CIRCLING PASTS II (Ch. 53)

"What the hell are you doing!" Elaine shouts getting between the two, "he wasn't looking down on you!"

"I don't have to fight?" Nathan questions, Warden pulls Elaine back by her waist before crashing his fist against Nathan's jaw,

"I told you to close your eyes Elaine" Warden states staring at the now floored Nathan,

"What the hell are you doing!!" She screams at him,

"That hurt, i think he is looking down on me, he must think im weak" Nathan states standing to his feet before wiping the dried blood off his lips as Warden and co stare shocked at the fact that he'd taken no damage,

"Why'd you hit him!, He's a little special but he's not a bad guy who goes around picking fights!" She shouts chastising him, his lips press into a thing line before he turns in his hill,

"Let's go"

Elaine had assumed she wouldn't be seeing much of him for a while, she'd assumed wrong, here Warden and co were with old traveling bags in hand as they requested to move in,

"I heard you two live together and i can't allow that!"

"That's non if your concern"

"Your correct, but i still can't allow that!" He reiterated, "i want to move in, i'll even do your laundry and Drake and Josh will clean and cook!" He states emphatically

"Wellllll NO!" She replies in similar tone. Go back to the orphanage!" She shouts but after what seemed like hours eventually she allows them in for the night.

Nathan while lying on the ground smiles before catching himself as he traces his smile with his finger tip suddenly recalling that everyone of the people here one way or another had similar circumstances to him, je wondered though, did anyone truly live as hard as he did?

'"Hurry up babe, we need to leave before someone sees us"' the young man said as he held his umbrella low against the rain as his girlfriend placed a box used to cage small animals untop a trash can before quickly making herway back under the umbrella and making a quick exit, on the cage's front end was a name tag commonly used for pets, Nathan.

(That is where they say i was found, on a trash can, disposed of,

Eventually they found my biological parents and this time they took me in, my father had died by this time and my mother probably needed the government pay, she eventually got me a new father who already had tow kids, two girls,

(i played with them alot, that was until father went out and mother beat and strangled me half to death),

"Don't talk to my girls!, Don't touch my girls! Don't look at my girls!,I don't need them dirtied by your filth!" She screamd while she strangled and beat me,

(Father was nice, but he too died eventually, mother got a new Father but this one, this one wasn't so nice),

"Dad" Nathan called in greeting only for the six year old to be slapped across the face, he begged furiously as the man beat into him with the back end of a mop stick,

(I was not a part of them, their family)

Nathan sat in the big closet his 'room' while he listened to the chatter of the four eating at te dining,

"Let's go to the amusement park together, just the four of us it'll be a family trip"

(I ran away, it was always cold and i was always hungry abd it wasn't much different outside, i've fought with the homeless, lived in the mountains, fought wild animals and escaped kidnappers).

"Nathan!" Elaine called, c'mon, everyone's getting to know eachother.

Gathered around a small fire the group sit around it giving introductions and telling bits of their histories and circumstances when the ball falls to Nathan, though reluctant to speak Elaine implores him, then he begins.

The lot stare at him in absolute amazement when his story is finished,

"Wait do you actually have any good memories?"

"I used to play hide and seek with my first Father"

"Alright let's do that!" The duo call in unison

The two with Elaine following behind them run into the main building and hide, Drake the slim teen steps who out of his stop to get a drink recoils at the sight if Nathan shirtless, a punch from him knocks him out cold, Josh who'd been drawn in by the ruckus comes to find the two staring shocked as tears run down Nathans eyes,

"Yo... you should've hidden better" he calls out seemingly in pain as a sharp fist from him drops Josh, he pulls the two to a corner before beating them both bloody, Elaine stumbles upon them and a scream from her has Warden barging into the maun building only to stare shocked at the sight, he immediately pulls Elaine awwy from an outswung punch before taking off his blazer and tossing while quickly following with a straight that sends Nathan tumbling,

"BEFORE I KILL YOU LET ME ASK!, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?"

