Sweet Child O'Mine

I sat on my bed wearing nothing but my panties and bra, drying myself. I looked at the summer dress that laid next to me, Lyndsey wanted me to wear something light so my bruises won’t hurt as much from the irritation. I sighed, getting up slowly and slipped into the dress. I zippered the side of the dress and then walked to the mirror to brush my hair. I clipped the front portion back, letting the purple bottom half come to my front. I then stood up and ran my hands down the white dress. It had a black under bust curved seam and had three buttons on the front. I then slipped on my black slip on shoes and headed toward the bedroom door and opened it. I then slowly walked back to my bed and just sat there, doing nothing. I looked up at the threshold as I sawBrian dad walk into my room with a water bottle in one hand and something else in the other.

“You look pretty, going anywhere I don’t know about?” he smiled. I smiled back and shook my head.

“No, just staying home.” he nodded. He then handed me a water bottle, after he opened it, and placed a white pill in my palm. I looked at it and then at him. “What is it?”

“A pain medication.”

“What kind?” I asked curiously. I didn’t know what I was taking and I didn’t want to be tricked in any kind of way, but I knew he had no intentions of doing such a thing. I guess old habits die hard. He sighed and then a smiled played on his lips.

“It’s Vicodin, I got into a car accident a month ago. I hurt my back pretty bad.” I nodded and popped the pill into my mouth and washed it down with the water he gave me. “That should ease the pain a bit and you might feel a little sleepy.”

“Thanks, for everything.”

He nodded “No problem, babe. I’m going downstairs to see what I’m going to do for dinner, you want to come?”

“Yeah but I didn’t know you could cook.” I said with fake amazement.

He raised an eyebrow at me. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh nothing.” I giggled. I stood up and before I knew it he had me in his arms. He held me bridal style as we walked down the stairs and as we reached the hall that lead towards the kitchen, I heard roars of laughter. I looked at dad with confused eyes and then snapped my head to the entrance of the game room and saw Aiden and the boy I saw earlier playing a video game. We were about to enter when I whispered to dad. “I-I can’t go in.”

“Why not?”

I buried my face into his neck and mumbled words, hoping he would understand me. “I…because I don’t want them to see me like this. They’re going to think…” I was about to carry on but then stayed quiet, keeping myself from saying words that I might regret. I felt him shake his head.

“No, they are not going to think of you that way.” He whispered. “If they say anything to you, you just let me know okay?” I really didn’t want to face these boys but I couldn’t hide forever. Although I wish I could, I knew that would never happen and one could only go into hiding for so long. Finally making up my mind, I nodded and pulled my face slightly away from his neck, still having my face buried. He then started walking in and then set me down on the couch that was on the other side of where Aiden and his friend were sitting. I adjusted myself and leaned closer into Brian, who was sitting next to me. Aiden paused the game and looked at me.

“What happened to you?” I bit my lip and shrugged. I didn’t want to tell him the truth nor did I know what to tell him. What could sum up the gravity of my suffering without really telling what happened? Brian saved me as he spoke in my favor.

“She was walking around town when these fuckers jumped her but she got away when this guy came by.” Aiden made a silent ‘Oh’ and then the boy with the amazing blue eyes spoke up.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine” I smiled. In response he smiled ten times greater then I did and I then motioned towards the game. “What are you guys playing?”

“Halo 3.” He said proudly. Aiden then nudged the boy and pointed to himself with his thumb.

“And I am kicking his ass!”

“Shut up, Aiden, I let you beat me.”

“Sure. You’re just like Uncle Johnny, a sore loser.” They both started wrestling with each other and I looked at dad who rolled his eyes.

“I swear they get it from their uncles.” He laughed.

“I’m sure you had your share of days.” I replied coyly. He raised his hand to his chest and pouted.

“That hurt Lilly that cut me deep.” I laughed and then heard someone banging on the door to the house. Dad laughed and stood up “That’s probably Jimmy.” He walked out of the room and I looked at the guys who were getting something from the bar. They quickly sat down with Dr Pepper’s in their hands and grabbed their remotes. I stayed silent and curled my leg under me, letting one dangle to the floor. Biting the inside of my cheek, I watched the guys playing the game and then snapped my head towards the entrance of the room. Uncle Jimmy ran towards me and was about to jump on me but then tripped as he quickly stopped himself and fell to the floor. There was a roar of laughter and Uncle Jimmy mumbled things under his breath as he stood up. He then smiled at me and hugged me softly.

“Hey Lilly, how are you feeling?” I hugged him back and shrugged as I pulled away.

“I’m doing good, how about you?”

“I’m a bit tired, Zee wanted to redecorate and boy was that…interesting.” He laughed and turned his attention to the TV. His eyes lit up and he then shouted. “I want to play! Come on guys!” he grabbed two remotes and handed one to dad. They all crowded in front in front of the TV and began playing.

