Kenneth Douglas's Story

Gym class. The only class of the day that Superstar Kenny was allowed to participate in without blowing his cover, or get laughed at by the guys. Sure, they attended classes and all, but going a full day without skipping one? They would get worried that their football team was turning into a bunch of nerds. Gym class, however, regardless of the status, was a class to attend. All of the football team would show up for gym class, regardless of the fact that they had a game tomorrow and coach got really anal about his team 'over exerting' themselves a day before game night.

For Kenny, this meant that he could actually enjoy a day - except he still couldn't. Nope. Regardless of how much he loved gym class, at the same time he resented it. Now, most people would ask 'Why in hell would the head quarterback hate gymclass? I mean, its an easy mark and... he's the quarterback?' The reason is actually quite simple: showing interest in other sports gets coach suspicious, even though most of the team can play literally every sport. The other problem? He still has to keep his act up, and the teasing and mocking is worst in gym class. So far, he has been able to reduce the amount of teasing he has to do to just once a class, but it still hurts. Saying words of pain to others in Kenny's eyes is worse than when he has to beat up the kid in his business class. That stupid saying about how words will never hurt is a complete lie: words hurt more than sticks.

So, as usual, Kenny only participated to 'make fun' of the sport by only giving half of his worth. Sure, he was still better than half of the kids at the sport - which was tennis for today - but he wasn't supposed to show any interest. Kenny had his entire facade planned ahead of time, and had gotten so good at it that he could predict the events and how he should react. In truth, when he came to the conclusion that he could do such a thing, he nearly threw up.

It didn't help that every gym class since the accident, Kenny was tormented by the girl sitting off to the side alone: his ex-girlfriend, Lily. Kenny wasn't sure if anybody called her that anymore - he was one of the few that did back in the day. Now, just thinking about the past made him sick with anxiety, so he had to constantly keep his mind focused on the task at hand, which was playing the game. When the final bell rang, he was the first out of there and in the showers: it helped hide the tears that were forming in his eyes, since he could blame the shampoo.

Yep, you heard right: big, macho man Kenny wasn't just a softy. He was starting to think that he was becoming emotionally destroyed every day - possibly due to anxiety or his slowly increasing depressive state - and that sooner or later, he would come undone. It wouldn't be pretty either: from Kenny's calculations, he would either have a mental breakdown on the field, or be diagnosed with bipolar after he throws a chair at a fellow student. Yeah, things weren't looking good inside Kenneth's noggin. And the worst part was that he was doing it to himself.

Regardless, he was the last man out of the showers for the day. After all the guys had left - but not before making more dick jokes than allowed in a teen-aged comedy - he got out of the showers alone, pensive. If he remembered correctly, there was supposed to be some massive party tonight to celebrate their victory two days ago. It had been pretty hush hush though, since if Coach caught wind he would storm the place himself. That alone scared everybody.

Thing was, he wasn't planning on going - he wanted to catch up on all the homework he missed today by skipping and keep on top of his work. His cover story? His dad caught wind of the party from his douchebag older brother, and refused him from ruining the chances of success tomorrow. It was an airtight excuse, since Henry did that so many times before. It would be easier if he didn't have a phone, so that people wouldn't text and ask him why he wasn't there, but he needed that little device. Kenny sighed, drying himself off and changing as the tennis guys entered for their practice. Kenny didn't say anything, and they returned gifted him with their silence. It wasn't malicious, at least not to Kenny - it was just the silence of two completely different worlds colliding together for a brief moment. With that, he laced up his favourite sneakers, put on his chrome Beats, and walked out of the change room.

Hopefully Karin isn't waiting for me - I don't really think I have the heart to deal with her right now... Kenny mused as he got to the gym - the guy's change room was attached to the gym, so that was the only way out. Once he reached there he watched the tennis champion smoke a girl in the face. His heart instantly went out to the girl, wondering why somebody would be so uncaring as to bodily injure another over a silly sport, but then the iron bars of reality stopped it. He squared his face, holding back the emotion as he saw the coaches snicker and her own stupid idea of wit. A sigh then escaped his lips, one of sadness, as he knew that that was how he had to act to save face.

However, his 'saving face' nearly got destroyed when he saw the familiar face of Lilith in the crowd. He instantly turned away, hoping that he could burn her image away from his mind, but the horrible pun that insued kept it there. How he wanted to apologize for what he said, make it right, at least remain friends with the girl. Instead, he shunned her like the rest, her last hope crushed because he was saving face for his family. That night, he had ripped down a few of his football posters out of anguish.

Near her was a seemingly carbon copy of the scary tennis player, only in guy form. He remembered those two: Max and Michaline Walker. He had heard snippets of their past through rumors, and in truth was quite scared of what they had gone through. Beside Max was a petite little thing that Kenny zeroed in on. It was then that he recognized her, and he stopped all forms of movement. Shirlee. That was all he knew about her, but from what he could simply see, she had something he desperately wanted: freedom. Every time he saw her, he was confused as to such a little girl could make such a big impact on society. What was worse for him, how she could make a positive influence while being a nobody. Himself? He was a waste of space, in reality. Just a quarterback that may make it big someday, but hasn't done anything to contribute.

If he wanted to figure out anything about anybody, it would be how she does it. With that, he began to turn away, his headphones now on his ears and reaching for his phone to turn up some music. His face feel into a somber, depressed mood as he turned, and he began to saunter out of the gym, on his way towards his house.

Day 1047. Still just a waste. Still can't break free.

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Under normal circumstances, Mickey probably wouldn't have even noticed Karin Keene was in the crowd. Under normal circumstances, she would have ignored her even if she had noticed. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't have registered the crowd snickering, hooting, and jeering to her comment.

But this was not normal circumstances.

"Oh Lilly," she crooned, eyes alight with malice. "Didn't you hear that, love? Miss Walker here is giving out free facelifts! You ought to go, Tyson—if you're lucky, she might knock your other eye out, and then your face would finally be symmetrical. Wouldn't that be charming?"

It took all of Michaline's self control to not charge straight over the fence at the cheerleader. No, she corected herself, The Cheer Captain. And she wasn't sure what irritated her more, the fact that she was ruthlessely tearing into her former best friend, or the fact that she had a video camera in her hand. It didn't take long for Michaline to put two and two together. She turned back to the varsity girl lying on the court sobbing. She was wearing a cheer uniform. She must be on both teams...

