A Thousand Paper Cranes 2
By Delilah Anne Marie
2009, March 08
Summary: Benny leads a life of happiness. He's popular with his friends, talented in baseball, and has the adoration and support of the love of his life. All of that changes, however, after he rescues an unhappy and naive girl whose intentions may not be as innocent as Benny thinks.
Chapter 4: Benny's Heroism
"Hey baby," Benny greeted warmly as he enveloped Janie in a hug before planting a brief kiss on her forehead. "Not to sound like a complete pantywaist, but I missed you yesterday."
"I missed you too," Janie said as she took his hand and let him lead her to his truck. "I'm still curious as to where you went last night though."
"Don't worry," Benny said as he tried to hide his excitement. "I'll tell you all about it after the game."
He had it all planned out. After meeting with Mr. Green at the party last night, he had been introduced to a couple of scouts. Mr. Green was one of their wealthiest benefactors, and so they must have felt obligated to grant him his request.
"He's the real deal, gentlemen," Benny recalled Mr. Green saying. "Just come to one of his games. I assure that you won't be disappointed."
The pressure was on, regardless of how farfetched the situation seemed. But it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Of course he was going to try his hardest. Mr. Green made it clear that he was expecting big things.
"So," Benny said as he tried to keep himself from thinking of the baseball game that would be taking place after school. "What did I miss at dinner last night?"
"Nothing much," Janie replied while Benny started the engine. "Papa said he was thinking about buying us a dog."
"You mean a puppy."
"No. He wants a big ferocious dog, like Hercules. He figured since he was leaving for Vietnam after Christmas, we'd be needing some protecting." Despite Janie's cheerful tone, Benny couldn't help but detect a trace of fear behind her words. Her father had volunteered himself back into the military. That was three years ago. They thought the war would have ended by now, but it didn't look like it was coming to a halt anytime soon. Combat units were already being deployed, and as a former flight officer, Mr. Reynolds was going back to take his place.
Benny had asked Janie once why her father would volunteer himself back into the military. It wasn't uncommon, but Mr. Reynolds had family at home. Janie only said that, somewhere out there, her father was saving someone's mother the grief of having her son being drafted, but Benny knew that wasn't the real reason.
Suddenly realizing his hands had been gripping the steering wheel a little too hard, Benny loosened up and held Janie's hand before driving off.
"What would you name this ferocious dog then?"
"Cherry, maybe."
Benny chuckled. "I think that name is meant for tinier, cuter dogs, Janie."
"Well, it's better than what papa came up with. He wanted to name it Benny." The comment caused Benny to burst out laughing. It wasn't that Mr. Reynolds disliked him. On the contrary, the man liked him a lot.
"Are you for real?"
"Yep," Janie continued with a serious face. "He said he couldn't trust anyone else but you to take care of the family, and so if he named the dog Benny, he figured he'd have double the luck."
"Ah, I can see it now. Mama! Benny crapped on the flower bed again!"
Janie finally began laughing. "I completely change my mind. Benny is much more preferable in comparison to Cherry."
"Anything you say, love. After three years of being yours, I've grown used to letting you get away with everything."
"I'm glad you remembered," Janie said contentedly. "Happy Anniversary, baby. I love you."
Benny spent the morning parked at the meadow with Janie before dropping her off at school. He had gone through a full day without seeing her and, quite honestly, he missed her. Of course, he wouldn't admit it to anybody. What kind of man would he be if he showed everyone how clingy he was in the relationship? The thought was enough to make him laugh and cry.
As a senior, Benny had finished most of his required classes for graduation. He was taking his last year of English with the grouchy Mrs. Rose, Precalculus—which he wouldn't be able to survive without Janie's help, U.S. Government, Spanish III, and Gym. He didn't have to take any more science classes anymore, which was a shame because science was his forte, and so he used his last period to practice baseball.
Benny walked across the courtyard and enjoyed the cool breeze on that sunny afternoon. He thought about the upcoming events of the day, feeling a little overwhelmed by the excitement. Scouts would be at his baseball game and, afterwards, he would be celebrating his three year anniversary with Janie. He was feeling invincible at the moment.
Benny continued to daydream about the day when a loud bang caught his attention. He turned to the sound and found a girl running across the length of the courtyard. Despite her loose, unappealing gray dress, Benny could make out the shape of her frail figure. Her long, wavy dark brown hair blew in the wind as she picked up speed and continued running. Even from the far distance Benny was standing, he knew the girl was frantic.
