As you are a smart cookie and can see from the title there are other parts that led up to this so make sure you know what happened in them before reading this! Now off we go!

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Sophia: I'm in my closet.

With the message sent to her father, since Mama left early for a work emergency, Sophia set her phone down by her crossed legs and waited.

Tucked beneath her rack of shirts, the shadow it cast on her felt soothing and safe. In her closet, all the noise from the busy streets, the loud world outside couldn't penetrate. In her closet, everything was organized in colors and everything had its perfect place. Even the soft scent of fabric softener added to the closet's comforting atmosphere.

The door to the closet opened and her father stuck his head in. Sophia didn't move from her spot, she knew even with the shadow of her shirts, he'd see her curled legs.

After entering and closing the door behind him, Mason took the spot across from Sophia, mirroring her cross-legged position. The cabinet he leaned against held her shoes which meant his face wasn't hidden from her. She appreciated the fact that he placed himself where she could see him clearly.

For a long moment, Mason held her gaze but said nothing. Sophia locked her fingers together and rested them in her lap. She knew she needed to explain her presence in her closet. But she knew he'd understand that hiding in here held significance. With the previous day's events, she accepted that he might even be able to infer why she was in her closet. But his silence told her that he would let her talk first.

"Yesterday," she said. "I went to school not knowing about the rumors being spread. Though the day was challenging, you resolved the situation, Mama and you made me feel safe again."

She squeezed her hands together and looked down at them as they turned red from her grip. Her father's hand appeared in her vision as he gently laid his hand on top of hers. His hand seemed big enough to encompass both of hers. Strong capable hands that made her feel safe and protected when they held her own.

But today she wouldn't be able to hold his hand as she faced the day.

"Though the ones who spread the rumors are going to be punished and today they will apologize to the whole school... I do not know how I feel about going to school."

With the reassuring pressure of her father's hand, Sophia relaxed her tight hold on her hands.

"You don't have to go today," Mason said.

"That is an option I considered." She met her father's gaze. "But not attending school for one day would not change needing to return the following day. And if I am not there for the assembly what would be the point of it, it is for me that it's being held?"

"That's true," Mason said, retreating to his side of the closet. "But one day means we could do something together."

"You have work."

"I'll call in sick."

"That would be a lie."

"Technically not since I'm sick of work."

At the tiny wordplay, Sophia felt her face soften with a half smile. But even as the smile came it went away again at the thought of her indecision.

"I feel like I need to be brave and go," she said.

"You're brave even if you chose not to go."

"No, I wouldn't be. Because I feel uncertain and apprehensive about being around people who felt threatening yesterday. The next day it might not be that way and my bravery for facing those people wouldn't be as impactful."

Mason leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "You're brave to me even dealing with high schoolers on normal days."

"Why? Did you feel brave having to face them when you were in high school?"

"No, but I wasn't a pretty fourteen-year-old sophomore girl who is too smart for the world around her."

Sophia nodded. "That's true, you weren't that but I am. That means if you think I am brave every day then I can be brave again today."

"Yes, you can."

With that logic, it meant that Sophia had already been brave without knowing it. Now knowing that she had to be brave only meant that she would be aware of her own bravery today.

"Okay, I will go today."

"You know if at any time you need me, I'll come and pick you up."

"I'll remember that."

Mason stood and held out his hands for her. Sophia laid her small hands in his and let him help her to her feet. As she brushed out the wrinkles in her outfit, her father inspected her.

"You're wearing slacks today," he said. "Armor?"

"Yes. A skirt felt too vulnerable."

"I have something else for you."

Mason took her hand and Sophia felt the comfort of it as it nearly swallowed up hers. Her father guided her down the hallway to the master bedroom and to Mama's vanity. As Sophia sat, her father pulled out one of her mother's jewelry boxes. Sophia always liked looking at the jewelry Mama wore because it always reflected who she knew her mother to be: simple, complex, and beautiful.

Mason removed a chain with a single diamond on it and held it up to Sophia.

"This is for you to wear today," Mason said.

"Why?"

"Because once, when Aunt Carter went through something difficult and had to face the people who hurt her, Donovan bought her a diamond necklace. It was a reminder that she was strong."

Sophia touched the diamond in her father's palm but didn't accept it.

