"Ryan!!" Vi shrieked. "Ryan, stop!!"
"Vi, run!" I yelled as his knuckles hit my jaw.
"Ryan! Stop!" Vi kept yelling.
He kept slamming his fists everywhere, making my entire body feel like a bruise.
"Ryan," she said with more force this time. "Stop!" At that, she shoved him to the ground. She took my hand and helped me up, then pulled me up the stairs into her room. She shoved me in the door, locking it. She breathed heavy for a second.
"I'm so sorry," we said at the same time. "Why are you sorry?" I spoke up.
"He's my brother. You didn't have to do that," Vi said, holding my face in her hands. "You could have gotten hurt and it would have been all my fault."
"Vi, it's okay."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm positive. Now let's get the hell out of here."
"Ryan's probably guarding the door," she said, lowering her voice.
I traced my eyes around the room. I haven't had to sneak out much at my house, but sometimes there were nights when I just had to get out of that hellhole unnoticed. So I'd take blankets and comforters from my bed, tie them together at the corners, tie it to my bedpost, and throw it out the window. The blanket would fly down and land softly in the foot-long grass that I never bothered to cut, and I'd climb down my makeshift rope, terrified until the grass tickled my ankles.
"I have another idea," I said finally.
"Will it get us killed?"
"Hard to say."
"Let's try it."
********************************************
I had finished tying the blankets together as Vi tied the end of the blanket around her bed.
"Lift the bed up and put the blanket under it," I told her. "That'll make it safer."
"Okay," she grunted, lifting the bed and sliding the blanket under it with her foot. She put the bed down and breathed heavy, face beet red.
"Good job, Hulk. I couldn't do that if I tried," I said, giving her shoulder a nudge.
She laughed for a second. "Are you done?"
"With...?"
"The corny jokes, the blankets, everything," she said, throwing her hands in the air.
"No, yes, mostly," I said, answering her questions in order, making her laugh again.
"C'mon, Gee. Let's go."
It had gotten dimmer over the hour. When I first came, I could still see the sun peeking over the hills. Now, the sky was black and littered with stars. I climbed down the rope carefully, strategically placing my hands and feet above the knots for extra support. I took my time climbing down, thinking Vi would do the same. Nope, Vi slid effortlessly down our blanket "rope," like she'd done it a million times before.
"Ugh," I groaned. "Is there anything you're not good at?"
"Arguing," she said with finality. "My job, parkour, skateboarding," she continued, which made me chuckle.
"Your job?"
"Yeah, I can't keep my cool when I get pissed at customers. I'm lucky I'm the only person that ever works there or I'd never get or have a job."
"How many customers-"
"About three a day. Thirty-three percent. One third of them," she said. "Math is one of the things I'm good at," she grinned at me.
I have her a smile back, and we walked off into the night.
"By the way, I'm not flirting with you," she gave me a barely visible glare.
"Ditto."
"Nobody says that anymore, Gee."
"Yes they do!" I argued. "Mr. Baker said it a few days ago!"
"Mr. Baker is eighty years old!" Vi laughed.
"Whatever," I said, now laughing myself.
A silence passed between us.
"Now what?" Vi asked with uncertainty in her voice.
"How long does your brother stay?"
"Only tonight."
"Then we go back tomorrow."
"Yeah, I know that, you moron," Vi joked. "What do we do now?"
"Good question," we hear a voice from behind us. It's low and rough, but it sounds fake.
I whip around, Vi doing so right after me. I see Ryan's face, illuminated only by the streetlights about twenty feet away.
"You can't cheat death, faggot," he says to me.
"Oh, just because I'm not dating your sister?" I demand, taking a step forward.
"Gee," Vi warns.
He lets out a laugh. "Take another step, loser. I dare you."
I can hear my heart pounding in my ears. I know what I should do, what I want to do, and what I can do.
"Run," I whisper to Vi, taking her hand and bolting through the darkness. I hear heavy footsteps behind me, getting closer.
Suddenly, the footsteps stop. "That's what I thought, loser!" Ryan calls into the darkness. "Run to your mommy!"
"Shut up!" Vi says, breaking away from me and running towards Ryan. She rams into him with her shoulder, sending them both to the ground. Vi lands on top of Ryan, who hits the dirt and loses his breath for a second.
"Don't. Hurt. My. Friend!" She roars, punching him in the jaw with every word.
It was like a scene from a movie. Eventually, Vi shoved his head into the ground, then stood up and ran, grabbing my hand and taking me with her as she ran.
"Bitch!" Ryan screams at her.
"Don't look," Vi says quickly as she speeds up.
I've never run this much, so I'm completely out of breath.
"Where are we going?"
"I have no idea, but we have to— AAUGH!!"
"Vi!" I spin on my heels as she falls to the ground.
"Gee, go!" She says as Ryan kicks her in the stomach.
"Vi, I'm not leaving you," I say frantically.
"Gee, GO!" She says with more force.
"Vi, no!"
"Gerard Arthur Way, leave right now or-" she got another foot to her stomach, cutting her off as she grunted.
I stood there in cowardice. The world was spinning, and her words only echoed in my head; long, dragged out, and difficult to hear.
"Gee! Go!" She screamed.
"Leave me be!" She screamed.
"Just leave, I'll be okay!"
These words crashed down on me, burying me under what felt like bricks. I wanted so badly to help her, but there was nothing I could do.
Her words surrounded me as I clung to her hospital bed, tears running down my face. Her eyes are glued shut as she clings to life. Her soul is slipping away, and all because I'm a stupid, fat, ugly, moronic, coward.
"Oh, Vi," I whisper. "What have I done?"