Now It's My Time to Strike Back

As I began pulling my clothes off of my skin as I dressed in my usual uniform, tears fell down my cheeks as I thought more and more about the previous night. Nick tried to act as though nothing happened, but I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that filled my stomach every time he would smile or crack a joke or try to be affectionate towards me.

Even as I walked to English, I felt like I was a walking zombie. What was it that Vic could have threatened Nick with that he won’t even tell me about? I was so deep in thought that I barely noticed the person I accidentally walked into.

“Ow!” they exclaimed causing me to focus on my surroundings. My eyes met Jake’s as my body froze before regaining myself a second later.

“Watch where you’re going, Rose,” he said in a cold tone. I took a quick, silent breath opening my mouth to speak when Nick spoke for me.

“You should apologize for standing in her way,” Nick said in the same tone, but to Jake.

I avoided his gaze just standing there from the shock of Nick catching up to me in a matter of minutes.

“Well, JONAS, you should tell your girlfriend to stop daydreaming and realize where she’s going,” Jake replied in an angry tone.

“She wasn’t daydreaming and don’t talk about her like that!” Nick exclaimed just as heated.

“Why? It’s not like I should care how she feels anymore anyway!” Jake retorted.

“Is it because you’re angry at her for not choosing you and instead she chose me?! HUH?! IS THAT IT?!” Nick bellowed.

That was when everything went crazy. By this point a lot of students (mostly Seniors) had surrounded the boys with gaps for people to run away just in case teachers or any other faculty showed up to stop them, but for some reason no teachers came out. It happened as though everything were in slow motion. I saw Jake pull back his arm to swing at Nick, but he dodged it easily and moved me out of the way in the process.

“I don’t want to fight, Jake. It’d be pointless!” Nick exclaimed honestly.

I looked from Nick to Jake and back again as Jake spoke.

“You’ve got all bark, but no bite. You can’t take a hit anyway. You’re just a gay, singing pretty boy,” Jake sneered.

I knew he struck a nerve in Nick now because this time Nick swung and didn’t miss, a loud crack coming from the sound of Jake’s cheek colliding with Nick’s fist. Jake stumbled almost to the ground and had a pretty busted lip, but looked angrier than before. Immediately, he tackled Nick to the ground and they began to fight. By now, my body regained movement on its own and I rushed to the Nick’s side.

“Guys, stop it!” I exclaimed, but another group of voices cut across me.

“Rose?!” Mel got out as she, Mark, and Megan joined the group. Megan and Mel pulled me away from Jake and Nick as Mark separated the two.

“Jacob!” Vic got out as well just as Ms. Thorne and a couple of security guards came as the crowd began to disperse.

Megan, Mark, Mel, Jake, Nick, Vic, and I all stayed rooted to the scene when Ms. Thorne took a good look at all of us, shock at first covering her face when it was quickly replaced with sternness.

“My office NOW! All of you,” she added seeing our group of six now the only ones standing in front of the A building.

We filed to the D.A.B. where we sat patiently as Ms. Thorne called each of us into her office individually. Nick was called in first a worried expression on my face as he walked back into her office without even glancing at any of us.

Jake decided to break the silence.

“I hope he gets detention at least,” he said with a smirk constantly dabbing his lip with the sleeve of his jacket.

“Was that necessary, Jake? You didn’t have to do any of that!” I exclaimed getting heated over Jake’s ego.

“We were fighting cause pretty boy can’t stand anyone talking to you any kind of way,” was his retort.

I stood walking over to him in an instant and smacked him hard on the left cheek.

“What happened to you? What made you become like this?” I asked angrily.

“You did! It was all your fault! If you would have chosen me none of this would have happened!” he replied just as heatedly.

“You can’t blame Rose, Jake! You’re just jealous of Nick anyways,” Mel said to him coming to my defense as she pulled me away from the douche.

He scoffed before turning his head and said, “Whatever,” when silence reigned again. Just as Jake finished his mumbling, Ms. Thorne returned with Nick and called Jake into her office.

Nick glanced at our faces as Mel, Megan, Mark, and I walked up to him.

“What happened?” Mark asked.

“Did you get detention?” Mel asked.

“A week’s worth, but I’m not upset about it,” Nick answered in a calm manner.

“Why not?” Vic’s voice said ringing throughout the room. She walked up to our group with her arms folded across her chest.

“It was your comment that started the fight, wasn’t it?” she asked as though it were obvious.

“It doesn’t matter how it started. Jake was the one who took the first swing so Nick defended himself,” came out of my mouth instantly.

The tension was thick in the air as Vic and I glared at one another.

“Regardless of the fact, we’re all probably going to get detention for it anyways,” she responded before walking back to her seat just as Jake exited the office.

“That’s so not fair!” he yelled practically bursting through the front double doors. Vic looked as though she wanted to chase after him, but remained in her seat.

“Rose, you’re next,” Ms. Thorne said in a firm tone, her arms folded across her chest as she was in her business attire for the day.

I followed her as a small sigh escaped me. The others (excluding Vic) gave me sympathetic looks before I went into the back with our principal.

Her brown office surrounded us as I took my usual place in the chair on the right seeing as there were two whereas Ms. Thorne took her initial seat. A long sigh escaped her lips before she spoke.

“I’ve heard both Nicholas and Jacob’s sides of the story so now I want to hear your side,” she said the same tone as before.

I explained the situation exactly as I saw it causing her to run a hand through her hair.

“So, you bumped into Jacob, he verbally confronted you when Nick tried to end the argument, but Jacob wanted to continue it. Then, Jake went for the swing first after Nick’s antagonizing statement and then Jake did the same to Nick causing him to retaliate. Am I correct?” she asked making sure she’d heard me correctly as she wrote everything down.

“Yes. That’s correct,” I confirmed.

She clasped her hands together closing her eyes as she sighed again. A few moments later she opened them, stared at me and spoke.

“So, what did you do? Did you try to end the fight as well?” she asked.

“Yes, I did, but they wouldn’t stop. That was when Mark, Mel, and Megan came and broke up the fight and then Vic, you, and the security guards showed up,” I answered honestly.

A sigh escaped Ms. Thorne again before she spoke once more.

“I think you, Jake, and Nick need to talk about what’s going on between the three of you. You were just friends with Jacob almost 5 months ago. What happened?” she asked rubbing her forehead.

I licked my lips as I kept my silence. Did my principal really just ask me that?

“Well, whatever happened, you guys need to squash it because I don’t want any more fights between you three, got it?” she asked.

I nodded my head in response.

“Alright. You’re free to go,” she said writing on the paper she had in front of her and wrote on earlier.

I stood before walking out of her office without a word as my mind raced. I should be grateful Nick stood up for me like that, but the consequence was him getting a week’s worth of detention. I could only imagine what Jake’s punishment was.

When I returned to the front with the others, Ms. Thorne returned calling for Megan, Mark, Mel, and Vic all together at once. I gave them (except Vic) sympathetic smiles as Nick waited patiently for the others to leave.

Once the room was empty, Nick and I both opened our mouths to speak.

“What happened?” he asked while I asked, “Are you OK?” at the same time.

We stared at one another before Nick opened the door leading us away from the D.A.B.