Michaline's lip curled. She turned away, and slowly walked to the gate, opening it and stepping through, all in a slow, calculated manner. She held two tennis balls in her hand. Karin hadn't turned back to look at her or most of the crowd. In fact, most of the crowd either began to disperse or was looking at Michaline, as she never left the courts until practice was over. Even the coaches had begun to wonder what the girl was doing.

Karin had turned to leave, barking orders at the other girls who followed like scared sheep. Michaline was only slightly aware of her brother who had come over to her and was telling her something. Probably trying to make sure she didn't do anything stupid. She wasn't sure, and she didn't care.

One ball took to the air. Michaline hit it, and didn't hold back this time. THWOCK

The ball sailed, or more like fired, through the air straight at Karin. One of the cheerleaders screamed, and the captian had begun to turn to see what was the matter, but not fast enough.

CRACK

The ball hit the video camera, knocking it from the girl's hand. shattering the entire side of it, which Michaline hoped was the side that held the cassette. To be honest, it didn't matter, because when it hit the ground, it broke more, so she more than likely succeeded. Some of the coaches murmered their approval at her shot, others were slightly worried. Mic began to bounce the other ball, and was about to serve it, a look of sheer hatred on her face, when somebody grabbed ehr from behind.

And it wasn't Max. Instinct overcame fear, but not after she was stunned enough to be lifted off the ground. She jabbed her left elbow back, into the guy's stomach, but it wasn't enough to get him to let go of her. He was saying something about her stopping, but she couldn't hear him. She could also feel Max on the guy.

She almost felt sorry for him, until she threw her head back, felt it connect with his forehead with a nice crack, and he dropped her. She turned to face him, and found none other than Kenneth Douglass, the start of the football team, and boyfriend of the girl whose face Michaline was just about to give a "face lift". Michaline scowled as the boy stood dazed from where her head had connected with his. Max had promptly backed away as soon as he'd seen his sister had been let go.

"Next time, Douglass, how about you just let her get clocked, maybe she'll look a little prettier for you." She turned and went back to the court, the coached crowding her as soon as she got there. It all made Michaline extreamly uncomfortable, but she'd learn to deal with them. They were her coaches, after all.

Michaline also knew she was going to have hell to pay for attacking Karin, and probably for conking Kenneth in the head, though that had actually been in self defense. But football and cheer came before tennis in their school, so all of them were treated like royalty. Michaline rolled her eyes at the thought. Well, if she was lucky, she wouldn't have to go home, and maybe she could stay at Shirlee's house tonight. She might even be able to talk Max into staying as well.

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Oh boy, was there a lot going on. But let's back up a bit.

Before the tennis match, Max had already coincidentally been at the tennis court. Or maybe it wasn't coincidence; Max knew that there would be practice today, and had skipped class in that area intentionally, just so he could catch his little Mouse a bit early. Unfortunately, when she arrived, she managed to slip right through his metaphorical paw and stayed group with the rest of the players, whilst one of the coaches give him stern glances. A scowl momentarily crossed his lips as he shot back a glance that shone daggers at the coach, before exiting the court to place himself behind the fence. He knew how ruthless his sister got at tennis, and she could manage to serve a ball at around seventy-two miles per hour. Max wouldn't be surprised if she could manage faster and create some sort of deadly flaming tennis ball.

Max got some forbidden pleasure out of the stretching practices the players did, causing him to shift uncomfortably and try to avert his gaze, which made it look like he was planning to eat her. Max thought it unfortunate that his eyes did so well at showing what he was actually thinking, and that fact that his sister could read it so well. He also hated the fact that when she caught him shooting those kinds of glances at her, she'd tease him. And normally, Max was a very sadistic person, resulting in him coming off as the more dominant time. And so one might consider it odd seeing him subjected to what was like torture to him, and the bad part was that he completely submitted to it, squirming slightly as she faced the opposite direction of him and purposefully going into a deep stretch. Max's stare lingered slightly, as he silently thanked whoever designed the tennis uniforms before shaking his head, huffing slightly, and then puffing out his cheeks slightly as he turned away, leaning his back against the fence and watching the school as the official bell rung.

Now was the time students were legitimately let out from class, and they began to pool out from the doors in swarms. He found his elbows propped up against the chain link fence behind him as he watched, fingers curling around the wire that made the links up. His eyes seemed to stare blankly as the people made their way towards the court to watch, crowding up as they usually did when practice with his Mouse was going on. He seemed... well, bored. And he remained that way for a while until the source of the crowd began to die down, and everybody that would be there was. Then the matches began.

It was graceful really, watching his sister play, she had a clear allure to her as she navigated the court and played. It was like machine work, with all of the gears falling into the right places and turning without any effort against them. Needless to say, it was a pretty unfair advantage to anybody who played against her. Maybe Max would be able to keep up with her, but he disliked social interaction, and would be too lazy to play seriously against anybody other than his sister. But even then, there was no way in hell he could match her serve, he was always praised by her for his return skills.

After her first match, she turned to look at him, and Max sensed that she had felt the stare he was aiming at her. She raised a hand up to shield her eyes, and looked straight at him. It was odd, really, seeing what were essentially his own fucking eyes looking back at him. And he wasn't surprised she had found him in the crow, he was pretty sure the feel he was giving off was a strong one. But he couldn't exactly control the intensity of his desire as he watched her play. Thankfully, only Mouse seemed to be able to pick up on it well enough, and other people were oblivious.

She then smiled, and turned her glance to Max's side before waving at them. He shot a glance to his side as well, his head turning slightly as he ran his eyes up and down a small figure. It was Shirlee, or the girl who had dubbed herself as Shi-Shi, also known as his sister's best friend (ironically, she had met Max first, and became friends with his sister because of him). He gave a small nod to her, not that he think she'd notice, but did it to acknowledge her nonetheless. He then turned his gaze back to his sister, gave another small nod in reply to her wave, and even raised his hand slightly, fingers curling forward gingerly. But then they went forward and grasped the chain link as the tennis ball shot by his sister's face with a THWOCK.

Ah shit, here we go...

He let out a small sigh as he watched her turn furiously and stiffened, a scowl forming on her face much like that one on his had when the coach had looked at him earlier. She bounced the ball a couple of times before throwing it up in the air and wrencing her arm back, but Max immediately noticed that she was to hold back immensely with this shot. Cute, she's showing mercy. He thought, before watching her hit it, registering that the ball moving at sixty-two miles per hour slower than general still would hit like a bitch when it did. And it did hit, and Max was certain it did hurt like a bitch as it hit the girl in the face and sent he backwards, blood spraying from her nose as if it were some cheap movie effect. He frowned slightly as the girl began to wail, and then frowned even more as the coaches began to snicker at it.

