My Boring, Shitty Life Ch. 15

Riley is just starting out in life, but thus far, is unimpressed. He's still in high school and having trouble finding himself in a world where everyone around him feels like they have it all together. In the past few months, he's joined a motorcycle club and started wearing his grandfather's legacy cut, gotten his first tattoo, rescued a damsel in distress, crushed on a few different girls, hooked up at a couple parties, and gotten into a few fights. Recently, he was used and abused by the older woman next door again, this time with no explanation. He recently came into a family motorcycle and learned to ride. Things will heat up bit by bit along the way. All characters mentioned are over the age of eighteen, because, reasons, and as always this is a work of fiction.

A few weeks went by in the blink of an eye, cautious was the new normal. I had learned from the truck incident, and only ever parked my bike where it could be seen by others, never leaving it alone after school. Things seemed to have simmered down on the lady front, as I was experiencing something of a dry spell. Darcy joked that I had peaked early, which could very well have been true. I never understood what people wanted with me anyway, and all the action I got just sort of fell into my lap. I had decided to spend my time with the club, and ingratiate myself further into that world, rather than waste away in the endless sea of high school BS. I wanted to live my life MY way.

My grandfather had stopped by the club, causing quite the stir for his trouble. He was reliving his glory days, and laughing with Rhett and Trash along with a few other guys. Before he left, he pulled me aside and warned me to steer clear of Bully and his crowd. "There's trouble down that road Kid, big trouble." He hadn't been back since, but people still talked about him like he was some sort of legend.

Today I was helping the club at a car and bike show, really just a gathering of enthusiasts who wanted to talk shop. I'd heard one of the guys mention the races coming up, and asked Rhett about it, as it peaked my curiosity. "They're every weekend or so. Mostly at the abandoned air strip. Similar to what's going on here, but you generally have a bit more excitement. It's not exactly legal, but PD lets us police our own, mostly."

"Why haven't I heard about this before", I asked.

Rhett chuckled, "they've been on pause with the holidays. That and you're still just a prospect. Keeping you in the loop is about here on my priority list." He said, gesturing to his ankle.

I laughed and got back to polishing his bike.

Friday night I rode with the MC out to the airstrip. Dad knew where I was headed and mentioned having a date so I was expected to warn him before showing up at home. We arrived and set up in a corner as people from all over streamed in. It was just like the car shows I was used to, only it added a bit more of a party vibe.

Tensions ramped up as another MC pulled up and started exchanging words with some of our group. "Who's that?" I asked Crybaby.

"Old problems. Mostly fine now, but I'd stay away if I were you. Let Bear and Bully do the talking. We're just shit on their shoe until we wear the patch."

I poked his cut right above his heart. "We?" I asked.

He looked down, suddenly remembering that he wasn't just a lowly prospect like me any more. "Fuck. Yeah. You're right."

We laughed together as the other MC pulled off to go set up their own area. Trash let us know to stay out of their way to which we all nodded.

I watched the races and cheered for people on our side. It was an overall a good time, and I saw money exchanging hands. There were some older cars, some newer, and I felt like I was living through a fast and furious movie.

A familiar black challenger pulled up, and I saw Brett handing money to one of the officiants. As I watched, Bianca stepped out of the passenger seat wearing a slutty white crop top and daisy dukes. She sauntered over to a red Camry that I recognized as Kelsey's. Matt was sitting next to it in a lawn chair, Michelle on his lap. Martin and Roxie leaned against it and chatted with Bianca as they waited for the race to start. This was the first I'd ever heard of them going out for something like this, but I hadn't exactly been kept in the loop recently either.

I watched a car pull up next to Brett so I placed a bet against him. I recognized the other car, but couldn't place it. I lost my hundred bucks and grumbled at Brett's victory.

After that it was mostly motorcycles racing. Near the end of the night, I noticed Bully making his way over to the starting line on an unfamiliar crotch rocket. The guy he was up against was in all black leather, and wore a cut identifying him as a member of the other MC. "What's that about?" I asked Twit.

