18 Weeks of Twoey - 15. Week Three Monday September 15, 2014: Out of Control

Inside us all, it churns and seethes and strains.

I guess I'll skip the ordinary stuff. This was the only important thing today anyway. It's 1:30 in the afternoon and I'm in my room, not in school. I've, um ...been suspended for a couple of days. Tommy’s mother just brought me home. I was in a fight.

I can't remember all the details ...well, let me start with what I do know.

It was lunch and we were beginning to sit down. Gary sat across from me. I put my tray down and then sat down too. Twoey put his tray down and sat to my right. Usually Erik now sits on the other side of Twoey. Matty would sit on the other side of me when he got there. Well, it really had nothing to do with what happened.

Twoey had sat down for only a moment when I heard a clatter of trays. I looked over my right shoulder to see Erik and Brian Biggs glaring at each other. Their lunches were on the floor. Brian Biggs--Biggy, we called him--was a sophomore too and a wide receiver on the football team. He made varsity this year and was behind Ron--Terri's boyfriend--in that position. Ron's a junior. The next stuff happened pretty fast, so I might not have it all exactly right, but Biggy grabbed Erik ...by the shoulders I think. Now Erik is no shrimp and he's a good wrestler. I thought, ‘Oh, shit, he's never gonna back down.’ It was then Twoey got up and blocked my view. I think I heard Twoey say something like “Hey, hold on, let go of him.” I can't be sure of his exact words, but I think it's what he meant.

The next thing I knew, Twoey had crashed backward onto the table and onto his lunch tray and I saw blood on his face. I spun up, without even thinking, and threw the punch. I really think it was awfully fluky because, while Biggy wasn't huge, he was pretty well built. As I said, I think I was lucky because my punch had the extra momentum of my body sorta falling as I clumsily tripped over Twoey's chair and connected on the side of Biggy’s head right in front of his ear--hard. It hurt my hand. He dropped like a stone, and then--this is the bad part--I sort of lost it. All I remember is being all over him throwing punch after punch to his head, despite the pain in my hand. I vaguely remember Sam telling me to stop and trying to push me off, but for some reason I had gone completely berserk!

Abruptly, I was swinging at the air! My feet were off the ground too! There were these big arms around me and I instantly knew who they belonged to. He was really calm too.

“David, easy dude, take a breath dude, calm down dude, you already creamed him; just relax.” Of course it was Greg the fullback, Kathy's brother. Finally, I started breathing again and then the teachers arrived.

The bottom line is, I guess Biggy hit Twoey in the mouth. He was suspended for two days. I think Greg saved me from doing any real damage to Biggy, who I heard has some bruises on his face. I was suspended for the rest of the week. It seems Mr. Field, the vice-principal, decided I was the bad guy. Ha! I wouldn't hurt a fly. I never get mad. I don't know what happened. It was like I became another person.

I was suspended and still trembling a little from time to time as I sat here with my hand wrapped in a towel filled with ice cubes. The worst part is I had a Total Grounding inflicted on me by Tommy’s mother. A Total-Grounding means no XCountry, no phone, no morning run, no school, no computer, no friends, and meals in my room. At least she's letting me listen to CD's, but no iPod. She confiscated everything electronic except my alarm clock, which has a built-in CD player. I don’t understand why she didn’t grab that too. I certainly won’t be needing it this week. I suppose I'll read. I've a couple books I haven't gotten to yet. And of course I’ll do schoolwork. Gary is supposed to bring it over each day, starting tomorrow, but I’m not allowed to see or speak to him. You know, I couldn't help but believe her extra-harsh punishment was somehow related to making Pastor Pig-Fucker look like a ...pig fucker!

I collapsed onto my bed and thought about lots of stuff. I napped a little, didn’t eat the supper she delivered and read a little social. She didn’t even allow Tommy to see me tonight, he explained through the door. But what the hell, I'll survive. I decided to go to sleep for the night. Tomorrow has to be a better day.

Sam

I didn't expect David to take my little talk so seriously. If I ever had any doubt he was trying to make it up to Twoey, it's vanished now, in a flurry of punches! I don’t think I’d ever seen him like he was--I know I hadn’t! When I was trying to push him off Biggy, I was a little afraid he might start swinging at me!

Twoey

I saw David's violent side today. I don't think I liked it.

I realized he was defending me, but it scared me a little. Even the poor football player got suspended and he didn't really hit me. I guess they needed to suspend one guy from each side of the ‘fight’--but it was no fight. It was only David bludgeoning him. It was a good thing the big guy pulled him off. He seemed to calm David down too. It really surprised me until I found out he was the brother of that Kathy skank David had been sort of seeing but trying not to see. Shit! Was that guy big and strong, but seemed to be a real gentle kind of giant. Good thing, because I think he could really hurt someone if he had a mind to. Maybe he left it all on the football field. I'll have to go to a game and check it out.

