Two and a Half Years Ago. Twoson Boarding School, Lincoln Province. U.P.A.  

Joshua

"Joshua! Get up! Is you good?!"

"Call the nurse or somethin'!"

"Thomas just beat the FUCK outta you! On soul..."

I couldn't move, my head felt like it was busting open and I could feel my heartbeat in every part of my body. The only thing I could see at that moment was Travis and Thomas running away. I think they was arguing with Ms. Carmichael or somethin'...

I laid there completely helpless while everybody looked at me. They was all shouting, and the lights and flashing of their phones were everywhere. I was humiliated, but for some reason I felt so peaceful. I just wanted to go to sleep...

~~~

My dad slammed his foot into a guy's face while I looked on. Some other guys were beating him up too, and the people that were helping the guy getting stomped ran away.

My older brothers were cheering him on while I watched. They were really beating the shit out of him, I thought he was actually gonna wind up dead.

"Fuck outta here with that shit!"

My dad hacked and spit on him while the others backed off so he could escape. "Ya'll ops ain't SHIT!"

"They puss ass steady be lackin'..." One of my dad's friends taunted him.

My dad turned around. "Ya'll see this shit?"

I flinched when he looked at me.

"Real niggas don't get they ass whooped. This motherfucker a BITCH!"

Tequan flung a rock and hit the guy in his head while he struggled to his feet. "Bitch ass!"

They were all laughing, and I started to laugh too. That guy was pathetic. He suffered, and he deserved every bit of it because he was weak. It was his fault he lost.

Things got really hazy, and I could suddenly feel the weight of Thomas punching me.

... Was it my fault that I lost?

~~~

The sound of my roommate's bad rapping and earsplitting bass woke me up and I found myself back in my dorm. I was in my bed, or at least what I'd call a bed. It was a dresser with all the drawers pulled out and the frames broken that I stuffed with covers and a pillow.

One night my roommate Juan brought some hoe over and broke his bed fuckin' her, so he kicked me outta mine and here I am. I couldn't fight him, so I tried to get my brother to help, but Tequan didn't even do shit with his bitch ass...

I flung one of the broken frames of my dresser at him. "JUAN! SHUT THE FUCK UP, YOU CAN'T SING!"

I missed and it hit the wall beside him. I grumbled, he probably couldn't hear me noway...

"Joshua." Moreece's voice hit me over the aggravating noise. "You good?"

I just ignored him, kicking off some covers before getting ready to scroll through my phone. I yawned. "Hand me a pack of blunts."

He put a pack in my hand and turned around. I was about the open the pack until I realized the shit he was tryna give me. My face twisted and I threw them at the back of his head. "Not this shit! Gimme the ones with chocolate flavored wrappers!"

He handed me back the right ones and I tore into that pack and lit one as fast as I could. Hell, knows I needed it.

It wasn't for pre-wrapped blunts I don't know what I'd do...

These used to be a special thing for us. That is, me my brothers, and the people close to us. We could get anything from our dealer because of who my daddy was, but they legalized Marijuana a while ago so everybody got the shit now. Even the third graders stopped buying from Eli, and he was not happy about that...

I exhaled smoke from my nostrils and leaned back, coughing a few times before I took another drag. "My head fuckin' hurts..."

I just sat there and stared off into the cloudy air in my dorm. I ain't know what the hell just happened, I couldn't comprehend it. I knew I got fucked up, but was it really Thomas?

A Few Years Prior to This...

I stood around in anticipation along with a few friends as my older brothers tossed a basketball around.

Jeremiah held his hands up. "Pass! Pass!"

"Hey!"

We all stopped and turned to the right, our brows furrowed in confusion.

A boy with curly hair, golden eyes, and caramel skin was strolling towards us. He seemed a little chubby and acted really friendly, like we trusted him or some shit.

He stopped just on the court line. "Whatcha doin? Lemme play too!"

Jeremiah scowled at him. "Not this nigga..."

Me and my gang looked at each other. I turned towards Juan. "Who's the fag?"

"It's Thomas from three grades below me." Juan said, glaring at him. "Everyone calls him a bitch cause... Well, he acts like one."

Tequan passed me the ball and I caught it as he folded his arms. "He cries like one too..."

I stood there and stared at him blankly. I'd seen Thomas in class before, he was always so damn happy for some reason. It's almost like he was in a different world. There wasn't a clear cut reason as to why it was so damn annoying to see, but I just couldn't stand it...

Who the actual fuck can enjoy themselves in this shithole...

Even while we stood there having that conversation he got distracted and started chasing a butterfly. A fucking butterfly.

I stared at him. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

Thomas suddenly stopped, his eyes wide. "Nothing." He stuttered. "I think I'm okay..."

Without warning I threw the ball and slammed it into his face as hard as I could. After Thomas immediately fell down I walked over to him and he looked up at me, tears streaming down his cheeks while the others laughed.

I stood over him and felt a smirk slowly coming on. "... W-Why?" Thomas sobbed.

"Go away!" Juan shouted.

"Get the fuck on!"

"I j-just.."

I grabbed the back of his shirt collar and dragged him into the grass nearby.

"Stop! Lemme go!"

I pulled his shirt down over his face punched him in the head. I did it again and again as hard as I could and wouldn't stop. How could I have stopped in a moment like this where he wasn't even fighting back?

Present

He was never supposed to fight back, as far as I was concerned he didn't even have the right to because he'd already established his position in my life. For him to suddenly change, to disrupt the order of this school the way he did is a fucking disgrace.

But hey, what else is new?

