Surviving Elite High

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

I panicked because I was all alone and on the opposite side of the empty street. My safety net, Nick, was still inside the store buying God knows what for God knows who.

If Matthew and Jacob found me there all alone, I was going to get it for sure. I silently stepped out of Nick's car and made my way toward the grocery store as casually as possible. I needed to get to safety and as far away from those two psychos. With a low-pitched whistle, they let me know they had spotted me in the open. I was like a deer caught in the headlights. For a second, I didn't know what to do, but when the adrenaline hit my bloodstream, I made a run for it. Nick was my safety at that moment and I needed to be near him.

“Come here, you little fag!” Matthew shouted, tackling me to the ground. The mad beast stood up and grabbed me by the collar of my shirt, dragging me away from the store. I tried to set myself free, but it was impossible. Matthew was just too strong for me. While I kicked and screamed, the scent of alcohol let me know that he was intoxicated as well. He grabbed me by the neck and slammed me against the wall of an empty building. Jacob silently watched as the events unfolded. Matthew leered at me.

“You little f**k! You got me in trouble with Nick.”

“I didn't tell—”

“Shut the f**k up!” Matthew slammed me against the wall again.

“Dude, let him go. Nick has this kid's back now,” Jacob reminded him, looking around if anyone was nearby, but to my bad luck, no one was.

“f**k Nick! That asshole isn't around here.”

Matthew turned to me. He looked like a completely deranged psychopath. “I'm going to beat the s**t out of you.” He laughed, “But first, I'm going to tear your f*****g faggot ass apart. I'm going to show you how a real man fucks.” He rubbed his genitals over my right leg and moved upward, caressing me with his liquor-scented breath. All of a sudden, I felt his hard p***s against my soft one. I was completely petrified. Tears stung my eyes while my entire body began to tremble uncontrollably. Out of nowhere, Jacob took off running, leaving me all alone with that crazy monster. After Matthew punched me in the stomach, I hit the ground hard. I was going to die, and there was no one that could help me.

“What the f**k did I tell you?”

I looked up to see Nick scowling and pointing at Matthew. Matthew stepped forward and spoke to him defiantly. “f**k you, asshole! You think you're the hot s**t because you're the star quarterback? You're nothing more than a piece of s**t like this f**k here.” Matthew pointed to me at the end of his sentence.

Without warning, he lunged at Nick with a menacing fist in the air. Nick quickly moved out of the way and kneed him in the stomach, connecting his fist with Matthew's lower jaw in the process. Matthew flew backward and fell on the ground, hard. Before he could do anything else, Nick kicked his stomach repeatedly. Then, he sat on top of him and savagely punched his face. It was a side of Nick I had never seen before in my life. It was his dark side. He kept punching Matthew like a wild animal on c***k. That's the only way I could describe him. He looked like a crazy beast in the wild. When I managed to stand, I hurled myself at Nick, trying my best to push him away from Matthew. It was useless; Nick was still going at him.

“Nick! Please! Stop it…please! You're going to kill him. Please!” I shouted, trying to get him off Matthew once and for all.

Honestly, he could have killed Matthew, but I didn't want Nick to go to jail or become a murderer on account of me. I continued to push Nick away from Matthew until he finally heard me. He glanced at me and stood up, giving Matthew one final kick to the face. I was still hugging him when I looked down on Matthew, or what was left of him. His face was swollen, and blood stained his shirt.

“Motherfucker! Touch him again, and I'll f*****g kill you.”

“Nick, please. Let's go.” I continued to hold him off because he wanted to take another swing at Matthew. In reality, there was no way I could hold Nick off when he went psycho or angry. I was merely in his way. He could have easily pushed me aside, but Nick was not going to hurt me. He had promised me that earlier that night. “Let's go. Please.”

Nick nodded and grabbed my wrist, taking me back to his sports car. I looked back at Matthew one last time while we ran away from him. He was trying to sit up. I took a deep breath, thanking God. He was going to be okay; he was another jock like Nick.

Matthew could take it like a man, even if he wasn't one.

We jumped into Nick's car and sped down the street. We were a few blocks away from my house when Nick came to a sudden stop on the empty street. I noticed then that he was still fuming with rage after his little confrontation with Matthew. We didn't say a word to each other while we sat there. After a few minutes of complete silence, I glanced at him. He held his chin with his hand and stared blankly ahead, deep in thought. Unexpectedly, he punched the steering wheel, and I jumped.

