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“Rip them off. Hit him like I showed you. It will weaken his arms and legs.”

“You’re evil, that’s why we have to punish you!”

The teens continue to rain punches on the eleven year old until he can no longer lift his arms and legs. They abruptly remove his clothing and grab him by the wrists and ankles. The hallway was empty. Quietly, they ran up the stairs.

One of them drops the boy’s legs. His ankles bounce off of the marble stairs. Pain races up his legs, into his groin.

The door to the roof pops open. A blast of night winter air wraps itself around the naked eleven year old. They push him outside. Once more, they begin to punch his legs, his arms and kick at his stomach and ribs. He curls into the fetal position, coughing, trembling.

They lift him off the ground by his ankles and run to the edge of the building. He opens his eyes and sees the chasm. At first, his muscles strain while he stares at the gaping pitch that waits for him, then he relaxes. His muscles release their tension.

“We’re going to drop you if you don’t do what we ask! Did you hear? You’re going to die!”

The younger of the two teenagers lets go of the boy’s left ankle, causing older boy to stumble, but the older tightens his grip on the right ankle, piercing the skin and drawing blood. The younger teen wrestles with his brother, trying to loosen the fingers that hold tightly.

The naked boy grabs onto the edge of the building while they struggle and pulls himself back onto the roof. All three of them fall to the rooftop. The older teen weeps, terrified. The younger one rasps, the look of hate in his eyes. The boy crawls backwards, away from them both. His body trembles violently as he presses himself against a wall in the shadows...