"I ain't even know yo bitch ass was awake." I looked up and notice Juan glance my way before he went back to whatever was on his phone.

I sat there, not really sure of what to do with myself until familiar noises shot from Juan phone. I couldn't believe it at first, but when he walked over and showed me I had no choice.

Right there in my face was a three minute recording of the fight. From me hitting him when he tried to walk away to the last blow I could clearly remember. A painful stench filled my nostrils and I got teary eyed just from watching myself get fucked up.

Juan smacked his lips. "How the hell you let Thomas fuck you up?"

I almost cursed him out, but I had no rebuttal and my strength was still everything but gone.

"I'd beat yo ass again if you could take it. Fuck outta my face..."

I fell back onto the pillow behind me as I finished the last of my blunt. Everything was his fault. I didn't get it, he was supposed to be in this position, not me. I swore, the next time he saw me... He was gonna wind up dead, or worse.

One Week Later

"Hey! Sit!" I said. Only a few of the dogs listened, the bigger ones acted like I didn't even say anything.

The Rottweilers really were the highlight of my days. I'd been suspended for fighting that week and decided to stay out of the boarding school since I knew damn well that I'd never hear the end of getting my ass whopped.

Juan was just making me miserable on purpose after a certain point, so I decided to stay at Eli's. He's Jeremiah's friend, so he let me crash at his apartment. It's was great, but that's a given since it was technically a traphouse. Never ran outta weed, got to play with the dogs, played XBox, good times.

I could hear footsteps in the alleyway in front of me and the dogs immediately ran to the fence, growling at whoever might've been there.

"Fuck out the way..." Tequan said as he pushed in the fence and stepped past the big dogs tryna smell him. All of my other brothers and Juan followed after him, cases of booze in hand.

D'Shawn looked around after throwing a stick at one of the puppies. "Where Eli at?"

"Over here!" Eli shouted through the loose screen door before he undid the locks.

All of my brothers walked our way as Eli came down the stairs and they dapped up with him.

"Sup man, how you been?" Moreece said to me, but I ignored him as the other's went on to talk about whatever else was going on.

"Nothin." I said.

Jeremiah grinned at Eli with yellowing, chipped teeth. I could tell he hadn't bothered to shave either. "You been gettin' them hoes?"

"Hell yeah!" Eli said.

I felt better than my brothers living with Eli. My brothers had a thing going in Twoson boarding school, they could fuck most anybody up alone, if not together. They got all the booze and crack into the school for whoever needed it, they turnt up every class, but they were bums...

For one, Eli always had his shit on point. Crisp lining, good teeth.

Well, as good as they could be with the type of smoking he does...

Latest Jordans, Versace, Gucci, you name it. I even heard he owns his own house away from here and wont tell nobody how he gets enough dough to afford all this shit. I mean, besides the fact that he be sellin' on the corner almost everyday.

"Who?"

"Kaitlyn."

Tequan smacked his lips. "Yo ass gon' get arrested, that hoe fourteen and you fuckin' her."

"And she a thot." Moreece added.

"I don't give a fuck," Eli said. "I'm tryna pimp these hoes. That young pussy pay well, at least her's will."

"Not if she get her fix without dick ridin'."

"Right." Jeremiah added. "You ain't the only one that sell no more."

They both went into Eli's apartment and disappeared up the stairs while my little brothers D'Shawn and Moreece followed quickly after.

"Hey, Joshua." I looked over at Eli and he nodded for me to follow him.

I got up out of the dirty plastic lawn chair and followed him into the basement. I tried my best to watch where I stepped so I wouldn't knock anything over. There were tons of packages and bags and ingredients all over the place, hell he even had some freebase cooking.

Eli went into a drawer and handed me a plastic bag with some weirdly colored pills.

"The hell is this?"

"Some new shit I got my hands on. Give that to Kaitlyn." Eli said. "Careful walking around with that shit, if you get caught it's yo fault."

I didn't say anything after he told me that. I left out through the alleyway and headed towards the boarding school. It wasn't too far away, only about a ten minute walk.

I walked through the campus as fast as I could in hopes that nobody would notice me or say anything until I reached the doors of the girl's dormitory and found Kaitlyn's room on the second floor.

I knocked as hard as I could until she slung the door open in nothing but a crop top and some lace panties.

"Fucking god! Don't ever knock like that again!"

"Shut the fuck up." I said, walking past her.

Kaitlyn turned towards me. "Excuse you, hoe! Did I tell you to come in?"

"I'm here to give you some shit from Eli!"

"Oh." Kaitlyn said, suddenly much calmer. "Shoulda just said that."

Kaitlyn went into the bathroom and I sat on her bed to try and catch whatever was on TV. She came out of the bathroom with a small cup full of water and walked over to the desk I sat the bag of pills on. I watched her take them in the corner of my eye and sat in anticipation as she exhaled deeply. Then she suddenly stopped moving.

"Kaitlyn."

She didn't respond.

"Kaitlyn you good?"

"I WAS STUCK IN TIME!"

Kaitlyn reached out her shivering hands and stumbled across the room. "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god...."

I sat there with my brows scrunched in curiosity while she twisted and stretched her arms in the air.

"I'm paralyzed! I'm flying away!"

"No you're not! You're high as fuck right now!"

Kaitlyn slowly collapsed to her knees beside the bed, clawing at the covers as if they'd support her. "Help me..." She said.

Kaitlyn crawled up and onto the bed and I hopped off of it as she got closer. I stared into her face and saw the glossy dilated pupils behind her blonde hair as she stared at me.

"I f-feel... A-Amazing..."

