CHAPTER 37

I follow Johnny into what I can only assume is his actual spot considering the nicer furnishings and what I can tell is paperwork. I let Johnny sit but remained standing with my hood on and my hands behind my back.

"Okay man, I got word that some bad shit happened and from what I hear there are some things in the works with you and you got hit in the face by your friend," Johnny starts in.

"Yes, I needed Brother Devin to hit me to prove a point," I tell him plainly.

"What is with the brother/sister crap," Johnny asks confused.

"First Brother you've been a part of this family since nearly the beginning so don't start casting down this family, you might not be around but we still consider you one of us," I tell Johnny going from stern to happy," and the family needs you brother."

"Okay, well if I'm a brother then I'm probably going to have to say yes to the help," Johnny says smiling," But I'm guessing that it's going to hurt me before it helps."

"You are worldly in your possessions brother and this will cause some of that to slow down, you'll need to not sell at the school till we end this," I tell Johnny who gets disheartened," But if you help I will get you something better, distribution."

"Distribution to whom," Johnny asks, perking up.

"Who isn't important, what is important now is your network. There are some people who want the family to die and I need their friends," I tell Johnny," I'll have Brother Jun get you all the specifics. You heard about what happened to Kori?"

Johnny nods and I don't let my emotions show but I burn up with the memory of it. Johnny leaves his shack for a few minutes before coming back to me.

"I think you should preach to the masses," Johnny says, closing the door behind him.

"Your meaning brother," I ask for clarification.

"Well you lead us but we call you brother and you call us family, you say that the family knows but you're looking for believers. You need to give them something to believe in," Johnny explains.

I can see that he has a point with a mission statement but just telling people to follow me because I want to hurt people who hurt Kori isn't going to work. I sit and think while Johnny handles some paperwork and before long I leave quietly and take my bike home to think. Getting home shows me something I haven't seen before, the entire crew is parked in my parent's living room doing homework while Mom serves up soup and sandwiches. I walk into the living room and everyone stands up before I wave them off.

"In public only please, I don't need to be the messiah at home too," I tell them, getting some goofy looks.

"Guy what happened to your face," Mom asks, rushing over and taking my head in her hands.

"He did," I point to Devin who gets a withering look from Mom," I told him too."

"Why would you tell him to hit you," Mom asks, confused.

"Cause it scared an asshole," I say smiling.

I get a look from Mom about my language and sit in with everyone to get my own class work done. After we all get finished I start to talk about what we're going to be standing up for and 'preaching'. I'll be doing most of the speaking which relieves most of the group but my ideology has some confusion. Everyone leaves before nine and I'm finally relaxing in my room when my phone goes off with a text, it's Kori. When I ask her where she's been she replies that her mother wanted her to stay home for a while and heal. I tell Kori I'm not happy about her missing what I'm doing for her and she says that she's got a watchful group of friends and to trust Ben since he's doing what I told him. I don't know what it means and after saying goodnight sleep comes nice and fast.

Tuesday morning and I'm up early like always but I'm not alone today, Katy is getting dressed as I get out of the shower and Liz is up next for it. I get dressed in the same basic clothes as yesterday and the three of us head out again, girls in the car and me on my bike. School goes by much as it did Monday but with more whispering behind my back and finally at lunch time when I arrive and lead my family out of the cafeteria I discover that we have about thirty students who have followed us including Vicki from the punks and Hideo from the nerds. I get up to the top of the bleachers again and see faces staring up at me with a little bit of expectation on their faces.

"You don't know why you're here. I call you believers because you haven't known yourself," I explain eerily happily," but you know what I stand against, you saw it yesterday. They come and posture with numbers and words as if it mattered. I don't care if you believe it because I know."

I see confusion and a little bit of fear in the faces of some students but most are trying to comprehend.

"Jun, take one from the crowd and bring them forward," I commanded Jun.

I watch him walk into the assembled group and look around, some of the friends of his back up but he settles on Hideo and taking him by the shoulder drags him to the front of the group.

"You are a afraid believer," I ask down to Hideo who nods," I know you but you don't. I see that you are not what they want you to be. They make you fear them by words and titles that they couldn't aspire to. You believe that they are wrong but you stand idle by and be what they want to make you."

I take the long way down watching Video the whole way until I've moved in front of him. I can see he's a little scared but more ashamed. I point at Vicki and wave her forward till she's just out of arm's reach.

"You believer, if I told you that I will hurt this one if you do not have sex with him would you," I ask Vicki while staring at Hideo.

"No I wouldn't," Vicki says quietly.

"And that is why you are an animal, the both of you," I say backing away from the two," You both are persecuted by the same people, they just use different names and yet you can't even see the truth behind it. They're ashamed they can't know the world like you do. You girls are free and independent, you have no ties that you don't want. You dress the way that makes you feel like what you want. You boys are smart and articulate, you have a future in a world that will try to grind you into paste but more than them you will earn it on what you know not because you were born deserving it."