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Arielle Evans 

I come home from school feeling the happiest I've been in years. Every time a popular has even come near me, Mason had stepped in, meaning I hadn't been bullied all day. Populars who were actually smart kept their distance knowing that messing with me would mean messing with Mason.

 "Hi, honey. Did you make any new friends?" Mom asks as usual.

 "Marcel came back." I tell her.

 "Oh, that's great!" Mom does a mini cheer and I groan. I decide against telling her about Mason, knowing she will get overexcited. I remain silent while she chatters on the entire walk home. The second we get home, the landline rings.

 "I got it!" I call, considering my mother has already gone upstairs. I pick up the phone and press the green button to receive the call.

  "Hello?" I say.

 "Ari?" A soft voice squeaks from the other end of the line.

 "Who's this?" I ask.

 "Ari, its Marcel."

 "Oh, hi Marcel! What's up?" I ask happily.

 "Please, no time for this. Come to my house quickly, please." Marcel begs, his voice just above a whisper.

  "Why? Marcel, are you alright?" I question.

 "Ari, just come quickly. Please." Marcel pleads.

  "Okay. I will be there in ten." I promise.

 "Mom!" I shout. No response. "Mom!" I shout again.

  "What is it, Arielle?" Mom yells.

 "I need you to drop me at Marcel's!" I shout.

 "Hold on, I'm coming!" Mom calls. Seconds later, I hear her footfalls on the steps as she runs downstairs. "Why do you need to go now?" she asks.

 "I don't know. He asked me to come quick." I tell her.

 "Okay. Just this once." Mom says. I follow her out to the car and we speed off to Marcel's place. "Call me if you need anything." she says once we arrive. I nod quickly before slamming the car door and sprinting up the steps. I fantasize his mother opening the door and many people shouting "Surprise!" as a surprise birthday party, but the idea vanishes when I realize that no one would show up even if he tried. I ring the doorbell, and his mother opens the door, her eyes watery.

 "Arielle, thank god. He's upstairs. Please." She begs, and I frown. Anne is usually so happy, it kills me to see her down like this. I sprint up the stairs and through the halls I know so well before finding myself in front of his door. I knock twice and hear a faint "come in". I push open the door and gasp at what I see. Marcel lies crumpled on the floor, his head in his hands, his glasses broken next to him.

 "Marcel?" I whisper. He looks up and I suck in a breath. He has a dark black eye and several cuts and bruises across his face. His lip is cut severely, and his shirt is torn at the shoulder.

  "Ari." He smiles faintly before putting his head back in his hands.

 "Marcel, who did this to you?" I choke out the words. He simply shakes his head. "Marcel, answer me, please." I beg. I crouch down next to him, a tear of my own breaking free. "Marcel." My voice is faint as well now, simply a part of the silence filling the room.

"Kevin. Kevin and Tyler. They...they were mad...at. At M..Mason be...because he sat...he sat with...h...he sat with us...instead of them." Marcel stutters.

 "They beat you up because of that?"

 "They just needed a reason to beat me up." For the first time in a long time, Marcel spoke a sentence without stuttering. I hold back the urge to mention it and keep focused on the topic at hand.

 "Oh, Marcel." I sigh, wrapping my arms around him. "I'm so sorry."

 "It's not your fault, Ari." He assures me.

 "C'mon, let's get you cleaned up." I say, grabbing his hand.

 "No. No way am I going down there. My mom is going to flip out crying again and I can't handle that right now." Marcel shakes his head. "There is a first aid kit in my bathroom, we will use that." I nod and get up, grabbing the first aid kit from the top shelf of the bathroom. My heart breaks a little every time when he winces as I am cleaning his cuts. I put bandages on the major ones and just clean up the smaller ones. Marcel sucks in a breath when I begin to dab his lip to clean it up. I clean it up quickly and pack up the first aid kit, putting it back in the bathroom where I found it. Marcel smiles at me when I come back, his white teeth gleaming in the light.

 "You aren't coming back tomorrow, are you?" I ask.

 Marcel shakes his head. "I'm sorry, Ari. I can't deal with this anymore, as much as I want to be by your side."

 I shake my head and manage a smile. "No, it's okay. It's what's best for you, and that is all I want." Marcel grins at me, and I give him one last hug before leaving.

 "Call me if you need anything, okay?"

 "Without a doubt." Marcel waves at me as I leave the room, feeling guilty as hell.

 **

When Mason smiles at me on the bus the next morning, I manage to keep my smile down, and I look away. His face falls and he sits next to me. "What's wrong, Arielle? Where is Marcel?"

"Home." I answer simply, not in the mood to give him details.

 "Why? He isn't sick, is he?" Mason asks, and I nearly give in because he sounds so concerned.

 "No. He is bullied, just like me, and yesterday your precious little friends beat him up, so no, he is not sick, he is home because of your friends." I snap, guilt pinching my stomach.

 "What?" Mason cries, looking astounded. "Who? Why?"

 "Tyler and Kevin. They were upset because you sat with us instead of them. I'm lucky they didn't come after me." I answer. Mason's face turns red.

 "Here, hold this." He says, pressing his phone into my palm and his backpack next to me. I furrow my eyebrows, confused. He stands, and when I realize what he is about to do, I cry out.

 "Mason, no!" I hiss. He ignores me and heads to the back of the bus. I cover my eyes until I hear a shout. Tyler's shout. A bruise is already forming on his cheek where Mason hit him. Mason swings his arm against Kevin's jaw, and Kevin stumbles back.

 "What the hell was that for?" Kevin shouts.

 "For hitting Marcel, you absolute idiots!" Mason spits. Kevin tackles him, bringing him to the floor. I gasp and immediately run to the scene, Anne trailing closely behind. Kevin swings multiple times at Mason, but he dodges all of the hits and brings his knee to Kevin's stomach, sending him upwards off of Mason. "What did he do wrong, huh? What did he do wrong?" Mason demands, now on top of Kevin. Tyler struggles to pull him off, and eventually gives up, retreating to his seat to watch.

 "You sat with him, jerk! You replaced us!" Kevin spits.

 "One day, Kev! One day, and you have to go beat the kid up! He's innocent!" Mason shouts.

 "Boys, enough." Anne interrupts. They don't listen.

  "He's a nerd, Mason! Why are you getting so worked up?" Kevin demands.

  "He's innocent!" Mason seethes. 

 "Mason, please." I say softly. He stiffens and stands up from his position over Kevin. He has a slightly cut lip, but he is otherwise fine.

 "If you ever touch that kid again, you'll have to go through me, and I won't be gentle then." Mason warns before spinning on his heel and walking away.