Or maybe she just didn't want to kill her

He finished the thought before glaring daggers at the coaches again, and then was going to turn his glance back to his sister before feeling somebody behind him bumped into him before stumbling back. He turned back to face them at the sound of their feet shuffling, and discovered it was Lillith, the one-popular girl who had been in an unfortunate accident and now found herself lower on the food chain than even Max himself, and he was pretty down there. Behind her he saw Kenneth, who had seemingly caught glance of himself and Lillith at the same time and taken a couple of steps back before then turning his eyes to Shirlee at Max's side and putting on a look that seemed terribly surprised, causing Max to narrow his eyes. He then turned his glance back to Lillith and raised an eyebrow at her before giving a nod and turning back in time to see his sister pretend to stretch and bounce the ball again.

"All right. Who's next? I promise I won't break your nose. At least... not on purpose."

Oh great, she was boasting now. He opened his mouth to interject, but another familiar voice rang out.

"Oh Lilly," she crooned, eyes alight with malice. "Didn't you hear that, love? Miss Walker here is giving out free facelifts! You ought to go, Tyson—if you're lucky, she might knock your other eye out, and then your face would finally be symmetrical. Wouldn't that be charming?"

His eyes immediately rolled and one thing ran through his head; Oh great, this bitch.

He didn't need to turn to identify her, he could tell by the voice and the glance his sister was shooting at her. It was Karin Keene, resident twat. Max tensed at the moment his sister made, preparing the hop over the fence himself to stop in case she tried something, but she managed to hold herself back, then... she threw the ball up and managed to knock it in the direction of Karin before Max could even scramble up half of the fence's length in reply. He noted that it hit the camera in the jeering woman's hands, however, and found himself landing on the tennis court around the same time the camera landed on the ground, shattered. He moved to stop her from getting another one off, but found that somebody else had already gotten there before him. It was Kenneth.

Max moved fast, knowing how terrified his sister was of being touched by any other than him, and he found himself balling up a fist and throwing it before realizing that the problem had already been dealt with. So in the manner of seconds that had happened, the student holding on to his sister had been elbowed in the stomach, headbutt in the forehead, and then accidentally punched in the face. Which made Max take a couple steps back in shock as Kenneth's nose began to bleed. He hated making mistakes, especially ones like that. A mixture of emotions seemed to cross his face, and he opened and closed his mouth several times before being able to say things again. Then a multitude of things happened.

First, he withdrew a crumpled up piece of paper and attempted to straighten it out before ushering it in Kenneth's hand and speaking. "Er, uh. Sorry about that... Just hold this to it and, uh, tilt your head back, okay? A slight red came to his cheeks, and he looked away flustered. He then grabbed his sister's wrist after making her comment to Kenneth and pulled her to the fence where Shirlee was. "That was unnecessary." The way he spoke the word was sharp, and he scolded her momentarily. Not that he thought it'd have much effect.

He then raised his glance to look through the fence, first at Lillith before casting his eyes downward, still addressing her. "You, don't listen to her. Just ignore and all that jazz." Then he glanced to Shirlee. "And you. Take her and keep her out of trouble for a moment." He said, gesturing his head towards his sister and letting go of her wrist.

He then took a walk towards Karin, sighing and raising a hand to run through his hair. He really disliked being bothered with this sort of thing, but when he arrived in front of her he bent his knees and came to a crouch to retrieve the busted camera and came to an upright position once again. He turned it over in his hand to observe it before removing it's storage device, holding it up to her with his free hand, and pocketing it. He then handed her the broken camera. "Sorry about the camera. Though, I'd say it's deserved with how big of a cunt you are. I'll pay for it, if really need be, but I think you taking any sort of act of charity from me would be insulting, so deal with it." With that, he turned away, headed towards his sister once more, patting Kenneth on the shoulder in passing, and then grabbing his sister's wrist again before pulling her away, jerking his head at Shirlee to motion to her to follow them.

"Oh Lilly, didn't you hear that, love? Miss Walker here is giving out free facelifts! You ought to go, Tyson—if you're lucky, she might knock your other eye out, and then your face would finally be symmetrical. Wouldn't that be charming?"

Fear gripped his heart, and a groan escaped his lips. Kenny didn't even have to turn around to know who was in the stands now. His 'girlfriend' Karin. Why are the air quotes needed? Kenny doesn't really consider her much of a girlfriend - in fact, he doesn't really consider her much of anything, really. Last time he checked, a girlfriend was supposed to be a girl that a man had sought after to be in a relationship with, and now has the priveldge. Karin and Kenny? They are like the product of an arranged marriage through the school's popularity clique. From what Kenny could tell, neither one of them really cared much for the other: Karin never acted with any kindness towards him or anything, just either clung to his arm like he was an object, or wasn't with him at all.

Kenny's new mission? Slink out as quickly as he could before things got-

Crack.

God damn it.

Kenny slowly turned around to see the horror that was unfolding in the gym. The Michaline girl from earlier, who was the whiz at tennis, was pissed off at Karin - who wasn't nowadays - but instead of doing the standard thing, decided to stick out a little. Yeah, she just smacked a tennis ball at Karin's pretty damn expensive camera and fucking shattered it (now, for all wondering, Kenny rarely swears. However, this qualified, bigtime). This was a massive problem for more reasons than he wanted to think through. For starters, Karin was going to be pissed beyond belief - and when she was pissed, everybody paid for it. She would probably either get the teachers on Michaline's ass, or make Kenny do something about it, and this was where things got hairy.

In all honesty, he didn't really want to have to intervene at all. Interventions, at least in the group he was in, required him to give a crap about the situation and the outcome. So far, all that he cared about was the fact that Karin was going to complain at him if he didn't do anything, which was something he could handle with an easy lie. But no, Michaline just had to take it one step further and prep for another serve. It didn't help that not only would Kenny get hell from Karin a million times over, but the look on Michaline's face... scared him. Hatred was not an emotion that Kenny liked to process often, so the intensity of the emotion made Kenny worry.

So, like a normal person would, Kenny decided that now would be a good time to intervene. For a guy his size, training kept him quite agile: he cleared the distance to Michaline quite quickly with no real effort. If he had been watching, he would have been quite impressed with himself. Grabbing her arm, however? Yeah, apparently a huge mistake.

