//

When Mia walked out of school as she finished with her classes, her eyes scanned the parking lot for Arvin's car. She managed to find it and was about to approach when she heard laughing.

With her binders and books still in her arms, Mia turned the corner and slowly approached. What she saw filled her with rage.

It was Lenora on her knees as three boys were grabbing her hair and shoving her around like a doll while she had her hands together praying.

Boys in school liked to pick on Lenora for her pious manner and pinched faces. Gene Dinwoodie, Tommy Matson, and Orville Buckman had managed to corner her by the dumpster behind school.

"You're so damn ugly, I'd need a sack over your head just to get a hard-on," one of them taunted.

Mia dropped her books and ran over there. "Motherfucker!" she yelled, tackling Tommy Matson to the ground. She stood over him before throwing many punches to his face until she was lifted up like a rag doll, making her thrash in Gene Dinwoodie's grasp. "Get the fuck off me!"

He suddenly dropped her on the floor, making her painfully hit the concrete road making Lenora yell objections, trying to help but she was being held back by Tommy and Orville.

"Be a good little bitch," Gene growled at Mia as he gripped his fingers around her chin painfully and barely lifting the end of her dress up.

Mia was a beautiful girl who had a bitchy, bad-mouthed attitude to strangers. Yet almost every boy in school wanted her including Gene Dinwoodie.

Mia spat in his face, kneeing him in the stomach. "Fuck you," she said.

Gene wiped away the saliva before backhanding Mia making the girl's head harshly turn and thump against the pavement.

"Leave her alone!" Lenora yelled but before she could try and get up, a brown paper sack was placed over her head.

"Think she'll suck me off right here, right now, brother fucker?" Gene taunted, lifting Mia's dress higher who was out of it from hitting her head.

Suddenly, Gene was shoved off of Mia by Arvin who threw a punch at the boy for trying to assault his girl. He tried to throw more but Orville and Tommy dragged Arvin off of him.

When Lenora was free, she ran over to Mia, pulling the girl's dress back down before trying to help her sit up, yelling objections for the boys to leave her step-brother alone.

Tommy and Orville held Arvin down while Gene punched and kicked the Russell boy.

Once the boys released Arvin and walked away, Lenora hurried over to him as did Mia who had a pounding headache.

She sat in front of him, cupping his face to see his nose was lightly bleeding. "Arvy..." she mumbled, looking him over.

Arvin wasn't concerned about himself, just Mia who was bleeding near her head and had scrapes the palms of her hands.

He loved her so much, he really hated himself for not getting there sooner to stop those damn boys from trying to assault her and his sister. He'd do anything to protect them both.

***

In the Coal Creek Cemetery, Lenora sat in front of her mother's headstone with Mia beside her.

Mia placed down the picture Lenora always brought beside the headstone in the dead grass while the Laferty girl held the bible in her hands. Arvin was close by but he kept a distance.

No matter what the weather was, Lenora would visit her mother's grave after school. Some days she'd even read the Bible out loud, and imagine her mother was listening. Mia stopped having a belief in God many years ago but that didn't stop her from being beside Lenora every time for support and company. Though he wasn't one for praying, Arvin would often drive her to keep her company as well.

"Are you sure you don't want to read the Bible to your daddy?" Lenora asked Mia.

She knew that Thomas and Helen were buried in the same graveyard and she'd often ask Mia if she would do the same for her father as Lenora did for her mother. She kept asking and Mia always declined but hoped that maybe one day she'd so and her faith would hopefully be restored.

Mia shook her head. "No, thanks," she responded. As always.

Lenora nodded and looked to Arvin who was still standing a distance away. "Arvin," she called.

"What?" Arvin questioned as he approached, Mia noticed the dry blood he had under his nose.

"Come here," she told him.

Arvin obeyed, squatting in front of her. She grabbed the handkerchief she married on her before grabbing his face gently, trying to wipe the blood away.

As she did so, she noticed that he was still wearing her bullet necklace around his neck. The sight made her grin.

"What?" Arvin asked, not noticing where she was looking. "I ain't pretty anymore?"

She chuckled at that. "No, this," she answered, with her free hand, grabbing the bullet that was resting on the center of his chest. "You're still wearing it."

