Hey, guys!
So, this popped into my head and hasn't left, so now you guys get to enjoy it!
Chapter One
Jon kept his head down and his hands placed firmly in his jacket.
The sun was setting over Smallville, all that was really left of it was a red lump that he could barely make out from over the trees.
He watched as other highschoolers found their way to main street. Most of them were just getting off of work or had just finished their homework. Some of them would be going to parties, others would go hang out with their friends.
But not Jon.
His father had made it painfully clear that he wasn't going to have a life outside of the house or the store for a long time. And yeah, maybe he deserved it. He never should have done those stupid drugs, but it was too late for that. The damage was done. There was nothing he could do.
He shivered a bit and wrapped his jacket around him a bit tighter. Another week like this and he would have to start wearing a coat.
After a long moment of walking, he turned his wrist towards his face so he could see his watch. His phone had been taken away a while ago and he knew he would probably never get it back. Luckily, no one had asked him for his number while he was at work, even if he was one of the hottest employees there.
He wasn't going to be late though, which sent a wave of relief rushing through his body. Things were still really rough at home, and he wasn't exactly keen on making them any worse. He had a feeling that there wouldn't be a second warning when it came to being home late.
"Hey, Kent!"
Jon froze for only a second, then tried to walk faster. He hadn't talked to the football team since his apology. He had seen the looks on their faces then. They had wanted to kill him. Now that football was officially canceled because of him…
There wasn't anyone to stop them this time. Jon felt like his blood was replaced with ice water.
They finally caught up with him after a moment. Jon knew why too. There was no reason for them to stop taking the drugs, so they hadn't. Jon had been caught with them. They were safe.
He kept his gaze on the ground. Maybe if he didn't do anything stupid, they would just let him go.
"Kent!"
One of the football players shoved him with his shoulder and Jon struggled to keep his balance as he stumbled to the side.
It was dark now. He couldn't make out which of his ex-teammates it was. All he knew was that in the dark country roads of Smallville, on a stupid dirt road that led to his house, there were too many of his ex-teammates for him to be able to fight off.
And Jon was smart enough to know that they hadn't come to catch up.
"Are you deaf now along with being stupid?"
Jon was grabbed by the back of his shirt, the collar of his shirt pulling back and pressing into his neck.
"Let me go," he told them, but the words sounded wimpy even to him. They weren't gonna let him go.
A punch landed against his stomach and the air was forced out of Jon's lungs.
Another punch hit his chest. He could almost hear the snapping ribs as he fell to the ground.
There were tears coming out of his eyes now, and every inch of his torso hurt like hell as the punches and kicks continued. They were going to kill him. They were using X-K, it wouldn't take much more to cause serious damage, deadly damage. They were going to kill him.
He tried calling out for help, but he couldn't get the words out. He could hardly even get the air in.
Maybe if he tried hard enough, he could get his Dad's attention. All he had to do was get some form of words out. If he could manage to do that, then maybe his dad would hear him. And if his dad didn't, then maybe Jordan would.
"Hel-" Jon was cut off mid-word by a kick to the mouth. He felt his lip burst from the force, and his teeth slammed shut against his tongue from the impact. He could taste the metallic taste of blood on his damaged tongue.
"Wait."
Everyone stopped at the voice and Jon seized the opportunity to try to get away from the team.
He was pushed back down before he was even fully on his feet. The push sent another shockwave of pain through his body.
A rough set of hands grabbed Jon's jaw and yanked his head forwards. The streets were unlit, but even in the dark, Jon knew who it was.
Timmy.
"Jonny here needs to be taught a lesson," Timmy said as he dug his fingers deeper into Jon's jaw. At this point, Jon was pretty sure that Timmy's pseudo-Kryptonian nails had dug into his skin. "Let's do it Smallville Crows style."
The other teammates cheered in agreement, and two rough hands grabbed Jon's arms and started to drag him.
Jon wanted to cry. He had no idea what they were going to do with him. Were they going to drag him somewhere and stab him? What if they threw him in the lake? Maybe they would set him on fire.
The anxiety didn't settle down the whole time they dragged him down dirt roads. The pain began to settle in though. Everything hurt. They must have punched and kicked him just about everywhere. He could hardly see straight at this point. Not that there was anything to see. It was so dark out…
He tried to call out for help again, but he could hardly even think of the right words. The world spun beneath him and every movement made him want to throw up.
