Chapter 10:

-

"Hey," Tyler said, catching Elle's attention in the midst of the hectic party. "I'm going to go to the bathroom real quick. Do you think you'll be alright alone for a minute?"

"Not a problem," Elle replied good-naturedly, waving him off with a smile. "You go ahead."

Tyler didn't seem convinced, and shot a look of warning to the interested jocks standing around her.

"You' re sure you'll be okay?" Tyler asked her again.

"I'll be fine," she promised. "Meet me out on the patio when you get out."

Tyler nodded and left, but spotted Caleb and Pogue on his way over, and stopped to say hi.

"Hey, guys," he said, then his eyes fell to the girlfriends and he smiled at them in turn. "Having fun with your ladies?"

"Well, it can't be too much, seeing as we're still out in public," Pogue replied. He got another slap on the shoulder for that, but this time, both Sarah and Kate were the culprits.

"Geez!" Pogue winced. "Gang violence, now?"

"You deserved it," Kate laughed.

"Hey, Sarah," Tyler said. "You're actually who I came over to see."

"Uh oh," Caleb said with warning.

"No," Tyler raised his hands innocently. "It's not like that. Elle's looking for a roommate, so I wondered if--"

"Oh my God, that's perfect!" Sarah exclaimed. "Yeah, I'll give her a call. Do you have a number I can use?"

"Sure," Tyler said. "But I'll give it to you after I get back—I gotta pee really really bad."

As Tyler trotted off, Sarah laughed, and Caleb waved to his friend's back, calling:

"Ever heard of 'too much information', Ty?"

-

Reid took notice that Tyler had left Elle by herself and pounced on the open opportunity, abandoning Kira on the dance floor.

"Hey, Evans," Reid said to one of the jocks. They recognized Reid, and grew immediately fearful, due to prior bad experiences with him.

"Don't you have a pigskin to fetch somewhere?" Reid asked him.

"I'm… I'm sure I could… find one," Michael Evans stammered, and grabbed his friends and sauntered off. Elle frowned at Reid, who had just scared away all of her attention.

"Well, if it isn't the man-whore," she spat at him. "Come for your ritual verbal beating again, have you?"

Reid grinned suspiciously.

"Thought you could use my services," Reid replied. "You seemed a bit… crowded."

"Look who's talking," Elle countered, motioning to Kira on the dance floor, who hadn't seemed to notice yet that Reid was gone. "I see you skipped the bed and went straight to having sex right on the dance floor-- how nice."

"Be still my heart!" he said, clutching his chest in mock astonishment. "Is dear Elle jealous?"

"I never said that," Elle insisted, offended by the very idea. "I just find your displays unbelievably disgusting, is all. You never cease to amaze me. I have to admit though, you and Kira seem to be perfect for each other. She's a bitch and you're an ass… A match made in heaven, wouldn't you say?"

Reid pointed his finger at her accusingly, his face falling stern and fierce.

"Hey," he said firmly. "You have no right to be jealous. You diss me openly on more than one occasion, and you're dating one of my best friends. How I choose to get over you is none of your business."

"Oh, you have nothing to answer to me, Reid," Elle agreed. "I'm not your mother. You may plow around wherever you like."

He glared at her with a cold swirl of silver coming into his eyes. He stepped up close to her, so their noses almost touched.

"Maybe what I'd like… is you," he said in a low, almost threatening voice.

"Huh?" she blinked in alarm. She hadn't anticipated that response and was left speechless. Reid chuckled in disbelief.

"What," Reid scoffed. "Like it's a surprise?"

"Hey, Garwin!" called a voice from the doorway. "We have some unfinished business."

"Aaron Abbott," Reid said frustratedly to the ceiling without even having to look. "Usually one beating is enough for most people. Besides, shouldn't you be in a jail cell somewhere?"

"I've heard just about enough out of you, you cocky son of a bitch."

Then Aaron pulled a gun out of nowhere, and pointed it at Reid's forehead. People around screamed and ducked out of the crossfire. The music immediately died.

Reid stood defiantly before Aaron, pushing Elle away from the line of fire.

