Two Gangs And A Golden Girl Novel – “I didn’t ask to be in the middle of your ego-battle,” I grumble. Blake pins me to my locker, hands resting on either side of my head. “Well, you got it in anyway, Darling,” he whispers. His face is inches away from mine, and I can’t help but lick my lips involuntarily. I am not falling for these guys. And then, at the corner of my eye I spot Owen and his gang approaching. Well, that’s just great. Blake and Owen, leaders of the two biggest gangs in the town, have entered into a bet to settle their rivalry once and for all: whoever wins my heart first. One thing I do know, is that I’m definitely not falling for one of those pervs. Three can play this game.
“Amber, I need your help!” I hear Uncle Anton shout from upstairs. I’m in the basement, covered in shades of yellow, and no where near done with my artwork. When I get to the kitchen, I spot Uncle Anton peering at the toaster. “This bloody bread tanner, isn’t working,” he complains. I let out a sigh and push the lever down at the side. “That’s genius, Amber. Genius!” Uncle Anton says. His face is too sincere for me to tell him how un-genius it really is. You’d never guess he’s a doctor. A bloody doctor! I check the time and swear under my breath. “I’m going to be late,” I mutter. “Late for what?” Uncle Anton asks. “School.” “That’s today?” “Yup,” I say without popping the ‘p’. I do not pop p’s over here.
“Aren’t you suppose to be making a living? You’re what? Fifteen, sixteen?” “Seventeen.” “Seventeen! Good God, we need to find you a husband!” I’m about to remind Uncle Anton that it’s not the eighteen hundreds, but Aunt Tessa and my cousin, Jessica, come bouncing into the kitchen before I can even try. Jessy grabs the toast that jumps out of the toaster and Uncle Anton cries out a protest before trying to figure out the toaster again. “Honey, the lever. You’re not a baby,” Aunt Tessa says. Jessy turns to me with a scowl, “You’re covered in paint,” she points out, “Did you even sleep?” I duck my head in guilt, “I wasn’t tired,” I try to explain. Jessy lets out a sigh before licking her thumb and wiping some paint from my cheek.
“We’re going to be late. Otherwise I would’ve told you to change into something that’s not covered in paint,” she says. “Yeah-yeah, you’re not my-” I shut myself up. Jessy sees my change in mood and catches my eye, “You sure you’re ready?” she asks. My psychiatrist says I’m ready. She says I’m dealing amazingly with the fact that I lost my parents in a robbery. It’s my last year of high school and if my psychiatrist says I’m ready for the first semester, who am I to oppose? “I’m ready,” I announce. “Then let’s go,” Jessy says and grabs my hand. We leave the kitchen with a goodbye and just when Uncle Anton manages to make himself toast, I grab it. Uncle Anton’s cries of protest follow us all the way to the drive way.
Jessy and I climb into her silver Ford and make our way to school. “So, first day at Tygerwell High, you nervous?” Jessy asks. “Not really,” I answer. My previous school wasn’t something memorable. It was pretty average and I was pretty average and my friends were pretty average and, well, boring I guess. I wasn’t one to inform the whole school my parents were rich. “I wish you’d let us drive your BMW. Everyone would be so jealous of us!” I don’t answer that. The BMW is the last thing my parents bought me. The car, along with the millions my parents left me, will most likely not be used soon. I only made sure to pay in some money into my Aunt and Uncle’s bank account. I don’t want to be a burden to people I love.
My parents were rich. I’m not even going to try to deny it. “Amber… you’re doing it again…” Jessy interrupts. I look back at her, “Doing what?” “You went blank. I was telling you about the cliques of Tygerwell High…” “Oh…” And as quickly as the dark thoughts came, I banish them. I put on my brightest smile and will my eyes to sparkle. “Let’s take a first day selfie together!” I suggest. It’s a good conversation changer. “That is going on my Instagram!” Jessy beams. We finally get out of the Ford and make our way to school. My new kind of prison for the next few months. The kind where I’ll have to smile until my face hurts and hide the paint spots on my clothes. We enter the hallway and it’s just as I remembered high school to be. Kids are laughing and catching up all around. A few couples are making out against lockers.
Mean girls are gossiping. Jocks are flexing. Nerds are reading. Pervs are perving and… And… And what are they? I spot a couple of guys at the end of the hallway walking like they’re Greek gods. Not towards Jessy and me, but if we don’t move within the next minute, we’ll probably become roadkill. Kids are practically diving to get out of the way of the five guys. Some going as far as to bow their heads or straight-up run for their lives. The five guys all seem to be mainly dressed in black. And they’re all hot. But it’s the guy in the middle that catches my eye. With his raven black hair and eyes that I know all the way from here are silver-grey, he walks with a bit more confidence. There’s a permanent sneer carved into his stone-cold face.
