Never let it be said that I am not an idiot. No, not academically, but in so many other aspects of my life, it would hold pretty true. In a way, as Holly, I am but a young infant, discovering her life as events unfold. The joy and excitement of being the real me is kinda like realizing that I really enjoy chewing my hand or giggling insanely at my parents as they pull silly faces; It’s all new and exciting and I really don’t know where the rules are. The fact that I made it this far in my life and with my transition with only so few mistakes is genuinely a miracle.

I keyed the passcode into the pedestrian gate at school that Monday morning after Dad dropped me off. It feels a long way removed from that first morning back, was it really only ten weeks ago?
I slowly sip my coffee as I walk into the building; the warmth is reassuring and the caffeine rekindles my fragile sanity. The corridors are quiet as I make my way inside and head for the common room. As per usual, the place is like a tomb at this time of day. I once feared it, but now? Not so much.

Inside, I find myself a cozy spot on the sofa and curl up to sip my coffee. One more week and it’s Thanksgiving and this year I really do have something to be thankful for. Having my family know the real me is something I never actually imagined could possibly happen. Hell, even on a personal level, I’m thankful that I will never have to go to the Boys’ Division again.
Another week after that and I’ll be in Germany, holy crap! Time is ticking down, and if I can keep… incidents… to a minimum, I could possibly make it out of this mess alive. Obviously, I’ll have to deal with a new school and being known to be trans; oh boy, that’s going to be a wild adventure.

Speaking of incidents; A Byrne sibling without ovaries walks in as I’m contemplating my survival. Oh boy, what timing. Rather than walk over to our usual area, he sits deliberately off to the other side of the common room and pulls out a book. Ok Buster; two can play at that game.
I collect my bag and my coffee and get up. Noticing my movement, Gary looks up and looks set to reposition; I guess I really do have cooties now. Instead, I keep my head held high and walk over to the football team’s spot, plop down on the sofa and deliberately ignore him. Another benefit of this spot is that it has prime TV angles and the remote is on the table next to me. I turn it on and put on a news program. Hopefully, the noise will disturb his reading. See? I can be petty too.

“Trouble in paradise?”

I glance up and spot Carson slinging his bag onto one of the other sofas. About fifteen minutes have passed and I’ve been sitting here, zoned out staring at the screen.

“Mayhaps.”

Carson drops into a seat and props his feet up. “Whatever; you’re welcome here. I just never expected to find you inviting yourself over.”

“I can change,” I smirk, casting a glance at Gary and two of the other nerdlings that I used to hang with. I hope he keeps his mouth shut.

“Sure you can,” Carson grins, “Things work out with Megan and your Bro after Friday?”

Did they? They actually did. I’m pretty sure I heard Brother Dearest on the phone to Meg on Sunday night after I had filled her and Kara in on the doorstep incident. “I dunno,” I shrug. “I’m not exactly on Rob’s ‘tell about my love life’ list.”

“Did Megan say anything?”

Jeez, who knew that guys cared this much about relationship shenanigans? Admittedly, I haven’t ever really hung out with the romantically active males of the species until recently. The past few days have certainly raised my threat levels, so I’m slightly more aware of the fact that he’s expecting a female friend to tell me about her romantic entanglements.

“Apparently, they’re seeing where it goes,” I offer neutrally, gesturing behind Carson. “You can always ask him yourself.”

“Ask me what?” Rob inquires, dropping onto the sofa beside me along with Face and Pete, another Defensive lineman.

“Carson wants to know if Meg got you to put out. He seems to think you’re a bit loose, brother dear.”

Rob starts for a moment before he realizes I’m putting him on. “You think I tell this runt what I get up to?”

“I mean, you needed him to fight your battles, dude.” Carson shrugs playfully.

“I never asked her to do that!”

Shit, Rob you fuckwit!

“But she wanted to go out with you, so it all worked out, didn’t it?” I throw in brightly, giving Big Brother a playful elbow. “Right, Rob? Megan, she totally wanted to go out with you.”

“Uh, yeah,” he frowns before his eyes widen. “Uh, yeah no, yeah, she did.”

