One thing you can count on when in America, is that eventually any good deed you do will blow up in your face. No matter how long it takes, fate will rear its ugly head and thrash out at those who call themselves good and just human beings.
I've only been an adult for seven years, four years in college, a fifth attempting to get a masters, before that bitch started nonsense, getting me convicted for something I didn't even fuckin do… Though, I shouldn't put the complete blame on her, it was my fault for putting my trust in people. Three months turned to a year in a concrete box. Then another scraping myself form the bottom, until this very faithful day.
I don't know what motivated me to cut through that alley. I had just been fired from my dead end job at the gas station, the only people that would take in someone with my legal record, but they got sick and tired of my sorrow, got someone else that could stock the small shelves even faster.
So, I started walking back to my hole in the wall that I call my sorry excuse of a home. Maybe I can spend what little I have left in my savings for a bagel and a little something off the street, give myself a good high before the real dread sets in, I haven't tried that before, but there's a first for everything. Though, if you looked at me, at my disheveled baggy cloths, and disgusting long hair, god, I would kill for a nice refreshing bath, but the best I could do in my current state is go jump in the river, and drown while I'm at it.
I decided to take a short cut through a certain alley, in all the stories I've seen, nothing ever good comes from an alley. So I usually just avoid them, especially for all the things I've noticed happens in the dark parts of this town. But, for some reason, I chose this day to wander down the sketchy path I was thrown onto.
As I was walking along the shadows cast by the janky buildings, I heard the usual yelling and cursing that I usually hear emanating from these dank passages, nothing too out of the ordinary. Usually some brothers or drug dealers hanging out or extorting some helpless fool of all they have.
The cursing this time was coming from a trio of wannabe brothers, rich kids that think they have it tough, so they start acting up and roughing up those in lesser communities. This time, it seems they've got some highs schoolers wrapped up in their make believe, "just give them your pocket cash, and they'll fuck off" I half heartedly whisper under my breath, "those nobodies don't even know what it means to really live in this hell of a world"
With a surprisingly wimpy voice for his synthetically gruff appearance "hey you pasty ass bitch, how bout we see how much fun we can have?" says one of the hoodlums,
"Don't touch me" yelps one of the high school girls
"Shut up bitch, or else you want me to mess up that pretty face of yours" says another.
Finding on opening opening between the three men, the other girl dashes between the trio of pre-occupied boys, scampering past me. What a great friend she is.
This is none of my business, it's not worth it for me to get involved
The third boy, seemingly the leader with his half-assed beard, nods towards the other two, now cornering this helpless girl.
As I pass them, I am close enough to see them. The trio of dicks are wearing baggy pants and blue bandanas, with the "leader" wearing a purple one, probably their sign of a leader in they're game of make believe. The girl is wearing a uniform, must be part of a catholic school or private school or something, or one of the rare public schools with a dress code. She's got short blond hair and brown eyes, she's cute, but too young for me, she reminds me of Grace when we were in high school. She looks pleadingly at me, I could see the fear in her eyes. I hope nothing happens to her
It's not worth intervening
finally, the leader speaks, "Hey, if you make any more noise before we have our fun, your gonna regret it"
She lets out another whimper, but softer this time, he probably brought out a knife or something
It's not worth it
'Click'
that's not a knife, this is America after all
don't do it
fuck, she really does look like Grace
I quickly turn around, takin my phone out of my pocket to dial 911. Shit, of course I didn't charge it. I stuff my useless phone back into my pocket and start wrapping my tie, a weird addition for a gas station uniform, around my right knuckle, at least it's something.
With the best adult voice I can muster, I yell at the boys
"Oi! the hell you children doing with her? Get the fuck away from her!"
boy number two responds, with an unsurprisingly high pitched tone, "we're just having a little fun old man, why? you want to join in or something?"
"Shut up Michael, just keep her there, I'll handle this" snaps the leader
He swivels around, now facing me. along with his purple bandana, the white boy is wearing a faded Green Day graphic tee and baggy camouflage pants. But most nontribally is the gleaming silver revolver, that he's carelessly swing around. Seeing me eye it, he whips it around, aiming it side ways towards my head. Instinctively, I flinch.
"Oooh, it seems Mr. Homeless is a pussy" gesturing with the revolver as he speaks "you, are going to turn around, and leave so that we can have our fun with this cunt, you dig me?"
I've dealt with people like this before, I probably was this person when I was younger. A rich kid thinking they're being rebellious, using their money to do some horrible things and get away with it.
What the hell am I doing?
"Listen kid, put away daddy's toy, and leave this poor girl alone, you don't want me to make you listen" I then crack my knuckles.
