-Sky-

"Max! Help!" I yelled, but one of the guys hit me in the stomach, clearing all the air out of my lungs.

"Shut up, bitch!" the guy hissed at me.

I saw stars. It took me a moment to recover from his hit, and when I did, I saw we were already on the other side of the road. I was about to scream again, but they noticed it. One of them clasped their hand over my mouth. I couldn't see anyone around, and just a moment later, the forest hid us from view.

I had never been so scared in my life. My stomach was hurting from the hit, and the guy who kept his hand on my mouth was squeezing my jaw so tightly I feared for my teeth. They took me deeper into the forest and soon I realized they were taking me to the river – I could already hear its roar.

"Luke thinks he's the king of the school," one of them said. "We'll show him..."

The other two laughed evilly. I tried to fight back, but I was small and they were huge, so they had no problem leading me all the way to the river.

Once we got there, they tossed me on the ground, and one of them even kicked my injured leg. The splint took most of the impact, but it still hurt when the forceful kick twisted the ankle. I wanted to start crying, but I didn't want to show them how afraid I was.

"What do you want from me?" I asked in a shaky voice.

"What do you think?" one of them spat. "Freak!"

That didn't make anything clearer to me. I tried to look for a way to escape, but I was back against the river, and the three of them were surrounding me. I really wished that they wouldn't kill me, but it had become clear to me they weren't too shy to hurt me.

"The all-mighty quarterback will pay. He shouldn't threaten me!" the guy spoke angrily and grabbed me by my shoulder, turned me around forcefully, and pushed my head deep into the cold river.

They were going to kill me, after all! I trashed around, trying to pry his hands off me so I could get some air into my lungs. I had no idea why, but the guy suddenly pulled me out of the water. He was laughing. They all were.

Another wave of fear washed over me when he pushed me back into the water and held me under it. I gave everything I had to fight back, but when I was about to win the battle in my adrenalin rush, another set of hands grabbed me.

I was losing air really fast, and I could feel the sharp rocks cutting my fingers. Then they let me get back up to breathe. They took a step back while I was gasping for air, and they just kept laughing. Only a human could be so vicious.

Pushing my wet hair away from my eyes, I turned to look at them. I was still trying to cough water out of my lungs, when one of them kicked me in my side, sending me flying on the ground, on the warm sand.

"Had enough, fag?" the leader of them laughed. "Don't cry, I'm sure that the all mighty Luke will make the booboo go away," they taunted.

I didn't move. I just stared at the sand under me. I heard them walking right next to me. One of them kicked my leg.

"Are you still alive, fag?" he laughed.

They were standing between me and the river. It was my chance to escape! I scooped a lot of sand with both of my hands, pushed myself up, and threw it all towards their eyes before they could even notice I was biting back.

I didn't stay there and see if my plan had worked. I got up on my feet and ran away from them as fast as I could. I heard them screaming and yelling in their fury, but none of them followed me right away, so I figured they were too busy washing the sand out of their eyes.

My heart was racing faster than ever, my ankle was hurting more, and my breathing was raspy from being almost drowned. I still kept running without looking back, knowing that I would get beaten up, or worse, if they caught up with me.

Too soon, I heard them following me, and I decided to run away from the school and hide somewhere. I hoped they would think I was returning to get my stuff. So, I ran in a different direction.

I could hear their angered yells close by. Too close.

-Max-

Troy still wasn't talking to me, so I didn't even try. I almost had managed to patch things up between us, but then I said he had to admit that Luke was looking for trouble. Troy got pissed about that, and I had no idea why. We were all friends, right?

I pushed them both out of my head when I took a quick shower and dressed up. Then, I took my bag and headed out without even looking at Troy, who was still giving me attitude. Once I was standing outside, I couldn't see Sky at the bleachers.

"Did you find a butterfly?" I chuckled happily and started walking around the building.

He was probably following an animal or insect. I wasn't worried until I saw his bag and his crutches lying on the ground near the tall hedge.

"Sky?" I called him and jogged to his belongings. "Where are you hiding?"

I stood there for a moment, listening to the sounds around me, but I couldn't hear him anywhere. I still wasn't too anxious, but I was getting worried. He shouldn't be walking around without his crutches yet.

Then I heard a faint meow somewhere at my feet, and I crouched to see a cardboard box hidden between the branches. I saw a wounded cat with three or four kittens with her.

That was the moment when I realized something bad had happened to Sky. He would never have abandoned a wounded animal.

"Sky!" I yelled at the top of my lungs and turned to look around, almost panicking. "SKY!"

"What's going on?" I heard Troy's voice just before he and Luke came running around the corner.

"Sky's gone!" I yelled at them and tried to spot Sky. "Something has happened to him!"

"How can you be so sure?" Troy asked calmly.

I pointed at the cats, and when he saw them, his eyes flew wide open.

"Something has happened to him," Troy gasped and looked around, calling Sky's name.

I took a few steps away from the two of them, starting to feel really scared when I couldn't find Sky.

"Sky!"

I was about to run back to the bleachers to check if he was there, but then I saw Luke. He was staring at the ground, looking calm and uncaring, and I almost snapped. Troy was pushing through the fence to see if Sky was behind it, but Luke was just staring at the ground!