"Did she have everyone around her believe a lie and turn against her?"

"Something like that. But she got through it. Like you will."

Mason unclasped the necklace and held it up.

"But that's Mama's necklace."

"Yes, but before I gave it to her it was owned by me. So with primary ownership, I'm letting you borrow it."

"Okay."

Sophia lifted her hair and her father clasped it around her neck. When she touched it, something about the smooth, cool diamond did feel comforting, even if as an inanimate object it didn't technically hold that capability.

"Are you ready?" Mason asked.

Sophia didn't think she was, even with her father's reassurance and the necklace. But she also knew this was not a reality she could escape. She must face it. But since she didn't want to lie she only said, "We can leave now."

On the drive to Hamilton, neither of them spoke and Sophia appreciated the silence. At school, she already knew it would be a loud day, having quiet helped her prepare herself for the constant noise.

When Mason pulled the car up to the curb at the entrance, Sophia sighed as she stared out the window. Standing waiting for her, dressed in black suits, and wearing sunglasses with their arms crossed were Harrison and Kennedy.

"I feel a large amount of annoyance towards them right now," Sophia said.

Mason squeezed her shoulders. "I know but remember that what they do comes from a place of love, even if logically it's a poor decision."

"They will only serve as a means of drawing more attention when that is the opposite of what I want."

"I know, but they are worried about you. This is their way of dealing with it. Try to remember that."

"I will try."

Sophia pushed open the door and stepped out. As she reached down to grab her backpack, her father leaned toward her.

"Remember I am a phone call or message away," he said. "You are brave but you don't have to bear through it if you can't. I'm here."

Though Sophia understood this, she knew she wouldn't call. He had stepped in to save her yesterday, she felt she needed to be able to make it through today on her own.

"I know," she said.

As she approached Harrison and Kennedy, she saw all the glances that the pair attracted. Sophia reminded herself of what her father said, it came from a place of love. For that, she said nothing but kept walking towards the front steps and letting them fall in next to her. The second they did, Sophia felt how gazes latched onto the pair and then zeroed in on her.

Inside the hallways, the number of stares increased and Sophia wished she had Kennedy's glare to ward them off. But all she managed to do was hold in her emotions, how that translated to her features she didn't know. A girl approached the group and instantly Kennedy blocked Sophia from the girl's path. The girl stopped and raised her hands.

"I just wanted to say I was sorry for what happened to her," the girl said. "It was messed up."

Kennedy moved to the side and the girl focused on Sophia, repeating her statement. Sophia felt lost on how to respond. This girl was not one of the main instigators, but she was apologizing, what did that mean about the role she played in the incident? She didn't recognize her voice from the girls in the bathroom. Did that mean she'd said something at some other time Sophia had missed?

The girl waited and Sophia understood she expected a reply.

"Okay," Sophia said. She felt that acknowledged the girl's words and should suffice.

The girl looked to Harrison and Kennedy before moving on.

"You handled that well," Kennedy said.

Sophia wanted to feel she agreed with Kennedy's comment but didn't think she could. If she had handled it well then she felt the girl would have looked more friendly as she left.

They made it to Sophia's locker without any more people coming up to her but not a decrease in stares. Overhead, the loudspeaker crackled into life.

"Kennedy and Harrison, please come to the Principal's office," a voice said.

Harrison and Kennedy exchanged looks.

"Told you we would be called out for not being in uniform," Harrison said.

"We have nothing else to change into," Kennedy said. "We'll still get to wear them for the rest of the day. Worth the punishment."

Sophia thought this logic flawed since wearing their normal uniforms would have been a better tactic for drawing less attention. But she knew this was not something she should voice.

"Don't leave your locker," Kennedy said. "We'll be right back." She spun away but halted instantly. "Zander, stay with her. George can protect both of you."

"Uh...okay, sure, got it. We can stay with her."

Kennedy and Harrison left and Zander took their vacated spot. His presence didn't bring any less attention to Sophia. Though she could see how half the stares were split between them.

"Hey Panda, how are you doing?" Zander asked. "I thought of calling you this morning to check but I didn't want to bother you so early. I also wanted to know if you wanted anything to eat or drink. But I know I couldn't stomach anything this morning without feeling like I would throw it all back up so I thought you might feel the same way. But in case you didn't, I still brought you something. It's a croissant that the house pastry chef made." He handed her a small pastry bag. "It's really good. It's so good I did almost thought about eating-"

"Zander."

