***
Dan can't believe Connor is now leaving in only a week.
How will he possibly survive without Connor? He's barely keeping it together with him here. Dan fears he may go completely insane without Connor.
The past weeks have flown by, and Dan is just about ready for a break from school, but there's one problem: Connor leaves before the break. Which means two weeks at home with his father, alone. That will suck majorly for Dan.
Dan glances across the school grounds, accidentally making eye contact with whom he now knows is Bethany Mota. She gives Dan a sad smile before looking away, not wanting his friends to catch the glance between them.
See, the thing is, over the past month, Dan has been texting her because, well, she looks, well, is lonely, and Dan knows what that feels like. He knows it feels like total shit, and he wants to try and prevent that.
"Was Mota looking at you just then?" Joe asks, glancing over at Dan, "she's so annoying."
Dan just shakes his head before looking elsewhere, listening in to Connor and Phil's conversation going on beside him.
"I can't believe I have to go!" Connor whines to Dan and Phil, pouting and sighing deeply, "I want to stay here with all you guys!"
"You should!" Phil says, laughing, "we have to keep in touch though. We'll all miss you."
"Dan gets all the cool friends," Connor whines, "I wish I could stay here instead, even if the weather is crappy."
"The weather is that bad!" Phil protests, "it's nice, mild, never too hot..."
"That's for sure," Connor laughs.
Dan sighs, looking around his group. Although they've all gotten really close, and are really great friends, Dan still can't help but feel like an outsider in the group. He still feels like he's partially invading on everyone else and he hates it.
Dan pulls out his phone, but soon realizes that he has no one to text, aside from his brother and mother, because all his friends are here. Screw it, Dan thinks, I'll just text Quinn.
Dan: hey little bro how are you?
To Dan's surprise, he gets a reply almost instantly, which is odd because Quinn should be in class right now.
Quinn: not good... Call? I'd rather not type it...
Dan: Okay...
Dan frowns, staring at the texts. That's odd, he wonders what Quinn wants... What of his dad has done something, what is his mother is hurt, what if...
Dan's phone starts vibrating.
Incoming call: Quinn
"Dan," Quinn breathes, his voice quiet, "I-Um... I've been meaning to tell you but you seemed troubled enough and mum's busy enough and I'd never tell dad..."
Dan listens as Quinn rambles on, wishing he could just tell Quinn to get to the point already.
"And well, school isn't great for me Dan. I know since we moved it's been great for you but..." Quinn's voice wavers as he swallows the lump in his throat, "I've been locked in a store cupboard by some kids in my class."
Dan's eyes widen and anger takes over him. How dare they do that to his little brother. Dan hangs up, standing abruptly and slinging his bag over his shoulder.
"Dan what are you doing?" Phil asks, frowning at Dan as he starts walking away, staggering to his feet and following after, "where are you going?"
Dan ignores Phil, determined to get to his brother, not even checking of Phil was still behind him as he runs out the gates. How did he not see this? How did he hide it so well?
Dan's pocket buzzes with a text on his phone.
Quinn: Dan?...
Dan: I'm coming now, hang in there.
Quinn: you don't have to... But ok please hurry before they come back.
And that's when Dan realizes how scared and desperate Quinn is for him to come; he didn't even argue, he was glad Dan was coming, and he certainly was going to be there for his brother.
Dan jogs the whole way over to the junior school. It was Adrian's last year there anyway before he came to Dan's school. It takes him fifteen minutes to get there, and even though Dan isn't particularly fit, it's the thought of his brother which keeps him going. He runs through the gates before stopping in the middle of the grounds.
Dan: where are you??
Quinn: I'm in the third building to the left as you come in.
Dan runs to the designated building and bursts in, to find it's a large hallway learning to other classrooms. At the end, there's a group of boys standing around a door.
All four of the boys jump when they see Dan, looking startled and guilty, but the tallest one, who still has nothing on Dan's height, fixes a snarl on his face. "Go away, we're here, so you'll have to go somewhere else."
Dan glares down at the kid, trying to be intimidating with his earrings, all black clothes and larger than average height. He folds his arms over his chest and narrows his eyes, locked in a stare off with this annoying, brown haired kid with hauntingly familiar blue eyes.
"D-Dan?" a weak voice stammers, and Dan pushes the kids aside to find Quinn curled up in a ball against the door, tears in his eyes and newly formed bruises on his skin. He's also covered in paint: blue paint to be exact.
"Aw wimp, is this your brother?" The brown haired kid sneers, "two losers, it fits."
Suddenly, all Dan can see is red. He grabs the brown haired kid and slams him against the wall, holding him there by his collar. Dan is breathing heavily, it's taking all his will power to stop himself from punching this kid - like he did to Quinn.
