Mary Merrill
Chapter six: Oh sweet Jesus
"Stop starin' and help get Gordie dressed, he's as pale as a ghost." I muttered, ignoring the fact I was half naked in front of three--four teenage boys. I walked over to Gordie and hugged him, letting body heat warm him up. That fact wasn't that he was cold, but he had a fucking leech hanging off his balls. Once everyone was dressed and our stuff was at least half dry, the four of us; excluding Gordie started talking.
"Maybe we should take Gordie back." Chris spoke in a soft tone, glancing over at the silent Gordie. All he did was sit there and stare into space.
"Oh, great Chambers. Now you're turning pussy too!" I glared at Teddy; he was being the pussy right now, his best friend just fainted and he wants to press on even though that happened?
"What's your problem, Duchamp? He had a leech hanging from his balls—he fainted!" Chris practically yelled in my ear. I blocked it with my hand.
"Who're you, his mother?"
"Eat shit."
"You eat shit!"
"Hey, hey, hey, I think Chris is right. Let's go back." Vern took sides finally.
"Oh, ha-ha! What a surprise! The king of the pussies wants to go back too!"
"Stop calling me that!"
"What, pussy?"
"Stop it."
"Pussy."
"Stop it." I started in too.
"Pussy, pussy, pussy, pussy!" Teddy was starting to really piss me off, I wanted to smack him so hard right now. That stupid cock knocker.
"You four-eyed psycho!" Vern yelled, obviously fed up with Teddy calling him a pussy; he charged at him. Vern jumped onto Teddy and started slugging him.
"Ow! Get off me! Ow, get..." he pounded harder onto Teddy's face; it looked like something else if someone were to walk in on the fight.
"Two for flinching—you like it?! You like it?! Two for flinching—you like it?! Huh, Teddy?! You like it?! You like it?!"
"Come on, break it up!" Chris yells over Vern; trying to pry him off. I watched Gordie as he was getting fed up with the yelling and harassing.
"Stop it." Gordie whispered, but the yells were more demanding, getting more louder by the moment.
"Stop it!" he says yet again; no answer.
"STOP IT!!" he screamed at them, his face turning towards us, making me get a sad face. Chris, Teddy, and Vern looked surprised.
"I'm not goin' back." I nodded, pretty much understanding why he didn't; he was acting strange, like if he wanted to see the dead body. Teddy pushed Vern off him as Vern gave a spot of weakness. He dusts himself off and whispered to Vern:
"Idiot."
"Shut up, retard." Vern replied, his face was hot and sweaty. I laughed quietly and grabbed my stuff, along with everyone else and we started towards his dead body.
"Take out the papers and the trash
Or you don't get no spendin' cash
If you don't scrub that kitchen floor
You ain't gonna rock and roll no more
Yakety yak (don't talk back)
Just finish cleanin' up your room
Let's see that dust fly with that broom
Get all that garbage out of sight
Or you don't go out Friday night
Yakety yak (don't talk back)
You just put on your coat and hat
And walk yourself to the laundromat
And when you finish doin' that
Bring in the dog and put out the cat
Yakety yak (don't talk back)
Don't you give me no dirty looks
Your father's hip; he knows what cooks
Just tell your hoodlum friend outside
You ain't got time to take a ride
Yakety yak (don't talk back)
Yakety yak, yakety yak
Yakety yak, yakety yak
Yakety yak, yakety yak
Yakety yak, yakety yak..."
The Coasters song repeated multiple times before I heard Chris speak.
"Comin' through the woods, I bet we saved over an hour." we all paused in our tracks; it wasn't like us to just stop so I knew either we had made it or we were taking another break for Vern.
"Teddy?"
"Yeah?"
"Is this the Back Harlow Road?" Gordie asked, we all looked at a narrow road, just off to the right.
"Yeah..."
"That Brower kid must be around here someplace. Teddy, you and Vern watch the left side of the tracks, we'll take the right." my arms clung to my sides as I walked with Chris and Gordie. I had started thinking about Brower; what happened if he was decaying and all was left was his eyeballs? After moments of searching; what I feared the most came true:
"There he is! I see him! Look! Look over there! I see him! I see him!" Vern was pointing to the left side of the tracks and down in a little valley. Everyone ran over and stared, we all started to run down to see him; None of us could breathe. Somewhere under those bushes was the rest of Ray Brower. The train had knocked Ray Brower out of his Keds, just like it had knocked the life out of his body.
"Jesus..."
"Oh sweet Jesus..." I said alittle after Chris. Someone lifted up the bushes and all I saw was a dead body. The kid wasn't sick. The kid wasn't sleeping. The kid was dead.
