Seventeen - 10. Chapter 10

“I thought you were at work?” Jane asked, obviously not understanding why he was at this “party”.

“No, I’m…” He started to reply as someone came through the back door.

“Lukas, hurry up, I wanna…” Chris began as he entered the kitchen. Turning to see Jane and me, he became mute and just stared wide eyed at us.

“Ok…. This is awkward.” I decided to try and break the silence.

“Dude got any uppers?” the drunk guy from in the hall staggered into the kitchen and towards Lukas. “Woah dude, I must be fucked, there’s like… two of ya”

“Mike! Get rid of him, will ya?” Lukas turned to some guy who was drinking on the other side of the kitchen.

As Mike put the poor guy in a headlock and dragged him out, I started to get worried, and Jane just got angry.

“What, so your dealing drugs now? Oh GOD I can’t believe I was contemplating dating a drug dealer!” She all but shrieked, taking my hand and finally dragging me out of the hovel.

“Jane!”
“Brett” the twins called out after us.

“Wait!” One of them grabbed my arm.

Oh no, a tug of war over me… I’m gonna lose a limb.

“Let go!” Jane said, yanking me away.

“Jane! Please let me explain!” I guess it was Lukas.

“You have five, FIVE minutes!” Jane growled, red in the face.

Shit! Jane’s scary when she’s this mad,

“Look,” Lukas began, and glanced at Chris for either support or consent, Chris just nodded, looking worried, so Lukas continued. “Our old man didn’t take too well to Chris’s ya know… when we told you… we missed stuff out… well anyway, he laid into him pretty bad… and started shouting all kinds of crap… he had Chris pinned against a wall and made me and Joey take turns laying into him. When I tried to refuse… they both turned on me as well…” Lukas paused, Chris had tears in his eyes, and Jane and I were in shock. “Dad got a knife… he held it to Chris’ throat and said he’d kill him if we all didn’t teach him a lesson.” Lukas had paled at this point. “I had to…” he tried to continue, looking over at Chris, who put his arm around his twin’s shoulders. “He’d had a bottle of whiskey and he would of…That night we got out of there. I had to get him out, and I have to take care of him.” Chris’ expression changed, and Lukas added, “take care of each other. We’ve been living here with Mike, cos he and Chris had a thing… Umph!” Chris had tried subtly to stand on Lukas’ foot, to no avail; he began to blush furiously, so Lukas continued. “So he’s letting us stay for free… and He helped us change schools you know ‘cos we’re both still 16, and he’s 21 and I’ve had to support us some how, when we start back at school, I’ll stop, I just need to get enough money to get us through the summer.”

“But I didn’t drop you here after our dates” as soon as it occurred to me I pointed it out.

“I made you drop me a few blocks from our old house, I was embarrassed, I mean you’re both up there in your big ol’ mansions and yeah…So I walked back,” Chris replied.

“When did this all happen? I mean, how long have you been staying here?” Jane asked, changing the subject.

“The Wednesday night before we met, we moved in.”

Shit we met on the Saturday and Chris’ bruises were still obvious… he must have taken a beating.

“That’s still no excuse, I mean, well… I don’t agree with the drugs…” Jane said trying to be stern, but hugging Lukas anyway.

I couldn’t meet Chris’ eyes; I hadn’t realised he’d been through all that, and I didn’t know what to say or do, and I felt bad for being jealous of this Mike guy… so I copied Jane. She held her guy in a hug, so I held mine.

“Have you been to the police at least? The CPS?” Jane asked Lukas.

“Nah, we’ve been disowned, we’re safe now. He wont bother with us, and he’s not complained about the schooling thing… he would have been contacted… surely.” Jane just hugged Lukas tighter.

“erm, so you and Mike?” I asked

What the hell? Why am I spoiling this?

“We were never together… he’s just looked out for me… I had a crush on him, he said I was too young” Chris answered confidently, taking my jealousy, in his stride.”Besides… if you hadn’t noticed I like you now” he smiled up to me and hugged me tighter.

The moment of comfort was broken, however, when I heard a shrieking cackle; turning, I noticed Van leaning on a chair.

