keep it shut

Dude tried to run away, but five guys caught him and dragged him back into the alley.

You try to defuse the situation, Man, let him go, it’s not worth it. You push the punches away, shouting at the top of your lungs so your goon friends listen to you.

Stop, stop.

An elbow drops you to the pavement. You’re winded, but you try to get up again. They’re really beating him up bad. He can’t stand anymore, his body held upright by someone’s tight grip around his neck, torso flailing inside a circle of blows.

You pull your friend down. Enough.

He sits and looks at the battered puppet. Yes, enough.

They throw him onto the cobblestones. Slumped to one side, eyes bruised shut, unconscious.

Why?

He did us wrong, he tells you. He had it coming.

It wasn’t like he didn’t know what would happen if he did it again. We’ve warn him many, many times. Still he did it. He’s either stupid or an idiot.

You really disagree, look at him, you’ve beaten him to a pulp. He needs a hospital, he could have broken bones

He grabs your arm, he will be alright, he knew what was coming, he got what he deserved, and he better learn his lesson. Now question is, have you?

You feel the others waiting for your answer. You hear the adrenalin pumping through their hearts.

I won’t say a thing. I hate what I’ve seen, but I won’t say a thing.