A Simple Act of Kindness

~~~~~~

The next day at school was the day to end all days. It began the moment Cindy showed up at my locker first thing that morning begging my forgiveness.

"Don't do this, baby," she cried, "I can't go on without you."

"Yeah, right," I laughed, "And that's why you fucked that guy from MTSU when I was in Alabama at football camp last year."

Her face turned a deathly white color, and knowing that she had been caught; I could see the anger boiling in her eyes when she looked at me, and then at the top of her lungs, she screamed, "YOU GO TO HELL, KYLE HENDRICKSON. I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN," and as a parting shot, she balled up her fist and took a swing at me.

However, I ducked as soon as I saw it coming, and she ended up punching the locker next to mine, not only breaking her hand in the process, but also emitting a blood curdling scream that got the attention of everyone standing in the hall.

"What is going on out here," my English teacher, Mrs. Melba Alexander asked, as she stormed out of her classroom and into the hall, directly across the hall from my locker the moment she heard Cindy screaming.

"Look what Kyle did to me, Missus Alexander," Cindy lied, crying as she showed Mrs. Alexander her hand, which was now not only misshapen and swelling, but also bleeding where the skin on her hand had been split upon impact when her fist hit the metal locker door, "He broke my hand."

"Oh, my God," Mrs. Alexander replied, let's get you to the nurse, Cindy, and then she angrily glared at me and growled, "And you're going to the principle's office, Kyle Hendrickson, where I'm not only going to have criminal charges filed against you, but I'm also going to have you expelled for hurting this poor girl. This is an outrage that will put an end to your football career, you monster."

"Hey, wait a minute," I tried to explain, "I didn't touch her. She tried to..."

"I don't want to hear any of your lies," Mrs. Alexander hatefully interrupted me, "Go to the office...NOW!"

~~~~~~

Chapter Two

When I got to the principal's office, I sat there while he listened to what Mrs. Alexander had to say, and then he gave me the opportunity to speak in my own behalf.

"This is completely out of character for you, Kyle," he said, "You've never caused any problems before, especially something this serious."

"And I'm not trying to cause any problems now," I told him, "Cindy Meyers and I had an argument, and when I exposed the fact that she had been lying to me, she took a swing at me, not the other way around."

"If that's case, then why is she injured?" he asked.

About that time I heard his office door open, followed by an unfamiliar voice that said, "Cindy Meyers tried to hit Kyle first, Mister Ellis. All he did was move out of the way. I saw and heard the whole thing and he never touched her, not even once."

~~~~~~

I turned around and saw M.J. Smith standing there with a bright smile on her face, grinning from ear to ear as she told Mr. Ellis what really happened.

"Oh, really," Mrs. Alexander skeptically snorted, "And just where were you when you saw this, young lady?"

"I was standing at my locker," she defiantly replied, "And it's directly across from Kyle's locker."

"Are you certain about this, Miss Smith?" Mr. Ellis asked her, "Are you absolutely positive?"

"Yes, sir," she smiled, "I can even tell you what was said."

"Alright then, if that's the case, we're going to get to the bottom of this right now," Mr. Ellis said, "Would you have a seat outside for a moment, Miss Smith, while I talk to Mister Hendrickson?"

"Yes, sir," she brightly grinned, and then left Mr. Ellis' office, closing the door behind her.

"Alright now, Kyle," he said, "I want you to tell me, word-for-word, everything that was said, and don't leave out a single thing."

"Yes, sir," I knowingly replied, and then proceeded to tell him everything that was said between Cindy and I, and per his request, I left out nothing."

Then when I was finished, he had me take a seat outside of his office while he and M.J. talked. I wasn't worried, because I knew that first of all, I hadn't done a single thing wrong, and that this was Cindy's fucked up way of trying to get back at me for breaking up with her selfish ass.

Secondly, I knew that I'd told Mr. Ellis the truth, and because M.J. really had seen and heard everything that went on between me and Cindy, I knew that our stories would match up perfectly.

Don't get me wrong, I was still hurting inside because there was a part of me that still cared for Cindy, even though she'd done what she had. However, I also knew that to continue a relationship with her would only end up hurting me even more than I had already been hurt. And there was no way on earth that I was going to put myself through that ever again...