My brother is an idiot, he owes me for that mistake.

Thankfully, nobody noticed Rob’s little pronoun slip. I’ve told you a thousand times how unobservant people can be. The reality is that I was way more scared than I needed to be, but at the same time, paranoia prevented things like Gary…

 

 

“Mister Winters, pay attention, please.”

I glowered at the honorific but held my tongue. I’m sitting in Algebra, and Mister Clark is being especially prickly today. I’d been paying attention the entire class as he droned on and on about Quadratics, but the one moment when I chose to glance out the window for two literal seconds, I was jumped on.

“I would appreciate your undivided attention while I cover material relevant to your final, Mister Winters.”

“I’m sorry sir, I just looked at the window one time,” I offer sheepishly.

“Four additional pages of exercises for tomorrow.” Clark declares with a dirty look. “Do you want to continue to argue with me?”

“No sir,” I murmur.

I wish I had no idea why my teacher was picking on me but sadly, I have a pretty good idea. See, Clark is usually the sort to call people by their first names, in fact, he does and did, even to me. Ever since the school found out about Holly and some of my educators were informed, he has become a colossal asshole.

What can I really do about it? I can’t challenge him about it or go to the Principal; no, he would refute the claim or back it up with trumped-up evidence of my behavior. All I can do is comply and keep my mouth shut. It’s only a few weeks to go, right?

I never expected things to go perfectly, but it certainly puts a dampener on your day when people act like dicks for the mere sake of it. Between Gary and Mister Clark, I know it’s not even the worst yet. Imagine how bad it will get when I’m actually out.

Just how many people who are friendly now will turn on me later? It’s ironic really; as a girl undercover, I made more cool guy friends than I ever did as Alex. Somehow I think the more outwardly feminine I get, the more my personality matches. When I was just a boy that behaved like a girl, people thought I was strange. The more I resemble Holly, the less weird it seems, even if they don’t outwardly notice it.

The bell rings and Clark lets us out. I quietly take my extra homework without complaint. It sucks, but it also won’t hurt me to do some more exercises; the joke’s on him, it helps me get my grade up so I still win after all. If the worst thing that I have to face is a passive-aggressive old man with a superiority complex, then I’m not doing too badly.

Walking through the halls, I marveled at the position I was in. I had mentally checked out as a member of the division and I was pretty happy about it. Who would have thought that I would be here, about to finish my last weeks among the boys before transferring to be with the girls as I deserved. It’s insane to really think that your life, which was filled with existential pain for so long could finally be turning up good.

Bad things, it seems, really do indeed come in groups of three, because contemplating my more feminine future apparently let my Alex mask slip. One moment, I’m imagining starting my new school in January and the next, I’m flying through the air. I land hard, the wind knocked out of me, and come to rest against the wall. I blink hard and gasp for air, momentarily stunned by the impact.

“Fucking fairy,” a voice sneers loudly before kicking me in the ribs. “Take your fucking queerness elsewhere.”

My chest exploded with pain and I curled into a ball to prevent further impacts. I feel another foot hit me but after that, nothing further comes. After a few moments with no further kicks, I tentatively eased myself up and took stock of my surroundings. I looked for the owner of the voice, but there were no likely culprits, just a sea of moving students paying my plight no attention. I wish bullying was uncommon here, but it’s sadly a part of school life. Unless there’s a good chance of a fight, people ignore it and stay in their lane.

I hauled myself to my feet and dusted myself down. I have no idea who did it, so there was nothing to really report; the story of my scholastic experience in a nutshell. It hurt a little to breathe but nothing felt broken, so I picked up my bag and shuffled away in pain.

When I made it to German class, the look that Frau Whistler gave me told me that something was far more wrong than I had initially assumed. “Alex, my gosh, what happened to you?”

“Huh?” I replied brightly.

“Your face sweetheart; what happened?”

I reached up and touched my cheek and recoiled when I felt the twinge of pain. “I.. uh, tripped; it’s nothing really.”

Frau Whistler shook her head and guided me toward the door, “You and I are going to the nurse’s office right this minute.”

