Page 31 of Fight For Us
Or his mom.
I found Olivia outside, leaning against the wall and staring at the inky water. She hugged Lilly, thanking her, without taking her eyes off the distant waves. I sent Lilly to the car where my mom was still waiting. I wanted to stay here and comfort Olivia while our minds were reeling, but my mom had waited for a while already.
“Listen, Tiger. We will get this figured out. These little shits will be held accountable, okay?” I spoke with a sureness I didn’t possess but it was what she needed.
“I let this happen to my boy. I grounded him when he was hurting.” She looked at the sky. “I’ve been taking self defense classes when I should have been putting Alex in them. And oh God, I’m sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing again?”
“Lilly. She’s a part of this, too.” Anger simmered low in my gut. If those asshole kids were here right now I didn’t think I could keep my cool.
“Don’t worry about it tonight. We’ll take care of this. You should get some rest.” I should take my own advice. Slim chance of that happening.
I got into the passenger seat and my mom instantly started asking questions. “Is Olivia okay? What happened? Lilly said there’s bullies.”
“Mom, I love you but can I please have a minute to clear my head?” Translation: if I continued to talk about this any more tonight I’d lose it.
“Sorry,” Lilly said from the back seat. I pulled myself together enough to turn my head and offer her a weak smile.
“I meant what I said. I’m proud of you. How about you play hooky for the rest of the week? Christmas break is around the corner so I doubt you’ll be doing anything important.”
She leaned forward, I could glimpse a glint in her eye from the passing streetlights. “Yes!”
With the addition of a group of bullies thrown onto the steaming heap of shit I was in, I needed the time to figure things out. I only hoped Sav’s parents wouldn’t get wind of this newest information. They’d find a way to blame me for school bullies. Fuck that and fuck them. I was done sitting around. It was time we all fought back.
Chapter 13
Olivia
I tried to takeWes’s advice and get some rest. I even watched a few episodes of reality TV, which always put me to sleep. Something about petty drama helped me relax. Maybe it was my messed up way of seeing that there were people out there with crazier lives than me. It gave me comfort to see that my parents weren’t the only hyper-materialistic phonies. Either way, it wasn’t working.
I checked in on Alex a few times, finding him sleeping peacefully. By eleven, I’d drafted a strongly worded email to Alex’s principal, and when that wasn’t enough to calm me down, I dusted my bookshelf, cleaned my bathroom sink, and organized my sock drawer. When I sat perched on the edge of my bed, bouncing my knee at full speed and staring at a spot of chippedpaint on the wall, I finally gave in and picked up my phone. It was late but I knew she’d answer me.
“Liv? What’s wrong?” Mia’s panicked voice came through the phone. I breathed deeply, pushing the surge of emotion down so I wouldn’t cry again.
“I’m sorry to call you so late.”
“What’s going on?” I heard the squeak of her bedframe and knew she’d gotten up.
“Alex got hurt again today. He’s fine, thank goodness. But he’s in a cast again.” I gave her the short version of what happened and what Lilly told us.
“I don’t even know what to say. I’ll kick their asses. So what if they’re ten? No one messes with my nephew.”
“I believe you. You’re fierce when someone messes with the people you love.” And she threw a mean punch. “I hate to ask, but would you be able to come over and stay with Alex for a bit? I need to clear my head.” I peeked in on him again and he had Quackers slouched over his eyes like a mask. “He’s fast asleep but I don’t want to leave him alone.”
“Of course, sis. I’ll be there soon.”
When she showed up fifteen minutes later the trembling in my limbs had started again and my chest was clenched tightly. I kept replaying my own version of Alex getting pushed from the playground over and over again with more and more disturbing outcomes. Ruminating wasn’t helping, but I couldn’t turn it off.
Back home there was only one thing that helped me when I’d spiral and I knew exactly where to go to do it.
I hadn’t been to Sunshine at night since I volunteered to help before we moved. Darkness blanketed the building giving it a deserted feel that sent my alarm bells ringing. A lone streetlamp cast a circular glow near the entrance to the parking lot, so I parked my car as close to it as I could.
It was rare that I left the house at night. Like a reverse vampire, I planned my schedule so the majority of my errands had me home by dinner time. The sad thing was I loved nighttime. The moon and stars. The quiet stillness. But sometimes the dark of night brought out the darkness within others. Pulled it from them like a mother beckoning her child. Not boogeymen or ghosts like we’re told to fear. It’s the ones hidden behind perfect smiles and designer clothes. The ones who call you pretty and try to get to know you. Those were the monsters I feared.
I pulled my emergency key to Sunshine out of my purse and fit it between my index and middle finger. With a sobering breath, I sprinted out of the car, keeping myself as alert as I could in the dim light.
Once inside, I locked the door behind me and waited there while my pulse returned to normal. The place perpetually smelled of breakfast foods. Maple syrup, buttery pancakes,sizzling bacon. I breathed in the comforting scent and for the first time that night, my shoulders relaxed.
