Part 420: Eddie's Fear

Marita pulled the vehicle into the parking lot of the school. She had gotten the call twenty minutes ago that Eddie was in a major fight at school. She wondered why they said the word “major.” Tony was by her side as they always were. He was just as concerned for the boy’s safety as anybody. Barbara was still in Japan and in her absence, the Largos were given legal responsibility over Eddie’s welfare. They just never figured they would ever be called in to his school because he was into a fight. “Something set him off.” The blind man whispered.

“What, Tony?” Marita said, fighting a parking space.

“Eddie has never been in a fight since the Island,” the blind doctor helped himself out of the vehicle,” He was taught martial arts because he needed discipline. Jenny gave him that, so what set him off?”

“I guess we’ll find out shortly.” Marita replied, taking her husband by the arms and escorting him up to stairs to the entrance.

They opened the doors to the main entrance of the school, and Tony immediately could smell the bleached air of the clean floors. He imagined the school as much as his own, with walls that pictures of kids and various upcoming Halloween decorations. Marita looked toward her left and immediately spotted the principal’s office. There was a collection of teachers gathered in the big room and even from behind the glass, Tony could tell they were arguing. The couple opened the door and were immediately flooded with their heated conversation. “I’m not saying he shouldn’t face disciplinary action,” one female teacher said, “But he shouldn’t be expelled!”

“Heidi, he took out ten guys. TEN GUYS!” a teacher wearing a baseball cap said, “ Doesn’t that classify this kid as a deadly weapon?”

“Oh, don’t be ridiculous, Coach,” the woman scoffed, “Eddie is an exceptional student. One of the best in my class. And now when he’s a senior, he JUST NOW gets a fight.”

“I agree with Mrs. Pool,” a man sitting behind the desk, “We’ve had no trouble from this boy until now and I want to know why.”

“Sir, ten players are off the football team. The parents are going to want whoever is responsible to face the consequences.”

“And would expelling Eddie solve that?” Tony asked.

The group of teachers then turned to face the couple behind them. They looked them over briefly and the one that was a Coach finally spoke up. “And you are?” he asked.

“Marita and Tony Largo,” the Latina said, “We are legal guardians of Eddie Trascal.”

“Then can you explain to me how the hell he knows all that karate stuff?” the Coach exclaimed.

Tony raised up his hand in a silent gesture to make the man shut up. “I’ll answer any questions you have,” he whispered, “But first, I want to see Eddie.”



Eddie sat by himself in the principal’s secretaries office. The pain of the bandage over his right eye, wasn’t much compared to the constant tears of his face. He didn’t care about beating up Brian. He didn’t care that they might expel him for it. His thoughts were focused on other things and the people he cared about. The young man then leaned forward and silently wept; covering his eyes with his hands. The door then opened toward his left. “Eddie?” Tony asked.

Eddie gasped; completely forgetting that Marita and Tony were coming to get him. He quickly wiped his eyes and stood up. “Yes, sir.” He sniffed.

“Are you all right, son?” the blind man approached him.

“Yes, sir. I’m fine.” He replied.

“Tony, he’s got a busted eyebrow.” Marita immediately pointed out.

“Eddie, what happened?” his adoptive father said.

Eddie tried to look at him with a straight face, but he began to wince; like he was holding back his tears but was failing badly. Marita almost started to cry, rubbing the young man’s shoulder blades. Tony took his arm and tilted his head to face him. “Eddie, talk to me. What happened?” he whispered.

“Have. . .have either of you seen Bonnie outside?” he whimpered.

“Bonnie?” Tony asked in disbelief, “Was she caught in the fight?”

“No, she . .I . . .told her to leave me before I wailed on them.”

“Then why . . “

“I wanted to know . . .if she was afraid of me . ..because of what I did.” He wept.

Tony sighed, and looked toward the ground. He then placed his hand on the boy’s neck and gently shook it. “You’re a piece of work, you know that?” he smirked, “You’re possibly going to be expelled and you’re worried about what a girl thinks about you.”

