Sneak Out (6) “You said you would always protect me” Tee muttered barely moving his lips. “I have been protecting you…from yourself. I can’t just appear at Josh’s side. As much as he deserves it I can’t just beat him up. Besides this is your fight and you are doing pretty well.” Gene smiled. Tee smiled up at his brother and noticed Josh getting to his feet. He walked to Josh’s side and went to kick him but Josh stooped down grabbed Tee’s out stretched leg and twisted it sending him crashing to the ground. He put his foot onto Tee’s chest and smiled. “My turn” Josh kicked Tee in the side then the head and the side again. “You kick like my grandma!” Tee shouted grabbing Josh’s leg and pulling out from beneath him. Josh fell to the floor, both Tee and Josh jumped to their feet at the same time. “Why wont you stay down!?” Josh shouted trying to grab Tee’s neck. “Face it Josh I am just too good for you. You may be good with the ladies but I am better with boys. It doesn’t matter whether I am beating the crap out of them or sleeping with them.” Tee shouted back taking Josh’s outstretched hand, he pulled it then, as Josh was just centimetres away, he let go and moved aside punching Josh in the back as he stumbled past. Josh lay sprawled on the floor again. “It seems I can not keep you off the ground” Tee cried. Josh sprang back to his feet wiping blood from his chin. “I swear next time I get you on the floor you will stay there” Josh snarled. He ran at Tee his arm out stretched this time he managed to secure his hand around Tee’s collar and lift him from the ground. Tee lashed out punching Josh round the head but Josh still did not let go. Josh punched Tee in the stomach and then let go and Tee plummeted to the ground gasping for breath. Josh reached inside his coat and just as Tee was about to get back up Josh withdrew a gun. He pointed it at Tee. “I told you. This time you will stay down.” Josh snarled. Tee looked around, everyone else had stopped fighting, Tee’s eyes locked on Gene’s. Gene was standing metres away his body limp, eye’s wide. He looked back at Josh, Josh’s features were angled his eye’s slanted focusing on Tee. “No! Josh!” Gina ran to Josh’s side she had four scratches down her left cheek like fingernail marks and a nasty looking bruise was appearing on her arm. “Don’t you No Josh me you little whore!” Josh cried. “Josh!” Gina’s voice was full of hurt. She took his arm and tried to pull him away but he just threw her off of him. Blake ran to Tee. He wasn’t wearing his hat and his left eye had a bruise welling up around it. His shirt was ripped and he had blood trickling down his face from a nasty cut on his forehead. Blake stood in front of Tee. “If you want him…you have to go through me.” He said. Josh grinned. “Gladly!” He ran forward and grabbed Blake by his neck he lifted him off the ground and threw him against a tree. “Blake!” Tee shouted as he hit the ground and slumped to the side, out cold. Gene went to Blake’s side. “He is breathing” He said to reassure Tee. Tee turned his attention back to Josh, and the gun. “Right does anyone else want to interrupt me?” Josh said sweeping the crowd with his gun. Bryan stepped forward “I would just like to tell you how proud I am.” Bryan said smiling widely. “Now. Kill him” Josh pointed the gun back at Tee he unlatched the safety and put his finger on the trigger. He was just about to pull it when Gene appeared in front of Tee. It was obvious he was showing himself to everyone because Gina promptly fainted. Josh dropped the gun in shock and before he could pick it back up Gene had stooped down and retrieved it. “What kind of silly trick is this?” Bryan shouted coming and standing next to Josh. “Don’t worry guys this is not Gene…I bet it’s a look alike!” “I assure you I am perfectly real and I can prove it.” Gene took a drag of his cigarette. “He is a ghost!” Chase shouted. “No shiz Sherlock!” Gene said sarcastically. Garry gaped at him. “If you are a ghost then how come you can hold that gun” Josh asked. “Oh do I have to go through all of this?” Gene sighed. But instead of explaining he just walked up to Tee and helped him up then dematerialised. He materialized behind Bryan. “Boo” Bryan jumped about a foot into the air and Chase’s brother sniggered. Gene took Josh by his collar and lifted him from the floor. “Hay leave him alone!” Bryan shouted. Gene drew himself to his full height and holding Josh in one hand he used the other to punch Bryan in the stomach. Bryan doubled over. Gene held Josh about 3 centimetres from his face. “Think back to a week before you killed me. I told you that if you ever touched my brother again I would hit you…harder. I watched when you beat him up just now. You were hitting him very very hard. “ Gene punched Josh in the stomach, then the chest then he through him aside. Tears rolled down Josh’s cheeks. “And that goes for all of you!” Gene shouted looking around at Josh’s group. “I said I would always protect my brother…if you touch him or his friends again I will kill you.” Josh’s friends began to back away. Bryan picked up Josh who was still curled up on the ground and walked out of the clearing. Tee walked away from Gene and crouched beside Blake’s limp body. He ran his hand through Blake’s hair. He could hear Garry talking to Gene and looked behind him to see Gina sitting up. He moved Blake