* FiFtEeN * Home

This is back to Taryn's view.

"Is she all right?" I heard Kei ask.
"She said the slit on her neck didn't reach her throat, but Rio got her arm pretty deep," replied Koki calmly.
"Is she awake?" Dan questioned close to where Kei's voice came from.
"I'm not sure. She might be forcing herself to stay awake as usual. She's lost a lot of blood. Have you gotten Steve bandaged up?"
"Yeah, he needs to go to a hospital though. He's coughing up some blood," Dan said quietly.
"Who should meet with Tai and Shylo?" Kei asked.
"Hm . . . Kei, how about you carry Steve, and Dan can go with you. I'll take Taryn to her house. I'm sure she wants to see it."
"If Steve wasn't so old and heavy, someone else could carry him," Kei said with obvious sarcasm. "I saw that smile, Steve! I know you're still awake." Then I heard Kei giving off a loud and fake grunt as he picked up Steve. "Ah, my back!" he shouted.
I chuckled quietly, but everyone heard.
"I knew you were awake, too, Taryn!" Kei shouted playfully.
"Trying to stay awake," I corrected.
"Can you walk?" Koki asked.
"Yeah, my arm is the only thing in pain."
"What exactly happened to your neck anyway?" Koki asked, while putting me back on my feet.
"Well, Kei, Dan, and Steve ran in, and Kei freed me. After he did that, Rio came over and tried to slash at Kei, but he ducked. Instead Rio's slash barely hit my neck. Then Kei pushed me to the ground, so I couldn't get hit anymore. Then I decided to go wake you up carefully," I explained. "Oh, and Rio stepped on my arm in the process. That jerk."
"He cut your arm open; that's bad enough," Kei said angrily. "And you stole Koki's shirt!" He smirked.
I looked at the now shirtless Koki then to my right arm. "Oh . . . well, we can find some new clothes for us at my house."
"Tai better have nice shirts," Koki stated.
"You can always wear mine, if he doesn't," I teased.
"Yeah right! I'd rip them with these washboard abs!" Koki said, posing as if he was a macho man.
I poked his wound from long ago, while he cringed. "Work on them." I turned to Kei, Steve and Dan. "You guys should start heading to the hospital. When you're done, just come to my house," I said with a smile.
"Okay. We'll be back. No surprises," Kei said with a wink.
They headed to the car.
"Let's go see what Tai and Shylo found."
"'No surprises'?" Koki repeated, massaging his wound.
"Something always happens apparently?" I shrugged.
"All right, let's go."

"What's this?" I asked with surprise as we looked upon a few dead men in front of my house.
"Looks like it was guarded?" Koki guessed.
"Hm . . . " I opened the door quickly. "Ya! I'm home!"
"Taryn! Tai's bragging again!" Shylo shouted, running into the hallway.
"Hey! I am n-"
Shylo elbowed Tai in the stomach as he came up behind her.
"Tchh! Yes . . . I am," he said silently.
I rolled my eyes. "We're going to go get changed into something less . . . bloody."
"Ooh! Shirtless Koki. Re-ow!" Shylo winked with her hands as paws.
"Whoa! I can be shirtless, too!" Tai argued.
Shylo smirked at me, while I looked over at Koki who was blushing. I chuckled. "Tai, do you have nice and clean shirts?"
"Oh course," he replied simply.
"I'm gonna steal one," Koki stated and headed for Tai's room.
"You can't just go into my room!"
"I'm breaking and entering then taking something . . . that's the point of stealing, genius."
Tai fumed silently. "Oh, fine! Don't take anything besides pants and shirts!"
"Ooh, Taryn, I picked an outfit out for you! Let's go!" Shylo exclaimed excitedly and pulled my injured arm to follow her.
"Bad arm, bad arm!" I cringed.
"Oh, so sorry!" apologized Shylo. "What happened?!" Her face was now worried.
"Rio got away, that's all that happened," I answered angrily.
"Let me fix this," Shylo said pulling off Koki's ripped up shirt pieces. "I'm guessing this is why Koki is shirtless."
I nodded as I watched her look at the huge cut down my arm.
"Sooo . . . are you going to tell me what happened, while I do this?"
I sighed, "Rio grabbed me and chained me to a desk. Then he cut my arm, and later he slashed my neck after Kei came to help me. Dan killed Koki and Kei's mom, and Rio ended up getting away . . . injured."
"At least he got injured," Shylo stated, starting on my neck.
I was silent.
"Why isn't Kei and the rest here?"
"Steve got injured, also. Kei has the super-strength, so Koki had him carry Steve to the hospital with Dan."
"Aw, poor Steve," Shylo sighed. "There, all done."
"Thanks. So what's the outfit?" I asked with curiosity.
"Let's go!" Shylo ran up the stairs, and I followed.
I walked into my room to see her holding up my nice red tank-top, a long-sleeved black undershirt, a pair of skinny jeans, and my brown combat boots like the ones I'm wearing. "Thanks for making it a simple and comfortable outfit!" I exclaimed excitedly.
"I've been your best friend for how long now?! Do you expect me to forget how you dress or something?" Shylo teased.
"Yeah, yeah, I get it," I sighed with a smile. I observed my best friend with her permed, shoulder-length, and bright blonde hair. She was wearing something different, too. She had a green short-sleeved shirt under a white tank-top, dark jeans, and her white sneakers. She pushed the outfit toward me, and I accepted it. I cleaned myself up a bit in the bathroom, brushed my ridiculously long and knotty hair out, changed into the outfit, and brushed my teeth. I walked out, and Shylo was looking at my sketchbook. She noticed I came in and looked at me with a smirk.
"So which one is it?" she asked, lifting the book to where I could see a horrible drawing of what was supposed to be Kei or Koki from a memory.
"I don't know. Koki never pointed out all of the times it was him," I answered.
"What if it was Koki that you actually started to like at that time?" Shylo asked, eying me carefully.
I thought for a few seconds, "Well, I guess I'll never know, now will I?"
"Hey! Who's hungry? I am! Especially after that awesome battle starring me!" Tai came barging in.
Shylo put her hand beside her mouth in the whispering fashion and loud-whispered to me, "He acts like killing those two guys out front was a huge battle!"
"There were four!!" Tai argued.
"See what I mean?" Shylo winked at me.
I smiled at their silliness.
"Hey, I'm going to go make sure there's no more guys hanging around the house's proximity," Koki said, poking his head into the room.
"I'll go with!" Tai volunteered.
"If you really want to," Koki smiled.
They walked off to go patrolling.
"Hey! What about the food?!" Shylo shouted, but the front door shut by the time all her words came out.
"I guess we have to make the food. Well, let's make a feast!" Shylo exclaimed.
I chuckled, "I don't think there will be any food that's good since I haven't been home for so many days."
Shylo stared at me as she processed what I said, "Oh . . . well, that sucks."
"We can go to the small grocery store down the road like old times," I said happily.
"Yeah, let's go!" Shylo shot up, grabbed the door knob, and opened the door like a flash.
As soon as she looked out into the hallway, we both heard a kind of bump from what used to be my parents' room. We both froze into place and looked at each other in surprise.
"Did Tai maybe go in there to get something quick?" I asked.
Shylo silently answered, "No, he refused to go into that room at all."
"Maybe something fell-Oh!-maybe my mom's bird sculpture!" That sculpture was my favorite out of all the ones my mother made. It was a beautiful cardinal that stayed perched on her bookshelf. "Let's go see!"
We walked to the room calmly. I hoped it wasn't broken or shattered from being neglected for so long.

Author's Note

Tell me what you think, please. This took forever for me to actually finish. ^^'