Chapter Nineteen - Too Far Gone

Turning sideways in the mirror, I looked myself over. I was wearing the shortest black skirt I could find; mind you though, living with my grandmother practically all my life didn't allow for much leeway, a red tube top and I had put on an old leather jacket that I had dug out from the mountain of clothes that I continuously shoved inside of the closet. I swear, some days I was sure it was going to just get up ad scurry off. My hair had been pulled into a tight bun and I had even applied a small amount of mascara. It was definitely not me, so to even own any of it, was beyond me. I didn't want to go over board though, Harley wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but I knew he would have picked up that something was off and that I wasn't there just to play tonsil hockey if I had dressed like a complete hussy.

It was 9:37pm. I had less than a half an hour to sneak out and get my butt to where I needed to be. I was unsure of how I was going to pull it off though. My aunt was still wide awake and downstairs roaming about. I wasn't able to pull of sneaking out when she was half out of it. So it was definitely an interesting dilemma. I grabbed a random pair of flats, that were ironically the same color as my shirt and slipped them on. After looking myself over once more, my head whipped towards the stairs as my aunts footsteps could be heard coming up them. Hurriedly, I threw off my jacket, switched off the light and jumped under my covers as quietly as I could, pulling the blankets up over my shoulders and towards my chin. I breathed deeply as I heard the creak of my door open and watched her shadow spill across the wall. It reminded me of Peter Pan and I couldn't help but smirk. Oh, how I treasured Disney and it's brilliant work. She hesitated for a moment before shutting it. Once she did, I could hear her walk down the hall and shut her bedroom door. It was then, or it was never. I knew I wouldn't get away with it, but the time crunch I was on seemed even more important at that moment. I quietly shoved my covers off, grabbed my jacket from where I had thrown it and then pulled open my widow as silently as it would allow me. Once it was open enough to fit through, I did just that and hurried my way out, the down spout not being an easy thing to scale when wearing a skirt. But by some miracle or another, I did it and I did it mostly unharmed. My landing wasn't the greatest, resulting in a small ankle injury but I didn't even care. I glanced back up towards my room one last time before darting down the street and towards my destination. I seemed to had gotten there a lot faster than I did the first time with Jason. Maybe because I was actually paying attention to the time and I knew roughly where to go had a big part in it; who knows.

I got to the fence of death and hesitated. It really did look like a trap right out of a horror movie that was just waiting to cook my skin off. With a sigh, I ascended it and prayed that I got over without ripping my skirt. The last thing I needed was for that to join my previous pair of pants that sat at the bottom of my garbage bin. I got to the top and looked around when the sound of twigs snapping echoed. I thought I was either going to have a heart attack or pee myself. It could have been a bear, it could have been a coyote, or worse. It could have been Harley, and I hadn't even met up with Shawn and Sally yet. The second a figure stepped out of the shadows and into view, I knew I was going to be falling down the side of the fence I went up and running to the safety of which I called home.

It was silent again, but I wasn't sure if it was a smart move to hop down on the other side right then. I mean, after all, that's how most people got butchered in horror movies and real life, I was sure. Once my heart decided to beat back into place, I finally did make my way over, triumphant to not lose a shred of fabric. I landed better than I did when leaving my aunts, so at least that was a start. I cautiously looked around and then was on my way once more. Not stopping until I was where I needed to be.

I reached the clearing and searched the best I could in the little light I was provided. And that's when I saw them, barely lit up, and barely visible but still there. "Shawn!" I harshly whispered.

He whirled around and Sally was quick to follow. Although it wasn't bright, I could see the faint silhouette of his infamous smirk. "We were starting to get worried that you weren't gonna show."

"And miss the look on Kiener's face when he knows he messed with the wrong people? Hah! Never." I said dramatically. I knew Shawn well enough to know he had rolled his eyes at my statement. I giggled and then hugged him tightly when he got closer. Sally shyly stood off to the side and I couldn't help but hug her too once my grip on Shawn was released. She laughed nervously but hugged me back. "Are you really sure you want to do this, Sally? We can turn back right now if you want us too." I reassured her.

Sally shook her head and her endless lock of curls bounced around. "Heck no. I've wished for this day long enough. It's about time he got a taste of his own brutality."

I nodded and smiled with a giddy bounce. The excitement that burned through me was almost unbearable. I was getting more and more pumped as the time ticked by. I looked around. "You know, if it wasn't for the fact that this place is in the middle of nowhere and could easily be a place to hide a dead body, I'm sure it could be peaceful."

"It's a lot quieter than the trailer park," Shawn commented.

I shot him a weak smile. "Yeah, but it doesn't have someone like you living in it, so I guess it's pretty lame."

Shawn seemed to be taken aback slightly by my comment but not in an offended kind of way. More surprised than anything. He smiled. "Thanks, Sarah."

Another twig snapping sent us all into a small panic. "What time is it?" I whispered.

Sally looked down and clicked a button on her watch, which made r glow blue. "10:17pm."

"Okay, go hide but make sure you're close enough to make the switch and get the picture. You remembered the camera, right Shawn?"

He nodded. "Of course."

It was very apparent that someone was approaching and fast. "Okay, good. Go, go, go." I urged.

And they did. They just disappeared out of sight when a familiar voice filled my ears. "Makinley."

