Fighting For Life

by Kylie Alyssa Forte

“Dude what the hell did you do to Bridget?” Brandon asked while sitting next to me.

  “I reminded her of exactly where her place was in my life, and she didn’t like it too much.”

  “She’s been staring daggers at you since you got here,” he told me.

  I looked over at her at the other side of the table. Sure enough, she was staring at me like a crazed psychopath. I rolled my eyes at her childishness.

  “She’s also staring at Aubry like she’s going to tear her head off. Frankly, I’m putting my money on Aubry. She’s a little firecracker. Except, what happened this morning. She froze. She better not do that in a real fight,” Brandon babbled.

  I followed his gaze to Aubry; she was laid out on a table, dead asleep. “I don’t know . . . Something happened this morning. She wasn’t just running to run, we both saw her ribs. There’s no way she would just all of a sudden decide to run. No, she was definitely running from something or someone.”

  “Do you think it’s whoever did that to her? Maybe they were trying to finish the job?” Brandon asked skeptically as he watched the sleeping girl.

  “I don’t know; it definitely could have been . . .” I nodded and felt an unexplained rush of rage run through me.

  I got up and left the cafeteria. I was so done with the whole stupid day, and it was only lunch time.

  ***

  Aubry

  I was walking quickly on an unpopulated street as I made my way to school which was probably less than a mile or so away. It was still drizzling outside, and the air was cool on my exposed skin. I was hurting and so ready to be at my destination. I was saving time with the slight shortcut down the not-so-good street that I took. I wasn’t too worried about it, though. After all, the area where I grew up in was way worse, so I figured that I would be fine.

  I passed by a familiar black SUV in front of a cream-colored one-story house. I quickened my pace as soon as I realized whose car that was. I just prayed that he was actually inside the house and not waiting in the car for his muscles to do his dirty work for him.

  “Well, well, well, what do we have here?” I heard from behind me in the voice that I know all too well. I knew that was just wishful thinking. I didn’t stop at his words; I just continued to walk briskly down the street.

  “Hey bitch, stop,” he demanded.

  I did not oblige.

  Suddenly, I felt nails scrape the flesh on my scalp as he yanked my hair forcefully. I whimpered as he pulled me backwards.

  “I said stop, you whore!” he said, turning me around to face him.

  “What do you want, Daniel?” I spat out as he tightened his grip in my hair. I wouldn’t be surprised if I got a bald spot. He pulled my head back to meet his bloodshot and angry eyes, indicating that he was drunk.

  “Have you gotten our money yet?” he slurred while looking at the front door of the house and scooting me closer to the other side of the building. I tried to resist, but I was little so it was easy to maneuver me.

  “It’s been like a single day, so no, obviously I haven’t pulled twenty-five thousand dollars out of thin air,” I spat out venomously.

  Obviously, talking to him like that while in the predicament that I was in wasn’t the wisest decision, but honestly, fuck ’em. I was so angry. Very angry. Angry at my body for hurting, angry at the man in front of me for doing this to my body, but most of all, angry at myself for letting this happen to me.

  Daniel bit out a bitter laugh at my words. “Oh, so you think you’re grown up now? You think you can talk to me like that?” He pushed me against the brick house and pressed himself against me, trapping me. “God, you sure are stupid, aren’t you? Even your drug addict whore of a mother wasn’t this stupid.” He paused. “Now, your father on the other hand . . . he definitely is.”

  He looked me over. “You know, there has always been speculation around you,” he said cryptically. “People have always suspected Demetri to be your real daddy, not Frank. I know though, you’re Frank’s little girl. You’re an imbecile just like him.”

  He laughed in my face as I took in his information that he was spouting off. Was that true?

  “Yep, you got your mother’s looks but your father’s brain. Your sister never acted like this. Kelsey always was the smart one, the more liked one, the good one. Not prettier though, you have her beat out for that one, she looks too much like Frank. You, on the other hand, look just like Jenny. How my brother has restrained himself all these years, I’ll never know. Your mother was always fun and up for anything. I do understand my brother liking her in that aspect. I bet you’re just as fun.” He ran his hand up my thigh as he babbled drunkenly.