"Luke!" I yelled at him, but he ignored me.

I didn't have time for him, so I took a step towards the bleachers, but he grabbed my hand.

"Look," he said and pointed at the ground. "Aren't those his footprints?"

"What?" I asked and looked at the gravel.

There were plenty of footprints, but I could recognize a few of them – they were left behind from his new splint.

"Someone's been dragged towards the forest just now," Luke said sharply and I could see it now – there were holes in the gravel, like someone had dragged their feet.

"Troy!" I yelled at him and started running towards the forest with Luke.

Troy caught up with us just before we were about to enter the forest. We had to slow down on the uneven ground, and Luke kept pointing at the fresh footprints. They were clearly leading to the river!

But once we were there, we couldn't see anyone around.

"Sky!" I yelled while Luke studied the riverbank.

"There's a lot of water on the ground... And a drop of blood," Luke said angrily, kicking a rock into the river. "What the fuck is going on?!"

"We need to find him – come on!" Troy spoke and started running back. "I think I saw more footprints here!"

We followed him as fast as we could, and the fear I felt was almost consuming me. Where was Sky? What had happened to him? Was the blood on the ground his?

I felt rage rising inside me, conquering my fear. Someone had hurt my Sky.

And they would pay for it.

-Sky-

They were still following me. I was running as quietly as I could away from the school, but for some reason, they had started following me. I wasn't sure if they had seen me, but I could hear them yelling my name somewhere close by. Maybe they were following my footprints.

It was getting really hard with my hurting leg, but the adrenalin in my body gave me the strength to carry on. I was trying to be as quiet as I could, while I limped past the old trees, trying to find a place to hide.

Then I spotted a couple of big boulders on my left. I almost missed them, because they were almost sealed away from sight by thick bushes and small trees, and I wished that the three boys wouldn't notice them.

I had gained some distance from them, so I sneaked quietly towards the rocks, trying not to leave any footprints. My ankle was on the verge of giving up, but I bit my teeth together and continued my way down the hill.

Once I had pushed myself through the branches, I stopped to listen to the forest. I couldn't hear them anymore. I wished they had returned to school, but I didn't want to take the risk, so I hid behind the boulders and sat down. I tried to make myself tiny and invisible, and waited.

My body started shaking all over. I hadn't stopped to think about what had happened at the river, but at that moment, it finally sank in. My clothes were soaking wet, and my fingers had tiny wounds and scratches on them from the rocks on the riverbank.

But those were nothing. I also had a big gash crossing my palm, and it was bleeding heavily. I hadn't even noticed it earlier.

I had to look away for a moment. Seeing all the blood almost turned my stomach upside down, and I wasn't one to get easily scared of blood. I had seen a lot of wounds on animals that I had helped to rescue with my uncle, and I usually had one or two wounds on me at all times – clumsy me – but after fighting for my life, it was almost too much to handle.

And the wound looked really nasty. I could see that it wasn't life threatening, but it would need stitches – a lot of them.

Suddenly, I could hear a cracking sound somewhere close by, and I stopped breathing. My senses were set on overdrive, so I could hear someone cursing quietly. I looked at my hand and wondered if I had bled enough to leave a trail. If I had, they would find me really soon. I stayed completely immobile, breathing as quietly as I could, and then...

They walked away.

I let out a silent but deep breath and leaned my head back against the rocks. They were heading deeper into the forest, and I waited for a long time before leaving my hiding place, even after their voices were long gone.

I was getting cold in my wet clothes, and I almost collapsed back on the ground when I tried to put some pressure on my injured leg, but Max was probably looking for me already, and the cats needed immediate care, so I had to start moving.

I grabbed a thick, dead branch from the ground and tried to use it as a support when I started making my way back to school. Max was probably worried sick and turning every stone to find me. That thought gave me strength, and I picked up my pace. I just had to endure the pain a little while longer, and I would be safe in his arms.

I limped as fast as I could, keeping my eyes and ears open in case the bullies had decided to give up searching for me. I couldn't understand why they had attacked me in the first place. Why did they think that hurting me would be a good idea? Were they really going to kill me? No, I didn't think so – they were just trying to scare the hell out of me, which they did. Or did they hate my kind so fiercely that they were willing to go to jail for manslaughter?

I shivered when I thought about that. It was one of the reasons why I liked animals better than humans – at least animals didn't kill for fun. Humans did.

I had no idea how far I was from school, and at one point, I wasn't even sure if I was going in the right direction, but I kept going. The terrain led down the entire time, and I had been running up while getting away from the bullies, so I was probably in the right direction.

And then I heard noises coming straight in front of me. For a second, I thought about hiding, but I knew the three voices: they belonged to Max, Luke, and Troy.

"Max!" I yelled and started crying from relief. "Max...!" I repeated, and my voice was already cracking.

"Sky!" Max shouted back, and just two seconds later, the three of them appeared right in front of me.

I dropped the branch and hopped the last two steps forward, colliding with Max's chest so hard that it almost knocked my lungs empty. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and hid my face against his chest at the same time, when his arms embraced me tightly.

