“Gang activity has recently surged within Krey these past few days. While our city has always had its issues of gang activity from time to time, the danger right now is unprecedented. Just within the last week, there have been several violent crimes witnessed, recorded, and reported to our news station. Here are a few clips of the videos trending in our local area.” The television began showing violent video clip after clip.

The first clip had a group of youths wielding weapons brutally beating up another group. The group with the weapons had some form of blue on their clothes or accessories, while the other group had green. “Tears! Tears! Tears!” They chanted during the violent act. Then the clip switched to another with the gang in green breaking into some kind of store. “The Sour Gangbangers will rule this city!” “Give us your shit if you don’t wanna die!” Then the video switched again.

‘Is this because of us?’ Zoey asked herself.

‘How the fuck is it our fault that destroying Dino’s gang would make other gangs wanna take his place?’ Inner Zoey was annoyed by the question.

‘The only other option would have been leaving Dino completely fine to keep being a gangster.’ Zoey thought.

‘Unless you plan on becoming a gang leader and replacing him.’ Inner Zoey laughed.

‘I’m not smart enough to run a criminal organization.’ Zoey agreed with Inner Zoey’s dismissive remark.

‘I said gang leader, not a criminal mastermind. There’s a difference between a gang and a criminal organization, fucking idiot.’

‘Still!’ Zoey angrily retorted.

“I’m so glad I got my gun license near the start of this year.” Katlyn lounged out on Zoey’s bed.

“I would be too scared to shoot someone.” Callie was also stretched out on her bed.

“But you’re a better shot than me?” Katlyn was confused.

“Just because I shoot better doesn’t make it less scary! You get it, right Zoey?” Callie looked at her.

Zoey was smushed in between the two tall girls. If she wasn’t in the middle, she’d somehow get pushed off her own bed when they came over to her room. The sides weren’t an option for her five-foot-zero body vs. these two giraffes. It was also safer for her to be cuddled in between the two sometimes.

“I get it.” Zoey faced death countless times.

Although she would never freeze up in the face of it, she could understand those people who do. Life-or-death situations weren’t for everyone. Thinking about how a happy-go-lucky girl like Callie having to kill someone was difficult for Zoey to wrap her head around. She’d probably break down and never recover from an event like that or something.

“Girl, all you gotta do is flash that thang, and they’ll be running in no time.” Katlyn almost sounded like she wanted some gangsters to harass her.

Callie groaned in frustration as Katlyn just didn’t understand. “Getting into a situation where I have to threaten the life of another person is scary for me!” She tried to brute force her understanding into Katlyn’s head. “You might need to stay inside until all this gang violence stuff goes down if you can’t handle it,” Katlyn told her seriously.

“It’s not like I can just avoid it, either! You know that some people at our school are in those gangs too! Holy freaking crap, you saw some of those clips. They’re even breaking into peoples’ homes!” Callie was freaking herself out.

“That’s what the gun is for?” Katlyn didn’t see what Callie was so worked up about. “You have the tool to protect yourself. It’s not like you’re going to go out expecting to meet with gangsters, right? That guy you’re talking to at school... Tommy, Bobby, or whatever. He ain’t in a gang, is he?”

“I’m not talking to him like that, and his name is freaking Greg. Greg’s cute, but I'm not interested in him like that.” Callie sighed in annoyance as she switched the subject in an abrupt way that even Zoey noticed it.

“Greg likes you, though.” Katlyn snickered.

“Eugh. Don’t remind me...” Callie let out another sigh. “I ask for his help once and he freaking falls in love with me. Like, come on, dude! I know I'm pretty and all, but have some self-respect, and don’t let me walk all over you!”

“Why wouldn’t the nerd fall in love with the popular sporty girl that’s friends with everyone? That’s how it is in all the movies.”

“Wait, did you just ask Greg, a nerd, was in a gang?” Zoey suddenly realized.

“Did I?” Katlyn’s voice was monotone.

“You freaking did! I bet you meant Michael, didn’t you!?” Callie happily called her out as well.

“So what? All guys are basically the same anyway...” Katlyn, the lesbian, said as she turned her back to them.

