let Jer explain himself before you jump to conclusions." Jack was tensing up on my left side. Before I could even say a word, Angel shushed me. We heard the door close and then Jerry came into the living room. He eyed us.
"What?"
"You know what." Angel said, holding up money.
Jerry started yelling. "NO! You don't know who you're fucking with!" He turned. "Where's Bobby?"
Suddenly, out of no where, Bobby came out and punched Jerry right in the face. Jerry fell down, surprised at what his brother just did.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?"
"What are you hiding Jerry? Huh? What are you hiding? If I find out you had something to do with what happened to Ma, I swear to God Jerry I'm going to kill you right here and now!"
"No, Bobby, no!" Sofi begged.
"Now Angel here is gonna ask you some questions, and my brother," He ignored Sofi. "I shit you not, the time for lyin' is over" Bobby and Angel towered over a helpless and confused Jerry.
"We know you've been lying about your business, and we know you got mixed up with some gangstas." Angel informed. I was so absorbed in what was going on, I barely heard Jack's nervous breathing.
"Hold on, man…"
"STAY DOWN!" Bobby kicked Jerry down.
I could tell Jerry was finally seeing the light. "So ya'll…ya'll think I had somethin' to do with Ma gettin' killed?"
"You got a check for $400,000 that you just so happen to forget to mention for mom's life insurance!"
Jack started moving around uncomfortably. I gave him a questioning look, but he just shook it off.
"It was for the girls, man! …I had nothing to do with that!" Jerry finished.
Jack looked up. "You made the payments!"
Bobby was leaning over Jerry. "Good timing Jerry…just when all seems lost for you, Ma gets shot up by some gangstas and now you hit the fuckin' lottery?"
Jerry started losing patience. "Ya'll…ya'll trippin' because I made insurance payments? WHAT? I PAID ALL HER BILLS!" he stood up quickly. He pushed Bobby out of the way and punched Angel when he tried to stop him. Jack gripped his own legs. I could almost see playbacks of what happened to him as a child in his fearful eyes.
"WHERE THE FUCK WERE YA'LL, HUH? HOW MANY YEARS DID I HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF HER MY GODDAMN SELF? YA'LL WEREN'T AROUND DOIN' NOTHIN'! BULLSHITTIN'!"
We all looked at each other. Jerry was right. Bobby, Angel, Jack, and I left Ma, and didn't help her with anything.
"…AND YA'LL GONNA TELL ME I KILLED HER? C'MON MAN…!"
"Then why would you pay off a killer like Sweet?" Angel pressed. "What the FUCK did he do for you, Jerry?"
"What did he do for me? HE KILLED MY FUCKIN' LIFE! I put everything in that project! I bet it all trying to make something of myself. Trying to make this shit work! And then Victor Sweet comes tryin' to take a piece."
"You paid him, Jerry." Bobby said. "You got in bed with him didn't you?"
"No, no, no I didn't pay him. That's why they fuckin' shut me down."
"Wait, I thought the city cut you off." I broke my silence.
"Who?Douglas? C'mon sis, this is Detroit! Sweet owns Douglas! He ain't nothing but a gangsta in a suit!"
I turned to Jack who was still gripping his legs. I put my hand over his and intertwined our fingers, trying to convince him that everything was coming together and that fights like this wouldn't happen in the Mercer home again.
End Flashback
"Who's gonna help me hold down the fort?" He asked.
"I'm sure you'll be fine, Jackie."
His head was tilted down and wisps of his hair were on his eyes. He leaned in and gave me a hug. "I'm gonna miss trying to keep you out of trouble." He laughed. He pulled back and gave me a kiss on my cheek. "Bye Ta."
"Bye." I replied softly. As Jack left, Jerry was pushed by Bobby towards me.
"Sorry. I just had something in my eye there." He tried to convince me. I nodded.
"Sure…" We laughed and he leaned in for a hug as well.
"Don't be gettin' all crazy in this dorm now."
"I won't." …Much…
He said goodbye, and Bobby was left. He looked down and started scraping his shoe on the floor, trying to look all innocent.
"Get over here Bobby." I buried my face in his shoulder. Bobby was the one I always felt safe with. When I was a little girl, I use to run to Bobby and climb in his bed when I had bad dreams.
Flashback, Halloween Night
I gripped my covers tightly. A thunderstorm on Halloween? How cliché…but it did have it's effects. I had just woken up to a horrible dream. Lightning struck again. I've had it.
