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Well everyone, here's a new chapter.

Enjoy! :D

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Nathan's P. O. V.

To say I was worried about the meeting after school is an understatement of a lifetime. I was practically a nervous wreck.

My palms were sweating, causing me to occasionally wipe them onto my jeans, only for them to perspire in less than a minute. I feared that, by the end of the day, my jeans would be soaked through.

I also had trouble concentrating on the remaining lectures given by my teachers during the schools last few periods. I felt a bit guilty because of that and hoped that it wouldn't end up bitting me in the ass later on in the near future.

However, I threw away those pointless concerns for another day and instead began to wonder how Aiden was handling all this.

I knew without a doubt that he must be in worse a shape than me by far, as he has more to be anxious about; the biggest worry being his father potentially finding out that he's gay, and if that happened... I don't even want to think about what he will try to do to Aiden.

Unfortunately, if Aiden's father did try anything and did end up hurting Aiden, even if it's just a scratch, then I will no doubt go to jail on account of murder.

As I thought this, my resolve to go through with such an act did not waver in the slightest. I fully had the intention to carry out such a deed if need be, and no one, not even Aiden himself, will be able to stop me when and if that time ever comes.

It was at this moment when the bell signaling the end of the school day sounded off, startling me.

My hands unconsciously clenched into tightly fisted balls as I furrowed my brows, my nervousness intensifying by twofold. Trying to relax my tense muscles, I slowly packed up my things and reluctantly got up and headed for the principals office.

Along the way I met up with Aiden, who was as white as a sheet of paper, and had a sickly gleam to his skin. Sweat was gathered above his brow, and his eyes were filled with panic and resignation, as if he had already given up on keeping him being gay a secret from his parents.

My lips pressed into a thin line when I took in his appearance, and a sense of helplessness filled me.

I so badly wanted to tell Aiden that it will be alright, that his secret won't be put out in the open, and that everything won't fall apart after today.

However, I knew that if I did that, then I would only be giving him false hope, and the guilt I would feel when that hope comes crashing down would leave me too ashamed to face Aiden head on.

So, for now, I could only do my best to soothe Aiden's raging emotions as we neared the principles office.

"Just go right on in, everyone else is in there already," Linda's secretary, who's name I can't remember for the life of me, said with a small grimace. A pitying look could be seen in her eyes as she gazed at us. It was obvious she had heard about what happened

I bit my lip hard enough for me to taste blood as I held myself back from saying something I may not come to regret to her, repeatedly reminding myself that she doesn't know how serious this situation truly is.

Directing my attention to the door in front of us instead, I could vaguely hear muffled voices from the other side. One voice in particular was unfamiliar. I concentrated hard, trying to pick up on what the voices were saying, but the thick door prevented me from hearing anything.

So, with a reluctant sigh, I opened the door to the principals office, as I knew Aiden was in no condition to.

I could tell just from a glance at his pale face and slightly trembling body, that if I hadn't opened the door myself, we would be standing outside the principals office for a long while.

As soon as the door opened, the muffled voices grew clear and I caught the last bit of conversation between Linda and someone else, before the voices cut off with our appearance.

"I'd like to know why exactly I'm here? I'm a busy man, and I can be doing something much more worth my time at a time like this," one of the voices said with annoyance.

As soon as I heard the voice, chills went down my spine and goosebumps spread along my skin.

For some unknown reason, whoever this deep and rumbling voice belonged to, I knew it wasn't a good person. Not only did the man sound like he was arrogant, but also like his words had a menacing undertone to it, as if coated with ulterior motives.

Instantly I knew I would not like this person, no mater what. I felt like this guy was exactly the kind of person I loath.

I wonder if this voice belongs to Aiden's father? I questioned thoughtfully, glancing over to Aiden to see if I could get some sort of clue as to who this man was.

