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When Monday arrived, Devon left with Bella in her truck. The girl seemed very nervous and somewhat distrustful, so Devon offered to keep her company for the first few days, and she gladly agreed. She didn't want to be alone and feel even more like an outsider than she already did.
Devon accompanied her to complete all the necessary paperwork, just as he had done when he arrived. After passing by the faculty parking lot, they headed to the student parking lot where Bella parked her truck. She mentally prepared herself for all those curious glances.
Devon stood by her side, serving as some kind of shield, and they entered the building together. Bella took out her class schedule to check where she needed to go first and was about to tell Devon when she felt someone standing next to her.
"You're Isabella Swan," Eric's voice was clear to Devon as he turned to look at him, his brow furrowed with a hint of amusement. Bella cast a quick pleading look at Devon.
"Hello, I'm Eric, the eyes and ears of this place. Whatever you need, anything at all, you can find me," Eric spoke rapidly.
"Bella," she quickly corrected him, looking back at Devon. Eric finally noticed Devon's presence.
"Oh, Devon, my friend. I see you've met my friend Bella."
Devon furrowed his brow even more but looked at Eric with some amusement. "Eric, Bella and I live in the same house," he reminded him.
It took Eric a full minute to process those words before he remembered.
"Oh, right. I'm sorry," he looked back at Bella, "By the way, you'll be a great feature. I write for the newspaper, and we'll put you on the front page."
Bella seemed alarmed, while Devon tried to stifle a laugh.
"Oh, no. Please, don't do that," she pleaded.
Eric quickly picked up on the girl's discomfort. "Alright, no article. Don't worry, calm down."
"Thank you," she looked at Devon again, seeking help.
"Very well," Devon stepped forward and cleared his throat. "Well, I'll take Bella to her first class, Eric. See you at lunch?"
"Yeah, sure."
Bella hurriedly walked alongside Devon, letting out a sigh of relief.
"That was very awkward," the girl murmured, and Devon let out a laugh.
"Well, at least they seem to like you. When I arrived, many avoided me because I scared them a bit."
Bella furrowed her brow, slightly amused. "How could you scare them?"
He shrugged. "I had half of my face bruised, so I guess that was a significant factor. Let me see your schedule."
Isabella handed it to him, and they walked a few steps in silence until Devon returned the paper.
"It's this way," he indicated for her to follow, and she did.
Once they were in front of the classroom, Devon bid farewell to the girl and headed to his own class. It was going to be a very long day with Bella becoming the new toy of the school.
🥀
During lunch, Devon was sitting with Angela, and Eric was in front of them talking about something that Devon hadn't been paying attention to. Angela probably barely understood what her friend was saying, but everyone let Eric keep talking.
It didn't take long for Jessica to arrive and take a seat next to Devon. Mike also joined, talking animatedly to Bella as if they were the best of friends. Devon smiled a bit, seeing the girl, and was glad they were at the same table.
Bella, on her part, seemed very relieved to see Devon at that table. She wouldn't have liked having to try to talk to a bunch of strangers. However, not more than a full minute passed when a guy approached the table quite fearfully and looked at Devon with a hint of panic. He was smaller than him, almost looked like a kid, but that couldn't be possible.
"Excuse me, are you Devon?" he asked, and everyone at the table, including Devon, turned to look at him.
Devon tried to smile kindly to reassure him, and it seemed to have worked. The poor guy still seemed fearful but not as much, maybe just a little nervous now.
"It's me. Is everything okay?"
"The principal sent me to call you. He's waiting for you in his office with your mom."
Devon furrowed his brow, a bit worried, but he stood up immediately without waiting for more words from anyone. He hurriedly left the cafeteria without anyone knowing about the fight the other day. Or did they? Even if they did, they shouldn't scold him at school.
His mind was in complete chaos that he didn't even notice when he passed by Edward Cullen, and he looked at him with a furrowed brow, debating whether he should go with him or not since he could hear his thoughts and how worried he seemed.
He decided it was better to continue on his way to the cafeteria and maybe see him later with the excuse of delivering his shirt, which rested in a bag on the passenger seat of his car, and making sure he wasn't scolded for the fight the other day.
But Edward was also a bit confused when he heard someone say his name. He could recognize Jessica, who was with the new girl. Isabella. He tried to read her thoughts, but there simply was nothing.
Devon walked down the hall to the principal's office; a secretary was outside and quickly noticed the guy's presence.
"Are you Devon?" the woman asked.
"Yes."
The woman seemed worried and maybe apologetic, but the guy didn't understand what was happening.
"Go ahead; they are waiting for you inside."
Still confused, Devon approached the principal's office and knocked softly a couple of times. The door opened only after he heard a soft 'come in' from the other side.
He swallowed audibly, a little fearful of what might happen in that room because he didn't want to get into more trouble like he had in his previous school. He first peeked his head inside, seeing his mom's back and the principal behind his desk.
The woman turned to look at him, and she didn't seem upset or angry. Rather, she seemed sad.
"Is everything okay?" he asked after entering completely.
"Take a seat, Devon. Please," the principal indicated, pointing to the chair next to his mom.
He did as instructed and impatiently waited for someone to say something.
"Am I in trouble?" he dared to ask. If that was the case, he preferred to know right away.
