Chapter 3

I stared back at him in disbelief, too dumbfounded to make sense of his 'confession'. He began to talk again.

"W-w-well I think I might have caused his s-s-s-suicide,"

"What the hell did you do?" Tony caused Alan�s death? No. It wasn't possible. Never. What a farce it would be: the most chickenshit student in Rosedale High snuffing out someone's life.

"Y-y-you know M-M-Minos?"

"Minos? Geezus, who doesn't?" I groaned.

Minos Santana was Rosedale High's resident asshole. He was the asshole of all assholes. Minos was big, ugly, and very twisted. Despite being slender and well built, he had a double chin which he inherited from birth and he hated it. He saw himself as an 'inspirational' figure in Rosedale High who would always be right, no matter what. He had his own small army of followers, ready to dispense 'justice' to anyone woeful student who stood in his way. The eldest of 3 brothers, he was the only Senior to be feared among the Upper Seniors. I avoided him at all costs after my first altercation with him when I was a freshman. I had accidentally bumped into him spilling soda on his shirt and he and his loonies gave me a broken arm as 'punishment'.

"W-w-well...Minos had his eye on Akisha for a long time now a-a-and he and his guys had been serving too many delayed suspension notices, so h-h-he saw me in town 2 Sundays ago a-a-a-and asked me to rough Alan up a l-l-l-little on his b-b-b-behalf and leave a note warning him to s-s-s-stay away from Akisha,"

"What the fuck? Are you fucking mental or something?! Why the fuck did you agree to do something like that?!"

"I-I-I-I was s-s-s-scared, alright? He said he'd b-b-b-break my hand and exams are coming up and I don't wanna m-m-m-miss them and my marks are already l-l-low enough and-and-and..."

It then occurred to me; the week before Alan had jumped. He had entered the classroom one morning with cuts and bruises to his face. He gave a lame excuse to Garyson about falling down the stairs in the morning. I expected he might have been roughed up again but I never expected Tony to be the culprit this time. He must have ambushed Alan on his way back home. He could never have confronted him face to face, being the little coward that he was. Blustering in tears, Tony suddenly gripped both of my shoulders in a panic frenzy, gripping it so tight that his fingernails dug through the fabric of my sleeve. Drops of his saliva splattered on my face as he screamed back at me.

"DANTE, WHAT SHOULD I DO? OHGODOHGODOHGOD I DON'T WANNA GO TO J-J-JAIL AND I'M..."

"Get...away...from me!!" I shouted.

I managed to wrest my hand free and landed a blow on his left cheek. Tony's back slammed onto the Rock and he fell to the ground. He let out a small cry like a small animal caught in a trap. He laid there stunned, looking at me in fear while holding his cheek in shock and pain, a small drool of blood falling from the inside of his mouth. We both stared back at each other in silence, listening to the sounds of our panting filling the air around us. What else could I have done? Let him maul me to death? I spoke to him again but this time in a softer tone when he got back to his feet.

"It's not your fault. You didn't make him jump. It's not like they found a note beside his body naming you, right?"

"B-b-b-but...I..."

"Look, just forget it 'kay? Go back to your studies. What�s past is past. Don't dwell on this shit,"

"B-b-b-bu..."

"Gawdammit you little bastard, it WASN'T your fault alright?!" I was becoming irritated again. How many times did I needed to tell him?

"B-B-But, h-h-how'd you k-k-kn..."

I snapped. I had had it with him. I marched towards Tony and reached out for him, as I lifted him by his collar off the ground and holstered him up against the Rock. A button popped out from his shirt and bounced off the vein protruding from my forehead.

"I know, you little motherfucker. I just do, alright?! Alan wouldn't be such a dumbfuck to kill himself over a twerp like you! Now piss off before I smack you again!"

I loosened my grip on his collar as his feet touched Mother Earth. He staggered for a few seconds before scampering off into the main school grounds. He didn't dare look back. I was alone again, only the stirring sounds of forest crickets kept me company then. On my way home I saw the woods trail again. The crimson rays of the sunset had fallen on the crushed blades of grass, lighting the path and it shone even brighter, reminding me of Dorothy's mythical one way adventure. The faint flicker of the orphanage tower shone through the woods like a lighthouse but it didn't offer me any solace. I shook my head and went the other way.





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