Bro Code

Chapter Five - Alex

I got out of the hospital late that night. Mom and I didn’t talk much on the way home. I had nothing to say to her, and she had nothing to say to me. Once we were home I locked myself in my room and didn’t come out for the rest of the night . So, needless to say, when I was woken up at three the next morning I wasn’t very happy.

“Psst, Alex!”

I ignored the voice and the multiple rocks being thrown at my window, and pulled the blanket over my head.

“Alexander!”

“Go away,” I moaned. I had work the next morning, no matter how much I was begged to call off. I simply couldn’t afford to take any more sick days, or they’d fire me. And as much as I hated checking out loud teenage girls at American Eagle, I needed the money.

“ALEX CHANDLER GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!”

I threw the covers off of me and stood up, throwing open my window. “What in the hell do you want, Samuel?” I shouted. Sam was sitting in the tree outside my window, swinging his legs through the air and grinning like a little kid.

“Oh, you know, just wanted to say hi… And wish you a happy sixteenth birthday!” He hurled a small box at me. It missed hitting me in the face by inches. I spun around, following it as it flew through my room and crashed against my closet door. I picked it up, holding it carefully as if it might explode any second. It was wrapped in snowmen covered wrapping paper, with a bunch of cut ribbon taped to the top. I turned around, still holding the box, not surprised to see Sam walking across the branch to my window, arms outstretched for balance. Him and Jason have been using that branch to get into my room since they were eleven. I’ve used that branch to sneak out since I was nine.

I held the box up. “Dare I ask?”

“Just a little something from me to you. Now hurry up and open it so I can get out of here. Hobbit’s looking at me like I’m his midnight snack.”

Hobbit was my neighbor’s German Shepherd. He liked me, but that’s mostly because I slip him meet every now and then. His owners have some crazy idea that dogs can be vegetarians, so Hobbit has been living off salad for months. That is, until I throw him a hotdog out my window at six A.M. when I get up for work.

“He hasn’t had his meat in a couple days. I’d watch out,” I winked, before tearing the snowmen off the box. Inside, was a small, black, pocket knife. I looked up at Sam. “You gave me a knife for my birthday?”

“Uh, funny story,” He ran a hand through his hair. “I, uh, tracked down your dad earlier this month-”

“YOU WHAT?” I yelled.

“Calm down, let me finish,” He scolded. “When I went to his house, his deranged wife threw this knife,” He pointed at the small blade in my hand. “at me from the kitchen window. It missed me, but barely,” He finished.

“My deadbeat dad’s deranged wife through a pocket knife at you from a window?”

“Yup.”

“And you just ran?”

“Well, I keyed his car.”

I shook my head, laughing softly. “Of course you did.”

Below, Hobbit started barking. He’d saw Sam standing on the tree, and previously thinking his prey had ran off, was now in a frenzy. Sam looked down uneasily. “Uh, can I use the front door?”

“I don’t know why you didn’t use it in the first place. It’s not like you didn’t make yourself a key.”

Sam grinned. “Hey, bro, you never told me I couldn’t.” With that he took off out of my room, racing to get outside and to his car before Hobbit caught him.