Before we left, she turned to address the class, fixing them with a stern look that suggested that crossing her would be extremely ill-advised. “Read quietly and I will send up the secretary to cover for me until I return. If she reports any nonsense at all, you will all be receiving extra homework. Am I understood?”

After affirmative sounds and a rustling of books, she took me by the shoulder and guided me out into the corridor.

“What really happened to you?”

I shrugged painfully as we walked. “I got tripped and booted; I never saw who did it. What’s wrong with my face?”

“Your cheek is starting to develop a nasty bruise, and judging by your posture, I’m guessing that more of you is hurt too.”

I grimaced as I gingerly touched my ribs and nodded.

Frau Whistler tutted angrily to herself as we walked along the corridor. Honestly, she seemed more miffed about this than I was. Of course, it hurt, but it wasn’t exactly the first time that something like this had happened to me. Is it wrong to say that I was almost used to it?

Frau Whistler paused briefly at the office to pass on her message before escorting me outside and across the quad toward the Girls’ Division. It was only once we were in no-mans-land, that she spoke openly to me.

“Holly, you need to come to us when bullying like this occurs, especially now. What if they had uncovered your secret?”

“If I knew who it was, I promise that I would have said something,” I sigh. “But I honestly didn’t see a thing.”

Frau Whistler gave me a sad look but said nothing. Across the Quad, we make our way up to the Girls’ Division entrance and sign in before making our way through the corridors to the nurse’s office. Deja vu moment? It certainly wasn’t my first visit here this semester, but that felt like a lifetime ago now.

The last time I was in this building, I was here as Holly, a prospective new student. Hell, come January I WOULD be a new student here; it was guaranteed. It feels a far cry away from being here in a suit, dressed as Alex, I was almost ashamed for anyone to see me like this.

A few moments later, we arrived at the Nurse’s office and Frau Whistler guided me in through the open door.

“Judith, do you have a moment? We’ve had a bit of an accident.”

Nurse Carter looked up from her paperwork and spotted the two of us in her little waiting area. “Oh dear, let’s take a look at you, shall we? I think I have some ice around here somewhere.”

Frau Whistler closes the door behind herself and latches it. “Judith, I think you might need to do a bit more of an exam, there’s a complaint of a chest injury.”

The nurse looks a little confused.

Frau Whistler looks at me and raises an eyebrow. “You’re going to have to tell her, but it won’t leave the room, I promise.”

Sigh. Well, she’ll find out in January I suppose.

As if on cue, I turned bright red and couldn’t look her in the eye. “Uh, Nurse Carter… I’m uh… transgender, I um, my ribs… I uh… I have breasts.”

Carter’s look shifts from confusion to a smile of understanding. “Oh, I see! That’s not a problem honey, I’ve met some boys like you before when I was working downtown. Don’t fear; you’re safe with me, ok?”

Boys? Eye twitch.

I think Frau Whistler followed my line of thinking because she made a face. “Uh, Judith, I don’t think…”

“No, it’s ok, I’ve worked with a couple of transgender boys, I did some volunteering at a clinic and I know that top surgery is probably a way off honey, but I promise to be respectful, ok?”

Wait a second… does this chick…?

“Uh, um, Judith; Holly isn’t…”

“You’re not meant to use their birth names,” Nurse Carter chides my teacher. “What would you prefer I call you sweetie?”

Does she? Oh for fuck’s sake, she does.

“Judith, I think you’ve got it… backward.”

Nurse Carter looks between us uncertainly for a second. “You mean you…”

“Yeah… I kinda…”

“Oh…ooh!” Her eyes go wide. “Oh gosh, I’m so silly! I thought… Oh, wait… didn’t I see you once before this semester? I’m sure it was something food-related .”

I nodded, “Yep, the fish.”

“Your mother’s a surgeon, isn’t she?”

“Veronica Winters Ma’am, yes,” I reply. “I uh… I’m transferring here in January but for now, I gotta still… you know.”

The nurse nods sympathetically, “So what happened?”

“She was tripped in the hallway and kicked in the ribs,” Frau Whistler explains for me. “I don’t think it’s too bad but I wanted you to take a look, given her, delicate, situation.”

