What Do You Want From Me?

What the hell was going on? Matt couldn’t figure it out. He kept asking the same question over and over in his head. He’d only been watching her this closely for a couple of days, but he knew there was something seriously wrong; just by the way she walked with her head down instead of up, and the way her facial expressions didn’t scream beauty and grace, but unseemliness and incompetence. Matt didn’t have to be a forensic scientist to figure it out. Jessica Flaherty was hurting, bad, and he needed wanted to know why.

“Dude.”

Matt almost jumped as Zack and Brian appeared at his side the minute the bell for lunch rang. “What?”

“How was the test?” Zack had a petrified look on his face.

“What test?” Matt was barely paying attention to his two friends, and more thinking about the glimpse he caught of Jessica a mere hour or so ago when he happened to see her while walking to fourth period.

“Didn’t you just have Mrs. Downey?” Brian questioned now.

“Mhm.”

“Well, everyone I’ve talked to has said her test was almost impossible! Bri and I have her sixth period and we’re totally buggin’ out about it!” Zack’s hands were waving around wildly, obviously trying to make a point, as they exited through the lunch yard doors and walked over to their usual spot.

“Oh, yeah. I guess it was hard,” Matt replied, hardly interested, as he planted himself down against his favorite tree and pulled a Gatorade out of his back pack.

“You guess?” Zack asked him. “How do you guess? It’s either hard or it isn’t. Oh, never mind.” Zack brushed Matt off and sat down in between Brian’s outstretched legs, leaning back against the older man’s broad chest.

“If you don’t understand it, you can just copy off of me, Baby,” Brian told Zack, kissing his forehead and smiling when the smaller of the two looked thoroughly satisfied with that answer.

Matt ignored his friends now, deciding he’d rather keep a look out for Jessica, and peeked his head over at the ‘popular’ kid’s table. He found no sign of her there, and turned his surveillance toward the doors. She’d probably be making her grand appearance within the next minute or two, and he wanted to see if she was still as down as she was before. It caused an unfamiliar ache in his chest, just thinking about her hurting that badly, and he couldn’t really explain why this was happening. Admittedly, he did care for the girl, but he also cared about many other people; former girlfriends, for example; and never before had he felt this way about them. The concept alone scared him something awful, as he wasn’t sure exactly how to handle these feelings.

Matt didn’t even have time to consider it any further, as the girl he’d been seeking out had just made her entrance onto the lunch yard, and he immediately straightened up. She looked around her for a moment or two, before walking slowly toward where she usually sits. For a second, he was pleasantly surprised when her eyes moved in his direction, as she was obviously looking at him. It made his heart jump, but for all the wrong reasons, as he could now faintly make out the shades of discolored skin on her cheeks, and the absolute suffering masked behind those piercing forest greens.

Jessica continued to look at him until she made it to her usual lunch table. Matt watched her the whole way, maintaining his scrutiny even after she sat down and began some sort of exchange with Jason. He appeared to be addressing her, maybe possibly having finally seen that the girl was under some sort of oppression. Matt actually felt a little bit of relief, thinking that Jason may take care of her how she needs. In an instant though, the assumption went quite literally flying out the window, and Matt’s insides began to catch fire as he saw Jason grasp onto Jessica as if she was some ragdoll used for playtime. He could tell she was resisting his pull, and it took all Matt could give not to get up and walk over there; take hold of Jason’s head and smash it into the ground, finally giving him the beat down he truly deserves.

The red headed girl eventually got away from his possession, and appeared now to be under even more affliction as Jason still regarded her with a sour expression. She took it all, not even putting up a fight, and even casted another glance in Matt’s direction. They locked eyes again, and she shook her head, as it telling Matt to leave it alone. Did she know what he was thinking? If so, how? The girl barely knew him, as he barely knew her, and yet it was like they already had formed some sort of bond.

Matt leaned back more against the tree and drank his Gatorade. His body still felt tense, and it was then that he decided: he needed to talk to her again, some way or somehow, if only just to know she was alright. How, though? That was the real question. He couldn’t just get into an almost accident with her again, and simply going up to her wasn’t an option either.