He had simply grabbed her from behind, not knowing the apparent danger of doing so. What he was next met with was a swift elbow to the gut, which he hadn't been expecting at all. Sure, it barely hurt him at all, but it was the fact that this girl was so quick to attack that shocked him slightly. He then attempted to speak, seeing maybe words would do something to soothe her apparent 'beast' anger. "Hey chill out. You need to stop this." He didn't say it too loud, since he didn't want Karin to hear him not swearing the crap out of her ears. He might have as well though, since the next feeling he got was her head connecting to his own. That was where the pain started to get a little heavy - it made a distinctive cracking noise, one that made him release her quite quickly as he yelled out in surprise.

"What the hell?" Was all he got out thinking that she was just over reacting.

Until he got punched in the freaking face.

He had seriously not been expecting that, so when a fist connected to his face, Kenny nearly fell over. His right hand touched the ground to stabalize himself, the world slightly starting to spin in his daze. He was aware of not much, besides a massive gasp that seemed to ripple through the crowd at the feat. Kenny, always thinking about the wrong things, had to admit that the punch was strong, but was also concerned with the fact that if his head hurt that much, the guy's fist must hurt equally. Kenny finally straightened himself out, still slightly dazed, when the guy who punched him - Max Walker, in fact - handed him a piece of paper. "Er, uh. Sorry about that... Just hold this to it and, uh, tilt your head back, okay? Kenny may have been coming out of his daze quite well, but the that statement confused him. He took it like a confused child, and did exactly what the guy had said without thinking. Kenny then guessed that Max hadn't really meant to punch him, which made Kenny a little more sympathetic to his stance, but still pretty damn pissed off.

The next statement from his twin certainly didn't help. "Next time, Douglass, how about you just let her get clocked, maybe she'll look a little prettier for you." Kenny's eyes narrowed as he tilted his head forward and removed the paper to look at her walking away. The next segment, had Kenny been a man that was allowed to speak out and not give a crap about what he said, would have ensued with what Kenny likes to call... moments with RageRant Kenny.

Even if I hadn't been dating her, I still would have done the same thing, you... gah! I can't even call you names without feeling sympathetic! I mean, what the hell man!? Do both of you Walker twins have a thing for violence or something!? All I was trying to do was stop people from hurting others and giving into hatred and stuff, but noooo you two just both have to jump to the conclusions that I'm 'the bad guy' out of all this! I stop you from hitting another girl with a freaking tennis ball, and you make some piece of crap witty remark? What kind of human can live with themselves knowing that they have scarred another for life? And what's with that stupid ending about Karin looking prettier for me? Why should I care what she looks like, she doesn't care about me at all! And are you trying to make some sick joke about my past relationship with Lily here or something? That makes me sick at both myself and you! And for shit's sakes, my last name is Douglas you.. you.... FACK!

In reality, Kenny just kept his eyes really narrowed as he crumpled the page infront of his nose. A few people came up to him, yelling profanities at the Walkers and asking if he was okay, to which he didn't let up his rage face and said. "Not worth the trouble, guys. Don't bother, they aren't worth it." Kenny then grabbed a cloth from his duffel bag, put it to his nose, and turned to leave. He had to part some people to get out, but he eventually did, hoping that they would follow suit and leave as well. When he finally got free of the people, he let loose a large, depressing sigh. All anger washed from his body then, as he couldn't hold grudges or even simple anger within a few minutes. It wasn't Kenny's nature to hate: it was his to love. Which made his last mind rant his most painfully ironic yet: he had damaged another life beyond repair, by simply not doing anything.

Day 1047. Still just a waste, but now an ironic, damaged waste. I need out soon, or else I'm gunna break.

It was something Lillith couldn’t deny. She didn’t treat those who didn’t quite fit in properly when she was popular. She regretted it. However, she never treated people as cruelly as Karin. Lillith would refuse to acknowledge the misfits before. Now, she knew how wrong it was. However, karma got her back. Now she was the lowest on the food chain and to top it all off, Karin made sure Lillith couldn’t be ignored. If only Karin would treat Lillith as Lillith had treated the low people on the food chain before. At least then she wouldn’t be so tortured by everyone… Being ignored ore treated as though she wasn’t there would be much preferred to the mocking of the other children. Not living through that fire would be much preferred as well. What was the point of anything now? The only thing keeping Lillith going was that her parents and brother would never forgive her if she chose the easy way out… Still, why couldn’t those horrible people just treat Lillith as though she was never there? Why did Karin have to make sure Lillith’s presence was known? Lillith could feel the glare of the ugly new cheerleading captain.


"Oh Lilly," Karin called her out. "Didn't you hear that, love? Miss Walker here is giving out free facelifts! You ought to go, Tyson—if you're lucky, she might knock your other eye out, and then your face would finally be symmetrical. Wouldn't that be charming?" Even without her other eye, Lillith could never be symmetrical with all the burn scars forming. What did it even matter? Karin would probably blind her soon anyway. It was in the nature of the monster. What did the burned girl even need of her sight? She’d seen all she needed to of the world. Perhaps the evil prep would be doing the gloomy former cheer captain a favour. All the same, Lillith didn’t know whether to be scared, sick or furious. All these emotions welded up within her… All she could think to do was run… Taking out anger would only worsen the situation. How could she and this mental case have ever been friends? Karin had to be a sociopath… If anyone needed help, it was her. How could Lillith have ever befriended someone so cruel? Why hadn’t Lillith noticed before? Perhaps she was just oblivious to the truth in the past.

It didn’t take long for a ball to sail through the air, crashing into that expensive camera. SMACK. It was completely beyond repair.


"Next time, Douglass, how about you just let her get clocked, maybe she'll look a little prettier “Michaline seemed nervous about something as she spoke to Lillith’s x-boyfriend… Of course, Lillith couldn’t blame her after what had just happened. Anyone who dared to stand up against Karin would be in a world of pain later.

Kenny was the worst to Lillith. She trusted him more than anyone else… When they were together, she felt his sympathy. She felt the love he had within him for others. It was something she had always admired about him… Something she looked up to… How truly wrong she was. He was no better than Karin. After all, he treated her worse than anyone now. When he looked at Lillith, it was as though he was looking at what he hated most. What was it? Did he simply begin to hate her because she wasn’t pretty anymore? Well, it was just too bad that not everyone could be as beautiful as miss monster Karin. Perhaps it was that Lillith was no longer “in.” Out with the old, in with the new. What Kenny had done to Lillith hurt more than anything anyone else could have ever done. He refused to even explain himself. What did it matter? He was as much a monster as all the other people Lillith was friends with before. He was as much of a monster as Lillith herself… At least she didn’t betray her friends though. She cared about them… She trusted them. And what was friendship? Nothing more than a piece of garbage that could be recycled or thrown away. It never lasted. It wasn’t anything. Just like Life.

