My Blue Eyes (7 page)

     Mary tried to get me to ignore Bo.  I couldn't do it.  Too much pride in myself and too much respect for Mary.  I was calm and cool as I approached him, masking the fire he had ignited inside of me.
     "What did you just say Bo?"
     Bo grinned like the asshole he was, "I said, why don't you let me break off a piece of that ass?  Do you have a problem with that Darrel?"
     I stood about a foot away from Bo staring up at his ogre looking face.  "I'm going to tell you what Bo.  Just this once, I'm going to pretend you didn't say that.  But, if you ever say shit like that again, you will be picking your fucking teeth off the floor."
     Hearing this, Mary grabbed me by the arm, trying to pull me away.  "Come on Darrel, he's not worth it.  I heard he's gay anyway."
     
Oh shit, 
I thought.  
Did Mary really just go there?  
The rumors about Bo had always been there.  I think it’s part of the reason he tried to act like Mr. Cool all the time.  Trying to prove to everyone he wasn't gay.  It really didn't matter if he was, but it sure would have answered a lot of questions.  However, it didn't give him an excuse to act like a dick.
     We couldn't have taken two steps away when Bo not only crossed that line, he took a flying leap over it.
     "What did you just say bitch?  Why don't you bring that scary pussy over here and I will show you how gay I am.  You stupid bitch!"
     That was it.  Bo had just unleashed the mad man that's always been hidden inside of me, but always tucked away for the right time.  The time was now.  I only needed one punch.  I've watched enough boxing to realize if you hit a person in one of two spots, they're going down.  It was either the chin or the side of the head.  Since Bo was all of six-foot-ten I went for the chin.  My punch was short and compact and right to the point.  I hit Bo with everything I could muster and he fell straight down like a stack of bricks.  A piercing pain shot up from my wrist all the way to my shoulder.  I let out a prolonged "fuuuuck" shaking my hand vigorously trying to relieve the pain.  Bo wasn't done. He tried to get up.  He staggered a bit and fell back down.  I knew I had to finish him off.  On his second attempt to get up, I walked over and kicked him straight in the mouth.  One, two, three teeth went flying from his mouth.  He was done.  Adding insult to injury I knelt down next him grabbing him by the back of the head.
     "I told you.  I told you, you'd be picking your fucking teeth off the floor."
     I was fully expecting his basketball buddies to run to his defense.  They didn't.  I think even they were sick of his shit.  They stood back shaking their heads, while not a one of them tried to help Bo as he lay there on the gym floor.  Mary grabbed my hand and I winced in pain.
     "Did you break it?" Mary asked, still in shock from what had just transpired.
     "I don't know.  It hurts like a son of a bitch though."
     We exited the gym and stood on the outside of the weight room.  Mary took a look at my hand.
     "Darrel, it's starting to swell up.  You need to get ice on it."
     I shook my head no.  "It will be alright.  Once I start using it to lift, the pain will go away."
     "You can't lift now Darrel," Mary pleaded.  "Let’s just go back to your house so we can get it iced up."
     "I need to lift Mary.  I'm not going to be able to lift for five straight days.  I need to stay on my program."  I handed her my keys as I opened the weight room door, "Pick me up in two hours, okay?"
     Coach Bradley was the only one in the weight room.  I was going to have to do my best to make sure he didn't see my hand.  The pain was pretty intense, but I lifted anyways.  Just like I thought, the pain started to go away with every set I completed.
     Coach stuck around for another hour talking to me about the upcoming season.  He was looking forward to it as much as I was.  Coach was like a second father to me.  I had so much respect for that man.  He respected me too, as he said he needed to leave so he could start his Thanksgiving meal early, entrusting me to lock up on the way out.  This was unheard of.  No one ever let a student stay in a school owned building alone after hours.  I thought this was totally cool of coach, which showed he knew how committed I was for the upcoming season.
     I lifted for another forty five minutes.  I had worked up a good sweat, and Mary would be here soon.  I thought the cool November air would cool me down and get me smelling a little better before Mary arrived.  
     I couldn't wait for tomorrow.  It would be me and Mary's first Thanksgiving together and she was planning on spending the entire day with me.  
     I shut off the lights and double and triple checked to make sure the door was locked.  The last thing I needed was for someone to break into the weight room and steal everything.  I walked around to the back of the building and took a seat waiting for Mary.
     I must have been off in la la land, because I hadn't noticed the three cars pull into the lot.  I wondered who it was.  It was dark and difficult to see, even with the parking lot lights on.  I thought it was Matt for a second until I started walking towards them.  Once the people got out of the cars, I knew exactly who they were.  One, two, three, four, five and six tall guys started walking towards me.  It was Bo and his brothers, and what I thought was his dad.  A few words were exchanged, and that was the last thing I remembered.
Chapter 18

     I tried opening my eyes just a smidgen, but was blinded by the light.  I could vaguely hear a voice say, "Mom, he opened his eyes!"  
Was that my sister? 
I thought.  
Where the hell am I?  Why is my sister in my bedroom and why did I sleep so late?
     
