Black-N-Blue

Rose had just walked into the school as she watched a boy in a dark hoodie walk by her. She didn’t really care and she kept looking for her classroom. She stopped in the middle of the hallway. There was a boy with thick black hair pushing a smaller blond boy into a locker. She didn’t know what to do and watched the blond boy get pushed into the locker. Once the boy was inside the black hair boy closed the locker and walked away. Rose turned around and ran right into a boy who had blond hair but his eyes were hazel.

“Hello, I’m Austin. What’s your name?” He greeted her, holding his hand out for her to shake. She took his hand and shook it.

“I’m Rose.” She replied, looking over his shoulder watching the black hair boy walking down the hall. “Who was that?”

“Who?” Austin asked, guiding her down the hall closer to the locker where the boy was in.

“The boy in here.” She said, tapping the locker with the boy inside. The boy tapped the locker to make his presence known. Austin was shocked and opened the locker since it didn’t have a code to open. You just had to pull up on it and it would open for you. When he did, the boy came out of the locker, breathing heavily.

“Oh, there was a kid in there.” Austin said, stepping back to let the boy out. The boy nodded his head. The boy's left eye was bruised up along with around his neck. He also had a bloody nose and lip. Getting a closer look, Rose noticed a mark under his eye that you could barely see since the black eye.

“What’s your name?” Rose asked, trying to to be rude to the boy she smiled and kicked the thought of asking him what happened to him. He was silent for a while before looking over his shoulder.

“I-I’m Marcus.” He said, looking up to them before looking down at his feet. He was a little shy which was okay with Rose since she was a little bit as well. She looked at his face before asking him,

“What happened to your face?” Austin elbowed her in the side, not hard but hard enough to get her attention. The three of them were silent before that black hair boy came back down the hall. He looked at Marcus and rushed towards them.

“Hey! Who said you could come out?” He shouted, pinning Marcus to the wall. Marcus didn’t even fight back, he just let him.

“Come on Jacob, leave him alone!” Austin shoved the boy away and got between the two of them. Marcus held his arm while Rose just watched.

“I never said he could come out!” Jacob shouted, getting into Austin’s face. He didn’t seem like a good kid to Rose, as she took Marcus by the arm and led him to her. She can’t stand watching someone bully another kid. Jacob looked at Rose, before shoving Austin away from him. Rose and Marcus both took a couple steps back as Jacob grabbed Rose’s arm.

“Let me go!” She cried, as Jacob took her down the hall. She looked over her shoulder to see the two boys looking at each other in confusion. Jacob kept running down the hall. He held her arm as he picked the lock to a door they stopped by. Once he opened it, he shoved her inside and closed her inside the small closet. She could hear him laughing at her, before hearing the sound of the bell ringing.

Austin and Marcus had gotten stopped in the hall and sent to class without knowing where Rose had gone. But luckily Jacob’s actions were caught on cameras so she was free from the small closet. She was sent to class with the principal walking with her. Lucky for her she was in the same class as Marcus and Austin, along with Jacob. She sat down at her desk which was next to Marcus and Austin. Austin smiled at her, before whispering into her ear.

“I thought you left school.” He said, sitting back in his chair.

“No, I didn’t. My mother told me to go to school so I’m here and I’m not leaving until after the day is over.” She whispered back. The rest of the class went as most classes do, until the end of the day came. Jacob stood up from his seat, looking at the clock then down to Marcus with a smirk. Once the bell rang, everyone left the classroom and went home all except two. Marcus was walking with Jacob pulling on his sweatshirt. Rose saw them heading towards the woods near the school and followed them. She stayed out of their sight and followed them. Jacob was talking the whole time they were walking.

“You know this must happen. Don’t you?” Jacob would say before tugging on Marcus’s sweatshirt.

“Yes, I know but can’t you say you did and let me off the hook?” Marcus pleaded, before being slammed into a tree face first. Marcus covered his left eye as Jacob dropped his bag, revealing some rope along with his school work. “Please?”

