*** Abandoned Skatepark with lots of Graffiti***
” Dude, I don’t think this is a good idea”, Dave said.
” Man fuck that! Ain’t no way I’m gonna let him go just like that”, I said.
” Alright man, I ain’t gonna argue no more. Let’s just do this quickly before we get into any more trouble”, he said as he picked up his baseball bat.
” That’s the spirit!”, I said and gave him a smack on the shoulder.
” So what’s the plan anyway?”, Dave asked.
” Well, I got some intel that he usually comes here in the mornings to do some “private business” “, I emphasized with my fingers.
” Private business?”, Dave asked.
” Yeah, I think it’s got something to do with crack or so”, I said.
” Oh that’s nasty! So he’s a geeker?”, he asked.
” Yeah prolly”, I replied.
Just then he walked into the park, strolling over to a bench nearby. ” That’s him right?”, Dave asked.
” Yup, that’s him alright”, I replied, ” now let’s go teach his ass a lesson”, I said as I picked up my metal rod. Then I and Dave walked over to the bench from behind. He had already began to roll up some crack, when he noticed our shadows in front of his.
” What the…”, he said as he quickly turned to look behind him. ” Clang!”, it echoed as I swung my metal rod right at his head. He fell off the bench and lay almost lifeless on the ground , his fingers twitching sporadically as blood began to spread out from underneath his head.
” Jesus man! what the fuck?”, Dave asked, surprised by what had happened. ” You didn’t have to hit him that hard!”, he yelled.
” Shhhhhhh!”, I hushed him as I quickly covered his mouth. ” You better shut your mouth if you don’t want us to get into real trouble”, I muttered to him as gently took my hand off his mouth.
” Get your hands off me”, he said as he smacked my hand away and walked out angrily.
” Dave! Dave! Come on man, get back here”, I said as I went after him. ” Dave”, I said as I pulled him by the shoulder. Then he turned back and landed a huge punch right on my face, knocking me to the ground. I tasted a little blood on my lips.
” Stay away from me Jerry!”, he said with his index finger pointed at me, ” This is your mess so you better…..”.
” Bang! “, a gunshot resonated through the air interrupting Dave. It came from behind me. I quickly turned around, and there the bastard was, laying on the ground in a pool of his own blood with a gun in his hand.
” Why you crazy…”, I said while gritting my teeth as I stood up and walked over towards him, then knelt over him and began to punch him in the face repeatedly. ” This is for harassing my dad, you son of a bitch!”, I said in rage, punching him in the face with all the strength I could muster. I had nearly deformed his face when I heard Dave’s voice. I turned my head to the side to take a look and he lay on the floor, with blood oozing out of his mouth and thick patch of blood spreading out on his shirt.
” Dave!”, I yelled as I got off the other guy and ran towards him. I got on my knees and lifted his upper body up into my arms, with my hand supporting his head.
” I got hit man”, he said in low weak voice.
” Don’t worry, I’m gonna get you to the hospital right away!”, I said as I tried to lift him off the ground. ” Arrghh!”, he groaned in pain when I tried.
” Stop it Jerry, it’s no use”, he said.
” Shut up Dave!”, I said as tears welled up in my eyes, ” shut the fuck up and save your strength. Let me try calling an ambulance”, I said as I frantically searched for my phone.
” And risk going to jail for murder?”, he said.
” It’s worth it if nothing happens to you”, I said while still searching.
” It’s no use bro, I’m not gonna make it”, he said, ” I can literally see my life flashing before my eyes”, he added as he stared into the distance, smiling.
” You will okay?”, I cried, ” I’m gonna save you”, I assured him. I finally found the phone and was about to call for an ambulance.
” I guess this is it Jerry”, he said in a very weak shaky voice, as he began to smile.
” Stop saying that, man”, I said trying to hold back my tears.
” Tell me I look cool. I’ve always wanted to go out in style”, he said as he turned his head so he could look me in the eye. He had such a blissful look on his face.
” You look cool as hell. Justin Beiber’s got nothing on you bro”, I said with a smile as tears rolled down my cheeks. His breathing became heavy, I could tell he was struggling.
” That’s nice”, he said with a sigh, ” and I know this is gonna sound gay…( wheezing )…. but I love you bro”, he said with his voice more shaky as he began to wheeze profusely. His eyelids began to close gradually.
” Dave! Dave! Stay with me Dave!”, I said as I shook him slightly. His eyes slowly opened and he looked at me.
” I guess it’s time for me to go”, he said, ” tell Mom and Dad I love them, and Chanel too” he added.
” No Dave, you’re gonna make it okay? I’m calling the ambulance right now”, I said as I used my other hand to dial their number.
” Hello, this is 911, what’s your emergency?”, a female voice answered.
” My brother has been shot and is bleeding seriously, I need an ambulance”, I said.
” Jerry”
” Okay sir, what’s your location?”, she asked.
