From England, With Love

Bloody Fists

"You alright, Michael?" Tabitha asks, looking up briefly from her work. He folds his arms over his chest and spreads his legs a bit.

"Yeah, just bored really and looking for people to chat to." He turns to face me and I can feel his green eyes burn into me like some kind of medusa, but I refuse to look at him. Memories of what happened in London crop up in my head and I feel myself grow nauseous.

"You alright, Pete?" He asks, his voice mockingly cheerful. "Haven't seen you since the ball." He continues to stare at me, and I am so tempted to run away. I try to speak, to say something that will get him to go away, but jaw seems locked and I can't even open my mouth; I toss a glance at Tabitha and clear my throat, trying to get her attention. I'm not sure what she can do to help me; she doesn't even know I was assaulted, but without Ae here... I don't know what to do. She hears me and looks up, and through my gaze I try to communicate that I feel uncomfortable, her brown eyes stare back for a moment, lined in electric blue, before turning to my attacker. She closes her book, puts her pen down and sits up.

"Did you enjoy it?" She asks, a fake smile crafted neatly on her face. "I was involved in organising it so I wouldn't mind feedback." She maintains eye contact with him, forcing him to give her attention.

I pretend to be preoccupied with my work, but in my peripheral vision I see Michael rub the back of his head, likely where he had hit it that night.

"It was really fun! Just wish it had been longer. I'd just started really getting into it when we had to go." At the end of his sentence he readjusts himself, his knee knocking mine. I know precisely what he's getting at and the nauseous feeling in my stomach grows more intense. I stare at the door, willing Ae to arrive.

"That's great!" Tabitha exclaims, "I'm sorry you got cut off, we just couldn't stay any later because we had a school license." There are slight daggers in her voice, and I can she's suspicious of something. By now, Milo has turned their attention away from their work and was carefully watching. I close my textbook, my hands shaking as I feel the sudden, genuine urge to be sick. Milo nudges Tabitha's leg with their foot and tosses a discreet glance to me. Just as Michael opens his mouth to respond, Tabitha cuts him off.

"Sorry, I just need to speak to Pete about something in private. If you have any other feedback let Milo know and they'll pass it on to me." She smiles a plastic smile again before tapping me on the shoulder. I stand up quickly and she hauls me out into the corridor toward by the toilets.

"Pete, sweetie, what's wrong?" She says in a surprisingly motherly tone. "You look terrified, has something happened?" She puts a comforting hand on my shoulder as hot tears sting the backs of my eyes.

"I-, at the ball... he-" as I try to force myself to explain what happened, I hear the main door to the Sixth Form block open.

"Pete?!" Ae comes rushing over, instantly noticing the state I'm in. "What happened?" He asks, trying to keep his voice as soft as possible. He's slightly out of breath, probably from his class and his face reads panic. Unable to answer him, I instead just start to cry. Before Ae can do anything, Tabitha pulls me into a hug and starts patting my back. She speaks in a low tone to Ae.

"We were in the common room when Michael came over-" She began, cut off instantly at the mention of that name.

"That son of a bitch," Ae curses, "is he still in there?" He demands, glaring down the corridor toward the Common Room. Tabitha nods and he turns, but she grabs his arm.

"Hey," she says, firmly. "Before you go doing anything stupid, tell me what happened. Pete is my friend, too." I continue to cry into her shoulder. She's correct, I trust her. Ae is quiet for a moment.