"When I heard you were screwing my girl, it was the last straw, Garwin," Aaron growled to him as his friends began to protest, trying to coax Aaron into putting the gun down. Reid spotted a girl in the crowd dialing 911. If he just stalled until the police came, everything would be okay… he hoped.

"Aaron, almost every guy in town has screwed your girl, alright? So don't go singling me out when I haven't even done anything yet. Like I'd want to anyway…"

Kira gasped with offense.

"So you don't want to screw Kira, huh?" Aaron chuckled evilly. "Who do you want? Her?"

He pointed the gun at Elle, and Reid's heart lurched. Elle's eyes were wide with terror, tears beginning to form along the edges.

"Aaron… don't…" Reid tried to reason with him, but his heart was beating so loudly he couldn't hear himself think.

"How'd you escape the explosion, huh?" Aaron shouted. "How'd you tear my truck apart with only your bare hands? ANSWER ME THAT, FREAK!"

Reid sensed Aaron's finger tensing around the trigger, but his mind was so fizzled at the sight of the barrel pointed at Elle's head that he couldn't register fear.

"His eyes were pure black, I tell you!" Aaron said to the crowd around him. "This guy's a freak, and I'm going to get to the bottom of this…"

He pointed his gun back at Reid, and took several steps closer to him to be sure he wouldn't miss.

"Let's see your hocus-pocus get you out of this, huh?" Aaron challenged, like a dare.

Oh, how Reid wished he could. But even he had enough sense to know that he couldn't risk Using in a crowd like this… they would be exposed… the Covenant would be completely blown to pieces…

And there was also the factor that if he Used he might blow up everyone here…

"Any last words, freak?" Aaron said with a smile. He probably thought he was doing the world a favor.

This was it. It was the end of the Garwin line. Reid had to be a martyr for the cause.

He glanced at Elle. At least it wasn't her getting the bullet anymore. He was thankful for that much at least. He looked to Caleb and Pogue standing beside their terrified girlfriends. Caleb had an expression of deep concern on his face, probably wondering if Reid would Use and expose them. Reid shook his head to promise Caleb that this time… he would finally obey.

"Aaron…" Reid replied. "You had better listen close, because these are my final words…"

He then looked Aaron straight in the eyes and said:

"You're a dick."

Several things happened at once then, making time slow down around him. Aaron yelled like a battle charge, then pulled the trigger, then Elle screamed, and Reid closed his eyes, preparing for the imminent pain.

All became silent, save for the panting breath of those nearest to him. No pain came for several moments, much to his confusion.

When the people around began to gasp in surprise and murmur amongst themselves, then Reid opened his eyes again, trying to grasp the view around him.

A bullet hovered in midair between his eyes, then dropped to the floor. The gun crumbled into a million gravel-like pieces in Aaron's hands, then fell to the ground like ash.

Panting with relief, and still shaking in shock, Reid quickly looked around for the cause of his rescue.

There stood young Tyler, his hand outstretched before him and his eyes black as night.

He had saved him

"Oh… my… God…" Reid managed to spit out some words at last.

Immediately Caleb and Pogue came rushing into the house, shoving past a stunned Aaron to get to Tyler.

"Tyler!" Pogue said with worry. "You idiot! You're not supposed to be Using—you know that! You have to get out of here!"

"Don't call him an idiot if he just saved Reid's life, Pogue," Caleb scolded. "That's a better time to Use than any, I would say."

He glanced at Reid as he said this, shooting undertones of his words to Reid. It seemed he had forgiven Reid for the 'Elle incident'.

"What's the matter with him?" Elle said, her voice shaking with fear as Tyler began to collapse to the ground.

"Tyler," Caleb said. "Oh, no…"

"Ahh!" Tyler could only reply, dropping to his hands and knees and clutching the hardwood in pain. "Oh, God, it hurts!"

"Everyone get out of here!" Pogue yelled, herding the guests to the doors as fast as he could. "He's gonna blow, get OUT!"

Suddenly Pogue stopped in his tracks, as he gazed out the window of the house. Blue and red twirling lights began to come up the drive, coming in fast.

"Oh, shit!" Pogue shouted in horror. "COPS!!"

-


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Signed,
--RedRogue