The Greatest Crime Never Committed

Chapter 2

      A few years have passed, Curt and Danny have grown out of the old clique that they were in and now just stick with each other. Curt has grown comfortable with living with Danny and his mom, out of the billions of people in the world all those three have are each other. There holidays may not be glamorous, people may not be coming out in droves, but they are still just as grand as any other families. During Thanksgiving they all three come together to make a big meal. Christmas they sit around a Charlie Brown Christmas tree and exchange gifts. One year Curt managed to save up enough to get Danny a nice leather jacket just like the kind some of his idols wore. From that day on Danny refused to take that thing off. On Ash Wednesday they would fast. By they I mean Danny's mom as Danny and Curt would sneak out and go get burgers at a diner called Dukes. There they would shoot pool and grab a bite to eat. Danny loved their mushroom Swiss burger but what was even better was the curly fries with a side of cheese dip. I wonder whatever happened to that place. Come Halloween Curt would always dress up as Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein and Danny would go as Glenn Danzig. They were out for more of the tricks than they were for the treats.
Time seems to have flew by, Danny Collins the little boy we all know and love now in High School. Him and Curt walk to their first day of high school leather jackets and all. Danny wasn't much of an artist but he was proud of the Misfits logo he painted on the back of his jacket. A chain hung off his black jeans and you could see his knees through the holes that were there. Danny and Curt conversed the whole way to school while getting their first and last cigarette in before school started. They arrived on campus just in time to hear the first bell and watch all the other students get herded inside as to not be late. "Like cows going to slaughter." Curt joked as he went to pass Danny the cigarette but before Danny was able to have a full grip on the butt of the cigarette a old, translucent, wrinkled hand swiped it from Curt. "There is absolutely no smoking on school grounds!" Said the teacher who was standing behind them in a disciplinary voice. She then turns to see Danny's artwork on his jacket. "Misfits? Are you claiming to be some sort of misfit? Because I will not tolerate such things. You two better watch yourselves, I got a feeling we will be seeing more of each other now get to class." The stern teacher ordered. Danny and Curt did as they were told. As they made their way to the door Curt pulled out another cigarette, lit it, inhaled and passed it over to Danny who also took a deep breath of it. He then extinguished what was left of the cigarette and placed it in one of the many pockets on his jacket for later. Curt and Danny had separate classes on total opposite sides of the school. They parted ways and agreed they'd meet up at Dukes for lunch and shoot some pool.
Lunchtime rolls around and the two boys set off for Dukes. The place is packed for lunch rush. It's clear they won't be getting food for awhile so they head to the back where the pool tables and arcade games are. As they approach the back the clacking of pool balls being broke on the table can be heard. One of the local biker gangs seem to have beat them to the table and had no intentions of being done by the time they had to be back at school. Cunning, Danny decides to converse with the bikers and eventually they warm up to him. Danny challenges one of the bikers to a game, he wagers twenty dollars that he can best the biker. Not looking to turn down a chance for some easy money the biker accepts. Curt pulls Danny aside, "what are you doing?" Curt questions cautiously. "I'm about to pay for our meals and then some." The game starts off with Danny breaking the balls. He lines up his shot, pulls the pool stick back and barely grazes the cue ball sending it spinning like a top before bouncing off the triangle of balls barely moving anything. The bikers explode with laughter. Next the biker takes his shot easily sinking the first stripe in the corner pocket, then he sinks another, and another only this time he accidentally sinks the cue ball with it. It's Danny's turn, "so I'm the solid color ones right?" He ask as he takes aim at one of the balls. Danny pulls back and with all his might nails the cue ball dead center sending it rocketing toward the solid ball and sinks it. Again the bikers laugh uncontrollably, "you just sank the eight ball! Run along now kid." The biker says in between moments of laughter. Curt looks at Danny with slight frustration for gambling away their lunch money and slight embarrassment for not knowing the rules of the game before betting. "Double or nothing." Is heard slicing through the laughter and then the place gets silent. "I said double or nothing." Danny says again. The biker in disbelief of Danny's stupidity is quick to agree, "easiest forty bucks I've made in awhile." Danny gathers the pool balls and racks them, this time the biker breaks. With ease he shoots the cue ball into the rest of the balls and one by one they ricochet off the walls of the table but none find a home in the pockets. Danny lines up for his shot, "to avoid what happened last time I'm gonna be stripes." He hits the ball sinking the nine ball, then the ten ball, next the eleven ball, and he continues without missing a beat. Eventually he sinks every single stripe ball and he does it in order. He is set for an easy shot at the eight to win and without any problems or obstacles he pockets the eight ball and takes the money and the boys leave the restaurant, only problem is the bikers followed them. With anger from just being scammed and made to look like a fool in front of his entire gang the biker sends a haymaker into the back of Danny's head sending him falling to the ground and out into the parking lot. A barrage of kicks and punches come raining down on Danny by the gang. Curt is useless against five guys so he wonders over to the line of motorcycles and one good push sends the bikes falling like dominoes stopping bikers beat down on Danny long enough for him to get up. Now the bikers are ready to take out Curt as well so with Danny up and the bikes out of commission they ran as fast as their legs and tar filled smoker lungs would allow them but not back to school they were over that place after all learning is for idiots.
Instead they opted to run back to the apartment and lick their wounds. When they got home Danny's mom was on her lunch as well and she didn't need to look to hard to see the bruises that were already forming on her son and the blood coming from his fat lip and possibly broken nose. "What happened to you?" Asked his shocked mom. "I fell." Danny replied knowing full well snitches get stitches ironically he was going to need stitches regardless. When Danny's mom went to the medicine cabinet to get the hydrogen peroxide, Danny began to flash his forty dollars to Curt in a very proud manner as if his plan worked flawlessly.