Feeling boredom hit me; I slowly stood up and began walking to the kitchen. I reached the fridge, opening it and grabbed a can of orange soda. I closed the door behind me and as I turned around, I dropped the can of soda as I held my hand to my chest. I felt my heart race as I met my eyes with his pair of blue ones and he frowned.

“I’m so sorry; I didn’t mean to scare you.”

I let myself calm down before answering. “No don’t be, I’m fine.”

He smiled. “That’s good. I didn’t want to kill you of a heart attack.”

“Although you did almost kill me of a heart attack, I’m alive and well.” I laughed lightly and he did as well. I went to pick up my drink that I dropped but he quickly beat me to it. He handed me the drink and I took it out of his hands and walked over to the table and sat down. He grabbed a soda out of the fridge as I did and then sat at the table facing me. A light silence fell on us as we stole glances of each other and he then spoke.

“So what’s your name?”

“Lilly and yours?”

“I’m Mike.” I nodded and smiled.

“So Uncle Jimmy’s your dad?”

He nodded “Yeah, I guess you can tell huh?” I laughed as nodded and he continued to speak. “So where you go to school?”

“I’m going to start in Aiden’s school the week after next week.”

“Getting a little vacation?” he smiled.

“I suppose so, I guess I’m lucky.” I giggled “So where do you go?”

“I go where Aiden goes, to Huntington Beach High School. It’s boring as hell.” He chuckled.

“So you’re in what grade?”

“Twelfth and-”

He was interrupted by Aiden, Uncle Jimmy, and dad as they came in shouting. They all debated who was the master of the game and none of them wanted to admit that they were the worst player. I laughed as uncle Jimmy quickly put dad into a head lock and he struggled to break free. I heard dad growl as he then hit uncle behind then knee, causing him to fall and he took dad with him. They both started wrestling around when Uncle Jimmy backed up and knocked down Lyndsey’s china.

“Mother fucker!” Dad shouted in laughter. Uncle Jimmy held his stomach as laughter erupted through the room.

“We better clean this shit up fast!” All the guys nodded and quickly went to help clean the mess. They all seemed to find this amusing but I will admit that I did, in fact, laugh at this. They scurried all over the room, seeming paranoid that Lyndsey would show up any minute. They all finished with a job well down and they all pointed back to the game room. Aiden smiled at me and motioned me towards the hall that leads to the room. I shook my head but he quickly, and gently, pulled me to my feet and before I could argue with him I was already to the room. Dad and Uncle Jimmy quickly sat down and set the game setting to legendary. Aiden sat close to me, as did Mike, and began rubbing my back gently. We began to talk amongst ourselves but I was still very quiet. I looked at Uncle Jimmy who glanced at Mike and then back at the TV. A smirk played on his lips.

“Mike, stop making goo-goo eyes at Lilly.” I snapped my attention to Mike, whose cheeks were rapidly growing a shade of red. I quickly covered my mouth as I realized a giggle escaped my lips and he glared at his father. I then felt Aiden’s body tense and I looked up at him to see him stare at the TV intensely. That made me wonder…did Aiden approve Mike to be with me. If we were ever going to be anything, of course. The room fell quiet despite dad and Uncle Jimmy shouting and hollering.

The light seemed weirdly bright and my eyelids began to feel heavy. I started to dose off but quickly picked up my head in an attempt to wake myself up. I heard Aiden whisper something to dad and then at me.

“Don’t fight it, Lilly, its okay. Go to sleep.” I shook my head.

“I’m not tired.” He chuckled as he tucked a strand of hair behind me ear.

“Yes you are. Now sleep.” I was about to debate with him but it felt like my voice left me. The lights seem to blend with each other as everything became a blur. The sounds around me faded and then everything became black.

Brian’s POV

I slowly walked up the stairs with Lilly in my arms. She seemed so peaceful when she slept; it was as if she was in her own realm of happiness. Her bruised, pale face was covered by many strands of hair. Her face scrunched as she shifted in my arms but I maintained my grip on her, making sure she didn’t fall out of my arms. As I finally made it to her room, I gently placed her on the bed and slipped off her shoes. Her eyes slowly opened and she whimpered. I quickly placed the blankets on her and ran my hand against her soft skin.

“It’s okay, babe, go to sleep.” Her eyes fell closed but she shook her head.

“I-I’m not…I’m not tired.” I started running my hand through her hair gently and after five minutes she was back to sleep. Her breathing was regular and calming. I slowly stood up from the bed and began walking back downstairs.

“Is she asleep?” Jimmy asked me as he took out a bite out of his pizza. I nodded and sat down on the opposite couch.

“Yeah, did Aiden and Mike leave?”

“Yeah, they went to go drop off Laney’s stuff since she’s sleeping over.” I nodded and then decided it was time for him to know what I was thinking.

