Air pumped in and out of his lungs, the sun beat down on his sweaty forehead, he felt the pulsing need to pass out. He needed this to survive, and no matter how much it hurt, he wouldn’t give up. The track glimmered ahead of him, taunting, yet inviting. No longer could he feel his legs. No longer could he tell if he would make it. But it didn’t matter. A form appeared next to him and since he couldn’t hear, he couldn’t tell that the boy next to him was breathing as hard as he was.
Suddenly, the finish line loomed ahead. A group of boys marked the place this would all be over. Last few strides, it was just the act of putting a foot out in front of his body at this point. As he reached the end, his lungs wouldn’t take in air. Falling to his knees he let out a solitary cry, then vomit made its way out. The competition came up behind him, gagging as he was.
The group of boys who had observed the race smirked, as if everyone’s efforts were nothing. But it was in the unsaid rules, whoever won, was in.
“Dang, Axe. You really had it in you,” the shortest boy said.
“My name is Axel,” the small boy returned. Getting up from his knees, Axle wiped the puke from his chin. He wanted so desperately to be in the club, and his behavior affected the decisions they made strongly. He tried to talk rough, like they did to each other.
“What did you say?” Benny demanded. Big D, as they called him, was the talk.
Clyde, or Creamer, was the action. Swooping down on Axel, Creamer came up silently behind the unsuspecting boy, and shoved him off the edge of the track. The old raceway was high above the surrounding ground, and being in the part of town no longer used, construction builders had shoveled away the dirt, in order to use it for other projects. This made Axle’s tumble a very long one, and when he caught his breath at the bottom, he heard the short boy say, “Your name is Axe.” With this, the gang glided away, leaving Axel and the others on the ground.
At home, in his worn out bed, Axel thought about the race. He had won, and they told him his name was Axe. Did this mean he was in? Should he show up at their meeting spot tomorrow?
Perplexed, Axle wandered back to his beat up home. His mother was inside, cooking chili. Dinner was quiet, his mom was crying again, because the divorce had been rough on her. Axel’s sister, Jolie, was fiddling with her dress, and didn’t take one bite of the delicious chili. Jolie was four years older than Axle, and rarely bothered to speak to him.
That night, lying in his bed, Axle wondered whether he should meet the gang the next day. Jolie krept into his room, which she only did when she had to tell Axle off for touching her things. Axle froze in his sheets, waiting for her harsh words.
The briefing never came, though. Instead, Jolie whispered, “Axle, if you were on the track today, well, I’m telling you to never go back. When school starts, you will be hurting if you are with the gang. They don’t really care about you, they will put you down, then shove you away. Don’t be fooled."
Axel thought for a long time. Should I go? Jolie has always been right before. With this, his sore body fell asleep.
The morning came, and Axel got dressed, ate breakfast, and walked out the door. Halfway to the track, Axle remembered Jolie’s words. He stopped , hesitating, then he turned right around and went home.
A few weeks later, Axel was regretting not meeting the gang. He had nothing to do, so he headed out in search of them. Hiding behind a tree before the track, Axel heard shouts. Peeking out from behind his hiding spot, Axel saw the gang traumatizing a small child. They had surrounded him, and were looking down at him.
"Before you're really one of us, you'll have to pass a few tests," Big D grinned.
Creamer said, "The first test, will be stealing Miss Benson's clothes off her line."
"What?" the kid asked, shocked.
"Do you want to be part of us, or not?" said Big D.
"Not if it means acting against the law!"
Creamer suddenly shoved the kid down, "o as we say."
This was too much for Axel. He ran onto the track. "Stop!"
"What's up, Axe! We were wondering when you'd return," the ringleader said.
"I'm not here for you. Come on," directing his words towards the boy. The two of them walked out of view.
"Thanks, for saving me. My name's Jack," Jack said.
"It's all good. Stay away from them, they don't care about you," Axel directed.
Axel and Jack departed, wishing eachother a good night.
At home, Axel realized how right his sister was. He also felt good for helping someone in need. He knew he would stay away from the gang, and reminded himself to think his sister later.