"Oh my lord..." Max breathed shakily. "Don't ever do that again," he continued in an angry voice.

He pressed my head against his shoulder, and I let my tears soak his clothes. I had tried to stay strong through the whole ordeal, but now, when I was safe with Max and my friends, all the strength in me washed away, and I felt weak. Max was rocking me in his arms and I could feel the light shivers going through him.

"Sky? What the hell happened to you? Your clothes are wet!" I heard Troy's voice.

"You're bleeding," said Luke.

"What?" Max said and pushed me far enough to see my face. "What happened?" he asked in a voice filled with worry.

Troy was already wrapping my hand with a thick pile of napkins.

"There... There was the guy," I hiccupped. "From the bus... he had friends too, and they... they dragged me h-here, and..." I trailed off and shivered when I thought about the water. "They took me to the river, and pushed me under..."

"What?!" the all three of them growled.

"Where are they?" Max asked angrily, and he started to shiver even harder – but this time from anger.

"Let's just go – they went that way, but they are far... I think," I said and pointed in the direction where I was coming from.

Both Luke and Troy took a step towards the place where I had seen the bullies for the last time.

"No!" I squeaked. "Please – let's just go," I pleaded – I didn't want them to get into any trouble.

Max pulled me against his chest, but I still tried to look at Troy and Luke, who were furious. There was a small pause of silence, and Troy and Luke seemed like they were about to obey me. I looked up at Max, who was staring at his friends, and I had never seen him so angry before. He was almost trembling in his anger.

"Find them!" Max growled, and his voice oozed with rage.

That was all they needed. Luke and Troy nodded and left running deeper into the forest.

"Max, no!" I said weakly and turned to look at him. "Call them back!"

"No – no one hurts you," Max said and turned us around.

I looked over my shoulder, but I couldn't see our friends anywhere anymore. Max led me back to school, supporting me with every step.

"You shouldn't have let them go," I said in a tiny voice.

"They're not going to get away with this," Max said when we stepped out of the forest.

"We should let the teachers handle them! Now Troy and Luke might be in trouble too!" I tried to reason with him and stopped.

"We'll let them handle them, after Luke and Troy have dealt with them," Max said. "Come on – you need to see a doctor."

"How did you know I was in the forest?" I asked, refusing to take a step.

"Luke found your trail – come on now!" Max was getting anxious. "You're bleeding!"

"No," I said. "We should wait for them."

"They'll be fine," Max grunted. "Don't make me carry you," he continued and yanked my hand.

I shook my head, but followed him anyway. "This is wrong."

"No – you know what's wrong?" Max stopped and grabbed my bleeding hand, showing the bloody napkins to me. "This is wrong. They tried to drown you!"

"They were just trying to make me scared," I said in a strong voice. "They let me get some air!"

"I don't fucking care what they meant to do!" Max yelled at me. "They hurt you! And I'll show every single one of them that if they or anyone else touch you ever again, they will regret it!"

I stared at him for a long time. I had never seen this side of him before. I wasn't scared of him, but I was shocked that he thought that way. Then he stepped right in front of me and placed his hands on my cheeks.

"If something happens to you, I can't..." he trailed off, and his voice sounded awfully weak. "I just can't."

I looked into his eyes for a moment, and for some reason, I nodded. Maybe it was because I would've done the same thing if it had been Max who got hurt.

"Come, please," Max said and wrapped his arm under my armpits. "You need to see a doctor now."

"No!" I said. "There's a cat who needs my help!"

"Sky, you need–"

"I need to help the cats!" I said with a strong voice. "We need to take them to a vet!"

"We need to take you to the doctor!" Max objected.

I gave him the most serious look I could muster. "We are helping the cats," I said, giving no room for arguments.

"Okay, fine! We'll call the animal rescue. They'll come take the cats, and then we take you to a doctor, okay?" Max suggested.

"And we'll wait until they arrive!" I said sternly.

"You are bleeding!" Max tried to reason with me.

"So is the mamma cat," I said. "End of discussion!"

Max shook his head, but gave up. He picked up his phone and searched for the closest animal rescue center, and by the time we arrived at where the cats were hiding, he had already made the call.

"They are on their way," Max said. "Show me your hand."

I was staring at the female cat, and she didn't seem to be in immediate danger. I gave my hand to him without even looking at him.

"It's not bleeding that much anymore," Max sighed and wrapped a new pile of napkins around it. "What happened? How did they find you?"

I told him everything while trying to comfort the cat and her kittens at the same time. I didn't care if I was bleeding or not – the cats needed my help. It took almost twenty minutes for the rescuers to arrive.

"I'll come see you guys, okay?" I told the cats before the agents took them away.

"My dad is on his way. He should be here any second, and then we'll take you to the hospital," Max told me. "Your parents need to know about this."

I sighed. I was still feeling scared and anxious, but taking care of the cats had given me something else to think about. But now they were gone, and reality hit me once again.

"Max..." I muttered and hugged him.

"Everything will be fine," he said soothingly. "They will be punished for hurting you."

I nodded and rested my head on his shoulder. The fear couldn't quite reach me when I was with him – I knew he would protect me.

I was safe with him.