“Pop your upper clothing off then dear, are you… underneath?”

“Sports bra,” I admit, reddening a little.

“Pop behind the screen and take everything off but your bra, ok honey?”

I step behind the little rolling screen thing and start removing my clothing. I’m a little hesitant at first because I’m not entirely used to adults seeing Holly yet, never mind in my underwear. Once I’m done, I step back out and cough politely.

Frau Whistler and the nurse turn around and do a pretty poor job of masking their surprise. Me? I just stand there with my arms wrapped around my tummy waiting for the world to swallow me up.

Putting her surprise and curiosity behind her, Nurse Carter gave me a quick once over in her usual professional manner, gently touching my ribcage with her gloved fingers to check where it hurt. After a few moments, I was pronounced unbroken and permitted to get dressed again.

Honestly, I’m quite keen to get back into my uniform. Not because I like being Alex, but letting myself out of his mask has really upset who I’m meant to be right now. Sitting here being called Holly and wearing a bra in front of two other women is confusing my little head. Given that I’m here during the school day, It’s a great relief to get myself hidden once more. Knowing my luck, the entire football team would walk in with stubbed toes.

“Well, you’re going to have some lovely bruises, but I don’t think anything’s actually broken. If it persists beyond a few days, I would recommend visiting the urgent care. As it stands, I can give you something for the pain and you can get back to classes if you feel up to it?”

“I’m sorry for all the trouble,” I offer awkwardly, “I was ok, really…”

“Nonsense,” Frau Whistler replies. “You’re my student, and when you walk into my classroom looking like a beaten wife, I have a responsibility to her and her parents.”

What a choice of words… I swear, if anyone was going to bust my secret, it was likely one of the growing number of adults who can’t seem to keep my pronouns straight. I really don’t know why we let them run the world.

“I look forward to seeing you in the new year…Alex.” the nurse offers with a theatrical wink. Jesus, my existence is a joke to these idiots.

“No offense Ma’am, but I hope I never have to see you for this again, especially after January.”

That might have sounded harsh, but I really was sick of ending up here at the nurse's office. She was a nice lady, but getting my ass kicked was something that I was hoping was near its end. Not to say that girls don’t bully one another, but I expect it's a lot less physical usually. As long as I can keep out of the clutches of the boys for a few more weeks, I’ll be fine.

I was walking back across the central courtyard with Frau Whistler, clutching an ice pack to my cheek, when she stopped me by taking gentle hold of my shoulder. “Holly, look…I’m so very sorry.”

“Why?”

Frau Whistler looks about as upset as I’ve ever seen her. “I’m sorry about the bullying; I wish from the bottom of my heart that we could do more.”

I shrug, “There isn’t much that you can do when we don’t report stuff. They know how to keep a low profile and or intimidate us into staying quiet.”

She shakes her head and sighs, “It shouldn’t be that way.”

“It is what it is, welcome to High school.”

“Holly…” Frau Whistler frowns suddenly and seems lost for words. “In there… with the nurse. I had no idea that you...”

Oh… she’s referencing what she saw when I was out of Alex drag, standing there in my bra with real honest to god breasticles on my chest. I forgot that she’s only ever seen Alex mode and a bit of androgyny from me.

“Uh, yeah,” I chuckle, my bruised ribs making me instantly regret it.

“They said you… I… it was a surprise, is all.” she smiles politely.

I glance around us standing here in the central courtyard of the school between both divisions. It’s a little prophetic, given my current dual life. “Thank you for being kind to me, whether this makes sense or not.”

My teacher looks less than pleased. “Holly, you don’t need to thank me for being a decent human being. I may not understand what you’re going through but I would be a fool to think that you’re anything but a young lady. I’m sorry that the world can’t manage to treat people with human decency. Especially ones who have never lifted a finger against them.”

 

 

“Who the fuck hurt you?” my brother demanded, grabbing me out of the flow of students after next period.

“Whoah there, Rob, what’s gotten into you What do you mean hurt…?”

Rob glanced around before leaning in closer. “Holly, I can see the bruise on your cheek and Kelper said you got checked out to go see the nurse with a teacher last period, what am I meant to think? Again, who did this?”

