Hazard 2

May, 2009
Hazard, Nebraska

"Hi Mary!" Mackie smiled and opened the door wider.
"Hi!" stepping over the threshold, she hugged him. Even after these two months, it still surprised him that she didn't pull away in disgust and look at him like the rest of them. If she ever did that, he'd go and throw himself in the river. He didn't know how he'd been able to get through even a day without Mary. All he knew was that if she ever drew away from him, seeing what everyone else seemed to see, he wouldn't be able to live. He wouldn't want to. Mary had become his pillar of strength. Finally, someone had accepted him. Someone had seen past all the lies the town told about him. Someone had made him feel like he wasn't the scum of the earth.
"How have you been?" she asked with a smile. It was the same question she asked every time she saw him. Although it was asked with laughter, she meant it sincerely. Had there been anything wrong, he would have told her. He could tell her anything.
"Since yesterday, I've been eagerly awaiting your return," his smile was huge, and it just made her laugh. He was the first person to ever do that. In truth, she was a serious girl, was Mary, and not many things made her smile. Ever since she'd met Mackie, she'd smiled and laughed almost non-stop. He didn't care if she said the wrong words or did the wrong things in her need for approval. Mackie had become the wall against her insecurity. Finally, she didn't need to worry about what someone thought of her. She didn't need to change just to be liked. She didn't need anyone else's approval but her own. They both thought the same thing, 'Is this what love feels like?'. Amazed at the turn of their thoughts, they stepped a little away from the other.
"Um . . . do you want to go for a walk?" Mackie asked, the first to break the awkward silence.
"Uh . . . sure," Mary answered.
"Cool," and he turned back towards the living room. "Mom?" he stuck his head round the door. He was surprised to see his mother was not there. Hmm? No Mom in the kitchen . . . or the laundry . . . or outside at the clothes line. That left upstairs. The door to Diana's room was shut, "Mom?" he asked as he pushed it open. Tired, Diana turned her head to look at her son, "Me and Mary are just gonna go for a walk, is that all right?" she gave a vague nod, "Are you all right Mom?"
"I'm fine hon," her voice sounded more like a wheeze. She had been coughing a little too much lately.
"You don't sound fine, do you want me to ring the doctor?" thinking for a bit, Diana just nodded. These doctor's bills were getting very expensive, but one more wouldn't hurt if it eased Mackie's concern a little. When the doctor came and pronounced her just worn out and prescribed a week or so of strict rest, that'd make Mackie a little more relaxed. But she was just so tired all the time. She slept and woke up feeling more exhausted than she had before she'd gone to sleep. What was wrong with her?
Coming hastily down the stairs, Mackie made a barely-restrained mad dash for the phone.
"What's wrong?" Mary asked.
'I'll tell you later,' he mouthed and turned back to dialling the number.
"Hello? Is that Doctor Carter? . . . it's Mackenzie Hanson, I . . . but sir I . . . Doctor . . . Look mister, I didn't ring you up for a lecture, I rang you because my Mom looks and feels like shit and she wants you to come out . . . because she's too damn tired to talk let alone get out of bed and drive to your house! . . . I really don't give a damn what you think of me, or how busy your schedule supposedly is, this is for my Mom . . . I don't care! Mom's sick and she needs a doctor now! . . . Fine!" and he slammed the phone into the receiver, "Fuck you bastard!" he shouted at the phone. Mary was beside him in a second, an arm around his shoulders and kind words on her lips.
"What did he say?"
"He said he'd come around as soon as he could,"
"Which is?"
"Anywhere between five minutes and the end of next week. Bastard," instead of speaking, Mary just hugged him. This kind soul that cared so much for his mother – and would others if they gave him the chance – why did they all hate him so much? She could only have guessed at how many times Mackie had asked himself the same question.

A distressed noise caught Mackie's attention . . . there it was again.
"Do you hear something?" he asked Mary. Craning her head slightly, she listened. The high-pitched cry came again.
"That?"
"Yeah. Can you tell where it's coming from?"
"Um. . . ." 'yeooow' "Over there," and she walked slowly towards the bushes, "Oh my God Mackie look!" he did, "Isn't it gorgeous?" from the first minute he laid eyes on the black and white ball of fuzz, Mackie's heart went out to the cat with the mangled paw. Pulling the jacket from his waist, he wrapped the cat up, gently minding it's hurt foot, and cradled it in his arms. 'Yeoooow' was it's only response.
"What should we do with him? He'll die if we leave him here,"
"Well, my Dad's an ex-vet, he should be able to help him," gently patting the fur on top of the cat's head, Mary smiled, "Don't worry Soot, my Dad'll help you,"
"Soot?"
"Well, he looks like he's just been for a tumble in the soot doesn't he?" they both laughed.
"I guess that's true. C'mon, let's get him to your Dad before that paw gets infected,"

With an amused little smile on his face, Mr. Dave Hutchinson brought the cat out of 'surgery' his foot bandaged up.
"Here you go Mackie," and he handed the boy his jacket back, "Soot is going to have to stay here for a while, just so I can keep an eye on his foot, but after that, you can take him home. It looks like he's just been dumped recently," 'Probably by the Kilch boys' Mackie couldn't help the thought any more than he could help breathing.

