Rage Quit (✅)

Chapter One

"Come on, poor kid, get up and fight!"

The four kids crowded around the much smaller child and began to kick and shove him.

"Hey, stop that!" Alex cried as he ran over to the group.

Mind your own business, baldy!" the leader of the group, a large ten year old kid named Ivan, said with a thick Russian accent.

"I don't care if he is poor, you guys have no right to beat him up!" Alex said.

"He is one of those charity cases who are only here because people pay for it," Ivan said.

"I'd rather be paid for as a charity case than be paid for by my daddy's drug money!" the child on the ground choked out before a stomp from the much heavier Ivan knocked him out.

As Ivan kept stomping the unconscious boy to the shock of all those present, including his own lackies, Alex couldn't watch any longer and before he could think his arms were around the large boy's waist and Alex found himself desperately trying to pull Ivan off, but was easily thrown to the ground.

"Jesus, Ivan, you just hit a cancer kid!" one of his lackies said.

"So what?" Ivan said in a cold Russian accent before pointing to the two downed children, and soon, Alex was shielding the unconscious child against the barrage of blows.

• • •

"But Mr. Travis, it wasn't his fault!" Alex said, sitting across from the rail thin man who wore a white short sleeved dress shirt and a clip on tie. Mr. Travis was well known around the school as being as stern to the students as he was intimidating, which was why Alex didn't understand why he was expelling the unconscious kid and not the bullies responsible.

"Now, Alex, I am giving you a break because I know you have had it rough lately with recent...events, but you can't just go picking fights with Ivan and the others," Mr. Travis said.

"But I didn't, Mr. Travis, Ivan and his goons were beating that kid up like they do every recess! They do it to all the poor kids who come here through the charity program!" Alex said, trying to explain in the hopes that Mr. Travis would understand.

"Alex! Those children come here with anonymous donations from parents and they will not be ridiculed by anybody under my watch!" Mr. Travis said, attempting to sound threatening, but his nasally voice and slight stutter made it difficult, although Alex definitely knew he could be expelled as well.

"Now, I put you on out of school suspension for a week and told your parents about your school yard scrap, so I want you to go home and think about what you've done and come back to school a little happier," Mr. Travis said.

"But Mr. Travis--" Alex started to protest the overly harsh and unfit punishment, but was cut off by Mr. Travis.

"No buts! Or should I make it two weeks?" he said, standing up and staring at Alex until Alex, more out of awkwardness than fear, decided to leave.

• • •

Alex slowly walked up the driveway to his house, usually the slightly longer walk felt short due to the excitement at the idea of a long weekend of video games, comic books, and TV, but as the hot sun shined down powerfully on Alex's bald head, all he could think about was Mr. Travis and his unfair punishment to himself and Ivan's victim.

'Maybe Mr. Travis has been replaced with a robot or an alien, or maybe he has been locked in the janitor's closet for days and the school is under the rule of his evil twin!' Alex thought drastically before the approach of his front door snapped him out of his trance-like state of thought.

'I'm in so much trouble~!' Alex thought as he opened the door.

"Yes, yes, I feel like Alex and I will get along very well. I believe you'll find I'm qualified for the job!" the young female voice was heard from the living room. The voice was soft and warm and it spoke in a very proper way.

Alex turned the corner to see his parents speaking to a woman with jet black hair, wearing a flowery sundress so bright it looked like it was reflecting the sun itself. When she saw Alex turn the corner she flashed a wide smile.

"Hello, Alex," she said gleefully. Alex's parents turned to face him with a disappointed look on their faces.

"There you are, mister!" his mother said.

"Looks like you managed to get suspended from school. Well, if you think you've just earned a week's break, you've got another thing coming!" Alex's father said.

"I heard of your little scuffle on the playground," the beautiful women said, touching her thumb to his busted lip. The pain caused Alex to jump, but her soothing voice calmed him even to his parents' angry voices.

"Since you will be home all week and your father and I have to work, we hired a nanny to watch you," Alex's mother said strictly.

"You are to call her Ms. Sherri and show her the same respect you show us, understood?" Alex's father said even more strictly.

"Yes, understood..." Alex said, knowing better than to argue his case to them.

'It would be like talking to Mr. Travis times ten,' he thought as he noticed his parents walking out of the living room.

"Hey, where are you guys going?" Alex asked.

"Your father and I both have night shifts at the hospital," his mother said.

"The only reason we came home was to pick out a nanny for your suspension," his father added.

'Say what you want about Mom and Dad, but they get arrangements made and they do it quickly,' Alex thought.

"And remember..." Alex's dad started.

"No comics..." his mom said.
"No video games..." his father added.
"And no TV," his mother finished.

Alex made a miserable face at the thought of a week without anything to do.

"Don't worry, Alex. We can play some of the games I used to play back when dinosaurs ruled the Earth," Sherri said, mimicking a dinosaur.

"Mom, Dad, you can't expect me to go a whole week with nothing to do!" Alex pleaded as he chased his parents to the door.

"Wanna make it two?" his mother asked.

"If you are worried about having nothing to do, don't. There's a week's worth of chores on the fridge that I expect to be done before we get home," his father said as the door dividing them slammed shut.

Alex sighed and walked back to meet his cheery sunshine-y nanny, but what stood in the living room was a huge contradiction to what he expected.

There was a woman who looked similar to the ray of sunshine Alex had met, but in place of her bright dress was a green tank top that had a pair of dog tags hanging down from her neck, camo pants, and a pair of combat boots.

However, the most distinguishing feature was the huge scar across her throat.

Alex stood there in shock as Sherri sipped a beer that she must have gotten from the fridge.

"Scuffling on the playground, huh?" Sherri asked as she finished the beer and opened another. Alex nodded, still in shock as Sherri smiled a crooked smile that was the exact opposite of her earlier one.

"Let me help you scuffle a little better..." she smirked as Alex gulped.