It plagued his mind for the rest of the day. Even seventh period, music class, failed to grab his attention as much as Jessica Flaherty did. Mr. Meade, the teacher, repeatedly had to tell Matt to pay attention, and even then he didn’t. It was a wonder he didn’t get thrown out. Something had to give, and soon, because Matt refused to keep living like this.



Fog-like fumes drifted peacefully through the air, almost resembling an intimate aura in the room. Matt lay on his bed, basking in the after-effects of his high, as the blunt lay in the ash tray on the bedside table. It was a last minute decision, really, to smoke. He didn’t know what else to do. What with the crazy thoughts and ideas running through his mind practically twenty-four-seven, and his newest infatuation with the red haired girl, this was his only escape.

Glancing at the clock, he saw it now read 8:46. Zack and Brian had told him when school let out that they’d be by around nine, as the plan was still in place to crash Brock McKinley’s party. It wasn’t the best idea, but Matt figured he didn’t have anything else to do, so why not? He stood up from his bed and stretched for a moment, sighing quietly as the pleasurable high began to wear off and he returned back to the regular him. He walked over to his dresser, pulling out a new shirt and jeans to wear, and changing rather hastily as he awaited his friend’s arrival.

He grabbed his phone from the table, hearing it begin to vibrate, and flipped it open to read the text from Brian.

We’re pulling up out front right now, homo.

Matt scoffed and chuckled. He grabbed the black hoodie that lay on his floor and exited his room whilst texting Brian back.

Stfu, buttfucker.

Matt laughed at his own joke as he reached the front door. He spared a glance at his mother, who was passed out on the couch in the living room with a bottle of Absolut, Ruby Red Vodka spilled all over the floor in front of her. The crimson fluid had already begun to stain the rug, and Matt could feel his anger beginning to rise again. He fought it off in time to exit the house, deciding he just needed to let it go if there was any chance of him having fun in the hours following.

Just as Brian said, his car was roaring idly next to the sidewalk as he and Zack sat inside and waited for Matt to join them. Matt, himself, walked faster than usual down the pathway in his front yard and yanked open the back door of the car, climbing in and slamming it behind him. He took a deep, leisurely breath once situated, and exhaled noisily, which obviously drew in the attention of Brian and Zack.

“What’s your problem?” Zack asked hesitantly.

“Nothing.” Matt waved him off. “Let’s just go.”

Zack still looked at him, but Brian followed what Matt said and pulled away from the curb, beginning their route to McKinley’s party. The ride stayed uneventful, minus Brian reaching over and lacing his fingers with Zack’s, to which Matt rolled his eyes. He wasn’t normally hostile toward their relationship, but considering the biggest thing on his mind at the moment was his mother and her alcoholic shenanigans, everything else was just the icing on the cake.

“So, what the hell is the grand plan here, Zack?” Matt said, doing his best to break the ice without being a total ass.

Zack turned to look at him again and smirked. “Well, I figured we could sneak in somehow, then head upstairs and go through all his shit. There’s got to be some expensive jewelry in that house. I’m counting on it.”

Matt nodded. “I guess that sounds like an alright plan. But I don’t want to stay long. We just gotta get in, and get out; and that means no fooling around, you two.” Matt glared between the two in the front seat, receiving a look of innocence from Brian in the rearview mirror.

“I hope it isn’t I that you speak of,” Brian said, feigning shock.

“Shut up, Haner.” Matt glanced back out the window as Brian laughed.

He realized they were getting closer to the party, as superior looking vehicles began to appear one after the other next to the curbs they were passing. Loud music was heard next, and it was almost certain they were there.

“Where should I park?” Brian asked, looking between Zack and Matt.

“Beats me; ask the mastermind behind all this.” Matt nodded toward Zack.

“I doubt it’ll make a difference where you park, Baby. Your car looks just like any other Richie that’s attending this party,” Zack reminded him, as Brian rolled his eyes at the mentioning of his rich upbringing. “Don’t feel bad, Bri.” Zack leaned over and pecked Brian on the cheek. The elder boy smiled bashfully and searched for an open parking spot.

“We have to be careful though. I doubt it would look good on our part if someone caught us just chilling across the street from a party like this,” Matt pointed out.

“This is true,” Zack agreed. “Maybe you should park a little bit further away, Bri. Like…” Zack stalled, inspecting the surrounding area for a spot of his liking. “There!”