"you think that's gonna scare me grandpa? you with your fuckin sorry excuse of a man, at least I'm somebody, so shut the fuck up, you don't want me to fuckin use this do you?" the boy Infront of me screams at me. Why the hell did I think my cringy line would do anything?
I can spy behind him that boy #1 starts whispering something to the one called Michael, who seems to be shaking a little, frantically looking around. This probably isn't where they imagine things going. I can see the girl flinch as they tighten their grip around her wrists
I start to take a step forward
'Bang'
"don't even think about it you fucking queer"
He's using some pretty big words, things are escalating more than I thought
What the fuck am I doing?
I take my full step forward. The leader whirls around
"What the fuck are you doing Ryan!?" boy #1 yelps. Both boys let go of the girl and start to back up
"Shut up Trevor, I thought I fucking told you my name was Richie, not what that fuckin bitch of a mother told me" Ryan yells at the one called Trevor, whirling the gun towards his now cowering friend.
I can see his hand start to tremble, this is getting bad, I have to do something
Mustering all my strength, I rush towards and tackle the the one with the revolver. As I collide with him, I jolt the arm holding the gun upwards
'Bang'
Trevor falls to the ground as Michael rushes over to him, lifting him up, as they rush to escape. the girl, sits there, petrified.
I try to wrestle the gun out of his hand, I manage to get on top of him. I don't notice his other hand feeling around for something. I feel a sharp pain, and warm trickling as he stabs something into the side of my neck. I release my grip on his wrist and fall backwards. I'm able to get my bearings and sit up. He's starting to cock the gun again. I take out my phone and try throwing it at him as I get back up on my feet.
it hits him in his chest, I take the opportunity to try tackling him again. As I make contact with him once more, I hear another bang as I fall on top of him. He pushes my now numbing body off of him and starts running out of the alley way.
Fuck, I just got shot.
The girl yelps as she rushes over, turning me over, and cradling my head in her lap. I can see tears beginning to run down her beautiful face. It's a crime to make a pretty girl cry, maybe I should go back to prison.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" she breathily says between gasps of air. "Thank you so much for saving me, I don't know what I would of done without you"
Using the strength I have left, 'cough' "no problem, I was just in the right place, right time, hehe" It's painful to speak, I can hear sirens in the distance.
This girl, why is she still here? why is she staying by this nobody
she starts caressing my face
Her lips are trembling, tears still rolling. No way she's crying for me, right?
"don't worry, help is on the way mister, stay with me, what's your name?"
"Heh, that doesn't matter lovely, I'm just a nobody, but thank you"
I can feel it, my time is getting near.
The sirens are pretty close, its getting a little hard to hear, I'm also starting to not feel the pain as much, my time is getting close
Fuck, there's so much I have to regret, I wish I could I see my friends one last time, even if they don't want to see me. My family, my parents. I wish I could say sorry to Grace, who this girl reminds me so much of. I wish I could apologize for what ever she's mad at me for, for what ever reason or thing I did to disappoint her, for her to feel she had to dig me into a hole, to dig me through the system as pay back.
I feal I'm about to go, I'm so sorry girl to do this to you, I wish I had the strength to get up, I don't want to traumatize you by dying in your arms, just let me go. But I thank you, if I can be selfish, It makes things a little less painful I guess.
I can start to hear bells as things start to get white. Maybe there is a heaven, and this is their call. I guess I got nothing else to do.
Everything goes white
Then everything is dark
But there's a distant light
I can still feel a little pain, but it's different.
The light gets brighter and brighter, the bells banging more and more. It's almost deafening.
Suddenly, I'm in a wooden cabin, there's a few people around. I got shot and almost died, you couldn't of taken me to a hospital? Well, what did I think? It is the American health system after all.
I can hear some muffled voices, it sounds like nonsense to me. There's two men and a women standing over me. As my eyes adjust, I can begin to see things more clearly. They seem like cosplayers or something, one dude is wearing a wizard like robe and the other has some like armor and what looks like a sword on his side, you couldn't of brought me to some actual professional looking people, two of them look like they're elves or something. The man in the robes starts to make a weird face, like one you'd make at a baby, saying something in that same gibberish. Then a voice above me responds
I look up, my head feels weirdly heavy, thank god the bells are gone, I was starting to get irritated. I see that there's a naked women sitting right behind me. Though I'm not completely against it, this doesn't seem like the time. The women behind me grabs me and lifts me up, fuck she's strong, but something feels off. I seem to be smaller than before.
I take a look down at my body, I am completely nude, but that's not the weirdest thing. I seem to be in a babies body!
What the fuck is going on?
wait, this feels weirdly familiar.
Was I just fuckin born again?