However, judging from Aiden's lack of response after hearing the voice, I immediately concluded that this man was not Aiden's father like I had previously thought. So, I could only assume that this person is either Jake or Samuel's father.

"I understand, sir. I'm sure they'll be here soon," Linda said, she then looked our way, having heard the sound of her office door opening, and it was at this point when Linda noticed our arrival. "Ah, Nathan, Aiden, your finally here," Linda said with relief. "Take a seat."She then gestured to the two free chairs open by our respective parents.

Looking around the room, from my right to my left, my gaze traveled from my mother, to an unfamiliar man two seats away, and being that he was the only other person besides my mother with an open seat next to him, I came to the conclusion that this man must be Aiden's father.

Narrowing my eyes at him, I began to inspect the man that seems to cause great fears in Aiden, and from what I saw, it was no wonder Aiden was so afraid of him, the man looked absolutely suspicious.

I could feel contempt filling my gaze as I continued to look at him, and disgust for this man who causes Aiden to be so stressed and scared of going home everyday nowadays.

"Nathan?" Aiden whispered, worry in his eyes from seeing how hostile I was becoming towards his dad, as if he was thinking I might go after the guy here and now.

Giving a giving a quick glance down at Aiden, I then reach over and squeeze his hand encouragingly, startling him, then said with a small smile, "Be brave, everything will be okay in the end," before briskly heading off to take a seat beside my mother.

As I took my seat, I then peered over towards Jake and Samuel, my eyes narrowing further when they land on a man with a handsome, clean shaven face. He's wearing shades even though he was inside and a expensive looking suit. His tie is loosened and he seems to have a bored expression on his face as he slouches in his seat.

He's seated next to Jake, indicating that this sleazy looking man must be his father; however, as I look over at Samuel, I see no parental figure seated with him. I can only assume his parents didn't make it, or that he doesn't have any parents, in which case, I feel sorry for him then.

"Now that we're all here," Linda began, "I'd like to get right to the point on why I've called you here this evening on such short notice. I'm sure you parents don't know this, or maybe you do, but these four young boys have been in conflict with one another for a while now. I've tolerated them so far, but troublesome occurrences keep happening far to frequently now for me to ignore."

"If I may interrupt for a moment, but, what 'troublesome occurrences' are you referring to?" The sleaze-ball looking guy asked, his brows furrowing as he directed his eyes towards Jake with irritation.

Under that mans scrutiny, Jake seemed to pale considerably, his expression unsightly to behold as he looked away.

It seemed like a normal reaction if ones parent found out that you've done something stupid and you were afraid of the consequences because of what you had done, but for some reason, there was too much tension between the two if it was something as simple as that.

However, I dismissed the idea from my head, thinking it just my imagination, and instead, focused my attention on Aiden's father, as he was the one I needed to worry about the most.

Linda paused for a bit and glanced over to sleaze-ball guy, her face passive. "What I mean is, a case of bullying," she said, getting right to the point.

"So your saying my son was bullying someone? Who? Those boys?" The man asked, pointing at Samuel, Aiden and I, disdain clear in his eyes as he roamed his gaze along the three of us.

"Not only him, Mr. Wier, but Samuel as well was caught on multiple occasions bullying these two boys," Linda clarified, indicating to both Aiden and I.

"And for what reason?" This time it was Aiden's father who had asked.

My mouth twitched downwards from hearing his voice and I suppressed my growing irritation towards this man.

From the corner of my eyes, I saw Aiden clench his hands into a tightly fisted ball. His face was blank, but his eyes were swirling with a tsunami of emotions.

Anger, fear, frustration, dread, and defeat.

He knew he wasn't coming out of this meeting without his secret being put out in the open. He had already resigned himself to that fact, and I couldn't help but feel the same way, as much as I hated to admit that.

"A difference of opinions, Mr. White," Linda said slyly, having noticed Aiden's complexion as well.