"Why wouldn't I be?" was all Arvin responded with.

Mia stayed silent, now releasing the bullet and focused on wiping his nose. She had thought maybe he'd take it off once she went home.

"It was a sight you didn't end up in the hospital," Lenora told Arvin as Mia finished, tucking her handkerchief away.

Arvin sat beside Mia, turned away from the headstone. "Yeah, well, there's a lot of no good son's a bitches out there."

"Well, Lord, Arvin, you've been saying that almost since the day I met you," Lenora told him.

"That's because it's true," Mia stated, resting her head against Arvin's shoulder.

Arvin told Mia about his dad a few times. How Willard taught Arvin a lesson with just that saying alone.

"Maybe you should try prayin' for them, then," Lenora suggested to them both. "Would that hurt none?"

Mia stayed silent while Arvin stated, "You already do enough for all of us, and where's it doin' you much good, huh? You know what would do you good? To not be wondering behind school on your own self like I told you."

Mia smacked his arm. "Leave her alone, Arvin," she told him.

"I left you alone for one minute to get the car and that fuckin' prick tried to stick his hand down your underwear," Arvin replied in a snappy tone, now angered at the thought of Gene doing that to Mia. "Fuckin' Gene Dinwoodie," he mumbled.

"Do you ever think about..." Lenora spoke to Arvin. "How we ended up orphans livin' in the same house?"

"No," Arvin answered. "Besides, you might not even be an orphan. As far as everybody around here is concerned your daddy's probably still out there somewhere alive and kickin'. Fuck, he might even come over that hill any day now, dancin' a jig."

Lenora chuckled as did Mia. "I hope so," Lenora stated. "I pray every day he will."

Mia looked at her. "You do?" she asked.

"Even if it means he did somethin'?" Arvin questioned.

"I've already forgiven him," Lenora replied, as a tear nearly fell from her eyes. "We could start over."

Mia stayed silent. She wished her mom would make an effort to be better but Mia knew she never would. Mia had similar circumstances to Lenora but the girl was always left with endless 'what if's'. Mia didn't hope or wonder about Constance because she wouldn't want to get crushed if something didn't go her way.

"That's crazy," Arvin told her, making Mia smack his arm again.

"No, it's not," Lenora replied to which Mia scooted closer to the girl, giving her a side-hug which Lenora accepted but asked both of them, "What about both your father's?"

"What about him?" Arvin questioned.

"I..." Mia began. "I don't have that possibility of starting over. My daddy's corpse is nothing but a skeleton now. He ain't comin' back. As long as he's gone, mama ain't ever gonna be the same."

"I know what my daddy did," Arvin spoke, sensing the pain in Mia's voice.

"Well..." Lenora spoke. "Forgivin' him if he could come back..."

"Well, shut your mouth," Arvin mumbled as he stood up. "We both know that ain't ever gonna happen."

Lenora grabbed his hand. "I'm sorry for bringing it up."

"It's all right," he told her.

Mia grabbed the photo of Helen giving it to Lenora before reaching a hand up to Arvin who grasped it, pulling her to her feet. She mumbled a quick 'thank you' but still held his hand.

"You know," Lenora said. "I appreciate y'all always comin' with me." She also stood up with the Bible and picture in hand. "I know you'd probably rather be doin' somethin' else."

"You're my girl," Mia reassured her, wrapping an arm around her. "I'm always here for you."

"We gotta look out for each other," Arvin added.

"Lenora! Arvin! Mia!" someone called. The three all look to see it was Reverend Sykes who was exiting the church.

The three walked over to where Reverend Sykes was. Arvin stepped away to smoke a cigarette while Lenora and Mia approached to see what Reverend needed.

"Yes?" Mia questioned.

"I might be gone a while," he stated with a harsh cough.

"I'll be prayin' for you," Lenora told him while Mia just nodded. She don't pray but she didn't want to be disrespectful.

Reverend Sykes coughed once more. "In the meantime, my sister's boy from down in Tennessee is gonna come and take my place. He just graduated from one of them...Bible colleges. Well, I would appreciate it if you all would try and make him feel welcome. Tell your grandmama I'm asking folks to bring a dish next sermon."

"Of course," Lenora replied.

***