“I'm sorry, John. I'm not angry at you. I'm angry at that lowlife piece of shit.” Nick turned to face the end of the street again. I tried to come up with something to tell him, but nothing formed in my mind. Nick continued to breathe deeply for a few more minutes until he had calmed down. Then he smiled. “You should try out for the football team. None of the guys try to tackle me when I've got the ball.”

I laughed. “I can see why, but seriously, thank you for saving me again, Nick.”

Nick grinned. “You don't need to thank me. I just lose my mind whenever I see someone bullying someone else. I didn't tell you this before, but one of my friends was bullied in middle school. He lost his eyesight after his attacker hit him on the back of the head with a baseball bat. He killed himself a few months after that. Ever since then, I've had zero tolerance for bullies. I was bound to kick Matthew's ass because I heard about him tormenting a kid at school. I just didn't know that it was you. It was all just a matter of time, John. So, don't thank me, buddy.”

There you have it, the reason why Nick protected me. In my own fantasy world, he would have done it because he loved me, but in reality, he did it because I was weak and pathetic. I took a deep breath, gathering my thoughts in the process. “I'm so sorry to hear that, Nick. I can see why you beat him the way you did. You've got a lot of anger inside of you. What they did to your friend was cruel and unforgivable. But, Nick, do you think that Matthew will be okay?”

“That f*****g asshole will be fine.” He scoffed “I just wanted to break his nose and bruise his eyes. That way, whenever he tries to bully someone, he thinks twice. Why do you even care about that f*****g punk?”

I sensed his temper rising. I had to say something before he got all worked up again

“I don't give a s**t about that asshole, Nick. He could drop dead for once and for all. I simply care about you. I don't want you to get in trouble or end up jail because of someone like me.”

Nick curiously looked at me for a few seconds. I had no I idea what he was thinking or what had crossed his mind after I shared that with him. I got nervous again. It sounded weird for me to tell him that I cared so much for his safety. A smile developed on his face. “Thanks for caring. Madison was right. You truly are an amazing friend.”

“Thanks, Nick.”

“Matthew should be thankful, because if it hadn't been for you, I'd have beaten him up real good.”

“Bring down your testosterone level, Mr. Hawking.”

“Yeah, I should go home and jerk off.” Nick laughed, but I couldn't. His comment made me a little uncomfortable. The topic of s*x always made me uneasy. Suddenly, he stopped laughing. “I'm such a f*****g d**k! Did he hurt you? Do you want to go to the hospital?”

“No, Nick. I'm fine. He just punched me once in the stomach. Don't worry, I'm okay.”

“You sure?”

“Positive.”

“Okay, let me take you home before Madison and Kitty kill or, worse, castrate me.”

We laughed. Nick started his car and sped down the street, heading in the direction of my house. When we arrived home, I realized that the lights were off. That meant that my mom wasn't home yet. I stepped out of the car and thanked him for everything. He called me back when I was about to step onto my front lawn. “Wait! These are for you.”

Nick took out six grocery bags from the trunk of his car and handed them to me. “I don't take no for an answer.”

“Nick, you really shouldn't have. Please, let me know if Matthew reports you. I think I won't be able to sleep tonight.”

“Don't worry, I'll be fine. Give me your number, so I'll call you if anything comes up.”

“We don't have a house phone, Nick.” My cheeks burned.

“It's cool, take my cell,” Nick took out his BlackBerry from his right pocket and handed it over to me.

“Nick I—”

“I don't take no for an answer. Don't you want to know if I'm going to jail because I defended you with my life?” He grinned.

I chuckled. “Yes, I do.”

“Then take it, John.” Nick dropped it inside my front pocket and quickly walked back to his car. “And you owe me a tutoring session. I'll call you to confirm when and where, okay?”

“Sure, Nick.” I smiled.

Nick jumped into his car and disappeared at the corner of my street. I ran inside to unpack the grocery bags, just to find myself dumbfounded. Nick had bought everything a household needed for an entire week. Nick Wild Hawk. Who knew he was Household Guy? Finally, after many empty weeks, the refrigerator was filled to the max. I admired it for a few seconds and headed to my room. I was ecstatic to say the least. The day turned out to be completely amazing. Nick had dumped Allison, we'd gotten to know each other pretty well, and he'd saved my life again. I couldn't wait for Monday so I could tell my girls everything that had happened that day.

