I Owe You Nothing

It didn’t matter how many times Tina Williamson replayed the incidents in her head, because they made less sense with every mental edit. What part about “No!” did John Link not understand? It was a two-letter word that even the most rudimentary English speakers could understand. Regardless of how many times she said it, John kept on asking her out on dates as if high school romance had become a war of attrition. At first it was just a simple series of requests. Then John started saying things like “You owe me!” and tugging on her clothing, almost enough to pull them off.

When these frightening thoughts prevented Tina from concentrating on school work, she decided enough was enough. Giving a D+ to a hardworking student like her was unjustifiable. She had to tell someone of John Link’s misdeeds. Why not start with her parents? That should have been a secure conversation to have. She couldn’t imagine going to the Principal with something like this, considering the school’s track record with handling student complaints.

As Tina gingerly walked home, her legs and arms shook not just because of the cold weather, but also because she didn’t know what the hell she was going to say. She stared through her thick-rimmed, fogged up glasses with dead emptiness. She stuffed her hands in her blue jeans pockets, but the denim wasn’t thick enough to protect against the cold. The black skull cap and pink sweater didn’t do much good either since she was still shaking. Oh, what she wouldn’t give for a few minutes alone in her room with the heater blasting at maximum power. It would have been like a sweet Hawaiian breeze, the calm before the storm of knowing she eventually had to talk to her parents.

She finally made it to her house and fumbled with her keys. Her hands shook so badly that they fell out of her grip once she pulled them out of her pockets. It took her a while to get a good grasp while bending over, but once she did, she wasted no time in unlocking the door and being in the comfort of her…well, comfortable home. At least it was supposed to be comfortable.

Tina’s eyes widened with horror as she shut the door behind her. Her jaw was quivering and her teeth were chattering at the sight of John Link sitting on the living room couch with her parents, Kenny and Melissa Williamson. John, who wore his studded leather jacket and black jeans, had his arm around Melissa while the two of them plus Kenny laughed like a happy family should.

“Tina, sweetheart, why didn’t you tell us about this handsome young boy?” said Melissa with a charming smile. “He was going on and on about how he’d love to have you as a date to the winter dance.”

“He’s a stud, Tina. He’ll take good care of you like a grown man should. Hell, I’d even call him husband material!” said Kenny as he ruffled John’s spiky blond hair.

The image of those three sitting together laughing, joking, and buttering each other up lit a fire in Tina’s belly. She threw her brown leather book bag on the plush chair opposite of the couch and folded her arms while giving John Link the gorgon death stare. “How many times do I have to tell you no? Are you deaf? Do you need a hearing aid? Or are you just plain stupid?”

“Tina, don’t be rude to your guest!” insisted Melissa.

“No, I’ve had it with this shit!” screamed Tina as she threw her arms by her side. “I’m tired of this Neanderthal coming around me thinking I owe him a fucking relationship! I’ve got news for you, dumb-ass! I owe you nothing! You’re not entitled to free sex! You’re entitled to get the hell out of my house before I call 9-1-1!”

John stood up and extended his arms in a “calm down” manner and said, “Hey, hey, hey! There’s no need for that, Tina. I just want to take you out and show you a good time. I’d never do anything to hurt you. I was just telling your folks here that it would be a great idea for us to get dinner at your favorite Italian place after we mingled at the winter dance. Come on, it’ll be fun!”

“Not nearly as much fun as watching you being dragged away in handcuffs!” screamed Tina.

The mock boyfriend hung his head and shoved his hands in his jacket pockets. With a solemn attitude, he said, “Okay, okay. You’re absolutely right, Tina. You’ve said no to me for a long time now and I’m just too thickheaded to get the point. I’ll be on my way soon enough.” A beat of silence hung in the air and cold chills were building within the Williamson family. “But then again,” said John. “You’ve shown me disrespect just now and…and…I can’t let that slide!”

