His heart was pounding in his chest as he ran. The sound of footsteps behind him grew louder and more rapid. He turned the corner, only to find himself facing a wall. Terrified, he turned around and saw the group of men approaching him, weapons in hand. They hit their bats and metal pipes against the palms of their hands as they walked closer to the boy, who was backed up against the wall.
"C'mon, kid. It's time to pay up." One of them said, smiling sinisterly.
The boy, leaning against the wall, sank to the ground, bringing his knees to his chest.
"P-Please...d-don't do this..." He stuttered, choking back tears.
"It's been four months, kid. You had this coming." Another man said.
"No!! Please!! I-I had to pay my rent!! I have no more money!!"
"And that's why you're getting this. You agreed to pay us."
The men started to raise their weapons.
"NO!!! PLEASE!!!" The boy screamed, shielding his face with his hands, "There must be some other way I can repay you guys!!"
Then, the men lowered their weapons. They started talking amongst themselves.
"Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?"
"Maybe. But are you sure? The kid's a wimp."
"Yeah, but we can train him."
"Hm, that's true."
"We could definitely use a new member."
Then, they all nodded and looked over at the boy.
"Okay, here's the deal, kid." One of the men said, "We'll forget about your debt, but you have to come with us."
"...l-like I have to join your gang?"
"Yeah, just do that and you're good to go."
He extended his hand toward the boy.
"Whaddaya say, kid? It's either us or the bats."
The boy hesitated for a moment, then he dried his eyes and grabbed the man's hand. The men all smiled.
"Heh, welcome to the gang, kid." The man said, shaking his hand, "You made a good choice."
YOU ARE READING
Shark
Action"Whaddaya say, kid? It's either us or the bats." ------ The Red Sea is the most feared gang in Japan. They make up for their relatively small size in their ruthlessness as loan sharks. On one fateful day, 25-year-old Atsuo, a young man living on the...