When I dropped on my bed, I felt something inside my pants. It was Nick's phone! I had completely forgotten about it. I took it out and found forty-three missed calls and twenty-three texts from Allison. Nick also had over three hundred texts and calls from many other girls. I laughed at their puny attempts to contact him. Girls could be slutty from time to time, but with Nick, they went overboard. His phone was on silent mode; that was the reason why I hadn't heard it throughout the day. I quickly opened his phone book. I was stunned. He had over eight hundred contacts. Nick had every teenager's phone number within a fifty-mile radius. He had several sexy messages from many different girls, but no replies. I decided not to continue invading his privacy and placed the phone on my nightstand. I was exhausted. I slowly crawled into my bed and a few minutes later, I fell asleep.

A buzzing sound woke me up a few hours later. I rolled on my bed and sat up, realizing that it was Nick's phone. When I glanced at the screen, the word 'House' was flashing repeatedly. I quickly answered it. “Hello?”

“Hey, what's up? Did I wake you up?” Nick laughed.

“Nah, I was watching television,” I lied to him after glancing at the clock. It was eleven-thirty. Matthew quickly invaded my thoughts. “What happened with Matthew?

Did he report you?”

“Hell, no. That p***y said that four guys jumped him and tried to rob him. I just talked to Jacob. Can you believe that he apologized on his behalf?”

“Thank God. I was so worried, Nick.”

“You worry too much, Johnny Cake.”

“Johnny Cake?”

He chuckled. “Sorry, it's just that your nickname, Johnny Boy, reminds me of a Caribbean bread called Johnny Cake. I tasted them this past summer.”

“Oh, I see. I like that nickname.”

“Okay, Johnny Cake. Turn off my phone and get some shuteye. If you don't, you'll get at least a million calls tonight. I'll call you tomorrow after nine so we can decide where to meet and study. Cool?”

“Okay, Nickelodeon. Good night and sweet dreams.” Nickelodeon? Lame. Where did that come from?

Nick laughed. “Good night to you, too, Johnny Cake.”

After he hung up, I dropped on my bed and glanced at the clock. Nick was going to call me in less than ten hours. We were going to see each other again tomorrow! I was so happy to know that. I turned off the phone and drifted to sleep.

A small noise woke me up later that night. Looking up, I realized that Nick was standing at the foot of my bed, wearing nothing more than black pajama pants. I sat up, trying to ask him what he was doing there. But before I could say anything, he crawled on top of me. “How did—”

Nick placed his hand on my mouth and whispered into my ear. “Shh. You'll wake up your mom.” He smiled. “I had to see you again. I couldn't wait until tomorrow. I want to make you mine right now and in your bed.” Nick leaned in and our lips met. It really was an out-of-body experience. A shocking feeling started in my lips, traveled throughout my entire body, and rested inside my heart. Once he stopped, Nick stared at me and touched every inch of my body. “I love you, John. I love you, John.

John…John…John!”

I opened my eyes and came face to face with my mom, who was sitting on my bed with a perplexed look on her face. It was all a dream. Nick was far away from me. I rubbed my eyes. “Mom? What happened?”

“Baby? Where did you get all that food?”

“Oh, that…Nick gave it to me.”

“Nick? Who's Nick?”

“The guy I'm tutoring. I didn't want to take it, but he convinced me otherwise.”

“And that phone?” She pointed at Nick's BlackBerry.

“That's Nick's phone. He lent it to me last night because he wanted to call me today so we can schedule a study session.”

My mom nodded. “Okay, I need to meet Nick so I can thank him for the food, but you've got to return that phone as soon as possible. We don't take anything that's not ours.”

“Mom, I didn't steal it. He lent it to me because we don't have a house phone.”

“I know, honey, but what do you expect me to think when I find the refrigerator full and an expensive phone on your nightstand? I know that you'd never steal from anyone. I'm just making sure that you're on the right path. I'm really surprised that you took those items to begin with. You almost never take anything from Kitty or Madison.

Nick sounds like a really nice guy.”

“Believe me, he is.”

“Have you thanked him and his parents for helping you with school?”

“Him, yes, but I haven't met his parents yet.”