"Let's look for some long branches. We'll build him a stretcher." I stared at Chris.
"W-what?"
"We're taking him back..." I stared at him like he was crazy.
"Why?"
"So we can be heroes." Gordie stared at the body and sat down on a near by log.
"Gordie?" Chris asked, worried.
"Why did you have to die?"
"What's the matter with Gordie?"
"Nothing. Why don't you guys just go over there and look for some branches, okay?"
"Okay." Teddy and Vern moved off, along with me. It looked like a brother-to-brother talk or something. After a few minutes I heard someone...someone familiar.
"What the fuck do you know about this?" I dropped all the branches I had been collecting and ran towards the voice.
"A-ace?" he stared at me with anger.
"Go get in the fucking car Mary...and maybe I won't tell dad about this." I whimpered and looked over to Chris, his told me to go, but my heart told me to stay.
"Fine, I'll kill your little friend here.." he flicked out his switch blade and pointed at Chris.
"Hold it. Okay Chambers, you little faggot! This is your last chance. What do you say, kid?"
"Why don't you go home and fuck your mother some more."
"Boss.." I whispered. Of course Ace heard me and advanced on Chris.
"You're dead." Teddy ran off with his co--pussy between his legs. Ace put the knife up to Chris's neck then a gun fire was heard around the forest. Gordie was the one holding it, facing it towards my brother. I froze; my brother or my best friends? I stood infront of Ace with my arms spread out.
"Mary move..." Gordie ordered. I shook my head and looked at Chris with pleading eyes.
"He may want us dead; he may want to steal the body, but he is my brother, he's my family for god's sake....please have mercy on him...I love him." tears streamed down my cheeks as I whispered those words. I never wanted Ace to ever get hurt; I never wanted my best friends hurt either. I couldn't tell, but I hope Ace felt surprised or shocked. Gordie cocked the gun.
"Sorry Mary, but he threatened my best friend..." Ace shoved my towards him. I landed on my ass next to Chris.
"Suck my fat one, you cheap dimestore hood."
"What are you gonna do—shoot us all?"
"No, Ace. Just you." Ace backed off and glared at me.
"We're gonna get you for this."
"Maybe you will and maybe you won't."
"Oh, we will. We're not gonna forget this, if that's what you're thinkin'. This is big-time, baby." Ace walked off with his gang as Gordie turned towards me.
"What was that about?" I stared at him.
"He's my brother!"
"SO?! He threatened your best friend and c-- you know what I mean!!"
"HE'S THE ONLY ONE THAT PROTECTS ME FROM MY FATHER BEATING ME!" I screamed at him, tears streaming down my pale face.
"I l-love him... he's my family... just how you are..." I hiccuped, wiping my eyes with my sleeve. Chris helped me up as he looked at me surprised, then looked at Gordie.
"Suck my fat one?'—Who ever told you you had a fat one, Lachance?"
"Biggest one in four counties."
"Yeah." Chris chuckled as Vern and Teddy ran back into the picture.
"Are we gonna take him?"
"No."
"But, we came all this way. We were supposed to be heroes."
"Not this way, Teddy. Chris, gimme a hand." I understood what he meant. We took my blanket and covered his body.
Ray Brower's body was found. But neither our gang, nor their gang got the credit. In the end we decided that an anonymous phone call was the best thing to do.
We headed home—and although many thoughts raced through our minds, we barely spoke. We walked through the night and made it back to Castle Rock a little past five o'clock on Sunday morning, the day before Labor Day. We'd only been gone two days, but somehow the town seemed different—smaller.
The Summer was the most memorial of all.... ever since I met them, none of us would ever forget this....well atleast not until school started and a whole new adventure broke lose.
Summer of 1959:.... The summer I stood up for something and the first time I saw a dead body.
When the night has come
And the land is dark
And the moon is the only light we'll see
No I won't be afraid, no I won't be afraid
Just as long as you stand, stand by me
And darlin', darlin', stand by me, oh now now stand by me
Stand by me, stand by me
If the sky that we look upon
Should tumble and fall
And the mountains should crumble to the sea
I won't cry, I won't cry, no I won't shed a tear
Just as long as you stand, stand by me
And darlin', darlin', stand by me, oh stand by me
Stand by me, stand by me, stand by me-e, yeah
Whenever you're in trouble won't you stand by me, oh now now stand by me
Oh stand by me, stand by me, stand by me
Darlin', darlin', stand by me-e, stand by me
Oh stand by me, stand by me, stand by me
...Stand By Me... (Author's Note:
This is the last chapter!!! Sorry fans lol jk, there will be a sequel and this will be a Trilogy.
-Fin.)