With Darius being missing for 2 days now, the club members grew worried. It wasn't like Darius to get ill easily, so missing even one day would seem out of the ordinary.

Camryn and Leonie were walking to rehearsals when Kennedy hurried towards them. "Hey girls! How are things going with you two?"

"Good", replied Camryn. "We're taking it slow but... we're good."

Leonie smiled and gripped Camryn's hand tighter. "What about you and Maxon? Have you spoken to him yet?"

Kennedy shook her head. "Not yet. I'm going to talk to him about it today though."

Stanley rushed towards them, a frantic expression on his face. "Guys, quick! I need your help. Some idiot shoved Isaac's head in the toilet!"

"What the hell? Who did it?", exclaimed an angry Camryn. Her brows furrowed in confusion.

"I didn't see. Eli's with him now. Camryn can you come so you can talk to him after?", asked Stanley.

Camryn nodded and stepped forward, only to be stopped when Kennedy placed a hand in front of her. "I'll come too."

"I'll let Miss Laine know you'll be late", said Leonie. "Make sure he's ok, guys."

-

Amethyst and Weronika sat together in the Theatre room, neither communicating with the other. Amethyst was starting to feel guilty about not telling anyone what Darius said to her.

Maxon walked into the room, backpack strap hooked around one shoulder. His eyebrows furrowed as he looked around at the near empty room. "Have I got the right room?"

"No, this is the science room", quipped a sarcastic Weronika.

Maxon playfully rolled his eyes. "Well, I guess this counts as me being early. Kennedy will be so proud."

"Aren't you two broken up?", questioned Amethyst.

"No! We're just... going through some teething problems."

Amethyst sighed. "Honestly just break up. If she's getting upset over small things then it's not really going to work, is it?"

"That's typical Amethyst behaviour", chuckled Maxon.

"Yeah, typical. You used to be like this too. A realist. Being with Little Miss Sunshine's pet has changed you."

"Don't call her that. Look, changing who you are is normal. Friends help you with that. And family. There's nothing wrong with change, Amethyst. You're just scared of it."

Amethyst scoffed. "Me? Scared? What a load of sh-"

"-He's right, Amethyst. Change isn't always bad", said Weronika. She gave Maxon a smile. "I hope you and Kennedy sort it out. You're really cute together."

Maxon opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by a breathless Leonie. "Miss Laine?"

"She's gone out to print stuff off", said Weronika. "What's wrong?"

Leonie, unable to hold it in for much longer, rambled on about everything that had happened.

Maxon stood up, his fists clenched. "Those b*stards will pay."

Weronika joined him, her eyes narrowed and a fierce look of determination on her face. "If they've harmed a hair on his head so help them God because I'll make them regret it!"

Amethyst was taken aback by how serious they both were. She thought about it, and she wondered if she had ever cared about another human as much as they cared about Isaac. "I... I'll stay and let Miss Laine know."

-

The others stood outside the storage room door, pleading for Isaac to come out. After freeing himself from the toilet, he just took off. Of course, the others followed after him. But he just wouldn't open the door.

"Isaac, please. We just wish to help you", begged Eli. He had his hand on the door handle.

"Yeah, little man. It's 2 against 4. They won't win", said Stanley.

"2 against 7", corrected Maxon, with Weronika and Leonie following closely behind him.

Camryn smiled at them. "D'ya hear that, Isaac? Everyone's here. For you."

Isaac's soft whimpers tugged at everyone's heartstrings. No one deserves to be picked on, but somehow, Isaac being the victim just made it 10 times worse. "I don't deserve you guys. I'll only h-hold you guys back."

Leonie frowned. "You are worthy of our friendship. This is what I've been trying to tell you ever since we first met." Her tone wasn't one of anger, but desperation.

This only seemed to unnerve Isaac more. "I'm so sorry Leonie. I mess everything up!"

Leonie shook her head. "No, Isaac, I don't mean that!", exclaimed Leonie. Her eyes met with Eli's. He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Isaac. Leonie's right. And friendship isn't about deserving. We're here for you because we want to be. You could be the biggest aśśhole ever and we'd still try... for you. Because that's what friendship is. Supporting each other. Helping them get by", said Eli.

Everyone smiled at Eli. Camryn's smile and gaze seemed to linger on him longer than the others.

"Come out, Isaac", said Weronika. "They won't hurt you anymore. We'll make sure of it."

"No! I don't want you guys to get in trouble", said Isaac. "This is my problem."

"Your problem is my problem, Isaac! Your problem is our problem", said Camryn.

After a painfully long silence, in which the tension could be cut with a knife, Isaac spoke. "I appreciate this. A lot. Thank you guys for being here. But... I need to be alone. Please, just leave me alone."

Friendship. It's the one thing that is both fragile and strong. One of the things that can literally be the difference between life or death.

Stanley sighed. "Come on guys, let's go. Isaac, we'll be in the Theatre room."

One by one, everyone walked away. Kennedy and Leonie exchanged a look similar to the one they shared when they saw Isaac eating lunch alone. Before they had become friends.

Camryn wouldn't go. She wouldn't let him be alone. He never left her side so why should she? "I'm staying."

Eli gently grabbed her shoulders. "Come on Camryn. We need to respect his wishes."

A reluctant Camryn nodded. She turned to the door. "You're one of the brightest people I know, Isaac. But it's about time you realised that we're not going to let you face sh*t alone. We'll always be in your corner."

-

Hi.

From the beginning, Isaac has always had low confidence. He's never had friends like these, so can we all just take a minute to appreciate how far he's come?

And Eli's bit about  friendship not being something that needs to be deserved. That's what I've believed for a long time. You can mess up badly but your friends will still try to help you and be there for you. There are no terms and conditions. Honestly, it felt right for Eli to be the one to say this.

I know a lot of these chapters are sad and I'm sorry! But do you know what that shows? It shows that we're so close to the end! There have been so many chapters haha. Who knows, maybe we can get it up to 100? Or maybe 90. I'll try to do as little as possible, but this may mean chapters are longer.

What are your thoughts on this chapter?

yeonskosmos

-cherrysvalanxe

CaptainHermioneSwan

The_Slytherthing

gillioddities

DoodleYeet

starryeyedturtle