Kaitlyn twitched and I slowly backed off. I jumped as I hit a wall and quickly ran over to the desk Kaitlyn left the pills on as she began to shake uncontrollably.

What the fuck...

I sat there on the other side of her room, watching and getting strangely entertained by what the drug was doing to her. Kaitlyn kept mumbling about how amazing it felt, she even spent like two hours trying to hold a threeway conversation with herself, me and a pillow about how euphoric everything apparently was.

I just nodded and agreed with whatever shit she spat into existence because it was funny. I could hardly believe she was actually enjoying herself, though. When she first got on the shit she was flipping the fuck out, and after that she was acting like she was gonna die.

Eventually she crashed, and after I thought she was knocked out I made my way to the door.

"Wait."

I paused at the sound of her eerily breathless voice. "I need more..."

I left and slammed the door behind me. I actually thought that I should try some of that shit he gave Kaitlyn when I was coming to her dorm, but not after what the hell I just saw.

I'll be damned if I get caught like that right after what happened with Thomas...

His face flashed through my head and rage filled my soul. Anger was overwhelming my senses and my entire body.

"FUCK!" The sound of my voice could hardly rival the sound of glass shattering through the Boarding School fence and rolling across the empty street. I still wasn't satisfied so I picked up a fat stick and looked for something I could shatter.

The first thing I noticed were the lights on the gate entrance, so I ran over and started wailing away. I swung as hard as I could, bursting each bulb with no clear intention I could think of.

"Hey!"

I didn't even bother to figure out who's voice that could have been and hurled my stick at the window of a parked car as hard as I could before running off, nearly slipping on the dirty slush shoveled near the sides of the entrance. Even while I was running, I gritted my teeth harder and harder and my fists kept clenching with the urge to bust someone's head open.

How could that shit happen?! It was so damn horrible and embarrassing! Why me?!

"I'm gonna kill that faggot!" I growled to myself with as much venom as I could, even though I knew I couldn't.

Not even hours after I woke up I scrolled through the comments under the video of me getting beat up. Everyone was talking about how Thomas, Travis, and Kelly had apparently ran away.

They'd been missing for days and nobody had a clue as to where they went or if they were even alive. If anything I wished that they were suffering somehow. I wanted nothing more than to hear that they went off and were starving, or got mugged, or that some sicko had 'em locked away in his basement with a plan to rape them to death.

Even that wouldn't have been good enough. I had to be the one to hurt Thomas, I had to hurt all of them. They'd all opposed me so they deserve the same wrath, Thomas would just get the worst of it.

I got back to Eli's and didn't even tell him about what happened, I just laid down and tried to sleep off the relentless influx of rage that wouldn't stop torturing me. Normally I would go and beat Thomas for pissing me off but I couldn't. For once in my life that pathetic fuck was gone and there was nothing I could do about it.

That night was miserable, I spent hours tossing and turning and stabbing my mattress. My head was clouded with nothing but flashbacks of Thomas knocking the piss outta my mouth and some frustrating, hopeless emotion. I never got beat in a fight before, and even if I did I could always do a rematch or jump 'em like my older brothers did.

But I couldn't, Thomas was nowhere near me, and even if he was, what would stop him from breaking his foot up my ass again? He actually terrified me back there, I'd never seen him look at anyone like that in my entire life.

Thomas embarrassed the fuck outta me, left, and I couldn't do shit about it. I couldn't control anything...

"You can't DO this!"

I sat still at the sound of a whiny voice and listened closely.

"Yes the fuck I can."

"Pleeeaase. Why?!"

I knew what was going on immediately; Kaitlyn was out there, and she was already hooked on that shit and couldn't even wait until tomorrow to get another fix. I swear that bitch is pathetic...

I got up and cracked my door open a bit so I could watch them.

Kaitlyn whined. "I don't know what it was but I need it! You don't understand..."

"Naw..."

I looked at Eli turn away from her and saw the smirk on his face. He knew what that drug was gonna do to her, he was running a game on her. If you hold out on Kaitlyn and make her feel like she's about to lose something, she'll do most anything to hold onto it. Everyone knew that about her, it was the oldest trick in the school.

Kaitlyn's hand trembled as she held her face. Her forehead was wet with sweat and her puffy, darkening eyes were filling with tears.

Kaitlyn grabbed his arm. "Please... What am I doing wrong?"

Eli glanced at her out the corner of his eye and then shrugged her arm off.

"Babe!" Kaitlyn's face was reddening but Eli still ignored her.

Kaitlyn bared her teeth "This isn't fair you asshole! Why are you doing this to me?!"

Kaitlyn slammed her foot against a door and flipped a chair across the room. I winced as it hurtled past the door and looked back just in time to see Eli grab Kaitlyn's hands and hurl her body onto the couch.

Kaitlyn sprung up again and swung her arms wildly in an attempt to hit him, knocking over a lamp in the process.

"I'm not FUCKING PLAYIN'!" Eli roared as he swatted her across the face. Kaitlyn fell down and held her cheek as Eli stood over her.

"Goofy ass little girl tryna break shit! That's why you a fuckin' crack hoe now!"

Kaitlyn stayed down for a few more seconds. "...What?"

"You heard me!" Eli shouted at Kaitlyn as she stayed on the floor, looking up at him blankly. "And you ain't gettin shit 'til you make me money!"

"W-What do you mean?" Kaitlyn stuttered.

"You ain't getting shit else unless you do exactly what I tell you, I don't want no bullshit. That, or you can get the fuck outta my crib!"