I grimaced but quickly put my poker face on. I took a deep breath and turned around to see Harley standing not too far away, a smoke at hand and in a slouched kind of stance. "Kiener."

"I'm surprised you actually showed."

"I told you before. I realized what I really wanted. If that surprises you, then you have a lot to be surprised at in life." I had to leave in some of my true sass. That was after all the reason Harley tried his crooked ways before.

He let out a hearty chuckle. "Indeed I do, Makinley. Indeed I do."

"Did you come alone?"

"Did you want me to bring someone?"

"Nope." I popped the P. "I'm content with just you."

Harley looked around. "So, we just gonna stand around or what?"

I shrugged. "Up to you. I prefer to be... higher up." I then turned on my heel and attempted to walk as sexily as I could. Hah, that was a joke and a half. I was embarrassing myself already and the night had only just begun. I made my way to the solid wall and tried to scale it. It was useless. I wasn't sure how I did it before. But I was definitely having no luck. Maybe it was a sign that things would fall apart if I didn't just turn around right then and there.

The sudden pressure of Harley's hand under my foot caught me off guard but I went along with it. The boost he gave me, gave me just enough leeway to get the rest of the way up. It worried me in the sense that , I wasn't sure how Sally was going to get up without him noticing considering she was a lot shorter. I had just sat comfortably when Harley scaled his way up and joined me.

"Thank you." I almost whispered out.

"No problem." He pulled a pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket and lit another one. I assumed he just threw his previous one away before he made his way up.

"You know, they say those things kill." I said, watching him putting it to his mouth and lighting it effortlessly.

Harley inhaled deeply and then shrugged, holding the smoke in. "I got nothing to live for anyways. Not a big deal."

A twinge of guilt suddenly stabbed at me. But perhaps that was what he was aiming for. I looked away and didn't respond to his comment. I honestly didn't know how to. It became silent between us and stayed that way until he was more than half way done.

"Tell me something, Makinley."

I slowly turned my attention back to him, my eyes disobeying me and darting off every so often to see if Shawn and Sally were still in view. "Depends on what it is, Kiener." I smirked. He took another puff of his cigarette and then flicked it down towards the water on the other side.

"Why now? Why all of the sudden?"

I was really running out of excuses. "I told you." I inched closer to him, the pit in my stomach twisting in fear and even more guilt. "I want to know what it's like to have someone... real. Someone who knows what their doing." I told him. If barfing wouldn't have given away my cover, I was sure I would have.

"So you've said before. But why me outta all the guys at school? Specially after everything."

"Just close your eyes and let me show you the time of your life." I said, moving even closer to him.

Harley gave me a strange look but soon enough, did as I told him. He shut his eyes and waited for whatever I was going to do next. I hurriedly looked over at Shawn and Sally and she quickly made her way up. A lot more skillfully than I had myself as a lot quieter than I had expected. I quietly scooted over and gave Shawn the thumbs up as soon as Sally's lips connected into his.

A sudden flash filled the air which caused Harley to jump and lose his balance. His arms swung wildly and he toppled over backwards, disappearing into the water the instant his body slammed into it. I gasped loudly.

"Oh my god! Harley!" I screamed, shifting myself to my knees and half over the wall. "Harley!" I screamed louder. He didn't come back up and I began to panic even more. I wanted his dignity hurt, not him. All of this was my fault. I was so STUPID. "Shawn, do something! Oh my god," Tears stung my eyes and the sound of the camera hitting the gravel and Shawn scurrying to us was heard.

Shawn looked around the best he could, his eyes wide with the same amount of fear that pumped through me. Sally sat motionless, also wide eyed. "I can't see him, Sarah. I can't see him!" He yelled, viciously running his hands through his hair.

"Sally, go run to that house down the road. Get them to call an ambulance." I said, shaking like a leaf. She continued to sit still. "GO!" I nearly shoved her off.

Sally seemed to snap out of it and before I knew it, she was out of sight and running in the right direction of help. The tears flowed evidently down my cheeks and my heart felt like it was going to burst. "What are we going to do?!"

Shawn stayed focused and sure enough, Harley surfaced, floating face down, his leather jacket glimmering from the moonlight. Shawn ripped his off and got ready to jump. "Meet me at the end of the barge. Don't stop no matter what. I'll need your help pulling him out."

I started hyperventilating. What if he was dead? He was an egotistical douche bag with no morals but the ones he chose to possess but he didn't deserve this. Nobody did. Shawn grabbed me by the face. "Sarah, I need you to focus. Harley needs us. Can you do it?" His voice sounded stern. My vision became blurred due to the never ending flow of tears but I nodded quickly. "Okay, go! He doesn't have much time."

And at that, Shawn dived into the water and surfaced a moment later, rushing to Harley and flipping him over so that no more water could rush into his airway. Though it was dark, his forehead had a large gouge on it that very much looked like it came from connecting into a rock. Once I was sure Shawn had a good grip on him, I jumped down and ran as fast as my size 7's would take me. I did just as he said. I didn't stop until he said. I couldn't. If Harley died because of this, I would have never been able to live it down. All I could think of, was what would his family think? The fact that I possibly caused the death of somebody's son, of somebody's brother, over something so immature and stupid, drove me to lose my breath. I continuously wished it was me instead of him.

Harley Kiener's life was on the line because of me. And there was nothing I could do to change that. Staying in Pittsburgh would have prevented all of it. It was all my fault.