into a more comfortable position before going over to her. “I thought your brother was dead…he was…I saw him die!” She stuttered “He is dead…that is his ghost. He stayed here for a while to look after me” Tee explained. He felt Gene’s hand on his shoulder. “I’m afraid I can not stay much longer.” Chapter 16 “What?” Tee looked up at Gene. “But you said you would always be here why do you need to go?” “When I was dying the only thing I could think about was you. I made a deal with death. I asked if I could just stay with you until you found someone who cares for you as much as I do. Or even a little bit more.” Gene shrugged. “But you can not go!” Tee cried jumping to his feet. “Who cares about me? NO ONE! Not even my parents!” Tears rolled down Tee’s cheeks. “Someone does.” Gene said simply. He looked in Blake’s direction. “Blake loves you. The moment he stepped in front of that gun. I knew I would have to leave, which was why I gave Josh a beating he will never forget.” “No Gene please don’t leave me again.” Tee felt another cascade of tears wet his cheeks. He clenched his fists. What was wrong with him? He just kept crying. He launched himself at Gene and clung onto him. “I will never leave you. I will always be watching.” Gene’s eyes widened. He took in a deep breath through his nose and the scent of Tee’s hair wafted up. He ran his hand down Tee’s arm and was surprised to feel his warm skin. It was truly time for him to move on. “But you will! Because you are going to.” “You will just have to live without me.” Gene said simply. Tee let go of Gene and backed away. “You are right.” More tears. “Gene I will miss you. I don’t regret a single moment I spent being your brother” The brothers embraced again. Tee looked into Gene’s lucid green eyes for the last time as he faded away. Gina had tears in her eyes and so did Sarah. They were hugging and telling each other how sorry they were. Chase and his brother were also hugging and Rocket was holding Blake in his arms. “We should all get home” Garry said. Tee nodded. He walked over to Rocket and took Blake’s unconscious body. They all walked out of the forest together and walked away in different directions. 20 minutes later, after a lot of struggling under his boyfriend’s weight, Tee arrived at Blake’s house. The car was in the drive meaning Blake’s family was home. He walked slowly to the door and rang the bell the door creaked open to reveal a rather disgruntled looking woman in a dressing gown “Do you know…” Blake’s mum stopped mid-sentence when she had finally taken in the sight before her. “Oh my god what happened!?! Is he?” She couldn’t say it “He isn’t is he?” He eye’s began to fill with tears as she took Blake from Tee and cradled him in her arms. Tee shook his head. “No. He is just unconscious” Tee said. He followed Blake’s mum into the living room she laid Blake down on the sofa and ran into the kitchen to get her first aid kit. Blake began to stir his eye fluttered open he let out a long groan before sitting up sharply. “Tee!!” He shouted. Tee went to his side and placed his hand on Blake’s chest pushing him back so he laid down. “I’m here. Don’t worry your safe. Your home” Tee cooed running his hand through Blake’s hair. Blake’s mum bustled back into the room holding antiseptic, bandages and plasters. It was lucky that Blake’s mum was a doctor she put everything down then ran into the hallway to get her kit. Tee moved away from Blake’s side and settled down in the armchair. “Right you.” Blake’s mum addressed Tee “While I clean Blake up you are going to tell me exactly what happened. Then I will deal with you” she used a small knife to cut off Blake’s bloody top. His chest was covered in bruises and cuts. Tee realised that he was in practically the same state as himself, after all Blake had been fighting Reece. “Well” Tee began. He told her everything, except for the fact that Gene had shown up, even the part about himself being held at gunpoint and Blake trying to protect him. Blake had then told his mum about fighting Reece. When she had finished stitching the deeper cuts on Blake’s body she turned her attention to Tee. The antiseptic hurt like hell and so did the stitches but Tee didn’t cry once. He promised himself that he would never cry again…unless it was for a very good reason. When she was done she sent the boys up to bed but not before saying to Tee “Thank you for looking after him…you know you really are a great kid I don’t see why you can’t live with your parents but I suppose if you really can’t stay there you might as well live here…you can have the spare room.” Tee had thanked her before drifting sleepily up the stairs and collapsing onto his camp bed. Chapter 17 Tee woke at 4pm and exited the house while Blake was still asleep. He had decided that he would go back to the mansion to collect the rest of his things. He let himself in and walked up the stairs and into his room. He pulled a big gym bag out from under his bed and began empting his drawers and wardrobe into it. He packed everything including his CD’s and posters. When he was done he walked up two more flights of stairs and into his mother’s office. He had decided that he would tell her everything, he owed her that much. He asked his mum to wait in the dining room while he went to the lounge to get his dad. He sat on the other side of the dining room