So, I almost died. But then I almost killed a person, so I guess it was fair.
If you're wondering how no one noticed us fighting like crazy out there, then I should tell you that the car park was huge and almost empty. Encircling the car park were empty stadium buildings so, that pretty much left us to ourselves and Aldo's mom's bank. And he obviously wasn't going to help.
Anyway my team mates looked awesome as they fought. Flora and Emi exchanged opponents. Emi locked the metal lady in huge granite slabs.
Flora pulled out her broken mirror gadget and held it up to the laser beams. The beams reflected back at it's owner causing him to fly backwards and his chest to get singed. I couldn't help but laugh, and wince when I did.
Connor in dinosaur form was stomping on the gun lady, the teleporter was no where in sight. Then from above, the teleporter came, falling onto Connor's back with the knife lady. I tried to scream out but everytime I did, more blood left my body.
I felt bad for the two, the teleporter and knife lady. They got kicked out of the air, by a mini tornado. Connor transformed into a huge eagle and grabbed the knife lady by her hair, with his claws, as he went soaring through the sky. He dropped her a couple of times, only to pick her up again when she started screaming and flailing uncontrollably.
Matt was also doing quite well against the teleporter. He created a tornado around himself, collecting broken peices of metal, crystals and knives as he went around the car park. The teleporter must've gotten in there with Matt, because he was gone and the tornado had stopped walking. Suddenly Matt shot out the tornadoes eye. The tornado crashed into itself and the man was somewhere beneath the rubble.
"Cool... " I mumbled, as the world turned yellow.
"Rayne!! "
I saw my friends running towards me. Emi held up Matt, who had huge cuts on his arms and legs. Emi herself had weird lines across her body. Flora had bloody palms and arms, and was limping probably because of her bleeding ankle. Connor looked alright, his arm was bleeding but it didn't look deep. He also had a dark purple bruise on his chin.
"You good? " Emi asked me.
I smiled. "Yeah, just hungry. You? "
"You're crazy, and we need to get you to the hospital. " Connor took off his shirt, and dropped to a knee. He pressed his shirt against my bleeding wound. I winced and he flinched. "Sorry, I have to stop the bleeding. "
If I wasn't bleeding to death I would've laughed at his worried face and probably have blushed because his shirtlessness was leaning over me.
"Ugh, how do we even get to the hospital? " Matt groaned, falling flat against the car park road.
I pointed at the kid who left me like this. "Help them, they're gonna die... "
Connor glanced at the giant and then back at me, his mouth ajar. "What... In the—never mind. "
Hope seemed lost. I was convinced I was going to die very soon, then like a short dark angel from above our teacher fell to the ground.
"Hello my dumb babies, " Mr Pow said, shaking in laughter. He got one of the cars to start and forced us into the back, then drove off to a hospital. I begged him to take the others with. He scowled and said he'd help them, whatever that meant.
The hospital was slow and annoying but the good thing was none of our injuries were too serious. Apparently one my arteries burst, but the doctors were healers so they got it fixed up in a jiffy. Everyone got treated and soon we left, with bandages all over our bodies. If you saw us from afar you'd think we were Egyptian mummies.
Mr Pow vanished after he dropped us off.
Nile picked us up, not before giving us a big ole, old man scolding.
We sat in the living room, watching cartoons with Frost and Zooli, as we ate popcorn and drank water. Nile wouldn't let us near the soft drinks, said it was bad for us. The downsides of having a med student for a brother.
There wasn't much communication since that fight, just grunts and groans that probably made us sound even more mummy-like.
"This is only the beginning, isn't it? " Matt asked. The first person to talk since.
I grunted. Connor hmmed. Emi sighed. Flora was asleep.
Just before I could nod off too, my phone rang with an unknown number. I drank my water and eyed it suspiciously.
"Guys I think it's Maya, " I said after a while, nonchalantly.
Emi and Matt looked up immediately and Connor plucked the phone out of my hands.
"Hello? " He said.
He listened in for a few seconds then replied, "you wanna meet up? "
My heavy eyelids widened.
