Chapter 4: Unexpected Surprises

After school was over, I get my things from my cuby and walk outside. I go back out to the playground since I know I didn't have to go home yet. I was about to climb the monkey bars, when my ears were met with a scream. I cock my head to the side and saw the whole Cobra gang. I gasped a little loud.

"Oh shit," I curse. "What are they doing here?"

I started walking backwards to hear what they were saying. All I saw was them talking to one of my classmates.

"Come on, Joey. If you don't leave, they'll beat the living daylights out of you," I say gripping the bar.

Billy turned his head in my direction and I ducked down. Unfortunately for me, I was on the edge of falling off the step I was on. Billy kept his eyes on me. He shook his head and turned back around. I let out a sigh of relief and I fell backwards.

"Whoa!"

I hit my head against the small wooden chips of the playground.

"Ow. Son of a bitch," I mumble.

I slowly sit up. I sigh seeing how I'm going to come in contact with them sooner or later.

I get up and dust the chips off of my clothes. I began to walk towards them.

I whistle to them. "What the fuck do you guys think you're doing? Leave Joey alone."

The Cobras turn around to look at me and I stiffen. Charlie and Billy had an angry look on their faces. Ace looked somewhat pissed off, but I couldn't tell. Eyeball...Eyeball was smoking a cigeratte through his mouth and came out through his nose like a bull. And the others aren't really important.

"Get her," Ace demanded. Now, he sounded pissed off. Charlie and Billy grabbed me and literally dragged me away.

"Hey! Let me go you assholes!" I yell. They dragged me to a back ally and throw me against a brick wall.

"What's the big idea?!" I yell pissed off.

"Shut up!" Ace orders me slamming his hands on either side of my head. He was trembling with anger.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and tried to mold myself into the wall.

"Why the hell are you hanging out with those dipshits?!" Billy asks me.

"What are you talking about?" I bring my eyebrows together confused.

"Don't play dumb," Charlie said. "We're talking about Vern and the rest of his friends."

It took me a minute to realize what he was talking about. Nah, I knew exactly what they were saying. I just had this talk with Eyeball, though.

"I'm not," I deny.

Ace snaps his finger at Billy. Billy slaps my leg with his belt making me whimper.

Ace picked me up by my arms and threw me against the wall. I groaned out in pain. I closed my eyes and let my head drop.

"If ANY of us catch you with them, we'll shit on you and then some," Ace threatened.

He dropped me and I kneeled down on one knee. I glared at them before going the opposite way of them. As I walked out of the alley, I started kicking a rock.

"Was that little threat suppose to scare me," I thought out loud.

I bumped into someone not looking where I was walking. I mumbled a sorry before stepping around them.

"Merill," the person called out to me.

I turn around at the sound of my name. I looked up and my body slightly tensed.

"Hey, C-Chris," I stutter.

"Just got out of school, huh?" He asks me folding his arms over his chest.

"Yeah huh," I nod averting my eyes to the ground.

"Hey, what's wrong?" He asked worry dripping from his words.

I shake my head. "Nothing."

"Ya sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure, Chris."

"You're lying."

I was about to answer him, when I heard Vince's voice. I cursed under my breath and perked my head back into the alley. They were gone. I turned back around, grabbed Chris, and pulled him into the alley. I covered his mouth. I closed my eyes and praying that they didn't see us. When I heard them safely pass, I opened my eyes and sighed in relief. I dropped my hand from Chris' mouth.

"What the hell was that about?" He looks down at me while crossing his arms.

"The Cobras doesn't want me hanging out with you and your friends," I mumble sadly.

"And who the fuck are they to tell you that?"

"I-I mean..."

"Don't give me 'Ace is my brother's bullshit!"

"They threatened to b-beat my face in."

"So? I know you never let that stop you!"

I sigh. "I guess not."

I lower my head causing Chris to put his hands on my shoulders.

"Look, I wasn't trying to get you upset."

I nod. "I know you weren't. And I'm not really upset."

He looks up at the sky and I follow his eyes. A Hawk was gliding in a circle.

"Why don't we meet by the corner store later on today with the rest of the guys?" He asks me.

"I guess," I shrug.

I walk around him and headed home. I enter the house and go upstairs to my room. I take off my shoes and place them in the closet. Then, my stomach grumbles. I felt a queasy feeling in my stomach. I decide to go to check if Ace is home. I need to have a little 'chat' with him.

I open his door. "Ace, we need to...AAAHHHH!"

I decided that I was scared for life. I just wanted to run and keep running not giving a fudge about where I was going. Ace turns around and glares at me.

"Get out, you little squirt!" He yells.

"Well, I was trying to tell you that we need groceries. I didn't expect you to be banging my teacher!" I shout back.

I leave his room and storm out to the back yard. I layed down in the trunk of one of Ace's old pick up truck. I close my eyes and drift off to a scar free world.

"Leave, Shrimp," someone demands me.

"Shut up, Chambers," I roll on to my side.

"Hey, Eyeball is right, Ash," Billy agreed.

I flicked them off without turning around.

"Move," Eyeball rolled me out of the trunk and I fell onto the dead grass.

"Why the heck are you guys here, don't you gotta be doing something else...like getting a life?" I ask them while getting up and dusting the grass off my pants.

I looked up and noticed it was only Billy and Eyeball.