Zander instantly stopped talking, his wide eyes pinned on her, waiting. Despite how everyone else stared at her in a way that felt intrusive, Zander's stare didn't feel like that. It felt... She couldn't fully put a word to it.

"Are you fluent enough in French that you could talk to me only in French today?" Sophia asked.

Being in third-year French and knowing the level her classmates were at, she surmised very few people would be able to understand what they said.

Zander grinned. "I would hope I'm fluent enough, my grandfather was the French Ambassador for thirty years before he moved back to Paris."

"Oh," Sophia said. "I didn't know that. I feel like that is information I should have been aware of."

"It is the most common information known about my family," Zander said, switching to French, his accent soothing to listen to. "But it's okay you didn't know, you know it now. Besides, friends slowly learn information about each other, that's how friendship works."

Sophia studied his face. Nothing about it looked different than when he first approached her, so she decided to take his words as truth.

"Why are we talking in French today?" Zander asked.

"With so many people looking at me, I feel vulnerable, and speaking in a language most will not understand helps me feel a sense of security."

"That makes sense-"

"Sophia, hi."

Sophia turned away from Zander at the intrusive voice to find three girls who she didn't know standing before her. Despite their smiles, Sophia felt uncertain.

Gripping the pastry bag in one fist, with her other hand she reached behind her to touch the solidity of the locker but instead found Zander's wrist. She wrapped her fingers around it, something about it feeling as comforting as when her father held her hand or her mother smiled at her. Zander didn't move or react and she felt grateful.

"It's so insane what happened yesterday," one of the girls said.

"Right," the middle girl said. "I can't believe people would so easily fall for blatant lies."

"Me neither," the girl on the left said.

Sophia said nothing. These girls didn't apologize like the previous girl who approached Sophia did. But she didn't know what their presence meant.

If they had not come to apologize but mock people for believing the rumors, then yesterday they must have not been a part of the people who judged Sophia. If that was so then their best course of action would be to go about their lives and not say anything on the subject. But there they were, standing in front of her.

Sophia didn't know why or what they expected of her.

"You two aren't dating, right?" one of them said.

Sophia shook her head.

Though she couldn't explain it, something about her answer seemed to change the dynamic. Maybe it was simply that all the girls instantly stopped looking at her and looked to Zander instead. When they smiled and their smiles had nothing to do with Sophia, she released Zander's wrist. For now, she was safe.

"I saw the interview from yesterday," one of them said. As she spoke, she played with her hair. "I have to say what you said about how the essence of peace for the future comes not from the big changes but the small everyday changes of being kind to those around you. I thought that was amazing."

"Oh," Zander said. "That wasn't..." He shifted, his shoulder brushing Sophia's. "That wasn't really me. I memorized something written on a piece of paper. Usually, my mind goes blank when people ask me questions and I can't really think. But if I memorize it that seems to work."

"But you believe in what you said, right?" One of the other girls said, edging towards him.

At her action, Zander inched behind Sophia.

"I do. I think everyone should be kinder and that if they did it would create a better environment."

"I'm of the same mind," one said, smiling widely.

"Oh. Good," Zander said, taking another step behind Sophia.

Despite him being halfway behind her, none of the girls focused on Sophia and so she didn't feel bothered. She'd taken his wrist and he'd let her without question. In return, she would stand there, even if she didn't fully understand what he was doing.

"I have to say you looked amazing in your suit," one said. "It was a Hugo Boss, right?"

"Umm... maybe."

The girls seem to edge forward and Zander took another step to the side. Though she couldn't see him, Sophia felt his shoulder graze her back and imagined him to be almost fully positioned behind her. Still, the girls didn't look at her.

"It must be tiring to be that good-looking," one of the girls joked.

At the comment, Sophia felt Zander put his hands on her shoulders, his grip familiar to her since she'd had that same grip only moments ago.

"Sure," Zander said.

All eyes cut to Sophia as she realized Zander must be ducking down as she could feel his warm breath on her neck.

"I have no remarks on his level of attractiveness," she said.

The smiles the girls had been wearing shifted to something that made Sophia know what she had said hadn't been what they wanted. But she didn't know what they wanted.

