The Grief Of Others

Chapter 8: Assailant.

After I Knocked The Fuck Out Of King I Realized I Made A Big Mistake. As I Sat In The Passenger Back Seat Of The Car Akel And Daegon Began Screaming And Hollering. "HOLY SHIT, ZACK! YOU ROCKED THE KING'S SHIT!" Akel Screamed, His Bruised Arm Hanging Out Of The Open Window As The Cool Night Breeze Flows Against His Face And Hair. Daegon Began Laughing Aswell. "Damn, Zack. Thank You. Allie Would've Been Hurt If It Wasn't For You." Daegon Said Solemnly, His Gratitude Appreciated. I Nodded A Bit. "Anytime, Daegon. We're Friends, Right?" I Said, A Small Smile Across My Face As I Rolled Down My Window. Allie Sat Beside Me, Taking A Glance At Me Before Looking Back To Daegon. "Babe, You Okay?" She Said Softly, Reaching Over From The Back To Put Her Hand Lightly On His Own Arm. Daegon Took Her Hand, Lightly Squeezing It As He Pulled It To Her And Kissed It. "I'm Fine, Baby." He Said Letting Her Hand Ago. Allie Blushed Softy, Looking Away As She Giggled. I Payed No Attention To Their Love Lesson. My Hand Hurt. I Haven't Been In A Fight In So Long..It Didn't Feel Great. It Made Me Remember My Past Mistakes. Mistakes I'm..Not Proud Of.

After Daegon And Akel Dropped Me Off They Thanked Me And Even Included Me As Their Friend Now. After I Got Dropped Off I Headed To My House, Grabbing The Doorknob And Opening It, My Eyes Widening As A Fist Slammed Straight Into My Face, Knocking Me Off The Steps As I Crash Into My Walkway, Groaning In Pain. As I Got Up, A Foot Rammed Into My Face, Knocking Me Back Down. Then Began The Beat Down. 4 Guys Began Wailing On Me, Kicking And Punching Me. One Even Used A Bat And Whacked It Across My Face, Disorienting Me. I Opened My Eyes, Wheezing In Pain As I Saw The Fucking King Himself Staring Down At Me, Psychotic Pleasure Within His Eyes Before He Kicked Me Once More. "YOU SHOULD'VE BEEN QUICKER TO GET HOME, NEW KID!" The King Exclaimed, Kicking Me Across The Face Before Grabbing The Bat From The Other Assailant. "Now, What Should We Break First?" He Asked To Himself Out Loud, Turning His Attention Over To My Brothers Car. I Let Out A Desperate "No" Before I Choked On My Own Blood. Suddenly, The King Grinned At Me Before Walking Over And Swinging His Bat Into The Front Window Of My Brother's Car. I Tried Getting Up, Only To Be Held Back By 3 Other Man, Their Grips Strong On Me. I Screamed, Throwing Myself Around In An Attempt To Break Free. King Began Breaking My Brothers Vehicle, Destroying The Windows, The Bumper, The Headlights, The Front Hood. Each Hit He Made..The More I Realized How Many Times I Failed Sam..How I Failed To Be His Brother..How I Failed To Save Him. I Begin Screaming Louder, My Mind Blacking Out And Fading Into A Hidden Rage, My Adrenaline Begin To Pump Through My Veins As I Threw My Head Back, Smashing The Back Of It Into A Guys Nose And Breaking It. The Man Who I Injured Fell Back Onto His Ass, Tightly Gripping His Nose As He Began Screaming. I Suddenly Lunged To The Side, Taking A Large And Heavy Swing Into The Other Guys Face, Breaking His Jaw With Ease. He Fell To The Ground Before I Could Kick Him Across The Face, Knocking Him Out Cold. The Other Guy That Wasn't Injured Grabbed Me From Behind. I Slammed My Elbow Into His Side Over And Over Until I Turned Around, Shoving Him Off Of Me Before Kicking Him To The Ground. I Rushed Straight To King, Tackling Him Into The Car And Sending A Brutal Left Hook To His Face Before Doing It Over And Over, Watching As His Face Becomes More Injured. I Threw Him To The Ground, Grabbing The Bat Before Realizing One Of The Guys Had Ran To Their Car, Bringing Back A Crow Bar. I Took Stance, Ready To Face Him. The Guy Rushed At Me, Swinging The Crowbar Downward To My Head. I Gripped The Bat On One End And The Other, Hoisting It Up And Blocking The Upcoming Attack From Above. I Used My Strength, Shoving The Assailant Off Before I Twirled The Bat, Swinging It Into His Stomach And Knocking Him Onto The Ground. Suddenly, I Felt A Sharp Pain In My Side. I Looked Down To See A Switchblade Stuck Into My Side. King Stared Up At Me, Grinning Widely. "Gotchu, New Kid." He Said Before I Slammed My Knee Into His Throat, Knocking Him Back Down. Eventually, The Injured Men Got Back Up After The Beating, Dragging King With Them As They All Got Within Their Car, Driving Off. I Breathed Heavily, Staring At What Used To Be My Brother's Car. I Whispered Softly. "Oh Sammy.. I'm Sorry..I'm So.. Fucking Sorry.." I Said, Eventually Collapsing To My Knees And Hearing Sam's Voice. "You Fucked Up, Little Walnut..You Failed." Samuel Said, His Bloodied Corpse Sitting In The Car. I Began Sobbing Quietly. "Sammy I Tried.. I'm So Sorry.." I Said Weakly, Dropping The Bat As I Fell To The Ground, Blacking Out.

