When Maria woke up, she found herself tangled in Timothy's arms.
Warm. Comforting.
She raised her head and blinked a few times, founding her vision to be oddly blurry. Oh, her glasses.
But as she looked around the room, she realized she was neither home, nor on the sofa she fell asleep in. A quick look at the medals and trophies near her made it obvious this was probably Timothy's room, and she sighed, before turning back to him. He was still asleep.
He probably brought her there and slept alongside her.
That thought made her blush, and she rubbed a hand across her face. She never could've guessed, five years, or even a month or so ago, that this would ever end up happening. She had to be honest, it was still weird, and unbelievable, seeing someone care so strongly for her, other than her own parents. But… it was nice.
She stared at him a bit longer, before snapping out of it, and gently shaking him.
Timothy groaned sleepily and held on to her hand, which, while it was really adorable, wasn't exactly what she wanted out of this. She shook again, a bit harder, and this time he immediately sat up in the bed, rubbing his eyes and blinking as he looked around. "Wha-huh, I'm awake!!" He mumbled, before his gaze fell over her, and he gasped. "O-oh, Mari!" He said happily. He laughed a little, yawning as he stretched. "Good morning."
Maria smiled softly, and yawned as well. "Morning…" she then looked around "Have you seen my glasses?"
Timothy pointed to the bedside table, which was a bit too far away for Maria to see the contents of in detail. "There- oh wait, let me get 'em for you." He said, then leaned over her to get them. He moved back, and placed them on her face, then smiled.
"Cute."
Maria blushed, but frowned. "A-am I? Really?"
He nodded. "Yeah! You have a cute round face, and big eyes, and a pretty smile. And you're so small and frail I could just pick you up-" he pulled her in his arms and hugged her. "-and just never let go!" He wiggled around a bit, and then kissed her forehead. That made Maria blush, and her eyes widen. Apparently finding that cute too, Timothy smiled and laughed, then lowered his head a bit, and gave her a quick peck on the lips.
Maria squeaked, and smiled softly. "T-thank you…" she then looked at him. "You're… cute too…"
Timothy giggled, and tilted his head, smiling brightly. "Hehe, thanks!"
If he were a dog he'd definitely be a labrador. He was just too cute and happy, especially now.
"S-so, uhm… what's the plan, exactly?" Timothy asked, laying back on his side.
"We're going to contact the higher ups, explain the situation, also do the same for the school staff that would vouch for me. We ask them to talk to the principal, and sort the whole thing out. Then, uh, we wait, see how it goes."
Timothy smiled, and ruffled her hair. "Damn, you're organized, huh?"
Maria chuckled softly. "T-thanks. I've been thinking about this all night, I'd say I'm pretty prepared." She smiled gently, and looked up at Timothy. "It's all thanks to you, that I'm able to find courage, and to have hope."
Timothy blushed and smiled back. And Maria leaned in and kissed him softly. He kissed her back, and then laughed softly.
It was going to be okay, wasn't it?
They decided on sending letters to the teachers and school board directly after breakfast. The letters explained everything in detail, from the less brutal, but insulting start five years ago, to the increasing violence of this year. They described the insults and the fights, how much it had affected Maria over the years. The fact she'd even sometimes had suicidal thoughts, or thoughts of running away - two things Timothy didn't know, which made him very upset when he learned, Maria having to be hugged and kissed a few times in comfort, before they kept writing.
There were photos attached of the two's faces, still a bit scarred, as the fights had only happened a few days ago. They named a few specific students. The group of guys who fought Timothy. The girls who pushed Maria in the pool and beat her up. The guys who threw food at her.
As they were making the list, they started to realize this was about half of the entire fifth grade. Awkward, if they were to end up expelling some of them.
And finally, they pleaded that something be done about it. They explained that the principal and vice-principal both didn't seem to care, even when both Maria's parents and Timothy all tried talking to them, on multiple occasions.
And after they were done, satisfied with their work, they sent it to the school board, as well as the nurse, and PE teacher. Maria then called her parents, telling them about their plan, and inadvertently, about her new relationship, which made them very happy and had them screaming of happiness over the phone monitor.
And then, when it was all done, she and Timothy decided to spend the rest of the day outside, as Maria took a few pictures, and taught some basics to him, who was, of course, happy to learn.
The return to school was somehow even more stressful than Maria would've anticipated. She didn't know what happened, as she hadn't gotten anything back from the school board.
The bus pulled in to her stop, and Maria climbed in, happy to find Timothy there, as usual. He smiled and stood up to let her sit near the window. As they both sat down, he took his hand, and gently kissed it.
"It'll be okay. Whatever ends up happening, I'm here, alright?"
Maria smiled, and kissed his hand back. "Yeah… thank you."
As the bus pulled up and they both motioned to Maria's locker, hand in hand, nothing really seemed different. People around her talking, laughing, yelling.
Nobody was staring, however…
When they got to their first class, they realized that a lot of students were gone. And those who were still there, as soon as Maria and Timothy arrived, looked away, silent.
Then, a guy stood up, and walked to them. Maria didn't remember his name, but she knew he used to hang out with Timothy before.
"H-hey… I… I'm sorry. It was shitty to do that."
He then quickly turned on his heels, and walked away.
"Hey, Matthew?" Timothy asked, and the guy turned around.
Maria looked at him, and smiled. "It's okay. I forgive you."
Matthew made a weird face, and some of the students looked at him, then at her. Then, another girl stood up. Maria recognized her as one of the girls who hung around Kate, the girl who pushed her in the water.
"Uh…" she stared for a few seconds, but sighed, and turned back. "Nevermind."
And, oddly enough, for the first time in a long, long time, those were the last interactions she ever had with those guys.
The day went by rather smoothly. She ate outside with Timothy, and watched him swim during PE. Then, as the day ended, and the two were walking home, Maria felt rather satisfied. She could only assume something was done about those students. She didn't know where they were, or what the school board did to make them go away, but… the important was that now, she finally was free. She didn't have to worry. Everything was going to be okay.
She held onto Timothy's arm a bit more, and smiled brightly.
If it hadn't been for this lost puppy, who knew where she'd be now?
"Thank you Timothy."
She looked up at him and he looked down.
"I love you."
And theirs lips met, and for a second, time froze, letting her bask in the happiest moment of her life.
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