Chase your fate

Chapter 7

Chase had just washed and dried his hands and was wiping them on his jeans as he walked out of the restroom.  As he opened the door to come out, he heard her panicked, angry voice.  He looked up to see Devyn struggling with a laughing Alex, holding her wrists in the empty hallway.  Without thought or warning, the edges of his vision became tinted red as his muscles tensed.  He quickly crossed the hallway taking both hands, slamming them against a surprised Alex's shoulder blades, taking 2 handfuls of the back of his shirt at contact, pulling him back away from Devyn, spinning halfway around, using his strength and momentum to release him into the wall.

Alex's shoulder hit the wall hard, but he was a tall, well built jock used to taking hits.  He righted himself just as Chase reached him.  The boys both grabbed each other, Alex had height and strength, Chase had a lower center of gravity and strength.  This was, by far, not the first time the two had clashed, and they had always been pretty evenly matched when Alex was alone.  They wrestled each others bodies against the wall, hearing Devyn calling out for someone to help.

Alex got a hand free, reaching back with his right arm, delivering a powerful blow to Chase's left cheek, sending him back a few steps.  Chase shook his head to clear it before moving back in low, grabbing Alex just above the hips, lifting him from his feet, turning and slamming his back to the ground, hearing the breath being knocked from him.  Chase brought his right hand up, slamming it into Alex's face, just to the left side of his nose.  He brought it back again, this time, feeling someone grab his arm and being drug off of Alex.  Before he knew it, Chase was pinned against the wall by 3 upperclassmen.  He struggled against them breaking free from their grasp just as Alex had been helped up from the ground.  He took another couple steps, tackling Alex back to the ground, preparing to hit him again until the arms were around him again.  This time, too many to break free from pinning him against the wall.

Chris, Luke and Walt had gathered Alex up and drug him off down the hallway and around the corner before the others had let Chase's struggling body go.  He finally came back to himself, looking around till he found Devyn's distraught face looking at him.  The fight broken up, the sudden crowd began to dissipate.  Luckily, no teachers or security had been notified or came around until it was over, so there were no answers to be thought up.  Chase crossed the hallway to Devyn, looking at her in shame and fear.  "Are.... Are you alright?"  he stammered,  heart beating out of his chest.  "y..yes... I'm... are you alright?" she reached her hand up to his red cheek. He pulled his face away in fear, before she could touch him.  The look of fear and disappointment on her face making his heart sink.  'She thinks I'm crazy now... it's over..' was all he could think. "I... I'm fine... I... I gotta go."  He quickly turned away, moving down the hallway, people moving out of his way until he reached the restroom at the other end of the school.

He splashed some water on his face, looking up into the mirror at the slight swelling on his left cheek.  The anger beginning to fade, being replaced by a sadness.  He had hoped that he could make a better impression on her that that.  Now, she's just going to believe everything she's probably heard.  God... But seeing his hands on her... seeing her fear... he couldn't just stand by..  He knew Alex well enough to know that this wasn't over.  He was going to have to keep his eyes open and have eyes in the back of his head.  Him and his friends had been trying to get him to break his promise to momma for the last year.  Always pushing. Always trying.  No matter how many times he fought and won.  No matter how many times he walked away.  Now they knew.. Damnit...

He slammed his fists down on the sink, gathering himself then making his way to Language Arts class.  Of course, this was one of the classes that Devyn shared with him.  Great...  He walked in, and their eyes met.  He looked away quickly, making his way to his seat in the back of the room, keeping his head down as he pulled out his composition book and pencil to prepare for the class.  Every now and then, he would steal a glance over at her, just a few seats away, wondering what she thought about.  He wanted so badly to ask her what that was about.  To find out what happened.  More than anything, he wanted to just... hear her voice...  He had heard her speak in class a few times, but, today, she had actually spoken to him. It's different, the way a voice sounds in public, and the way a voice sounds when it's speaking directly to you.  It was like he had tasted a drug and become addicted to the sound.  He knew that it was useless though.  It's not like he had the nerve to strike up a conversation with her, and it's not likely that she wanted to talk to him.  So, he decided to do what he always did.  He opened his composition book to the section labeled 'Devyn' and began writing.

As  the bell to start class rang, Chase put away his writing to listen to Mrs. Evernight speak.  He detested most of his classes, and teachers.  But, this was a class that he really enjoyed.  There was just something about Mrs. Evernight that made the class captivating.  When you walked into the room, it was like being transported to a whole different place.  From the quotes that were written on the walls, to the Anime-like posters of dragons, knights, and otherworldly scenery, her quirky personality shone through the artwork that scattered the room.

She had started the first class by reading a poem that she had written.  It was filled with pain, longing, and a search for meaning.  In that moment, she had shared her heart, her soul, and the knowledge that she 'got it'.  She would often let the class do free writing to turn in, giving them freedom to write anything that they wanted.  One time, during these weeks, Chase had turned in a poem filled with darkness and pain, and she had asked him to stay after class.  That day, he had realized that she was not your ordinary teacher.  She had sat him down, going through the usual talk of 'have you ever seen a therapist, do you have anyone to talk to' and he had thought, at first, that she was just another busy body, trying to poke her nose where it didn't belong.  He had never been so wrong in his life.

As Mrs. Evernight spoke that day, she looked into Chase's eyes, then did something he would never forget.  She rolled up the sleeves on the long-sleeve shirt that she always had worn, revealing line after line of criss-crossed, faded scars up the lengths of both of her forearms.  Chase looked from the scars to her almost tear filled eyes.  "We all have scars Chase....  Not everyone's show... Some are on our hearts, some are on our skin... The trick, is learning a better way to handle the pain.".  From that day on, he had used her as a kind of silent confidante.  She would read his words, and reply on the graded papers words of encouragement.  She was almost like his guardian angel, guiding him through this hell they called high school. 

As he sat there today, listening to the lesson, his face still tender from the earlier blow, his mind kept wandering back to Devyn.  The day had started so good.  He had hoped to build from the collision into an actual conversation, but now, he had no idea what to say.  He stole glances at her as she doodled in her sketch book, always in that book.  What he wouldn't give for a chance to steal a glance at her artwork, just for a small peek into her soul. 

The final bell rang as she gave the assignment for the next day.  Chase grabbed his things and hurried out of the room, trying to get away unnoticed.  He made his way through the crowded hallway, then stood at his locker trying to gather his thoughts to get through the rest of the day.  He closed his eyes, resting his forehead against the locker, but his thoughts were disrupted, and his muscles tensed as he felt someone behind him, opening his eyes to see the shadow on the locker.  He balled up his fists, preparing himself for round 2 as he quickly spun around to face them.