~~~~~~

After a few moments, I saw Mr. Ellis' office door open, followed by Mrs. Alexander, who was wearing a smile on her face, and then right behind her came M.J., who was also smiling.

"I'm sorry for treating you so badly, Kyle," Mrs. Alexander said to me, "I hope that you can forgive me for automatically assuming the worst before I had the opportunity to hear the whole story."

"It's alright, ma'am," I courteously replied, "We're only human and none of us are perfect."

Mr. Ellis looked at me grinning, and then as he patted me on the shoulder, he chuckled and said, "Get to class, Kyle, and if your teacher has a problem with your being late, have him or her contact me, okay?"

"Yes, sir, I smiled, "And thank you, Mister Ellis."

"Don't thank me," he chuckled, coming around to stand behind M.J., "Thank Miss Smith here, she was the one who confirmed your side of the story. Right now I've got to go and suspend a certain young lady whom we all know, for trying to start a fight with another student, and then lying to Missus Alexander and I about it."

"Thanks, M.J." I smiled, as I gently took her hand, "I owe you big time for this."

"Yes, you do," she playfully giggled, "But you're welcome just the same."

~~~~~~

That afternoon after school, Cindy had been suspended for three days, which was kind of sad when I thought about it, but, as the saying goes, "No bad deed goes unpunished", and when I went to football practice later that day, nobody said a word to me about it.

~~~~~~

However, the following Tuesday, the day Cindy came back to school, was a day that I'll long remember. I was dismissed early from my last class and was headed out to my car in the parking lot, when someone, I don't know who, cracked me in the face with a baseball bat. The reason I knew it was a baseball bat was because it was lying on the ground beside me with my blood all over it when I woke up.

Needless to say, my father was called away from work to take me to the nearby Summit Hospital. And while I was lying on a gurney in the Emergency Room suite, waiting for the X-ray technician to come and get me, my Dad looked at me and asked, "Did you at least see who did this to you, son?"

"I don't remember much," I said, "Except that everybody in my biology class got dismissed early so, I headed straight to the parking lot. I thought I was the only person outside, but as I was walking around the corner of the gym to go to my car, everything suddenly went black."

"There's something I think you should know, son," he quietly told me, "Cindy Meyers was arrested an hour ago by the Nashville Metropolitan Police, because "Accessory to Aggravated Assault" charges were filed against her when your principal, Mister Ellis, received an anonymous tip, providing him with irrefutable proof that she was directly involved with what happened to you."

"I wouldn't put it past her," I replied, my head beginning to ache, "She always was a vindictive bitch."

"Maybe so," Dad said, "But there's no way she could've done it with a broken hand."

"You're right," I disgustedly replied, "I wonder whose dick she sucked to get them to do it?"

"Kyle," Dad scolded me, laughing, "Watch your mouth, boy; your mother and sister are on their way over and could be here any second," and no sooner had he mentioned them, when my hospital room door opened and Mom and Laura appeared, both of them in tears.

"Oh, my God," Mom cried, leaning over me with her palm to my face, "Who did this to you, baby?"

"I don't know," I groaned, "I was walking out to the parking lot at school when somebody blindsided me in the face with a baseball bat."

"I'll bet Cindy Meyers knows who did it," Laura seethed, angry tears raining down her face, "I'm gonna beat the shit outta that little cunt."

"Laura Marie Hendrickson," Mom scolded, while Dad and I chuckled, "Watch your mouth, young lady, and you're not going to do anything of the kind. We're going to let the police handle this, do you hear me?"

"Hmph," Laura snorted, "We'll just see about that."

"Leave it alone, Sis," I said, reaching for her hand and gently squeezing it, "At least for now, okay?"

"If you say so, Kyle," Laura calmly replied, "But this isn't over with...not by a damn sight."

"I'm asking you to please leave it alone for now," I quietly said, winking at her with my right eye, because my left eye was swollen shut, "She'll get what's coming to her...eventually."

~~~~~~

After X-rays had been taken and it was determined that I only had a broken nose and had received no head injuries, I was put on restricted duty until the swelling went down. It also meant that I could go to football practice, but I couldn't play.

Man, talk about being pissed off; I never said anything to anyone about it, but God help the sonofabitch that hit me with that damn bat when I caught up with them. However, little did I realize that this particular matter was going to take care of itself? It was also going to come with a vengeance, the likes of which nobody had ever seen before.