  I froze as he touched me. There was no way that I was going to allow whatever was going through his brain to happen to me. I pushed him as hard as I could, but the man didn’t even flinch.

  “Mmm, your fighting back makes me even harder,” he said nastily while he grabbed my hand and put it on his groin to let me feel his hard length.

  I almost threw up at the feeling. Without thinking of anything else to do, I shoved my opened palm as hard as I could into the place where he held my hand. He grunted painfully and shoved me back against the brick wall, making my head bounce off and vision blur due to the impact.

  “Why can’t you just be good? Your sister always did this for me. Hell, I think she even liked it. Let me show you.”

  He unzipped his pants. I was panicking as he came towards me with his dick exposed. My breathing hitched as he got closer. I had to get myself out of that messed up situation!

  I took a deep breath with my sides hurting and head pounding. I let that pain fuel me, the pain that he caused me. I was panicking and did the only thing I could think of. I curled my fist just how Aiden had taught me and flung it towards his face as hard as I possibly could. I felt something come into contact and heard a deafening crack. I made sure to follow through just like Aiden had told me to do, and suddenly, Daniel was there laying on the ground at my feet.

  I stared at him as he cradled his nose from the ground, groaning. His dick was still out in the open, and blood was dripping from his face profusely. My eyes grew wide when it finally clicked in my head what I had just done. Daniel’s face began turning to me, so I instantly took off running away as fast as I possibly could.

  I felt tears running down my face as my fear finally caught up with me. I really didn’t know why I was crying; maybe it was out of relief, or maybe because I basically just wished a death sentence upon myself.

  It didn’t matter to me though, I just ran. I didn’t look back to see if he was chasing me. I didn’t stop to catch my breath although my ribs were hurting like crazy. I didn’t even stop to see if my head was bleeding from hitting the wall so hard. I just ran for my life.

  The school came into view, and I dove for the door quickly. I knew that I’d be safe within the walls. I opened the heavy door and slid inside. I finally stopped running when the door slammed shut behind me.

  I couldn’t hear a single thing besides my own heart thudding in my ears and my desperate and painful gasps of breath. My vision was hazy and blurred due to lack of oxygen and the swimming in my head. I was simply focusing on trying to breathe in and out, in and out.

  When my vision was finally beginning to clear, I realized that Bridget Walker was directly in front of me. Everyone was staring at the both of us, and I was thoroughly confused. I looked around at everyone trying to figure out what I had missed, but before I could get my bearings back, she pushed me forcefully into the door frame. I gasped in pain as my ribs strained against the hard surface.

  What she was saying to me was completely irrelevant. I couldn’t hear anything that she said due to the glaring pain in my mind. I just stood there and tried to breathe through the painful events that were playing out.

  Today day was just not my day.

  I truly was uninterested in whatever words were coming out of her stupid mouth. I was just worried about my battered body. I wanted to hit the stup
id girl just like I had done to Daniel, but I knew that hitting the Barbie would simply end with me getting in trouble. She probably would not even get reprimanded.

  After just a moment, Aiden came to my rescue before I got myself in some serious trouble by causing her bodily harm. He quickly attached his lips to her and dragged her away. I could see the serious concern in his eyes for me though . . . maybe the boy did have a heart somewhere in his body.

  As soon as he dragged her away, I straightened myself out and got off the harsh metal doorframe. My ribs thanked me for removing them from the strain. The pain from the two very recent events had caught up to me, and I found myself slumped against the wall. I silently slid onto the floor as I coached myself on how to breathe again. Breathing was awful and hurting.

  I ignored everyone around me until the small crowd dispersed. They didn’t like it when their subject didn’t give a damn about them. I was solely focused on trying to get myself under control and combat the terrible pain running through me.