Max… Was it? Lillith couldn’t remember his name… He didn’t look at her like the rest. He didn’t seem as hateful as many people in the school.

"You, don't listen to her. Just ignore and all that jazz." He spoke just before addressing his Shirlee. "And you. Take her and keep her out of trouble for a moment."

His focus turned to Karin. "Sorry about the camera. Though, I'd say it's deserved with how big of a cunt you are. I'll pay for it, if really need be, but I think you taking any sort of act of charity from me would be insulting, so deal with it." It was true… No popular girl or boy wanted the help of someone viewed as a lower species than them… Oh how truly wrong Lillith was… What a wicked, wicked girl she had been. There was no way to make up for it. At least her face was ugly enough now that it fit the monster within her…

“You know what?” Lillith called out. It was the most outgoing thing she had done since her accident. “I might take Michaline up on that offer sooner or later. It would give her a chance to get me back for being such a witch to her in the past.” Her soft voice rose up almost to its normal volume from before. Her tone was wavy. The nervousness showed.

Thump, thump, thump. Lillith felt her heart jump within her. She felt as though it would simply leap out of her chest, leaving her behind. It was a little ironic, considering how heartless she could be. The words she just spoke probably helped her become even lower on the food chain. She was sure to be attacked even more tomorrow. Did it matter? Not really. After all, it was already too much for former miss popular to handle. All the new freak show could do was do everything she could not to be a witch anymore. She couldn’t change the past. However, she could make herself a better person and change her future… Even if that future might be short. Lillith wasn’t sure how much longer she could take the pressure. She was about to crack.

Lilly did nothing.

Seconds ticked by, dragging on and on like the ponderous sinking of quicksand. Karin's careless smirk faltered as she waited for response, a retort, a punch in the face, anything—

The blasted girl did nothing.

Granted, Karin wasn't quite sure what she'd wanted the girl to do, exactly (not that she'd ever admit that—Karin Keene was always in control, dammit), but it certainly wasn't this. No cries of outrage, or clenched fists, or gritted teeth. No narrowed eyes or snappy comebacks or silly histrionics. Tyson wouldn't look her in the eye; hell, she wouldn't even talk. Nothing, nothing at all, save for this dull, bland, acceptance.

…Alright, so maybe Tyson let out a tiny whimper or two. Which would have been amusing, in any other situation. But now, for some reason…all Karin wanted to do was scowl.

The annoyance very nearly showed on her face, but Karin managed to hide her aggravation behind a careless flick of her hair. Honestly, she told herself, you should have known better. These days, the old Lillith Tyson was nothing but a distant memory. She'd been replaced with a gibbering idiot who did absolutely nothing but whimper and cringe and cower and mope around feeling sorry for herself. It was—it was disgusting, and infuriating, and—most of all—frustrating.

Look at me, you useless girl, she wanted to say. Look me in the eye, and defend yourself. Defend yourself, damn you.

But Lilly simply stood there. Just cowered and stood there, barely reacting to a taunt that once would have had her up and shouting.

Frustrating.

Karin was so caught up in her annoyance that she barely registered the angry thwock-hwishhhh of a rapidly approaching tennis ball before—

Crack, smash, shatter.

She froze.

Her once-pristine camera lay half-scattered across the smooth acrylic surface of the tennis court. Hundreds of tiny shards glittered in the afternoon sun, pieces of an elaborately complex jigsaw puzzle no one could ever hope to solve. The crowd gasped; a few of the girls behind Karin shrieked as the tennis ball hurtled past them. Judging from the chorus of squealing and yelps, a few unfortunate souls were probably going to be dealing with some nasty bruises for the next week or so.

Michaline prepped for a second toss, a vicious snarl twisting her plain features, and Karin realized with a jolt that she was the next target. A startled, breathless kind of fear arose in her chest; eyes widened slightly; heart thrumming ever faster—no time to react, the racket was swinging forward now, arcing in that distinctive parabolic motion—and, say what you will about Walker, but the girl was a veritable demon in her sport—

And then Kenneth appeared, Walker was restrained, and Karin could breathe again.

Fortunately, she quickly regained composure. Expression smoothing over, posture straightening, she cast her gaze first upon the tattered remains of her camera, then upon her hand. The device had been torn out of her hand rather viciously; as a result, a fine strip of skin was missing, sheared off along with her camera.

In silence, Karin Keene watched blood ooze out of the wound. In silence, Karin Keene came to one startlingly clear conclusion.

Michaline Walker was a dead woman walking.

(Pain, pain, she hated pain, hated it hated it)

It was through cold, dispassionate eyes that Karin examined the scene unfolding before her. There was Michaline (horrid girl), lashing out at Kenneth with barbaric ferocity. (Overreaction, much?) There was Michaline's shadow of a brother, stalking forward and striking Kenneth in the face. (It seemed that savageness ran in the family.) There was Lillith, doing absolutely nothing (aside from cowering, of course) and there was the shadow, again—defending Lilly, of all people (girl was so damn weak she couldn't even defend herself)—and there was Kenneth, swallowing his anger and performing crowd control (soft, like always).

Dear, sweet Kenny. Always had to be a hero; and yet, he barely spared a glance toward her as he lumbered off to do whatever jocks did in their spare time. How very rude.

"My knight in shining armor," she said with a barely perceptible hint of sarcasm, as he passed her by. "Owe you a kiss, love."

He continued on his way without a word, back stiff and shoulders tense. She offered his retreating form a sardonic smile, before a flicker of white in her peripherals had her attention snapping back to the twins.

It was the shadow boy. Maxwell Walker. He was crouching in front of her, retrieving the camera. Karin raised an eyebrow as he held out the storage device tauntingly towards her face before pocketing it. She felt her eyes narrow. It was truly amazing, the sheer audacity of these lowlifes.

"Sorry about the camera. Though, I'd say it's deserved with how big of a cunt you are. I'll pay for it, if really need be, but I think you taking any sort of act of charity from me would be insulting, so deal with it."

The nerve. It was so annoying it was almost funny. Karin nearly couldn't decide which, but then her bloody hand throbbed and the choice became obvious.

