The bell rang and everyone started leaving for lunch quickly. I wiped off the board, the notes I had written leaving small smudges on it. I turned around and saw Gee still sitting in his seat, his head ducked down.
"Gee?" I asked softly, kneeling down next to him.
He sniffled, looking up at me. Gee started unbuttoning his shirt and I looked in shock. Then I saw the bruise on his ribs.
"Oh god," I muttered.
"I-I don't want the other kids to see that I was crying," he whispered.
"Stay here then," I said.
I gave him my lunch again, like I had last week. He ate quietly and I did paperwork until the bell rang. Gee still looked nervous and I reached across my desk to hold his hand.
"Do you want me to write you an excuse to go back to your dorm?" I offered. "You can have the rest of the day off."
He shook his head. "I-I don't wanna because then Bert's gonna come and I know he's gonna be upset with me. But I don't wanna go to class either."
"Okay, I'll e-mail your teachers and have you excused," I said. "You look tired, sweetheart, do you want a nap."
He nodded and I ran my fingers through my hair. The front of my desk went all the way down to the floor so I pulled my chair out.
"Wanna take a nap underneath my desk?" I offered.
Gee nodded, taking off his jacket. He used it as a pillow as he laid down on the carpet. Gee let out a sigh of content. I took off my own suit jacket, laying it over his body. He smiled happily, making grabby hands towards his backpack. I looked inside the front pocket and found a pink pacifier. Gee took it and sucked on it happily, closing his eyes just as students started walking in.
I went through the rest of the day, walking behind my desk to check on Gee every now and then. He slept peacefully the entire time. When the last class ended, I cleaned everything up. I stacked all the chairs up on the desks upside down and picked up crumpled pieces of paper. When I finished cleaning the board, I kneeled down beside Gee.
"Hey, sweetheart," I whispered.
Gee whimpered, curling into a little ball. I glanced at his phone, noticing how he had multiple missed calls and ignored texts from Bert. He got up, crawling into my lap as he yawned.
"Hey, sweetheart, you feeling better now?" I asked.
"It hurts more," he whimpered, placing a hand gently over where the bruise was.
I ran my fingers through his hair and he sighed.
"I-I don't wanna be hurt by Bert anymore," he whispered.
I smiled, wrapping my arms around him.
"B-but he's gonna be so angry," he cried. "And he's already angry now because I was sleeping and didn't hear my phone."
"C'mon, I'll go with you and we can go straight to the headmaster's office," I said.
"He's gonna hurt me, daddy, I don't want him to hurt me," Gee sobbed, clutching onto my shirt as he buried his face into my chest.
My eyes widened but I don't think he even really realized he called me daddy. I've just been taking care of him so much recently that maybe he's starting to see me like that. But fuck, it sounded so nice.
"Hey, hey, sweetheart," I whispered, running my hand through his hair.
I just hummed softly and rocked with him in my arms until he eventually calmed down.
"I'm gonna be by your side the whole time," I promised. "He won't lay a finger on you."
He nodded and we both put on our jackets. He took a few shaky breaths, wiping his eyes. Gee held onto my hand, looking down at his feet.
"Hey, it's gonna be okay," I reassured.
I kissed his forehead as he sniffled. Gerard grabbed his bag and walked out with me. I pulled my hand away but stood close to him. There weren't many people here now, everyone had all left for their dorms.
Gee stopped outside the door, whimpering quietly as he shook his head. He started to walk away but I was quick to catch up.
"Gee, what's wrong?" I asked.
"I-I can't do it, Mr. Iero," Gee said.
I grabbed his arm gently and he stopped. And thankfully no one else was in the hallway with us.
"Gee, sweetheart, remember my story?" I asked. "I don't want it to be too late for you too."
He turned around and I smiled, wiping his eyes softly.
"Come on, let's go," I said.
Gee followed me into the office and I talked to the receptionist. We went back into Headmaster Carter's office and Gee sat across the desk from him and I stood behind Gee.
"What can I help you with?" Headmaster Carter asked.
He was an old guy, in his late sixties now. But he was rather kind and understanding. Gee whimpered, looking down. His phone buzzed and I looked down at the new message.
Bert: where the fuck are you?
Bert: You better be dead and not fucking ignoring me.
"Nothing," Gee said. "I'm sorry for nothing you."
He got up to leave and I raised my eyebrows. Gee whimpered before sitting back down.
"Were people making fun of your skirts again, Gee?" Carter asked.
Gee shook his head, looking down at his lap.
