"You called~~?" I hum in a carefree manner, despite being surrounded by delinquents. They are all holding something like a weapon-- baseball bats, pocket knives, rocks, and some are cracking their knuckles already.

"Are you trying to get me suspended?" Jack asks, his eyes piercing my soul. He's not condescending me, he's just angry.

"No, I want to negotiate." I stated, carefully monitoring the movements of his gang members as they circle around me, walking around.

"What about?"

"Money~~!" I throw up my arms in happiness and excitement.

Jack paused for a moment. Then, as he stands up, signals his other members to move away from me as he himself walks towards me.

"Listen here girlie," he throws the cigarette away, stepping on it as he was finished. "I don't wan' any loans or conditions when getting money." He stopped in his tracks when we're only two inches apart. "I want instant money, no interest, no loans, no nothin'! And you know how that can work?" He took me by the collar, strangling me as I'm up in the air. His breath stinks of tobacco. I did not struggle, I didn't even flinch.

"You see." I started moving my mouth, grabbing his arm. "I can understand that you need to dirty your hands to survive in this world, but," I then hold his elbow with my left hand, and karate chopped his forearm with my right. He dropped me violently to the ground as he holds his arm in pain. "There's always a condition for helping someone else, isn't there?"

His gang members panicked. They rushed to his side and formed a wall.

Jack clicked his tongue, still glaring at me with intense hostility. "Get out of my way, I'm not done with her!"

"Stay back, Jack! That girl is nothing but trouble!"

"I said GET OUT OF MY WAY!" In a fit of rage, Jack punched the guy who was trying to stop him, sending him flying miles away.

"Ok girlie, what do you want?" He begins to walk towards me again, this time, in a less threatening manner, and a more like he's genuinely asking me, without any other intentions.

"I can give you the money necessary for Marie, but in exchange, can you lay off from the witness?"

Jack smirked. He's so stubborn as ever. Even with a broken arm, he still continued to be stubborn.

"And what if I don't?"

"Then, let's do this the hard way. You'll have to deal with me." I also smirked, throwing a rock in Jack's face. An unsuspecting rock that I took stealthily beforehand.

His gang members, unable to tolerate my behavior much longer, started to charge at me with their respective weapons.

I try my best to dodge and block their attacks, but each time I block, their attacks just hit my wounds.

They're charging at me in every possible angle! There are some in the front who are just feigning attacks, as the ones behind me are the real ones. The ones in front just drive me to go behind, aimlessly swinging their bats and throwing rocks. While the ones behind me, who only use their fists and pocket knives.

I get hit from time to time, small cuts begin to form as I dodge the attacks from the pocket knife wielders, although barely. And the blows I take from their punches just go through my bruised arms as I try to guard.

Eventually, I was cornered. Someone kicked my feet, making me fall down to the ground. With no time to guard or even stand up, even when my bruises start to hurt, they started beating me mercilessly, one blow to another, not stopping even when I let out painful cries.

"With this, we can easily get to that poor little witness in no time." Jack smirks, more maliciously than before, as he looks down at me with eyes that say I'm not more than a pathetic dog. "Looks like being a hero doesn't work out for you." He raises his foot, covering most of my vision with his sole.

"Say goodbye, Hero."