“Hey Jim?”

“Yeah.”

“I…I am going to go to see Alex.”

He dropped his food and looked at me with wide eyes. “Why?”

“Because…I promised her I wouldn’t tell anybody but those fuckers deserve everything they are going to get. They raped her and beat her and not just once. I was wondering if you wanted to come with me…”

He swallowed hard and then flipped open his phone. I looked at him with confusion and he knowingly answered my expression. “I’m calling the guys. We never do this alone.”I smiled and chuckled, Jimmy was always a step ahead of me.

I laughed in my head as I looked at every one of the guys, we were all wearing black. Yes I know, how cliché of us. We all headed towards the living room and I took off the family portrait that hung in the living room. In the back of this picture was a safe that held many of my weapons. I handed two to every one of the guys and I could here the excitement in Zack’s voice as he began to speak.

“Damn, I can’t believe we are doing this.”

“I know, it’s been fucking forever.” Matt answered as a glint of murder shined through his hazel eyes. I told the guys everything that happened and they all agreed that this bastard should pay for what he has done. But first, before anything, we needed information and to gather back our crew before taking action. The weapons were just for protection, we use to get a lot of shit back in the day but we were unstoppable now.

We walked under the stars as we headed towards the alley way. It was dark despite the small beams of light some powerless stars were giving. I lead the crew down the alley, like the old days, and spotted him. He looked dirty with his torn clothes and he looked as if he hasn’t had a shower in over a week. He was my snitch and I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t remember me. I heard Johnny make a sound of disgust.

“I can’t believe we are still doing this shit.”

I was about to answer but then Alex’s eyes locked with mine. He slowly stood up from his sitting position but then bolted down the alley. I quickly started to run after him and the other guys followed picking up speed. Alex looked back with his dark eyes showing nothing but fear. Jimmy ran past by me and tackled him to the floor. I heard Alex groan in pain as Jimmy kicked him in the ribs and I smiled as I heard them crack. Matt then walked over to him and grabbed him by the throat and slammed his back against the dirty brick wall.

“You fucking think you could out run us?” he asked with a laugh.

Alex shook his head vigorously, “N-no of course not.” Matt dropped him to the ground and everyone moved out of the way as I slowly stepped towards him.

“It’s nice to see you again, Alex.” I smiled.

“Syn? I didn’t know that was you. How are you?” I rolled my eyes and answered his question.

“I am just peachy. Now let’s skip the small talk and get to the point. Tell me the name of the drug dealer who has green eyes and black hair.”

Alex chuckled “There are lots of drugs dealers that look like the one you described.” Feeling myself get impatient, I kicked him in the stomach with much force and he wheezed out in pain. I then grabbed him by the hair.

“He likes to get a pre-payment of sex and then his money. Do you know any dealers that brag about fucking some girl?”

A smirk came to play on his face. “You want some of that young stuff, huh? What you haven’t found yourself a decent woman yet?” Once those words left his lips, I took out my gun and bashed him in the temple with it. He fell to the floor and Zack and Johnny took that as a chance to give him a taste of their own medicine. After they both gave good licks, Matt and Jimmy joined. I heard Alex beg.

“I’m sorry! Please stop! I’ll fucking tell you everything!” The guys ignored him for a minute but then obeyed my command to stop. Matt forced the guy to his knees and I cocked the gun and placed it on his temple.

“Who is he?”

“H-his name is Bobby but they call him Killer B. He has a lot of people working for him.”

“Where does he deal?”

He laughed but it held no humor. “PCH, your old turf, along with the sections you use to run. He thinks he is powerful and he is,” I was about to bash his head open but he then quickly added “but not as powerful as you guys were. He thinks he can run this shit but now that you guys are back in the game…he stands no chance.”

“We’re not starting a drug war.” Jimmy chuckled.

Alex nodded. “That may be so but he wants that girl. I heard him say that he wants her to be his sex slave and that he’d do anything to get her. He wants to sell her if she does not satisfy his needs.”

I felt the blood in my veins boil at those very words. That son of a bitch was going to pay for everything he has done. And every one of those junkies who harmed her will pay, but not in death.

“You will speak of this to no one.” Matt growled and Alex nodded.

“I know, Shadows.”

“We will be back, you’ve been warned.” Zack spoke with venom dripping from each word.

“Please Vengeance; do you really think that I am that stupid?”

“Only time can tell.” Johnny said. I, again, hit Alex in the head with the butt of my gun, knocking him unconscious. We walked out of the alley to go see the others that were on our crew long ago.

“Where to first?” Matt asked.

“Let’s go over to the Romance turf.” I stated. I heard everyone agree and we began our journey into the night, once again. I felt this weird sensation at the thought of myself running the drug district here. I guess you can say old habits die hard.