Chapter V

Jamie and Walter sat across from each other with two beers between them and four empty mugs. Unspoken, its unspoken.

Walter put the beer against his chin and Jamie smirked. "Hurts don't it?"

"You think. You're glad Baptiste wasn't in the mood to fight."

"It didn't look like it and those guys seemed pretty eager too. Even though, you're friends." Estranged friends maybe.

"Trust me. If he was, he would have acted differently when you were going to stab Safari."

"How could that have gone better?"

Walter turned his beer around. "He was um. He was...emotional."

"That wouldn't explain why he didn't fight. It would explain why he threw a punch in the first place. Right?"

Walter looked up at Jamie and couldn't help a whisky chuckle. "Nope. No, no, no Baptiste is introverted like you and me. The bigger he acts is just that, an act. So that you look his way, ya know. So the way he was tonight," He nodded his head in agreement with himself. "Was truly him. He acts temperamental and seems like he'll lose control. Any act of violence or cruelty is to uphold this image that he thinks everyone likes. The first time we met, Baptiste and me. His image, isn't what made us friends.

When I was ten years old, I came home to find my house trashed. I don't know why I knew, but I knew. My dad was always in with the wrong crowd. I would here my mom yelling at him. She yelled at him about everything but really just that.. They fought a lot, so I just knew that I was all by myself. I didn't tell anyone or even go look for them. I just stayed there. Minutes turned to hours and then the next day came and no one.

So, I went to school and everything. Did my homework like a good little boy. I found my dads stash of loose cash. I guess whatever happened they didn't give him a chance to pay up. I used that to eat. The power went out but I still had money so I lit candles.

I went to school and everything, did my homework like a good little boy would. Then I ran out of money. The landlord was stopping by more and more frequently. I would tell her my parents were on vacation. All I ate was the breakfast and lunch they served at the school. After I finished my homework I would go right to sleep to avoid being awake, for the hunger.

I went to school and everything I did my homework like a good boy should. I had run out of money but had no plan for the weekend. That entire Saturday I stayed in the house. I tried to sleep as long as I could. I slept in until a little after noon. I stayed in my bed all day clutching my stomach I was sooo hungry. I cursed at them. How could they leave their son. How, damnit? I was all alone, why, if there was a god why? I always did what I was told. My teachers all praised me. They would say I was the smartest student in the class when no kids were around. Why why why me? I couldn't stay in the house, I had to get out. I spent the night wandering the streets. My clothes were all dirty and stained. I asked everyone I could find for not even money. Just a meal. They looked down at me and silently shoved me off.

I went into a market shop. I don't know that I was there to steal anything. I just was hoping she would help me. I looked up and saw she was looking at me. Someone was looking at me. I thought, yes, she sees me. Someone sees me, she can tell.

"Are you going to steal something? Where are your parents?"

It was the first time I had to actually think about where they were. Think about their bodies. Decaying purple bloodied. Buried in the dirt, floating in a river, or not purple but black. Burned and unrecognizable. This bitch. There I was in front of this lady, balling harder than that kid lost in the market. It was worse. I don't know what's worse than being lost but I was there. I don't know. It was all I could get out. I spewed snot and tears all over the floor.

"Hey damn lady. What did you do to my little brother."

"What? I don't know why he's crying."

"Well you better apologize or I'll go get my mom."

"I'm sorry I don't know what happened he just started crying."

"Hey little bro it'll be okay. Let's go and we're taking some of these too and some of these."

"Hey!"

"Wait till I tell my mom she's gonna have this whole place shut down."

We left there and Baptiste introduced me to the rest of the gang. Baptiste was a runaway and had been living in the streets for a while. His dad used to rough him up and he just left for school one day and never went to school. We were the same, worse than lost. We stayed in an abandoned house not too far from the city for a while. Then baptiste started serving and we were his muscle. Until I guess I got tired."

Walter finished his beer. There were three rounds of empty beers on the table. Jamie finished his at the beginning.

They were going to need another round.

TO BE CONTINUED...

Thanks for reading!