“I don’t actually know,” I sigh. “Could have been anyone, Rob; I got tripped and kicked. The corridor was crowded. I never saw them, I promise.”

Rob relaxed a little when he realized I wasn’t purposefully hiding my attacker’s identity from him. “Sorry Hol, I just… I hated seeing you get your ass kicked before I knew the truth. Now? I…” he shrugged, not needing to say the rest.

We’re still out of sight so I touch his hand and smile. “I get it, Rob; thank you. Look, I have to get to class, I’ll see you later ok?”

Rob nodded, “Yeah, sure. Hey, what class was it?”

“After History, why?”

Rob works his jaw and shrugs, “Nothing, see you at home Spike.”

 

 

Modern Holly here; What follows is not something that I directly witnessed, but rather, heard about from a few sources after the fact; a little interrogation of my brother and boyfriend helped too. So far you have spent this entire book reading about things from my perspective, I think it’s about time you had a little break from that tragic mess. What comes next… is what boys do after dark… well, no, during the day actually… At School at least. I don't know, I just work here, ok?

I will clarify that it took a great deal of enhanced interrogation to convince my brother and boyfriend to reveal the truth of these events. US Military SEAR instructors would be quite proud of them both.

Holly reached up and touched Rob’s arm affectionately and gave him a small smile, the mask of Alex slipping away briefly. “I get it, Rob; thank you. Look, I have to get to class, I’ll see you later ok?”

Rob nodded, “Yeah, sure. Hey, what class was it?”

She frowned, “After History, why?”

Rob works his jaw and shrugs, “Nothing, see you at home Spike.”

Rob Winters watched his little sister disappear off down the corridor. It was amazing he could even manage to pretend to call her Alex anymore. Even here, dressed like all the boys and playing the role, he still saw right through it.

When Danny Kelper had told him about what he had seen, Rob had nearly lost it. As soon as he had been free from class, he had sought out his sister for answers. When he saw the bruise on her cheek and how she favored her ribs, he had murder on his mind.

Seeing his youngest sibling get bullied was always hard. He had always tried to be the best brother he could be. Then she came out; suddenly the kid brother turned out to be his kid sister and it all changed: Seeing some of the assholes at their school continue to hurt her now that he knew the truth? He could barely contain the rage he felt.

“Taylor, a word,” Rob growled, spotting the wide receiver chatting with a classmate in the corridor.

Rick broke off his conversation and fell in beside his teammate as he strode along the corridor.

“Did you hear what happened to…spike?”

Rick looked momentarily confused for a second before he caught on. “What? I didn’t… What happened?”

Rob worked his jaw as he fought to control his fury, “Some asshats put the boot in; she’s pretty bruised but she’s ok. No idea who did it, or none that she will tell me.”

“And you want to find out who so we can reeducate them?” Rick concluded.

Rob nodded, “apparently it was after History this morning, which she has on South Wing, level two. See who was there.”

“Rick nodded, his expression growing as dark as Rob’s, “Yeah, I know a lot of those guys, someone will have seen something.”

Rob bumped his fist and nodded his thanks. “Gotta get to class, man. Let me know what you find out.”

After the next period, Rick caught up to Rob as he was leaving Physics. “I got a lead; one of Granger’s guys was telling tales about… yeah. You know…” he shrugged, glancing around at nearby ears.

Rob nodded, “Wanna go see if he squeals?”

“I got a free,” Rick shrugged. “They hang out behind Tech on break.”

The two made their way downstairs and out of the main school building. The Technology Department was separate and housed all of the design and technology classrooms and workshops that the school operated. Behind it, was a slim section of parking lot that was often home to the smokers, dopeheads, and less sociable members of the student body.

It was here that they found Peter Umbridge selling cigarettes to a knot of lower-classmen. He was exactly where they had been informed; by the dumpsters at the rear of the Tech department. On seeing the two football players, the smarter of the little shits vanished like cockroaches exposed to a naked flame.

“Why are you scaring off my customers? Can’t you guys find anything better to do?” Smeared Umbridge.

