Page 65 of Nevada

She shakes her head. “Don’t do that, it’ll be so much worse. Just leave it alone.”

“Tilly.”

“I mean it. It’ll be ok. They’ll find someone new to pick on next week.”

I shake my head. “That doesn’t make it right, Tils.”

“I’m fine. Stop nagging. Please.”

Again, I’m shaken a little by her attitude. Where did my cute little sister go overnight? “I’ll find out, you know I will.”

“This is why I never tell you anything, Star! You can’t just take the law into your own hands.”

I smirk. “Since when have I ever done that?”

She rolls her eyes and goes to shut the door on me. I know I’m not going to get anything else out of her, so she’s right; I will have to take matters into my own hands.

The following day I lurk outside the school, pretending to be waiting for Tilly. She usually walks home with a couple of her friends since the school is only five minutes from where we live. If Tilly won’t be transparent about what’s going on, then I feel as if I have no choice. If my sister hasn’t even reported it to the teachers, it’s likely they won’t know what’s going on, though, I’m sure they know who the troublemakers are in the classroom. It makes my stomach churn to think that my little sister is being bullied, and what’s worse? Mom knew about it and did nothing. When I confronted her this morning, she brushed it off and said basically the same thing as Tilly and they’d work it out in the playground. It was nothing to worry about. My sister isn’t exactly a little kid; she’s thirteen. I don’t think kids her age work things out in the playground anymore.

When the bell sounds, I make myself incognito until Tilly and one of her friends, Sammy, leave the school grounds. Immediately, two other girls follow behind them. Everything seems to be okay because they cross the road shortly after and head toward a waiting car. Maybe the bullying only happens at school, though you’d think kids could behave way worse when teachers aren’t around. Sure enough, not far along the road, two girls step out from the bus stop and block Tilly and Sammy’s path. They try to go around but the bigger girl starts to push my sister backward. She almost falls over because the size of her backpack is almost as big as her.

“Did you get my homework?” the older girl, probably fifteen, says, poking my sister in the chest.

Unbelievably, my sister unhooks her backpack and begins to rummage around in there.

“You know this is blackmail,” Sammy says, but it’s more like a mutter. Neither of the girls are confrontational, but Sammy has a little more snark than Tilly.

The bigger girl seems to be being egged on by her smaller assailant. “This is the price you pay for being losers,” she says with a snicker.

My sister is doing this creep’s fucking homework? Are you shitting me?

The older girl snatches the papers from Tilly’s hand. “Better be an A plus, or I’ll have to rearrange your face, four-eyes.” She laughs at her own joke and my stomach recoils.

What in the actual fuck?

“Okay, that’s it. We’re done,” Tilly stammers.

The smaller girl waggles her finger. “Ah, ah, ah. We don’t think you’ve paid your dues just yet. Protection comes at a price.”

“I’ve been doing your homework for three weeks!” I can see the anger rise in Tilly’s face. “That isn’t fair.”

The older girl laughs. “Life isn’t fair. I also heard you screwed Scott Middleton.”

My sister's eyes go wide. “N— No, I didn’t!”

I’m not stupid enough to think my sister is having sex. There is no way. This chick’s just being a complete bitch. “We’re gonna change your name to Slut St. Clair.”

Something snaps in my sister, though. She points at her. “That isn’t fair! A deal’s a deal!”

I see the girl's arm rear back before I have time to react. She hits my sister in the face at the same time Sammy swings her backpack at her. Tilly’s glasses smash and the larger girl gets hit by Sammy’s flying backpack and I run toward them screaming.

Both the older girls turn to look at me and try to run, but I grab the bigger one by the hair and bark to her friend, “Fuck off if you want to live!” She runs away and I turn to the girl whose hair I’m yanking. “That wasn’t very nice!”

“I’m… Ow! I’m sorry…”

I yank her hair harder while Sammy tends to my sister as she cries, a trickle of blood rolling down her face. “I’m goin to fucking kill you!” I mutter menacingly in her ear.

I shove her into the bus stop and she lands awkwardly on the seat. “Tils, are you okay?”

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