Better to Die a Hero by Michael Van Dagger Read Free Book Online Page B

long. Bryan shot his foot forward planting the hard rubber heal deep into Jake's diaphragm. The teen’s standing foot-stomp sent the athlete hurling back into one of his peers. Both of them landed flat on their backs with Jake on top.
    Bryan looked down at the two. “Who’s the butt plug now, loser?”
    Jake fought to regain his breath and his sickening gasps echoed throughout the lunchroom. Steve glanced at the twisted face on the floor then at the faces hovering near. Students hated Jake, but Steve read sympathy on all those faces—except one.
    “I’ve got to get another corndog.” Bryan turned and pressed through the crowd, tray in tow.
    Each kid in the crowd looked to the next hoping a teacher would break through and take action. Steve stepped back letting himself get absorbed into the onlookers, as Jake's gasping hit a tone sharp enough to hurt the ears. A nervous panic began to rise in the students just before Jake squealed. Several open-mouth gasps followed and finally vigorous sobbing.
    “What in the hell is going on here.” A male teacher pushed his way in. Jake lay in a fetal position crying as if he'd been to the edge of life and back.
    The teacher's questions went unanswered and Steve slipped further back then turned to follow Bryan. Maybe his friend wouldn’t be nailed for this. This act of unbelievable courage or stupidity, he couldn’t decide which.
    Steve caught up to his buddy, placed a hand on Bryan’s shoulder, and talked quietly into his ear. “Let’s get out of here. You’re liable to get caught if you sit back down.”
    “Sounds good. I need another corndog like I need cancer.” Bryan slipped his tray on a table and changed directions toward the door. He dipped at the knees twice and then a third time before reaching the door.
    “Are you Okay?”
    “Yeah, but I really need to get out of here.”
    “No sweat, were almost out.” Steve stepped ahead and held the door open. Bryan dipped again and his legs began to violently shake.
    “I’ve got to keep moving.”
    “Good Idea. We'll keep walking.” Steve sped up to match his friend’s pace. “This is the first time you've had to physically defend yourself. I’d be shaking too. Damn, you did good.”
    “Do you really think so?”
    Steve forgot his earlier feelings of jealousy and they walked the halls for the last half of the lunch hour. By the time fifth period started, Bryan was relaxed enough to laugh a little over his first fight.
    For the rest of the afternoon, classmates bombarded Steve with questions about the lunchroom incident. Steve pretended he knew all along of Bryan’s fighting prowess and theorized that Bryan had reached his limit with Jake. He said things like “I could tell he was slowly getting tired of taking Jake’s crap.” In truth, he had no idea Bryan could fight outside the make-believe world of role-playing and bullying had never seemed to bother his friend. He continued the lying all afternoon and into the boy’s locker room after school.
    One of the best things about the run home was the time it gave him to think about his day, Nora, and life in general. Today marked the seventh day in a row he’d run and his comfort level had increased to the point he could think coherently, even when on the last leg of the run.
    His head remained clear and his legs held strong as he maneuvered the broken walkways of his neighborhood. The fight that afternoon reaffirmed the bond between Bryan and himself and he now thought himself stupid for letting his emotions overwhelm him. So what if he didn’t know what was going on between his two friends. So what if he had been dropped out of the loop for a week, things like that happen. Steve shook his head in disbelief when he thought back to the extreme jealousy he’d experienced. How could he let his emotions get so out of control?
    I am never going to lose it like that again, he thought.
    The teenager sensed a car approach from behind and it slowed to match his pace. He