I heard my mom walk over to my side, "Someone close those curtains.  It's probably too bright for him to open his eyes.  Darrel, can you try to open your eyes again?"
     I tried, but it was very difficult to keep them open.  I could feel something in my nose and when I reached for it mom grabbed my hand.
     "Darrel, you need to leave that in baby, okay?"
     I wondered what the hell was going on.  I thought I even heard a couple of my brother's voices in the background.  My older brother Troy had a deep voice that was recognizable anywhere.  He was saying something to my mom that must have pissed her off, because she started crying and raising her voice to him.  I had never seen or heard my mom cry, so something bad must have happened.
     Someone else came into the room and was asking my mom some questions.  I had never heard that voice before, but he then placed his fingers on my eyelids and tried opening them up.  I winced because he was shining a tiny flashlight in my eye.
     "Darrel, I'm Dr. Zwick.  Can you do me a favor and open up your eyes for me?"
     I tried again with no luck.  I heard him say something to my mom about how it was good I was trying to open my eyes and it may take a few hours before I'm able to completely open them.  It was a lot of work trying to open them, and I felt exhausted.  All I wanted to do was go back to sleep.
     I had several dreams when I drifted off to sleep.  Mary was in every single one of them.  It was one of those dreams where you're dreaming about a person and missing them so much.  I wanted to see her.  Every time I would get close, she would either fall into a hole or go hide from me.  I knew I was dreaming, but it pissed me off anyway.  This one time I got close enough to grab her, is when I heard the doctor's voice again.
     "Darrel, it's Dr. Zwick again.  Can you do me a favor and try to open your eyes?  Squeeze my hand if you heard what I just said."
     I squeezed his hand and he replied, "Good Darrel.  Now let’s try to open them okay?"
     This time I was able to open them completely.  Things were a little blurry at first, but after several squints I was able to clean them out enough where I could tell who was all in the room.
     My mom and dad were both there.  My sister and older brother were both standing on one side of the bed.  I could see Matt and Mark leaning on the wall staring at me.  Off to the side of my dad, I saw my other brothers.  I wondered why my entire family was in this room and wondered why there was a doctor checking me out.
     "Do you know why you're here Darrel?" The doctor asked checking my ear.
     I shook my head no after trying unsuccessfully to speak.  My mouth was so dry it was hard to open my lips.  
Why can't I fucking talk, 
I thought.  
Why in the fuck is there a doctor talking to me?  Where's Mary?
     
"You got your ass kicked, that's what happened," Troy muttered.
     My dad proceeded to smack him in the back of the head, "Shut the hell up Troy.  What the hell is wrong with you?"
     "I'm just saying," Troy responded.  "He doesn't know why he's here.  I would want to know."
     Mom gave me a more reasonable explanation, "Darrel, you were attacked by the O'Neil boys.  Do you remember anything about that?"
     I remembered beating the shit out of Bo, and vaguely remembered the cars pulling up as I sat there waiting for Mary.

     I was told later the O'Neil clan jumped me and each got their licks in on me.  I was beaten pretty badly.  I suffered a few broken ribs, a fractured wrist, a broken orbital bone, stitches and a severe concussion.  It could have been worse, I guess.
     Bo, on the other hand, had to have an emergency dental procedure and have his jaw wired shut.  He would miss most of the basketball season, which is why his family was so pissed.  It was his own fault.  The stupid fucker should have never crossed that line.
     By the time I was able to talk, my mom was the only one left in the room.  My dad would tell me several months later as we were driving to college that my mom stayed in the room with me every night for three weeks.  That's how long I was in a coma.  She was so heartbroken over her little baby being in the hospital, she vowed to stay with me until I awoke.  The only time she left my side was to go home and shower.  Dad said he had to practically drag her home on several occasions.  Dad even said she showered in my room, thinking if she left, something bad might happen to me.  Mom was the first girl I ever loved, but Mary was my second.
     "Mom, where's Mary?" I asked still having some difficulty talking.
     "She's pretty torn up about this Darrel.  She thinks it's her fault this happened to you.  Dad told her he would have done the same thing if someone said that to me.  She arrived as the O'Neil boys were driving away.  She found you lying there and little Mary was able to drag your big butt all the way to the car and drive you to the hospital."
     "Did she really?" I replied stunned.
     "That girl loves you to death Darrel.  She's complicated, but she's one of the good ones.  Try to keep her around for a while."
     "Where's she at now?"
     "She had to go out of town for a bit.  The doctor said you should be able to leave in a couple of days.  She will probably be back by then.  Get some rest now Darrel.  We need to get you home!"
     With that, my mom left, and I was left wondering where Mary was.  I wanted to see her so badly.  To tell her none of this was her fault, and I would do the same thing over again if someone talked to her like Bo had done.  I needed her.  I wanted her.  I missed her like crazy.
Chapter 19