Kaitlyn slowly stood, her eyes suddenly vacant and fearful as she backed against the wall. She mumbled. "... I..."

In seconds Eli yanked Kaitlyn from the wall by her arm and flung her onto the short wooden table, her body knocking multiple bottles of beer off and shattering across the floor.

"Stop!" Kaitlyn shrieked. "What are you-!"

A surge of fear struck me and I could feel my eyes widen in shock as he snatched her short shorts and panties from her hips, leaving her with her bare ass and cunt exposed. I stood there as she squirmed around, my head tilting in curiosity.

Kaitlyn kicked at him and thrashed violently across the table, screaming in protest and slamming her girly fists across his face.

"NO!" Kaitlyn screamed, her voice was blood curdling and worthy of any horror movie. I could feel my hands shaking, and the sound of her cries sent chills through my body.

"HELP! HE"S FUCKING RAP-!" He wrapped his hand around her throat in an attempt to choke her into silence while forcing her legs open.

Even from where I was standing, I could see Kaitlyn dig her nails into his brutish, veiny arms to no avail as she gasped for air. Eli thrust into her and Kaitlyn's voice erupted, the high pitched sound blaring throughout the entire apartment.

Kaitlyn's arms flailed through the air, her hands grabbing for anything close by. Her finger just barely tapped the surface of the neck of of a beer bottle before Eli grabbed her wrists and pinned them to the table, then forced his weight on top of her.

I stood there silently, my mouth slightly gaped open while tears rolled down the sides of her face. Still, Eli didn't give her as much of a second glance, he just kept fucking like she was any other girl and ignored her grunts and moans of pain, his eyes darkened with lust and void of remorse.

He raped her for I don't know how long. I'd never heard of him doing this to anyone, I even started to get worried for myself.

Hell, knows what else he's got in store for the rest us...

Eli lifted himself off of Kaitlyn's still body and she slowly curled up. I was surprised she didn't jump up and run away as soon as possible, or slap him or something. It seemed like something her type would do, but she didn't.

After Eli put his dick away, Kaitlyn slid down to the floor, her eyes red and lips quivering in disgust as she looked past her torn panties, grabbed her shorts, and crawled to her feet.

Just then, Eli dug into his pocket and tossed a plastic bag her way. Kaitlyn took it, and her broken, somewhat empty gaze turned towards him.

"Figured I'd warm you up a bit." Eli grumbled. "Muthafuckas out here ain't finna treat you dicate, no matter how pretty you are."

Kaitlyn tucked the bag into her pocket and turned away, staggering away as she leaned on the wall and guided herself to the door.

"You due here tomorrow at eight! If you don't show I better not see yo ass again!"

With that the door slammed, and I pulled my door shut.