I'll pay for it, he had said. Oh, he was definitely going to pay for it. He and his scraggly sister and Lilly, too. Especially Lilly, Karin thought as Lillith all but begged Michaline to sock her in the face. The stupid one-eyed girl had this disgusting look of utter resignation on her face, and it made Karin's heart clench violently at the sight.

Forget Bishop. Karin could always destroy her later, anyway. For now…well, she had bigger fish to fry.

She could have them arrested. Both of them. Michaline for assault, Maxwell for theft. There were certainly enough witness for her purposes. Once convicted? Separate them, place them into bleak juvenile correctional institutions, and laugh as they wasted away in confinement. But that would be too simple, too easy, too…bland. No, Karin wanted to dissect them, to push and prod and pinch. She wanted to watch them fall apart, wanted to be there when their fragile psyches finally cracked and shattered. It would be glorious, and Karin would savor every bit of their pain like sweet, poisonous honey.

Sliding an unassuming smile onto her face, she made her way to the coaches, her eye on one of them in particular. Wyatt Geary. Varsity tennis coach for Jackson High.

"Hello, Mr. Geary," Karin offered conversationally as she sauntered her way to where the coaches had congregated.

"Miss Keene," Geary replied, looking less than pleased and more than a little uncomfortable.

"Interesting day, today," Karin commented, as if her hand wasn't covered in blood. "You have some formidable players."

"…Indeed." The coach's expression was becoming more and more suspicious. Borderline dread, in fact. Karin suppressed a grin.

"I am concerned though," she said absently, "that some players may be more…volatile than is safe. Just look at dear Mandy—a shame for something like that to happen again, hmm?"

Geary grit his teeth. "Yes. Shame."

She smiled at him. "Send your wife my regards."

Blackmail, plain and simple. Geary was married—wife's name was Martha Geary. But last year, she had witnessed Wyatt engaging in some rather…unfaithful behavior, and had subsequently amassed a collection of incriminating photos. If he didn't want her to spill the beans…

"I will," came Geary's tense reply. His sudden nervousness made it clear that he knew exactly what she was talking about.

Karin nodded in response, her smile becoming something vaguely sharklike. "Of course you will. Now then—let's go, ladies."

And so the cheer squad, minus one Mandy Bishop, left the tennis courts. Karin hummed to herself, content in the knowledge that, from now on, Michaline Walker was no longer a part of the tennis team. In fact, the horrid girl was never to be allowed in the tennis courts again—courtesy of coach Wyatt Geary.

So it was that it all began with what she probably would refer to as nothing more than a ‘routine tennis match,’ Michaline was playing today, as usual, and was the star of the team. There was no way that she’d be missing this—seeing her best friend play. Always, always she enjoyed watching Micha perform at her top form while she was nestled so comfortably within her element. Tennis was a place where she shined even brighter than she did at any other point...or, at least, that was Shirlee’s personal opinion. Even If this was what she considered a ‘routine tennis match,’ Shirlee still felt like she was witnessing a form of fine art every game she watched Micha play. As always, a childish and far too happy sort of smile played across her lips, only making her look the part of a kid all the more. Despite her known usual energetic mannerisms and persona, tennis matches were one of the rare, few times that Shirlee Nox could be found keeping quiet and nearly wordless with little more than a dazed, almost star -truck smile pasted upon her face.

Routine was what she expected, and it was what she got to see. Michaline was playing as marvelously as she always did beyond the chain-link fence. Shirlee’s delicate, thin fingers laced themselves into the very bottoms of the diamonds as her eyes were glued to the neon yellow ball that bounced back and forth across the court, from Micha to her opponent, a girl whose named escaped from Shirlee in her current state.

Towering over her at her side was, practically, the male incarnation of Micha, her brother and Shirlee’s own other best friend, Max. He too, was watching the spectacle that was his sister’s skilled playing. Then again...so were many people, students, teachers and even onlookers from God knew where else. But, Max, he probably seemed as if he were bored of this, simply watching. Likely his expression could not have been more opposite than the one lighting up Shirlee’s dear little face...that is, if the little ninja had to garner a guess without tearing her eyes away from the ongoing before her.

Micha turned her head though, staring out into the gathered crowd whilst it was she kept a hand up to act as a visor for her eyes, guarding them so from the blinding sun. Oop, and Mimi is waving to Shi-Shi and Max. a tiny little giggle slipped from Shirlee’s throat and her hand went up, mirroring the small gesture hastily.

Always she would manage to be amazed by the feats her friend could accomplish while playing tennis. Although, given the fact that Shirlee considered this to be a ‘routine’ match...she knew well enough what might occur within it, given her knowledge of Micha. Almost too quick for an untrained eye to have seen, a neon-yellow blur shot by Michaline’s face, a tennis ball which had been served and nearly made contact with her friend’s face by her opponent.

As BEN would say...you shouldn’t have done that. Shirlee thought, her eyebrows knitting together just a bit as her fingers again hung upon the loose diamonds of the fence before her, her smile slipped from awe-stricken to a somewhat weary one.

What was to follow, she knew well enough. Retaliation for the near-miss. Michaline was a girl you did not want to even give the inclination of having threatened. Max was himself, likely now wary of his twin, knowing her better than Shirlee did.

And...when it was Micha did serve, and said serve made direct and painful sounding contact with her opponent’s face, sending the girl backward and to the ground, bleeding, Shirlee couldn’t help the visible cringe and grimace that went through her. As Shi-Shi expected.

Shi-Shi is never surprised when this happens, one of Mimi’s tennis matches wouldn’t be ‘routine’ without it or something like it. As true as she felt that was, there was no denying the fact that she couldn’t help but feel some sense of pity for Michaline’s newest victim.

Whatever had been going through her head when she attempted to make a serve on a momentarily distracted Micha...she had paid for it, she’d made a mistake she would remember and carry with her for the rest of her life. The girl probably had a broken nose now...and no matter how good a doctor was at setting broken noses; they never really healed right and never looked the same again.

There’s something Shi-Shi would know since her nose has been broken twice. Yep, she really did pity that girl.

But it seemed like she might be one of the few who actually felt that much for her given the fact that from all around...Shirlee was able to heard the poorly disguised and stifled snickers of classmates and faculty. Jackson High was such a wonderful school with such considerate teachers and coaches....