“We want a word with you, alone,” Rob remarked, eying the few remaining younglings that were either too stupid or too brave for their own good.

“I’m busy,” Umbridge shrugged, taking cash from what looked like a Freshman.

Rick took the bag off Umbridge’s shoulder and hurled it into one of the dumpsters.

“Hey, what the hell man?” Umbridge protested, balling his fists.

Before he could react, Rob pinned him against the metal wall with a dull clang. “You were on South 2nd after History today, who fucked with my little brother?”

“I wasn’t,” Umbridge croaked around Winter’s forearm. “I swear.”

“You were,” Rick pointed out dryly. “You’re in the same class and you were telling Nate about seeing the attack. Tell us what we want to know or you join your produce.”

“I… uh… oh, you mean? That was a misunderstanding,” he croaked desperately, wriggling against the immovable force holding him in place. “Really, nobody meant nothing bad, he slipped.”

“Who?” Rob snarled, squeezing tighter.

Umbridge grabbed at Rob’s hand and kicked his feet in a feeble attempt to try to break free. After a moment’s struggle, he relaxed and let his head drop. “Fine, it was Nial. He was, well… and I’m quoting him directly, right? He said ‘The little faggot had it coming for swishing about like that.”

“Nial Peters?” Rob confirmed. “Nial Peters from the swim team?”

“Uhuh, yeah, Nial Peters,” Umbridge admitted with a nervous grin. “I promise, it was him, I saw it all.”

Rob released the sniveling toad and let him slump back against the filthy dumpster. “If you lied to me, I will flatten you, fuckstain.”

“It’s the truth, I promise,” Umbridge begged.

Rick elbowed the guy as he passed, “Go fishing for your bag, dickhead.”

It had taken all the skill and self-control that Rick could muster to not overreact at lunchtime. Holly had acted as though nothing was different, despite the growing bruise on her cheek. She had dismissed it as a clumsy fall and as much as he wanted to refuse her claim, he knew it was most likely for the best.

He wanted to coddle her, to get angry and protect her, but he knew that at school he had to maintain his distance for her sake. It didn’t mean that he and Rob couldn’t solve the problem their own way. He might not be able to protect her outwardly, but he could make sure that the asshole was punished for laying a finger on her.

He found Rob shortly after their lunch and the pair quietly left school grounds. They made for the parking lot where students parked their cars with a single focus; Nial and the other swim team members would regularly leave school and go to a diner a few blocks away for lunch. It wasn’t what they were meant to do, but the school usually overlooked it for the seniors. Especially seniors on sports teams.

Taking Rob’s car, they were soon parked in the lot across from the eatery to wait for their intended target.

“Thanks for coming with me,” Rob offered, glancing across at his teammate.

“You didn’t need to ask dude.”

“I know, and that’s what I mean,” Rob pointed out. “Thanks.”

Rick shrugged but didn’t take his eyes off the door to the diner. “It’s the right thing to do.”

“We haven’t really talked… about you and my sister.” Rob prompted.

Rick glanced over and felt suddenly uncomfortable. “You don’t approve?”

Rob rolled his shoulders and shook his head. “It’s not that I don’t approve, I just… can I be honest?”

“I’d prefer it.”

“I only just got to know her; my baby sister… Shit, I can’t think of her any other way; no matter how much I try. She’s important to me and I’ve always looked out for her. I know how bad things have been for her over the years, but I never knew what she was dealing with inside. I’m terrified of what will come next semester when it’s all out there, I just know I’ll be there beside her.”

Rick simply nodded, with little to add to his teammate’s thoughts.

Rob looked across at his sister’s boyfriend and fixed him with a stern look. “You’re really important to her and I think you’re a good dude. You’re there for her, even with… all of this crap. Will you still be there in January?”

“I will,” Rick replied quietly. “I’m not going anywhere. I love her; nothing is going to change that.”

Rob nodded, “Good. Then it‘s up to both of us to protect her. She can’t know about what happens here, but you already know that, don’t you?”

The door to the diner opened and a knot of swimmers came walking out, laughing together about something irrelevant. Rick didn’t look away from them as he opened the car door. “Less talk, more action.”