"We do have a life, you little prick. We're hanging out with Ace right now," Billy retort.

"Ah, a threesome?" I ask innocently.

Eyeball looks at me deeply.

"How old are you?"

"Ten. You?"

He growls at me. Billy holds up his hand signaling us to shut up.

"What is your brother doing?" Billy looks down at me.

"Banging my teacher," I sigh.

"Ms. Aaren?!" Eyeball asked with wide eyes.

"Yup," I nod.

Billy and Eyeball look at each other and smile. They turned to me with evil in their eyes.

"Oh hell nah!" I yell. "Not you two either."

"How long do you think its gonna last?" Billy chuckles.

"Who knows, maybe all evening and then some," Eyeball cracks.

I roll my eyes.

"Probably not long, Ace's dick is HUGE!" Eyeball laughs.

"AW! Shut up! I don't want to hear how big my brother's dick is!" I yell. I narrow my eyes at Eyeball. "How the hell would you know? Did you rape my brother?! Ooh, you took his v-card!"

Billy falls over holding his stomach. He hit his head on the trunk before falling to the ground.

"Damn, Richard, she got you!" He said in between laughter.

Eyeball growls and tackles me to the ground. He began to wrestle me, but it didn't hurt really. I tried to pin him down, but he was too strong. When he was laying on top of me, he told me to take it back.

"Ah! You didn't deny it!" I laugh.

Billy was rolling on the grass. Crying!

Eyeball switches me in a different, uncomfortable position. My left wrist was being crushed against the ground.

"Ah ah, my wrist," I cry.

"Take it back, Kid," he tells me.

"Deny it and I'll take it back," I bargain.

He flips me over onto my back and pins my arms down. Hard.

"Take it back."

"Deny it!"

He spits on my nose and I start squirming.

"Geez, I take it back."

"What?"

"I take it back, Gawd!"

He gets up and smile down at me.

"There ya go," his smiled quickly disappeared. "Go inside, get your shoes, and leave."

I sit there. I knew that if I didn't move, that he'll beat the living shit out of me(says that in Peter Griffen voice). I get up, go inside, grab my shoes, and head into town.

"Who the hell does Eyeball think he is?!" I mumble angry.

I heard a school bell and I looked across the street from the park. The junior high was getting out. Great, just what I need?

Actually, it is what I need. Vern, Gordie, and Teddy are in the junior high!

'Wait, why was Chris out of school?' I thought curiously.

I stood outide the corner store trying to process a reason why he was out so early.

As if Chris could hear my thoughts, he swung open the door from inside the corner store and hit me in the forehead. I fell on my side and rolled away from the door area.

"Oh man, Ash, are you okay?!" Chris dropped his bag and ran over to me. "I'm so sorry!"

I was caressing my head because it hurt like I just went head to head with a bull. The smell of blood hit my nose. Tears began to roll down my cheeks.

"Ash, are you...," Chris began to ask.

"Yeah, I hate the smell of blood," I brought my knees to my chin and wrapped my arms around them.

"Ash is a pussy!" I heard someone shout.

I looked up with my bloodshot eyes.

"Teddy, shut up, she's hurt!" Chris barked at him.

Should've known.

"Dude, what happened?" Gordie asked dropping his book bag.

"I hit her with the door," Chris answered.

"Oh no," Vern gasped. "If Ace finds out, Chris, you're a goner."

"Gee, thanks," Chris rolled his eyes.

I put my hand to my forehead trying to feel the wound and I winced. It felt like a small deep slit against my forehead. I started to sob the stench not fading.

"Aw, the baby still crying," Teddy made baby noises. "Pussy, pussy, pussy, hahahaha!"

"Teddy, shut the hell up gotdammit!" Chris yelled scolding him.

I sat up and rubbed my eye.

"I'm not crying over the pain, Dumbass," I told Teddy. "I hate the smell of blood."

"Gordie, go inside and buy some proxicide and rubbing alchohol," Chris orders.

Gordie runs into the store and do what he was told.

"You're going to fix it?!" I panic.

"Yeah," Chris simply answers. "Shouldn't be too bad."

"Chris, we should probably take her to the hospital," Vern said.

"No, that'll take too long," Chris shook his head.

Soon, Gordie came out and we headed to the tree house. Chris made me sit in his lap while Gordie and Vern tried to fix my deep cut.

I started squirming in Chris' lap.

"Stop moving, Ash!" Gordie yells at me.

"No, its gonna sting," I whine.

"Come on, Ashton, be still," Chris told me calmly.

I sighed and slumped in lap. Gordie applied the proxicide and I winced. Gordie screamed followed by Teddy and Vern.

"What? What's wrong?" I ask curiously.

"Is it suppose to be bubbling like that?!" Vern panicked.

Teddy scurried across the tree house and grabbed a golden beanie cap. He put it on my head covering up the deep cut. I shruggerd and got up. I opened the trap door and began to climb down it.

"Hey, where are you going?" Vern asked.

"Home," I answered. "I'm bored. I'll try to stay away from my bro and the rest of the gang. They're probably at Iry's Billard anyways."

I climbed down and headed home. I walked home and cut through the backyard. I saw someone talking to Ace. Ace pointed in my direction and I tensed. The guy turned around and my eyes widened. I smiled and ran toward them.

"Connor!"