  I tried to get up from the floor to go sort myself out, but my ribs protested strongly.

  “Shit,” I muttered aloud painfully.

  There was a hand in front of my face when I practically gave up trying to get up. I was actually thinking of curling up and just taking a nap there in that hallway. I probably wouldn’t have even been noticed for a while.

  I met Brandon’s eyes and took his outstretched hand. He helped me up as gently as he could and studied me as tears came to my eyes from my change in position. He knew that I was in bad shape; he had seen my back earlier.

  “Thank you,” I whispered softly.

  He nodded and looked at me with soft eyes. The bell rang, and he headed off to class without saying anything to me. I knew that there were so many questions swimming in his head. Aiden’s too, I was sure.

  I went to the restroom. I needed to get myself together before I even thought about going to class. I took the time to look in the mirror on the wall and sighed heavily. The girl who was staring back at me wasn’t even me anymore. Of course, it hadn’t been me for a very long while.

  My brunette hair was now lifeless, dull, and tangled. My pale skin was so discolored by makeup and bruises, you couldn’t even see the little freckles that I had naturally scattered around my cheeks. My small body was too thin and splattered with old scars and new bruises. I looked directly into my green eyes; they were bloodshot and lifeless.

  I should have just let Demetri kill me. It would have been easier.

  I let an exasperated sigh and began redoing my makeup. I was thankful that it had actually held up as well as it had. I combed through my hair and straightened out my clothes. I was still a mess, but I looked more like my normal self than before.

  I took a deep painful breath and walked out of the restroom towards my first period. I had half a mind to leave the building and just try again the next day instead. It had already been such a long day.

  Chapter Ten

  Done

  At lunchtime, I was over it. I was sick and tired of school. Everything was grating on my nerves and making me angry. Every move was painful, and I really just needed some sleep.

  The bell mocked me with its shrill alarm, signaling that the lunch that I didn’t have was over. It was also the same thing that had woken me up. I was sick of the small intervals of sleep I was getting. I wanted a year and a half of sleep, not twenty minutes.

  Everyone around me left the cafeteria, but I simply could not convince myself to go to my next period. I was done. I didn’t want to go anymore.

  My body hurt too badly to move most times, and I was going to have a mental breakdown if things continued the way they were going. Both of the events from that morning made whatever was going on in my ribs way worse, and my head was spinning and making me dizzy. Not even the pain pill that Aiden had given me helped in alleviating the pain.

  I slowly stood up from the cafeteria table that I was still sitting at and simply just walked out of the building. I was done. I didn’t want to be there anymore. I was sure that someone had asked me something, or even followed me out yelling at me that it was against the rules to do that, but I paid no attention. I was done.

  I let my feet walk as I tried to keep my mind as dull as possible. I didn’t want to think or even breathe, in all honesty. I just wanted some rest.

  I found myself back in front of the big warehouse-like building again. I guess the place just called out to me. That, or my mind knew that I would have to go there eventually, so it just took me there way too early instead.

  I walked up to the big doors and got ready to lean up against them to wait just like I had done that morning. I figured that Aiden would still be at school, and the gym hours on the door were weird. They only stayed open from 3 PM until 9 PM.

  It was a strange place, but Aiden seemed to be the one running it, so the hours made sense for a high school student. I just had to wonder why a high school student was running a gym.

  I carefully leaned my back up against the door, so I didn’t hurt my ribs any more than necessary. As soon as I put almost all of my weight against the solid door, it pushed open, and I fell hard backwards. I laid in the threshold of the doorway, contemplating life at that moment. Just as I thought about getting up, the big black door came back from being slammed open and hit me harshly on the side of my head.

  I instantly just started crying. It wasn’t that it hurt too badly. I mean, yes it hurt to fall when I was already so injured and to be bashed on the side of my head by a door, but I was mostly just crying because of the day that I was having. Honestly, I just wanted to die at that moment. Everything seemed to be stacking against me, and I was done.

