Love Doesn't Age (ErrInk)

Chapter 30 - Fights

Error's POV (Age: 16)

  I rested my head against the bus window as it drove down the road. Music played through my headphones which intensified the feeling that the rain gave off.

  My backpack rested next to me as I had gotten the entire seat to myself because I wasn't exactly liked by my peers. They only saw me as the quiet guy that constantly got into fights with others because I had mommy issues.

  Despite the music being at least loud enough to drown out the noise, I could still hear the other students chatting about uninteresting topics. I eavesdropped on one of the many conversations that was being held between two guys named Gene and Cris.

Gene: You excited for prom?

Cris: Hell yeah. I'm planning on asking Hailey to go with me.

Gene: Good choice. She's a nice chick.

  I heard them take a pause and I almost instantly felt their gazes land on me.

Cris: Do you think he's going? I want this to be the perfect moment for Hailey and I.

Gene: I hope not. I'd hate for that junior to kill the mood by punching someone. Although, I don't think he will as he doesn't have any friends. Look around us, everyone on this bus refuses to sit with him because he's so damn weird.

  They thought that I couldn't hear them but they were wrong. In fact, I had stopped playing music and fully immersed myself into what they were talking about.

Gene: I saw his mom making out with someone outside the bar near my place. She's a total slut.

  He laughed. To be honest, I couldn't give two fucks for what people said about the bitch I lived with. Hell, I agreed with them.

Gene: I heard from a couple friends that he's a caretaker.

  I tuned out everything else solely to be able to hear what he was going to say next. There were going to be problems if they talked shit about the kid I take care of.

'Say whatever you want about my mom but you will end in the hospital if you say anything about Ink.'

Cris: Poor kid.

Gene: Or maybe the kid is equally fucked up like him.

  I stood up and walked over to their seat. I didn't care if the bus was still moving. The two boys looked up at me when they saw that I was approaching them.

  Nothing came out of my mouth as I punched Gene directly in the face. That made him quickly shut up which was what I was hoping for.

  All conversations in the bus had stopped and everyone was looking at the three of us. I turned around and began going back to my seat. The rest of the students continued to stare at Cris and a bruised Gene.

  I sat back in my seat, pressing the play button on my music.

(Time Skip)

  I stood at my locker while getting out a textbook for the next class. The hallway was full of students, half of them chatting in the middle, blocking the way for other students.

  I thought about what I had to do today at the Comyet house. Of course I would be taking care of Ink but his parents had also asked me to go grocery shopping for them while they attended a meeting at the company they worked for. I needed to think about what I was going to cook for dinner.

  Throughout my entire life, I felt jealous of the kids around me. They had their childhoods to still live out until they graduated high school. I, however, had to grow up so I could fend for myself when my mother finally decided to stop buying clothing and food for me.

  At the age of sixteen, I had a job and I knew how to properly manage money as well as other aspects of adult life.

  My body meeting metal broke me from my thoughts. Turning around, I saw a group of people had gathered around me. The expressions on their faces told me that they were pissed off about something. I knew what it was.

Me: You're here to make me apologize for punching Gene, right? Well I hate to inform you but I'm not going to do that.

  After a few more exchanges of boring conversation between me and the guys, one of them went to punch me. I stepped out of the way and grabbed his neck, slamming his face into my locker. The rest of the group joined in but they were also easy to defeat. The fight was over as quickly as it started. There was nothing noteworthy about it.

(Time Skip)

I looked at the different products in the freezer aisle. I didn't know which ones to get but I still had to stay under a certain budget.

There was suddenly a small tug on my sleeve. Looking down, I saw Ink staring back up.

Me: What's up, Inky?

Ink: I'm cold.

Me: Don't worry. We'll be out of this section in a little bit. Here.

I said before taking off my jacket, offering it to the child. Ink happily accepted it and wrapped it around his body. He smiled widely at me which caused me to smile back.

The gauze that was wrapped around my palms and fingers were now easily noticeable, making me wish no one saw them. I didn't want Ink to see them either. He was too innocent to know that I got my injuries because I fought with my peers at school.

Once I finished, I began heading to a different part of the store with Ink holding onto my pant leg.

  As we walked, I thought about Ink's upcoming birthday. I knew that he liked drawing but his parents told me that he already had way too many art supplies. Although, he does get cold easily.

'I could get him a piece of clothing that's his favorite color. Maybe...

I can get him a brown scarf