“Fa fa FAGS!” She burst out laughing. “Oh he’d love to see this. Come here,” she continued, grabbing me, and with surprising strength, she drew me to the staircase. “Come on, big boy, I’ve a surprise for you.”

I don’t know what possessed me, but I followed Van up the stairs and into a dank room, laid with a threadbare, would-be green carpet. The matching drapes and valence had seen better days. The Edgar Alan Poe style “chamber” was even furnished with fitting gothic looking furniture, including a bed with great wooden posts with fancy carved twists. Looking upon the bed and its tattered and torn sheets, its dust-laden canopy, I saw something of beauty, which was out of place in that room. Sprawled across the bed, in only his boxers, lay Brandon. Partially hard and tenting, he was barely awake, his smooth tanned skin shimmered with a thin layer of sweat, his abs and pecs were lightly tensing, and as we both walked in, he slurred, “Hey sexy.”

“B?” I asked in shock. I felt sick… Brandon would never have come to a party like this… he wouldn’t get so drunk… would he? And had B and Van been? Ugh! God, I couldn’t even think about it.

“Babe, I Lu,” Brandon tried to slur out.

“What the hell do you…” Jane interrupted, walking right up to Vanessa, who had moved to the bed, next to B.

“BRANDON!?! What the hell?”

“I’ve had him now, big boi. Doesn’t look like you’ll be getting him after all. You were so obvious, queeeeeeeeeeeer!” She leered at me.

I heard a gasp, and turning, I noticed the twins had followed me up.
Chris had just run out of the door, and Lukas was just following him, as I contemplated going as well. I was stopped in my tracks, however, when I heard a frustrated shriek.

“GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM MY BROTHER, YOU SKANK! AND DON’T EVER LET ME HEAR YOU SPEAK TO BRETT LIKE THAT AGAIN, OR I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU!” Jane screamed in a rage.

“Bitch! Who *Hiccough* do you think you’re talking to?” Van shrieked back and slapped Jane across the face. I rushed over to split them up, but before I could so much as grab either of them, Jane pulled her fist back and right-hooked Van straight to the floor. It all happened in slow motion, her cheeks kind of expanded with the force, and she groaned as she fell to the ground, droplets of blood leaving her nose.

“Fucking bitch… that oughta fix her nose job!” Jane huffed.

I didn’t know what to say, so I stood there dumbly.

“Iz not a node job!” Van slurred from the floor and dug her nails into Jane’s legs.

“Oh jesus,” I mumbled as Brandon just giggled stupidly from the bed.

Jane landed on top of Vanessa and slapped her across the face, Van grabbed onto Jane’s hair, and they both rolled around on the floor with each other. At this point, I dove in and tried to prise Jane off of Van, but to no avail; Jane just elbowed me and huffed that it was her fight.

She managed to break free of Van, and straddling her, she again slapped her across the face and said, “That’s for Brett!” another slap, “that’s for B!” another slap, “and that’s cos you’re a fucking slack cunted slag!”

My jaw hit my feet… it must have done; I’d never in all my life heard Jane speak like that. She stood up and ordered me to help her with B, who wasn’t really putting up much of a fight. As we heaved him out of the room, his head lolled to the side, and looking back, he said, “Bye, slack cunt.”

That had me in stitches. I was laughing almost hysterically from the shock of the whole situation, I think. In fact, as we left the house I was laughing so hard I had to let B go, and luckily before he collapsed, on Jane that is, Lukas and Chris appeared out of nowhere. Lukas grabbed a hold of B and helped Jane drag him to the car, whilst Chris took hold of me and, barely making eye contact, helped me.

“Yer that guy!” Brandon partially dribbled, informing Lukas that he was “that guy”.

Lukas just looked nonplussed, said, “Ok, big guy.” and patted him on his back.

“Nu-nu-no your THAT guy,” and withdrawing his arm from across Jane’s shoulder, he pointed and said, “I don’t like you! You’re with MY Brett!”

The next thing I know, everything just happened all at once; first B swung for Lukas.

“Ohmygod,” Chris breathed.

“BITCH!” Vanessa screamed, running out of the house with blood on her nose.

I just cursed, “FUCK!” under my breath.

Of course, some drunk rocker kid thought it would be appropriate to turn something of a heavier caliber on… Slipknot’s – Duality, I think, began blaring, and my adrenaline shot through the ceiling.