I Woke Up To Tears Falling Onto My Cheeks And Faded Out Sobs. I Opened My Eyes, Realizing I Was Shirtless And Laying On My Couch. I Slowly Sat Up, Groaning In Pain As I Looked Around To See Charlotte Kneeling Down Infront Of Me Then Gasping Loudly, Her Hands Over Her Mouth. "You're Okay, Thank God.." She Said, Tears In Her Eyes As She Gently Hugged Me, Kissing My Cheek. I Felt..Safe Around Her. I Began Shaking My Head. "How..What?.." I Said, Flabbergasted. She Giggled Weakly, Wiping Her Tears Away With The Sleeves Of Her Sweater. "I, Uh, Found You.. Laying On Your Lawn..I Didn't See You At The Party And I Heard What Happened..I Got Worried..I Texted Akel Where You Were And He Told Me..I Was Afraid..Creed Might Come After You.." She Explained, Lightly Placing Her Hand Onto My Chest As She Looked Up At Me, Her Beautiful Blue Eyes Staring Into Mine, Causing My Heart To Rapidly Beat Over And Over. "T-Thanks, Charlotte.." I Said, Reaching Over And Instinctively Grasping Her Hand, Keeping It Close To My Chest. That Interaction Sparked Something In Charlotte's Eyes. "I Uh.. Patched You Up So..You Should Be Fine..Your Body Is.. Strong." She Said, Blushing Slightly As She Began Feeling Around My Chest Then My Stomach. She Noticed My Scars All Over Yet Never Questioned It. Charlotte Began Sighing, Looking Back Into My Eyes. "Look..I Think I Like You, Zack..I Know You Like Me Too..So, Can You Just Stop Being Shy And..Kiss Me?" Charlotte Said Desperately, Pressing Her Body Lightly Against Mine As She Leaned Forward, Her Hand Reaching To My Cheek As She Closed Her Eyes. I Begin Leaning In Forward Aswell, My Lips Inches From Her Own. Before Our Lips Could Meet, Akel Would Quickly Rush In With Daegon, Interrupting Me And Charlotte's Moment. "YOU FUCKING.. BADASS!" Akel Screamed, Rushing To My Side And Slapping My Back, Causing More Pain. I Hiss In Pain, Glaring At Akel. He Swore Softly, Apologizing. "Anyways, You Good?" Daegon Asked, Fist Bumping Me. Charlotte Looked Away, Still Blushing. I Nodded, Weakly Grinning. "Yeah..Yeah, I Am." I Said Softly, Laying Back Down. That Night Everyone Would Stay With Me And Check Up On Me..Hey, Maybe I Am Not Alone..

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