CHAPTER 2
Kori and Garfield had found a circle of card players. There were about eleven of them playing poker with two packs of poker chips just for kicks. The gym was full of boisterous teenagers talking and shouting and dancing to the music. There was even a group of boys and girls playing with a hacky-sack. Richard and I looked at our surroundings.
"Hey! Everyone shut up!" Some kid yelled out. The room became quieter. It took a few more yells to totally shut the entire crowd up. "Listen up! We need everyone to clear the basketball court. We're going to start a game of dodge ball. Anybody can join." People cleared the basketball court and sat in the stands. "Okay, here are the rules. Boundaries are the basketball court. Two people will say out and be the ball throwers. If you get hit, you're out and you join the two people who are all ready out and you become a ball thrower. You can catch the ball before it bounces and then get someone else out."
"Do you want to play?" Richard asked me. Didn't matter what I'd say because he was all ready dragging me to the basketball court. I tried pulling away from him, but then the kid gave two balls to the two ball throwers on the outside of the court's perimeter.
"Go!" He yelled. Then every stupid girl started screaming their minds out as the ball missed them by only a couple of miles.
"I can't believe you dragged me into this!" I yelled at Richard. I quickly ducked out of the way of a flying ball.
"Just have fun!" He laughed. Well, fine then Richard. I'll have some fun. I'm going to get a ball and peg you in the head!
"Go Rachelle and Richard!" Kori screamed from her poker game.
I spun out of the way of yet another whirling ball. I watched as more people got out. The ball handlers got a group of three into a corner and threw the ball at the same time, hitting one of them on the head and then bouncing off that person and pegging the second person on the hip. Then the ball reflected of that person and hit the third person on the ankle.
"Three!" Screamed one of the ball throwers who had hit the three.
I saw Richard jump up and do the splits as a ball hurled through his legs. Then a girl next to me amazingly caught a ball. She had a bit of a delayed reaction and screamed as she looked at the ball as if it were head. I rolled my eyes. She apparently didn't know how to react when she caught the ball. She saw me standing there and tried to tag me out. Her throw was so soft it was pathetic. I caught the ball with ease. Her eyes widened in fear as I chucked the ball back at her. She screamed…but didn't move and the ball hit her. She stomped her foot in frustration and walked out of the basketball court. There were now only five of us left. Richard was one of them. He saw me looking at him and winked. I hated it when he did that. I could hardly wait until I could peg him good and hard with that ball. I watched where the two balls were going.
"Damn it!" Yelled a guy who got hit.
Four were left. I dodged a low thrown ball by jumping over it. I smiled to myself as I watched Richard catch a ball and fling it at one of the survivors. It hit him square in the chest.
Three left…
"Rachelle! Watch it!" I hear Kori yell from the crowd. I turned in time to see someone from the outside hurling a ball at me. I crouched down allowing the ball to pass over me and hit the guy behind me.
Two left…Richard and me. I smiled evilly at him. Neither of us had a ball. But that was about to change. I walked out to the middle of the court and stood still, waiting for someone to throw the ball at me. It didn't take long. A girl threw the ball straight for me. I snapped back and caught the ball. I clutched to my chest so it wouldn't bounce out as it made contact with me. I laughed to myself and started to walk towards Richard. Then Garfield came out of nowhere. He pushed through the crowd with a ball.
"Richard! Over here!" He threw the ball to him.
"Garfield!" I yelled. He shrugged and smiled sheepishly at me. Shit! Now we both have a ball. We circled around the court waiting for the right time to lodge it at each other.
"You're going to pay for making me play this stupid game!" I teased with an evil tone.
"Bring it!" He laughed.
I decided to wait for him to throw it. Then I would make my move. The crowd was getting impatient because nobody was throwing the ball.
"Come on! Throw the ball!" Someone yelled.
I could tell Richard was beginning to brake. He too was getting impatient. We stood there staring at each other.
"Get her out!" Screamed a boy from the crowd.
Richard cracked. He wound his arm back and launched the ball towards me. I saw it coming. I didn't move one inch. Even though the ball was coming at me, all I had to do was hold the ball in front of me. My expression never changed when I blocked his throw with my ball. His eyes grew wide. I heaved my ball right to him. It hit him in the head. The ball fell to the ground. I stood there with a smug look on my face. Richard gathered his footing and looked straight at me with a huge smile. I walked over to him.
"I got you out." I taunted.
"Told you. I knew you could have fun!" He grinned.
"It is fun to peg you in the head!" I retorted turning to walk away before he could come up with some other smart-ass thing to say. I joined Kori and Garfield in the bleachers.
"Thanks for the support Kori." I sat down next to her. "Thanks for the help." I said sarcastically to Garfield.
"Well, if Kori is there for you, then I'm there for Richard." He explained.
Richard came over and sat beside Garfield.
"Thanks buddy." He patted him on the back.
"Anytime, dude." Garfield said.
The following two hours were filled with me watching everyone else playing people play a basketball game, tag, dancing, volleyball, and other activities. I didn't mind. I chose to sit out and watch all of the stupid games the people played. Richard didn't bother to try and make me participate in any activities after I pegged him.