Lukas ducked the punch and hooked Brandon in the stomach twice, then shoulder barged him to the floor. B would have landed on top of Jane if it hadn’t have been for the fact that Vanessa had somehow flung herself at her through the air, causing them both to land on the floor and roll out of harms way… well… they were both rolling around screaming and pulling each other’s hair.

I, on the other hand went running up to Lukas, “Dude? What the hell” I said pushing him backwards, “You didn’t need to do that! He’s wasted!”

“Yeah, well why don’t you tell that to Chris! You should try looking out for him a bit more or are you too much of a fag to…” Lukas stopped knowing he’d gone to far.

I saw red. Lukas had done a number on Brand, all he’d needed to do was restrain him and he’d called me a fag. I charged him, first lifting him 3 feet in the air, and then tackling him to the ground, and making sure my shoulder landed in his gut. Straddling him, I set about giving him a “nose job”, until; of course, Chris and Jane dragged me off.

All the while, the entire party had congregated outside and was watching us, cheering and shouting, the guys enjoying the girls fighting.

Speaking of which, Jane had been pulled off me when Van had regained her senses and convinced another two girls to go at it with her.

“FUCK!” I pushed Chris off me and dove in between the girls and Jane. “Back the fuck off!” I hollered at them.

“OI, don’t fucking talk to my girl like that, dick!” Some ‘roid using metal head barked as he walked over with another two guys.

Shit was all I could think, as one of the guys grabbed me from behind and the other two laid into me. Jane was trying her best to get between me and the guy holding me down, screaming scratching and punching him… until some girls grabbed her back.

“Yo! Cunt features!” a drunk Brandon hollered as he shoulder barged the two guys to the ground… even drunk his tackle was spot on.

I had to use all my years of training to flip myself over the guy holding my arms without actually breaking them. However, it didn’t really work how I wanted it to; instead of flipping behind him, we both landed on our backs… my head apparently connecting with his nose as he let me go, and he rolled over, bleeding everywhere.

Jumping up, I saw Lukas trying to drag Jane out of the female scrum, and Chris was just standing on the sidelines, looking like a deer in the headlights.

“Chris, what the fuck!” I shouted, and then proceeded to grab one of the girls, that was kicking Jane and Lukas as they lay on the floor, by the hair and fling her about 2 feet backwards. I outright pushed Van out of the way, and the other girl, realising I was pissed, shit herself, and ran off.

Pulling Jane up and then helping Lukas, after all it was now us against them, I looked around. Real panic started to surface, and I felt a surge of cold blood run through my veins and up my spine. My stomach turned as I saw Brand rolling around with two guys. Jesus, how’s he not been beaten by those two, I thought as I ran to help him. Before I could reach him, one of the guys had stood up and stamped on Brand’s head, and Brand just stopped moving. My stomach dropped and turned, all in one. I heard Jane scream in the distance as I threw myself at both guys before they could carry on their assault.

Jumping up and away from them as they keeled to the floor, I ran back over to B, who was still out cold, his beautiful face tainted with a spattering of blood. Jane and Lukas didn’t look much better either, but my Brand was lying there, as Jane knelt, holding him and sobbing into his chest. Lukas knelt and was prodding him, I assume checking for a pulse.

I couldn’t take it in, my head was spinning, my thoughts weren’t what you’d call spiraling, though… I was only thinking one thing, “They’re gonna pay.”

In the split second that I’d decided this, Chris had tried to grab my shoulder reassuringly, but I nudged him away from me as I stood, and turned.

“Bre-“ he began, but I cut him off with a glare, not really aimed at him, but at two guy’s in their car, tending to their bruises.

I almost glided over towards the car; barely stopping as I grabbed an old rusty wrench from the yard we were in… useful that the place was such a sty really… I continued to the car, I felt as though I was gliding.

My ears were deaf to the screams of Jane as she tried to get me to stop; all I could hear was ringing;

This is for Jane

All I could see was Brandon’s lifeless face.

This is for B

The taste of my own blood.

This is my fight

Stench of sweat and mud.

This is vengeance

I loomed closer, they hadn’t even noticed me closing in on them.

This would be good…