You Live And Learn

21 | fears and fights

Mitchell looks surprised for a second but quickly changes his facial expression. It went back to his normal stupid, joking demeanor.

"Oh? What's this? The loser kid finally got some balls?" he sneers at me.

"You can say whenever to me, but don't you dare touch my girl." I'm used to the harsh words, so nothing Mitchell says can affect me. He's been doing it for the past few years, after all.

"Is that so, bitch?" Mitchell balls his fist, and I do the same. I learned you don't strike first, you wait for your opponent.

"Sophia! Get Taylor right now!" Camille screams. Sophia looks shaken up, but she still gets up and enters the house.

"You know, Alonzo. I always hated you. I think you realized that after our minor incident a few years back. Now though," he looks past me, "I hate you even more."

I crack a grin. "Oh really? It's because of Camille, isn't it? You just couldn't let me get the pretty girl after all. While you swap out different bodies every night, I always have a faithful girl waiting for me. I know that drives you crazy."

My words get to him. He looks like he's about to burst a blood vessel. "You okay there, bud? You're not looking too hot." I look back at Camille and signal to her to keep her distance. I can see the protest in her eyes, but she knows I'm serious. Although unwillingly, she gets out of the way. Now I don't have to worry about her getting hurt.

I can feel the fury radiating off Mitchell. I'm expecting a punch at any second. Then, he suddenly starts laughing. He has the Joker laugh going right now, and I don't like it.

"Faithful? That's rich," he says between laughing and glances at Camille. My hearts drop.

"What do you mean?" I ask him. He gives me a sadistic grin.

"You realize that Camille and I have history, right?"

"Yeah, I know about it. It wasn't anything crazy from what I've heard."

He laughs even harder and looks at Camille. "I guess you haven't told him then, love?" I turn my head to see Camille, eyes filled with terror. My anxiety kicks in at the sight.

"What didn't you tell me, Camille?

"I-1," she stammers.

Mitchell stares at her. "Either tell him, or I will. And you know, I'll enjoy it very much."

"Mitchell, please. Don't do this."

"Why not? Are you afraid?" Tears are on the verge of leaving Camille's eyes. He directs his attention back to me. "You're in luck, boy. I'll tell you what happened."

I don't respond. He continues, "Well, when we were together, she was all over me. She couldn't get enough of me. Wherever I was, she was there with me," he smiles at the distant memory, "it was fun not gonna lie." I think I'm going to be sick.

"Yo, her tongue was so nice, bro. That mouth used to go crazy."

"Shut the hell up," I snarl. Feeling like you're about to throw up and being angry at the same time is a weird experience. He puts his hands up in defense.

"Relax bro, I haven't even gotten to the best part yet. It was around August, school was about to start again. At that point, Camille started to bore me. She was going on and on about stuff I didn't care about. So I ended things with her. She begged me to take her back. Like she blew up my phone for about three days. Calls, texts, you name it. She reminded me of a lost puppy trying to find its way home. I felt bad for her. I got a text from her saying she would do anything. That's when an idea popped into my head."

"Mitchell," Camille is crying at this point. Seeing her in that state gives me a feeling of despair and fear at the same time. "Stop, you don't have to do this."

"You're right Camille. I don't. The thing is though, I want to." He gives her a once-over before returning his hateful gaze to me. My heart is practically out of my chest now.

"I gave her a deal," he smirks. "If she can get a certain young man to fall in love with her, you know, play with his heartstrings a little, I'll consider taking her back. And guess what? She did exactly that." Mitchell pauses, then laughs almost hysterically. "All I did was give her the name, and that was that. You really think that it was a coincidence she walked to school that day? That's hilarious."

My heart shatters.

I turn to Camille, and she looks mortified. Sophia is a few steps behind her with the same expression. It's all coming back to me now. The first day I met Camille, and she went inside with her friends, Sophia was with them. They were laughing.

They were laughing.

At me.

Everything we went through was a lie. She did all of this for his validation. I told her my darkest secrets and fears. For what? Just so she can get back with this asshole.

What did I do to deserve this?

"What's wrong, Alonzo? The big bad wolf is now quiet."

I don't have the resolve to even respond to him. That story crushed my spirit with little difficulty. I think I forgot how to breathe for a second.

"Now that you've gotten the full story," Mitchell says. "I'll teach you what happens when you mess with me." He snaps his fingers and walks away. Three seconds later, a fist connects with my jaw with extreme force. The punch was so strong it knocked me off my feet. A second later, I get a kick to my back. I process the pain, but I can't feel it. The story still has my full attention. I know that two guys are jumping me though, blow for blow. This seems awfully familiar.

"Taylor! Where are you?" Camille yells. Immediately, Taylor and Leo emerge from the house. Taylor gives one of them a right hook and Leo uppercuts the next one. After a brief exchange, the two jumpers back off and leaves us alone. The damage has already been done, though. My body aches everywhere. Tay and Leo help me to my feet and braces me, putting my arms around their shoulders.

"You okay there, bud?" Tay asks me.

"Kinda, I feel dizzy," I reply.

"Let's get you home, shall we? We can get back at those guys later," Leo suggests.

"Sure, take me home, please."

Camille runs to us and puts her hands on my face gently. Still, I wince from the pain.

"Oh my, babe, I'm so sorry. This wasn't supposed to happen. I love you, you know that," she says while her voice is breaking and tears falling. Right now, I can't feel any sympathy for her. I feel nothing, only emptiness.

"You lied to me."

She breaks down even more but says nothing else. Taylor glares at her and we keep on moving. We make it past the stares and cameras flashing in Tay's car and leave.

I entered that party with high confidence, popularity, a loving relationship, and positive vibes.

In an hour, I lost everything I came with and more.

A/N: That was a tough chapter to write. I feel bad for my man Alonzo. What do you think is going to happen?  If you don't mind, please vote and leave a comment. See you in the next one.

~Antor