Angels Like You

Truth Was Always Heavy

"What the fuck?" I hissed as I slammed Hunter against the locker. It was taking everything I had to not slam my fist into his face.

He stared at me with wide eyes. "I was going to ask you the same thing!"

"You know I'm not supposed to be with my mom," I said in a low voice. "Why the fuck would you send her after me?"

His eyes narrowed in an instant. "I told her you weren't home and maybe she should look for you at the park with the other low lives. I figured you were getting high with Toby and it would probably be saving your life."

He grunted as my fist connected with his head. I stepped back as he crumpled to the floor. The crowd around us arched and I vaguely heard a teacher coming to tell us to break it up. Hunter looked up at me with anger burning, but it would never compare to the rage in my stomach.

"You might as well go back with her," Hunter spat out as he smeared the blood gushing from his nose. "You're only going to end up as a noncontributing member of society with a drug habit that he just keeps denying."

I didn't remember climbing on top of him, but I stared into his wide eyes as my hands closed around his neck. I was going to kill the fucker. If he thought he was going to run his mouth about something he knew nothing about, I was going to shut him up.

Those were the only thoughts in my head as I squeezed off his airway. He scratched at my hands, but he hadn't learned on the streets how to keep someone from getting the upper hand. He hadn't learned what real evil looked like, but he was going to.

I didn't hear the screams around me or notice the crowd as Hunter choked underneath me. I didn't feel remorse. I didn't really feel anything except the need to put an end to the shit he kept throwing at me.

Arms wrapped around my waist and jerked me off Hunter. I lurched forward, almost breaking free before they regained their hold and firmly jerked me away from him as a teacher and nurse knelt on the floor next to Hunter.

"Get the fuck off me!" I shouted, fighting against the person holding me but unable to break free.

"Stop it!" Mr. Alberts hissed in my ear. "You've done enough damage."

He held onto my arm as he pulled me down the hallway to the office. There was too much anger boiling in me for me to say anything. The only thought running through my mind was that Hunter wasn't going to get away with everything he'd fucked up.

"What has gotten into you?" Mr. Alberts demanded as we neared the office.

My chest was heaving. The only reason I wasn't bolting was because it was him. I would have been out the front doors or back on top of Hunter if any other teacher had pulled me off and dragged me to the office.

"This is who I really am," I managed to spit out. "I'm a real fucking piece of work."

Mr. Alberts grasped my shoulder tightly as he stepped in front of me and pointed his finger at me. "This," he said firmly as he poked me in the chest, "is not who you are. This is the kid who was scared and was fighting for himself because no one else would. You are not this person. You've proven that the past four months."

I snorted. "Right. Because me trying to please everyone and keeping face is who I really am."

He shook his head. His expression softened slightly. "No. The restraint you have shown before is who you are. Throwing hands because you don't know how to use your words and resources is not you. You aren't that scared kid anymore who has to fight everyone he meets."