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“Rocky,” I said, “Let me go.”
“You’re not going to fight again,” he said. He released me.
I dropped to my feet, stumbling toward Silas. The bite into my ankle was more painful than before.
Silas waited until I was halfway to him before he started forward again. He collected me in his arms, pulling me up off the ground, hugging me to his body. I buried my head into his shoulder, inhaling in his ocean scent. I trembled at his touch.
Nerves caught up with me. Silas was okay. The others weren’t knocked out. We were going to be okay.
More arms surrounded my waist. Hands rubbed against my scalp. Nathan’s face swam into view but I knew the other guys were there, too. I was being hugged and touched by familiar hands.
Kota voiced a command that I didn’t catch. They shifted. Silas dropped me to the floor again. Backs were turned to me, all seven of them. They stood guard around me, challenging anyone to come closer. It was us against the school. Anyone that approached got a kick or a shove back.
Mike, Jer, Rocky and Jay and others corralled students out toward the stairs. They cleared the halls.
When there was no one left to fight, teachers materialized from the side hallways. Mr. Blackbourne and Dr. Green marched up the stairs, follows by Mr. Hendricks and a handful of other teachers. They were clutching the shoulders of some of the students. Any student remaining was fleeing out of the building. Jer and Mike and some that had taken over the fight disappeared.
“Back off, guys,” Dr. Green bellowed to us. “It’s over.”
The guys didn’t move. They waited, instead, to make sure the other students were collected up.
D ouble G rounded
Dr. Green hovered over Greg and the other students who got the worst of it. Mr. Blackbourne collected Rocky, Jay, us, and a handful of other students into one of the empty upstairs classrooms. Several of the other students had been hauled off to the main office downstairs.
Mr. Morris joined us in the classroom room, too. He stood guard at the door, his arms folded over his chest, preventing anyone from leaving. Kota, North and the others quietly assembled near the back of the room to sit at the desks. Mr. Blackbourne shot looks at the guys and me, silently warning with a secret finger to his lips to keep quiet.
North had carried me into the room and I was dropped onto a desk top. He tried to check me out for injuries but with nothing obvious and with a warning look from Mr. Blackbourne, he couldn’t do much.
I drew my knees up to my chest, wrapping my arms around my legs. I buried my head into my knees. It was the best I could do to stop the shaking. I sensed bodies crowding around me, and I breathed in Nathan’s cypress and North’s musk.
No one touched me, even as I yearned for it. Silence hung and I knew the only thing stopping Mr. Blackbourne from talking was Jay and the other students still lingering. The only thing that stopped the boys was Mr. Blackbourne’s unspoken orders.
Secrets had to be maintained.
My lungs hurt. My ankle felt twisted. I had a throbbing headache and my mouth felt numb. Someone had punched me in the face again. My hair was mangled. I pulled my head up to collect the clip still snarled into my hair. I fingered combed my hair the best I could and reclipped it into place. Keeping busy with straitening myself out kept my mind off of what just happened. I didn’t want to think about it because it got me shaking all over again.
Silas leaned against the wall, and fingered his swollen face, wincing. Gabriel’s nose was bleeding again, but he held tissues to his face to try to clear the mess. Nathan clutched his hand to his chest, the metal cast on his finger was missing. North’s left eye was swollen shut.
Kota sat in a desk, his arms folded and his head down. Gabriel and Victor were slumped over in chairs. Luke was on his back on the floor, staring up at the ceiling. The tension was heavy with unspoken anger and questions.
I sensed a motion behind me and turned on top of the desk.
“You okay?” Rocky asked, his aggressive blue-gray eyes gazing at me. He hovered over me. He didn’t look hurt. Forcing me out of the fight left him virtually untouched.
I started nodding.
His hand shot out. His thumb traced over my lower lip, re-sparking a sharp pain.
North moved into action, grabbing Rocky’s wrist.
Rocky turned, his head tilted. Confusion settling into his eyes.
“Don’t touch her,” North growled, positioning himself closer next to me. Nathan stepped closer on the other side, firing warning looks at Rocky.
Jay stood up next to Rocky. “Let him go,” he said coldly, deep, growling. I sensed movement behind me. The others were getting up to intervene.
