Just How Life Is.

Just How LIfe Is. Chapter 20

**Troy’s P.O.V.**

He continued to beat me, everywhere. I was too scared from what just happened to do anything. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying not to think about it.

Now I was lying on the ground, trying to shield my head with my arms, but he kept kicking me in the side. I was happy he just wasn’t using his knife. I didn’t want to die, I now had something to live for; Skye.

Suddenly, he grabbed a fist full of my hair and lifted my head and got close to my face that now had trails of blood running down it from my scalp. He squinted his eyes at me, almost like he was trying to figure me out. Then he brought his knife forward and reopened the cut that was healing on my cheek. I winced.

Then he stood up straight and shook his head at me, making a “tsk tsk” sound, “Pathetic child. It’s a wonder that you’re actually mine. I wish you weren’t though.”

The scary part to all of this was that he didn’t seem a bit drunk, at all. I just rested my face on the ground, hoping he’d be done soon. But another shock came to me as a felt a quick stab in my side. I gasped as dots started to fill my vision.

**Skye’s P.O.V.**

After standing on the street, still undecided for a full ten minutes, I decided to walk away. I just didn’t know what to do. Sighing, I walked two steps away, then something took over and I quickly turned around and started speed walking towards his house. As I got closer I heard some yelling, then the front door burst open and Troy came running out. He was beat up and bloody; holding his side, which on closer inspection I realized was bleeding. He kept running towards me and grabbed my arm to pull my along running with him.

We turned a street corner, not sure if his father was following or not, we stopped on the side of the road, which looked deserted. I quickly inspected his side; it looked like he got stabbed. I bit my lip and made him take off his shirt then tied it around his torso, in hopes to stop the bleeding. He was all bruised and broken and I hugged him, trying to hold back my tears.

He matched my embrace and put his hand on the back of my head, “Why did you hang around?” he whispered.

“I… just couldn’t leave…”

Then suddenly we heard some shouting.

“Where’d you go, you pathetic excuse for a life?!”

Troy cursed; I could see he was paling; he needed to get to a hospital. I hoped that his neighbor kept her promise and saw what happened. Maybe she would call the police.

Then Troy grabbed my arm and we hid behind a bush a few trees in from the side of the road. There was an advantage and a disadvantage. Advantage: there was a forest we could hide in. Disadvantage: Troy’s dad could kill us in said forest and no one would find us for a while.

We stayed absolutely quiet; Troy keeping pressure on his side wound, which I hoped hadn’t hit any vital organs. We could hear Troy’s father shouts gaining on us; then there was a crunch of a twig. I could see Troy trying to control his breathing, and he wrapped an arm around me; his body was cold.

I peered through a gap in the bush and saw the monster; he was holding a knife and looked a mix between pissed and crazy. Then it all hit me; he really was trying to kill Troy today. My heart skipped a beat.

Then, like an owl honing in on its prey’s heartbeat, the monster came to the bush and peered over us. Troy and I stayed still for a moment in shock, then the monster smiled.

“I remember you,” he said to me, “Are you Troy’s friend?” he asked in such a creepy voice I shivered. Screw this. I pulled at Troy and we went running through the forest. We kept running and running, but Troy’s breath was getting ragged and I could hear his father’s footsteps not far behind.