"Stop beating around the bush and say it like it is," Jake snapped. "They're faggots, that's why I went after them. It's disgusting and a sin to be what they are! I was only doing the world a favor." Jake spat out with contempt, his expression ugly to behold as it contorts with anger and disgust, as well as arrogance.

"Jake! One more inappropriate word out of your mouth and your finished. Forget about suspension, I'll have you expelled for good!" Linda shouted, fury coating her words with venom as she glares daggers down at him.

"Tsk," Jake clicked his tongue and slumped back into his seat, crossing his arms across his chest.

Face deathly pale, I hesitantly peeked over to Aiden, and my expression only grew more downcast by how sick to his stomach Aiden looked like. He was gripping the hem of his shirt so tightly that his arms trembled, and it seemed all he could do was stare at the tiled ground with a blank expression on his face.

His father's face; however, showed an assortment of emotions, and none of them were good.

My fear of what will happen to Aiden spiked by a hundred fold, and for the rest of the meeting, that was all I could worry about. I hadn't even paid attention to what had been said after that moment. Though, I think that at one point, I was asked several questions, to which I responded to, but for the life of me, I cannot remember what it was that I had been asked, or what I had said back in reply to each of them.

It was only later, after asking my mother what had transpired during my brief moment of blanking out, that I came to know happened. There had been much debate on the forms of bullying, which then turned into what sort of punishment we all should get based on the severity of bullying.

Jake had apparently been suspended for a week, Samuel would attend detention during that week, while Aiden and I got off lightly with a warning.

After the meeting ended, I wasted no time in hurrying over to Aiden's side. I gently grasped his forearm and pulled him to me, an anxious expression covering my face.

"Call me as soon as you get home," I said urgently. "Promise me you will!"

"I will," Aiden replied, eyes heavily filled with worry, his face a mask of depression that only softened as he talked to me.

"Good," I nodded in satisfaction, but it was at this moment when Mr. White appeared by Aiden's side and dragged him away from my touch, preventing me from further saying anything to Aiden.

Mr. White then pushed me to the side by my shoulder, farther away from Aiden, no doubt so that he could talk to me in private. His eyes burned with rage, and his dark expression caused me to feel a hint of fear towards this tyrant of a man. "Stay away from my son, you hear me? Never go near him again, or I'll have you arrested," Mr. White snarled in my face, and from the look in his eyes, I knew he meant business.

"If you try anything on Aiden, then you better be prepared to face my wrath, because then I'll be calling the police on you, got it?" I hissed back, equally as serious.

Mr. White gave me a deep, long look, before saying, "Let's go," to Aiden. He then turned on his heels and walked away, and soon him and Aiden disappeared out of my sight.

"I'll meet you in the car," Mr. Wier said to Jake before he too left.

Soon, the only ones left in the hallway outside the principles office were Samuel, Jake, and I.

Jake waited for his father to be out of sight before he himself headed off down the hall. Samuel hesitated for a second, glancing back at me with an apologetic expression on his face before following after Jake.

It wasn't till after Jake disappeared around the hallways corner when I finally snapped out of my dazed state, my rage so great that I had to, needed to, take it out on something... Or someone; and who better a target than the reason for my pent up rage: Jake.

As I ran after Jake, no doubt looking as if the hounds of hell were chasing after me, I must have been a scary sight, because, when Jake and Samuel turned around to see who was causing all this ruckus, their expressions slackened with surprise by my sudden appearance and devilish looks.

"Jake, do you know what you have just done?" I growled, slamming Jake into the wall before he had time to evade me. "Do even know how much shit Aiden's going to be put through because of you!?"

"So what, it's his punishment for being a faggot," Jake retorted, agitation clear on his face as he struggled to escape my grasp.

"You!" My vision grew blood red, and I found myself incapable of speaking coherently, Jake's words rendering me speechless. My grip loosened around Jake's collar, and he took this opportunity to escape my grip and put a few feet of distance between us.