I ran to Bobby's room and jumped on his bed.
"What the hell?" He grumbled.
"Bobby…I had a bad dream…" I said shyly.
"Bad dream? C'mere baby girl…get under the covers." I could tell he was still half asleep. His voice was groggy and his eyes were barely open. "I told you not to eat all that candy…"
"I know…sorry."
"Don't be sorry. Just don't do it again."
"What…what if I have another bad dream?"
"I'll kick whoever's ass is scaring you in that dream."
End Flashback
"The house is gonna be different without your loud ass mouth yelling at me every 5 minutes."
"Fuck you." I mumbled on his shoulder.
He laughed. "You're all grown up now, sweetheart. Take care of yourself alright?" He said, stroking my hair while I tried not to cry. It's not like I'm never going to see them again… I pulled myself together.
"Yeah. I will."
He pulled back and kissed my forehead. "Call if you ever need ANYTHING. I mean it. We will be here faster than you could say 'Asa lama lakim'." Something told me that he really meant that.
"I'll hold you to it."
"Alright. Take care sweetie…" He said one more time. Then they were all gone.
I stepped into my dorm. It was so empty. Something that I was really not use to. I looked through my registration papers and found out what my first class would be.
Western Philosophy…Room 475…Dr. Rodney Smith…
I paused and looked up. Western Philosophy? When did I sign up for that? I thought. I shrugged, decided that it probably wouldn't be bad and lay back on my bed.
...What I wouldn't give to have Bobby yelling at Jack and I to keep the noise down right now……
A/N: Well she finally made it back on one piece! I just wanted to leave off there. Sorry if it's short. It's 12:07 am and I should probably be asleep. But I wanted to give you all a chapter because I hated having you all hanging like this! PLEASE REVIEW! They really mean a lot to me cause they motivate me to write more often! It's weird but the more reviews I get, the more ideas come to me! So don't be afraid to tell me what you think!
Elven-Princess Ginny: haha I say we jump him. Thanks for the review!
Skye Mercer: haha I love ur story though! It's cute with the little 11 year old. When I first read it I imagined the four wearing aprons and cooking and cleaning like mommies. Lol thanks for the review!
ChaiGrl: thank you so much! It's always great hearing from you. School may not go as bad as I thought.
pumpkinhead0402: it always bothered me that bobby had no one at the police station too! Haha hope u had fun at the mall. I cant go to the mall anymore. Ever since my mom found out I maxed out the credit card she "trusted me" with. Who trusts me with a credit card? Honestly? haha
Adiemus1: me? detention? Lol that's why I suck up to the teachers first day. it's worked! Last year a couple of teachers even suggested for me to take a small nap if I was tired. Lol but that's only when they know I'm sick or feel crappy.
Death By Teacup: thank you! I love hearing from you! That little rhyme just came to me. I forgot where I heard it though…anyways thanks again!
Lovebuggy: haha garrett might get a little freaked out about a religion based on him! But hell if I heard 100 people worshiped me…I think I might be ok with that…lol. AIM: Hoesoverbroz. LoL. I don't go on that much, but I'll stay on in case u IM me! do u have a myspace? Cuz we could also talk there if you want. Cant wait to hear your ideas. Jack drink jack, jack drink jack…lol.
Nighttime Writer: girl im KNOCKED out at 6:11 in the morning…lol unless I've been up and couldn't go to sleep! Haha. Don't worry, there'll be more tests and extra credit so u can make it up. You just need to get back into the swing of things. Glad u like my story cuz I LOVE urs. It kicks ass!
Darkdestiney2000: haha im glad u like that part! I have so much fun writing the flashbacks…thanks for reviewing! Cant wait to hear more from you!
Jessica: thanks hun! I'll try and update as much as I can!
babiixmahal: yeah I hate public bathrooms too. Especially in the Philippines! Hate to say it, but why the hell do you have to pay extra to use the GOOD public restrooms there? Lol have you been to those places? My family and I usually wait until we get home to use the bathrooms. haha
ephona: school sucks…but then again I would get all bored at home…damn it I cant win…haha
I'll try to get the next chapter out tomorrow night! That is, if I'm not completely swamped with homework and other things. I've decided to get off my lazy ass and join some extra cirriculars. Hey looks good on college apps right? I've joined ASB (student council), Barkada club (a Filippino club), and Drama club. And so it begins…lol