Wrong Number.

The Coke Can, The Bully, and The Corpse Flower

Ashlyn grumbled to herself as she walked through the halls. Aiden—being the annoying rat he is—decided to follow Ashlyn everywhere today. Bugging her with questions.
"Aiden. Leave me alone." Ashlyn said very bluntly. She didn't want to talk to him. Best to distance herself as Ashlyn.
"But assssssssssssh!" Aiden was shaking her by her shoulders.
"ACK! STOP!"
"NOT UNTIL WE TALK!"
"NEVER!"

"What the fuck are you guys doing?" Tyler said, rounding the corner. Logan was close behind them, very much feeling like a third wheel with the couple behind him. Taylor was chatting Ben's ear off, while he listened. He glared at Ashlyn a little.

Ashlyn looked away from Ben and Taylor, feeling a bit awkward around them.
"I was forcing ash to talk!" Aiden said, very proudly. It took Ashlyn all of her self control not to just kick him right then and there.

Annoying. A rat.

Her friend?

No.
No no
No.
Immediate no.
She didn't need him. Or them.
Or friends.

"We'll clearly it worked," Tyler rolled his eyes. "Jeez. Can't you take a hint? She doesn't want to talk to us. Any of us. I'm pretty sure she made that damn clear at your party,"
"OH YEAH THANKS FOR REMINDING ME!" Aiden yelled, causing Ashlyn to wince. "Why did you leave so abruptly huh? Logan said you and Tay got into an argument but didn't say what it was about!"
"It's nothing. Mind your business." Ashlyn snapped.
"But TECHNICALLY—" Aiden said loudly again. "It is my business. My house, my party. Which means my business."
Ashlyn and Tyler both rolled their eyes. What an idiot.
"Aiden..if she doesn't want to tell you she doesn't have to.." Logan said. (Also scaring the crap out of Tyler because he forgot the boy was next to him.)
"Aw come on! Please!"
"Dude do you not know what the word no means?! Respect her boundaries." Tyler snapped.
Aiden stared at him blank faced.
"Yeahs that's kinda not my department."
"Clearly," Tyler grunted. His eyes trailed back to the love birds behind him. "Hey! Lovebirds! Do you mind like—saying a damn opinion."
"I don't see exactly what we could do. I can't control Aiden, I just follow along to make sure he doesn't die from his own stupidity." Ben typed.
Taylor looked at Tyler blank faced.
"Sorry—what we're you guys talking about? I honestly wasn't paying any attention," Taylor sheepishly admitted.
"OH FOR FUCKS SAKE!" Tyler threw his arms up in the air, exasperated. "You know what—fuck it! I'm going to class!"
Tyler stormed off. Before anyone could follow him, a coke can came whizzing through the air, hitting Logan in the back of the head.

The group snapped their heads in the direction the can flew from. Barron and his gang of idiots were there. Logan glared at Barron. If looks could kill, Barron would be on the floor dead. But unfortunately, they couldn't.
Ashlyn was a little confused. "I thought they already solved the bully problem, why is this rat faced shaggy mop hair guy bothering Logan again?"
"Looks like you guys gained a new loser," Barron sneered, taking a step to Ashlyn.
Aiden(who had run to cover Ben's face) glared at Barron. One move and he would beat the bitch to the ground. Before he could say anything though, Logan moved first. He put a hand in front of Ashlyn, shielding her.
"Fuck off," Logan snapped, his fists clenching.
Barron grinned evily. Logan rolled his eyes. Seriously what was it with bullies and the evil grins. Did they all have like a crash course of bullying that he missed?
"See I would love to, but I also realized that I haven't exactly paid your losers generous gift at the arcade yet," Barron said, glaring at Logan.
"You mean when you got your ass handed to you?" Taylor snapped.
"How's your nose, by the way?" Logan said, sporting his own evil smirk. It was a smile that rivaled Aiden's.

Barrons face flushed red in anger and embarrassment, and he scowled. Ashlyn could see just the faintest scar in the middle of Barron's nose and chuckled to herself.
Serves him fucking right.
"It's FINE. Thanks for asking." Barron spat through gritted teeth. He leaned in close to Logan. "You got lucky at the arcade. But now? Hell no,"
Logan laughed. An evil sadistic laugh that had both groups backing away from him.
"You say that like you aren't the biggest coward," Logan said, leaning in close to Barron. "If you were there the whole time why didn't you confront us then huh? Because you were scared of Tyler. Your scared of him snitching to Coach Wilson—you don't want to lose the one thing your good at and then have to face the fact that your nothing but a Failure. Your so pitiful it's pathetic."