Suddenly, another bang echoed across the courtyard. The cafeteria doors had slammed open as a couple of larger girls emerged and sprinted towards the frantic one. Benny instantly recognized them as Tracy Goodman and Felicia Cruz—two of the school's lady bullies, if you could call two despicable oppressors "ladies." Feeling obligated to help, Benny swung his bag over his shoulder and began running towards the girls. He had lost them temporarily as he entered the school's gymnasium, but when he heard a commotion from the girls' locker room, he stopped in his tracks. Benny contemplated on whether to get help from a teacher or not, but the cries for help made it impossible for him to turn away.
Throwing all forms of etiquette out the window, Benny dropped his bag and stormed into the room. At first, he was greeted by dimness and long rows of gray metal lockers. The steam from the shower room had yet to completely condense, and the smell of harsh cleansers filled the air. In a way, Benny felt an atmosphere of foreboding around him, as if he were being warned to turn away. But another cry for help from the far side of the room kept him from leaving.
Benny quickly ran down the row of lockers, hearing the taunting voices of Tracy and Felicia. It was when he had finally found them that his bravado suddenly faded, and he stayed rooted to his spot.
"Get up, you little bitch," Tracy ordered as she grabbed the crying girl's hair from the roots and pulled her up. From under the shadows, the girls were barely visible to Benny, who slowly began walking forward.
"I said I was sorry, you toad!" The girl cried before receiving a sharp slap to the face.
"Sorry isn't good enough," Felicia said before throwing another slap. "You're new to this school, so we'll give you some slack for today. How about you hand over that pretty bracelet on your wrist, and we'll call it even."
Silence filled the eerie rome. "I-I can't," the girl managed to say. "It was my mother's." The refusal earned her another slap.
"That's crap," Felicia spat. "You're a rich girl, aren't you? Buy yourself a new damn bracelet. Or better yet, buy yourself a new dress. You seriously are pathetic for an heiress."
"Just forget the bracelet and hold her," Tracy sighed in exasperation. "We can take it after I teach her a lesson."
Before the girl could register what was going on, Felicia had grabbed hold of her arms and kneed her to the floor. She stared up at Tracy, whose blonde hair had turned wild, and shut her eyes in preparation for what was to come.
It never came. A loud crash was heard as Benny threw himself onto Tracy's taller frame, stopping her from laying a fist on her victim. The impact caused the two of them to ram into the metal lockers and fall on the cold tiled floor.
Benny immediately rolled off of Tracy, who got up to face her attacker. But when she saw Benny standing in place, she gasped and shot her hands up to cover her mouth.
"Benny Rodriguez?" Felicia gave him a curious look-over. "What are you doing?"
"Let the girl go, Cruz."
Felicia scoffed as she continued to hold the girl. "As if! I don't give a damn if you're a neighborhood legend. I'm not bowing down to you."
Benny was hoping he could purposely use his reputation to his advantage. It would be a first, but something he wouldn't be ashamed of if it meant helping someone else. Luckily for him, Tracy finally spoke up.
"Let her go, Felicia." Benny stared at Tracy in disbelief as she began to walk away. "You should know by now that if people go against Rodriguez here, they'll have the whole school going against them."
"I can't believe what I'm hearing!" Felicia exclaimed in irritation. "Since when have you been scared of what people thought? So what if the whole school decides to get back at us for going against their stupid baseball star? We can teach them all a lesson."
"Oh don't be stupid!" Tracy snapped at Felicia. "Just let the little rat go. Are you willing to make a scene over this rich girl?"
Felicia didn't answer, and Tracy took her silence as defeat. "I thought so. Now let her go so we can get out of here." Felicia hesitated at first, but released her hold on the girl before following Tracy. It was when they had both exited the room that Benny released a sigh of relief and walked towards the fragile girl. She sat on the floor with her legs tucked under her dress and her head limply hanging down.
"Hey," Benny said gently as he kneeled to her level. "Are you alright?"
The girl nodded her head. "Thank you for saving me again," she said softly before tipping her head up so their eyes could meet.
To Benny's complete astonishment, he found himself facing Madison Green—the same girl he had rescued the night before when she had fallen off a balcony! The coincidence was almost laughable, had she not been crying.
Suddenly remembering what had taken place, Benny took off his leather jacket and draped it over Maddy, who continued to look at him with admiring eyes. He helped her up, and the two of them exited the ominous room.