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Caitlyn barely had any time to register the shove as her face slammed into the locker, sharp pain spreading across her face. She felt something hot on her lip and it didn’t take too long for her to taste blood. Her head started spinning as she saw black spots crowding her vision, slowly sinking to the dirty floor of the hallway. Tears were in her eyes as she looked up at the boy that loomed over her, ready for another round.
His hands grabbed the fabric of her sweater and pulled her up roughly, banging her against her locker again.
She felt his breath on her face and closed her eyes, trying to lean back as far as possible.
“I’m sorry..” She managed to whisper out, trying to avoid getting hit another time. She wasn’t even sure what she was supposed to be sorry for, but it felt right to say.
A wicked grin appeared on his face as he took her in. “Watch where you’re going next time.” He spat at her, letting go with a push.
She fell down again, body shaking as she tried to move away from him. Her ears registered some curses thrown at her by various people, but she ignored it, closing her eyes.
Then, she heard the heavy footsteps approaching her current situation. Caitlyn opened her eyes and witnessed how Vi, a quiet girl from her class, suddenly threw a punch at the boy who had just been tormenting her.
The smug smile was quickly wiped off his face as he fell to the floor, hand clenching his now broken nose. He whimpered as she grabbed his collar and shook him thoroughly.
“You think you’re some hot shit, don’t you?” She sneered at him. “Try picking on someone your own size next time you decide to be a bully. Try it and see what happens.”
Caitlyn stared at her in awe, still on the ground. She and Vi had never really spoken. Vi was nice, polite, but never gave her the impression she actually wanted anything to do with Caitlyn. While she was shorter than Caitlyn, she was broad and made up for her size by the outline of her biceps. Caitlyn was a bit intimidated by her and her attitude, and apparently, for a good reason. She tried not to flinch as the girl turned around, facing Caitlyn, and took a step towards her.
Vi knelt down in front of her and put a shaking hand on her shoulder.
Caitlyn noticed the blood on her knuckles.
“Are you alright?” Vi asked, inspecting her face.
She flinched at her touch, and Vi immediately let go of her. She just nodded in response, finding it hard to talk.
Vi noticed the swollen lip and was ready to jump back up and give him another punch. Before she could move, someone grabbed her shirt and pulled her away from Caitlyn.
Caitlyn could barely stop the vomit from leaving her body when the stern voice cut through the air.
“My office, all 3 of you!”
The conversation was awkward, to say the least. They all got reprimanded, even though Caitlyn barely did anything, besides getting assaulted. She sat next to Vi, who held an ice pack closely to her bruising knuckles with a clenched jaw. They were left together, waiting for their parents to come pick them up.
Vi wouldn’t stop bouncing her leg as she looked at the clock nervously.
“I’m sorry I got you in trouble.” Caitlyn said, afraid to look her in the eye.
Vi just shook her head. “I got myself in trouble. I could have stayed out of it and watched like everyone else did.” She paused, turning her head to finally face Caitlyn. “Does he do that a lot?”
“What?” Caitlyn met her eyes, struggling with the eye contact. “Shoving me up against lockers, calling me names? More than I can count.”
The girl didn’t reply immediately. “Why?”
Caitlyn shrugged. “I’m a misfit, I deserve it.”
Vi frowned in response. “What makes you say that?”
“That’s what they tell me.”
She shuffled in the chair. “For what it’s worth, I think you’re pretty cool.”
Caitlyn smiled at her comment, eyes returning to her hand. “Does it hurt?”
Vi shrugged with nonchalance. “Nothing I can’t handle.”
In response, Caitlyn grabbed her hand and squeezed it slightly. Vi whimpered and flinched, pulling her hand back. She put it against her chest, pressing the ice pack back on her knuckles.
“I see.” Caitlyn commented dryly as she looked away, eyes widening at the opening door.
Cassandra Kiramman, her mother, stormed into the office, face twisted with rage.
“Caitlyn!” She immediately walked towards her daughter, grabbing her face with both of her hands, studying the injury she had sustained. Her eyes then trailed to the side, spotting Vi with blood on her hand, and immediately pulled Caitlyn away. “I will be having a very strong word with you and your parents, girl .”
Vi flinched at her words, pushing herself from the chair.
“Mom!” Caitlyn interjected, nearly having to stop her mother from grabbing Vi’s collar and shoving her up against the wall. “She didn’t touch me.”
Cassandra immediately calmed down and looked Vi up and down. The girl was shaking slightly at the sight of Cassandra Kiramman in front of her, ready to beat her up herself.
“She helped me..” Caitlyn continued, walking towards Vi. “She punched the boy that did this to me.”
“I see.” She said, resembling Caitlyn in every way possible. She looked around the office, a frown still visible on her face. “Where is this boy?”
The principal walked in, closing the door behind him. He looked at the situation in front of him and appeared a bit confused, but he didn’t comment. “Thomas was picked up about twenty minutes ago.” He said, sitting down behind his desk. “When do you think you’ll be picked up, Vi?” He looked at the girl that had just scaped all courage together to sit back down next to Caitlyn.