“I don’t care if I get expelled, Tony,” the teenager sniffed.

“Yeah, well, bad news, son. Me, Marita and your mother DO care. Now, will you please tell me what happened?”

“Brian . . . is a scumbag,” Eddie coughed, “ He’s been trying to get a rise out of me since 9th grade. I’ve always just . . .ignored him because he doesn’t scare me. I think that’s why he hates me . . .because I’m the one kid who ain’t afraid of him.”

“Been ignoring him since 9th grade?” the blind doctor took a deep breath, “What happened to cause you to break the streak?”

“He said . . .he said . . . .he said, Jilly deserved to be raped.” Eddie stammered, trying to hold in his tears.

“Oh, my God,” Marita put her hands on her mouth.

“Ah,” Tony shook his head in agreement, “I figured it would have to be something severe like that to set you off.”

“Tony!” Eddie broke down, “I’m sorry.”

Tony held the young man in his arms. The blind doctor rubbed his back as he wept on his shoulder. Marita gently rubbed his shoulders as she tried to hold in her own tears. The older man then gently let go of the young man and held his head in front of him. “You got nothing to be sorry about, boy,” he told him, “You’ve shown remarkable restraint and I’m proud of you. This other boy wasn’t raised properly. You were. And that’s why you have the Higher Ground in this dilemma. You understand me?”

“Yes, sir.” Eddie sniffed.

“Now, dry your tears and let’s go talk to these teachers. We’ll explain to them what happened and tell your side of it.”

Eddie took a deep breath and wiped his tears. Marita gave him a hug and kissed him on the cheek. He smiled as he held her hand, then they both followed Tony out into the principal’s office. As they stood together, the teachers eyed them and waited for an explanation. Tony then patted him on the shoulder and Eddie began to tell them why he beat up ten students.



After the story was over, the teacher muddled about themselves; lost in thought. The one called Heidi seemed to show a face of relief. The Coach seemed conflict, not sure what to do think. The rest of the teachers had mixed feelings. They all knew Eddie was a model student but they didn’t know how to react in this situation. However, the Principal seemed to know where it needed it’s next logical step. “Could all the teachers step outside please?” he whispered.

The teacher did as their principal told them; stepping out of the glass office. Principal Jackson motioned for the family to sit in front of him. Eddie guided Tony to a nearby seat and Marita took the other one; while the young man remained standing. Jackson took a deep sigh and took off his glasses; massaging his nose. “I’m not going to expel you, Eddie,” he whispered, “But I can’t over-look this incident either.”

“Sir, I’m terribly sorry about what happened to the other kids.” He admitted.

Principal Jackson then placed on his glasses and looked at the boys. He studied his statue appearance for a brief moment. “But . . .you’re not sorry about what you did to Brian Sage?” he asked.

Eddie took a deep breath. “No, sir, I am not.” He said.

“Considering how much I know this boy,” Tony commented, “And of what was said by this Brian person, I am not sorry he beat up the kid either, Principal Jackson. Sadly, that is sometimes the only way these kids can learn there is consequences for their actions.”

“Off the record, I agree. Dr. Largo,” Jackson said, leaning in his chair, “ However in my position, I still much take disciplinary action. Regardless if I believe Brian Sage is worthy of being a student here; with his low moral standards. Your choice, Mr. Trascal. Detention for a month or no school for a week; that includes missed assignments.”

“I’ll take Detention, sir.” He then said.

“Very well.” Jackson then leaned forward, “Eddie, . . .do you know what it means for someone to give their word on something?”

Marita took his hand and squeezed it. She looked toward her husband, knowing full well he was the one who taught Eddie such a thing. “He knows the meaning,” she answered for him.

“Then Eddie . . .give me your word this will never happen again.” The principal asked him.

“I’ll stay away from him Brian, sir. But if he comes near me again in a threatening manner, I’ll defend myself.”

“Fair enough,” Jackson said, handing a document to Marita, “Please sign that, saying you understand the terms of the detention and Eddie is obligated to show up.”