“Okay, when you do, you know what to say.” She stood up, smiling. “Now, I'm going to get ready because I'm running late. Help yourself to breakfast. Love you, sweetie.”

“Love you, too, Mom.”

When she walked out of my room and closed the door, I glanced at the clock on my wall. It was seven forty-five. I dropped on my bed and turned on Nick's phone to see who had texted him last night. Almost immediately, several messages flashed on the screen. It took the inbox a few minutes to process the new and upcoming information.

He had sixty-two messages from Allison and seventy-seven from other girls. Those bitches must have really been desperate for Nick's large wiener. I didn't read the messages because I didn't want to cross Nick's line of trust. I mean, he trusted me with his phone. Phones had become everyone's personal diary.

I unwillingly crawled out of my bed. I hated cold showers, but I needed one after my hot dream with Nick. After my bath, I made my way to the kitchen with Nick's phone in hand. I opened a box of Frosted Flakes and sat on the sofa to eat and watch television. All of a sudden, Nick's phone lit up. Checking the screen, I realized that it was Allison. Believe me, I wanted to pick up and tell her that Nick was off limits, but I thought of the consequences. She was not worth losing Nick's friendship. The phone stopped flashing, and a few seconds later, it started again. It was like that for the next thirty minutes or so. You would think that anyone would get the message after the first few rings, but not Allison. She was Allison Miller, after all. All of a sudden, I heard a knock on the front door, and I quickly glanced at the clock. It was a quarter to nine. I knew that it wasn't my mom, and Nick had said that he would call. I headed toward the front door thinking that it was Madison or Kitty because they always dropped by unexpectedly. I slowly opened the front door and peeped outside. It was Nick.

“Morning, John.” He smiled.

“Nick? I thought you were going to call me first.”

“Yeah, but I knew that you were home, so I dropped by.”

“Oh, I see.” I quickly scanned him from head to toe.

Nick looked amazing in a white wrestling singlet and blue basketball shorts.

“Aren't you going to invite me in?”

“Oh, God! I'm so sorry. Please come in.”

Nick chuckled. “Thank you.” He stepped into my house and looked around while I closed the front door.

“This way.” I directed him into the living room, where he dropped his schoolbag on the floor and sat down on one of the sofas. I sat next to him, pointing out the obvious.

“Make yourself at home, Nick.”

He smiled, feeling the fabric of the sofa. “I like this sofa. I could see myself relaxing here.”

“Thanks. Here's your phone, Nick.”

“Thank you.” After he took it from my hand, he searched for something inside his schoolbag. “This one is yours, John.” Nick pushed an identical BlackBerry phone in my hands.

“Nick, I can't take it.”

“Yes, you can, and you will. I need you to take it.”

“But why? I can't afford a cell phone plan, Nick. We barely―”

“Don't worry about that. They'll charge it to my credit card at the end of every month. I really need to keep in touch with you. What if I've got a question about homework or need to talk to you about my addiction?”

“Addiction?” Now I was completely lost.

“My s*x addiction.” He smiled. “You did promise me that you were going to help me tame the beast.”

I had to laugh. Nick was funny. He and Madison would definitely have good conversations together. I took the phone. “Okay, but I won't abuse your generosity.”

“Okay, but you do have unlimited texts, calls, and web browsing.”

“Really?”

Nick nodded and handed me the charger. “Yes, you do.”

“Thank you, Nickelodeon.” I grinned.

“You're welcome, Johnny Cake. Now, get me a bowl of milk because that cereal looks great.”

I laughed and headed straight into the kitchen to retrieve a bowl, a spoon, and a carton of milk. We spent the entire morning eating cereal and watching cartoons. Yes, believe it or not, watching cartoons, and we had a blast. At noon, he ordered a large pizza and gave Eric, the pizza delivery guy, the tip of a lifetime. He was so happy with his one hundred-dollar bill that he gave us extra cheese, ketchup packets, and ground pepper.

After Nick consumed three-fourths of the pizza, he turned to me. “You spend the entire day alone?”

“Yeah, my mom works all day. She usually comes home after nine.”

“Whoa, I never thought we'd have that in common as well.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, my parents are always traveling, so I barely get to see them. I hate being alone in my house. It's too big, and I feel lonely at times.”

“I know what you mean, but they work hard so you can have everything you want.”

“Maybe, but your mom works harder than them.”