They dragged him through more fields and roads than Jon could count. At this point, he had no idea where he was.
Finally, they stopped and Jon took a second to look around even though the movement hurt.
They were in the middle of a field. It had been harvested recently. The only thing in the field was a wooden cross.
Finally, Jon could get some words out. "What are we doing here?" He asked.
Timmy knelt down so that his face was at the same level as Jon's. "We're gonna teach you a lesson," he said. After a second, he turned to his old teammates. "Take off his clothes."
Jon yelped as his jacket, shirt, and jeans were roughly ripped off of his body. They took off his shoes and socks as well.
A cold rush of wind hit Jon's bare body and he shivered. It was freezing now.
"Anybody have any paint?" Timmy asked. When everyone stayed silent, he groaned in annoyance.
"I have a pocket knife," one of the boys offered. It only took a second for Jon to realize who it was. It was Sean, Sarah's ex-boyfriend. The jerk who had gotten into a fight with Jordan when they had first moved to Smallville.
"That'll work," Timmy said, then grabbed it from Sean. "Hold him up."
Jon's heart started to race and his already churning stomach did a flip. They were gonna slice him open.
He found his words again. He tried to pull away from the people holding him. "Timmy, please," he begged. Why wasn't his Dad here? Wasn't he Superman? "Please. Don't hurt me."
The rough hands that had been holding Jon in place suddenly straightened and raised his body. The movement was anything but gentle and it sent another wave of dizziness and nausea through Jon.
Timmy stepped up to Jon. "Don't worry," he said in one of the most evil sounding voices Jon had ever heard. "This will only hurt for a second."
Timmy pressed the knife to Jon's chest. "You don't belong here in Smallville, Freak," he said, then pushed the blade into Jon's skin.
He gasped as Timmy made the first cut. It didn't hurt at first, Jon could hardly even feel it, but then he did.
It burned, the sudden blinding pain in his chest as the warm blood began to drip down his chest. He wanted to scream, but he couldn't. The pain was so bad that Jon could barely even find the strength to breathe.
He tried to pull away from the boys holding him in place, he tried to pull away from the knife.
But it was no use. He was held firmly in place as Timmy hacked and sliced away at his chest.
The pain was too much. He couldn't stop the weak moans and whines that left his body. He just wanted it to stop. He just wanted his Dad to save him.
"There," Timmy said as he took a step away from Jon. His hands were covered in blood. Jon's blood.
Timmy looked at Jon for a long moment, then back to the boys holding him in place.
"String him up."
Jon yelped as he was raised off of the ground and placed against the wooden cross. He bit his busted lip to hold back a scream when they pulled his arms behind him. They took a string of rope and tied him to the wood against his back.
He couldn't keep the tears from springing into his eyes again. He tried to keep them in. They were already hurting him, he had the feeling that their taunting and torture would get worse if they realized he was a crybaby too. He had seen what bullies had done to his brother when they realized he was crying.
Besides, maybe he deserved this. He had done drugs, misrepresented his family, gotten football canceled. He knew that he had deserved to be grounded, to be expelled, to get lectured about morals and about the dumb mistakes he had been making. Maybe he also deserved to be strung up and cut open.
"C'mon," Timmy said after a moment. "Have a good night, Jonny."
Jon's heart skipped a beat. They were going to leave him here. They were going to leave him out here in the cold and he wouldn't be able to get down.
"Stop!" Jon cried out, though his voice was quiet and shaky. "You can't leave me!"
"We'll be back for you in the morning, Kent." Sean said. "Sweet dreams."
Jon watched as his attackers got farther and farther away until there was nothing left of them. Then he started to sob weakly.
He was going to die out here.
So, if you've made it to the end, congrats! But... I feel like I should probably explain the scarecrow.
The scarecrow thing is from Smallville. Every Homecoming, the football team would grab a freshman and string him up as the scarecrow. They would strip them down to their underclothing, paint an S on their chest, and leave them there until morning. How these kids got away with this is beyond me, but whatever... It definitely isn't a thing in Superman and Lois, but the idea wouldn't leave my head, lol.
It's long past homecoming in this story though. This is just a group of bullies being literally the worst for the sake of fanfiction.
Thanks for reading!