What the actual fuck.

~~~

Surely enough Kaitlyn came in the next day to a living room of boys. Some of them were just teenagers, most of them had to be at least twenty five. Eli never bothered to give me a real explanation about what was going on, but I'm sure he knew I'd caught on, because he'd always tell me to keep the door closed and be quiet or else the guy's he brought over would come after me next.

He said it as a joke, but that was terrifying enough for me to steal my lock back from the boarding school after they confiscated it.

Still, even in my room I'd occasionally peek out to see Kaitlyn get pimped out. She'd always put on this smile and try to act like some edgy slut that enjoys getting fucked by guys, but I could see the hopeless disgust in her eyes whenever she wasn't licking in between some guy's legs or getting kissed on by some dingy pothead.

I'd grin in amusement every time Kaitlyn would speed into the bathroom and wash her face after an appointment, this was such a new low for her! What happened to the queen she tries to be in school? The one with a smart ass mouth that's just too damn good for anyone?

It was no secret where she got all her clothes and jewelry from, but damn... At that moment I'd kill to hear the rumors people are spreading back at the boarding school, because I know for a fact that some of those guys came here and saw this shitshow.

"She the only one?"

I heard a voice from behind the doors one night and jumped off of my bed to eavesdrop.

"Yeah..." Eli mumbled.

There was a short pause. "Oh..."

After that I could hear footsteps followed by the sound of a door closing. I slowly cracked the door open and watched as Eli tore open the bag and only tossed Kaitlyn a few pills.

Kaitlyn's expression twisted in confusion. "... What the hell is this?"

"You're business is getting low." Eli said.

"But I do everything the customer say! I-."

"That's not enough!" Eli interrupted before he continued grumble to himself. "I need more bitches... Kaitlyn!" Eli shouted.

"I'm standing right here!"

Eli gave Kaitlyn the bag. "Give your girl friends this shit and bring 'em back here, and make sure they don't spread the word. If a bunch of kids start comin' here and askin' about it, you're dead."

Kaitlyn didn't even ask why, she just took the bag and left. Two nights later I was standing in the kitchen when I heard Kaitlyn walk through the door, then I saw Melissa, Kapreisha, and Tasha follow after.

Melissa's eyes ricocheted across the apartment. "This is where you got those pills from?"

"... Yeah."

I snatched a few cans of pop and a bag of Takis before rushing into my room. As soon as I pulled the door closed and locked it I sat down, ripped open the chips, and put my eye to a hole in the door.

This is gonna be good...

Kapreisha whipped her head towards the hallway, her expression filling with suspicion. "So don't nobody know about this new shit but us, huh?"

"That's right." Kaitlyn said, her demeanor suddenly superior. "You should be grateful I let you in on it in the first place." She sneered.

I heard the same door they walked through open, then there were footsteps.

Tasha turned up her nose. "Who are you?"

I heard the door slam shut and a lock clicked.

"... Kaitlyn." Melissa muttered, her voice shaking a little. "I-Is this the guy?"

Kaitlyn backed off to the corner of the room and didn't say anything.

The back door suddenly opened and I watched as several large bodies entered, obscuring my vision as they passed down the narrow hallway.

"Kaitlyn?!"

The girls screamed as the men grabbed them, and I watched them kick and punch to no avail as they were quickly forced onto the ground, had their hands tied, and were quickly gagged.

"This all you got?" One of the men said.

Kaitlyn mumbled. "Yeah..."

Kaitlyn stood there and looked at her friends, watching coldly and they writhed and struggled to force out muffled screams. I could only imagine what they wanted to say, the girl these idiots looked up to just screwed 'em over like they'd never believe, and there was nothing they could do.

The situation was so rich. It was all fun and games when they got to parade around and look down on everyone, living in their little bubble of arrogance and oblivious to everyone else they couldn't follow or take advantage of. Instantly, shit hit the fan and their entire lives crumbled.

These annoyingly smug girls would never be the same again. Their innocence would be extinguished, all traces of hope snuffed, and any peaceful memories of their past lives shattered beyond recognition. The only question was, how?

There were so many morbid possibilities... They could be sold into sex slavery, mutilated into human dolls, tortured and sacrificed by some nutjob. Just thinking about it made me shiver with excitement, but those were only a few of the possibilities I knew of. Truth is, anything could happen to these girls with the right price.

The men all turned towards Eli as he entered the room and glanced over his new goods.

"Nice work." Eli said. He lit a blunt and nodded to the side. "Take 'em to the basement."

The men grabbed the three girls, rushed to the back of the apartment, and disappeared in seconds. After that I couldn't hear anything.

Eli dug in his deep pockets and handed Kaitlyn another bag of pills, some crack, and a glass pipe.

He cracked a smile at her. "You did good."

Kaitlyn stood there, her face suspended in disbelief. I was a bit surprised too, as far as I knew he hadn't treated her like anymore than a stupid bimbo since he started forcing her to sell herself.

"Thanks..." Kaitlyn mumbled, a glint of happiness twinkling in her eyes followed by what resembled half a smile. "... Babe." 

Two Days Later

I stood guard outside of Kaitlyn's room, waiting for her to finish her last appointment for the day. Melissa, Kapreisha, and Tasha never came back after they got taken to the basement.

I heard that they were transferred to some other city or something because Eli didn't feel safe pimping them out so close to the boarding school where they could call for help, or at least let others know about what happened. The only reason Kaitlyn was still there is because that dumb bitch was so easy to manipulate. Hell, she'd already managed to get another one of her girl friends to fuck for money.

At the time Kaitlyn just had her doing little flings around the school with lonely nobodys and desperate virgins, but I knew it was only a matter of time before she brought her back to Eli too.

The door opened and Mr. Robinson crept out, glancing back and forth across the hallway as he fixed himself.

"Hey!" I shouted.

Mr. Robinson flinched before looking down at me, the sweat on his face seemingly heavier than the weight of paranoia and guilt so obviously crushing him.

I snickered.

What an ameteur....

I held out my hand. "This ain't no free service, pay up!"

He snatched three twenty dollar bills out of his pocket, gave it to me, and sped off without a second glance. I smiled at the money I'd just made before I pocketed it and walked in.

Kaitlyn's friend scrambled to get her clothes on as I passed through the dorm. I looked at them shamelessly while Kaitlyn put her bra back on, I could tell her friend wasn't used to me yet, she was so embarrassed she refused to acknowledge I was even there.

Eventually she left, and after smoking some crack Kaitlyn got up and walked towards the bathroom. I sat on the edge of the bed and watched her, chuckling as she passed by.

Kaitlyn looked at me in disgust. "The fuck is your problem?"

"YOU!" I said, bucking towards her. "Dumb bitch..."

"Shut the fuck up you black ass-."

"Suck a fuckin' dick!" I interrupted. Kaitlyn stood there, her face frozen and seething with anger and hurt.

I continued. "Hoe ass bitch need to stop talking to me..."

Kaitlyn grimaced. "You need to-!"

"GO AWAY!" I shouted. "You suck dick for dollars! Yo ugly ass ain't worth shit! Get the fuck outta my face!"

Kaitlyn stood there for a moment, her once piercing eyes now hurt and watery, before turning away. I sat there as she leaned against the bathroom doorway, a grin of pure sadistic joy slowly spreading across my face.

The door suddenly flew open and Moreece rushed in.

"JOSHUA TURN ON THE NEWS!" He shouted.

"Wha-."

"Just turn it on!"

"Okay! Damn!"

I picked up the remote and turned to Channel 7, where two girls stood by each other nervously as the reporter held a microphone to their faces.

"It was the most terrifying thing in my life." One of them said. "I just can't believe how fast everything happened, and how easily my life..." She glanced at the other girl. "Our lives could've been over."

"I've never seen anything like it" Another voice said. "The people who did this are monsters. I literally have no words."

Moreece, Kaitlyn, and I stared on as their cameras passed over what looked like miles of pure devastation and obliterated skyscrapers, an overly dramatic news jingle playing in the background.

"Hello, this is Rick Dawson and we're following some breaking news over in Empire City right now where there has been a devastating terror incident. Victoria Stonewater is covering the story live from the streets. Victoria, what are you hearing now?"

"Well, Rick this truly is breaking, right now the situation is still unfolding as we speak. Countless reports of firearm incidents and more bombings are rolling in and Federal Agencies are involved, but here is what we know at this hour."

A photo of Thomas, Travis, Kelly, a little blonde girl, and some man appeared onscreen.

"Several reports say that these four unidentified children were seen fleeing the area moments after the attack with a high ranking arms trafficker by the name of Roscoe Moralez, who was identified after a thorough investigation of nearly every crime ring in the city unearthed a confession from a man named Kamarion Peterson.

Witnesses say the bunch were last seen fleeing into the subway and Federal Agencies are currently in high pursuit."

I sat there staring blankly at the screen while Kaitlyn stood near me with one of the dumbest expressions I'd seen in my life.

"What the hell?!"

How the hell did those idiots get in with a cartel?! I was born into one, my dad was a godfather. I've sold crack, weed, LSD and done way much more to get money than them!

They're out there, running around, transporting shit and I'm in this stupid ass school collecting money from a teenage prostitute.

This shit's ridiculous...

Just seeing Thomas on that screen pumped anger into my soul. Watching him run off in those recordings with his stupid face and sorry ass eyes that make him look like a homeless dog. The way he looks is just so aggravating, wanted to beat the mess outta somebody. I nearly flipped the TV just thinking about it.

I didn't even understand why he pisses me off so bad, he just makes me wanna hurt him so much and his not being there was killing me.

Something I started to realize as I sat there, seething with rage over not being able to fight him was that I got a strange satisfaction from hurting things. Not just mild bouts of hurt feelings, I loved inflicting real pain, degradation, and fear. I can't explain why, it's just who I am.

I'd do that to anybody however I could. It's why I couldn't stop chuckling every time I saw Kaitlyn try to convince herself Eli gives a shit about her and felt so giddy at the thought of what those girls were being put through. I didn't care about their well-being at all, In fact I was pissed that I couldn't see exactly what was happening to them or control it.

It's such an addicting feeling. The reaction pain elicits, the emotions that come out, the tears, the wailing, the things hurting people will say. It all gratifies me in a visceral way. There's no better feeling that makes me feel more connected with others than when their pain is in my hands.

It's like having a sentient puppet. Each person is different, so there are always challenges to keep thing interesting, and I can mess with their mind so that they can't anticipate the pain, the intensity of it, or how it'll happen. The curiosity I feel towards the people I hurt, the control, the fascination, it's all there.

When I know I've hurt someone and that I'll always be able to, I feel a sense of possession, especially if I left scars or get to see the terror on their face whenever they see me. If I'd done everything right, they'd be broken, humiliated, and exhausted with day to day life. One of the things I looked forward to the most was the day Thomas would eventually kill himself.

But he wouldn't do it, no matter how much shit I put him and his friends through. Not only that, he went full hulk and left me busted up and laying around, having to endure the humiliation of getting my ass handed to me while fending off the taunts and jeering of obnoxious teenagers.

I had to regain control over someone, something, anything. I'll admit it, I was pathetic and desperate for someone to project it onto. I didn't care. It was obvious Thomas wasn't coming back, and there was nothing I could do.

If I couldn't hurt him, I'd just hurt everyone else.

Later that evening I walked into Eli's apartment and headed towards my room. I paused near the doorway once I saw him in the kitchen.

"Hey."

"Sup youngblood." He nodded.

I didn't say anything for the moment. My heart was racing and I was feeling short of breath. There were so many things racking my brain.

Would he take me up on this? Would a plan like this even work?

"I know how to make a ton of money." I said

Eli stopped in his tracks and glared my way. "How?"

"I know how we can sell l-lots of bodies, beyond just p-pimping bitches like Kaitlyn." the fact that I was about to suggest something so big was making me stutter, I had to swallow by throat before I kept going. "Beyond prostitutes in general."

Eli tossed the refrigerator door shut and leaned against it, the look in his eyes burning me with uncertainty. I really didn't wanna say anything dumb, especially if I'm gonna me working with him to make money like my dad.

Eli snickered, looking away before he turned back towards me. "Okay lil' nigga, what you tryna do?"

