Twice Retired by Steven Michael Maddis

TWICE RETIRED
    Steven Michael Maddis
    Copyright Steven Michael Maddis: 2012
    Published by Smashwords
     
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    October, 1999- Sometime after the World
Series
     
    “I’m telling you, one of these times
one of us is gonna get killed. If not when we get there, then on the way.”
    The chunky blackhaired kid outweighed
the other two by about fifty pounds, an inordinate imbalance in
children their age. His friends darted over the boulders and
through the thick bush like well-trained soldiers and always a few
steps behind, the chubby one protested. His name was Philip
Dregger, but nobody ever called him that, with the exception of his
teachers and his aunt. The other kids always called him by a
nickname, a degrading moniker Philip’s own mother had overheard one
afternoon and rightfully adopted. He couldn’t see his friends. He
could only hear their hiking boots tromping across the fallen
leaves. The cracking of the dried twigs on the forest floor would
seem distant and then suddenly closer again. Still, they always had
a good lead on him. “You, know, some guy probably lives there. He’s
going to show up some day when we’re flipping burgers on his grill.
He’s going to kill us.”
    “Give it a rest, Plug.” One of the
other kids shouted back through the trees. The thick foliage
muffled the arguments of the kid that had fallen behind, but they
knew he was there. Behind was where he always seemed to be. He was
too afraid to turn back, and too afraid to stop and wait them out.
He’d follow them into a furnace if that’s where they were headed.
Kenny Gilbride knew it, and even though it frustrated him, he
always led the pace and kept it slower when Philip Dregger was
trudging along behind them. It frustrated his other friend, too,
but friendship with Kenny was a right-of-honor in the small town,
and nothing would jeopardize that.
    “Yeah, Plug, let’s pick it up.” Jacob
Camden called back.
    Kenny and Jacob took a seat on a soggy
fallen log and caught up with their breath. Finally, Philip
appeared from behind a blue spruce and collapsed on a moss-covered
boulder. Suddenly, he leaned forward, clutched his stomach and
started putting on a show. “They got me. You guys go ahead. Leave
me here. I’ll only slow you down. Just tell Brianne that I love
her. Ackkk…..”
    The other kids laughed. Philip somehow
never got upset when they poked fun at him. He seemed to thrive on
it and often continued the verbal thrashings all by himself. Kenny
stood from the log and ran at Philip like a defensive lineman. He
grabbed him around his ample gut and and tackled him off the
boulder. Their clothes got filthy, but it was their “cabin clothes”
so they didn’t sweat it. They laughed and scuffled around on the
autumn colored floor of the forest for a full minute before Jacob
stepped in. “Come on guys… let’s keep going.”
    Kenny and Philip helped each other to
their feet, and headed onward through the bush, even running ahead
of Jacob Camden. Jake knew that Philip needed these moments of
one-upmanship, and hung back. He finally caught up with the other
two when they were good and ready to be caught. Then they continued
as equals until they reached their destination fifteen minutes
later.
     
    Nothing appeared changed. The aged log
cabin still looked like it might collapse on itself if an acorn
fell on the roof. The years had done their damage. The cold teeth
of harsh Ohio winters had chewed the logs and softened the tar and
mortar