"Come on Samuel, we don't have time to waste on this guy," Jake snorted with contempt my way, and was about to start walking away when Samuel's next words stopped him cold.

"No Jake, I'm not going with you, not this time, anyways," Samuel said solemnly, shaking his head back and forth, a troubled look on his face.

"What?" Jake questioned as he glanced over to Samuel with a look of surprise and confusion, much like I was doing.

"I agree with Nathan, Jake, you've went too far this time around, man," Samuel said.

Originally, I had thought it strange when Samuel had done nothing to stop me from attacking Jake, but now, I was even more shocked by him and the words he had just uttered.

"Samuel, what the fuck man!?" Jake shouted, anger visible on his face as he scowled at Samuel with disdain. However, I could see that he had taken Samuel's betrayal hard.

"Stop Jake, don't look at me like that. Both you and I know that Aiden's father wasn't going to take that news very well, but yet you still blurted that shit out," Samuel chide Jake with a look of reproach.

"I already told you, he deserved it and what's going to happen to him. And you're next Nathan," Jake spat, his eyes blazing with rage as he glared at me.

"That's it!" I growled and lunged at Jake, all sense of reason escaping me, but was stopped by Samuel. "Don't stop me Samuel!"

"Stop, Nathan! Now is not the time to be getting into fights. You saw how good that did us," Samuel voiced.

Knowing he was right, I ceased my struggling and instead stood off to the side with a sour look, debating if I should get out of here and head back home, but something kept me from going, as if I felt something big was going to happen.

"Jake," Samuel began, gaining Jake's attention, "you believe that just because someone is gay, that they need to be punished?" Samuel asked slowly, his expression carefully blank.

Jake frowned at Samuel, seeming curious and confused as to why Samuel asked this question, but answered anyways. "Of course!"

"So then, are you going to punish me too?" Samuel then questioned, his face as emotionless as before.

"Huh, what are you saying?" Jake then scowled with irritation and even more confusion.

"You hate gay people, and think that bad things should happen to them because its what they deserve. Well, no more, I will not agree with those ideals any longer," Samuel declared, taking a stand by my side, which only shocked me further and caused Jake's expression to freeze on a look of disbelief.

"Samuel?" Jake hesitantly called out, dread in his voice, as if he knew where Samuel was headed with this, and he was not enjoying the realization.

"Jake, I've been meaning to tell you this for a long time," Samuel said.

"Samuel, don't you dare," Jake growled, his eyes ablaze with fire.

"I'm gay," Samuel continued, ignored Jake's warning, "and I've been in love with you since forever!"

Jake's face drained of color until he was as white as a sheet of paper, and a hollow look entered his eyes. He seemed almost defeated in a way.

"Get away from me. Never speak to me again. We are no longer friends," Jake emotionlessly said to Samuel, and Samuel took a step back as if to give Jake some space, a hurt but expecting look in his eyes, having known Jake would react like this from the beginning.

My gaze was filled with immense shock as I looked on at this perfect example of a drama scene that one would only see in movies or something. To think I would witness such a scenes is something I don't believe I'll be able to see again in my life.

I watched Jake turn and walk briskly away, his face dark and stormy. And as I looked on as Samuel closed his eyes and let out a self-mocking chuckle, I could almost visibly see the depression and self-hatred surround him.

I couldn't help but feel bad for him to the extreme.

But then I realized that this was one more worry I don't want to deal with, but knew I would have no choice but to get involved in, and I couldn't help but let out a helpless sigh as I patted Samuel's shoulder sympathetically.

"It'll be okay," I said, doing my best to comfort the boy, but feel awkward as I did so.

"No it won't," Samuel replied as his shoulders slumped downwards and he rubbed his forehead with the palm of his hand.

I couldn't help but agree to his statement 100%.

This guy was royalty fucked in his relationship department.

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Man, what an exciting chapter, don't you agree? :)

Anyways, V/C/F!

Until next time, peace out.

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