The Courtyard

How stupid am I, thinking that I could hide incognito in the courtyard. Of course Keegan would find me; he always does. And it doesn’t even matter that there are people here. No one will notice him beating on me; they never do. But as I look around, I see one person looking this way; Michele. As soon as I see her, I feel a pressure on my chest, and all of a sudden, I’m on the ground. Looking up, I see that Keegan has finally decided to grace me with his presence.

“Do you have a warranty on that,” he asks, pointing to something next to me.

I look in the general direction and stiffen. On the ground in his line of sight is my grandfathers pocket watch. He had given it to me the night he died and it was the only thing I had left of him. It was old and antique and sat on a silver chain. It was probably worth very little to any collector, but to me, it meant the world.

“No, it wa--,” I started to say, but was cut off.

All he said was “sucks” before he took one of his meaty feet and stomped on it mercilessly, cracking the face beyond repair.

Looking at what had become of my grandfathers watch, I tried desperately to hold back the tears. Keegan only enhanced my feeling of loss and anger when he started laughing. How could he be so cruel when I had never done anything to him in my life? I expected Michele to come and help me, but as I met her eyes, she turned away, back to her friends, and that made the hurt deeper.

The memory of her turning away stayed, even after his laughter faded.