The Story of the Trees - Sword, Ring, and Crown Book One

Chapter Eight

"Won't you speak to me?" Erick disturbed my enjoyment of the scenery and earned a snarl from me.

"Why? I've said all I want to say to you." I spat as I continued to feel guilty about my friends. Why couldn't I have sat with the twins?

"I want to hear what happened to you these past four years. I thought of you every day."

I scoffed at him. Every day, did he? Yet he never came until now. "Oh, what? You want to feel better about yourself by knowing that I was okay?"

"You know that's not what I meant."

"Then what?" I flung my arms up and hit one of my wrists against the roof of the car. Ouch. I rubbed it as I glared at him.  What was he expecting anyway - for me to sit right beside him and start making friendship bracelets together? I hated him!

 "What happened to you? You're the same in some ways, but you've grown harder," he asked, despite my declaration.

My voice raised as I finally relented. "You betrayed me; my mother turned me into a boy and abandoned me; I almost died on the streets, and up until today, I was dealing with it as best as I could. I don't know. Pick a card, any card. They're all terrible. "

He looked pensive, and I turned away to stare at the window, but I was no longer enjoying the scenery. After several minutes of silence, I continued in a quiet voice.

"What happened to me is a long story."

"We have several hours before we get to your uncle's house."

I turned to stare at him. "Why do you even want to know? What good will it do you to know that one simple act from you caused so much damage to me?"

"Think of it as exquisite torture. I assure you, I have been. Tortured, that is."

I frowned and twisted the hem of my favorite 49ers jersey. If I was honest to myself, I'd wanted to tell this man what he'd put me through for years, if only to have the satisfaction of seeing the regret and shame in those pretty, aquamarine eyes of his.

"I thought the worst day of my life was the day you betrayed me. I learned that I should never say that. There can always be worse days." 

I told him all about my time on the streets - all the dangers.

"I wasn't on the streets for long, just a few weeks, but it was enough to learn that lesson.  My friend Luis and I spent a lot of time just fighting to survive. We also tried to help anyone else that was being harassed, if we could. Adrian was one such kid. He found us while Luis and I were eating in an alley. He was thirteen, and I had just turned fourteen, as you remember. Thanks for that great birthday present, by the way."

Erick said nothing in reply. I eyed him for a moment, then continued.

"Adrian was little. He was smaller than I by at least four inches and had been on the streets for a week. He ran from his grandmother's gravesite on the day of her funeral. His other relatives didn't want him, but they all wanted his grandma's house and things. He was the trash that they left behind.

"When he first saw me, he punched me in the face." I shook my head and laughed. My expression grew tender.

"Why do you look like that was a treasured moment?"

"Well, when I didn't punch him back, he started crying. Then he patted me and apologized for hitting me. Someone covered that kid in bruises which I hadn't noticed because his skin was so dark. It was understandable why he threw the punch. If you come out swinging, the other guy might be too intimidated to mess with you. Too bad his heart was too tender.

"I gave him some half-melted chocolates I had stuffed in my pocket and promised him I was going to be his friend. I told him I would protect him. It was great, feeling needed. Everyone else treats me like I can't walk across the street without holding someone's hand."

I stewed over that for a few minutes. Luis was the worst offender. He was always saying, 'You are my prey, so no one else can kill you.' Then he'd freak out if I even got a hangnail. I pitied all of them when Luis got free of this. He credited my continued survival all to himself, so he'd try twice as hard to prove that when he woke up.

When I'd gotten too quiet, Erick prompted, "So what happened after that?"

"The two most important days from my time on the streets were the first day and the last day. All the others were just a blur of trying to survive as a small, pretty boy. Adrian had been through a week of hell, and I was determined not to let him be another grape to squeeze."

"What about the last day?"

I allowed myself to think of that day as I told him. I remembered the face of the man who tried to swallow me whole and spit me out into ruin. His poisoned knife injured me and almost killed me, but it was what he'd done to me before that left an indelible mark. It was the most physical and emotional pain I'd ever known. It was like I'd swallowed a hill of fire ants, then covered myself in gasoline and set my body ablaze.

"On my last day on the streets, I was stabbed in the back by someone I thought was a friend." My expression hardened as I stared him down.

"Who stuck you with a knife?" Erick asked, his eyes misting with tears. He moved to take my hand, but I yanked it away.

"His name was Joseph."