It all began at Oakridge Elementary school…
“Hey, what’s up Boogerfield?” shouted Kevin, or as he liked to be called, the Knuckler. Kevin was a twelve year old bully. Known throughout Oakridge Elementary as bad news, he and his sidekick, Humphrey “Rex” Brown enjoyed calling Peter, Boogerfield. Of course this was mainly because of our last name, Kroogerfeld.

“It’s Kroogerfeld.” Peter mumbled.

“What’s that? I didn’t know that Boogerfields could talk!” Kevin said vindictively.

“Leave him alone!”

“Oh, who’s this? Another Boogerfield? What’s Kyle gonna do to me? Did you send for him, Petey? Huh, did you send for your big brother to defend you?”

“No…”

“Did you say somethin’, Boogey? Why don’t you go T.P. the bathroom again? How ‘bout I give you a can of silly string or spray-paint? What do ya say, Boogey?”

“He says, no!” said Kyle.

“Oh, big brother talks for you now, huh? ‘He says, no’” repeated Kevin in a mocking voice.

“Leave him alone!” screamed Kyle.

“Stop! You’re making it worse.” Peter mumbled to Kyle.


“Not until they leave you alone!”

“Yeah, we’ll leave him alone, as long as you go do Kyle’s job for him. Either way somebody’s gettin’ knuckled.” Kevin cracked his fingers for emphasis.

“Yeah, knuckled…huh, huh good one boss.” Rex echoed.

“Rex, shut up.”

“Sorry…”

“So who’s it gonna be? You?” he pointed at Kyle, “or your little brother?”

“Just go. I can handle them.” Peter mumbled.

“No… get out of here, Peter.” Kyle said.

“I’m sick of you stepping in for me, Kyle. Let me do things by myself,” Peter said under his breath.

“Tick…tock…tick…tock…if none of you leave, then you’ll both get knocked.…Tick…tock…tick…tock...hurry up and choose who I’ll sock…”

“Leave now.” Urged Kyle.

“No…I can do it by myself.” Argued Peter.

“Leave!” Kyle demanded.

“Tick…tock…tick…tock.”

“Err!!!” Kyle whose face and has gotten redder and redder turned to Kevin. “SHUT UP!” he screamed as fire shot out of his mouth.

“Ah!!!! It burns!!! Rex…Help…Me…” Kevin gasped trying to breathe.


“Uh…oh!” said Rex, yanking the gardener’s hose that was laying nearby. He frantically turned the nozzle and blasted water at Kevin, aiming for his shirt, but squirting his face just as much.

“Run!” screamed Kevin. He looked back at Kyle only once thinking what on earth just happened? A horrified expression on his face as he stumbled and faced forward, at that point thinking that all he wanted to do was get away.

“Kyle! I didn’t need you to stand up for me! I was handling it!” Peter shouted.

“Yeah, if by handling it means that you do his bidding, then yeah, I’d say you were handling it.”

“Kyle, you don’t even know,” Peter mumbled. “Now it’s going to be worse because of you. People are going to be afraid of me.”

“It’s me they should be afraid of.” Kyle said.

“And you want that?!?!” Peter said.

“Well…no, who does? But I couldn’t just let him walk all over you. You’re my little brother.”

“I know, I know. I just wish I could stand up to people myself…”

“I can teach you…”

“Teach me what?”

“What I did to get rid of Kevin.”

Peter thought about it for a moment and then said, “Nah, that’s ok, who needs to know how to breathe fire when your own brother can do it? But…”

“But what Petey?”

“Can you teach me something else, like how to fly?!”

Kyle laughed “Maybe some other time.”
As the brothers walked home smoke fumes perforated the air as a little reminder for everyone.