I don't own the Lost Boys characters. Just my own.
When we got to the concert stage, INXS had already started playing- Devil Inside, to be exact. And as the night passed and me and the Frog bros. rocked out to one of our favorite bands, I had to admit that I was really enjoying being with them…especially Edgar. He was a lot of fun, surprisingly (considering his serious expressions most of the time.)
By ten o' clock, all three of us were exhausted from dancing and jumping. The last two songs, though, we were pumped for- Good Times and Laying Down the Law. It seemed like, when each of those songs started playing, our energy would be restored anew, and we would be able to dance and jump like idiots again.
By the time the concert was over, it was 10:30, and I did not want to go home. "Hey, can I come to your store for a while?" I asked tentatively as we walked the emptying streets of the Boardwalk. "Uh, sure?" Allan replied, both of them shooting me questioning looks. "I'm not too eager to go home," I admitted and Edgar nodded knowingly. "Your mom?" he inquired and I nodded, guessing he must have heard our argument. That's part of it, I thought to myself. The other part was that I was having too much fun with my new friends.
"Your parents won't mind, will they?" I asked as we reached the two large garage doors leading into the comic book store, glancing in the two hippies' directions. Edgar's eyes grew colder and pain flashed across Allan's face. "They're not our parents," Edgar muttered.
I blinked, following them inside as they slid the doors shut. I could sense that I'd hit a nerve, and I backtracked quickly. "I'm sorry…" I began but Edgar shook his head. "It's fine. You didn't know." Even though his words were meant to reassure me, there was still an edge to them. I made a mental note to be more careful about mentioning their parents.
After a few minutes of awkward silence that the two brothers passed by organizing comic books absentmindedly, I broke it. "Can I help you guys at all?" They both looked up and shrugged at the same time. "Can you help me stack some of these books?" Allan called as he toted a heavy-looking cardboard box. "Sure," I replied and walked over to help him.
As we all started working, the tension melted like ice in the sunlight, and soon it was as if we'd been best friends since the dawn of time. Too soon, I had to look at the clock. 1 a.m. "Shit," I muttered, feeling my heart flutter a little nervously at the thought of the verbal beating I would receive from Mom. "I gotta go, guys," I sighed and was slightly thrilled that they looked disappointed.
"You'll come back tomorrow, right?" Edgar asked and I grinned at him. "Sure. As long as I escape alive," I added and their eyes narrowed. "Be careful around that cousin of yours," Edgar warned and I blinked. "No, I meant my mom. She's gonna kill me for spending most of the night with you guys," I explained and they both rolled their eyes. "Your living in the same house as a bloodsucker and you're worried about getting killed by your mom? Yeah, that's what I'd be afraid of, too," Edgar scoffed. "Yeah, well I guess we're more alike than we thought," I retorted, acting as if I hadn't heard his sarcasm. "See you guys tomorrow," I called over my shoulder, walking out into the dark streets of the Boardwalk.
At first, all I could think of were the images of me and the Frog bros. hanging out that night, permanently set on reply in my brain. But then, as the rush of freedom finally stopped dancing through my body, I began to feel the darkness creep in around me like living shadows, weighing down like ten-ton steel bars. My heart pounded heavily in my chest and my breathing became more and more ragged as time passed. Had I been stupid enough to leave my bike at the concert stage? Retracing the steps in my memory, I groaned inwardly. I had left my bike sitting in the rack by the entrance to the concert stage. I would have to double around to get it. And the shadows were pressing in closer and closer, reaching out with hideous ragged claws…
The sound of an engine roaring to life made me jump and scream, as if were a tightly strung guitar string that had suddenly snapped. Bright headlights glared into my eye sockets, blinding me momentarily. When my vision cleared, I realized that the bright, loud thing was a motorcycle, and sitting on top of it was Marko. I was never so glad to see him in my whole life.
He pulled up to me, the expression on his face more serene than I'd seen it in days, and lifted an eyebrow. "And you're out here all alone why?" he asked and I smiled sheepishly. "I went out with some friends but…I left my bike at the concert stage," I admitted and Marko rolled his eyes. "Get on. I'll drive you home and then get your bike later," he offered and I sighed in relief. "Thanks, Marko," I said, climbing onto his new, monstrous black bike. "Yeah, yeah," was his only reply.
Mom was asleep when we got home, and, after telling Marko about our fight, he was careful to be really quiet as he snuck me inside the front door. "I'll be back later, with your bike," he promised, then, after a moment's hesitation, he wrapped his arms around me in a hug. "I'm sorry," he murmured vaguely and then closed the door quietly. Amazed at his sudden change of heart, I crept silently upstairs.
As soon as I fell into bed, I was asleep.
When I woke up the next morning, I dreaded leaving my room for fear of my mom and the lecture I would be receiving but eventually I had to venture downstairs. Of course Mom was sitting down there, waiting patiently for my appearance. Her eyes bored smoking holes into my forehead, but I clenched my fists and braced myself for the storm.
"You got home late last night," she began. Her voice was very soft, but I almost thought it would have been better if she'd yelled at me. "Yeah, I was at a concert…" I trailed off, figuring I shouldn't speak too much.
"You went out with those two boys?" she inquired icily and I nodded silently. She pinched the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger. "You know that I almost called the police because of you? Plus, I had to pretend to my own sister that everything was fine and I wasn't a bad parent- which, by the way, you certainly made me feel like that!" she said, her voice finally rising into a thundering roar. I flinched but didn't back down. If she banned me from seeing Edgar and Allan…I didn't want to think about that.
"I'm sorry. But you had no right to overreact about my friends," I protested and she glared at me. "Don't tell me what I had a right to do or not do. I'm your mother, Megan, or do I need to remind you?" she challenged. Anger bubbled in my chest but I tried to restrain it. "I didn't forget," I replied as calmly as I could. "But I just think your being a little too protective. I'm fourteen, and soon I'll be fifteen. Its time to let me have a little freedom," I reasoned. I could tell a split second after the words had left my mouth that she wasn't in the mood for reasoning.
"Until you're eighteen, you are still my daughter, and you still have to do what I say." That was the final feather that broke my back. "Well maybe I don't want to be your daughter anymore, huh? For the past three years I've had to live with you trembling around Dad, letting him hit me and you! You never did anything, even when he would hit me! And now you expect me to follow your rules because you're my mother? You're hardly a mother! You couldn't protect me from Dad, and you won't protect me from people that wouldn't hurt me! I won't let you!" I screeched.
I barely saw my mom's hand flash out, and for a moment, my head flew back with a sharp slap! It took me a few seconds to realize what had happened- my hand touched my numb cheek, and as if that were a signal, it started to burn. Tears welled in my eyes- tears of shock and anger and pain.
"You hit me," I hissed, aiming a death glare at my mom. "Get out of my sight," she replied coldly and I ground my teeth together. "Fine!" I screamed and raced back up the stairs.
Quickly I packed my backpack full of things I didn't want to leave behind and then hopped out my window like I had that night. I was on my bike and speeding to the comic book store in no time. I didn't look back, and I had no intention of doing so.
R+R. No flames please.