Second Chance

Chapter 26 (Part 2)

The sound of rattling chains filled my ears as the bus bumped along the uneven road. I sat motionless in my seat, staring at the ground. There were about six or seven other guys on this bus, and we were all wearing bright orange ugly jumpsuits. The age range was probably between ten and seventeen, even though I failed to see how a ten year old could possibly land a spot here.

Before I left the courthouse, Jen said that Juvie wasn't as bad as actual jail. Somehow, I highly doubted that. They were probably both the same amount as bad. The only difference was that I'd be stuck with hormonal teenagers here, while there I'd be stuck with hormonal adults. I know that doesn't make sense, but with the state that my mind was in right now, the most backwards fucked up things were perfectly clear.

I had no idea how long I was in the bus for, but we finally approached a long line of barbed wire fences. Beyond that, was a giant grey cube that would be my home for the next two months. The bus turned a corner, and the entrance through the fence came into view. We came to a stop a moment later, and one by one the prisoners filed out of the bus. I was in the very back, so I went last.

I stepped out of the bus and onto the pavement, waiting my turn to be brought through. This was it. These were my last moments in the real world. Once I passed that fence, I would be trapped in here, and the only way out was to be transferred. Or in a body bag.

—-

The blaring sound of a buzzer went off above my head, and the light that was above the thick metal door turned from red to green. We didn't get much of a tour of this place, since we were led straight to the cells, which were behind this door. It finally occurred to me, as we walked into the large room, that I was going to have a cellmate. I did not know how I felt about that.

The cells were on two levels, and it seemed as though all the cells were full on ground level, so the eight of us were going onto the top level. We weren't paired off together though, as we were all led in different directions. I was shoved along by one guard to the right until we reached the third last cell. The door was already open, so I just had to walk inside.

The space was small, but I already expected that. There was a plain grey brick wall to my left, and a bunk bed to my right, which looked old and rusty. There was also a small sink and mirror directly in front of me on the back wall, which was only a few steps away from me, along with a grimy toilet in the back right corner behind the bunk bed. This was a pretty textbook jail cell, and this was going to be my room for the next two months. Honestly, it was not too different than my old room back at my house, so I think I'll survive.

Movement to my right caught my eye, and I looked up to see someone sitting on the top bunk of the bunk bed. He smirked at me, then jumped down onto the floor. The space in here was so tight that we were basically nose to nose. He backed up a little and leaned against the side of the bunk bed, crossing his arms.

He was about the same size and height as me, and he was of course wearing an orange jumpsuit like mine. He had tanned skin with dark brown hair that was almost black, with striking blue eyes that were like sapphires against his darker features. Overall, he was pretty good looking, and was probably very popular here, if this place worked like high school, that is.

"Hey, Fish. Nice to meet you, I missed having a roomie." He said in a deep voice with a sly lilt to it.

"What did you call me?" I demanded, frowning at him.

"Fish." He repeated. "That's what we call the new arrivals. I wouldn't mind knowing your real name though."

"Justin Blok." I answered. "Yours?"

"Drew Kingston, but I suggest you call me DK if you don't want me to slice your throat open." He told me pleasantly, although I couldn't tell if he was joking or not.

"Why don't you want to be called by your first name?" I asked, although I probably shouldn't have, as a shadow crossed over Drew's eyes.

"That's my dad's name, and I don't want to be named after a rich prick who doesn't even remember his own son's birthday." He explained, taking a step closer to me. "So I would appreciate it if you called me DK."

"Alright, fine." I agreed, slipping away from him.

I sat down on the bottom bunk, since DK apparently already claimed the top one as his own, and he didn't seem like someone I wanted to get into a fight with, especially in this tiny little cell.

"So, what're you in for?" DK asked casually, turned around with his arms extended to the bed frame with his palms pressed against it so he could lean all his weight towards me, while looking down at me with his wide blue eyes.

I wanted to tell him to fuck off, that it was none of his business, but there might be a reason why he didn't have a roommate prior to me, so that was probably a bad move if I didn't want to get my ass beat. So, instead, I had to either tell the truth and say that I accidentally got my best friend killed, or lie and say something much more intimidating, but it would totally betray Riley's memory. Still, I wanted to stand up to this DK guy, and if I have to bend the truth a little, then so be it.

"I killed my brother." I said simply, looking at him with a blank expression on my face.

DK raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Wow, didn't take you for the murdering type, Fish. Want to know what I did to land a spot in Juvie?"

"Not really." I sighed, since I didn't really care.

I laid down on the bed with my legs folded up in a triangle. I then closed my eyes, hoping that when I opened them I would be back in my motel room with Riley sleeping in the bed next to mine. When I did open them, there was someone sitting next to me, but it wasn't Riley, and I certainly wasn't back in my weird smelling motel room.

"I'll tell you anyway." DK said, totally missing the point where I gave exactly zero shits about him or his past. "I've been charged with sexual assault several times, so I've been stuck here for nearly two years. I'm moving out in a few months though."

"I'm rooming with a rapist. Great. Lucky me." I said sarcastically, closing my eyes again.

"You have nothing to worry about, Fish. I'm straight, so I have absolutely no intention of fucking you." He said, as if that was reassuring in the slightest.

"Yeah but you've forcibly fucked girls who didn't want it, which is sick, and that's not a compliment." I said, quickly losing interest in this conversation.

"Well, I don't exactly condone killing someone, especially if they're related to you. We're stuck together whether you like it or not though, so get used to it." DK snapped, and I felt him abruptly get up.

I heard his footsteps fade away into the distance, meaning he left the cell. I let out a breath of relief, but still kept my eyes closed. Finally, peace and quiet, even if I could only escape this nightmare for a few hours.