JEFF

MORE THAN a PARTY

  A week passed and so did the trial of Liu Woods. The lawyer Jeff's family could afford was terrible and they had lost Liu's claim of self defense. The second degree charges were pushed through with the help of the "victims". Apparently Randy's family were a wealthy lot and Randy probably got mommy and daddy to buy out the jury and the judge to go in their favor with a sob story he made up. Liu got to hug his family for the last time before being escorted to a holding cell to wait for the prison bus. He was sentenced to ten years with the possibility of parole.
  It was rather lonely without a sibling to nag or annoy and everything was way too surreal. However, with Liu gone, Jeff's headaches worsened and left him to stay in his bed in the dark for most of the day. It seemed light agitated and worsen them. Jeff tried to get his parents to help but they only gave him a funky looking yellow-green pill and a glass of water. It didn't seem like the normal kind of migraine or headache pills and he didn't take them, trusting his gut. He hid them in an empty bottle under his bed.
  It was the weekend before Jeff had to return to his school schedule when he awoke to his mom turning on his light. The sensation the brightness sent needles through his eyes and Jeff hid his face in his covers. He questioned his mom on what she was doing through the fabric.
  "We have been invited to an office barbecue by one of your fathers co-workers and I intend to get there early to help set up," Margaret explained before hitting him on his foot, "That means you need to get up and get dressed young man."
  "Can't you leave me here?"
  "No, now get up," Jeff groaned as she left his room. He slid out of bed and to the floor. He stayed there till his mother back in to snap at him for not being up and around yet. After a five minute argument of why he should go, Jeff reluctantly went to his closet to change as his mom disappeared into the hall. He threw on some nice jeans and a white t-shirt and a red jacket. When he came downstairs, his mom eyed his outfit.
  She glanced at her wrist and sighed, "Too late to change, come on Jeff." His mother ushered him to his dad's truck and they sped away. The teens eyes stung from the sun, making him shield his face and his mom gave him a look. The kind of look that said she was worried, even fearful.
  "Are you feeling alright, honey?" She asked her son.
  "I'm fine," he said, rubbing his temple. There was already a stinging headache pounding in his head.
  "Are you sure? I can always-" He didn't want to hear that stupid ritual of Are-You-Okays.
  "I said I'm fine." He snapped at her. He was tired of listening to her worrying over him.
  "JEFFERY!! That is no way to speak to your mother!" Peter snapped back, "What has been your malfunction lately?"
  "Peter, we don't need to do this now," Margaret said quietly to her husband.
  "No, we do. Let's hear it boy." Jeff's agitation grew. Why couldn't they leave him alone?
  "I'm sorry, I'm just really tired. I stayed up last night to finish the schoolwork I've missed." He lied. He really had been up because of the nightterrors that seemed to plague him when he closed his eyes. They were so constant now, one would think it wore off the effect. It did not though.
  "That doesn't explain the attitude you've been giving the passed week," Peter said. Jeff kept quiet. He didn't know if it was the consistent nightmares or the frequent migraines that had an effect on his mood. Which ever, he didn't have the energy to try and explain it to his parents. Margaret directed Peter to turn and he placed the truck into park.
  "We're aren't done with this conversation. I expect an explanation after this event," his father said sincerely before exiting the car. His mother and father knocked on the door of a giant White House and it was answered by a small round lady.
  "Hello, hello! I'm Barbra! Welcome to our home," the lady cheerfully said as she opened the door more and let Jeff's family in.
  "Good afternoon, I'm Margaret, Peters wife and this is our son, Jeffery."
  There was a little back and forth that Jeff didn't catch because he noticed a kid was watching from the stairs, "Billy why don't you come and say hi." The kid looked fearful before running upstairs, "You'll have to forgive Billy. He's a bit shy."
  "It's quite alright. I'm sure Jeff and Billy will get along at the end of the day," mom said. Jeff rolled his eyes. Barbra showed his parents to the kitchen and to the backdoor. There was a hefty man standing by an open fire and Peter and Jeff joined him outside. Jeff, however, didn't stay by his father. He went to a corner not filled with a garden and sat down. It was mild for the winter month however there was still a bite from the chill. He could feel it in his fingers. About an hour passed and more people began to arrive with their kids. Apparently, no one decided to have a child until they were thirty something because the kids ranged from the ages of two to nine and no higher.
  As the small party went on in the kitchen as the kids were let loose in the backyard. Jeff watched them as they played cops and robbers. The kid named Billy from earlier had a cowboy hat on and a fake pistol strapped to him when he ran up to Jeff. He gave the teen a big smile before trying to tug him to his feet. Jeff watched as the kids efforts failed miserably. Billy gave Jeff big round eyes and muttered a very small, "Pleathe?"
  Jeff sighed and gave in to the kid. Might as well do something to make the hours pass more quickly. The other kids became ecstatic when Jeff joined in their games. For a small moment, the teenager forgot what had been going on in the passed month. It was short-lived, however, when the sound of familiar mocking laughter echoed in his ears. A feeling of pure disgust and hate came over him as he turned to see the three upperclassmen who put his brother in prison. There was a cast on one of them.
  "What the hell are you doing here Randy?" Jeff snarled. A snide grin crossed his face.
  "We we're just in the neighborhood and we heard a looney laughing," Randy snickered.
  "If your just here to call me pathetic names, you might as well just stop-" Randy cut Jeff off.
