Brawler's Prelude, Episode 4: A Hard Day's Work

[Deskfan45]

Fall, 2018

The sun beat down on the car wash parking lot. It was a hot, hot day, most likely the last hot day of the year as the first weeks of Fall set in. Letting out a sigh, Skylar looked at her reflection in the shiny, orange car, before scrubbing it with a sponge. She wore a white tank top and a pair of jeans, ber black hoodie tied around her waist. She scrubbed away at all the dirt and gravel on the side of the vehicle, cleaning the steel wheels. Ever since her expulsion, she'd spent every weekday where she wasn't training for wrestling working here. She'd had more time on her hands without school in the way, so she may as well help make some money. As she kept wiping the car down, she'd shriek as a glass of ice cold water was poured onto her, making her shiver. She looked up to see a former classmate of hers and a couple friends behind her laughing. "C'mon Sky, make it shine!" The girl taunted. Skylar clenched her teeth, her fingers forming fists. She oughta... No. She couldn't lose this job. Without saying anything, she sighed, and kept washing the car of the kids who antagonized her.

That evening, Skylar walked down the street, passing the graffiti covered mail box and entering the neighborhood she called home, Kading Road. As she strolled past the poorly kept houses, she could hear a man screaming at his wife as their kids sobbed. She looked at someone's front lawn to see a man zoned out in a chair, obviously high off his rocker.

As dusk fell, Skylar looked at the sixty dollars her boss had given her for the day, smiling. This would definitely help her mom out a bit. She stuffed it into the pocket of her hoodie, humming a Frank Sinatra song as she skipped across the street. "Ay kid, gimme that money!" A gruff voice stopped Skylar dead in her tracks. Cautiously, the girl turned around to see a tall, unkempt man. "I don' got any money." She said, doing everything she could to look confident. "Bullshit! I saw you stuff some cash in you pocket! Gimme it!" The man growled, causing Skylar to tremble. "Piss off!" Sky sneered, taking two steps back. As the man came closer, she turned around to run, but only made it a few feet before the man grabbed her, and threw her into the grass, sending her falling on her back.

First, came a kick to her ribs, followed by three hard stomps to her chest, knocking the wind out of her, and leaving her gasping out for air. The man grabbed her by the hair, pulling her back up to her feet, before battering her face with punches. It felt like someone was hitting her in the face with a sledgehammer over, and over, and over. The punches broke her nose, which bled like a faucet, staining her white tank top. Soon enough, she was thrown into the edge of a house, her ribs slamming into the squared corner. "AGHHHHHHH-!" She screamed, clutching her side as she fell onto her stomach. The man placed his shoe on her back, pinning her down as he reached into her pockets. "NO-! Please don't take it!" She sobbed, but her pleading would fall on deaf ears, the man pulling out the sixty dollars Sky had worked hard to earn, crumpling it up in his hand. "Fuckin' dumbass kid..." He grumbled, spitting on Skylar, before getting up and walking off to score some pot. It was there that Skylar layed, crying and trembling on the ground. She sobbed for a good thirty minutes.

It was dark out when Sky got home, opening the door to see her mom on the couch, with a drink in her hand. She looked tired. Maya looked at Sky with a warm smile, before seeing her daughter's face, covered in bruises, and her nose turning dark red. "What happened!?" She asked, horrified. "Got in a fight with some kid. You should see the other girl." Sky lied, forcing a smile. Maya smiled, chuckling. She was used to that by now. "Well, I'm glad you got the better of it. Your supper's on the table."

Skylar walked over to the kitchen table to see a Subway sandwich. She looked at her mother. "You eat anything?" Sky asked. Maya's expression turned more somber as she looked at the TV. "Don't worry about me." She sighed. Skylar's lip quivered. She didn't have enough money to feed both of them. If only Sky hadn't gotten...

"Hey, mom? I think Imma go eat in my... my room..."

"Okay. I love you, Skylar."

"I love you too, mom..."

Skylar retreated into the privacy in her bedroom. She didn't want her mom to see her crying...

To be continued...