~~~

As I finished explaining what I had in mind, Eli stared at me with a stunned look while I tried to analyze what he was thinking as hard as I could.

After a few moments he spoke. "Joshua, did you know yo daddy was a crazy ass motherfucker just like you?"

I watched him, unsure of whether that was a good or bad thing.

"Only his son would sit here and try to put some shit like that to action. Do you know how messy that shit would be?"

"It could actually work though." I said. "Twoson is small, the police can't stop shit!"

"What's gon' happen if one of these niggas get arrested? It was a nigga on TV like an hour ago that snitched on somebody."

"Nobody gon' say shit 'cause they know we gon' have they ass missing the next day." I quipped. "Ain't you been planning to ditch this town anyway? You could get so much money and it ain't like you got nowhere to go! If you pull this off the rest of the gang gon' have yo back."

Eli walked over to a stool and sat down. I watched as he lit a cigarette and rested his head on his hand.

"We gon' have to be fast." he said.

"I know."

Eli pointed a finger at me. "And you can't fuck this up. If you do, I better not hear my name."

"I know."

Eli pulled out his phone and started messaging some people and I went back into my room, unable to sleep because of my frustration over what happened with Thomas. However, my reason for lack of sleep changed when Eli opened the door to my room and leaned in a few hours later.

I turned towards the door and he spoke. "It's on for tomorrow evening. Be ready."

The Next Evening

"C'mon." I fanned Moreece over and shoved open a heavy metal door while he tiptoed down the stairs.

I let out a heavy sigh. "Ain't nobody gon' see you! Just come on!"

