Rock and Roll

Chapter Four: Liam

The match went well enough, but not exactly as expected. The newbie was better than he had thought, or hoped rather. He had been caught off guard in the beginning, resulting in a nasty bruise on his jaw. This was what had broken his resolve to go easy on the kid.

He returned home late that night, sore, tire, and wet from the rain. His hair was matted across his face, and pushing it back only helped so much.

He slumped down on the couch, not bothering to turn on any lights. He felt like shit. He was guilty, as always, after the fight. He didn't enjoy hurting people.

He wish that he could just find his way out, but it always seemed to be one more fight. One more night, being punched in the face.

He fell asleep like that, his inner war raging like never before.

***********

He wasted the day away inside his apartment. He went out once to get ice tea, but after spilling all of it down the front of a pretty girl, he thought maybe he should stay inside. For everyone's safety of course.

He watched re-runs of full house and sketched his feelings. It was something he did often, the sketching that is. It was a kind of therapy, something to take him away from the self loathing of only for a little while.

He wasn't sure what he was drawing.

His phone buzzed before he was done. It has stayed oddly silent for so long, he was starting to wonder if he left it somewhere. He might not mind that actually, no more people calling to collect debts or asking for bet loans.

Lime: hey a couple friends of mine are throwing a party you wanna come?

Lime: i'll but you an iced tea on the way there

Harry typed his response quickly. Free iced tea was too good to pass up, even if it meant going to a party filled with drunk people and strobe lights.

Haery: ye i'll meet you on the corner of Holmes and 25th.

He walked toward the door picking up a random shirt on his way; he never paid much attention to what he was wearing.

Holmes wasn't that far of a walk, but in the chilling evening air, it wasn't all too pleasant either. He kept his hair tied up anyway.

**********

Liam took much longer than expected, so Harry waited. And waited. And waited. When he finally arrived he was already half drunk and slurring the last word of every sentence.

"Go drunkenly order me an iced tea and then we can leave." Harry said.

Liam shook his head, "You have to come with me, I'm a little too drunk to do it alone." He insisted. He grabbed Harry's arm and dragged him inside, giving him no choice.

The bell dinged loudly, and as he walked inside he was met with a pair of brown eyes. They were covered slightly by black rimmed glasses. It was the same girl he had spilled tea on earlier.

She had very long dark hair and ebony skin. Everything about her, from the way she dressed, to the glare she was giving him, was dark. He hadn't noticed earlier.

"Liam, go and order the drinks, I'll just be over here." He said. He was going to properly apologize if it was the last thing he did.

***********

It did not go well. On a scale of how well things could go, this went about as well as world war one. He called her pretty and she yelled at him and left, making him the one who had to throw away her empty cup.