Chapter 36

Scholars scurried from their classrooms at the chime of the school siren. The vibe was positive and energetic. The fact that it was Friday, probably had everything to do with it. It was the last break for the day and the scholars only had a few more subjects before the start of the weekend.

Patrick headed towards some benches underneath a grove of trees. He knew he would find Andrew and Emily there. It was a spot Delmar and Bernard introduced them to. It had a tranquil feel away from the crowd, the ideal place to have a quality conversation without any unwanted interruptions or major background noise.

As Patrick approached, he noticed Andrew and Emily already in conversation with Delmar and Bernard. Patrick heard a deliberate, but loud male voice coming from the flight of stairs leading to the first floor. Before he could reach the stairs, the group of troublemakers appeared, coming from the upper level. They were laughing while making profound jokes about Christianity. Patrick slowed down to avoid bumping into them. He stopped and waited for them to pass.

Victor's eye caught Patrick, and he stopped in his tracks. The rest also slowed down to Victor's sudden change of plans. They knew it ended up in some form of excitement most of the time.

'Well, well, look at this,' Victor said. His face was distasteful as he regarded Patrick. He slowly scanned Patrick from his feet until his eyes rested on his face, staring into Patrick's eyes, almost hateful.

Patrick sensed trouble. He knew he was way outnumbered. If there was only one of them, he would have been able to stand his ground and most probably win the fight, but he did not want any trouble, especially not in the new school. He had his fair share of unnecessary fights in the past. Patrick learned over time that there were no winners in a fight. Both parties got hurt and not to mention the trouble afterwards.

'It's the Jo'burg cunt,' Victor said, approaching Patrick. 'The new man in school, or at least he thinks he is.'

Patrick could hear Victor's friends chuckle in the background. He did not have to look at them to know they were mocking and joking. His focus was on Victor, who stopped inches away from his face.

'Then he's arrogant too. Don't you know better than not to answer me when I talk to you?' Victor said, in Patrick's face. Patrick could smell the stench of cigarettes on Victor's foul breath.

'I didn't know it was a question,' Patrick said. He looked into Victor's eyes. He was afraid. Not much, but it was growing. He recalled what someone told him a long time ago. It might have been one of his uncles. He had said that one should never show fear. Showing fear, was the sign of weakness, the signal your enemy was looking for. Once they sensed the fear, the battle had already been lost. Patrick noticed the surprise on Victor's face. Maybe something Victor never expected. Not many people would dare talk to him that way. Victor's face transformed into a mocking smile.

'We have a winner here guys,' Victor said, turning his head towards his friends. He looked back at Patrick and asked, 'you don't know who I am, now do you?'

'I do,' Patrick said. 'You are Victor.'

Victor made a few ticking sounds with his tongue while shaking his head from side to side,' you should pay more attention in class, my boy. I'm your worst nightmare.'

Patrick felt a sudden impact on his chest. Victor had pushed him. Patrick expected it to happen. He could see it on Victor's face moments before the impact. One could tell many things from a person's face, especially their eyes. Patrick was not entirely off his feet. Just a little off balance. He felt anger as he bolted his fists. He knew he did not want any trouble but trouble again found him like it did in the past. Patrick walked back towards Victor with a mission to destroy. Maybe he had to show Victor, that he, Patrick Edison was the one not to be messed with. Patrick channelled all his fears and anger into his muscles and pushed Victor back. He could feel Victor's body submitting to his strength and anger. Patrick felt his hands sinking into Victor's chest. At the same time, Patrick grabbed hold of Victor's clothes. He pulled him back so that they were face to face once again, this time closer than before. Patrick's eyes were raging with anger. His face was a mask of cold hatred.

'Don't fuck with me,' Patrick said through his teeth. 'I'm not scared of you or your fucking scumbag friends.' He pushed Victor away. He noticed the surprise on Victor's face, which fuelled his rage even more. These were the type of people who had big mouths most of the time, but when someone stood up to them, they simply moved on to the next soft target. It was gravely quiet for a moment. Patrick noticed Victor's friends frozen stiff with the same level of shock and surprise, not sure what just happened or what would happen next.