Marita signed the document and then hanged it back to him. He calmly stood up and shook Eddie’s hand, then dismissed him. Eddie took Marita’s hand and allowed her to lead him out. The teachers stood around in the outer hallway, looking at him. Eddie looked at his favorite teacher Heidi Svenknick and then just waved at her. The Coach made a grunting sound at the display. Before he knew it, Tony bumped him; shoulder to shoulder. “Excuse me.” He commented.

The family walked out of the school with their heads high. Tony knew Eddie didn’t want it but some things he couldn’t overlook. He figured this sort of thing would each Eddie a lesson that violence doesn’t solve anything.

They weren’t on the Island anymore; they were in the real world.


-------------------------------------,

Eddie thrust his hands into the air. Then he twirled and drop kicked his unseen enemy. McKay had taught him a long time ago that shadow-boxing kept his shoulders loose and now he was able to add Tae Kwon Do into the mix. Since Marita and Tony trusted Eddie, they said he could go home and gather his stuff before spending the weekend with them like he always did. The young man felt like he needed a workout before going over there. Marita mentioned they would be getting together with some old friends for dinner tomorrow night. He liked that prospect; considering he formed so many close relations with the people from the crash.

Eddie continued to punch and attack at the air as he continued his workout. Then a vehicle came down the street and pulled up to the side of his front yard. Eddie stopped when he recognized the car was Maddie’s; which meant Bonnie was in it. The passenger door opened and the young redhead stepped out. She pulled her jacket toward her sides to protect her from the cool November wind. As she walked up to the yard, Maddie then calmly pulled the vehicle away. Eddie continued to pant for air as she approached him. Bonnie stared at him for a few seconds, then gently felt of his bandage above his right eye. “Are you all right?” she asked.

“I’ll have a headache tomorrow,” he sniffed, “But I’ll be fine.”

Bonnie tucked in her jacket again and looked at her boyfriend. “Brian has a broken nose and several major bruises on his body,” she whispered, “But they say his chances of getting back into the football season are good.”

“That’s good,” the young man stared at the ground, “The school still needs their star quarterback.”

Bonnie continued to look at him. She immediately noticed he wasn’t looking at her. “Ten guys, Eddie,” she said in disbelief, “ How . .I mean, I knew you knew marital arts but . .TEN GUYS????”

“It’s what I was trained to do.” He whispered.

“You were trained to take on ten guys?”

Eddie shrugged his shoulders and sighed “I was trained to take on twenty.” He admitted.

Bonnie shook her head and covered her mouth with her fingers. She then touched his chest and Eddie slowly looked at her. “Why aren’t you looking at me?” she asked.

“I was . . .worried . . .you’d be afraid of me . . .after what I’ve done.”

“Why would I be afraid of you?” she giggled.

“I don’t know. Maybe . . because I could hurt some one if I wanted to.”

“IF . .you wanted to,” she said, smiling, “And clearly you didn’t want to. You did it because Brian make the mistake of pushing you too far. And . . .I thank you for wanting me to NOT witness it.”

“You’re welcome.” He sighed, finally looking at her.

Bonnie slowly placed her arms around his neck. Eddie smiled as he gently placed his hands on her hips. She flickered her soft green eyes, making him giggle. “I’m not afraid of you, Eddie,” she gently pecking on his lips, “Don’t be afraid of me either.”

Eddie smiled brightly. His worse fears had been put to rest. He then kissed her again, feeling more loved now than he ever was. “Thank you.” He whispered.

“For what?” she said, resting her forehead on his.

“For coming into my life.”

“My step-father has a great saying,” she kissed him again, “Never mistake fate for coincidence. It’s fate that we came together, Eddie.”

Eddie held in his arms as they continued to perform a loving dance with their mouths. Eddie was so thankful to have Bonnie in his life; loving her more as the months went by. The phrase that she said her step-father knew; the young man remembered hearing Locke said such a phrase. He wondered for about three seconds the odds that her father and Locke would share the same phrase.

However, the three seconds were quickly over and he continued to kiss Bonnie.