Until Death

Part 1: The Run In

I had been living on my own for about a year. I was 18 and once I graduated from high school I decided to take a gap year instead of going to med school as my parents wanted me to. They were both lawyers and wanted me to be successful as well. They threatened to disown me if I didn't go to college and followed through once I didn't budge.

Once I left, I found a cheap apartment and I got a job working at a restaurant. I enjoyed my job but being on my own left no time to do anything except work and pay bills. In January I turned 19 and I still had no idea what I wanted to do with my life.

I had had an awful shift where some guy grabbed my ass, and another left a 3 cent tip. My boss had let me go early after another waitress spilled a glass of water on me leaving me soaked.

It was 9, dark, and freezing thanks to the storm the winter had brought in. I could feel my uniform freezing under my winter coat. My hands were red from the cold and I shoved them in my pockets trying not to get frostbite on my way home. Which though unlikely, with how my life was going anything was possible.

My hair was blowing in my face as I walked in the brisk wind, and I held onto the straps of my old black backpack as I tried to stay warm. I was walking past the other apartment buildings closer to school, and then my job, and the three bars which were in town.

As I walked past the bar called Moon Time, I walked a bit faster. They had a bad reputation and fights and assaults had been known to happen there frequently, leading to the police coming a couple of times a week. I had to cut behind it to get to my apartment across the road.

I walked in between the two buildings and as I passed the back of Moon Time's building near the dumpsters there was a guy bleeding out on the ground, he had been shot in the stomach. And above him stood someone in a black leather jacket, dark jeans, and a black beanie on his head, holding a gun. There was also one man next to him and he was bulky and had his hands crossed. He was in a wife beater, jeans, and had a baseball cap on backward.

"Help me," The dying man said as he looked at me. As the two men turned around I realized I was fucked. I noticed the one with the gun used to go to the same high school as me and we were in the science class when I was a sophomore and he was a senior.

His name was Atlas Jacobs and he was known for getting into fights and he supposedly threatened the principal to let him graduate. He had sat next to me in biology and cheated off of me every day. He had pale skin and bright green eyes, he had dirty blonde hair which was medium length and perfectly pushed back. I went to run and he pointed the gun at me and I realized I was fucked.

"Don't," he said calmly and I stopped not wanting to test him, he pointed for the man to grab me and he did and brought me closer, he stunk of beer and cigarettes and was weirdly sweaty despite the cold.

"What are you doing! Help me!" The man pleaded on the ground and Atlas kicked him in his injury, causing the man to scream in agony, I winced at the sound.

"Shut up Brian, you had your chance for redemption and you fucked yourself," Atlas said, before shooting the man in the face and I felt dizzy as I watched the red blood pour out of this man's head.

"Now what will I do with you?" He asked me, as he reloaded his gun. I tried to slow my breathing but I could feel myself completely panicking.

"I won't say anything," I said and Atlas looked at me as if examining me.

"She is lying, I am sure the second we let her go she is running to the cops," The older man said, slurring his words. Atlas lifted the gun and I closed my eyes as he pulled the trigger. I felt warm liquid hit my neck and body and I turned around and the old man who had been holding me was dead.