uncle called his brothers, and soon began to feel like I was a part of something more than just a work crew. I felt like I belonged, especially when they’d let me tag along on some of their rides to blow off steam after work. Being on a bike with them was all that I thought it would be and more. The only thing better would have been having one of my own.
I’d been working with them for almost six months—we had finished one brother’s house and had moved on to the next—when my cousin, Derek, showed up on the work site, and as soon as he stepped out of his truck, it was clear to us all he was on a war path. At first glance, he reminded me a lot of Uncle Saul with his tall, thick build and coal-black hair, but unlike his father, his greenish-blue eyes showed no warmth behind them. I watched as he stormed over to Doc with his fists clenched and a scowl on his face, all the while grumbling curses under his breath. Doc wasn’t the kind of man who took shit from anyone, especially some angry kid. He was a retired military medic, and he expected respect, and he always received from his crew. After a brief one-sided argument, Derek’s face flashed red with anger. While grumbling under his breath, he grabbed one of the tool belts off of the table and walked over to me. He gave me a quick grunt and chin lift, then immediately got to work. It was almost an hour later before he ever actually spoke to me.
“You actually wanted to work here with these fuckers?” he asked with a frustrated look.
“Yeah. Guess I did,” I confessed.
“You got a screw loose or something?” he huffed. He didn’t wait for me to answer before he said, “Pop’s all pissed ‘cause I got pulled over for speeding last night. It wouldn’t have been a big deal if that nosy ass cop hadn’t gone digging in the back of my truck and found the cooler of beer and my bag of pot. He blew a gasket when he had to bail me out of jail again. Told me I had to work out here as my fucking punishment, but the old man’s got another thing coming if he thinks I’m going do this shit for free,” he complained.
“That’s a tough break,” I responded, not really knowing what to say.
“Ah, hell. This isn’t the first time, and it won’t be the last,” he laughed. I looked over at him, noticing the mischievous smirk that spread across his face. There was something about that look that set me on edge, but I quickly forgot about it when he said, “You should come out with me and the guys tomorrow night. Some of us are heading over to Mindy’s party after the football game.”
I was only a sophomore at the time and spent most of my time working or helping my mother out with my brothers, so I hadn’t gone to many high school parties. I couldn’t help but get a little excited about going to one of Mindy’s blowouts. Trying not to sound too eager, I said, “Yeah, that’d be cool. I’ll just meet you at the game.”
I spent the next few hours listening to Derek gripe and groan as we finished the last of the demolition. By the time I finally made it home, I was beyond exhausted, and it was all I could do to take a shower before I crashed for the night. The next day, everybody was hyped up about the party. It was all anyone was talking about, and by the time we pulled up at Mindy’s house, the place was packed. The music was blaring through the house as I followed Derek and his buddies through the crowd and into the kitchen. We shuffled through the different groups of popular kids, each one totally absorbed in their own conversation, until we passed a couple of seniors. They glared at Derek as he passed by them, making it known to everyone they weren’t happy about him being there, but Derek didn’t care. He didn’t give a shit what anyone thought of him, and it showed. He had an air of confidence that was almost too much for me to bear, but his friends ate it up, laughing and carrying on right along with him. They were like a pack of wild dogs sniffing through the crowd,