"It's not that, son," the principal told him, clearing his throat. "Your mom has something to tell you, but it's very delicate, and I need you to take a deep breath."
Now he was more confused than before.
"What's going on?" he looked at his mom.
The woman settled into her seat and looked at her son with sad eyes.
"Sweetie, does the name Eugene Kennedy sound familiar to you?"
Now Devon was more bewildered than before. Why was Eugene's name coming up right now? He stared at his mom for a moment before nodding.
"Eugene was my boyfriend."
Although his mom seemed surprised by that statement, she didn't show it at that moment. Instead, she took something out of her bag. It was a sheet of paper with a printed photo.
She handed it to Devon, and he looked at it intently. It was a picture of him and Eugene kissing near a restaurant they had been to once.
He looked at the photo, then at his mom, and then at the principal.
"I think I'm not understanding."
The woman cleared her throat before speaking. It seemed like she was trying to find the right words.
"Margo called me a while ago," Amy continued. "Apparently, they posted these sheets all over the school you used to attend. They've been doing it for a while, and it led to strong bullying against Eugene. I guess you understand what I'm saying." She paused for a moment; Devon felt his eyes starting to sting, but he wanted to push away those horrible thoughts that were beginning to surface in his mind. "It started when you left, and today they found Eugene dead in his room. It seems he committed suicide because of all the harassment he received at school. I thought it was something you should know immediately since Margo seemed quite concerned for you to know."
Devon was in complete shock as he began to deny. No. It had to be a damn joke. A stupid nightmare. He stood up quickly, trying to find air to breathe, but it felt like he was locked in a little box with no oxygen.
"No," he murmured. "It can't be."
His mom looked at him worriedly, just like the principal.
But then guilt hit Devon suddenly. It was his fault that Eugene had died. If he hadn't known him, Eugene would still be alive. If he had fought a little harder to stay, he could have protected him.
There were so many things in his head that he couldn't think, and he certainly couldn't breathe. He grabbed his backpack, which he had left on the floor, and ran out of the principal's office. He couldn't hear his mom or anyone calling him. There was an annoying noise in his ears along with a painful tightness in his chest.
But suddenly, all the sadness turned into anger. It wasn't really his fault; it was the fault of all those horrible people who dared to hurt him for something that wasn't his fault. Eugene had done nothing wrong; he was actually a good guy, intelligent, and very friendly. He always hated violence. And his only sin was falling in love with Devon Gray.
Devon left the school and leaned his head against the nearest wall while trying to drown his tears and hitting the wall hard, trying not to think about more horrible things.
Of all people in the world, Eugene didn't deserve that.
He stayed like that for a while until he felt someone gently take his shoulder. But he didn't want to deal with anyone at that moment and was ready to damn whoever had approached.
"Leave me alone; I want to be alone," he murmured with his eyes closed, still trying to breathe properly.
"It's not true; you don't want to be alone."
He recognized Edward's voice and turned to look at him. Cullen had a furrowed brow and seemed a bit worried.
"I would ask if you're okay, but it's obvious you're not. Do you want to tell me what happened?" Although Edward already knew, he preferred Devon to tell him.
Devon stared at him for a long moment before nodding, but Edward took him by the wrist to make him walk to his car. He didn't think twice before opening the door for him, and although Devon furrowed his brow, he wasn't in the mood to think about anything else.
Edward also got into the car and quickly started the engine.
"I figured you wouldn't want to be there when everyone came out of their classes," he took the paper bag that Devon had taken when he got in and left it in the back seat.
Devon looked at his trembling hands but smiled a bit as he nodded.
Edward drove for a while as both remained silent. Cullen noticed that his counterpart's mind was completely blank and didn't blame him. He just had to give him some time to feel better. And Devon really appreciated the long and silent journey.
That's how they arrived at a café far from the town but not reaching Seattle. The place was quite empty due to the hour, but it was very pleasant. Both guys were sitting face to face at a back table with a steaming cup of coffee in front of each.
Devon found the courage to tell Edward what had happened and how, at first, he had felt guilty, and then angry. He didn't cry again, but he still felt a strong pain in his chest.
"It's not your fault at all," Edward had told him calmly while taking a sip of his coffee. "It was the fault of all those who bullied him."
Devon shook his head without stopping looking at the table.
"But if I hadn't left, I would have protected him. I would have gone back to beat those idiots who hurt him."
"Was he the reason you ended up here?" Edward furrowed his brow.
Devon sighed and looked at Edward for the first time since they arrived.
"Yes. I was used to taunts and criticisms; my solution was to ignore them or resort to punches. But one day, they messed with Eugene, and I lost my mind. He didn't deserve any of those taunts and horrible comments. I sent the guy who bothered him to the hospital, but I was the only one who received a punishment."
Edward furrowed his brow.
"Why didn't you tell them it was because they were bothering him?"
"Eugene's parents didn't know he was gay, and he wasn't ready to tell everyone like I did, or well, it's not something I'm shouting everywhere, but I've never hidden it. So, I didn't want to get him in trouble at home. I didn't care about getting punched or punished if that meant he would be okay." Tears accumulated again, but he quickly wiped them away.
"I'm so sorry, Devon. I realize how important he was to you."
No more words were needed.