Vengeance Banks In

“Holy Shit,” it came out low and gruffly as I stared at my step father’s best friends that were visiting from California I think it was. “Johnny!”

“What?” Johnny asked as he looked away from the celery he chopped with the butcher’s knife he had stuck in his hand. I had to admit, my mom did have good taste but I couldn’t understand why she was married to someone so much younger than her, he was only seven years older than me. Twenty four and a thirty four year old—great pick I guess.

“Come here,” I waved my hand wildly trying to gesture him to the patio where the doors could be shut and no one could hear us. When he sat down the knife and followed me outside, I had to search my mind for the right words—but unfortunately, it came out rather bluntly. “Your friends are hot—how old are they?”

“Older than me, Briony, please don’t try and get all crush like on them. They aren’t right for you, to old,” he patted my head awkwardly and went back into the kitchen to help my mother cook; all I could do was sneer and shake my head.

“Wait,” I held my hand up and paused, then shook my head again and walked backwards. Knowing that the pool was only steps behind me so I knew, right when I did, that I’d fall in. I stayed under the crystal blue water with my eyes closed and no air leaving my lungs, life was stressful since the wedding. My mother was the same, like she had promised but adding in a new step father was just ten times more—stressful as fuck. I was already depressed, before and now I just had to make myself stop crying; now I just wanted to stay underwater. Not that I wanted to croak and kill myself or anything, I just wanted to feel—free of pain and hurt, free from humiliation and rejection. I had planned on coming up for air within the next second when I heard a rather large splash and then arms circled around me. I opened my eyes, ignoring the stinging chlorine that killed my contacts and spotted a big blob of black hair.

“Is she breathing, Johnny tell me she’s breathing!” I could hear my mom screaming, but I couldn’t see anything but the big blob of black hair and I couldn’t say anything because something was holding my lips at ransom, something soft and wet—lips.

I squirmed and was finally able to push the big blobbed hair person off of me; he had already started CPR with the whole shoving a fist into my chest cavity. “Get off!” I screamed and sat up quickly, my eyes wide and my arms outstretched, trying to gain some attention. “I’m not dying, back the fuck off!”

“Baby!” my mom fell to her knees beside Johnny and embraced me into a bone crushing hug, he looked relieved even though it was awkward seeing me almost dead, or so he thought. “You’re not dead.”

“I wasn’t near death!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. Don’t get me wrong, I was happy that they at least cared enough to give me CPR and everything but I wasn’t dying, I still had a pulse. “All I did was sink to the bottom of the pool, on purpose!”

“What the fuck, Bri?” Johnny looked pissed off now as he stood up beside his friends, one which was taller than him by at least two foot and another who was tall but stocky as hell with a baby face.

“What did I do?” one of the men asked across from me, I had to whip my head around to notice him and another guy who had brown hair, the one that spoke was nice looking, high cheekbones with really wild hair.

“Her name is Briony, that’s her nickname,” Johnny said threw his teeth being clenched, I had a feeling I was in for some major shit and a whole hell of a lot of lectures.

“I am feeling a bit faint,” call me a bitch, call me crazy, call me a brat that’s milking it for all its worth but if it got me out of Johnny’s hour long lectures, I would do it. I even pretended to turn weak and fall into whoever was holding me, arms. That’s when I turned around and seen him, his eyes were the first thing I seen, bright ocean blue with green algae kind of colors running through them. They changed like moods, I could tell—his hair was midnight black and soaking wet and his face was round until it got to his chin, where it turned oval. He had snake bites, lip rings which could be what was so cold on my lips and his eyebrows were thick and black, and they were kind of amazing. I was in shock, both happy and excited; his beautiful unique lips touched mine. To bad it was for a total different reason to why than what I would rather. “Oh wow.”

“You okay?” the man asked me, his voice calmed when I could tell through his wild eyes that he was still running off of adrenaline.

“Can you take me to my room?” I said softly, closing my eyes for effect even though my mind cussed my body for doing so. I wanted to still look into those gorgeous vivid eyes.

“Up the stairs on the right,” my mother spoke holding a hand over her chest; she knew what he was going to say even before he did. She always did, it was kind of scary sometimes. “Be careful with her, Zacky.”

I held in a screech as he picked me up bridal style and walked me through the house, up the stairs and down the hall to my room where he sat me on my bed and awkwardly sat down beside me. “You feel okay now?”

“Don’t get mad, but I wasn’t dying—I just really didn’t want to hear Johnny complain, I didn’t about drown, I fell in the water on purpose and just stayed under, I was about to come up when you pulled me out,” I explained quickly and looked away ashamed, hoping to hell and back he wouldn't go tattle on me or get pissed off.

“I figured, but your mom screamed and everyone just stood there looking at the pool. I thought if you really were drowning, a minute wouldn’t be short enough and I should help, so,” he shrugged his shoulders and grinned, making me laugh. “But, I’ll keep your secret.”

“Thanks, I really appreciate that,” I found myself nodded with a smile. “By the way, um—did you happen to be chewing gum?”

“Yeah—“he slowly realized what I meant by the question and his face warmed up bright red and he burst into an infectious giggle that I couldn’t help but add in. When we finished our laughing fit, I picked the spearmint piece of gum from my mouth and held it out. “No, that’s okay. You can keep it.”

“I suggest next time you give someone CPR, do it without gum. They might choke on it after you dislodge whatever was choking them before,” I winked and leaned back down to the bed, after throwing the gum away in the trashbin beside my bed. “Oh by the way, I didn’t get to introduce myself. My name is Briony Banks-Seward and I’m seventeen years old, I go to night school every day but Friday, Saturday and Sunday for about four hours and I’m allergic to Kool-aid and you are?”