table from them and began. “Right. First things first. I have a confession. Gene and me were never the perfect little kids you thought we were. We smoked, I still do, and we got drunk, occasionally, and went to the skate park and the forest, nearly every night, because we snuck out. Every night we would climb out of our windows and onto the conservatory then exit the grounds through a hole in the fence” “No. You were good boys” His mum said in denial. “No mum we weren’t Gene was not the perfect little son you thought he was.” “Gene was a good boy. I bet you corrupted his mind.” Tee’s dad snarled. “Stop denying what you both know is true! Dad how could I, the younger brother, convince Gene to do anything? I caught him sneaking out when I was nine!” Tee cried getting up. “But none of that matters. I came here to pack my stuff and move out…I am going to live with Blake. But also I came here to tell you how Gene really died.” His mum gasped. “What do you mean it is not a big deal? You disobeyed and made a fool out of your mother and me! Why would you lie about his death anyway?” Tee’s dad shouted. “Because I didn’t want you to know that I snuck out at night as well as Gene. Well on the night of Gene’s death he obviously had nothing better to do…he was bored. So when I went out that night he followed me. I was going to the forest and I was oblivious to the fact that I was being followed. I entered the forest and sat in a clearing with a bunch of mate’s smoking and drinking. Gene must have got bored with watching me and walked off. I don’t know when. But then I exited the forest about 1 to 2 hours later and that was when I found Gene’s body.” Tee explained. His dad’s eyes grew wide and his face contorted. “Are you telling me that if you hadn’t disobeyed me and gone to that forest my son would still be alive!” he thundered. “See there you go again. You are speaking as if you only have one son and don’t you dare try to blame me for my brother’s death! I sat and blamed myself and came to the conclusion that it was not my fault. He followed me.” Tee shouted. “Don’t you go laying the blame on Gene!” his dad shouted back rising from his chair. “It is no one’s fault! Don’t you get it? The only person responsible for killing Gene is the person who did it!” Tee’s dad had had enough he ran at Tee taking him by the throat and slamming him against the wall. “As far as I am concerned you killed my son!” He growled. “You know what? I really couldn’t care less. I know I didn’t. I no longer care what you think of me because I no longer want your love. Because as far as I’m concerned you are no longer my dad. In fact neither of you mean…” he was cut short when Andy tightened his grip on Tee’s neck. Tee choked and gasped for air. He reached up trying to pull Andy off of him. “You ungrateful little weasel!” Andy shouted letting go of Tee. Tee fell to the floor and sprang to his feet. “GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!” Andy thundered. Tee heard Jennifer sob. Tee spat in Andy’s face and walked out of the room he got half way down the stairs when he heard Andy’s footsteps follow. He picked up his bag and ran down the next flight and down the hall to the door but before he could get there Andy had bundled him to the ground he held Tee’s face and snarled, “Get out of my house. If I ever see you again I swear I will kill you. Just like you killed your brother!” He got to his feet pulling Tee with him he held Tee by his shirt and picked up Tee’s bag in his other hand he kicked open the door and threw Tee out along with his bag. Tee scrambled to his feet and ran from the house. Chapter 18 Three months on and Tee was still happily living with Blake. Josh and Bryan had been arrested and questioned after police were given an anonymous tip off. Tee had not seen his parents once since Andy threw him out and they were never talked about. Gina was back in the group again and they were all close mates. One of the best things was that Tee never had to sneak out again because Blake’s parents didn’t mind how late they stayed out. It was a warm Sunday evening and Tee and Blake were strolling through the cemetery. Tee had a six-pack of strong bow cans in one hand and Blake’s hand in the other. They approached Gene’s grave and Tee put down the pack. He then picked up the six empty bottles that were lying around the head stone. Tee and Blake stepped back as the six-pack slowly disappeared. “You know what worries me most is how you found out about this” Blake said gesturing to where the six-pack had just been. “Well. I thought if ghosts need nicotine they must need alcohol as well” Tee replied as if it was the most obvious question in the world. The couple turned and strolled away. “So what do you say we go buy some fags and meet that lot down the park?” “Tee I am ashamed of you! A boy of your age should not be staying out till the late hours of the night” Blake said in the highest pitched voice he could muster. “Well if you don’t like it I suppose I could always spend the night in your room instead” Tee replied kissing Blake on the cheek they finally came to the edge of the cemetery and walked out of the gates towards their home. The air around Gene’s grave was filled with the sound of boyish laughter as an empty can of strong bow appeared just in front of the head stone.
Copyright © 2007 Jodie Brown |