"Yeah, we can meet up. Time and location, we'll be there. " Connor grinned. "See you. "
The call beeped off and he handed it back to me. "She agreed, she's going to help us out. "
➷
We had to compromise, the tiger was still out there and we needed to speak to Maya. So we decided, Flora, Connor and Emi would visit Maya and Matt and I would go back to look for the tiger.
I asked Flora to come with us but her ankles hurt and she decided she'd tag along with Connor and Emi instead.
The three took a taxi and left while Matt and I waited at the bus stop for a bus. The odd thing was there weren't any around.
"What the heck is happening? " I mumbled, kicking the air.
"Wait what's today's date? " Matt asked, tapping his feet uneasily.
I told him the date and he nodded knowingly. "It's today isn't it? "
"What's today? "
"Kearny Enterprise's anniversary. Paps always throws the biggest party just to celebrate the day he put up his business. And he ropes everyone in, including the Mayor... What a creep, wait no not creep, dogbrain! "
I glanced at Matt solemnly. "Aren't you supposed to be there then? "
He shrugged and fiddled with his bracelets. "He didn't notice me going out all this time, and showing up at home with a sprained ankle or several knife wounds. Why would he notice me now?"
I frowned. I guess I didn't know much about Matt. Always thought he was just a funny guy. He never let that part of him show, not much.
His eyes went wide and he ruffled his hair. "Sorry, I'm ranting. "
I started walking and he walked beside me. I smiled and side eyed him.
He returned a confused smile. "What is it Ray? "
"If we don't die fighting gang members, then we're bros for life, " I replied. "So as a good bro, I gotta listen to my bro rant if he needs to. "
He bumped my shoulder and chuckled. "You're the best bro, ever. "
"So, you have daddy issues? "
He folded his arms over his chest and looked off. "Paps is a good guy. A good business man, a good friend, a good citizen. Good dad? He could do better. "
"What about your mom? "
He shrugged. "Never knew her. I mean yeah she gave birth to me, then she left me with my old man. Whenever I'd ask about mom, he'd say she hated him and she wasn't ever coming back. As soon as I popped out Paps handed me over to my nanny and said, '"Simone, take care of it."'
"Isn't Simone a doctor?" I asked.
"Certified neurosurgeon. " Matt nodded. "But she loves me too much to leave, plus Paps pays her millions just to take care of me. "
"Well at least you don't have an evil step mother? " I snorted and eyed Matt.
He smirked, and lifted his hand. "Five."
I gaped. "Oh, are they, y'know evil? "
"They're models they took me to their shoots and forced me to pose with them for their Instagram feed. "
"They didn't last long, I'm guessing. "
"Less than a year each. Nice ladies, but too young and too fussy. "
"No siblings? "
He wheezed. "Thank goodness, no. I'd feel bad for the little guy, if he came into this world only to realize his daddy wouldn't give two shits about him. I'd probably be a good brother though, the best bro ever. "
"Bet you would. "
He stopped abruptly and scratched his head. "Do I sound ungrateful? I feel ungrateful, it's just that... Yeah I have all this stuff, money or whateva. I can buy burgers and fertilizer, and jewelry but sometimes I just want a hug or a pat on the head."
"You don't have to feel that way. No one should feel bad for who they are, no matter if you're dirt poor or filthy rich. We all have our insecurities. And we all know kids need love so, rant all you want. "
"Thanks Ray, can I get a hug? "
"Sure."
He gave me a big bear hug. I could hardly breathe after awhile so I tapped his back and he let me go.
"If it makes you feel any better, we're your family too. All five of us, we're an awkward bunch of kids but we're family. "
He sighed heavily and sniffed. "Gee thanks Ray, you're a really cool friend. I'm lucky I got to know you, and the girls. "
That got me thinking, how we all came together. How this all started. Funny how one minute it was just me and Emi and then it was us five.
Suddenly my mind seemed to have switched. I was on all four, growling at three man, who cowered into an alley as I inched closer, thoughts of sweet savoury human flesh on my mind.
I was shocked back to reality by Matt. "Ray, ray, ray, you ok? "
I stared back in bewilderment. "Come on, this way! " I grabbed his arm and we ran. I needed to get there, now!