Things are meant to end up okay after you speak to somebody. That's what all the anti-bullying posters said. 'Tell a teacher and then everything will become butterflies and rainbows' yeah, right. That was definitely why I ended up in the boys' toilets, being shoved against the wall. Lotor was getting all up in my face and, I can tell you, his breath was the most revolting thing I had ever smelt. I would have winced if I wasn't already in enough pain. I wanted to comment on it and ask if he ate food out of a trash can but I decided against that when I saw the infuriated look in his eyes.

I doubled over in pain as he punched me in the stomach. I cried out but his hand was quick to fly over my lips to keep me quiet. Lotor grabbed my shirt and shoved me into the wall much harder than the first time. My head briefly hit the material and I grunted, the world going black momentarily. I scrunched my eyes shut, expecting another hit but what I got was words, spoken in a voice that was as sharp as a knife. "You need to tell Miss that I didn't do anything wrong. You lied, for attention," His hand moved upwards and grabbed a fistful of my hair. "I can't get in trouble for this. They threatened to kick me out because of you and Lance's big mouths. I just want to," He growled and it was unlike any other sounds I had heard from a human. "Punch that twat in the face."

"I didn't want to tell," I mumbled, my heart beating rapidly inside my chest. The world was dancing around me and I wasn't sure if that was because I had hit my head or because I had forgotten how to breathe. "Lance- he made me." Yeah, blame my boyfriend. Good going Keith.

"Good to know," He shoved me one last time before turning to leave. My head was pounding. "I'm going to give him a piece of my mind and make sure he never says a word to anyone again." I tried to yell at him to come back but it was too late. Lotor had already stormed out of the bathroom and started to speed-walk down the corridor.

I followed but it was difficult when I felt like there was a chance I was going to pass out at any second. I had one hand on the wall, following it along passed the lockers until I found Lance and Lotor. Lance looked furious, his face bright red and his hands clenched into fists at his sides. He was screaming loudly, contrasting the usually silent ambience of the library. I had never seen him so angry but then he swung a punch. I dived forward, an unfamiliar need to protect both of them. I didn't want Lance to get detention like I had, especially when his record was squeaky clean. I also didn't want Lance to obtain another excuse Lotor could use to defend himself when we accuse him of bullying.

I moved as quick as a bullet. I was so fast that Lance didn't have any time to retract his fist and it ended up coming in contact with me rather than Lotor. I let out a loud cry, having taken a few too many hits in one day. My hands flew up to my face out of instinct, covering the spot that had just been punched. My nose was bleeding and tears stung my eyes but I didn't regret getting in the way. Lance immediately started to apologise, repeating "I'm sorry" as if the words were about to go out of fashion. Lotor was staring at us in shock, his mouth agape and his eyes wide open. Both of us ignored him.

-

"Are you alright?" Miss Willow asked, leaning over the table. I refused to meet her gaze, glancing around the classroom just so I didn't have to face her sympathetic expression. I knew, as soon as I opened my mouth, I would start to cry and I didn't want that. No teachers had ever seen me cry and Miss Willow was certainly not going to be the first. I leant back on my chair just to avoid speaking. "Keith, you've been in my tutor for years. I can tell it's bothering you and this is a safe environment where you can be honest and open up."

Yeah, right. If I said one thing wrong, Lotor was going to get away scot-free like always. "He was just being mean." I sounded like a five-year-old and I hated that tears were beginning to well up in my eyes. I blinked rapidly to try and prevent them from escaping and making an unwanted appearance. When had I become so weak?

"What did he do?"

"Well, before, he cornered me in the hall with his friends. Just the other day he cornered me in the boys' bathroom. Then I told him Lance was the one who made me tell and so he went off to find Lance. I didn't want Lance to get hurt so I followed him."

"And that's when Lance hit you?"

I nodded before realising that made Lance sound like the bad guy. "He was trying to protect me because Lotor threatened us and stuff. He was going to hit Lotor and I didn't want him to get in trouble so..."

"Yeah, okay. Was there anyone with Lotor?" I shook my head, not trusting my voice. One more word and I was going to let my tough guard down and start sobbing. "Alright. Do you remember anything he said?"

"Well he's just generally homophobic... he said we were disgusting. I don't remember much else."

"We as in you and Lance? Are you two together?"

"Yeah..."