After he finally made it to the bottom of the stairs and walked through the door I used the flashlight on my phone to light up the area ahead of us.

I stood there, organizing exactly how I'd execute everything as I walked further into the large boiler room. There'd been a bunch of complaints about the lack of heat in the boarding school, so they'd increased the boiler heat and pressure a ton. All I'd have to do is set things up and make it a little hotter.

I dug a flat headed screwdriver out of my bag and Moreece dropped his bag on the floor. I organized my thoughts, if everything was gonna work I'd have to do things in a specific order. I had only one chance.

I opened Moreece's bag and pulled out an armful of fireworks, dynamite, and other explosives. Moreece grabbed some too and helped me pile them around the three boilers. Then I went back into my own bag and pulled out what could've easily been a dozen containers of gasoline, lighter fluid, and oil.

Airy chuckles escaped my lungs as I opened the first container of flammable liquid and doused the area, for some reason all of my apprehension disappeared and I felt like I'd been doing things like this my whole life. It was invigorating, fun even.

"Hurry up." Moreece croaked, his voice breathless and shaky. It was only then that I noticed he'd backed all the way towards the entrance.

How'd I end up with such a pussy as a brother?

As I emptied the last canister of oil and tossed it to the side I walked to the first boiler and used my flat headed screwdriver to open the valves. The sound of water filling the system immediately shot through the room and I went to the next one, repeating the process as fast as I could.

Normally you'd only open the valves a little and let a small amount of water flow into the system, it would increase the pressure and provide more heat. Instead I turned each valve as high as it would let me with no intention to close them. The pressure would skyrocket in minutes, and these old, worn down boilers would explode.

After I turned the last valve I pulled out a box of matches, struck one, and lit the entire thing on fire. I tossed it down and backed away, adrenaline shooting through my legs and up my body as the flames violently flared and spread across the wet floors.

I grabbed the bags and dashed through the door, racing up the stairs and towards the nearest exit as moreece followed behind me. We ran as quickly as we could and stopped two blocks away from the campus.

If what Eli said was right, a ton of guys from the mafia should be on standby all over the area.

I smiled to myself.

This is it.

Kaitlyn

A hand whipped through the air and slapped me across the face. My body jerked to the right and a tear spilled from my eyelid as the burning pain spread.

Tequan jumped to his feet and scowled at me. "Open yo fuckin' mouth! Goddamn!"

I wiped my eyes and tried to force my lips to stay as tightly closed as I could to keep the blood from seeping out.

"What?! You forget that teeth hurt, you dumb cunt?!"

I ignored him and went into the bathroom, washing the blood out of my mouth as the door closed. I sighed in disappointment at myself, I'd messed up again, there was no way in hell he was gonna pay me.

I didn't know why things had been getting so hard for me. Usually the drugs kept me going, they took me away from reality and I didn't have to think of anything.

I took off the little clothes I had on and stepped into the shower as soon as the water grew warmer. I lathered a towel with soap and started rubbing myself harder and harder, desperate to rid myself of a disgusting filth.

I never helped though, I'd rubbed my skin red yet I could never forget what I'd allowed myself to be put through. I could still feel all those men touching me, looking down on me while I just did what they said only for them to leave and toss me aside like disposable garbage. The memories made my skin crawl, the lingering sensations nauseating.

Then again, I kept debating myself over whether all of that was worth what Eli gave me in return. When I took those pills, it was like falling back onto a fluffy cloud and being swept away to a place where none of my problems could reach me. That feeling was what I lived for.

I just needed a way out, but that was the problem. Getting high never really affected any of the issues happening in my life, it just made me forget they were there. So when I'd come down from it or wake up the next day, I'd still be suffering. So I'd just chase the high again.

I turned the water off, stepped out, and dried my face with a small towel as I looked in the mirror. I almost cried just looking at myself, I was getting bags and my complexion was starting to look terrible. The only thing I had left was slipping...

Will I always be like this?

*BOOM!*

I jumped as a loud boom sounded through the walls, it sounded like it'd came from somewhere low.

Unsure of what was going on, I slipped on some shorts and a T-Shirt laying around my dorm before stepping into some flip flops and running out. An earsplitting alarm blared through the halls as I stepped out of my dorm to find a dean pounding on doors.

"GET DRESSED AND OUT OF YOUR DORMS, YOU NEED TO EVACUATE THE BUILDING NOW!"

Students poured out of their dorms in seconds, trampling each other and panicking loudly as they hauled armfuls of clothes, shoes, gaming systems, and whatever other valuables they had.

"CLOSE YOUR MOUTHS!" The dean yelled. "LEAVE IN A CALM AND ORDERLY FASHIO-!"

A tall fat girl flew down the halls and hurdled through the scrawny man, mowing him down.

"BITCH, GET OUT THE FUCKIN' WAY!"

I twisted my face at her in disgust before shoving into the crowd and forcing myself ahead.

Moments later I found myself outside running along with thousands of screaming students, my muscles tensing against the cold as I slipped and slid across the wet snow. I wasn't too far from the gates when the sound of another explosion erupted in my ears and sped up the mob of wild children and untamed adolescents even more.

I almost snapped at the annoying cries ringing in my ears. Being surrounded by those idiots outside in the freezing air at night was torture. I was stepping in ice cold mud and didn't have anything to cover myself up with.

What the fuck even IS this right now?!

I stood there, wrapped in my own arms and shivering as smoke billowed out of two main buildings. By then everyone could see the flames slowly climb from the inside. Needless to say, it was shitshow.

*BANG!*

A gunshot rang through the air and everyone suddenly scattered.