She shook her head. “It could be a while.” She said softly, biting her lip. “Vander told me he didn’t have anyone to cover his shift, so it would have to wait.”
Cassandra looked at her, taking pity with the girl, and directed her gaze at the principal. “Why can’t she leave?”
The man coughed and shifted in his chair. “We need someone to sign for her after an incident. Especially..” He paused, looking at Vi. “Especially when it’s a repeated offence.”
Vi turned red and looked away, wanting to sink straight through the floor.
“What kind of nonsense is that?” Cassandra raised her voice. “I’ll sign for her and take her home.”
“I’m not sure-”
“I’ll sign for her and take her home.” She repeated, making it very clear she didn’t wish to do that again. “Let’s go, girls.”
Caitlyn grabbed her hand and pulled the shocked girl along.
The car ride home was even more awkward.
“So, a repeated offence, huh?” Cassandra looked at the girl in her car, eyes narrowed. “You seem to know your way around violent conduct.”
Vi hesitated with her answer. “It was one time, years ago. I didn’t think it would be that big of a deal.”
“Assault is always a big deal.”
Vi clearly felt attacked by the comment. She looked at Caitlyn, who was right next to her, searching for some kind of help with her mother. “You shouldn’t put your hands on someone if you’re not willing to get punched back.” She eventually went with.
Cassandra smiled slightly. “I suppose you’re correct.” Her eyes were back on the road. “Where did you learn to punch this well?”
“I box in my free time.” Vi looked at her shaking hand. “I don’t think I’ll be doing a lot of boxing with this, though.”
Caitlyn studied the girl next to her and felt something hot burn up her stomach. Her cheeks turned red of embarrassment and she turned her head away, suddenly very interested in the passing houses.
“That’s interesting, don’t you agree, Caitlyn?” Her mother looked at her through the mirror and Caitlyn nodded distantly. “You should learn how to defend yourself.”
“What do you mean?” Caitlyn asked, confused.
“These bullies picking on you..” Cassandra shook her head with a sad frown on her face. “I think it would be good for you, maybe it’ll give you some more confidence.”
Vi bit her lip and looked away, feeling the way Caitlyn was growing more and more uncomfortable with the situation.
“I’ll think about it.”
Cassandra parked the car and told Caitlyn to stay put. She could only watch as her mother walked Vi to her door and handed her a card, instructing her to do god knows what. She continued talking for a little while more before someone opened the door, a little girl appearing behind it. Vi turned to her mother, said goodbye and walked inside, still holding the business card in her injured hand.
The door opened and her mother entered, remaining alarmingly quiet. After a few seconds, she started the car and drove away, not searching for any type of contact with her daughter.
“Why did you give her your number?” Caitlyn asked, deciding to break the uncomfortable silence.
“She’s going to be training you for the next couple weeks.” She said simply, like it made sense.
Caitlyn gasped and shook her head. “I don’t want to do that. I will not.”
"Yes, you will.” Her tone was sharp and Caitlyn flinched slightly. “Have you looked in the mirror? How long has this been going on, Caitlyn? Why haven’t you told me about this?”
She suppressed the urge to make a sarcastic remark, knowing it would only upset her mother more. “It’s not that big of a deal. I can handle myself.”
“You and I both know you can’t. That’s why Vi will make sure you will be able to soon. Don’t you think she’s lovely?”
Caitlyn scoffed. “You were ready to kill her about an hour ago.”
“That’s besides the point.” They had arrived at their destination, and her mother almost lifted her out of the car, looking at her swollen face again. “Are you sure you’re alright?”
There were tears in her eyes, but Caitlyn bit them away. “I’m fine.”
Her mother led her inside, sitting her down in a chair. She sat still as she looked at her mother nervously.
“Do I have to go?”
“Yes.”
That’s how she found herself standing in front of Vi on a saturday morning. They were in the garage where a punching bag hung from the ceiling.
Vi was wearing shorts and a tight tank top, giving Caitlyn a good look at her muscled arms. There was a bandage wrapped around her right hand, she was holding a pair of old boxing gloves in the others. When she handed them to Caitlyn, their hands brushed.
She felt her cheeks turn red at the short contact, the feeling in her stomach returning. She looked at the gloves, unsure what to do.
The other girl chuckled softly as she unwrapped them and touched her wrist softly, asking for permission to continue touching her. Caitlyn just nodded slightly, and Vi pushed her hand inside the glove, wrapping it tightly around her wrist. She repeated the same action with the other glove and stepped away from her, grabbing the punching bag.
“Have you ever done this before?” She asked, moving her head to the side, seeking eye contact.
Caitlyn shook her head and bit her lip.
“That’s alright.” She hesitated, eyes trailing down her body before they shot back up to her face. “Just hit it.”
Caitlyn obliged, nearly petting the bag. It didn’t even move back slightly and she noticed Vi struggling to stop herself from laughing.