John pulled a revolver out of his jacket pocket and put a bullet in Kenny’s leg. The old man dropped to the floor clutching his bloody wound and howling in agony while Melissa knelt beside him, also screaming like a demon. Tina’s eyes shot up as she held her hand to her mouth while watching this scene unfold. She tried to help her father, but John kept his gun trained on her and said, “Hey! Back off!”

Holding her hands in the air defensively, Tina said, “He needs help, John! He needs an ambulance!”

“For God’s sake, Tina! Why couldn’t you just say yes to the poor man!” yelled Kenny in between fits of pain.

“Your dad has a point there, sweet cheeks. All of this could have gone away if you just said one simple word. One word, three letters, one of them being a Y. That’s all you had to do. Instead…” John twisted his head around eccentrically and said, “You had to reject me and make me feel like a worthless piece of shit! Do you think I’m a piece of shit, Tina?! Huh?! Do you think you can label me like that?!”

John fired another bullet, this time into Melissa’s back, causing her to wail at her loudest. Tina wailed as well when she screamed, “Stop it! Leave them alone! They’re my family!”

“Now look what you’ve done, Tina! How could you do this to your mommy and daddy! We’ve worked so hard for you!” screamed Kenny before he went back to clutching his leg and grunting through his teeth.

And then Tina Williamson had a moment of clarity. Here was this maniac standing in her living room with a loaded pistol and her own parents were putting the blame on her for refusing John’s advances. Tina’s parents always had a conservative state of mind where women were subservient to men. But Tina never bought it for a minute. She was nobody’s slave. She was her own woman and she planned on keeping it that way. But with a pistol pointed at her face, her options were limited. Just one word could change it all.

“Yes.” Tina let that word hang in the air for a while so that it could resonate throughout the room. In a calm manner, she said, “You win, John. If you want to date me, you can. But first, there’s something I want from you.”

“You’re in no position to be making demands, lady! I’m the one with the gun! I give the orders!” screamed John.

“All I wanted was a kiss. Why can’t we start things over with just a nice kiss?” said Tina. Those words hung in the air as well. Every syllable could be felt by all in the form of blood chilling and temporary silence from screaming in agony.

A smile formed on John’s face when he said, “Okay, baby. That’s actually a good idea.” He lowered his weapon as the two of them came together in the center of the living room for what would be a passionate make-out session. It started with a peck on the lips. Then their tongues danced in each other’s mouths. And then once John’s tongue advanced passed Tina’s teeth, she bit down hard and amputated the oral organ.

John dropped his gun and held his rapidly bleeding mouth while shrieking in pain. He tried to swear, but there was too much blood and not enough tongue for words to be formed. It all sounded like a monster’s gargling. In the time it took John to sprawl across the ground and dribble blood on the carpet, Tina picked up the fallen gun and put a bullet into the sex offender’s head, causing Melissa and Kenny to squeal in fear and jump backwards a little bit, but not too far since they were still in god-awful pain.

Tina never fired a gun before in her life, yet she slew John Link like a professional assassin. Her arms were shaking, her eyes were teary, and she could barely stand up as she trembled.

“Tina…sweetie?” said Melissa in a soft voice. “Give me the gun and we’ll take care of this for you.” No answer.

“Come on, Tina, what are you waiting for? Give your mother the goddamn gun!” insisted Kenny.

In a sudden burst of volcanic anger, Tina pointed the gun at her parents and yelled, “You sold me up the fucking river with no paddle! Die, you motherfuckers! Die!” She unloaded the last remaining bullets on both of her parents, leaving the living room with three dead bodies and one sobbing girl.

Tina threw the empty gun aside and dropped to her knees, letting her sore red eyeballs drain onto what was left of the now bloodstained carpet. She could see it all unfold before her. It didn’t happen yet, but it was going to. Tina would be sentenced to life in prison, the newspapers would label her a psycho, her fellow classmates (male and female) would laugh at her, and it would all boil down to one stupid question that nobody should ask: “Why didn’t she just say yes?” The disgusting thoughts caused Tina to vomit heavily onto the carpet before laying down in her own mess and passing out. She knew the world was cruel to women, but she didn’t know how bad it had gotten until that day.