Urban Survival Rule 22: Never Annoy An

Derek Lunged. He Hit Me In The Shoulder And Knocked Me To The Floor, Landing On Top Of Me. His Body Jerked, Like He'd Been Hit With The Spell, And I Let Out A Yelp, Struggling To Get Up, But He Held Me Down, Whispering "i'm Okay, It's Okay" Until The Words Penetrated.

There Was No Closing My Eyes And Sliding Back Into That Blissful Dream Of Normal. This Was My Normal Now.

Remembering. Forgetting. I'm Not Sure Which Is Worse.

...in Some Ways I Relied On That- Someone To Keep Me Thinking, Keep Me Striving To Do Better, Keep Me From Burying My Head And Praying It All Worked Out.

But Was It Wrong To Put Yourself First? That’s Called Survival, Right? If You’re Running For Your Life, You Don’t Get The Luxury Of Being Nice. They Were Going To Learn That. It’s Fine To Wave The Pompoms For Teamwork—all For One And One For All—but When Push Came To Shove, These Guys Wouldn’t Be Risking Their Lives For Chloe, Maybe Not Even For Each Other. I Was Sure Of It. Once Things Got Worse, It Would Be Every Kid For Himself. It Always Is.