"What happened?!"

"She DEAD!"

"WHO?!"

"THE PRINCIPAL!"

Everyone backed away from an area near the gates and I started to get a clear view of Ms. Jackson lying stiffly on cold ice.

The sound of loud mixed voices were sounding from everywhere.

"SOMEBODY SHOT MS.JACKSON!"

More gunshots sounded, and I heard more people shriek as a tall boy crashed into the ground.

A boy with glasses backed away, his body trembling. "RUN!"

A huge man clad in a black hoodie with a ski mask snatched the boy by his neck, locking him in a painful hold as he fired off at the students around him and more men in black arrived.

I turned around and ran as hard as I could down the street. I could hardly even focus on where I was going, every corner I came to would reveal another dead body, or I'd see these kids being gagged and shoved into windowless vans.

With no choice, I ran straight into an alleyway until I got to the next block only to see more vans and panicking teens. I felt eyes lock onto me as I sped by but I didn't care, I just kept looking forward and pushing myself through the next alleyway when I slid on some hard ice and hit the ground.

My thighs and elbows scraped, cold, and stinging with pain, I crawled to my feet and shoved the chain link gate of an abandoned house open. I tried to quicken my pace, but I slipped and crashed to the ground once more, slamming my head against the concrete. Instead of trying to get up I just laid there, exhausted and miserable as the freezing air mercilessly aggravated my cuts and bruising skin.

I took fast, deep breaths, my lungs heaving for oxygen as I laid there, the world above me spinning as I propped myself up against the side of a dirty garage.

A shadow suddenly obstructed the light from a pole and I felt a large hand snatch me the the hair. I shrieked and flipped violently across the icy concrete as the large man lifted me up and strapped me into his arms.

I screamed. "NO! LET ME GO RIGHT FUCKING NOW!"

It was still no use, and my heart started racing as the man ran towards one of those windowless black vans I saw earlier. The man carrying me flung the door of the van open and threw me inside. I hit my head against the hard, metallic interior and quickly shoved past a boy trying to escape in an attempt to force myself out of the door.

The man blocked the doorway with his body and caught my hands as I attempted to swing at him.

"LET ME OUT OF THIS THING, YOU FUCKING PSYCHO!"

His fist rocketed out of nowhere and crashed into my face, a sharp crack sounding as I flew back and hit my head again. The pain was so bad I could hardly move, I just let myself lay there and turned to the side, sobs beginning to rack my body as I felt the van speed off.

One Year Later

Joshua

I leaned against the glass and stared down at the people dancing under a glimmering chandelier. They were all dressed formally, suits, ties, corsets.

To think I'd get this far. I smiled to myself.

I watched the people at immaculately set tables, dining and drinking only the most expensive of wine as the glowing lights and the sound of casino games and slot machines surrounded them, separated only by the five huge granite pillars holding up the center of this floor.

I turned back around to the rest of this spacious room and walked across the velvety red floor to someone I only had the privilege of observing because my dad was the godfather of a gang. And luckily that gang was the mafia's top buyer.

The large double doors to the left opened and a young girl entered, security guards following her as she walked towards us and tossed her wavy, shoulder length midnight blue hair over her shoulder.

I walked over to the woman sitting behind a table in nothing but sunglasses and a pant suit with no shirt underneath and stood straight, glaring at the approaching client as menacingly as my eleven year-old self could manage.

The girl stopped in front of us with a suitcase, looking the mafia boss straight in the eyes with comfortable poise.

The woman sitting next to me lowered her sunglasses and looked the girl up and down. "What business does a pretty little lady like you have with me?"

"My name is Joan Wilborn, and I'm from the Divine Society. We'd like to propose a deal with you, Queen Dinero."

Queen folded her arms. "I'm listening."

"Our Shepherd, the leader of the Divine Society, is willing to pay thirteen million dollars for the transaction of fifteen hundred able bodied humans into the first world army."

Queen smiled to herself after hearing those numbers. I could understand her satisfaction, ever since WWIII started the Nexus has been absolutely insane about keeping their army in tension with the rest of the earth. It's not the first time they've sent people to buy from the mafia either.

Joan sat the case on the table, put in some numbers and it popped open to reveal rows of cash lined up inside. Queen snapped her fingers and a man standing beside her took the case.

Queen turned towards another man on her right. "Let our suppliers know we have an order." she said.

"It's a pleasure doing business with you, Miss Queen." Joan said. "... On another note, would you be interested in forming a partnership of any kind with the Divine Society?"

"I'll pass." Queen grumbled, a smirk twisting her lips. "At this point I'm going to hell in every religion..."

Joan smiled warmly. "Don't count yourself out so soon, Miss Queen, even King Saul wasn't beyond forgiveness. The only one's void of hope are those who avidly take up for the Devil."

I'd always laughed at the thought of going to hell. Would an eternity of burning even be that bad? I'd expect it to lose it's edge after the first hundred years or so. Personally I think a greater punishment would be something beyond just physical pain, it actually seemed like a bit of a waste. There are countless fates worse than death for a god to choose from than some chemical.

Thomas' face suddenly flashed through my mind and my fists clenched.

I'd be happy to inflict a fate like that on someone...

"Don't you think there are fates worse than that though?" I said.

Joan looked at me, her eyes twinkling with delight and curiosity. "That's true, actually." She paused. "And the job of the Divine Society is to condemn those who support the Devil to such a fate."

~~~

A/N

These are some of the most disturbed children I've ever seen in my life, enough said.

I wonder how all this is gonna affect the main party...