“No, I can’t do that. Now…back to the tree!” Jacob grabbed some rope and walked behind the tree. Rose had no clue what was happening plus she didn’t want to watch. The second she looked she heard a cry followed by groaning. She turned back to see Jacob punching Marcus as he was tied to the tree. She watched for a couple minutes before someone tapped her shoulders. She turned around to be followed by someone covering her mouth. She opened her eyes wide to be met with Hazel eyes.

“Shhhh, it’s just me. I saw you following them and I had to see if you and them were okay.” He whispered, uncovering her mouth. He looked past her to see the two boys. “I have to do something before I take you home.”

He walked past her and over to them, surprising Jacob with his presents. Austin walked right up to them and punched Jacob in the face before shoving him into a tree. Giving him a taste of his own medicine, Austin pinned him down to the tree and refused to let him go.

“Rose! Untie the boy while I deal with him!” Austin shouted, still holding Jacob in his place. Rose ran over to Marcus and did as Austin had said. She untied him from the tree and took him by the arm as she ran away. She ran back to the school with Marcus being dragged along with her. When they got to the school Marcus seemed tense and nervous for some reason.

“Hey, you’re safe now. Go home.” She said, letting Marcus’s arm go as they stood still. He looked at her before turning around to see if someone was coming. “Why don’t you go home?”

“I can’t. If I go…never mind.” He said, looking down at the ground as he dug his foot in the ground a little bit.

“Where did you get beat up? I saw that you had your hoodie up before Jacob pushed you into the locker.” Trying not to sound rude she cocked her head to the side as she looked at him. He rubbed his arm before answering her.

“I fell down the stairs at my house.” He replied. Rose has heard that before when she overheard her mother talking on the phone. Her mother said that’s a cover up or a lie if someone young tells you that. Therefore she knew it was a lie coming from him. But she didn’t want to tell him that so she pretended she didn’t know that.

“I’m sorry, I hope you’re careful from now on.” She said waving goodbye to him. He waved back as they both went their separate ways. She went to the front of the school to see her father’s car parked in the bus circle. He had just got out of the car, running over to her. She knew she was in trouble for sure, she was late. He ran to her grabbing her shoulders, as he looked at her.

“Where have you been? You had me worried sick that something happened to you!? She could hear the worried tone, letting her go he looked at her face for any signs of anything. She stood there as she looked over his shoulder to see Marcus being dragged by Jacob down the street.

“Oh-no!” She ran past her father and down the street. She ran to Marcus, pulling the hood of his hoodie, slowly and choking him in the process. Jacob turned around, about to hit Marcus until he saw Rose.

“Let go!” He shoved her down to the ground, giving Marcus the chance to run away. Jacob went to beat her for getting in his way until he saw her father. Derek got in the middle of them, looking the boys in the eyes.

“Don’t lay a hand on her at all,” Derek was demanding and he held a straight face while the boys were not settled. Marcus and Jacob were scared of him but not of Rose.

“Yes, sir.” Marcus said, trying not to stutter as he shivered in fear. Rose got up from the ground, dusted herself off and whispered into her father’s ear. The boys watched her, unable to hear what she was saying.

“I believe you. There’s no way a shy, quiet kid would lay a finger on you.” Derek looked Marcus dead in the eyes, making Marcus uneasy. “Would you now?”

“No, I wouldn’t, sir. I wouldn’t put my hands on anyone.” He looked Derek back in the eyes while Rose looked at the group. She had nothing more to say or do.

“That’s good to hear. Both of you ought to run home now. I bet your parents are worried about you too,” Derek led his daughter away from the two boys, Rose glanced over her shoulder to see the two of them running off. She walked with her dad to their car, worried that she was in big trouble for being late and in a fight. So she got in the back seat, since she was not tall enough for the front, very quietly. Derek said nothing to her until the were on their way home which was a fifteen minute drive.

“Rose, I want to know why you were fighting those two boys?” Looking into the mirror to see her reaction to the question.

“I wasn’t fighting them. I was helping Marcus. He got pushed into a locker earlier this morning.”

“Which boy is Marcus?” In confusion on which boy was which.

“The blond boy.” She replied, fidgeting with her hands.

