Chapter Two-New Beginnings

Chapter 2

            The smell of the cigarette smoke was strong in my lungs. Its end glowed a deep red once it was puffed. The smell was almost unbearable as the smoke filled the room, the smoke from the cigarette.

            I woke up in a sweat panting and gasping for fresh air. I looked around the room, it was just as I had left it last night. With a bloody kid on the couch and the lights left on. I sat up and flicked them off letting the morning light come flooding into the house.

            I peeled of my shirt and threw it on the kitchen table, it was stained with dry blood. I took a rag doused it with water and scrubbed the kid’s blood off of my own arms and side. He still lay on the couch unmoved from where we had put last night. He breathed in and out steadily as if he hadn’t have been beaten. A cut that was at his forehead had turned blue at the edges as if it were a punch or a kick that had opened it up. Another bruise accompanied his forehead at the cheek along with a few on his arms.

            From down the hallway, the water was running, Carmen was up.

            I took a pan from the sink full of dirty dishes and put it on the stove. All I found in the fridge were a couple of pieces of bacon, half a loaf of bread being eaten by fungus, and a bruised apple. I took the bacon-my best bet for any type of breakfast- and put it on the pan.

            I looked out the window, coming down the street was Jimmy, Jim to his friends. He kept his shirt unbuttoned to show off any kind of muscles he had. He disregarded the fact that the gate was hanging open and jumped the fence, a habit he was used to. He had practiced his trick while running from the cops on many occasions. His brown hair was slicked back with cheap grease. He waved to me through the window and stepped into the house.

“Hey Milo.” He said, “Whoa, who’s the kid?”

“I don’t know, Carmen and I found him after a fight with the socs.”

“I guess he lost.” Jim laughed at his joke and sat down in the chair, “Where’s Carmen?”

“Here.”

“No kiddn’.” He said sarcastically.

“No kiddn’.” I told him, “Where’s the others?”

“Lucky and Rick found a couple of dates last night, so they won’t be here till later.”

“Danny-boy?”

“He’s a ’comin’.”

            The bacon sizzled and sent out a sweet sent that smelled too good to wait for. I plucked the bacon form the pan, careful not to burn my fingertips though I did so anyways. From the couch I heard a muffled groan.

“Milo he’s wakein’ up.” Jim said.

“So?”

            Jim stood up and sat on the counter top next to me he picked up a piece of bacon from the plate and quickly ate it, wiping the bacon grease on his jeans.

“It’s not cooked all the way.” He said smacking his lips.

“You can cook em then, but I’m hungry.” I sat at the kitchen table and pushed the shirt back away from me.

            I watched as Don sat slowly rubbing his head opening up the wound on his forehead. He studied the blood on his fingers momentarily then looked up, “Where am I?”

“My house.” I said in-between a slice of bacon. He sat back and blinked.

“What happened?”

“You got beat up by a couple of socs kid.”

“I ain’t no kid.”

“Shoot, you sure look it.” Jim said from his perch on the counter top.

“Me and my sister found ya, took you home. Couldn’t take you to the hospital, you didn’t have enough to pay the bill, I wasn’t gonna get stuck with it.”

            He reached into his back pocket and tried to stand up but couldn’t, the pain had got to him.

“Relax kid, my sisters got it.” I told him.

            Carmen walked through the hallway, her hair was wet and put up into her baseball cap. She had on a t-shirt on and a pair of blue jeans and a leather jacket.

“Give him the wallet.” I told her, she stopped and reached into her pocket then tossed Don his wallet. He made no attempt to catch it, he let it fall to the floor in front of him he slowly bent over and picked it up.

“Hey’a squirt.” Jim said to her.

“Hey.” Carmen said.

            Don reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes.

“You shouldn’t smoke.” I told him.

“One won’t hurt.” He said, he lit it and put it in his mouth. Then he put the pack into his jacket along with his wallet.

“Put it out.” I told him.

“Why? What’s the deal?” he sucked in and the end turned black, then red.

            I got up and moved swiftly towards him taking the cigarette form his mouth and stubbing it out on the tip of the coffee table. It’s stubbed out end left a small dark circle and grey smoke that left a light scent.

“What’s your problem?” He said fairly annoyed, as I turned away from him.

“Don’t kid.” Jim said to Don.

“I don’t see what the big deal is.” He said reaching into his pocket to get another.

“They killed his mom.” Jim said.

            The room was silent, Don put his pack back into his jacket and put his hand down. I sat back into my seat, in front of me was the empty plate that Carmen had helped herself to. No one said anything.