I made my way out of the schoolyard slowly with Brainy trailing behind me. With a carton of cigarettes, sixteen dollars and some loose change, I was ready to leave the detention behind. I could probably get home now, the ol' man was probably still asleep. Mom probably went to her sister's for the night. She did that whenever her and my dad got too rough with each other. She'd sneak out whenever Dad was sleeping off a hangover and stay at my Aunt Trisha's for a few days.

I crossed the street, planning out the rest of my day in my sorry excuse for a mind, when I realized that Brian was at the bike rack close to the teachers' parking lot. He was unlocking an apparently new green Huffy. He saw me looking at him over my shoulder and gave me a short wave. I nodded my head and turned right into a large, beefy sort of guy.

"Watch it, fucker!" He grumbled as I tried to regain my balance. Suddenly, as I looked him over, I realized who I had just toppled into. It was Cameron Ripley, also called Rip by his friends and foe. We knew each other, but not enough to be considered friends.

He wasn't the most handsome guy due to a four-wheeler accident last year. He and a pal got in a fight while riding together in the woods, causing all hell to break loose. Rip tried to ram into his friend from the back, but ended up flipping the four-wheeler onto himself and getting his face smashed by the wheel. He suffered a broken nose, a gash across his jaw line, and four teeth knocked out.

He recognized me after a moment and gave me what I considered an apology.

"Bender? Damn, man, you're lucky you weren't some asshole or you would've ended up with a switchblade in your side." He said in a low voice. "You just get out of detention?"

I nodded, trying not to stare at his abnormally disfigured nose.

"Yeah, my third one this month."

"You should just fuck school and follow my lead, man." He went on, his dark green eyes following something behind me. "School's a blast when you're not in it."

I shrugged. "Yeah, well-,"

"Hold on a second, Bender. I've got some shit to take care of." He interrupted as he began to walk towards the school. I turned around in curiosity of what he was going after, but found that it was something that made my stomach churn a bit. He was walking straight towards Brian and his bike.

I don't know what Brian was still doing there. Maybe he couldn't unlock his bike. Or maybe he was eavesdropping on the conversation between two troublemakers. Whatever the reason, he really should've left sooner. I was ready to follow, ready to make sure that the nerd wasn't going to get clobbered, but I quickly reminded myself of who I was and my reputation. I was John Bender, school rogue and rebel. What would people think if I went to help a geek? Wait..since when did I care what people were thinking?

I watched as Rip put a hand on the black seat of the bike. Brian's head immediately shot up as Rip ran his hand along the shiny, green frame.

"Well, well, well." He mumbled. "What a super bike, kiddo. I'll bet you used all the money you earned from the tooth fairy to buy this fine vehicle, didn't you?"

Brian swallowed, knowing what would go on. "Look, Rip, I just bought this bike. Can't you just leave me alone?"

Rip kicked the wheel with his surprisingly small shoe, causing Brian to make a small squeak of helplessness. The bully kicked the bike again, this time allowing Brian to gather up his courage and stand up.

"Knock it off, you asshole!"

"Don't you fucking talk back to me, you insolent, little faggot! You just lost your bike!" Rip shouted, climbing over the bike and grabbing Brian by his skinny arm. My muscles tensed as Rip dragged Brian onto the sidewalk. He dropped him and knelt down to take hold of Brian's face, squeezing it within his grasp.

Rip's eyes narrowed as he spit in Brian's face. "I hope you weren't too attached to that bicycle, dweeb, 'cause you ain't gonna be seeing it for a long time. Maybe this will teach you not to sass your elders."

"Get off of me!" Brian yelled, struggling to get away. Just as I was ready to do something, Rip slammed Brian's head against the cement with a loud crack. My anger seared as Brian went still. I swallowed my pride and ran over to Rip, grabbing him and putting him in a half-nelson.

"You fucking made a huge mistake!" I shouted in his ear. "If he's dead, I'm gonna kill you, you jerk! You hear that!"

Rip made it out of my grip and kicked me in the stomach. As I doubled over, he punched me in the head and kicked the back of my knee, causing me to tumbled over in pain. I was hurting so much that I actually wished Vernon were here to break it up.

I expected another blow, but as I looked up, I could see Rip was distracted by something else. To my shock, I heard a familiar voice.

"What's going on? What–what's wrong with them?" Riley asked. I turned my head around gently to see what she was about to do. She was looking at the scene with complete shock, then her eyes widened as she looked at Brian. She cupped her hands over her mouth and ran to his unconscious body.

Checking his pulse, she sighed a breath of what seemed to be relief.

"He's alive, just knocked out." She stated before glancing at Rip and I in confusion. "Who did this to him? Bender, you didn't–,"

"Fuck no!" I sputtered as I clutching my aching chest. "Don't be stupid, it was him!" Rip kicked me again as Riley stood back up in defense. She grabbed his arm to stop him.

Her tone was dark and angry as she told him, "Leave him alone! Get out of here or I'll get the cops involved! I know a police officer who lives right on the corner of the street!"

"Jeez, bitch, you think I'm scared of cops?" Rip asked with amusement, pulling away from her. He ran up the stairs and got on Brian's bike, ready to ride down the street. I stood up and chased after him, shouting profanities the whole way.

Finally, in the middle of the street, I had caught up to him. I kicked the wheel and Rip fell over, the sound of his skin sliding against the road and his screaming was loud and harsh. I also fell with him, scraping my face along the road also. Riley ran up to me a minute later and knelt by my side.

"I got Vernon to call an ambulance, don't worry." She said. She was trying to remain calm, but her voice was unsteady as she looked at me.

To avoid any uncomfortable silences and stares, I propped myself up on my elbows, which were the only things that didn't hurt. Riley bit her lip, trying to hold back any faces that would be a sign that I looked bad.

"How's my face look? Be honest." I asked.

She sighed unevenly. "It looks like hell. The cuts run all the way from the top of your eyebrow to the end of your jaw. You're lucky, though, compared to that guy." I knew she meant Rip, who was lying on the road in silent pain.

I flinched as I blinked. It hurt even to move my eyes from side to side. Riley slowly put a hand on mine, her fingers massaging the top of my hand. I tried to smile, but it came out as a pained smirk.

"Now is not the time to get all romantic on me." I told her.

She grinned with a giggle. "Maybe later then."