Among the sniggers and half-snorts, Shirlee herself remained quiet, her eyes cast upon the girl...hearing well what it was Micha said following her strike back, nonchalantly bouncing a tennis ball up and down like she was ready to continue the match as if nothing had happened.
“All right. Who's next? I promise I won't break your nose. At least... not on purpose.” Here it went.

Okay, so that sense of awe and her daze had subsided now—whenever blood popped up on the scene, it was enough to snap Shirlee from these states while remaining quiet enough. In truth, it started to put her on guard, because she knew bad things could follow in the wake of blood being drawn. Of course...she knew that she should only act when the time proved proper; she wouldn’t be much of a ninja if she suddenly went flying around like a complete madwoman.

However...Shirlee’s attention was drawn away from her friend, unexpectedly. Words, floated through the crowd of people, tucked nearly within them was such a tone that bespoke of an arrogant and evil seeming sort of arrogance that she didn’t even need to look to confirm the expression carried by the speaker. “Oh Lilly, didn't you hear that, love? Miss Walker here is giving out free facelifts! You ought to go, Tyson—if you're lucky, she might knock your other eye out, and then your face would finally be symmetrical. Wouldn't that be charming?”

Shirlee didn’t even bother averting her eyes to look at who was being addressed and who was doing the addressing. She got the gist of it from what had been said, she knew who those words were between. You’d be a complete idiot to not given what things had gone down within the school in the last several weeks. Lilly Tyson and Karin Keene.

Everyone knew Lillith’s tragic story, of how she fell from social grace, landing below those who were considered the lowest of the low in the school. Herself and the Walker twins, of course. Shirlee knew all about the social hierarchy of high school given the fact that she was a student in it...but she never really got the point of it, to her it seemed like sheer idiocy. Lowest of the low, highest of the high...what was that even supposed to mean? Lilly had been where Karin was now, top of the social food chain only some weeks before.... And Karin was acting high and mighty for assuming a position she was given by default because Lilly underwent a tragedy to completely fall. In truth, she really had no reason to act so...arbitrarily asinine when she was holding onto a position that she didn’t earn.

Shirlee kept quiet as it was Michaline had left her place on the court and processed to head through the gate that separated the crowd from the court. Max moved toward, likely to try to keep her under control…or to at least keep her from doing something too crazy. She herself merely kept watch, as if she were a sentinel; it wasn’t time for her to move or act, no not yet. Michaline served one of the balls, and Shirlee’s eyes followed it from the moment it hit the racquet, to its target—Karin Keene’s camera.

There will be Hell to pay. she couldn’t help but thinking when she heard the crunch of the photography equipment breaking.

What happened next sort of occurred in a blur...Micha was headed back to the tennis courts, casual, and as if she hadn’t done a thing that was wrong or could be considered so. Her coaches crowded her, and she seemed to be attempting to serve the other ball she had with her when it was…she was restrained, or that someone attempted as much. Kenneth Douglas, he appeared from the sidelines, trying to keep Micha from doing anything else. A sigh left Shirlee at this...she hated to be touched by most anyone, all that was going to happen was. She began to writhe in the quarterback’s grasp, before it looked as if her head made contact with his. Max was scrambling over the fence, acting on instinct rather than thought likely.

On top of the headbutt, Kenneth also got socked right in the nose by Max in reaction to him grabbing hold of his sister. During all of this chaos, Shirlee remained quiet and standing where she was...this was sort of what she expected to happen today, or just something of the like. Kenneth was on the ground, and Max was handing something to him, probably apologizing for having hit him. Certainly, the quarterback did not look happy, he had been headbutted, likely elbowed and also punched in the nose while in the process of trying to keep Michaline from doing who knew what else with that last tennis ball.

Oooooh, was there going to be Hell to pay for this, indeed. Shirlee knew it. So it was the small girl could only again, muster out a sigh. Max proceeded to grab Michaline’s wrist, and more or less pull her away from the little scene and toward her, an obviously unhappy enough look upon his features. He looked toward Lillith, Shirlee’s own eyes following for a moment, before they went back to Michaline. She looked out of sorts...but that was to be expected enough as far as Shirlee was concerned.

“You, don't listen to her. Just ignore and all that jazz.” He spoke to Lillith, before it was he turned his attention back down to her. She moved her head up to meet his own gaze as best she could, given their rather apparent height differenced. “ And you. Take her and keep her out of trouble for a moment.”

To the order given to her by Maxwell, Shirlee lifted a hand away from the chainlink fence again at last, as she tucked her thumb under her palm and brought it up to her fore to give the Walker brother a mock salute to his order. “Shi-Shi understands, sir.” With that, her hand dropped back to her side, where it belonged.

He turned away, heading over toward...Karin, likely to deal with the camera Michaline had managed to break with her all too accurate serve before. Meanwhile, Kenneth was getting up to his feet, holding a cloth to his bleeding nose. Her wide eyes traveled upward, to look at Michaline questioningly as Maxwell was off still, trying to clean up the most current mess. “Shi-Shi wonders if Mimi knows that there is going to be Hell to pay for this soon?” she asked aloud, not so much look for an answer, but more or less stating her thoughts vocally.

It took only another moment before Maxwell though, was back, taking hold of his sister’s wrist while he gave to her a nod, a simply gesture that meant for her to follow him in tow. Not that really shocked her, she usually was the one doing the following unless she went out for one of her ‘missions.’ If one of those went down, then she was on her own...plain and simple. She worked alone on those.

‘Y’okay, y’okay, Shi-Shi is coming Max.” she spoke, her voice hitting a rather high note which almost sounded whiny. “She knows when he wants her to follow along like a good little girl.” The girl took in a deep breath before it was the serious expression she carried left her face, and a smile again played over her features.

Tilting her head to the side, a soft “Hm,” flittered from her throat before she began stepping off in time behind her friends. As it was she walked though, her eyes caught sight of Lillith, whom had been addressed in this whole...mess and to her Shirlee gave a strange sort of bobbing nod.... During the course of their leaving, they too also passed by Karin again, and Shirlee merely paid her a short-lived glance before going on her quiet way. She’d been the sentinel during all this, the quiet observer to the insanity that had become a normal. Really, she had nothing to say or do now. What had happened was otherwise over, until the time came to pay. Karin was owed nothing in all this as far as Shirlee was really concerned...she’d only fed the flames.

