Chapter 3

Love Rescues

“What the hell are you doing?” asked Brian as he squatted to Kate, swirled to Tony and sent him a dazing punch on the face that left him staggering.

Quickly like a bird from hell, Tony picked up his cloths and ran away.

“Oh laughing doll” he exclaimed as he put his ears to her chest, only to perceive the exudate of wine in her breath. Tony had gotten her drunk or what. He hastened into the bath, turned on the shower and returned to lift her. She had no pounds until now he tried lifting her into the bath. She had struggle breathing, with a running temperature. “What did he do to you?” She coughed furiously upon being showered and let repeated sneezing.

“Kate, Kate,” called Brian, being scared about the shower putting life into her or exacerbating the whole thing. A slight tap on the cheeks, her eyes unwound with the interest of closing back soon.” I am the one, Brian, wake up,” he assured her and tried focusing her face in the shower and she scowled, tossing her face in disapproval. Next was a furious throw-up from his victim which arrived like ancient Chinese soup on his face. “Shit, shit, oh my God,” he lamented, cursed and ran his face in the shower. It was no longer safe- he undressed himself and showered too. Later he washed Kate twice more, dressed her in her nightie and led her to sleep. The offensive odor of wine still hung over his face. He returned to the shower washed himself and the bath furiously and sprayed air fresheners.

Tap, tap tap: that was the footsteps of a walker close by. He wouldn’t want to be seen. His eyes sensed for escape or hideout. The back door came right on time. He used it and stuck as breeze. Through the pinhole he could see the walker; the walker opened the door, “uh oh, she’s asleep,” said the walker and turned off the lantern before leaving. The walker was Mrs. Fanny. Brian agreed with his thought it was safe to part before he freed from his hideout and sneaked out through the rear window.

The days ahead dunged his head with thoughts of Kate; his feelings for her and what on earth would make Tony come up with such guts to sleep with her, and whether he would ever make his feelings known to Kate. Would he compromise his introvert feelings because of her? Countless times Tony had phoned him to meet him at a joint and iron things out but he declined. Avoiding Tony was a bite that would stick to him for life. When Tony noticed his avoiding him, he opted for messages. The other night he texted; stuff just don’t happen. Hear me out. The day before he texted; you really need to know this.

The latter plucked brains heart and he wired him a call to meet at a joint.

When Tony showed up, he was in the company of two hostile buddies, who waited for him resting on his Chevrolet sports car. Brian recognized the two buddies. The history of neighborhood theft has their names as suspects, but that aside now. Nothing in the world seemed more important than Kate, and falling out of love was a worse crime than neighborhood theft.

Expectantly they sat to a table with no orders placed. “Thank you for your time, Brian,” remarked Tony.

“And those two buddies with you? Are you scared I’m gonna have a bullet pass through your heart?”

“Many heroes of love have done worse,” replied Tony embattled with locking eyes with Brian.

“And when there are two heroes? I owe you no apologies for the punch,” added Brian when he saw a patch of the black eyes barely covered by the sunshades on Tony’s face.

“Anybody would do same if the girl is officially his. Kate is my girl.”

Brian’s face look-daggers at Tony; questioning his claim.

Tony fought back his laugh and tried to smile. “We aren’t dragging over a piece of love, dude. I believe you’re always with her, try to find out how far we’ve come. I fell in love with her before the creation of the letter B in your name. I am too gentle to make love with a drunken girl.”

“I don’t know if she’s your girl or not but I’m not in love with her either.

Tony raised a brow.

Brian implied, “Yeah, fall off my actions. I punched you with the intent of saving an innocent friend about to be raped.”

He chuckled, “Every kid in this hood knows my head is up for Kate so why would I rape her. My parents raised me to use my dick responsibly like alcohol. The same dick that deflowered her wouldn’t rape her,” he smiled and added, “Dick sense.”

Brian stood up and Tony stood up too. “I got to go. Put me in the list of kids that know you’re seeing Kate. Apologies for the punch. But when next you want your girl remember to shut the door and let her enjoy it in clear head.”

Tony stroked his dreadlocks, smacked his lips sensually “Thanks, love master,” he said, “For the records that night I saw maddening feelings and love in that punch but if you say you’re not in love good riddance. You can still be her friend. And there’s a lot you need to know about her. Let that be your food for thought, Brian,” he added and had a walk.

It was when he had a walk that he noticed the tattoo on his left neck; it was a dragon with Kate scribbled on it.

At home Brian pulled a wry face at every one. When his father noticed it, he asked, “What’s up with you, boy?”

He tried to let a smile but thought heaved on it. He had fallen for Kate but letting it known was a tug of war, sharing a girl with a crazy guy as Tony was a worse war. He thought Kate was a cool headed chic that wouldn’t have anything to do with Tony of this world. She was the girl of his dream. She had always cultured in him the vibration of electricity in water whenever he set his eyes upon her. Night and day the only rhythm that played in his head was Kate-blues. He felt Tony was either lying or saying the truth and why didn’t he throw a fist when he punched him that night.

And there’s a lot you need to know about her; Tony’s words resounded in his head.

“I am good, dad, just a rough day.”

“I know, but you can always wind off at the golf, I see plenty of kids there, even Kate, always on and on.

“Does she play?” he asked.

“Em, no she’s a spectator. I believe she too has a lot in head to wind off and seeing golf is a welcomed spree. Son, you know the world is always hot for our heads. We got to always cool off.”

Brian winked, “I don’t like golf but I think I’m beginning to breathe to it.”

He ran upstairs, into his room and looked out through the window, a lot paced through his mind- his meeting Kate, the night he punched Tony and washed a girl for the first time in his life; how soft and feline her body was, her spotless breasts, firm buttocks and the fear that warned him when he washed down to her hairless vagina line; it was the magic of washing a baby girl who wet herself, unaware of her dependency on a strange person for survival.

A Chevrolet was looming on. He kept to his gaze until it drove to eyes reach. It was Tony and his cronies and Kate was the only girl in the company.

And there’s a lot you need to know about her…