A few weeks later I was thinking of leaving the gang. This wasn't the life I wanted to live but would the gang let me go? That was the question that prevented me from leaving sooner. Yes, I liked the people in my gang. They had become like my family but it wasn't the way I wanted my life to be. Also I didn't want to be beat up again. That's what scared me the most.
But one day everything changed.
"Guys! Chase has been shot come quick!" Mike yelled and we all ran out to see what happened. Chase was in the alleyway on the ground. I looked at him and his breathing was shallow. His eyes were looking straight up and he was very pale.
"Chase! Man talk to me!" Jacob said. Chases eyes moved slowly to look at Josh.
"Jacob, you take over now." Chase whispered before closing his eyes for the last time. I started to cry. I was 14 and just saw someone die in front of me. I felt someone put an arm around me and bring me into a hug. I didn't know who it was nor did I care. I needed comfort. When I finally pulled away I looked up to see it was Mike. He walked me back to the hide out as the others covers Chase's body and brought him to the cemetery and left a note on him saying who he was and to give him a nice spot. We went back a week later to see that they cremated him and put up a small plaque so show where his ashes were. We were happy that he could rest with a good spot.
Chase's death changed the whole out look of the gang. The rest of them realized that they didn't want to be in the gang any more either. We had nowhere else to go. I knew I would be sent back to an orphanage and there was no way I would go to another one. Mike was only 17 so he would be placed in one too for a year if he was caught by social services.
-----the next week---
Most of the gang had left. Joanne left for California and Amy decided to move in with her boyfriend of two weeks. Jacob decided to get a job at a local music store. But after Chase died he fell into doing hard drugs. Of course the gang smoked pot every now and then except for me. They wouldn't let me, figure that one out..but never and hard drugs. Mike and I stopped talking to him cause he wouldn't listen. Pretty soon it was just me and Mike.
"How about we go to Florida?" I asked him while eating breakfast one morning. He looked at me.
"Why?" he asked then put a fork full of food in his mouth.
"Well cause." I paused. Mike didn't know about Nick. Oh well minus well tell him now. "my friend Nick lives some where down there."
"Nick? Who is Nick?" he asked confused. So I told him all about Nick and I and the orphanage and how I had Nicks last known address still on me and I showed him some pictures.
"Ok. There is nothing tying us down here. We can get a ticket tomorrow but we need to get some money first." He said and I knew we were going to pick pocket to get the money. But I smiled cause I was on my way to try and find Nick. I just hoped he was still in Florida.