“I’d agree with you if you didn’t just confuse two entirely different dudes! Michael is like way more popular than Greg. I don’t think anyone outside of our class group even knows Greg.” Callie laughed at Katlyn.

“Is Michael in a gang, then?” Zoey spoke up.

“Maybe?” Callie shrugged. “He’s my type, but he’s so mysterious about himself. He invited me out to hang out with him and his friends while I was supposed to bring my girlfriends, but I turned him down. He did not like being rejected and hasn’t replied to my texts since.”

“What a baby,” Katlyn smirked.

“Do you not feel safe around him?” Zoey asked.

“That’s not it.” Callie shook her head. “He just wouldn’t tell me about his friends at all. Like, I just asked a few innocent questions about them, and he was acting like I was a cop interrogating him! Am I wrong for wanting to make sure I wasn’t inviting my girls to meet up with some creeps or gangsters?! He totally overreacted at some basic questions.” Callie stated her defense in the situation.

“Not to mention, Zoey has a boyfriend now. So it’d just be super awkward for her times ten.” Katlyn poked Zoey.

“Is James doing better in the hospital?” Callie asked with sympathy in her voice.

“He’s doing better. Thankfully, he wasn’t injured badly enough that he couldn’t continue his fighting career. It’s going to take most of the year until he’s recovered enough to get back in the ring, but it's better than never being able to fight again.” Zoey told them. She didn’t know how she’d react if she got injured that badly. Fighting was her thang! How was she going to fight bedridden?

“That’s good.” Katlyn rubbed her shoulder. “If a huge guy like him can get hurt so badly by gangsters, I'm never going anywhere without my gun again.”

“It would be better to have it on you.” Zoey agreed.

“The world is so dangerous. It's freaking ridiculous... Why can’t we all just love each other and not want to hurt innocent people?” Callie asked.

“Because humans are inherently evil.” Katlyn gave her opinion. Zoey was of a similar mind, but she was more about humans being inherently selfish than evil.

“There’s no way that’s true, and I refuse to believe such a horrible thing about people in this beautiful but scary world.” Callie rejected it.

“Then how do you explain-”

“Lalalalalala, I don’t care whatever thingy you’re about to say. Lalala, I live in a world where the world is nicer and more beautiful than evil and corrupt.” Callie plugged her ears and blabbered.

“You’re lucky you’re pretty and white,” Katlyn told her.

“You’re pretty and white too!” Callie shot back her own weaponized compliment before Katlyn could dig deeper. “And Zoey, you’re a beautiful black queen.” She didn’t want to leave Zoey out.

Zoey appreciated it even though she wouldn’t call herself beautiful or a queen. Black queens are female figures in the black community that radiate pride and confident blackness in one’s self. Zoey radiated neither of those two things. She was less about blackness and more about Zoeyness, if she was being honest. Sadly, she never felt much of a connection with her own race because of her mother’s upbringing and lack of connection with her peers growing up.

“Anyways! Back to what I was saying...” Katlyn was about to continue, but then Callie suddenly screamed as she held up her phone. The screen was lit up with an alarm blaring from it.

“Finding Love in Paradise is airing a new episode right now! I don’t want to hear anything other than this! Zoey! Where is your remote!?” Callie took charge of the atmosphere as she groped around Zoey’s body in search of the remote.

“I don’t have it!” Zoey giggled from being tickled.

“I have it.” Katlyn reached behind her and grabbed it from the desk near the bed.

“Put it on! What are you waiting for!?” Callie demanded.

“Alright, Miss Bossy Dictator... Geez.” Katlyn followed the dictator’s orders and changed what was on the tv.

As Zoey enjoyed her girl time with her friends, she thought in the back of her mind if she was going to get involved in this increased gang activity in her city. It was somewhat her fault things became like this, but she didn’t think that going out and beating up more delinquents was going to solve anything. If anything, it was just going to make more gangs crawl out and try to be the top gang after Zoey knocked out Tears and the Sour Gangbangers. Could she even do anything about it?

‘Hmm, maybe there was one way.’ Zoey smiled to herself. There was more than one way to handle problems besides violence!

‘Cavegirl can’t do nothing but beat things with her stick.’ Inner Zoey mocked her.

‘I’m getting better, okay!’ Zoey defended herself. This plan wouldn’t be violent at all!