Chapter 11: Fighting the battle inside
I can't believe this guy. Bruised me like, a million times, and then gave me a sentimental lecture. But he must've had some sort of genetic connection between him and Rocky about those kinds of lectures, because the message got to me just like all those other times.
This kid loved him alot, and would do almost anything to have him back. I remembered Rocky's memories with Freckle. It was the same both ways. They were inseparable. They truly were friends. I couldn't deny it. It surprised me when Freckle said he could see right through me and tell I wasn't Rocky. Me, Maniac, Rocky's perfect split image denied by his own character.
But the thing that struck me the most was that I was part of Rocky, and Freckle hated me. Rocky was his friend…and even though I was part of him…Freckle wasn't my friend. It made me so confused…how could that be true?! If I was part of Rocky then, it would make perfect sense that Freckle would want to be Rocky's friend, yet here he was, stating out loud that he didn't care about that little part of me in him. But I WAS him! Couldn't he tell?! Plus why would Freckle want to be friends with Rocky in his state right now? That state was BORING. But he said I had too much evil in me…I guess that was the answer.
It didn't fully answer my questions, but it was enough for me to back off. "Sounds like a nice guy." I muttered, feeling a little lonely after all that was revealed to me. I looked up, determined to keep my happy-chaos-loving maniac feelings alive.
"But he isn't coming back."
Freckle looked like he was able to kill me right then and there. "WHAT?!" He practically yelled in my face. I grimaced. That guy really needs to take a chill pill. But first, he needs a tic tac for SURE.
"You'll never find him, and even if you do rescue him somehow, he'll never be back completely." I told him.
Freckle went pale and red in the face at the same time. Seriously. Gez man, all I did was tell you the truth!
"What did you do to him?!" He said, shaking me.
"I did nothing to him. He just can't accept himself." I said, trying to say the words as calmly as I could, just considering he was shaking me up like some kind of insane man that just realized he couldn't have alcohol anymore.
Freckle looked beyond confused, trying to process what those words meant. I grinned. He was off-guard.
I swept the kid off his feet-literally. I grabbed my gun, Freckle was instinctively reaching for his. We were staring each other down, questioning ourselves who was going to fire first, when an explosion-not caused by me by the way(yeah, I know, shocker!)-came out of nowhere!
My head turned to the source and saw a wall less part of the warehouse. I took off to see closer, and saw…Wick. On his feet. ALIVE. I remembered Nico going after that guy. As I came closer, I saw a body, motionless on the ground.
"NICO!" I yelled.
I jumped on some broken wall and leapt up. I froze next to him, eyes flickering back and forth worriedly. But what was I to do? I didn't take no nursing classes! I thought about what Mordecai would do: take Nico and retreat. But I didn't want to.
I just couldn't let it be like last time! Plus, Rocky was the one who cared for me. If the Marigolds didn't, why should I care for them?! I couldn't seem to find the right answer. For the first time in my life, I was unsure of what I should do.
I knew I couldn't stop being the bad guy-that was my life. But everyone has feelings! I didn't really know if I really would feel insecure like this, up until now. And just like Rocky, I was split in two.***
Wick walked away from Nico, breathing heavily. He'd done it. It was over.
Wick had found a spare dynamite stick in one of his pockets, and-really desperate-threw it blindly at Nico, praying it would work. After the boom, he retrieved his gun, and got the heck out of there before he ran into the other Marigolds.
He suspected Nico was only unconscious and wounded a little-not killed. But even like that Wick felt sorry. He didn't really think about it-all he really knew was that if he didn't act, then he would've been the one on the floor. He said into his walkie-talkie, "Nico is down. I Repeat, Nico is down."
He hoped Lackadaisy was winning. As he ran down the stairs of the warehouse, he found himself stopping to look outside at the battle. He saw Serfine looking worried, and Mordecai uneasy, but the two wouldn't give up their forever raging battle. "Suit yourself." Wick said, walking confidently out of the building. "Keep it up, cause we could do this all night."