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"You fking bastard!" He screah and step aside at the last moment, and he crashes into the dresser, disoriented for a few seconds by the iun hand He was so shocked he just looked down at it, like it was a riveting TV show instead of soain The bones cracked, his hand split open, blood andover the pine needles He cried He crawled away fro

"Please, onna –"

"L-Listen, kid, I’ll just leave, okay? There’s no need for –"

I swing again, into his gut And again, between his legs He keels over, howling, and I step on his chest and look down at him

"There are crimes And therefore there is a need," I say "For punishments"

"Please –"

I shtly

"No begging Die with sonity"

I raise the bat, level with his head, and he screa in ht

-15-

3 Years

23 Weeks

2 Days

I wake up in Satan’s butthole Everything is white – white walls, white beds, white light Or Narnia It could be Narnia Did I die and go to Narnia? Because that would be rad But then I see the IV attached to my arm and hear the steady ‘beep-beep’ of my heart monitor and all hope deflates out of me quickly Nope Satan’s butthole, aka a hospital

I sit up from the pillows and my head tries to turn itself inside out and run off my neck The headache splits ain with electric pain

"Hairy shit on a stick! Puke pancakes!"

A head pokes in Wren, green eyes s, walks over to inal and captivating swears?"

I feel e wraps around it There are flowers on the small table at my side, and a smiley-face balloon cheerfully watches et a better view of les

"Where am I? Other than hell"

"St Jer on it "You’ve been out for a week or so"

"Mom!" I sit up "Is Mom –"

"She’s fine," Wren puts his hand on ly "She went to work today, but she said she’d be back at night We’ve all been taking turns co to see you Me, Kayla, Avery –"

"Avery? Like, red-head Avery? Avery who hates me? The Avery we threatened?"

"It’s weird, I know But she brought flowers" He motions to a bunch of white cauy who broke in –"

"The police said he knocked you out, and then went upstairs And then –"

Wren’s expression cracks with uneasiness

"Then what? What happened?"