Tradition Comes Third

Aftermath Freak Out

Author's Note: Finally had a day off, so I spent my morning writing. Hope you all enjoy!

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 I had never been in a fight before in my life. My only experience was the video games that Adrian and I played together, and the fight scenes I've read in novels.

Pain exploded across my cheek, and a sharp ache ran down along my jaw. I kept one hand up to try and guard my face, and I swung out with my other hand. My fist would hit something, but I had no clue which his friends I hit. I gasped for breath as I was punched in the ribs. One his friend's swung his leg out and kicked me in the ankle, causing me to topple back onto the ground.

I looked up to see Chris towering over me. He was blurry, and I realized that my glasses had fallen off my face. My chest burned as I sucked in a deep breath. I squinted my eyes to see Chris smirking.

"Leave him alone!" I heard Ava scream.

I saw her jump up onto Chris's back. She dug her nails into Chris's cheek, and he let out a yelp. He tried to shake her off of his back, but she just dug her nails in deeper.

"Torres! Winters! Wilcox!"

I looked up to see Mr. Anderson running towards us from his car. Chris' friends parted and ran into the school. Ava slid off of Chris' back and ran over to me. She got down on her knees beside me.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

I opened my mouth to speak, but I started coughing. I used my arm to cradle my sore ribs. She picked up my glasses off of the pavement and handed them to me. I was amazed that they weren't cracked or bent.

"You three are going to Mrs. Kennedy's office," he said as he walked closer. He pushed past Chris, and his jaw dropped when he saw me. "Hunter, are you alright?"

I didn't want to start coughing again, so I gave him a thumbs up. Ava grabbed my arm and pulled me up onto my feet. I looked down at my shirt to see it was covered in blood. A metallic taste filled my mouth, and I touched my bottom lip to feel the blood.

Ava kept a tight grip on my arm as we followed Anderson into the principal's office. Every person we walked by turned to stare at us. I dropped my gaze onto the ground. We entered the front office, and the secretary's face went pale when she saw us.

"Sit down," Anderson told us.

The three of us sat down on the hard plastic chairs across from the secretary's desk. Anderson walked by her and right into Mrs. Kennedy's office. The secretary got up and ran into a back room. She came back with a pack of ice and a rag. I lightly pressed it against my sore face. Chris sat beside Ava. His arms were crossed over his chest, and he said nothing to either of us.

Anderson walked out of Kennedy's office and called in Ava and I. We walked into her office, and sat down across from her desk. Her eyes were fixed on her computer screen. She looked over at us and shook her head.

"I'm not used to seeing you in my office, Mr. Wilcox," she said. "Miss Winters, you've been here for only a few weeks and you're already getting in trouble. You're last school warned us about you."

"I didn't do anything," Ava said. "That beast was harassing me. Hunter asked them to stop and him and his friends started beating Hunter up."

"Is that what happened?" Mrs. Kennedy asked me.

"Yes," I said.

She asked me a few more questions. She typed more into her computer and Ava was squirming in her seat like she couldn't sit still.

"Do you want to go to the hospital, Hunter?" Kennedy asked me.

"No," I said. "I'm just sore."

"Can I drive him home?" Ava asked.

"You're excused for the day," Kennedy said. "Hunter, I'm going to call your mother and tell her about what happened this morning. The same goes for you Ava. I'm going to call your Aunt."

She nodded her head. I groaned at the thought of coming home to Mom looking like this. She was going to lose her mind.

Kennedy dismissed us and we left her office. Chris glared at us as we walked past him. Ava laced her fingers through mine and pulled me out of the office, and out of the school. Luckily, first period had already started, so no one was in the hallway staring at us.

"Keys. "Ava held out her hand. I fished through my pocket, and pulled them out. I dropped them into her hand, and she pulled me towards my Mom's car.

"My Mom is going to freak," I warned her as I pulled the seatbelt across my chest.

"I don't blame her," she said. "You look like a mess."

I looked into the rear view window. My lip and chin were stained red. The blood had dripped down my neck and to my shirt. Red marks were scattered over my forehead. I could see that my nose was already beginning to swell.

Ava drove us to my house. I knew Mom would be up by now. She was probably in the kitchen, and there would be no way to sneak into the bathroom to wash off most of this blood before she sees me.

As soon as I opened the front door, I heard someone moving around.

"Hunter?" Mom called out. "What are you doing home?"

She came out from around the stairs, and her hand shot up to cover her mouth when she saw me.

"Hunter!" she yelled. "What happened to you?"

Dad ran up behind her when he heard her scream. Ava stayed a few steps back, like she wasn't supposed to be in this family drama.

"I got in a fight," I said.

"A fight?" Mom asked shaking her head. "Hunter, you don't get in fights."

"He was protecting me," Ava said taking a step forward. She slipped her hand around my arm. "Some guy at our school was trying to choke me. Hunter stopped him, and then he got attacked by this guy's friends."

"What's his name?" Dad asked.

"Chris Torres," I said.

"Does he go to your school?"

I nodded my head.

"Go wash up," Dad told me. "I'm going to teach you how to fight after."

Mom spun around on her heels. She put her hands on his shoulders and shook her head. Dad looked down at her and then over to me.

"Jimmy, no," she said. "I don't want him fighting."

"Julie, he has to know," Dad said. "He has to know how to protect his family."

"I thought things were going to change," Mom said.

"Yes, a new house. No Tommy," he said. "If he knew how to fight, this would have never happened. Julie, this is why boys can not be raised by just their mother."

Ava let go of my arm of my arm. I looked down at her to see that her eyes were darting around the room. She shook her head and took a step back.

"I was wrong," she whispered to herself.

"Ava," I said. I reached out for her arm and she pulled it away from me. Dad looked up and pushed Mom away from him. He took a step forward.

"I have to go," Ava said.

"Ava, stay here," Dad said, he had his hand out toward her. He was walking toward her like she was a deer, and he didn't want to scare her away.

Ava ran for the door.