"How much more of this do I have to take?" I asked in misery, throwing my head into my hands.
"Just until tomorrow." Richard laughed.
"Come on, Rachelle. It can't be that bad!" Kori chirped. Her arm was around Garfield and his arm was around her waist.
"Ooooh but it can…" I drug out the 'oh'.
Kori sighed in defeat.
I lifted my head at the sound of 'whoo-hoo!' and 'Yeah!' There was a huge horde of mostly teenage boys crowded around an object. I couldn't see, but curiosity got the best of me as more shouts called out 'Hell yeah!' and stuff like that. I got up and started walking towards the crowd. The rest of them followed me. I threaded myself through the crowd. I peered over someone's shoulder and saw a keg and a bunch of six packs of beer.
"Losers." I mumbled. "They are going to be so wasted." I scoffed as I watched a teenage boy help another of his buddies stand on his hands and perform a keg stand. I rolled my eyes and walked away.
"My turn!" I heard Richard yell from inside the clump of people.
"Oh come on, Richard. I know you're smarter than that." I mumbled. I leaned against a far corner. The shadows hid my face. I didn't realize Kori had followed me to my hiding place until she said something.
"I know better than to drink the night away. I saw my father do that. It didn't help him." She was staring at the crowd of wild teens.
"At least there's one smart one in this bunch." I muttered.
I noticed Richard chugging back a can of beer.
"This is actually kind of scaring me. I know how my dad acted when he was drunk, and I'm not sure I want to be in a lock down with a boat load of drunk teenagers." Kori did sound worried. I saw her look away from the drinkers nervously.
"Don't worry." I bowed my head back down.
"Maybe we should pull Garfield and Richard out of that mob." Kori suggested.
She didn't wait for my answer though. She unfolded her arms and marched right back to the bunch of people. I didn't think she was doing the smartest of things and wanted to stop her. I ran after her. But she beat me to the group of drinkers.
"Garfield! Come here." She grabbed him by the collar and pulled him back. He almost dropped his beer can out of shock.
"What are you doing, dude?" He asked smiling.
"Please, please don't get drunk!" She pleaded. "It'll mess with your mind."
"What's happening, Gar?" Richard asked. He had obviously drunken way more than Garfield because Richard's voice was going up and down and he staggered, just a little, when he walked. He had done way too many keg stands.
"Richard. Don't be an idiot. You saw Kori's dad when he was drunk. Are you honestly that retarded?" I asked in a cold voice.
"I can take care of myself, Rae." He tried to pat my shoulder but completely missed it and stumbled forward. "Wow, did you see that Gar? My hand went right through her. She's a ghost!"
He had apparently drunken a lot more than I thought. How do you drink that much in so little time?
"You are so wasted." I said just loud enough.
"No, I'm not." Richard took another swig of beer. I sighed and grabbed the beer can out of Richard's hand. "Hey! Give it back!" He tried to grab it back but I pulled it away.
"Guess I'm going to have to take care of you like a two year old." I walked over to a trashcan and pored out the left over beer. There was only like a drop left. I crushed the can between my hands and through it in the trash. Richard looked like he was going to cry. Then as I kept walking towards him he started to look really sick. I grabbed by the shoulder and started to drag him towards the back door. They had not locked it, probably because they forgot. I pushed him out the door.
"What are we doing out here?" He asked looking really confused.
"I can tell you're not feeling well." I went back to my position, leaning against the wall.
"I feel fine" He grinned. But right after that, he doubled over and hurled.
"Told you." I said calmly.
I had my head bent towards the ground.
"Can you be smart about this?" I asked.
He didn't answer.
"Fine, then just stay out here where you won't hurt yourself." I unfolded my arms and walked back inside the gym. I closed the door behind me and sat down next to the door. I looked up to see Kori trying to reason with Garfield. She said something that I couldn't hear. Then Garfield looked down ashamed and threw his beer can away. I grinned. If only Richard was that easy…Then I had an idea. I got Garfield's attention and motioned for him to come where I was.
"Can you go out there and talk to Richard. He's defiantly drunk." I questioned.
"Sure. He might need a little dude on dude talk." He coolly walked outside to join Richard. I rolled my eyes.
I opened my mouth to say something to Kori but I was cut off by a scream. I shot my head towards the sound. There was another scream and then I saw someone throw a punch.
"Bitch!" A guy yelled as he threw a punch back at his attacker. I got up to brake up the stupid fight. You're probably thinking that that was a really dumb idea. But it was only two guys who were drunk and didn't know what they were saying or doing.
"Hey man! Don't hit him!"
I saw another punch being delivered to a guy's face. Ok, so now there's three guys involved.
"Watch it!" A kick, this time, was thrown at a person's groin.
Then I backed up because the fight broke out into a mob of drunken teenager hitting each other.
"Oh crap." I moaned. I turned around. Kori was looking really scared.
"What do we do?" She asked, her eyes where wide with fear.
"I don't know.