That Summer | Raihan x Piers [Pokémon]

Chapter 7 ❀ Beginning Of Summer

Raihan's turquoise eyes were wide in shock, his face displaying nausea as anger filled every inch of himself. It consumed him to a point beyond control.

He didn't know how or when he had reached the group. The moment he had regained some of his rationality, one of the guys was lying on the floor while covering his nose, trying to prevent the blood from trickling down. He grabbed the collar of the next one, bumping his head as hard as he could against the other's and sending him spiraling against one of the lockers.

Piers couldn't even feel the relief from no longer having those repulsive hands sticking to his bare body because of the fear that filled him. Not once in the many months they had travelled together and spent time alongside each other had he seen Raihan get this furious. The word didn't even begin to describe the negative emotions the tall boy was feeling in that moment, he was fuming with rage.

"R-Raihan, s-stop!" Piers managed to cry out, his voice cracking in the process as he stared at the light brown-skinned male with frightened eyes. It was as if he had acted as Raihan's voice of reason because as soon as it had made it to his ears, Raihan stopped his rampage, panting frustratedly.

He hesitantly turned to face the frail boy to see if he had been harmed by his bullies, only to feel like he was being stabbed in the chest when he was met with Piers' horrified expression. Way to go, he told himself. That was precisely what he never wanted Piers to see. Instead of having helped him out of a tight spot — something he had sworn he'd do if need may be on the day he had first met him — Raihan had scared Piers possibly more than his bullies had.

"What the hell are you waiting for?! Get out of my sight!" Raihan yelled at the three Trainers, two of which had been lying on the ground before they all scattered out of the room in unison. The tall male squeezed his eyes shut, gripping at his orange hairband in frustration. Why did he have to snap in front of Piers like that? Why had he gotten so indescribably mad at those jerks? It was nothing new that Raihan hated bullies who took advantage of those weaker than themselves — especially when doing so in groups — but that wasn't why he was angry. It went deeper than that.

But now that he had been organizing his thoughts, he ended up persuading himself that he wasn't the only one to blame for what had gone down. His eyes instantly latched onto Piers' cyan ones, the latter tensing up at his piercing gaze. "Why didn't you resist them?!"

"T-They were just jokin'..." Never had he ever felt the need to lie to Raihan, but when he was confronted with his rough tone, Piers just simply couldn't speak the truth. "Joking?! Bullying is bullying! If you don't like it and stay quiet about it, they'll just keep doing it to you over and over! What would you have done if I hadn't come in time?!"

"I-I was resistin' at first... It only happens from time to time, so..." Again, Piers couldn't get himself to admit that he had been too pathetic to defend himself properly and only blurted out the alternative things that floated chaotically in his mind. "If I just bear with it—"

Raihan didn't allow the boy to finish and instead grabbed him by his shoulders and slammed him against the lockers — a bit too hard for someone who always paid attention not to strain his delicate body too much. "Why am I getting so pissed?!" Raihan thought, his teeth still gritted as his eyes never darted away from Piers'. Deep down he knew the reason, but he didn't want to admit it. Why? Because he felt disgusted by himself for feeling that way. Yes, he was jealous of the jerks that had felt free to touch Piers as they pleased.

"If you can forgive them for playing with you, then let's do the same... as you did with them." Raihan demanded in a growl, a red color searing across his face — one that couldn't be clearly classified as an only emotion. Piers' eyes widened in shock as he held in his breath instantly. Raihan wasn't serious about this, was he? He would never treat him as awfully as those bullies did, would he?