Jessy grabs my arm. “We got to move,” she says and turns me. When she has me turned around, we’re facing guys from the other side of the hallway. They walk with the exact same level of authority and superiority, but where the other guys have people running away, these guys have people melting. The girls are all basically drooling and guys are getting envious. And where the first group of guys are modeling ripped jeans and leathers, these ones are tailored in coats and expensive pants. Leather Boys and Coat Boys I’ll call them. And just like Leather Boys, Coat Boys also has someone that stands out. The guy in the middle has copper hair and dangerously dark eyes – as if every sin is trapped in his gaze. Jessy breathes and pulls me to the side. We stand glued to the lockers, like we’re hoping to blend in.
“What’s going on?” I protest. “Just keep quiet,” Jessy hisses. Leather Boys and Coat Boys meet at exactly where Jessy and I were standing just seconds ago. “Rhodes,” the leader from Leather boys snarls. “Bowmen,” the leader from Coat Boys snarls back. The tension can be cut with a knife. A butter knife to be honest. Even a spoon. “Some of your guys were seen on my territory,” Leather Leader says. “Well, technically the whole town is my territory,” Coat Leader shoots right back. Oh. My. God. This is battle of the egos. I have to refrain from asking Jessy to pass me the popcorn. “This town, belongs to us,” Leather Leader says and oh, there they go again. Measuring levels of testosterone or something. The bell rings and everyone scurries to class except for the bunch of guys blocking our way.
I can feel Jessy tense up. Not wanting to miss class, but also not wanting to interrupt these guys. “We’re going to be late,” I say to Jessy, but she shushes me before I can get the entire sentence out. What? “It’s my first day; I can’t be late,” I try again. When Jessy only responds by shushing me again and pressing me even harder into the locker, I just about have enough. “Excuse me, Mister Leather Jacket and Mister Fancy Coat, can you guys go have an ego brawl some other time? We need to get to class,” I interrupt. I hear Jessy suck in a breath and all eyes turn to me. Both silver and dark gazes send death glares. I stand my ground. Even though I’m shitting myself on the inside. “Did you just say something?” Leather Leader asks. “I- Uh, yes. Yes, I did,” I answer.
Jessy tugs at my sweater, silently pleading me to stop. The rest of Leather Boys all seem to raise their eyebrows. Even some of the Coat Boys are surprised. Leather Leader’s sneer turns into a cruel smirk and he starts checking me out. “If you plan on opening your mouth again, I can find suitable ways to shut you up,” he says. My throat tightens at that. “Go threaten one of your whores, Bowmen,” Coat Leader growls. “You’re the one with the whores, Rhodes. And since when do you care about who I threaten?” “Since Golden Girl over here is too pretty for a jerk like you.” Leather Leader and Coat Leader get into an intense argument that unsurprisingly drift back to territories. Their goons are also intensely into the argument and thus I grab my chance.
I turn to Jessy and she looks like she’s on the verge of fainting, so I do what all girls do among large guys, I simply crawl my way out of there. Jessy follows me when I tug at her, and only when we make our way across the hallway and round the corner, do I allow myself a breath of relief. “Who are those guys?” I demand when I’m certain Leather and Coat boys aren’t following us. “What were you thinking?!” “I was thinking that I don’t want to be late for class and that I don’t have time for guys with huge egos,” I explain. “They’re not just any guys, Amber,” Jessy says, “They’re the guys. West and East gang. They’ve been rivals since the dawn of time!” “Gangs? Well, sorry for disturbing the poor little lost boys and their toddler fit,” I laugh. It’s so ridiculous. Gangs? Gangs aren’t hot boys having an ego brawl. Right? “Oh my God, Amber.
This isn’t childsplay. These guys kill people!” That gets my attention. “If it really was that bad, then they would’ve been in jail by now, or worse, expelled!” I point out and chuckle at my own nerd joke. Not that I’m a nerd, of course. “Not if you’re either bribing or threatening half of the town. Tygerwell is not the town it seems to be,” Jessy says. Maybe talking back was a bad choice after all… Jessy is practically buzzing with nerves when she says: “That guy you talked back to, the one with the leather jacket and black hair, he’s the leader of the West gang. And he doesn’t have a good side.
He just has the ‘I’ll kill you if you talk back’ side. Something I’m assuming you’re on right now! “And Owen, the hot rich looking guy that Blake was arguing with? He’s the leader of the East-side gang. Literally a intercourse god, but high school girls seem to be below him. And just because he can smooch a girl, doesn’t mean he won’t kill one either. They’re both dangerous, Amber!” My mind is spinning with all the information I have to process. Gangs? Killing? Dangerous? This is nothing like my average high school with my average friends and a bit above average life. This is… as stupid as it is to admit, exciting.