Chapter 2 – Pinkie

Sunday, October 4

I hugged my dragon, Pinkie as we went outside to play. I had him since I was a baby. My mom got him for me. My older brother Lamar went with me. My mom, Shannon, told Lamar that morning, “Lamar, if Shayla wants to go outside, you go with her. Don’t let her out of your sight. If you see trouble, both of you get out of there.” I knew trouble sometimes happened in our neighborhood.

Turning to me she said, “Shayla, don’t go running off without your brother. You listen to him and do what he says. I’ll be back at five.” Then she left for her job at Wal-store.

Lamar and I walked in on a fine fall day. I watched the robins hop along the ragged grass in an empty lot. We went to a neighborhood park a few blocks away from our apartment. Lamar pushed me on the swings, and then on the merry-go-round. Then he said, “Shayla, I’m going to play basketball with my friends over there. You stay here till I come back.”

I watched him walk to the court next to the park. “Pinkie, what do you think of that? We gotta play by ourselves. What d’ya wanna do? You want me to push you on the merry-go-round? Okay, I’ll try.”

It wasn’t as hard as it looked. I got it up to speed and then hopped on, next to Pinkie. “I’m almost a big girl now. I can push the merry-go-round all by myself. And I started kindergarten this fall.”

I spun the merry-go-round again and again till I got tired. “You getting hungry, Pinkie? I am. What do you eat? Bugs? Huh. Whatever. Let me get you some.”

I knelt on the grass next to the merry-go-round’s sand pit. I loved the smell of the grass. I poked around the dirt and found some ants and pill bugs. I put one of each in my hand and gave it to Pinkie.

“Num, num! Tastes good, don’t it? D’ya want more? Okay.” I hopped off the merry-go-round and got more. Then I heard something like fireworks coming from the basketball court. “What’s that, Pinkie?” Picking up my dragon I ran to the court to check on Lamar.

Some big guys had guns. They were chasing the boys off with lots of yelling. “No little kids here! This court is for men, for our gang!” Lamar ran out.

More young guys came up. “Hey, what d’ya think you’re doing? This is our turf. Get out of here.” They had guns too.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Someone shot a gun. Then a whole firecracker string of shots rang out. Some guys dropped on both sides. The first group ran into the park, then hid behind the playground equipment and started firing again.

A bullet zipped over my head. “Get down, Pinkie!” I fell on top of him, protecting him. I peeked and saw Lamar running full speed toward me. Then he fell.

“Lamar!” I cried. I crawled to him. His blood oozed from his back, warm and sticky. He moaned. I cried.

The blood spread over Lamar’s shirt, like spilled tomato juice. He stopped moaning. I made my own wet spot crying over him. The bullets still zipped above us. I could taste my salty tears. Pinky squeezed between us.

“Oh, Pinkie I wish you’d gobble up those guys with guns like you did those bugs!” I cried with all my heart to my magic dragon.

Pinkie shook in my hand. He felt like my mom’s cell phone when it buzzed. Then he grew out of my hand. My pink dragon grew to be dog-sized, then horse-sized, then elephant-sized, then bigger. The shooters turned to my giant stuffed dragon, flapping his pink wings in midair. Both gangs shot at him.

Like a cat jumping on a mouse, Pinkie gobbled up a shooter, then the one next to him. Six more gang bangers disappeared into his huge pink mouth before both gangs turned and ran.

“Yay, Pinkie! You chased away those bad guys!” Then I saw Lamar again, quietly bleeding on the ground.

“Oh, Lamar get up! You’ve got to take me home!” I lay on his still body, crying into his wet shirt.

* * *

I cried myself to sleep. When I woke, Lamar was cold. The shadows were lengthening. Mom would be home soon.

“Lamar!” I began sobbing again. A shadow covered me. Pinkie swooped down. The grass flattened under his big pink feet.

What’s wrong, Shayla?

“Pinkie, Lamar won’t get up. I-I-I think he’s dead!”

You’ve got to wake him up, like you did with me.

“Good idea, Pinkie.” I didn’t think then that Pinkie talked way clearer than he used to. I began shaking Lamar with all my might. “Lamar, get up! You’ve got to wake up, just like Pinkie. Get better right now!”

“O-o-h,” he groaned. He rolled over and looked at me. “What happened, Shayla? Why is my back all wet?”

“There was a fight between two gangs, and y-y-you were shot. You’re bleeding.”

He took off his T-shirt. “Yuck! It’s all bloody.” Something fell to the ground. “What’s this?” He picked it up. “It was in my shirt. It’s a bullet! Why do I feel better? I remember getting shot, now.”

“Lamar, I wished you’d get better so we could go home.” I peered at his back. “You’re all bloody, but there’s no hole in it.”

“And the bullet’s out,” He showed me the bullet. It was bloody and smushed on one side.

Pinkie landed next to us and burped.

“What’s that???” Lamar stared at the huge dragon, his eyes bugging out.

“Pinkie, of course. I wished he’d eat up those bad guys with guns, and he did.”

“Let’s go home. Pinkie will have to stay outside. He’s too big to fit in our apartment. He’s too big to fit on the basketball court!”

Lamar was right. Pinkie’s butt and tail filled the basketball court and he stretched across the grass to us.

“Nah. Pinkie, go back to your regular size.”

No problem. Pinkie answered me. He shrunk down and I picked him up.

“Let’s go.”

Lamar closed his mouth and followed me home. I knew the way. I just wanted Lamar for protection