The bell rang and the girls all exchanged glances. "We'll see you around, Zander."

"Uh huh," Zander murmured.

Sophia remained where she was even as the hallways began to surge with movement. Her main reason for staying still was the hold Zander had on her shoulders. The second was the fact that he'd bent his forehead into her back.

"That was terrifying," he breathed out.

"I did find it unsettling. But how could you tell their smiles weren't the same at the end? From the angle of your breath, I assumed you had your head bent."

"All of it was terrifying," Zander said. "I liked it better when girls thought we were dating and didn't talk to me."

"Why would that stop girls from talking to you?"

"Because you're intimidating to them."

The statement caught Sophia off guard and she detached herself from Zander's hold to face him. Intimidating - frightening, threatening. Was that why many of her interactions ended in discord? People were too frightened of her to see her as someone worth being friends with?

"Do you think I'm intimidating?" she asked.

"No," Zander said. "I don't think you are really. I think you're self-possessed, confident, and rarely smile so it feels intimidating to others."

"I think smiles are meant for those you are close with or comfortable with," Sophia said. "Do you think I should smile more?"

"I think you should do what you feel comfortable with. The rest of the world can figure out how to deal. I never found you intimidating even when we first met."

Sophia absorbed this information, trying to find out how she felt about it. When she thought of intimidating, she thought of her father. But his form of intimidating never felt threatening. He simply possessed an authority that Sophia noticed most people did not have. Threatening, she thought of Kennedy. But Kennedy's threatening only came when she felt the need to protect someone. Therefore threatening wasn't necessarily bad but an ability to help others.

Frightening. Sophia couldn't pinpoint anyone in her life that felt frightening. But with the weight of the two other terms categorized, she didn't feel daunted by the word intimidating being connected with her.

Besides, Zander hadn't even found her intimidating. That counted for something.

"That helps," Sophia said.

The second bell rang, reminding them that they were supposed to be in class.

"We'll walk you to your class," Zander said.

"But that means you will be late for yours."

"Yes, but I don't mind."

Though they didn't speak as they walked, Sophia felt comforted by his presence. At least if the few students still in the hallways looked at them, Sophia knew it was because of Zander as the First Son, something he couldn't change, not like Harrison and Kennedy who'd dressed in black suits.

In her classroom, a few people glanced at her as she sat. When she met their gazes, they averted their eyes. Sophia wondered if this quick reaction stemmed from guilt of being one of the people who'd believed the rumors about her or if they found her intimidating like Zander said people did.

"Okay class," Ms. Harlow said. She checked her watch. "I'll take attendance then we need to move into the auditorium for the assembly."

At the announcement, almost all of the surrounding students looked at Sophia. Penned in by stares and expressions she couldn't decipher, Sophia touched her necklace reminding herself that she knew she'd have to be brave today.

Kennedy and Harrison had gotten her to her locker, Zander had stayed with her, and now she had to keep going forward on her own.

When the announcement came from the speakers telling teachers to bring their classes to the auditorium, Sophia waited until the last person had gone through the doorway before following. At the back, she felt safer, knowing it would be more of a challenge for her peers to keep walking as they looked back at her.

In the auditorium, before Sophia even had a chance to sit, Kennedy and Harrison appeared. They shifted people over, claiming the two spots beside her. Despite knowing it could get them in trouble again, Sophia appreciated the comfort of their barrier. When she searched the sea of faces for Zander, she found him two rows in front of her. He'd risen half out of his seat, his head swiveling all around.

He smiled when he found her. Even with the knot in her stomach, Sophia felt her body relax and her lips soften.

"Good morning, everyone," Principal Wright said, standing at a podium on the stage. "Today I want to address the occurrence of yesterday. Rumors about a student were spread on a social media account that has been uploading misinformation. With the help of a parent, the ones responsible for posting this lie were discovered. Today they will be apologizing for their actions."

She laced her fingers together and rested them on the podium.

"I hope this will serve as a warning for you all. Malicious actions such as spreading rumors and bullying in any form are not acceptable at this school. These perpetrators are currently on probation. Should they act in any manner that is harmful to another student they will be expelled."

The silence that followed this announcement lasted until Wright nodded. She stepped back and turned to the three girls standing off to the side. When she gestured for them to come forward, they did, circling the mic.