He smiled. "Trying to take that bike from an old friend I'm guessing."

"Friend?"

He shrugged. "Yeah, that guy there prospected with us a few years back. Couldn't stand Bully, and there was always problems. They're racing for keeps tonight."

I glanced at Rhett and saw him eyeballing some guy from the other MC.

The light went off and the two bikes leaped forward. These races were always quick, but this one seemed to play out in slow motion. The two fought back and forth for just an inch over one another, but Bully seemed to be falling back bit by bit. I thought he was out, but he slammed forward at just the right time and came out with the win.

I should have expected nothing less, but was surprised at the aftermath. All hell broke loose.

There was a surge from the other MC as they came and accosted Bully upon his return. Words were exchanged, offensive fingers held up, and ultimately, the officiants made the call that no foul play was involved.

I was tasked with moving the newly won bike over to our area.

The rider didn't want to get up, and started wailing about this being bullshit. I hopped on the bike as soon as he got up to bitch about it, stealing away before he could stop me.

When I returned, Rhett was yelling at a guy from the other MC, just as everyone else was yelling with some person or another from the opposing side. "You fucking LOST! Drop this shit! It's over."

"Fuck you!"

"You cheated!"

I stood up next to Rhett and saw the other guy looking around for a way to settle things. His eyes fell on me briefly, before focusing on Rhett again. "My guy thinks it was a cheat. He wants a rematch."

I poked my nose in stupidly, "with what bike? Gotta have a bike to race, what's he gonna ride?"

Rhett chuckled. "Kid's got a point Mal. Your guy has nothing to ride with."

The opposing rider took his finger out of Bully's face to scowl at me. "Fuck you prospect! That's my fucking bike. I'll ride-"

Bully stopped him, "MY bike you mean, put that fucking finger in my face again and you'll be wiping your ass with a stump."

Things had begun to boil. I could feel the anger and desperation all around me. "We'll settle it another way then." The other MC leader interjected, I only then noticed his president patch.

Rhett nodded in understanding, "Circle up! You want retribution? So do we! You don't go accusing my club of foul play. Who's yours?"

I watched as a space formed in the center around Rhett and the other president. "Baker! Get out here!" 'Baker' grinned as he stepped into the circle. He was the offended rider, so it made sense. "You wanted this, here's your chance."

I watched Bully step up and ready himself next to Rhett, vengeance in his eyes. Looks like I was going to see what all the hype about Bully was.

Things slowed down as the two faced off, I felt a push from behind me, and heard Bully snarling as Rhett pulled him back. Trash grinned when I looked over my shoulder at him pushing me.

Rhett pulled me by the elbow to face off with Baker. "Just so happens I've got an untested prospect here Mal. Think your guy can test him out for us?"

My knees suddenly felt weak as Bully growled into my ear, hand digging into my shoulder. "Lose that fucking bike and I'll end you. Hear me?" I didn't even look at him as I bit back a gulp, I just nodded. His grip on my shoulder tightened before releasing.

The next thing I knew, people were making bets and shoving each other to get a better seat and the circle. Baker grumbled to his president about having to fight a kid, and that pissed me off. Like I'm not good enough? Like he's doing me a favor? I was going to enlighten this fuckwit. He started making a joke of it.

My eyes narrowed as he laughed and joked with the crowd, clearly hamming it up to get them going. I looked at Bully to see him scowling at me, one arm around Tess, who wore a worried look on my behalf.

She flinched as I looked at her, and I wondered what that was about, until it suddenly hit me. Or rather, Baker did.

Ok! Owwww!

The fucker hit me when I wasn't looking, and I rubbed the back of my head circling the area, but keeping my distance from him.