~~~~~~

Once I'd been treated by the doctor and went back to school the next day, I could see people whispering things to each other when they thought I couldn't see and/or hear them. I didn't let it bother me though, because I really didn't care what they had to say. There was one thing I did know, however, and that was the fact that there was no doubt in my mind that Cindy Meyers had something to do with whoever the coward was who'd blindsided me in the face with that fucking bat.

Still though, I had no proof, and until I could get proof, I couldn't really confront her about it; and to be totally honest, I really didn't want to talk to her anyway. However; that afternoon at football practice, the coach got everyone together and began asking if anyone knew anything, and/or had anyone seen the incident happen.

And when he got no answers, he looked at everyone on the team and angrily told them, "You mean to tell me that nobody saw a thing?"

Again, no one answered, which made the coach that much angrier, making him tell the rest of the team, "In that case, you're all going to run until you drop, unless one of you tells me who did this."

"Whoa, wait a minute, Coach," I said, stepping up, and then pointing to the guys on the team, "That's not fair, because first of all, I know for a fact that none of these guys would've allowed this to happen if they knew who did it; and secondly, if the rest of them have to run, then so do I."

"You're not in any shape to run, Kyle," Coach said, "And besides, I'm trying to look out for you by getting to the bottom of this."

"I know you are, and I appreciate it," I kindly replied, "But like you always tell us, we're all members of the same team and we take care of our own so; if they run, then I run, too. I'm sorry if that makes you mad, Coach, but that's the way it is."

Needless to say, nobody had to run that afternoon, or any other afternoon for that matter. And when practice was over with that day, all of my team mates, bar none, showed their appreciation by promising me that they would somehow find out who really was responsible for putting me in the shape that I was currently in.

~~~~~~

When I got home that afternoon there was an unmarked police car parked in our driveway, making me wonder why they were there and what they wanted. So, after I got out of my car and went inside, a female police officer in plain clothes, Detective Audrey Carson, and her partner, Detective James Hamilton, both of which were talking to Mom on the grounds that they were investigating the fracas that occurred between Cindy and

I watched as they questioned her, but don't get the wrong idea, they were being very nice and professional about it; but the fact of the matter was that Mom really didn't know anything. Besides; it was basically nothing more that a lovers quarrel that somehow ended up getting way out of hand. The fact that I had gotten my nose broken because of it

"Excuse me, officers," I politely said, "My Mom doesn't really know anything, and you might have better luck talking to me."

"That would be nice," Detective Carson replied smiling, "Would you mind answering a few simple questions, Kyle, is it?"

"Yes ma'am, it is," I politely replied, "What can I do for you?"

"You can start by telling us about your involvement with Cindy Meyers," Detective Hamilton cockily sneered, "And I don't want to hear any bullshit either."

Because of the tone of voice he was using, I immediately got defensive and told him, "And you can stop using that kind of language in front of me and my mother, or I'm not to tell you anything, detective."

"Look here, kid," he growled, "We can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way and take your little ass downtown."

"NO, you look, asshole," Dad snapped, suddenly appearing with our family attorney, Mr. Marcus Hughes, at his side, "My son is the victim, here; and you will not talk like that in my house and in front of my family. Do you understand me?"

"Is that right?" Detective Hamilton arrogantly laughed, pulling his handcuffs out and acting like he was about to place me under arrest, "And just who the hell are you?"

"These people are my clients, Detective," Mr. Hughes sternly replied, showing the two police officers his legal credentials, "And from this moment forward, if you want to talk to any member of this family, you're going to have to do it in front of me, with a warrant. Now get out of here before I file harassment charges against both of you."

"You can't do that," Detective Hamilton growled, "And I'm not done questioning this witness."

"Wait just a moment, while I call Judge Don Harris downtown, I believe you stood in front of him on police brutality charges last year. Am I correct?" Mr. Hughes snapped, then turned to Dad, "Do you mind if I use your telephone?"

"That won't be necessary, Mister Hughes," Detective Carson quickly said, glaring at her partner, "We were just leaving."

"Then get out of here, now," Mr. Hughes snapped, as they quickly walked out of the front door, "And don't come back for any reason unless you have a warrant."

