Hoodlum Tragedies (Old Version)

D E E P

"We can't just charge at 'em." Tim sighed as he pushed his fingers through his greasy hair.

Curly sat on Tio Angel's old ripped-up arm chair with his feet up on the footrest. He was drinking a beer slowly as he listened to Emiliano, Angel, and Javier advised Tim for what the next move would be against the Tiber Street Tigers. The past week had been tense and Tim had been acting like a madman trying to keep everything in order. Curly hadn't been allowed to take part in anything gang related. He was on "probation". Instead, he was stuck babysitting Ed and nursing him back to health. Curly didn't mind, Ed was like another brother to him and once you got passed his monotone voice, he could actually be quite funny. Tim hadn't eased up on the rule that Shepard Gang couldn't travel alone, he had Antonio and Jimmy following Curly around town as if he'd get lost. He needed to get to Jose's side of town to finish what he started. He had been itching to sell and get rid of the coke, he had almost been finished with it but he needed an excuse to get down there.

"It's gotta be quiet.. something that'll really put them down and teach 'em a lesson."

"You could just take em out, Timmy." Emiliano suggested.

Curly nearly choked on his beer. He had grown up listening to the horrors of violence but talking about killing someone made the hair stand up on his arms. He knew what they were capable of, it would be damn near impossible if they had never killed anyone. Back on those days, to get initiated it required killing someone to show your loyalty. Tio Javier had skipped town plenty of times with the help of his other Tio's because someone had gone missing. Curly was all for fights but murder? People had family relying on them, friends who cared about him. The thought made him sick and based Tim's face, it made him sick too.

Tim shook his head. "No. That ain't the solution." Tim sighed once again. "I'll figure it out."

"Curly, you got anything to say?" Angel asked.

Curly shook his head but Tim but in before he could even manage to get a word out. "He don't have a say so. Keep your scrawny ass outta this." Tim ordered, his cold eyes staring at Curly once again.

Once again he was Tim's bitch. What he said went and there wasn't a point in trying to get around it. Curly rolled his eyes and slammed his beer on the table before dramatically storming out the living room. The screen door slammed with a thud and Curly went to sit on the front steps of his Tio's house. It was bullshit the way Tim had him on a leash, like he was kid who couldn't think for himself. He'd be 17 soon and he knew how to handle himself. He had his own hustle that was problem worth more than Tim's.

Curly heard the screen door open and slam. It must've been one of his Tio's coming to check on him. "Things been rough 'tween you and Timmy?"

It was Angel, he had always been Curly's favorite. The realest one who had nothing but raw truth.

Curly could hear him light a cigarette from behind him but he didn't sit down. "I would get next to you. But my knee." Angel said before tapping on his fake leg. It sounded like wood.

"Esta bien." Curly said, rubbing his eyes. "How'd you get that anyway?"

Angel let out a chilling laugh. One that Curly swore was bringing Angel down his own memory lane. "Me and mis amigos, playing around as kids. Broke into your momma's school and the janitor blew my leg off."

"What was my mom like when she was younger?" Curly asked, he turned so he could see Angel's face. His eyes were dark brown, they ran on the Garcia side of the family. Eyes so dark they were almost black. He got his blue ones from his Papi.