A pair of blue eyes met mine as I scratched at the itching sensation left by Baker's knuckles. I ignored her. She could revel in this all she wanted, but I wasn't here for her. I think she just loved drama, I don't know. I saw Brett standing behind her, kissing her neck as she watched me with wild eyes.

Shaking my head, I focused on the task at hand. I turned towards Baker and held my hands out to my sides at hip level. "Were we starting?! Fuck man. That shit hurt. You could've warned me."

Baker laughed, "ok. Here's your warning." He paused to close the distance between us slowly. "This is going to hurt."

I rolled my eyes at him with terrible timing. He threw a punch and hit me square in the jaw. It staggered me back a step but I caught my footing to stay upright.

Rhett, Bully, and Trash all yelled at me from the sidelines, as I wondered what this guy was taking. He had a wiry physique, but you could tell there was some serious muscle there. He hit really fucking hard too.

I was lucky that he was about my size, and though I wasn't a gym nut, I was known to putz around a bit in my basement. Mostly body weight stuff, but we did have a bench press down there. It didn't help much in a fight, but it helped even the odds a bit.

Baker was looking smug, and that just reminded me of Brett. It was like he assumed he'd already won. He couldn't imagine coming out of this less than triumphant.

Centering myself, I avoided his next punch and watched as he fought against himself to keep his footing. He was throwing everything he had into his punches, and it left him off kilter. Figuring to keep him unbalanced, I left myself open for him to target, only to duck away or step aside for each punch he threw.

Did this guy even know how to jab? To orient hisself to the distance between him and his opponent? I guessed not, as he went for another wild throw.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew that I'd never win if I didn't hit him back, but watching him tire himself out was just too much fun. It actually made me chuckle.

Rhett caught my eye as I stepped out of the way again, the look he was giving me told me to get on with it. I shrugged at him and took a step away from Baker.

"Kick his ass!" I heard from the crowd.

"He's scared! Look at him run!"

"Oh shit! Here it comes!"

I leaned to my right, giving Baker a perfect target for where his shots kept missing. All at once, I let his fist sail passed me, stepped my foot next to his, and closed the distance, bringing my elbow up straight to his nose. His momentum did more work than my own, but the crunch was satisfying all the same. I forced him backwards and even more off balance, while I slid my foot behind his.

The second crunch was unexpected, as Baker bent and fell backwards. His screamed in pain and curled up into a ball clutching his knee. I was suddenly struck with guilt, and knelt down next to him to see if he was alright. He screamed and shoved me away as some of his crew joined me at his side.

Bully pulled me up and away from them as the crowd watched the writhing biker on the ground. "Not bad Kid. Little slow for my tastes, but you got the job done."

"Is he alright?" I asked, genuinely concerned. "I don't even know what I did."

Bully laughed. "You fucked his knee. Well it was already fucked, but you torqued it good. He's done. Probably for a few weeks at that. I would've done the same. He had surgery on it a few years back."

I caught sight of Brett pulling Bianca away by the hand, as she was grinning at me and resisting slightly. Her hand went up to her head as she mouthed 'call me,' before letting Brett pull her away.

Rhett joined Bully and I. "That's about it for tonight Kid. Let's get out of here, the group is already packing up."

Bully and I nodded, following him back to our bikes to head off. It was a victory, but felt a little hollow. I really hadn't meant to hurt the guy like that. How was I supposed to know he had a messed up knee?

The rumor mill was ablaze with news of my fight from the other night. Naomi and Darcy made sure that I knew, Darcy by texting me nonstop with updates, Naomi by pulling me into the janitor's closet for another make-out session. She was wearing her cheerleading uniform, and it was everything we had in us, not to go too far with my hand under her skirt. Luckily for us, Irene was standing guard outside.

By Wednesday the news had settled a bit, and I was getting my helmet on to head over to the club when Kelsey pulled up to me outside of the school in her Camry. "Hey!" She hollered at me.

I set my helmet back down and approached her. "Hey Kelse, what's up?"