“Yes, except that my mom makes way less than your parents, Nick. You're welcome here anytime. We can keep each other company.”

Nick smiled. Unexpectedly, his phone lit up again. It was Allison calling for the six hundredth time. “This chick is starting to tick me off. What the hell is she thinking?

Doesn't she get the message? I don't want anything to do with her.”

“Apparently not.”

Nick nodded, pressing the answer key. “Stop calling me. I don't want to hear s**t from you anymore.” Nick stood. My heart stopped, and my blood went cold, embracing me in a chilly hug. He silently listened to her for a few seconds and then continued.

“Yes, I f****d your two best friends, Allison. Everyone knew that except you. I even f****d the entire squad behind your back, and they loved my dick.”

My jaw dropped. I couldn't believe that Nick admitted that to Allison. I felt bad for her. The girl didn't deserve that, even if she was bitchy.

“Stop crying and calling me names, because you're just like me. You think I didn't find out about what happened a week after we began dating? I honestly loved you, and you stabbed me in the back. You cheated on me, but I swore to get back at you. Yes, Samantha told me while I was banging the crap out of her.”

Apparently, Allison had cheated on Nick a week after they'd gotten together. What a w***e. Samantha was one of Allison's best friends, and Isabelle was the other one.

Nick exhaled loudly. “Tell Isabelle to shut the f**k up because she went down on my d**k for the last two weeks.”

I laughed. Nick was such an asshole and very funny at the same time.

Nick chuckled. “Allison, you and your gang of w****s can go to hell for all I care.

Leave me the f**k alone. Revenge is a motherfucker.” Nick hung up on her. “Drama, drama, drama. What did I get myself into?”

“Nick, sooner or later, you'll have to face your mistakes if you really want to change your ways. So, prepare for the worst.”

“You're scaring me, John.”

“That'll be the only way that you can move on with your life, Nick. Sadly, that's how it all works.”

“I know,” Nick agreed with me. “Thanks, John. If it weren't for your words of wisdom and support, I'd be drinking my ass off and having more sex.”

“No! No more drinking and no more sex.” I smiled.

“Does m**********n count as s*x?” He smirked.

I laughed. “No, it doesn't. Go crazy with your hand.”

Nick chuckled. “Do you want to give me a hand?”

“What?” My heart skipped a few beats. I didn't know what he actually meant by that bizarre question.

Nick smiled, extending his right hand to me. “Come here, Johnny Cake.”

I hesitated at first, but I wanted to let him do anything to me. I slowly walked to where he stood, waiting for me with his hand out. Before I knew it, he had grabbed me into a headlock and rubbed his fist on my head. Somehow, that was male bonding time for him. Regardless of that, he smelled so good that every part of my body tingled. Nick let me go and laughed at my hair.

“That hurt.” I combed my short hair.

“Sorry kiddo. I need to roughen you up. That way, you can stand up for yourself.

What if a bully comes around?”

“Well, you did promise to protect me.”

“True, but I won't be with you all the time. You've got to learn to put up a fight.”

Nick was right. What if he hadn't been around the previous night to save me?

Matthew would have r***d me, beat the s**t out of me, and ditched my body inside a drain, leaving me to rot. I was lucky that Kitty, Madison, and Nick had been around to protect me all this time. Alone, I would have been dead meat a long time ago.

“I'm going to teach you how to throw a punch, okay?” Nick lifted his hands in the air.

“Okay.” I got into to position by mimicking him.

We spent the entire afternoon practicing how to throw a punch, kick, and run. That was what Nick told me to do. As soon as I could, I should run and get help. Keeping my distance from the bullies guaranteed my safety. But most importantly, he told me not to panic. If I did, it was all downhill from there.

We had Chinese food for dinner, and eventually, Allison got the message and stopped calling Nick. Sometimes, hurtful things had to happen before the truth was realized. Allison and Nick weren't perfect for each other. Everyone knew that. He deserved someone better, and so did Allison. Together, they dragged each other down.

Both of them needed someone to help them change into better individuals. I was going to help Nick, but Allison was on her own.

Nick left my house around seven. He told me something very important that day.

He told me that if I ever saw Matthew again, I should hide and call him; however, he doubted that Matthew would get close to me ever again. Nick was terribly wrong.

Matthew Ward was about to scar our young lives forever.