You Know My Name

Chapter 10

I haven't talked to Austin in a week. I'm starting to get depressed like I did when my brother died. It's now been almost six years since he died. That's why I didn't want to get close to Austin, and I made the stupid mistake of doing so. I know I was only 'friends' with him for a couple days but I was just too desperate for a friend. Everyone I get close to vanishes out of thin air, and I'm left alone. I want to hang out with Austin again, but at the same time I don't. I don't want a charity friend, I want a real one.

I walk home from school and turn the corner onto my street. It's starting to get dark, because I left school so late to avoid Austin. I sense someone behind me. I look at the ground and see a shadow out of the corner of my eye. I quicken my pace, the figure does the same. I look up and two figures appear in the distance. I try to turn and run for the alley between the houses but something grabs me. A hand covers my mouth and pulls me into the alley. I began to kick and hit, swatting at nothing but air. The figure hits my head on the brick of the house. I began to smell blood. Two more figures appear.

"Hey Tay, you little snitch." One whispers in my ear. A fist contacts with my stomach, and I'm gasping for air. "Kyle said he would find you, and he did." My eye sight begins to go black from another impact. Something hits my stomach making my back smash into the wall. I fall to the ground. I try to bite the hand covering my mouth, but it's too big. In return the hand releases my mouth. As I gasp for air, I'm punched right in my jaw.

"Snitches get stitches." The figure spits in my face. A rock smashes down onto my leg I lie on the ground and hear the footsteps get quieter. When my eyesight returns I look around. I have blood all on my arms and in my hair. I know I can't go home, because they'll find me, however I need my things. I run inside and grab a bag. I stuff random clothes into the bag, my rainy day money, and the photo of my brother and run out the door and down the street. I stop at the corner. I don't know where to stay. Victoria is on vacation, and I don't have any other friends. I sit down up against the stop sign and realize that my head is still bleeding, and my leg is throbbing. I need to get somewhere. I decide to go to the first place that comes to mind.

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I feel like I've been walking for hours, but soon I find the house. It looks empty, all the lights are off. I walk up to the porch and ring the doorbell. No answer. I can't sit on the porch, what if someone sees me. I lean against the door to think. As I shift my position the door opens. I walk in. I don't know what to do, technically I'm breaking a law by going in, but I don't have any other choice. I walk into the living room and stand, not wanting to get blood on the furniture. I wait for about 30 minutes when I hear voices. At first it's just talking,but as it gets closer, it's a group laughing. The front door opens. I hear footsteps, heading into the living room. I began to feel nervous, my face turning red, and my head getting cold.

"Hahaha! Dude that part whe-." Austin freezes. He holds up his hand and his friends stop behind him, all their attention focused on me.

"Ummm." One of his friends says.

"Guys go into the kitchen and help yourself." Austin says to them. When they're gone he rushes over to me. "What the hell happened!?" As I try to think of what to say reality hits. The pain from the event radiates through my body and tears well in my eyes. Austin sees this and wraps me in a sideways hug. "Let's get you cleaned off then you can explain." He leads me up to the bathroom by his room. He has me sit in a chair and put my head in the sink as he washes out the blood. He doesn't say anything, he just washes. He's careful to avoid the gash in my head, but whenever his finger graces over it fire radiates through my body and I have to bite my tongue to keep from screaming. When my hair is done he takes a wet rag a cleans the blood off my face. My eyes scan his face. His lips are in a thin line, and his eyebrows furrowed. He's focused.