She didn't want to talk there, and insisted that we go get coffee at a nearby hangout. I'd never been there, and was curious, so I told her I'd follow her on my bike, having learned my lesson from before.

The inside was much roomier than it appeared. Just off campus from one of the local colleges in a downtown style area, we walked in to the upper level of the coffee shop. The open area dropped off at a balcony to a larger room with couches and a stage down below. It was a really cool place.

We got some coffee and found a spot in a corner away from the stage. It was secluded, and I couldn't help but notice, somewhat intimate. We had a comfortable seat each, but we're pressed close around a small table. "This place is nice." I commented.

Kelsey nodded, taking a sip of her drink. "It is. Total make-out city during peak hours."

I smiled, leaning back with my coffee. "So what's up?"

Kelsey's features crinkled as she thought of a response. "I'm just worried about Matt." She could probably tell by my face that I wanted to hear more. "It's just, well, something seems off. He's not talking to us at home. He goes off with you guys all the time, stays out late, and just kind of shuts down whenever we see him."

I raised my eyebrow at her.

"What?" She asked.

"I haven't been hanging out with Matt at all."

"But you said-"

I took her hand in mine on the table. "I said I'd look out for him. I did. And I do. But he's not hanging out with me, he hasn't said a word to me in weeks."

"Then wha-"

"My money is on the whole Brett, Michelle business." I told her.

Kelsey's head perked back, "what does Brett have to do with Michelle?"

I pursed my lips in anxiety. "He didn't say anything? I'm not sure it's my place."

Her hands clutched mine beseechingly. "Please Riley? I won't tell him I know. I just- did he do something to her? Was there a fight?"

I sighed. "I'll spare you the details, just, Brett and Michelle kind of hooked up that night I brought him home. That's the last I really spent time with him."

Her hand pulled back to stifle a gasp. "So what, I mean, he, you guys saw them?"

I nodded gravely. "There was no denying it."

"Ugh! Damnit!" She grumbled. "Then why is he still hanging out with them? Why avoid YOU of all people?"

I shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine Kelse. I held up my end of things, I told him everything, helped him get home, and then told him that she came on to me so that I'd cover for he-"

"She didn't!"

I nodded. "Did. And I told him about it. He just hasn't given me the time of day since."

We sat together, sipping coffee and talking about her brother for a while before moving on to other things. She was really worried, so that took up most of our time together. When we finally got to other things, I asked her about college and her life, what she wanted. She asked me about school, the club, and what I'd been up to. After a time it started to feel less like a concerned meeting, and more like a date.

The atmosphere of the coffee shop probably had something to do with it. The lights were dim, fake candle LEDs on every table, soft curtains blocking out the sun, soft music playing in the background.

The company I kept was stunning in this place, and I loved her laugh. I noticed that our hands kept touching on and off, and her knee brushed mine on more than one occasion. As though through unspoken mutual understanding, we flirted, and touched one another, not for the first time. Memories of her kissing me in my driveway filled my mind, as I watched her lips while she spoke.

The coffee shop erupted in applause around us, startling me, as a comedian took the stage. Kelsey and I settled back and watched, her hand on mine, as the comic went through his routine. Throughout the show, between bouts of laughter, Kelsey's nails tickled and toyed with my hand. We stayed through the whole thing, intimately close, and shooting flirty glances at one another.

Following the show, I held her car door open for her to get in. She turned to me and gave me a chaste kiss on the cheek to end the night.

God I wanted her right then.

I held out my hand and stopped her from turning around, bringing her lips to mine and savoring the excited, surprise gasp before she melted into my kiss. Our lips together, tongues intertwined, I ran my hands around her back and pulled her in close. She shivered in my arms and had me engorging in my jeans. We broke the kiss, smiling bashfully at one another. No words were shared.

I watched her drive away as I donned my helmet thinking about that kiss. I felt like my life, my boring shitty life, was finally getting started.