“Peters!” Rob growled, slamming the door behind him as he strode forward.

The taller of the four guys looked over, his confusion turning to recognition as he spotted Rob. “Winters? What are you doing over here?”

“Looking for the shitstain that thinks it’s cool to hurt my…brother.”

Nial Peters's expression changed from mild curiosity to mirth. “Oh, your little faggy brother? Might want to keep that queer on a leash then.”

“I think you’d better watch your tone,” Rick offered, carefully eying the other swimmers with Peters. The three guys were all equally tall and broad-shouldered in that classic swimmer’s physique, possessing a wirey strength, and looked ready to use it. The advantage here was that they were outweighed by himself and Rob by a good 50 pounds a piece.

“I’ll say what I want, Taylor,” Peters snapped. “Why are you here fighting Winter’s battles for him?”

“Because I can’t stand bullies,” Rick shrugged. “You three can leave, we need a word with your buddy.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” one of the shorter guys shrugged. “You want to start something?”

The other two looked momentarily hesitant, as if judging their chances of success against the two football players. Both seemed to reluctantly pick and squared up alongside their friends.

“I want to finish something,” Rob growled. “Teach your friend some manners.”

“You want to fuck the little faggot, is that it, Taylor?” Nial chuckled. “Stick with the team a little longer, I’m sure you’ll get your turn with Alex once he’s done with the seniors.”

There were no further words as Rob dumped Nial Peters on the asphalt of the parking lot, scattering his cronies like bowling pins in the process. At almost the same time, Rick laid out the talkative friend with a single right hook to the jaw.

Rolling on the ground, Nial Peters managed to land a few good hits to Rob’s ribs as they grappled but with a twist, he managed to kick the guy upward and throw him off to one side.

“Fuck you, asshole,” he snarled, driving his left fist into the swimmer’s gut as he blocked his telegraphed right.

Nial doubled over and was defenseless when Rob kneed him in the head, sending the boy sprawling backward onto the asphalt, his nose streaming blood. “Leave my si… leave Alex alone, do you hear me?” he roared.

Nial held his hands up and nodded, “Yeah, shit, I’m sorry dude.”

Rob grabbed a fist full of collar and leaned in. “You touch h…im or hear of anyone else doing it without you stopping them or telling me and I will kill you. Do you understand me, asshole?”

“Yeah, I… I do.” Nial grimaced, rubbing the blood from his nose.

Rick dropped the second idiot on the ground before the third retreated rapidly, conceding the fight unchallenged. He looked across at Rob who gave him a nod.

Rick walked across and looked down at the far less intimidating and talkative Nial Peters. Without pausing, he kicked him swiftly in the ribs, causing the boy to curl up in pain. “Have a nice day, dickhead.”

Rob took his arm and pointed at the diner windows, slowly filling with curious onlookers. “Time to go.”

Rick nodded, spitting on the prostate bully before turning to follow Winters back toward his ride. The pair departed before the swim team members had even dragged themselves up off the asphalt and they were a block away before either said a word.

“Thanks,” Rob offered quietly as they drove back toward the school campus.

“I got you, dude,” Rick replied, flexing his grazed knuckles.

Rob smiled to himself; there was no way that Nial Peters or any of his friends would ever touch his sister again. They wouldn’t be the only ones, but for now, it would stem the tide. What came in January was another story. One he felt powerless to prevent.

Rick had risen significantly in his expectations. The guy was a good teammate and clearly cared for his sister a great deal. He hadn’t blinked when Rob had suggested punishing those responsible and he could clearly take care of himself in a fight. He hadn’t been ignorant of the two guys that Rick had taken on alone.

If Holly insisted on dating anyone, he reasoned, at least it was a guy with honor. He was still coming to terms with the basic concept of his sister having a romantic interest in anyone at all; he just didn’t see his younger sibling that way. Perhaps, he supposed, that was more the life of Alex.

Holly was different; she was so much more than his little brother had ever been. So much more alive, full of love and life. He would get used to it, he knew; he was pretty sure she wouldn’t give him a choice anyway. He felt glad that this guy would stand up for her if it came to it; what more could a brother ask?

 

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