Blooming Through the Cracks: Chapter 2- Fights
The clanging of rusted steel bars echoed throughout the prison with their discordant symphony. Len could not help but jump at every metallic sound fearing the inmates would barge through their cages.
"Quit squirmin' so damn much!" Meiko barked.
The cowardly boy whimpered in response. He felt like a new puppy being escorted to a pound.
"Yeah, you heard her, blondie!" one of the inmates ridiculed.
"Oi! Ya belly yellow as ya hair?!" another commented.
"Hey, come ova here, so I can peel ya, wit ya banana-lookin' ass head!"
Len shrunk in fear as the feeling pressed into his chest. His twin only chuckled.
"Oh, lighten up, Lenny! I'm actually a little jealous you're getting all the attention! Hell, who knows? You may even get lucky!" Rin quipped.
Meiko tried not to laugh at her remark, while Miku remained tight-lipped. Her eyes darted from cell to cell wondering if she would actually have to share one. Knowing the brunette's attitude, she figured that she probably had to do just that.
The warden's heels stopped their clicks, flummoxing the row of inmates. She then turned around to flash them all a smile, in which brewed a foreboding feeling in Miku.
"Hmm..." she started playfully, "I'm sure you girls're hungry after the ride here, yeah?"
The other women, including Len, just stared at her. Rin was the only one brave enough to eagerly nod with a glint in her blue eyes.
"You bet! I'm freakin' starved!"
Meiko's smile did not falter. In fact, Miku swears that it oozed something malevolent as she lowered her eyes to Rin.
"Are you, now? Well, then! If you girls'll just follow me!" she chirped.
Miku felt uncertainty weighing at her feet, causing her to trudge while being dragged by the brunette. She whirls her head to the teal girl with a dastardly grin.
"Aww, what's wrong, father-killer? Aren't you hungry? Even murderers gotta eat, too."
Miku stared at her with narrowed eyebrows.
"And even police gotta drink on the job, too, right?" she countered.
Meiko's smile shortly fell into a stern frown. She dragged the three to the black double doors labeled 'CAFE' above. She kicked the doors open and threw the trio to the ground.
"Here we are! Now, get in line!" she ordered viciously before walking back to the line of awaiting inmates.
"Ya know, you three should be thankful to be the first to eat. That being said," she turned to look at them with a simper...
"Bon appetité."
The doors cruelly slammed shut behind the warden.
Miku and Len pushed themselves off of the silver unpolished ground. The tealette rubbed her now red forehead tenderly and watched as Rin excitedly scurried over to the lunch line full of muscular inmates.
"Rin, hold up!" she exhorted and trotted after her.
Len raised his eyes to the two girls, scrambled to his feet, and ran towards them.
"Hey! Wait up!" he cried out.
As soon as he caught up with them, he placed his hands on his knees and huffed a ragged pant.
"Damn, why're you so outta breath? No wonder we got caught..." Rin trailed off.
Miku blinked with curiosity, and Len's face blushed a cherry hue.
"Get caught...doing what?" she asked.
"Oh, I didn't tell you yet, huh? See, we're bank robbers."
Miku's eyebrows lifted at the blonde's seemingly innocent face. She guessed that sort of crime would suit the rather eccentric twins.
"Have you guys...ever...you know..."
"Killed someone? I've had my fair share, but Len's hands're clean as a whistle."
The teal girl could also believe that statement; the blonde boy does seem more reserved than his sister.
"YOU FUCKIN' BITCH!" a female inmate roared.
"HUH?! WHO THE FUCK YOU CALLIN' A BITCH, CUNT?!" another belligerently acknowledged.
The three snapped their heads to the argument behind them and found a tall blonde aggressively bringing her face to a smaller green-haired girl, her expression matching hers.
"I SAW YOU STEAL MY PUDDING CUP, JACKASS!" the blonde yelled.
"YOU'RE EITHER FUCKIN' BLIND, OR LYING, 'CAUSE I AIN'T TAKE SHIT!" the greenette spat back.
The taller woman looked her up and down incredulously.
"I KNOW GODDAMN WELL YOU'RE NOT CALLIN' ME A LIAR WITH YOUR CARROT-HAVIN' ASS HEAD!" she bellowed, shoving her.
The shorter girl saw this as an invitation to start a brawl and reached for the woman's jungle of blonde hair. The other inmates quickly gather to form a ring and to cheer them on.
The greenette grabbed a tray of food nearby and swung it across her face. Not caring about the spilled milk soaking her hair, the other woman snatched the small blue carton off the floor and poured a chunky white stream on the girl's head.
"Like that, carrot top?!"
"YOU DIRTY-!"
The screech of a whistle filled the clamorous room. Miku, Rin, and Len looked back to find Meiko bursting through the doors and charging towards the rambunctious ring. They watched as she shoved and slipped her way through the cracks of sweaty, riotous bodies. Once she was finally in the center of the fight, she harshly blew into the commanding instrument again and dragged them by their collars.
"HEY! LEMME GO, BITCH!" the blonde screamed.
Meiko threw her a severe expression and grind her front teeth into the silver whistle, creating a small crack on its surface. The other woman lowered her head in fear with her cobalt eyes cowering away.
"Awww, and it was just getting good, too!" Rin whined.
Miku gave Len a concerned look.
"Is she always like this?"
"Unfortunately."
The tealette shifted her gaze to Rin and sighed. No doubt that danger does not faze her in the slightest, and she is just now realizing that.
