Mist Falls

Chapter 13: Fox

All the way to the bar, with Mike and Phoenix the car was silent all lost in our own thoughts, Winter was pregnant and she lost, pregnant with a monster baby and still she loved it, wanted it saw something good in all the bad that had happened even as a child she was always kind, loving and very shy but not with me and Mike.

I remember the day she met Mandy her only friend we went out walking in the woods and found this tiny girl with short brown hair curled into a ball crying about her older sister had kicked her and told her to stop following her around.

She wouldn't let me or Mike anywhere near her and Winter simply sat down a few spaces away from her and started telling her about school how she didn't have any friends because she didn't really talk much but her awesome big brother took her everywhere with them and the things we did.

Soon Mandy was talking back telling her how she wasn't really close to her family her mother and father where always away and her sister and brother took care of her, her sister was always a bitch and we hated her as for the brother he was cool, and looked out for Mandy best he could.

But after that day Winter told her she could be part of her family and she never looked back they where as thick as thieves coming everywhere with me and Mike, Winter never reached out to another person at school unless she was trying to help them, look where that kindness got her.

I shake the memories of the happy, smiling girl from my head, even in the darkness she is so beautiful and broken I just want to wrap my arms around her and hold her and never let her go, I shake my head again where did that come from, shit.

I look over at Mike who sits in the front passenger seat he looks defeated, lost, tears brim in his eyes as he sucks in a sharp breath the rest of the drive is silent as we pull into the bar, Mike jumps out before the car even stops and heads into the bar.

"Its going to be a long night," Phoenix huffs as he parks the car and jumps out, slamming the door behind him.

The bar is packed with students and the local drunks there are only two bars in town and the other is a biker bar, we get a lot of bikers passing though most of them are good guys, just the odd few are a pain, I spot Mike at the bar and point to show Phoenix where Mike is.

He is throwing back a shot of some short and I see three empty shot glasses already on the bar as I take the seat next to him, as he shoots back to more I grab the last and he eyes me.

"This is not the right way to deal with this Mike," Phoenix says loudly over the music as he takes a seat at the other side of Mike.

"Oh yea," Mike laughs but there anger in his eyes as he order another five shoots the bar tender eyes me and I nod.

"Yea Mike, she needs you weather she knows it or not, she just lost and hurting," Phoenix sighs as he sweeps his hair into a pony tale and the nape of his neck.

"Yea well, I need a drink, is that ok with you?" Mike huffs as he downs two more shoots he pushes two at me.

"Misery loves company right?" I smile and knock back the sour tasting green shot before moving onto the red one, is this shit suppose to taste like apples because it taste more like shit, I pull my face as two more shoots appear in front of me one green and one blue.

"Hell yeah it does," Mike laughs as he slaps me on the back I look into his already glazed over eyes he has never been a drinker.

"Are you sure this is a good idea Mike?" I ask as I look toward the three shoots he has lined up on the bar.

"Nope but for months I have been the strong one the one who was woken almost every night to the screaming of my sister and the pain and tears and everything else so tonight is for me ok," he says as he grabs both shoots downing one after the other.