Anyway, after school today, the gang got together in my room to discuss the situation. We had to meet here because Mom wouldn't let me out until my injury settled down. Damn, it was only a split lip! You wouldn't even be able to see it in a couple of days, but you know moms. I sorta lied to her too. I didn’t mention anything about a fight. I mean, I wasn’t actually in the fight. My split lip happened before the fight began. I told her I accidentally hit my lip on the drinking fountain.

Reconstructing what everyone saw, it seems Erik was turning to sit next to me when Biggy, it's what they called the football player--he's not particularly big, but his real name is Biggs--well, Biggy was looking at a cheerleader or something. Now here’s a creepy little item: Biggy was the guy I smashed into yesterday in the park while he was stalking those girls. I decided not to mention this little fact to anyone. I didn’t really think Biggy even recognized me anyway. He wasn't looking where he was going this time and smashed into Erik and they both dropped their trays. Naturally, Biggy had to blame it on Erik and grabbed him by his arms, about to ream him out. I don't think he was going to hit him or anything. I mean, Eric is strong and can certainly defend himself. I stood up and tried to get between them to see if I could defuse the situation a bit.

I think all Biggy wanted to do was shove me out of the way, but his big ring hit my mouth and I tripped backward over the chair and onto my lunch tray on the table. That is when David went into action. And I mean action!

He shot up and threw this huge punch to the side of Biggy's head. I don't know if he knocked him out or stunned him, but Biggy hit the floor. Now if it had ended right there, it would have been one thing. But David quickly jumped on him and started to whale away, throwing punch after punch! Sam tried, but couldn't push him away. Of course Sam's pretty slight. The next thing, Gary and the rest of the gang were headed over to help stop him, but that big guy shot across from, I don't even know where, picked David up like he was a rag doll and calmed him down.

We'd been discussing all this when Gary said, “You know, David has been acting a little off lately--shorter fuse.”

Sam: “What do you mean?”

Gary: “I heard he even got into a fight with the pastor of his church yesterday. Now this fight today. You know, I’m his best friend, and I’m concerned. Actually, I’m worried.”

Sam: “Well, yeah, I mean you can’t miss the fact he hardly eats anymore.”

Nels: “He doesn’t open up like he used to. He used to always say how he felt about anything. He seems more careful lately. A lot of times at the lunch table he doesn’t even say anything, like he’s thinking all the time. You know how bad thinking can be!”

These guys are way off the mark, but I was an outsider and couldn’t say anything. Now, I’d learned enough from Mom to know there’s a big fucking gorilla of a problem inside his pretty little head somewhere. These guys were blind. Didn’t they notice those happy and carefree moments down by the lake? He must have always been like he was on that day. Couldn’t they see it? And now this Kathy shit is also riling him up. Well, her brother certainly knows how to calm him down ...hehe.

Gary: “I think maybe we have to make sure David and Kathy become boyfriend and girlfriend as soon as possible. It’s what’s gonna give him direction; someone to care for--a regular routine.”

Nels: “I think you’re on to something Gary. I know Lauri kind of keeps me levelheaded. In fact, between Lauri, me, Mel and you, we ought to be able to get this going as soon as he gets back.”

Gary: “I’m thinking we should do it even before he comes back!”

Sam: “I don’t know guys. You better be awfully careful. You know the law of unintended consequences? This is our friend you’re messing around with.”

Gary: “I know you mean well Sam, but there are some things only guys in solid relationships understand.”

Ouch!! Now David had told me a little about Sam. He really respected him. He thinks Sam had a knack for seeing through situations pretty clearly. Well, it seems Gary and Nels didn’t share such thinking. They sorta blew off Sam’s concerns. They acted like anyone who doesn’t have a girlfriend didn’t understand shit.

That only left Danny and me.

Danny: “I don’t like this at all. You can’t do this to people. You can’t do this to David! You can’t pretend to be his puppet masters and work-jerk his strings. I’m pissed-off with you guys, to say the least. And you know, by horsey-forcing them together, this could tank! It’ll make his problem, whatever it is, so much worse.”

Gary: “Twoey, what do you think?”

“I don’t know guys. I’ve only been here a couple weeks and David and I didn’t really get off to the best start. I don’t think I can add anything important. But whatever you do, be careful. My mom thinks he’s fragile. There might be a lot more going on than you think.”

Nels: “Well, now I’m more convinced we have to do this, Gary. Nothing fixes fragile like a girlfriend.”

Danny locked eyes with me, but we didn’t say anything more. They all left and went home, with Nels having the last word. Was I chicken shit? Did I just piss off Danny?

Now I am worried, more than ever.