     Three and a half weeks I was in the hospital.  I couldn't wait to get home and resume my normal life.  It had been awhile since I had seen Mary.  Mom thought she might be back home by the time I got out, but she wasn't.  
     My dad came alone to take me home once the doctor gave him the okay.  They tried to get me to use a wheelchair to leave the hospital, which I wanted no part of.  Dad insisted, or rather demanded I sit my butt down in the wheelchair.  He proceeded to wheel me out of the hospital.  I know it's a hospital, but it was still humiliating for a grown ass teenager whose legs were very capable of walking himself out.
     It was our normal quiet drive home.  Dad and I never had much to talk about, so I decided to strike up a conversation.
     "Why didn't Mom come?"
     Dad looked at me and chuckled, "You know your mom.  She needs to make sure the house is perfect and dinner prepared before her little baby comes home."
     Now, I didn't mind it when my brothers would give me crap for being a mama's boy, but my dad was a different story.  There wasn't too much in common we shared, besides watching football on Sundays.  I always wanted to be a daddy's boy.  He and all my brothers were into hunting, cars and construction.  I tried to like the things he liked.  I even used to go deer hunting with him, even though I hated it. Don't get me wrong, I love being in the outdoors, enjoying the crisp air of fall while waiting patiently for nothing. However, just the thought of killing a deer would make me feel bad.  Come every October 1st, he and all my brothers would start salivating over the coming deer season.  They would even go out months before the start of deer season to mark their spots.  They would have all their updated camouflage picked out and their special bottles of deer urine.  I would always get crap for my refusal to spray some on me.  Deer urine, really!  I remembered the time I stopped to take a piss on one of their recon missions.  You would have thought I burned down the entire woods.

     "Darrel, you idiot!" they would scream.  "Deer can smell that shit for an entire year!"  

     I guess I was supposed to know deer didn't like the smell of human urine.  Could they really tell the difference?
     There was the one time during shot gun season when I killed my first deer.  I was all crouched in the brush with my bright orange vest on, waiting again for nothing to appear.  I must have been upwind, because out from the creek bed, two deer appeared.  I quietly raised my rifle, focusing on the deer in front.  I figured it was two females since I didn't see any antlers.  I had the deer in sight and was aiming right below the neck.  I gently pulled the trigger, and boom, the second deer fell down.  The deer I was aiming for quickly backtracked the same path it came up from, and I just sat there.  My dad and brothers heard my gunshot, and with concern they came rushing down from their deer blinds.
     Now, I have no idea how they got to me so quick.  Being the avid hunter I was (sarcasm), I would always strategically place myself within a short walking distance to my truck.  Therefore, if I were to get too cold, I could rush back to my truck and thaw out.  My dad and brothers would walk close to half a mile down a corn field and disappear into the woods.  Truth be told, once they disappeared, I was ready to go home.
     I didn't walk over to see the deer until they arrived.  I didn't want to.  My older brother Troy was the first to see it, and of course, it wasn't dead.  I had just grazed him on his back along his spine and he was paralyzed.  Troy said I needed to put him out of his misery, but I declined to.  I wasn't too happy about shooting the deer in the first place.  Dad must have realized, as he made Troy finish the kill.  To this day, I have never heard the end of how Troy had to kill my deer for me.  This was also the last day I ever went hunting.
     I knew my dad loved me though, it's just mom loved me a little more.
     "Did Bo's brother and dad get arrested for jumping me?"
     Dad paused to think a bit before responding, "I don't know, Darrel.  We didn't press charges."
     "What!  Seven of them beat the shit out of me, put me in the hospital, and not one of them got arrested?"
     "Nope."
     "You're kidding me, right?  That is such crap!"
     "Darrel, sometimes it's best to just let things go."
     "Whatever," I replied with a feeling of utter disgust.
     The rest of the car ride home we sat in silence.  I later found out why no charges were filed.  Since it was the day before Thanksgiving when all this transpired, all the O'Neil's were home for the holiday.  It was just my luck they were.  If I had pummeled Bo on any other day, I wouldn't have had to spend such a long time in the hospital.
     Shortly after Mary got me to the hospital, she called my parents, and of course they rushed right over.  Mary was hysterical when they tried to ask her what happened.  She managed to get out what took place between me and Bo. I guess my dad put two and two together from there.
     My dad, along with my brothers, paid the O'Neil's a visit.  What happened next is the stuff legends are made out of.  My dad literally beat the snot out of Bo's dad.  He beat him so bad, he had to spend a couple of days in the hospital in the room next to mine.  One could imagine how awkward it was every time our families passed in the hallway during visiting hours.  When the O'Neil boys tried to intervene in the ass whooping their dad was getting, my brothers jumped in.  Not a single one of my brothers or dad had a scratch on them.  I missed out on seeing the Watson boys go to work, defending their little brother, with whom they never missed an opportunity to make fun of.  I looked at my dad and brothers in a whole new light after that.  It was comforting knowing they always had my back.
     We made it home and I noticed all of my siblings' cars parked along the street.  
This is why my mom didn't come, 
I thought.  
She's having a welcome home party for me.  
I walked in and sure enough, I heard a big "welcome home little brother!"  They all came up to me and gave me hugs, carefully trying not to aggravate my busted ribs.  When they all cleared out, there was Mary.  Looking more beautiful than ever.  
Chapter 20