Brian nearly swerved into one of the parked cars as he was startled slightly by Zack’s outburst, but quickly regained his composure and pulled into the spot his boyfriend was pointing at.

“Damnit, Zack,” Brian exclaimed. “Next time, why don’t you just scream in my ear and actually give me a heart attack!”

Zack blushed and giggled, mumbling a quiet ‘sorry’ as Matt chuckled in the back seat. Brian successfully parked the car without incident and shut off the engine.

“This is so stupid,” Matt groaned.

“It is not! Just follow my lead.” Zack glared at Matt, opening his passenger door and exiting the prized Corvette.

Brian and Matt did the same, as they each threw their hoods over their heads and stalked toward the noisy house. Zack guided their way, all three of them avoiding any sort of contact with the party-goers that littered the front lawn, drunkenly babbling to one another, and thankfully not noticing the sudden appearance of three guys in dark clothes.

The crooks entered through the already open front doors. They inspected the place, it resembling Brian’s in size and length, but the amount of people and destruction done gave it its own look entirely. Matt shook his head; these people seemed worse than him. They all looked at his kind as rowdy punks and hooligans, but when it came right down to it, as least he had some self respect to know when enough was enough. Almost every person there appeared to be filthy drunk and ready for more with the red cups in their hands and the sloppy fumbling.

“Let’s fucking get this over with,” Matt demanded. Zack and Brian both nodded and began to push their way quickly through the crowd of people and over toward the mighty staircase. Matt desperately hoped not many people would be upstairs so they could just do what they went there to do and leave. He truly wasn’t in the best mood, and this little plan wasn’t shaping up to make it any better.

The three men climbed quietly up the steps, thankful that they were going unnoticed, and made a dash the rest of the way when they were out of sight.

“Holy shit,” Zack spoke, viewing the vast hallway in front of him. “It’s almost like your house, Bri.”

“Don’t fucking remind me,” Brian scolded. “Come on, let’s find the parent’s bedroom and bathroom.”

Brian led the way now down the hall, scoping into some of the rooms and attempting to figure out which was and wasn’t the correct room, and rolling their eyes when they found a few with unwelcomed occupants doing a little more than what the party had originally offered.

The master bathroom was finally located toward the end of the hall, much to the three delinquents appraise. “I’ll take this room. You two go to the master bedroom. It’s probably right next door,” Matt told them, entering the room, before turning back to them with a look of distaste on his features. “And no funny business.”

Brian and Zack glanced between one another with smirks on their faces. “Funny business? Whatever do you mean?” Brian inquired, gaining an almost feminine giggle from his lover.

“I mean it, you guys. If I get done in here and find you two fucking on the parent’s bed, I’m going to be so pissed, and not to mention scarred for life.”

“Oh, hush, you. You’re wasting time, anyway. We’ll be in the next room.” Zack ended the conversation and he and Brian exited the bathroom, pulling the door closed behind them. Matt had half a mind to go lock it, but his attention instead turned to the glorious room laid out in front of him. He was totally enthralled, taking everything in from the finely painted walls to the squeaky clean shower and tub. This was nothing like Brian’s bathroom. Brian’s parents would rather spend their accumulated money on fancy dining and vacations and the latest technological devices. The Haner Household was nice, but this Brock McKinley’s parents seemed even more vain than Brian’s, if that was possible.

Matt ran his fingers of the stainless steel, periwinkle colored sink. It felt like satin against his grip, but he barely had enough time to acknowledge this before the items resting on top of the porcelain caught his eye. He chuckled menacingly to himself and moved toward the fine, wooden jewelry box. Necklaces, earings, bracelets, the works; all just sitting out with abandon, ready for Matt to take. Were they really making it this easy for him? Richie’s really were more stupid than they looked. A huge grin marked Matt’s beautiful features, and he made a quick move to swipe up everything in the box.

Right before his hand made contact, though, the unlocked bathroom door suddenly flew open, startling Matt to no end as it smacked against the wall. He whipped around, ready to give whoever it was hell for barging in on him, but feeling his hazel eyes almost gauge out of his face from the wide eyed stare he gave the intruder. She looked back at him, expression matching his to the tee, and Matt felt his insides retake the same emotion he’s been desperately trying to fight all week.