“Stop it,” I called out. “North, let go.”
North hesitated but slowly released Rocky’s arm to gaze down at me.
I put a palm on North’s arm. I didn’t want to start another fight over something so inconsequential. I couldn’t stand anymore today. I stared down Rocky. “He helped us,” I told the others.
North grunted. The others mumbled.
Rocky pulled his thumb away, drops of my blood and saliva shining under the light. With his eyes on me, he brought his thumb to his mouth, licking my blood clean from his finger.
“Why did you start fighting?” I asked him, ignoring the growling of the guys behind me.
“No one throws a girl from the balcony,” Rocky said flatly.
“Did you know it was going to happen?”
Rocky nodded. “Happens every year. I don’t know who started it and we don’t participate. I’m fucking tired of it.”
Who did he mean by we? “But you’ve never bothered to stop it before,” I challenged.
His eyes narrowed at me but I’d made my point. It wasn’t a big deal until a girl got involved. How wrong was that?
The classroom door burst open. Mr. Hendricks stormed in, followed by a stout man wearing red Nike running pants and a zipped running jacket. A silver whistle hung off of a yellow cord around his neck. The guy pointed a finger at Jay and Rocky. “You two. And the rest of you. With me. Now.”
“Yes, coach,” Jay and Rocky said together. The other students stood up, crossing the room.
“Wait,” Mr. Blackbourne said, though listless. “We need to ask them...”
“No one interrogates my team but me,” the coach said.
Mr. Blackbourne backed off. He said what he had to say but he didn’t really appear interested in keeping them around. Mr. Hendricks stood aside, saying nothing. Jay and Rocky didn’t hesitate. They strolled out. Mr. Morris and the other students followed. Were they part of the team, too?
The moment the door closed, Mr. Hendricks spun on us. “What happened?”
Kota stepped up. His glasses were still missing. His handsome face looked swollen, bruised. Kota glanced at Mr. Blackbourne. Looks were exchanged. Mr. Blackbourne nodded in a silent command.
Kota started talking, his voice obstructed by a swollen lip, hoarse. “It started right after the fire drill sounded. When most of the teachers and other students were on their way out, that’s when Greg and his group sta
rted shoving students. I tried to stop them and Greg recognized me. When Silas and the others showed up, they isolated us. We became the target for the planned tossing of someone over the balcony.”
Mr. Hendricks spun on me, an accusing finger pointed in my direction. “And what did you think you were doing?”
I hesitated, glancing at the others. Mr. Blackbourne inclined his head briefly – permission to speak granted. “Someone got Kota’s phone,” I said. “They recognized my name and texted me to come upstairs. I think it was Greg wanting me to come watch toss him over.”
“Did you see her?” Mr. Hendricks said, turning on Mr. Blackbourne. “She launched herself over that balcony. She was up and running before we could get to her and heading back up the stairs. I never saw anything like it.”
“She’s had training,” Kota said, smirking at me. “Elementary school, wasn’t it?”
I nodded. A collection of eyes shifted to me. “I was taught how to fall. I knew I could make it. If they needed someone to go over, I was going to do it.”
A palm slapped against the back of my head. I ducked after, looking back at Gabriel’s outstretched hand nearby. “Don’t you ever fucking do that again.”
“She’s what stopped it,” Nathan said. “When she went over, the football team was standing downstairs with us. They followed her upstairs. It was fine if it was another guy. Since it was a girl, they got angry and stormed in to take them all out.”
Mr. Hendricks barked at us, “We could have had all of them out of here if it was him and not her.”
I felt the blood drain from my face. This was planned? He knew it was going to happen? But it made sense. He had to have known. It happened every year. “I messed up?”
Mr. Hendricks turned on me. “Yeah, you messed up. One of them was supposed to go over unwillingly. Instead we got you practically jumping over. The school board didn’t understand why everyone rushed up the stairs or why there was a fight. They’re asking who the acrobat is.”
Mr. Blackbourne frowned. He stepped in, standing between me and Mr. Hendricks. “That’s enough,” he commanded. “You made a circus out of this. You’re lucky she knew what she was doing and landed on her feet. The other students believe she was pushed.”