  "-Or what? You gonna attack me? Who are you gonna blame this time. The kids? Let's see how well they'll fall for that." He taunted, "I wonder how that brother of yours is doing now that he's in prison." Jeff gritted his teeth at the upperclassmen's snickering. Clenching his fists, he started toward Randy, anger ready to boil over. For a moment there was fear over the three boys faces before Randy pulled something from his jacket pocket. The barrel of a hand gun was pointed at him and Jeff froze as the kids screamed.
  "Hold it, pretty boy," Randy warned, the fear disappearing from his features, "This round we got more than knives with us."
  The adults now all came outside on the account of the children screaming and running inside. Realizing how bad the situation had gotten, Jeff put up his hands in a surrender-like fashion, "I think we're pretty even by now. I beat the shit out of you and you got my brother sent to juvenile hall."
  There was a crazed glint in the upperclassmen's eyes that Jeff recognized, "Oh, Jeffery, I don't go for even." Randy took a shot.
  A split second reaction made Jeff move away from the guns range however the bullet got him before he could get clear. Pain sprang from the half way healed wound residing on his right shoulder, the bullet launched into where the knife marked him. Jeff heard his mother shriek in terror. Randy realigned his pointers onto Jeff and pulled the trigger. There was nothing but clicks and both boys realized something.
  The gun was jammed and there was an opportune moment for the freshmen to run. Randy knew this too and discarded the gun to pull his new knife and tackle Jeff. Pain pulsed through Jeff's shoulder as Randy pinned him to the ground and raised his knife. It was then that everything slowed down and Jeff had to make a decision. He had to show everyone that they convicted the wrong person or die feigning innocents. He went with the first option.
  Jeff grabbed his assailants casted arm and twisted, breaking the cast and Randy's arm, again. Randy screamed before being kicked off. He landed with a thud and the wind was knocked out of him. Jeff got to his feet, ignoring his shoulder and stomped on Randy's still good arm until his heard a break. Keith pointed pointed his pistol to Jeff shakily. Jeff grabbed up Randy and the knife and used the upperclassmen as a shield. A smile crept onto Jeff's face as he took the knife a slid a scarlet mark on Randy's neck before shoving him onto Keith. As Randy chocked on blood and pinned Keith down, Troy rushed Jeff. Jeff was blindsided by Troy's shove, the knife was knocked from his hand and him off his feet. Troy grabbed Jeff's shirt collar and leg and threw the freshmen inside of the group of adults. Troy still had his pistol in hand as he went Jeff's way, making the adults flee.
  "Get up and fight Jeffery!" Troy taunted as he kicked the downed boys side, moving him further into the house. Jeff was able to get to his knees and trip Troy, a shot embedded into the ceiling as the big man hit his back. Jeff scrambled to hide behind the kitchen counter as Troy started shooting in his direction. A stray pellet hit a bottle of vodka on the counter and the contents drenched Jeffery, the alcohol stinging the wound on his shoulder. He heard a few clicks before he did a mad dash toward the door. His hand was outstretched for the door knob when three of Jeff's fingers went missing and pain replaced them. Grabbing his hand to him he looked about toward the back where Keith was standing by Troy, his gun still smoking and his clothes were stained with blood. He shot at Jeff a few more times missing as he darted up the stairs.
  "Keep the adults down here," Keith shoved the gun into Troy's hands and followed after the freshmen, "You ain't got anywhere to go Jeffery Woods. You're cornered!"
  There was a shearing pain streaking down Keith's spine as he had entered the upstairs hallway. He fell with a thud as his limbs spasmed from the pure force of the blow to the back of his head. He saw Jeff step from a bathroom next to the stair well with some sort of metal pole. The underclassmen had a wide grin across his face. Bullets sprayed passed Jeff's face and he fled deeper into the hallway as Troy trudged up the stairwell. Keith wanted to warn Troy but he could not speak. The shock from Jeff's blow had him almost completely incapacitated.
  Troy no longer had his gun. He had used the last of the rounds missing the slime-ball freshman. Something shiny went down in front of the upperclassman and he quickly stepped backwards as Jeffery came from a bedroom. Troy rushed the kid and he retaliated by trying to bash Troy's face in with the metal pole. Grabbing the pole from Jeff's hands and caught him by the throat. He slammed the boy into a closed closet door. Blood dribbled from Jeffery's mouth as he coughed. Troy didn't let Jeff recover from the winded strike and grabbed him by the throat once more to slam him against the closet wall.
  Neither had seen the rack above both of them that held a bottle of bleach. The force from Troy's shove sent the bottle of bleach tumbling down onto them. The cap had been forced off on impact and the contents from inside drenched and burned their skin and eyes. Jeffery did his best to clear his eyes before delivering a shot to Troy's throat. The grip on the freshman's neck was released and he took the pole from Troy's hands. Breathing heavily, Jeff swung hard on the other boys head and he fell hard onto the ground. He got in a few more blows before stumbling out into the hallway. Sirens from police sounded from a distance as Jeffery walked to Keith, who could barely look up at him. Jeffrey's face hurt from the wide grin he had placed as he lifted the pole.
  "I wouldn't.... be laughing .... so much," Keith was able to click on a lighter he had in his hand and flick it onto Jeff's bleach and alcohol drenched pants. It all happened so quickly. Jeff flared up like the human torch and let out a deafening scream as the flames engulfed him whole. Through the pain, he fell down the flight of stairs, hitting his head hard on the last step.  The last thing he saw was orange and yellow dancing around his vision and the darkened figures of his parents.