~~~~~~

"What was that all about?" I asked, "What did I do wrong?"

"You didn't do anything wrong," Mr. Hughes told me, "And those two idiot cops just sealed their own fates by acting the way they just did."

"The female detective was as nice as she could be," I told him, "That guy was the one who was being an asshole."

"Kyle," Mom scolded, while Dad laughed, "Watch you language, son."

"You saw him, Mom, "I defensively replied, "That's exactly how he was acting."

~~~~~~

After the police left, Mr. Hughes took my statement as to everything that had taken place up until that point, including the incident where Cindy broke her hand and then tried to blame it on me.

And when we were done, he looked at me and asked, "Have you ever had a run-in with either one of Cindy's parents, Kyle, about anything at all?"

"No, sir, not once," I answered, "Why? Do you think that they might be up to something?"

"I don't know," he answered, "But I wouldn't put it past her father."

"I don't understand," I said, "Both of Cindy's parents have always been nice to me...always, in all the time we dated." Then I remembered something that happened to Cindy, and it was purely an accident, when we were in the ninth grade.

She and I had gone out on a double date with her cousin, Gordon Meyers, who was a year ahead of us in school, along with his girlfriend, Madison Jameson. We went bowling in a neighboring town that had a bowling alley, and this one guy accidentally ran into Cindy, coming out of the restroom, and spilled chocolate milk on a new blouse that she had just bought, ruining it in the process.

I remembering the guy offering to pay for having it cleaned, and was trying to be nice about it, because like I said before, it was an honest-to-God, accident with no malicious intent on his part. All of a sudden, Cindy went into a tyrannical rage and began screaming at the top of her lungs, calling him all kinds of crazy things.

Hell, now that I was taking a moment to truly examine our relationship from an objective point of view, it seemed like she was always raising hell about one thing, or another, especially when things didn't go her way. And when I began to piece things together, and it all fell into place; I came to the conclusion that she might be mentally unstable.

"Damn, Kyle, why did you wait until just now to say something?" Dad asked, when I told him about Cindy's actions, "It sounds to me like she needs to be on some sort of medication, or something."

Laura had come in right after the police detectives left, and when she heard what Dad asked me, she put her hand on my shoulder and said, "I always knew that something wasn't right about her, and that's why I never liked her ass to begin with. You looked like you were happy," she quietly sniffled, her eyes beginning to fill with tears, "And I figured you would've gotten mad at me for saying something."

"Listen to me, Sis," I gently smiled, tenderly wrapping my arms around her and hugging her, "From now on I don't want you to ever be afraid of making me mad when it comes to something like this, okay?"

"Okay, and thanks, Kyle," she sniffled, lightly kissing me on the cheek, "I love you, little brother."

"I love you, too," I smiled, "And I meant what I said."

Suddenly I heard my Mom calling me from the front door, telling me that there was someone there to see me...

~~~~~~

Standing in the foyer of the front door, was a friend of mine that I played football with, Stan Moore.

"Hey, Stan," I smiled, shaking my friend's hand, "What brings you here?"

"Is there somewhere we can talk?" he quietly asked, "I found out who hit you."

"Sure, man," I told him," Let's go in here where my father and our attorney are, they'll want to know."

~~~~~~

"David Trask hit me?" I asked, stunned, "Why would he do that? I mean, he's our quarterback, for fuck's sake."

"Cindy Meyers gave him five thousand dollars, Kyle," Stan regrettably said, "Ever since she got expelled from school last week, she's been acting crazy, man."

"We're going to put an end to this shit right now, "Dad angrily said, picking up the telephone," Would you be willing to testify to this in court, Stan?"

"I sure would," Stan replied, patting me on the back, "Kyle and I have been friends since the second grade, and besides, I was there when she gave Trask the money."

~~~~~~

To make a miserably long story short, David Trask and Cindy Meyers were caught fleeing the state together and were arrested and held without bail until their trial date. David Trask was sent to prison for a period of no less than five years for committing aggravated assault; and Cindy Meyers got sent to prison for three years for conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, all of which was against me. And the really sad thing about it, was that all of Cindy's father's money couldn't get her out of it....that crazy bitch. Plus, Cindy had to undergo not only random drug screens, but also psychiatric counseling for the next four years. So, as they say, that was that...