Barron took a few steps forward. "I'm not fucking pitiful!"
Logan didn't break eye contact. "And the fact that you don't realize it is laughable. Why don't you turn the other way and go run to your parents huh? Run to them whenever you have a problem like you always do."
Aiden whistled. "Damn pop off Logan,"
Taylor and Ashlyn's mouths were agape. This was a side of Logan that no one had really seen before. Even Ben had forgotten about his anger for a moment, stunned by the words leaving the normally sweet boys mouth.

Barron grabbed a fistful of Logan's hair, shoving him face first into the lockers. Ben snapped back to reality.
Right that's why he was fucking mad.
Before he could do anything though, Aiden and Taylor both stopped him. Ben tried to shove them away, but Ashlyn cleared her throat to get his attention.
"I'd actually look at what's happening Ben," Ashlyn said bluntly and a little prideful. She pointed to Barron and Logan.

Logan had kicked Barrons feet out from under him. Barron fell face flat on the floor and Logan slammed him foot down on Barrons head, mashing his face into the ground. His normally sweet blue eyes seemed icy now, with a glare so fierce that Tyler would be damn proud if he saw it.

Right Tyler!

Taylor remembered her brother. She could go and get him. Go get him to tell coach—get Barron off the team. As soon as she ran though, the pink haired girl from before grabbed her hair again. Taylor winced, what a dirty trick. A sick trick. She tried to pry the girls hands off her hair.

Ben snapped. He shoved Aiden off him, almost plowing through Ashlyn. He grabbed the girls shoulder and shoved her hard into the ground. Hard.

It was all a blur after that. Ashlyn could see Logan and Barron fighting in her peripheral vision, and she could see Aiden and Taylor, trying to stop Ben and drag him away from the fight to a quiet place where he could calm down. But then the crowd came. The other students circled them, mostly Logan and Barron. They were watching the fight, shouting things at the two. Ashlyn didn't care though, she fell to her knees, gripping her ears in pain.

"A...yn! A...h!"

Who was that? Aiden? Taylor?
Ashlyn didn't know.
It was just too much.
All of it was too much.
She couldn't.
She felt like she couldn't breathe. Like her ears were going to split in half. She was certain they were bleeding.
Ashlyn closed her tear filled eyes tightly.

It

Was

Too

Fucking

LOUD.

"EVERYONE SHUT UP!" Ashlyn screamed at the top of her lungs.
That did it. Logan, snapped out of his rage cup trance, backing off of Barron. Barron wasn't done, and he slammed Logan into the locker again, grabbing the back of his head and bashing it into the cool metal.

Ashlyn could faintly register someone peeking her from the ground. She didn't know who, but she did know she was being dragged. Dragged away from the horrid noise.
She was gripping her ears tightly. So tightly Ashlyn was sure they would be bleeding.
"A...h! As..!"
Ashlyn covered her ears tighter. She could feel hands gently peeling them off, and too her relief, there was no more noise. Nothing but a dull buzz where the noise was coming from.
Ashlyn looked around. Oh. Someone dragged her in the library. She looked at the face in front of her.
Aiden.
"Hey!" Aiden said, Ashlyn winced and covered her ears. "Ah sorry!" Aiden said, much quieter now.
"What happened..?" Ashlyn asked.
"Ah, you were having some like..sensory overload I guess?" Aiden said in a soft whisper, shrugging. "I dragged you away from the fight and in the library. Last I saw Halfwit had come back and pried Barron from Logan and some teachers interfered."
Ashlyn nodded, staying quiet.
.
.
.
.
"..thanks." Ashlyn mumbled. Aiden smiled, a genuine one.
"No problem! Your my friend after all," Aiden said.

Ashlyn's heart panged like someone had shot her. This boy—Aiden. He had done so much for her. Hell he liked her. It made Ashlyn even more guilty for what she was about to do next.
.
.
.
She would tell him. She had too. Screw it if she lost them, they had to know.
They had too.
She reached for her phone.
.
.
.
.

.
.
.
.
.
"Hey, where's my phone?"