“So Marcus got pushed into a locker. Right? That doesn’t explain the marks on his face at all unless he was fighting the other boy.” Derek was trying to figure out what had caused Marcus to be back-n-blue but he wasn’t sure.

“Marcus told me he fell down the stairs at his place. I asked him what happened to him and that’s what he said but I think it’s a lie.” She answered.

“A lie? Why do you say that now?”

“Because I heard mom on the phone and she said that when young people say something like ‘I fell down the stairs’ that they’re lying to cover up something else. Besides, I watched and heard the two of them talking in the woods. Jacob, the other boy, said something like Marcus knew this had to happen and that it must be done before beating him up in the woods.” She explained, trying to make sure she said everything right and true. She knew this plus she was worried about Marcus.

“You smart and sneaky girl. Your mother did say that and that is true. In some cases people will lie about what happened to them to hide or to keep them safe. Like in your friend’s case I don’t think he fell down the stairs. It’s weird for a person who fell down the stairs to only have neck and eye bruises like that. If he did fall, he wouldn’t have an injury since he’s young. I don’t believe he fell. I believe he got in a fight or something happened at home.” Derek explained, pulling into their driveway to see Sophia waiting for them.

“But he had his hoodie up when he walked by me in the hall before getting pushed in the locker.” Rose hurried up to meet her father before going inside the house.

“Well, in that case the following things may have happened to your friend. One, he got in a fight on the way to school. Two, he got them from someone at his place. Or three, he’s bad with makeup.” Derek explained to her the best he could to help her understand before he phone went off. He took it out of his pocket and it was his boss. He sadly sighed before getting down on one knee in front of Rose. “I’m sorry sweetie, I can’t help you with your homework today.”

“It’s okay, I understand.” She said, going to the table to do her work.Sophia looked to her daughter then back to her husband.

“Worried about someone?” She asked, giving Derek a look.

“One of her classmates came to school black-n-blue today.” Derek said, beforeing answering the call. “Derek Shepherd speaking….yes I can….why isn’t the police on this call?...oh okay. I’m on it….no problem.”

He hung up the phone and looked at Rose at the table. She sat there nicely doing her work but she even seemed unable to focus on her work.

“I gotta go. Apparently there are no police officers able to take the call and the chief knows we’re close to the house. So he wants me to go down to a house that called about a disturbance next door. There’s a kid and a male that lives there so this can’t be good. I’ll see you later, my love.” Derek gave his wife a kiss before heading back out the door. He headed down the street and came to a house where the neighbors were outside. The man next door to this house walked up to Derek, he was an older man. In his early to late sixties, with a gray beard and mustache. He was a kind and sweet man.

“You must be here for them,” the man greeted Derek. He shook Derek’s hand before pointing to the house.

“Yep, I’m here for a disturbance.” Shaking hands, Derek went to the front door to be met with a younger man. This man had black hair, brown eyes, and a scar that went down the center of his left eye. He just looked at Derek before he spoke.

“What do you need, sir?” He said, with a little bit of attitude.

“I would like to come in. If you don’t mind me.” Derek was a little annoyed with the way this man was speaking to him. The man rolled his eyes before letting Derek inside to see a messy and disoriented house. He noticed that there was a school backpack on the floor near the dining room table. The bag looked like it was dropped on the floor. He picked it up and opened it up to see some school supplies, notebooks, and some random papers.

“Who does this belong to?” Derek asked, showing the man the bag from the floor.

“I’m not sure it’s som-” The man started as a huge crash was heard under their feet. “What the hell!”

Derek looked around and saw a door that was locked with an eye and hock. Opening the door to see that there was a basement that must have been where the sound came from. He walked down with his flashlight from his phone and looked around. He saw nothing when he first walked down the stairs, but he didn’t stop looking. It was a pretty large basement with a bunch of boxes around in neat piles. He stopped walking when there was a faint sound of footsteps behind him. He turned around and looked at what he had caught. There was a little boy curled up in the darkest corner of the room that was hidden by a pile of boxes. He had his face hidden in his arms with his knees to his chest.

“Hey, there.” Derek walked over to the boy but the kid heard him and pushed himself away. “It’s okay, come here.”