Walking together down the road back to his house, Mackie and Mary were talking amicably about the continuous wars raging in the Persian Gulf and, of course, Soot, when the sound of bikes being pedaled at top speed towards them made Mary look over her shoulder. The Kilch boys. Who else?
"Mackie, the Kilch boys are coming," in the few months that she'd lived in Hazard, Mary had come to know just what bastards the Kilch boys were.
"I know," he muttered and kept walking.
"Can't we –"
"That's exactly what they want us to do. Just ignore them," she tried, but as the gravelling roll of bicycle tyres on bitumen got louder, she couldn't help grabbing Mackie by the arm. He just kept walking, holding a tight rein of control over his panic.
"Hiya Mackie-baby!" Danny Kilch smiled maliciously as he and his brothers rode in a circle around the pair. The girl, what was her name . . . Mary? Yes Mary. Danny hadn't taken much notice of her before, but now he took the opportunity to study her. She was a skinny thing, not much in the way of curves. Her long blonde hair was pulled back in a braid, her blue eyes looked up at him with a combination of hatred and fear. He saw the way her fingers, covered with silver rings, gripped Mackie's arm. As if little Mackie-baby could help her! They hated him; the whole town hated him. Of course he'd come at the perfect time. Danny smiled slyly. Mackie had become the perfect excuse for them to rip off old Lawson's store. All these years, everyone still thought it was Mackie-baby! Catching Mary's eye as she looked up at him, Danny laughed. Little Mackie-baby wouldn't even have the guts to walk to the store let alone break in and steal anything! He looked down at Mary again. Oh yeah, he'd have fun taking her away from Mackie-baby!
"Oh look Benny, Mackie-baby's found himself a friend!" Kenny said to his twin.
"How'd you get out of your play-pen baby?" Benny said cynically. Mackie's face was like stone, but the anger and embarrassment was there, just below the surface. Mary could feel him shaking. All it needed was one word. One word –
"His Momma wasn't watching; too busy sucking off Dr. Carter!" Sonny hissed. The roar was followed by two screams, one from Sonny, who Mackie had leapt upon in rage, the second from Mary, knocked back and into Danny.
"You bastard!!!!!!!!!! YOU MOTHER-FUCKING BASTARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Mackie roared as he pummelled Sonny Kilch, who was trapped beneath his bike. Quick as a flash Kenny and Benny were on Mackie, dragging him off their brother and giving him as many bruises as they could. Screaming, Mary jumped on Kenny's back, pounding his head and his shoulders, shouting for him to let Mackie go. Danny simply sat back and watched. He had to admit, watching Kenny getting bashed by a girl was pretty funny.
"Danny you bastard! Help me!" Kenny screeched, but Danny just shook his head, laughing himself witless.
"You always were a weak son of a bitch Kenny; you can't even beat a girl!"
"You – OW!!!!!!!!!" As Mary bit the hand he was aimlessly batting at her, trying to get her off.
"That's a feisty little bitch you've got there Kenny!" collapsing on the ground, Danny collapsed into hysterics. 'The bastard! Feisty little bitch, why I –'.
"Hey! You!" a shout came from just up the road. Everyone froze.
"Shit!" Benny whispered to himself. Mackie had a handful of his hair. Ripping it away, Benny clambered onto his bike and rode away as fast as he could, his brothers following quick behind him. Throwing a last glance back at Mary, Danny hated Mackie all the more, for now he was jealous. He'd have Mary, one way or the other!

"Mackenzie Hanson, what on earth have you been doing now!" Dr. Carter's condemning voice rose above Mary's questions.
"Dr. Carter! How's Mom?" Mackie asked, forgetting all about the painful bruises on his body and blood gushing from his nose.
"Don't change the subject boy! What trouble have you been stirring up?"
"Nothing, I –"
"Don't try and lie your way out of it!" the doctor's eyes were like iron. Mackie could see that even if he argued all day, Dr. Carter would still condemn him. What was the point? Taking a breath to speak, he was surprised when Mary spoke first. Her hair was messed up, pieces sticking out everywhere from the previously neat braid. Her face was dirty, decorated only by the cut on her forehead. and her white cardigan had a rip the size of the Grand Canyon. God she was beautiful!
"Doctor Carter, Mackie didn't do anything. We were walking back to his house when the Kilch boys rode up!"
"And who was it that threw the first punch?"
"They were asking for it!" Mackie shouted, unable to stop himself. Dr. Carter laughed bitterly to himself.
"I should have known. Get home to your mother before I take you over to Mrs. Kilch and tell her what you did! God knows, why your mother puts up with you? You've made her so sick she has to go to hospital boy! I hope you're proud of yourself," and with that he walked off.
"But Doctor Carter! –"
"Don't bother Mary. He won't listen,"
"But that's so unfair!"
"Life's a bitch. There's not much you can do about it,"
"But –"
"Come on. I wanna see how Mom's doing," still bothered by the injustice, Mary silently followed her friend down the road towards his house.


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