  I didn’t get up. I didn’t move. I just laid there and cried, feeling sorry for myself. I was having such a bad day; such a bad life.

  “We’re closed.” I heard a voice echo loudly, making me painfully aware that someone was there.

  Footsteps came closer to me, but I didn’t dare move. I just thought that maybe I could act like I was dead, and whoever it was would just leave me alone. It was a stupid thought, but I truly didn’t want to deal with anyone else that day. I just wanted to go to sleep and never wake up.

  The footsteps come to a halt a couple of feet away from me. The door was getting heavier on my body by the second, and I wanted to whimper in pain. However, I just kept my eyes closed and my body relaxed.

  “Aubry?” the voice said, and I automatically opened my eyes at my name. The guy standing in front of me was tall and olive-skinned. He had black hair and deep brown eyes.

  “Tommy, right?” I asked, feeling utterly confused. He began to walk towards me, but I instinctively cringed away.

  He tilted and shook his head at my actions. “Aiden!” he screamed loudly.

  I jerked my head in the direction of the training room as I saw the blue-eyed boy walk out. His face fell drastically as soon as he saw me, and I frowned at that. I didn’t think that I was that bad. I guess that I was wrong though.

  “Aren’t you supposed to be at school?” he asked distastefully as he came closer.

  “I should ask you the same question,” I countered back. I examined him as he walked. He was sweaty and red-faced; I knew that he had been working out.

  “Why are you on the floor?”

  I rolled my eyes at his question. “Well, ya know, I really like the view from right here.” I shrugged sarcastically.

  Aiden rolled his eyes at my sarcasm, but he still held his hand out for me to take.

  “I leaned on the door, and it flung open. I expected it to be locked with no one here,” I answered before I took his hand.

  He quickly hauled me to my feet. He tried to be gentle, but it hurt greatly. When he finally got me to my feet, I stopped breathing altogether. It hurt too bad to breathe. I wanted to scream, but that would have hurt too. So, I just cried instead. It seemed to be all that I could do.

  “Breathe Aubry,” Aiden said, grabbing my face softly. “In and out, in
and out,” he chanted supportively.

  After a few moments, I finally let out a breath. I groaned as I did so, and he flinched back harshly.

  I realized that my nails were digging into his hand, and I retracted my nails. I felt bad for hurting him. “Sorry,” I said with an extremely painful wheeze.

  He shook his hand out and nodded. “It’s okay,” he answered me. “So . . . I guess they’re worse?” He gestured to my torso.

  I shrugged.

  “Tell me the truth.”

  “Yes, they hurt really badly, and I really hate it. From the incidents this morning, the pain has gotten quite severe.” I wiped my tears with my sleeve. “Plus, that pill that you gave me to take at lunch didn’t do shit.”

  Tommy snapped his head up to Aiden as soon as those words left my mouth. He wore a look of betrayal and fierce anger. Aiden just looked back at Tommy with an eyebrow raised and a simply worried look. They were obviously having some sort of silent argument. However, it quickly ended as soon as Tommy looked at me. His eyes softened, and he breathed out in acceptance.

  Did they for real just resolve a whole argument with no words at all? I was impressed.

  Aiden motioned me to follow him, and we all walked into the training room. “Tom is going to take a look at you, if that’s okay with you. He is better at that kind of thing than I am. Plus, he has way more practice since he’s always fixing all of our stupid asses’s cuts and bruises.”

  I nodded as he helped me sit down on the chair.

  “This gym belonged to Tom’s dad, my uncle. He was also a doctor, so he taught Tom a lot of things,” Aiden explained as he helped me shrug out of my hoodie. I definitely caught the way he said was instead of is.

  Aiden pulled a chair up right in front of me to sit in, which I assumed was in order to distract me while Tom touched my sensitive ribs. “So . . . while he does that, I’m going to explain the rules and how the pay works at the Underground.”

  I knew it was simply a distraction technique, but I really had no clue about how the pay worked or anything, so I was genuinely curious.