Three hours. It took three hours of laying, staring up at the sky for Atticus to be able to reach his phone and call Riya. Looking at the time, he knew he’d missed lunch and two more lessons. The fifth lesson of the day had just started, and Atticus felt guilty about calling Riya.

He knew she would always pick up, knew she’d always respond, knew she’d always put him first. But, he felt bad about always having to call her away. It’d been worse last year, when he still went to a different school, but now they were at the same one, she had been adamant that he get her when he needed help.

With a sigh, Atticus let his hand with the phone in drop back to the ground. She’d get in trouble for using her phone in class, if the teachers actually cared (unlike his maths teacher) and she’d miss out on whatever lesson she was in.

And Riya took her studies very seriously.

Pocketing the phone again, Atticus attempted to sit up, finding that the bruises had already healed a significant amount. His leg, however, was still sending spasms of pain permeating through his entire body.

“Fuck, that really does hurt.” Rubbing his hands together, Atticus scooted back so he could at least lean against the wall. There was no way in hell he’d get the bus back that afternoon, not when Daniel and friends would be there to laugh at his pain.

No thank you~ he thought with a wry smile.

Atticus contemplated his options; he could call his dad or brother, and they’d send a car for him. But, most likely one of them would come pick him up, to see why he wasn’t getting the bus, and then they’d see his broken leg and bruises, and he’d be eternally questioned.

“A big fat no on that one then,” he muttered under his breath, pushing his head back against the cold bricks. He considered just staying where he was. It was a nice little space, covered and out of the way, with a cute view of the football pitch.

There was no one currently there, which Atticus was glad about, even though from this angle they wouldn’t be able to see him, and only he could see them. “Jesus Christ I’m being such a creepy stalker today UGH!”

Rolling his eyes at himself, Atticus hauled his battered bones to his feet. “Riya will actually kill me if I don’t tell her about this…” Grabbing his phone from his pocket once again, he dialled the number of his best friend.

—————

“Wow Riya, a pretty bold move to use your phone in class,” a handsome boy with spiky black hair teased, poking her arm. Normally, the two got on very well, and Riya was always up for some banter.

However, when she saw the name, combined with the fact that he hadn’t tried to find her at break or lunch, Riya was instantly worried. “I have to go. Send me your notes ok thanks bye!” The boy’s playful smile turned down in worry - it was a widely-known fact that Riya was super serious about her studies, and she’d never leave class early.

That’s why they sat next to each other - they had the two highest test scores of their school, and both of them were very competitive, always striving to be the best against one another.

If the boy wasn’t also as serious about his studies as Riya was, he would run after her to check that everything was ok. Instead, he focused his blue eyes on the board, making sure to take great notes so she wouldn’t miss much.

—————

Riya hurtled down the empty corridors, following the instructions her best friend was giving her, until she reached a closed off outdoor area overlooking the football pitch. A hand waved her over.

She didn’t need an explanation, when she saw him. She only needed to take in the bruise on his face, the strange angle of his leg, and an expression on Atticus’s face that she was all too familiar with - a smile with a hint of pain on the edge that he did so well to hide from others.

Angry tears immediately began to fall, as Riya cupped her hand to her mouth. “Hey, um, it’s not as bad as it looks?” Riya shook her head, wanting to hug him but knowing that’d put him in a lot more pain.

“Atti, you’re an idiot if you think I’m going to buy that.” Taking a steadying breath, Riya exhaled shortly after. “Daniel again?”

Atticus grimaced, nodding. “Yeeeah. Listen, it was totally on me this time, I actually spoke back to him. Rookie mistake.” Riya put her hands on her hips, anger flaring up in her eyes again. “Don’t you dare ever say this was your fault again, or I’ll sit on your wolf.”

The threat was genuinely concerning - Riya’s wolf was among the larger within the pack anyway, and Atticus’s was the smallest. So, he nodded furiously. “Ok, yeah, sorry. I know he’s a total dick and I’m pretty sure there’s not much I could do to deserve a broken leg, but eh. We move.”

Riya rolled her eyes at him, before literally picking him up in a princess hold, and marching him towards the school entrance. “We have to tell the alpha - if Daniel’s going to pull this shit on the first day, he’s definitely going to do it for the rest of the year too. This has got to stop.”

Atticus chewed on his lip, thinking about it. “I don’t know. I can deal with a few bruises and broken bones if it means I don’t have to tell anyone about it.” Placing him down on the ground against a wall, Riya crouched down next to him.

“Atti, listen to me. I know you’re ashamed - you feel like the weakest link, and like you’ve done something wrong. But you haven’t. Not ever. You’re the strongest person I know, for being able to keep standing up after what he did to you - then and now.”

Atticus smiled, but gave her a teasing smile. “I literally can’t stand up now though, that’s why you had to carry me like a pwetty pwincess.” Riya rolled her eyes, massaging his arm comfortingly.

“Is this about what happened two years ago?”

Atticus visibly flinched away from her, wrapping his arms around himself. “I don’t want the pack to know. They’ll think I’m even more ridiculous than they already do. No one can know.”

Riya pulled him in to a gentle hug, careful to avoid his injuries. “Sweetheart, you did nothing wrong. You did everything you could, in that situation, but the fault still lies completely with Daniel. You know he’d be kicked out of the pack if they knew, right? This would all be over.”

Atticus sighed, pulling away from the hug. “Yeah, I know. I know what I should do, but I’m too scared of the backlash if I actually do it.”

She nodded in understanding, running a gentle and calming hand through his hair. “Ok. Let’s not tell the alpha. But, what about your brother? He doesn’t have to tell your dad, but could help get Daniel to back off maybe.”

Atticus thought about it for a bit - it actually made a lot of sense - he and Ceyden were close, and he might be able to help Atticus. “Ok. Let’s tell him about today.”