As they spoke, Sophia watched them, waiting for the moment when their words would feel... true. But though when they spoke with their heads bent and sober voices, nothing about what they said felt right.

But before she could try and rationalize what was wrong with her perspective and how to correct it, Zander stood up.

"Do you expect us to believe the sincerity of what you are saying?" he asked.

The girls stopped talking and though the auditorium had been quiet, it seemed to fall into complete stillness. Beside her, Harrison and Kennedy exchanged looks.

"What-what do you mean?" Jenny asked.

"You're reading your apology from a piece of paper," Zander said, his voice firm in a way Sophia had never heard before. Even the way he stood had a confidence he hadn't seen before. "What you did was detestable. You not only hurt Sophia, but in spreading your false accusations, you brought me into these lies as well. That is not even the worst of your crime. I was on your account before it was taken down. I saw the hundreds of posts you made. Where are your apologies to those people?"

Whispers started to bubble up around Sophia as heads turned to neighbors. But Sophia never took her eyes off Zander and his rigid, intimidating posture.

"For your own sense of power," Zander continued. "You willingly took moments of people's lives out of context and twisted stories around them to spread. All for your own gain, for your own want of superiority. And now you stand in front of all of us reading an apology when, if it came from a place of true regret and remorse, you wouldn't need to read those words. They would come from your heart. You have hurt lives and I don't believe you care at all. I won't stay here pretending to believe your apology."

With his final remark, he walked out of the auditorium. A beat of silence passed then voices exploded in the air. Principal Wright rushed to the podium, but Sophia didn't hear what she had to say, as she was already following Zander.

She found him in the hallway, pacing and clenching his fists. When he spotted her, he jabbed a finger at the closed doors.

"They didn't care at all about what they did," Zander said, his words tumbling out in his usual manner. "And I couldn't stand there and take it when I knew what yesterday was like for you. Panda, they are awful people and I hate that you aren't getting the apology you deserve. You didn't deserve what they did and I... I just am so mad."

Sophia walked over to him and hugged him. He stilled.

"I thought hugs weren't allowed."

Even though Sophia knew this was true, she held onto him, resting her cheek on his shoulder.

"I do not know how to express what I feel right now with you saying what you said," she said. "But I've seen how hugs make you feel better and so right now I am trying to make you feel better."

Zander hugged her back and Sophia found that, even though the embrace was meant for him, it made her feel warm.

When he rested his head against her, Sophia discovered she could make sense of the strange shift in her emotions. It was a shift she didn't think she could feel that day but because of him, she did.

"Thank you," she said. "I don't feel scared anymore."

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How you doing you bundle of goo!🫠

I'm assuming you're goo because come on, love interest standing up for main girl! It's classic, can't get enough of it!

If you want to bubble your comments and thoughts here, then feel free to do so. I'm fluent in goo dialect. Being part goo myself.🫠💁‍♀️💭💬🗯

I found it really interesting how Zander a majority of the time is this lovable awkward boy but when it comes time to stand up for someone he cares about he turns into this eloquent orator.

But I get it, my sisters and me are the same. Not really the awkward part because despite what my author's notes might suggest I can usually handle myself in a conversation. It's only afterwards I look back and cringe, wondering if I should have said half the things I did.

But that's not what we're talking about. We're talking about the second part, the part where when it comes time to stand up for someone, we do. We actually kind suck at standing up for ourselves but boy oh boy, you come for one of my sisters and you'll see how tall I'll stand! I will cut you to shreds, my friend! I will go Carter on your butt!

As you can see, I love my sisters a lot, as Zander does Sophia.

Yup... Don't cross my sisters or I'll cross you out of life! Bam! Look how fierce I am! Come at me bro! Yeah! I can take you on! I can throw a punch... I can throw a verbal punch!

Okay, little too ramped up, got to rein in all this fiery toughness.

I'm gonna take a deep breath, think peaceful thoughts about ice cream and you can...

Vote, comment, follow!

Side note: I'm really sorry to all my commenters that my replies have been so late. I usually reply Thursday, it was supposed to be Wednesdays, but lately it's been Fridays. I'm sorry.

Though most of you are probably staring at your screen having no idea what I'm talking about. Which I think is better than your disappointment.

Yup that's Zander