"Hey, Gee, it's okay," I reassured. "Tell him."
Gee sniffled, looking up again.
"Bert is mean," he said quietly. "A-and he yells at me a lot and hits me."
"And who's Bert?" Carter asked, pulling out a large folder.
"Bert McCracken," Gee said.
"Okay, can you tell me about what he would do specifically?" Carter asked.
Gee sniffled and nodded. "He would yell at me and hit me a lot and sometimes he would make me hold my textbooks against my body a-and he would hit the book so it hurt me but wouldn't leave marks."
"Gee," I said softly as he cried.
"How long has this been going on?" He asked.
"I-I don't know," Gee cried. "Maybe since last year?"
"Mr. Way, you can wait out in the hallway, I'll call Bert down," Carter said.
I followed Gee out and sat beside him outside of the office.
"You're doing a good thing," I reassured.
Five minutes later Bert walked by. He glared at Gee and he burst into tears. I tried to calm him down as he went into the office.
"Hey, sweetheart, let's go," I said.
I held his hand, bringing him into the staff bathroom across the hall. It was single stalled and definitely cleaner than the student bathrooms. I sat Gee up on the counter as he clung onto me.
"He's so mad at me," he cried.
"Hey, sweetheart, just take a deep breath," I said.
Gee nodded, taking in a shaky deep breath.
"Good boy," I praised, rubbing his back.
He sniffled, taking a few more deep breaths. I dried the tears off his face, kissing his forehead.
"It's gonna be okay," I reassured.
I cupped his face gently in my hands.
"You're gonna be just fine, okay?" I asked and he nodded. "Now, do you think you can go back out there?"
He nodded softly and I smiled.
"Why do you care so much?" He asked. "I'm nothing."
"Sweetheart, no, you are not nothing," I denied. "I don't want you to ever think that, okay? You're special and beautiful and perfect."
"You think so?" Gee asked.
"Of course, sweetheart, and don't let anyone else tell you otherwise," I said.
Gee kissed my cheek and hugged me tight. We walked out and sat back in our seats. Ten minutes later we were called back into the office. Gee didn't want to sit in the chair next to Bert because he was too scared. I stood with him by the wall.
"Gee, can you show me some of the bruises you have?" Headmaster Carter asked.
Gee nodded, taking off his uniform jacket. I held it for him as he unbuttoned his shirt and pushed his tie aside. Carter sighed as he looked at the bruises.
"That wasn't me," Bert denied. "Was it, Gee?"
Gee looked like he didn't quite know what to say, like he was actually about to agree with Bert.
"Mr. McCracken," Carter said. "Let him speak for himself. Gee, did Bert do that to you?"
Gee nodded softly, covering himself up again. I put his jacket on him again and he gave me a grateful smile.
"Alright, Gee, how about you go back to your dorm, okay?" Headmaster Carter asked. "I'll deal with Mr. McCracken."
I walked out with Gee but he didn't go to his dorm.
"I'm too scared," he whimpered. "Bert knows which room is mine, I don't want him to come and hurt me."
"alright, sweetheart, come here," I said, sitting on a bench with him. "How about you go back to your dorm, I'll walk you if you want, and you can lock the door and I'll make sure that one of the security guards stays in your hall, okay?"
He nodded and I smiled.
"Who's your roommate?" I asked.
"Ryan," Gee said.
"C'mon, he's your best friend," I said. "You two can just stay in the rest of the night and watch movies or something. Chances are if Bert's getting expelled then he'll still be here a couple days. I can walk you to class tomorrow, okay?"
Gee nodded and I smiled. I walked him out of the school and it was still a little light out.
"What about dinner?" He asked.
"You keep snacks in your room, right? That's what most kids do," I asked and he nodded. "I think tonight is just a perfect movie and snack night."
Gee smiled softly and nodded.
"Does Ryan know about Bert?" I asked.
He shook his head and I sighed as he shivered. I took off my blazer, putting it on his shoulders instead. We got to his dorm room and Gee gave me a hug and kissed my cheek.
"Thank you, Mr. Iero," he said.
"Stay safe, okay?" I asked.
He nodded and he held my hand. Gee gave it one last squeeze before he went into his dorm room. I walked down the stairs and found one of the security guards.
"Hey, are you the night-man?" I asked and he nodded. "Can you go up and stay in the hall and make sure no one goes into room 26?"
He nodded and went upstairs. I sighed, walking back to my own place when I realized Gee still had my jacket.