"It's hide and seek, i'm 'it'" he replies with confusion , Elaine's eyes go wide at a sudden realisation,

"Warden wait!"

"No, i don't care what the story is, i can't let this psychopath stay here, get up and fight!"

"But why?" He called from his layed out position, "We're playing hide and seek aren't we?, Plus there's nothing to gain"

"If you i win you get the fuck away from here permanently!, You win and i'll give you whatever you want"

"Really? If i win you'll give me anything?" He questions like a child would, getting to his feet Warden and Elaine get a better look at his shirtless body,

(The hell!?, What happened to his body?, Is that a fucking bullet wound?) Warden mules staring at the multiple incisor like cut, stab and clawed scars on his body, to his lower abdomen a bullet big wound stood out against the rest, Nathan three a punch Warden countered with a fist to his ribs, he pressure with repeated punches living no room for a reply,

"You can't beat me, just give up",

Nathan staggers to his feet he lunges at Warden who dives back predicting a tackle only to scream in agony when Nathan squeezes his balls, Warden still shivering in pain replies Nathan's punch with one of his own screaming in agony when Nathan's fingers poke his eyes causing them to water, Nathan pulls his t shirt by it's hem of his t shirt pulling it over his head and using it to lock his hands, a knee to Wardens face follows after, Nathan picks a heavy metal container by his side and Warden's eyes widen as her stares at the madman who looked down at him with very ready determination to kill, Drake and Josh spring to action holding him back as he raves madly trying desperately to breat their hold,

"Weak...weak people get in trouble weak people get beaten weak people get in trouble weak people get hit..." He raved incessantly as Warden watched still on his bum mumbling incoherently,

"One eight nine fights, one eighty seven wins and two loses",

"ENOUGH!, ALL OF YOU GET THE HELL OUT!!" Elaine flares.

With her outburst the fighting had come to a halt, Elaine seemed to tower over the two who took to their knees as she glared them down,

"I gave you a home, food and shelter and you turn my house to a wrestling arena?!" She seethes, "why the hell are you two fighting over me?"

"I'm not" Nathan calls,"I'm fighting to survive" he states causing Elaine to soften her gaze before exhaling with exasperation,

"You don't need to do that anymore Nathan, not here at least, where all family here, now every get to bed" she order as the boys head over to their rooms.

Morning came and both the boys and Elaine where changed, she walks up to Nathan grabbing him by the arm and pulling him along,

"Let's go"

"To where?" The boys inquired in unison,

"To get you enrolled, you're going to become a middle school student Nathan, you're sixteen right?, That means you'll probably be a third year".

With Nathan freshly enrolled Elsine makes her way out of the school dubbed 'thug high' with the escort of Warden, he sees her off before returning to the school's grounds, and on her way she meets up with her best friends,

"Hailey! Oren! Hey!" She calls chatting lightly with them untill they notice they'd been intercepted a d surrounded by five guys.

"I see ger right now" spoke the guy at the forefront, " you're Warden chase's girl right?", He inquires,

"No I'm not!" She replies back fiercely,

"Doesn't really matter, i have enough info to be sure he cares enough to look for you", Oren her short glasses wearing nerd tries to mediate the situation but a kick to the face snaping his glasses is enough to shut him up,

"Elaine!!! Im hungry" Nathan calls now donning the blazer of 'thug high'

"Who's he" everyone questioned, Nathan noticing the atmosphere catches the lead by his chain crashing his knee into his nose and breaking it, he ducks the first assailant before stomping his booth against his crotch putting him out if commission then lunging into the next then biting his nose while sending repeatedly punches into his ribs, the last attempts to pull him off but he greets the foe with a back swung head but before turning with a swinging fist knocking him out cold.

Oren, Hailey and Elaine watch in stupor as Elaine steps up to introduce him to them,

"His name is Nathan smith, he's been living with me"

"Hi I'm Hailey Elaine's best friend, you're the gut who came looking for her at our school right?" She inquires to which Nathan nods lightly in response,

"Hi I'm a close friend of Elaine's, i'm Oren Wayne".