” Jerry”
” We’re at the Skatepark, the one beside the Greenhill river”, I replied.
” Jerry”
” What is it Dave?!”, I yelled, ” Please save your strength, okay? We can still save you “, I said. He said nothing but smiled warmly at me.
” Hello? hello?”, the female voice called, ” are you still there?”.
” Thank you bro”, he said with a smile so tear-jerking, you’d think he was the Buddha. Then his head fell to the side, with the smile gradually fading away and his eyes staring into the horizon
” Oh my god, Dave? Dave! Dave !!”
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“…. Dave… Dave”, he groaned in his sleep.
” Jeremy! Jeremy!!!”, I yelled at him.
” Wait… who.. what.. where…”, he blabbered as he suddenly woke up, looking around like he was on sentry duty.
” Shut up idiot, and I’m over here”, I said. Then he suddenly turned to face me.
” Janet! are you okay? I was worried they’d hurt you”, he said.
” Says the guy who’s been sleeping ever since I woke up. Gee thanks for worrying so much”, I said sarcastically rolling my eyeballs.
” I wasn’t sleeping, I passed out from being beaten”, he explained.
” Like I can’t already see that from your face”, I said, ” besides, why’d they kidnap us?”, I asked.
” One of them, who prolly is their leader judging from his demeanor, said that your brother disrespected him and his gang blah blah blah. Sounded like bullshit to me”, he said.
” Urrghh! I knew Tristan had a hand in this!”, I said.
” Tristan? Who’s that?”, he asked.
” He’s my older brother”, I replied.
” Wait, I thought Jared was your older brother?”, he said.
” Yeah he is, Tristan’s my other brother”, I said.
” Well, I sure hope we can make it out of this mess”, he said with a deep sigh.
” We’ll make it out. I’m sure Jared will find us. I just hope he does so soon”, I said.
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*** Morning at Justin’s Residence***
” Aunt Maddie! Aunt Maddie!”, I heard the kids yelling as they banged on my door. ” Hooooooaaaahhh!”, I yawned as I sat up on the bed, ” What’s all the ruckus about so early in the morning?”, I grumbled. I got off the bed and noticed that I wasn’t feeling that much pain anymore from my wound. ” Hmmm, that was fast”, I thought as I walked to get the door.
” You guys better have a good reason why you…”
” Aunt Maddie! Mom is asking for you!”, Aiden said excitedly.
” Yeah, she says she wants to see you”, Amelia echoed while Nathan kept banging his walker against the wall.
” Alright alright, I’m coming already sheesh”, I said and then took a look at Nathan, ” Uhhmm, you guys might wanna give your brother a hand”, I said.
” Nah, he’ll get the hang of it”, Amelia said.
” Yeah, he just needs to work on his sense of direction, that’s all”, Aiden added. I rolled my eyeballs and then went over to Nathan and turned his walker in another direction and he immediately zoomed off in a series of rather haphazard movements.
” He’s really pathetic at walking”, Amelia said in a rather disappointed voice.
” Yeah, he could star in the Flintstones with his driving skills”, Aiden quipped, making both of them laugh.
” Stop being so hard on him. He’ll get the hang of it with time”, I said, ” now let’s go see your mom”, I said.
* A few minutes later****
” Knock! knock! knock!”, I knocked on their room door.
” Yes come in”, I heard Isabelle’s voice say. Then I opened the door slowly, taking a peek before I opened it fully and walked in. There she was, sitting on the bed.
” Good morning sis”, she said to me with a warm smile. There was something odd about her behavior today.
” Wow, you called me sis. Well that’s a start”, I said.
” Mneso, it’s me. I got my memories back”, she said.
” Wait, no way. For real?”, I asked as I tried to suppress my excitement.
” Yeah, for real”, she said nodding vehemently.
” Does Justin know about this?”, I asked.
” Yeah he does”, she replied, ” he was gonna tell you but he was in a hurry to get to the office”, she added.
” Oh my god! I missed you so much Izzy”, I said as I ran over to give her a hug.
” Same here.”, she said with a melancholy look.
” What’s the matter?”, I asked.
” It’s nothing. I just feel bad that I actually forgot you guys, despite everything we’ve been through together”, she said.
” It’s not your fault sis”, I said, patting her on the shoulder, ” anyone would have, in your shoes. Don’t worry, none of us is angry”, I added.
” Thanks a lot sis”, she said as she hugged me.
” Hey, what are sisters for?”, I said as I hugged her back.
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*** At Royal Resorts***
” Janet? Janet, where are you?”, I called as I opened the door, ” did she go out with her boyfriend again?”, I wondered. ” Maybe I should call her”, I muttered as I dug my hand into my pocket and brought out my phone. I dialed her number.
” Why won’t you pick up?”, I questioned and tried again a few more times. ” Dammit! Something’s not right”, I thought. ” I hope she’s okay”, I muttered as I lay down on the bed and fell asleep.