He watched the boy push himself with his hands behind the boxes, it was clear this boy was scared of Derek. He moved the boxes out of the way so he could see the child before he hid again. The boy just sat there with nowhere to go.

“You’re alright, I promise.” Derek got down to the boy’s level. Every movement Derek made the boy flitched and closed his eyes even if Derek just moved a little. “Why don’t we go upstairs.”

The boy shook his head as he sat there on the floor. Derek was confused on why this boy wouldn’t go upstairs and what was the matter with him. He picked up the boy and took him upstairs with him. The boy just allowed him and didn’t try fighting back. Bringing him up he got a better look at the boy, it was the one from his daughter’s class.

“Put me down…” the boy said, as Derek set him gently on the ground. The boy grabbed his bag and ran upstairs with it.

“Who was that?” Derek asked, looking at the man who was drinking a class of something.

“That child is my friend's kid.” The man replied.

“Well, I found him down in the basement in the corner.”

“Yeah, he does that when he fails a test or something at school all the time. He hides from himself as well.”

“That’s not good for a kid to do that. They should feel safe enough to tell someone what they did so they can get the help they need.”

“Well this kid doesn’t belong to me.” The man looked at Derek who was looking in direction the little boy went.

“Well I can get him out of your hair if you want me to.” Turning back to face the man.

“Yes, take him.” The man said, looking at the calendar.

“Okay, I’ll go get him.” Derek went up the stairs to get the boy who had went upstairs. He looked around and found a door with a lock and eye on it so he open it. He looked inside to see a clean room with nothing out. He looked in the closet and there was nothing but clothes inside it. So he looked under the bed and the boy was under there. Derek reached under the bed and took the boy’s hand.

“Come on, it’s alright.” Leading the child out from under the bed, Derek led him down the stairs. “Have a good day sir.”

“You too.” The man watched as Derek took the boy out of the house and to the police car. He mumbled something under his breath. The boy pulled away and began to cry out in tears.

“Please! Don’t! I didn’t mean to! I swear!” He kept pulling away but Derek’s grip was stronger. “Please! No!”

“Child, listen. It’s okay.” Derek held him tight and put him in the back of his car. He cried some more and refused to be quiet. Derek didn’t mind if the boy was quiet or not. He took him back to his place before trying to ask him any questions about his parents. The boy needs to calm himself down first before he asks him anything. The boy must have calmed down and fell asleep in the back seat. He found it nice that he was quiet and not screaming at him.

“Hey kiddo, are you awake?” Derek asked, watching the boy pick his head up. “Okay, do you know where you live?”

“Can I stay with you please?” The boy pleaded. “I don’t wanna go back.”

“Back where?” Derek asked, looking in the mirror to see the boy in the back.

“Back to the house you took me from.” The boy said. “He’s not nice and he lied to you.”

“What do you mean he lied to me?” Growing concerned the boy just looked out the window.

“He said he wasn’t my father when he was. He also was the reason I was down there. I was late coming home after what happened after school.”

“I know what happened and I’m sorry for that boy’s actions. I truly am.”

“Don’t be. Nobody ever is truly sorry for me. That’s what my dad says.” The boy started. “He also says that every man that looks at me is always in disgust.”

“Why does he say these things to you?”

“Because I’m not strong enough to fight for myself and everyone sees me as something that people can harm.”

“Is that why you hid from me? You were scared of me?”

“Honestly I am. I didn’t know what you wanted from me.”

“I only wanted to talk to you. That’s all dear boy. And not everyone is out to get you either. There are some people who want to help kids. Like me and my wife help kids who need help. In fact our daughter lost her parents in a crash cover up so I understand.”

“I’m sorry for you daughter.”

“She’s okay, she’s a good girl.” He took the boy to the police station and pulled up to the station. The boy got scared and unbuckled before opening the door. He ran off away from the police station and he was gone. Derek chased after him but lost him in the alleyways and he couldn’t find the boy. Derek left the station after telling the chief of police what the boy told him. Later they found out the boy was being abused by his father so they ended up going to court and lost the case. The boy didn’t testify and lost so there was nothing they could do for the boy.