There was, however, someone who had gotten caught up in it who’d kinda gotten screwed over when they really didn’t deserve it. And he too was to be passed by on the way off school grounds. Still holding the cloth on his nose, Shirlee caught sight of it and him while he looked to be on his own way out. She stopped for a moment near him, eyes kept on him while Max and Micha continued on ahead of her. In truth she wouldn’t have been shocked if Kenneth wound up with a bruise on his forehead and a broken nose too. She didn’t exactly know a lot about medicine and stuff, all she knew about the body had to do with pressure points really.... Given she was best friends with the siblings who’d put him in his current state, Shirlee knew it was likely that she would be one of the last persons Kenneth would want to see or speak to, but still, a wide smile spread over her lips and she paid it to him before opening her mouth to speak as her hands went behind her back.

“Shi-Shi knows that she didn’t do anything to Kenny, but she still wanted to apologize to him for getting hurt and caught up in Mimi and Max’s everyday-insanity like he did.” The upper half of her body bent to the side a bit, “She also hopes that his nose stops bleeding soon, and also suggests that if it’s not done by the time he gets home, that Kenny should try putting his head into the freezer, cause the cold air will help the blood clot up.”

With that said, Shirlee began to step away, walking backward in the direction of Max and Micha as her hands moved out from behind her back again, one going above her head in something of a wave, “See y’around.”

Kenny hadn't made it that far until some highly interesting events happened to him. The likeliness of something good coming out of this fiasco was slim, he had to sadly admit, but something did. Well, almost. See, he didn't realize that he would be walking out closer to Karin than he had entered. In reality, he hadn't really factored any of that in, seeing as he thought she was a farther distance than she actually was - it really didn't look good on Kenny's ability to perceive distances. Regardless, Kenny trudged by her quite quietly, and he heard her sickeningly sweet voice ring out towards him. "My knight in shining armor, Owe you a kiss, love.

He gave a smile, but it wasn't strong enough for him to turn towards her and stand by her side, like he was supposed to. Besides, even though it was a hint, he could hear the inkling of sarcasm in her voice: not that it bothered him much. As stated earlier, both Kenny and Karin seemed to know what their relationship really stood for, and that was just placement. They had to be together, or some astronomical deity would strike down their school for not being 'socially correct'. Nevertheless, Kenny continued on his way, his back stiff and his shoulders square, just like he always walked until nobody was looking.

Conversations began to flow behind him, and Kenny decided to slow his pace some as he left to hear them. It seemed that while Maxwell Walker, besides being highly overprotective and as jumpy as his sister from the looks of things, was actually quite a genuine kid. From what Kenny could hear, it seemed like Max was offering to replace the camera, and two emotions surged through Kenny. The first was despair: Karin hated, no, loathed, the idea of getting help from somebody else. She was her own pillar of excellence in her eyes, and nothing would take her off of that pillar, ever. And yet... Kenny felt a sliver of hope and happiness to see that, regardless of the events, some person was actually feeling generous and kind - even if that person didn't deserve it. That earned major points to Kenny, albeit silent ones.

I might take Michaline up on that offer sooner or later. It would give her a chance to get me back for being such a witch to her in the past. Kenny stopped completely, his eyes wide. He hadn't really heard Lily's soft, cute voice - Not the time nor the place to dwell on the past, Kenneth - since he distanced himself from her after the accident. And her words hurt Kenny more than any physical beating he had ever received recently. The fact that she was willing to make up for the hurt that she had caused Michaline and Max (and Kenny had been there with her too... hate life...) tore up Kenny's insides. He longed to turn around and second her notion, apologize to every person he had ever hit or laughed at and offer his own hide in exchange. But that wouldn't go well with his parents, or his team, and according to life that was all Kenny cared for.

Kenny blinked a few times, and let the small gust of wind hit his face before continuing. Oh yeah, he was outside - good job Kenny always knew where he was at all times. Kenny shook his head a little, not being able to believe that he hadn't remembered that the tennis courts were outside, and that he had been outside for a while now. Well that was depressing.

Kenny put his right hand up to his headphones while his left held his now bloody clothe. He hadn't noticed any commotion, but as he was about to put his headphones on, a little girl appeared in his peripheral vision, seemingly out of nowhere. He hadn't really noticed her before, but now recognized her instantly as Shirlee Nox. She had her hands behind her back, pulling off cute quite well, and a large smile on her face. Kenny looked quite surprised to see her, seeing as Max and Mich were running off without her, but turned to face her never the less, curious and confused. That was until she spoke.

Shi-Shi knows that she didn’t do anything to Kenny, but she still wanted to apologize to him for getting hurt and caught up in Mimi and Max’s everyday-insanity like he did. Kenny's eyes widened, confused and shocked by her words. He didn't deserve an apology from a girl - no matter how cute - that hadn't injured him. Especially when this was probably karma getting back at him. However, she didn't stop there, as she tilted to the side slightly to continue (which was adorable, and I've got to stop saying that.). She also hopes that his nose stops bleeding soon, and also suggests that if it’s not done by the time he gets home, that Kenny should try putting his head into the freezer, cause the cold air will help the blood clot up. Once again, Kenny was shocked into complete silence - he couldn't lie his way out of this one to save his life. Here was a friend of the people who just beat him to crap, and she was not only apologizing, but caring about his own health?

Kenny could feel it: the balance of Nature was being destroyed by a little girl's kindness.

The quarterback could only stand there and nod slowly as she backed away, but not before leaving the final straw: See y’around. Kenny couldn't do anything, other than watch the petite girl wave to him and run off. He managed a small nod, but still watched her off with his eyes filled with multiple emotions. To keep up his cover, he finally got around to placing his beats on his ears and putting his hood up to appear 'injured, but still incredibly sexy-cool'. Well, unless the public could grab his brain and understand it. There, they would see the raging and conflicting emotions nearly bursting forward to destroy any sanity he had left. The only thing that got through of that insanity was one of his genuine smiles - warm, soft and inviting - as he walked away. He knew that only he could see the smile he had on, but it didn't matter.

In truth, Kenny couldn't figure out what he was feeling. A part of him wanted to go home and cry, then beat the crap out of something, while another part wanted to go and hug that adorable little girl for her not needed apology. Kenny was highly intrigued by Shirlee, if that wasn't obvious: the way she spoke in the third person, the way she didn't care who he was but still talked to him anyway, the way she apologized. She was everything he wished he could be: and hoped to be. So as his music blocked out the sounds of reality and his smile warmed him up, Kenny walked home in a different mood than he had left home.

Day 1047. Still just a waste, but now an ironic, damaged waste. I need out soon, or else I'm gunna break.

Day 1047. Still a waste, but maybe... just maybe, she can help me make amends.