"Okay, I think I've got enough information. I think I'll be having a nice long chat with Lotor and his mother later. If you ever need to talk to someone, I'm always available or there are websites that can help. The nurse has some cards with the names of websites that can support you through these kinds of issues if you need them. There's always someone you can talk to, alright?"

I nodded again and scrambled to get up onto my feet, picking up my backpack and throwing it over my shoulders. "Thanks, Miss..." I whispered before rushing out of the room. Lance had been waiting for me outside but I ignored him and headed straight out of the building. It was about a minute later that I just broke down. Lance had been chasing me so he immediately wrapped his arms around me, knowing full well I was distraught. His embrace was so warm and comforting, especially when my mind was doing that thing where it threw a party. Different thoughts were just dancing around: Lotor's homophobic words, the threats, some lyrics from a song I had listened to earlier, what I had for lunch and was going to have for dinner, Lance's kind words, questions like "what was the point?" and a bundle of 'what ifs'. What if Lotor didn't get expelled? What if Lotor came back and fought me? What if, worse, Lotor came back and fought Lance? All of the thoughts were making me dizzy and like I was about to vomit. I backed away from the hug, just in case. I was sure Lance would appreciate me puking over his favourite baseball jacket.

"What happened? Is he going to get in trouble?" Lance's voice was soft, like a pillow. I just wanted to lay down and fall asleep on it. I was so drained: mentally and physically.

"I think so."

"That's amazing!" Lance was grinning widely, definitely seeming much more relieved about the outcome of the situation than I was. Unaware that I was on the verge of vomiting everywhere, he hugged me again. Throwing up all over my boyfriend would definitely be the cherry on top of the already metres high cake of problems that I had.

I was still crying and, as a result, my vision was too blurry for me to continue walking (unless I wanted to walk into a lamppost). Lance linked arms with me and ushered me over to a bench. It may or may not have been the one I had broken down on the day of the school dance. I leant my head on his shoulder and tried to focus on my breathing. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. I could do this.

"It's going to be okay. He won't hurt you again." Lance whispered, rubbing my back gently. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him looking at me but I continued to stare ahead.

"How do you know that?" I eventually responded after a moment of silence between us.

"Because I won't let him come anywhere near you."

-

Lance ended up walking me all the way home and then Louise asked him to stay over for dinner. She had cooked up some spaghetti bolognese and there was always some leftover. It was like she cooked for a family of eight when really there was only three of us. At the dinner table, Lance had explained the whole bullying situation to John and Louise whilst I remained completely silent, just so I wouldn't cry. I didn't need John on my case, telling me to 'man up'.

Louise ended up being the one who teared up which was a really heart-warming sight. She then rambled on and on, saying that Lance deserved to be thanked because he had "protected me" and "been very brave". Lance was getting pretty flushed, trying his best to accept the compliments in the nicest way possible without seeming obnoxious. It was quite a sight, especially when Louise randomly got up and pulled him into a hug. He was smiling but I could tell he felt awkward (I would have too). In fact, I did feel awkward because Louise was hugging my boyfriend like she never wanted to let him go.

We concluded the night with a movie. I didn't really pay attention because my mind was throwing another party. If my mind had neighbours, they'd have called the police by now. I was thinking about Lotor and school and everything except the movie. I turned, reaching for one of the crisps in the bowl. It was our substitute for popcorn since somebody else had already eaten it all (probably John. It was always John). I put the whole thing in my mouth and tried to crunch it as quietly as possible. I glanced to the left to see Lance, fully focused on the movie. His leg was bouncing up and down but his eyes were trained on the television.

He looked more relaxed than I had seen him in a while. His eyes held their usual sparkle and his lips were frozen in a thin, straight line. I reached for another crisp, as Lance did the same and, just like in those cheesy, romance movies, our hands touched. Butterflies were released from their cage inside my stomach as I blushed and retracted my arm. He just laughed at me but in a way that held so much fondness. I leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss into his cheek before he turned back to face the TV.

-

Lotor didn't seem to be in school the next day so I could only assume that he got expelled. Lance noticed too because he brought it up at lunch. "Lotor isn't here." He said, happily eating a forkful of his pasta.

"Yep. He must have gotten excluded after all." I mumbled, taking a bite of my apple. Lance moved his chair around so that he could balance his head on my shoulder.

"It's all going to be okay. Just like I promised." I nodded and I found myself believing him.