"LUNCH IS CANCELLED FOR TODAY, SO GET YOUR ASSES TO THE PLAYGROUND, NOW!" bellowed to brunette.
The inmates let out disappointed murmurs and trudged out of the cafeteria.
"How 'bout we follow 'em?" Miku suggested.
Len nodded and walked behind her with the crowd.
"C'mon, Rin! We gotta get going!" he called.
"I'm comin'! Hold on!" she assured while stuffing oranges into her jumpsuit.
She would steal glances to see if the lunch ladies had noticed her, but to her luck, they still had their backs turned.
After packing as many oranges as she could, Rin scurried cumbersomely behind Miku and Len.
The scalding sun glared attentively at the inmates below. A group of women was playing playing basketball. Another group was lifting weights, and some were just sitting in packs, like Miku and the blonde duo.
Rin fished an orange from inside her jumpsuit, peeled away at its bright thick skin, and ate one slice. Her eyes hovered over to her two companions and dug out another one.
"Want one?" she offered.
Miku looked over and shook her head.
"I'm good. Thanks, though."
"You, Len?"
"Hm? Nah, I'm fine."
Rin shrugged and went back to scarfing down her slices. The two twins mindlessly watched the basketball game, while Miku stared blankly at the steel, crosshatching gate.
Her mind then wandered back to years before when she was just a little girl.
It was nightfall, and her mother was working late that evening. Her father had seemingly stepped out of the shower and entered her bedroom with only a white towel clinging to his waist. She recalls him grinning and approaching her cautiously as though he did not want to frighten her.
The young Miku felt the beginnings of trepidation rising within her, and she slowly crawled out of bed.
Her father's face tightened with slight discontent, prompting him to quickly circle around her bed.
Miku felt panic rush into her tiny throat and escape through her tiny mouth. She crouched into a defenseless ball, but her father was having none of it. He lifted and threw her back into bed. Sobs and pleas scattered aimlessly into the air for help as she watched her father unwrap his towel, revealing his eager-
"Miku!"
The woman jolted and searched for the source of the voice to find Rin and Len with concerned expressions.
"You good over there?" the blonde girl asked.
She looked at her for a few seconds before smiling.
"Yeah," she said, "just thinkin' 'bout stuff."
Rin's adroit grin split her face. Miku furrowed her eyebrows in puzzlement.
"Thinkin' 'bout stuff, eh? Hmmm...could'ja be thinkin' 'bout...that chick over there?" she slyly asked.
Miku followed her stare and halted them at a pink-haired woman whose lengthy hair had been somewhat shaved on one side but full on the other. The tattoos of roses and their thorny stems entangled themselves around her neck.
As she stooped down to lift a dumbbell, the woman's blue eyes noticed the tealette's and winked at her with a smile gracing her lips.
Miku frantically retreated her gaze to her lap and felt a blush sting her cheeks.
"Oooooh, somebody's got a crush!" Rin taunted.
"Whatever," Miku scoffed.
"And on the first day?! How cute!"
"Alright, knock it off."
"HEY!" a gruff female voice barked.
Miku, Rin, and Len glanced up to see a woman, the same height and muscular build as the pinkette, stalking towards her; she did not seem to be fazed by the vexed inmate.
"Go get our ball you just kicked!" she demanded accusingly.
She blinked, took a short glimpse at the ball sitting near the fence, and pointed questioningly at it. The action fuel the woman's anger.
"Are you fuckin' retarded?! Go get it, bitch!"
The pinkette walked towards the basketball, held it to her chest, and turned to face the woman who wore a triumphant smirk.
Her fingers plunged into the pocket of her jumpsuit to pull out a small butterfly knife. The meager blade captured the sun's glint before she dug its pointed head into its rigid rubber flesh.
The woman gaped in disbelief as she watched it deflate, sputtering its last breath. Incensed, she gritted her teeth, charged towards the pinkette, and seized her by the collar, their noses almost touching.
"THE FUCK YOU DID THAT FOR, YOU PINK CUNT?!"
The pink woman drove her knee into her stomach. Her enemy folded forward in pain, retching and coughing. Her face was met with a swift kick to the jaw, and she stumbled to the concrete. A trail of blood streamed from her mouth, its damask surface reflecting the other woman's expressionless face.
Miku, Rin, and Len watched warily at the basketball players slowly surrounding the pinkette.
"Oh-hoooooooohhh, shit!" Rin blurted.
"W-we should get goin', guys," Len choked out.
"And miss THIS FIGHT? Hell no!" his sister replied.
"Maybe we should-"
A whistle's shrill voice interrupts another brewing fight.
"Alright, break it the fuck up, and hit the showers! All of you!" Meiko commanded.
"Wait. ALL OF US?! INCLUDING ME?!" Len cried.
Rin snickered.
"Damn, Len. You make it sound like they're gonna eat you alive in there," she jibed.
"Sh-shuddup! You better not leave me alone, either!"
"Quit bitchin' already. We're not gonna throw you to the wolves," Miku glowers at Rin, "right?"
"Yeah, yeah, I hear ya. Let's just follow the crowd."
Rin yawned as Len and Miku trailed behind her. Out of impulse, the teal girl decided to stop and glance back at the pinkette only to find that she had been watching her; to Miku, they just seemed...predatory.
"You comin', Miku?!" Rin called.
"Uhh...yeah!" she responded, trotting to the twins.