At this moment, Dan wishes he could shout, shout at the top of his lungs: leave me brother alone! But he can't. So instead, he just stares at the kid and the kid seems to finally get the message.
"Okay I'll leave him alone!" He cries, fear still evident in his eyes.
Dan looks at all the other kids, who have the same petrified look on they faces.
"We won't either!" They screech quickly when they meet Dan's gaze.
Satisfied, Dan throws the brown haired kid to the ground, just to make a point and goes to Quinn, helping him up. Once he's on his feet, Dan started to lead him out, only for the brown haired kid to throw something at Dan. Dan whirls around just in time for a spray of blue paint to hit his side and Quinn straight in the chest.
Dan doesn't hesitate this time, and his fist just flies into the kid's stomach, cutting off his and everyone else's laughter.
"Dan! What the hell?!" Phil yells, appearing at the end of he hall and rushing over to the kid Dan punched.
Perfect, Dan thinks, of course Phil only had to see Dan punch the kid, he didn't even hit him hard, only just hard enough to make it hurt, not enough to leave a large bruise like Quinn's many ones.
"Why'd you just punch him Dan?" Phil yells, "are you insane? That's my brother you know. You're just like your father!"
Phil's words shock Dan. How dare he say that? How dare he compare him to his father? He was giving the little twat what he deserved after what he did to his brother. Phil was making those assumptions without even knowing the story, he assumed Dan would hit a kid without any apparent reason.
"Well are you going to answer me?!" Phil asks, narrowing his eyes, "oh wait, you can't Dan, so convenient for you now."
An with that, Dan glares at Phil and turns on heel, grabbing Quinn by the arm and dragging him out of the school and all the way home.
Dan never wants to look at Phil ever again, not after what he said. Dan already has two main worries in his life: his dad and now his brother, and he certainly doesn't need Phil adding to that list.
***
The next day, Connor calls Quinn's school, pretending to be his father and excusing Quinn from school. He leaves Quinn in his room, telling him to text him if anything goes wrong, and to hide if his parents happen to come home.
He walks with Connor to school, the pair just walking quietly, Connor sensing that Dan feels a tad down and deeply lost in his thoughts.
He walks through the gates, barely making it to class as the bell sounds. He walks straight past Phil and sits in the middle again, just like last time he ignored Phil, except this time, Phil doesn't even acknowledge Dan, and Joe just looks between the pair, confused and sensing the tension.
At break, Dan looks towards the group, but Phil scowls at him, looking away with a sour expression. Connor jogs over to him though.
"Dan, what happened between you and Phil?" he asks, frowning in confusion, "can you tell me? I won't tell anyone."
Dan sighs, nodding and pulling out his phone.
Dan: my brother sent me a text yesterday, he was getting bullied. He was beaten up and covered in paint by these kids. I warned the kids and then one threw paint at me and Quinn, so I hit him on the stomach to teach him a lesson and Phil saw only that. And it turns out it was his brother. He then told me I was like my father and rudely reinforced the fact I was mute, without knowing this part of the story.
"Wow, that's... Intense. Why don't you tell him?" Connor asks, creasing his eyebrows in confusion, "and poor Quinn..."
Dan: because I'd rather him realise he's wrong, plus I have enough things to worry about.
"Okay Dan, but, come sit with us yeah?" Connor asks, but Dan's gaze drifts to another corner of the grounds, where Bethany sits in the corner, trying not to cry.
Dan shakes his head, and Connor just nods.
Dan: don't tell Phil too... I just want to stay away for a while
"Okay mate, but... I think you should face Phil soon," he says, "you need friends right now."
Dan nods, smiling at Connor and watching as he walks back to the group, slotting in next to Joe and Phil. Phil looks up and shoots Dan a dirty look, and Dan just sighs and looks away, walking over and sitting beside Bethany on the ground.
"Dan? Why are you here?" she asks, confused, trying to wipe tears from her eyes, "I thought you said..."
Dan shrugs, pulling out his phone and sending her a text.
Dan: I kind of need a friend, and you looked like you do too.
Bethany looks down at the text and smiles sadly at Dan through the tears, before pulling him into a hug.
"Thank you Dan, you have no idea how much that means," she says, sobbing into his shoulder.
But Dan has an idea how much it means, because he had always wished someone would've done that for him.
**********
AN: hey hope you like it! Please vote, comment and share!
Thoughts on Dan and Phil fighting? Thoughts on Quinn?
Update next week! THANKS SO MUCH FOR OVER 500 READS!!! and hope you like the new cover! I really like it :)
:D