Victor smiled as he regarded Patrick. 'You have made a big mistake. Probably the biggest mistake you've ever made in your life,' Victor said. He spat towards Patrick. A yellow-brownish ball of mucus landed a few inches away from Patrick's feet. He turned away from Patrick and indicated with his head for his friends to follow.

Some of them simply stared at Patrick with dumb expressions moments before they turned and walked towards the school square. There was no doubt in Patrick's mind that they were discussing him, as they kept glancing back from time to time, strategizing on their next attack.

When they disappeared behind the building that was leading to the square, Patrick noticed Emily and Andrew looking at him, not too far from where the action happened. Where did they come from? Andrew wondered. He realised then that he was mostly focused on Victor. Emily and Andrew were joined by Delmar and Bernard moments later. They all had an expression of shock and surprise on their faces. Patrick shook his head and walked towards them. He was not in the mood for any lecture from either his brother or sister, but judging by their expressions, he was about to get one in any case.

'Fucking scum,' Patrick said, as he joined them. 'They should stay out of my way. I've done nothing to them.'

'Oh my God that was cool,' Delmar said. 'No one has ever done that to any of them in the past. I don't think they'll be back to bother you again. You sure as hell showed them not to mess with you.' He patted Patrick on the shoulder.

'I'm not so sure you should have done that,' Bernard said. 'These guys are evil. They will be back. This time with a different kind of evil, if you asked me.'

'Well, they started it. That dumb fuck, Victor stared with his shit. Not sure what his problem is, but I will not take it.'

'At least we're not in trouble...well not yet,' Andrew said.

Patrick chuckled, and they all joined. As they walked towards their spot, underneath the trees, Patrick noticed that Emily was deep in thought.

'You okay sis?' Patrick asked, throwing his left arm around her shoulder.

'Yes, I don't like those guys and I don't like fights. I don't know what it is with men. They always want to gauge their physical strengths against one another.'

Patrick threw his head backwards and laughed. 'It's not what this was all about my dear sister. I was defending my turf against them. Remember, if I allowed them to push me around like that, the situation would have been worst the next day and the day thereafter. That's all. I know I've got strength so I don't have to gauge it against anyone.' Patrick tensed his right bicep.

From a distance, Victor was watching. His friends knew what was happening. Victor was planning revenge. They knew he would never let it go. Victor had rage in his eyes which seemed to be darker than ever before.

'So what do you think?' Tommy asked.

'I'm going to rip that fucking cunt apart,' Victor snapped. 'Just give it some time, I first want to play around with him a little.'

Tommy grinned while nodding slowly, 'and believe me, you can fuck with people's heads when you start playing around.'

'This one is different though. He's got a little fight in him. I like that. It's almost like a challenge for me. The rest were all too soft and easy.' Victor said, still watching Patrick.

'It's a petty we missed out on Robert that night,' Mike scratched his head. 'You sure scared the math out of him before you fucked his - '

'Ssst!' Victor interrupted with his finger over his lips. 'Mike, don't be fucking stupid man. Don't talk about that shit here. You know the walls have ears.'

'Sorry man. We just missed out on a load of fun that night.'

'You did. There will always be a next time. One, in particular, is coming up pretty soon,' Tommy said, looking at Patrick who was unaware of being the centre of discussion.

'I think I'm gonna finish him off,' Victor said. 'Then his brother and then, oh how I'm going to enjoy his sister. She's quite a hot little slut don't you think. Wonder if she's still a virgin.'

'As a bonus, we could even throw in the parents just for the fuck of it. That will be the jackpot,' Tommy chuckled.

The school siren chimed. The conversation seized as scholars started walking past them. Victor did not want their secrets to fall on the wrong ears. He knew the game was far from over. In fact, the game had just begun.