Dog Tags

Ch. 1:Bird

Elle rolled out of bed and hit the floor with a loud 'thud'. The sun was just peeking through her curtains as if to gently arouse her from her sleep. She unraveled herself from the covers and threw the now ball of blankets onto her bed as she stood up and made her way downstairs. It was the summer of '59 and she had made her mind up that she was going to make it the best summer yet. Elle could hear the clatter of pans in the kitchen, the noise belonged to none other than her mother, Eileen. Eileen was beautiful, if Elle had any say in the matter. The young girl and her mother could be twins if they were only the same height and one had slightly more grey in her roots than the other. They both had wavy, ginger hair and sea blue eyes and freckles that dotted their pale skin. Elle's brother looked nothing like his sister or his mother, he had dark brown hair and brown eyes, like he and Elle's father. Elle's father had been put in a drug and alcohol rehab center in Derry, Maine only a few months back, but it only took a matter of weeks for the word to get out that he was a drunk maniac. Elle loved her father, even though he was a drunk, she knew that behind that drunken mask of rage and anger there was the sweet caring man she once knew. Elle sat at the table with a glass of orange juice as her mother finished making the eggs and set them on her plate. "What do you plan on doing today sweetie?" Eileen asked as she sat down and picked up her fork. "I don't know yet Ma. Probably hang out with the guys again" Elle replied as she forked up a little piece of egg and put it in her mouth. " Sounds like fun. But just don't be going out to far in those woods." The woman said with a soft fondness in her eyes. " Yes Ma, I wont, we will probably stay in the treehouse anyways" Elle answered before gulping down her orange juice. "Where's Al'?" Elle asked her mom, suddenly noticing her brothers absence. "He went out with those no good friends of his. He's going to turn out just like your father if he doesn't slow down and realize what he's doing." Eileen said while grabbing both of their plates and taking them to the sink. Elle hated seeing her mother so upset about her brother, she wished she could go right up to him and all of his friends and smack some sense into them. Elle silently pushed herself out of the chair she was sitting in and made her way upstairs to get dressed. She tucked her burgundy T-shirt into her rolled up jeans and tied up her black keds. She made her way to the bathroom and tied her long hair up into a neat ponytail as she brushed her teeth. The young girl made her way downstairs towards the front door. "Bye mom!" She chirped as she slowly opened the front door, waiting for an answer. "Bye honey, have fun! Oh, and tell Teddy I said 'hello'" Eileen said while peeking around the corner and wiggling her eyebrows. Elle rolled her eyes and walked out of the door. The thirteen year old girl walked down the street towards the opposite side of town, wondering what the guys had planned for today. She looked down at her watch to see that it was already seven o'clock, she picked up her speed if she wanted to get there before Ace Merrill and his gang off skanks made their "daily rounds" throughout town, basically if they saw someone they didn't like, they would personally beat them up. Her brother was a part of that gang, and hated her being with the people she hung around. Elle never felt resentment towards her brother, but she did think a good smack across the face would do him some good. She trudged up the hill towards the treehouse, she could faintly hear Bobby Day's "Rockin' Robin" playing on the radio. She made her way up the ladder and knocked on the trap door. "Who is it?" a very familiar voice rang out above the music. " It's me" Elle replied knowing they would recognize her voice. "Bird?" The voice rang out again. "No Teddy, its Audrey Hepburn" Elle said sarcastically. Bird was a nickname she had earned for herself when she was about seven years old, she attempted to jump out of a tree and fly, she ended up breaking her arm and staying in bed for six weeks. She could hear the scraping of the makeshift card table across the wood floors as the trap door opened. She climbed into the tree house to see Gordie, Chris, and Teddy sitting beside each other, it looked like they had just started a game of thirty-one. "Morning" She chirped as she walked behind Teddy to get the seat beside the window. "Morning" all the boys said simultaneously as they slid their card table into place. Elle took a seat beside the window and picked up a "Master Detective" magazine that was sitting beside her. "Hey, how do you know a Frenchman's been in your backyard?" Chris asked while looking up from his cards. "Hey, I'm French okay?" Teddy quickly said. "Your garbage cans are empty and your dog's pregnant" Chris finishes his joke. Gordie and Elle burst out laughing with Chris as Teddy sat looking offended, "Didn't I just say I was French?" Teddy said defensively. " At least we know it's accurate" Elle said between laughs which made Goride laugh even more. Teddy gave her a sarcastic, annoyed look before turning back to his cards." I knock" Chris rang out once everyone had quieted down. "Shit" Teddy said in a defeated tone. "Twenty-nine" Chris aid while laying his cards out. "Twenty-two" Teddy said solemnly while laying out his cards. "Piss up a rope!" Gordie said while throwing his cards down in defeat. The red head girl grinned as Gordie turned to her and sat down right beside her, she handed him the magazine and got comfortable in a different position on the bench. "Gordie's out! Oh Gordie just bit the bag and stepped out the door!" Teddy's voice rang out, followed by a very unusual laugh that has been a reoccurring part of him ever since she had met him in third grade. Teddy Duchamp was the craziest guy Elle hung around with. He didn't have much of a chance in life. His dad was given fits of rage. One time he held Teddy's ear to a stove and almost burned it off. The thought of someone doing that to Teddy made her ears hot with anger. "I knock" Teddy's voice pulled her out of her thoughts. "You four-eyed pile of shit!" Chris said angrily. "A pile of shit has a thousand-eyes" Teddy retorted in a crazed tone. This made Elle and the two other boys burst out into laughter again. "What?  What's so funny? Come on, I've got thirty what've you got?" Teddy asked Chris in and amused yet confused tone. "Sixteen" Chris said with a hint of laughter still in his voice. "Go on, keep laughing, Your down to your ride pal" Teddy said while beginning to deal the cards again. Chris Chambers was the leader of the gang and the sweetest guy you'll ever meet. He came from a bad family, and everyone just knew he'd turn out bad, including Chris. Just then they all heard a knock on the door, "That's not the secret knock!" Gordie called out, not even bothering to look up. " I forget the secret knock. Let me in!" A childish familiar voice rang out from the other side of the door. The voice belonged to Vern Tessio, the youngest of the gang. He was only younger by a year but seemed to be as annoying as a five year-old. Everyone loved Vern just the same, though everything that came out of his mouth ended up being at the wrong time. Everyone looked up at each other and said "Vern " simultaneously. Teddy and Chris moved the makeshift card table away from the door as Vern burst into the treehouse.