“Harder than that.” She commented, stepping back towards her. She grabbed her arm and mimicked the movement she was supposed to make. “Try that. Pay attention to the way you turn your wrist. You want to put all the strength behind it, when you twist it like that you’ll only hurt yourself.” She stepped away again and grabbed the bag, confidence in her eyes. “Go on.”
Caitlyn threw another punch, this time a bit harder, using the technique Vi had just shown her.
“Just do that a few times and mind how it makes your arm feel.” Vi told her, focusing on the way her shoulder moved.
She did it again, and again, and once more, before she felt exhaustion take over her body, quiet pants escaping her mouth.
“Tired already?” Vi asked, a smile on her lips. “Do you work out often?”
Caitlyn scoffed. “I work out enough, thank you very much.” She watched as the smile fell from Vi’s lips, a panicked look taking over her eyes. “Tell me, am I doing this right?”
Vi shuffled a bit and stepped towards her, grabbing her hips. “You have to watch your footing. If you want to put as much power as possible in your punch, your entire body needs to be synchronised.” She gently pulled her back a bit and moved her sideways, changing her form. “Watch.” The warm hands left her body, and Caitlyn found herself missing her touch. The girl pretended to throw a punch at the bag, demonstrating the way she used her step in the movement. “You get it?”
“I think so.” Caitlyn copied her technique and felt the way it affected her punch. She looked at Vi, excitement in her eyes.
Vi just smiled at her as she continued to get herself exhausted with the bag.
At some point, Vi told her to stop, content with her performance. She started to demonstrate different punching techniques and explain which one to use in certain situations.
Caitlyn watched her and the time seemed to slow down. Her eyes were locked on the flexing muscles in her back and shoulders whenever she threw a punch with such nonchalance. She barely even heard the words that were coming out of her mouth, too busy trying to stop herself from drooling over the girl in front of her.
Vi seemed to notice that she was losing concentration and decided to call it a day after having trained for over an hour. “Do you want anything to drink?” She asked, approaching her. She released her hands and threw the gloves down on the floor, only focused on Caitlyn.
“Sure.” Caitlyn followed the girl out of the garage, eying her surroundings nervously. They entered the kitchen, having passed the living room, and Caitlyn got the impression that they had the entire house to themselves.
Vi handed her a glass of water and stared at her as she drank it down, reaching behind her. She got her hands on a banana and threw it towards Caitlyn. “Eat it.” She walked out of the kitchen.
Caitlyn continued to follow her, up the stairs, into the hallway and to the second door, which Vi opened.
“My room’s a mess, I’m sorry.” Vi explained, letting herself fall down on the bed that stood in the corner of the room. Caitlyn quickly joined her, looking around. Vi had a few bookshelves, completely piled over with books. There was a small pile of clothing on the floor that Vi kicked underneath her bed, out of her sight. She had a few posters on her wall, nothing unusual for her age. A bunch of CDs covered a part of her desk.
“It’s fine. Mine’s probably worse than this.” She admitted, looking at the girl besides her. “I just want to thank you for doing this, Vi. I know my mother can be intimidating and all, and I was a bit afraid she’d scared you away at first.”
She didn’t want to tell her about how badly she had wanted to stay home, how she had wished for a sudden illness to overcome her, preventing her presence. Not because she didn’t like Vi, or because she didn’t want her help, but because of the way Vi made her feel. Anything she did made her stomach feel funny and took her breath away somehow, like she was bewitched.
“It’s alright. I was a bit hesitant at first, but you’ve always been nice to me. You don’t deserve any of that.” Vi looked away, afraid to share a glance with her. “I’m just glad I can help you somehow. Without getting myself suspended, I mean.”
Caitlyn smiled at the comment and closed her eyes. “I don’t think he’ll bother me for a while after the way you broke his nose. Or anyone, really, not when they think I’ve got a personal bodyguard.”
The girl shifted a bit at the comment. “Bodyguard, huh?" A soft chuckle escaped her lips. “I like that.”
“Me too..” Caitlyn hummed. A silence followed, and Caitlyn decided to turn around, facing Vi. It took her by surprise. She flinched slightly at the sudden movement. “Can I ask you something?”
“Yeah.” Vi breathed out, blinking slowly.
“That other incident. Tell me about it.” Caitlyn watched her as she frowned slightly at her request, but obliged.
“Just some asshole that tried to beat up my sister for her lunch money. I didn’t even hit him that hard, I just pushed him away from her, but he fell backwards and hit his head against one of the trash cans. He had to get stitches, and his parents were rich, so obviously it was going to be a big deal. I got suspended for two weeks and had to apologise to him.” She bit her lip, a sad look on her face. “I got labelled as violent for the rest of my school career, and nobody there ever looked at me the same again.”
While it was true that Vi was regarded as a violent and scary kid, Caitlyn had never shared the same sentiment. She always found Vi interesting, the permanent sad gaze that inhabited her eyes, the way she hardly ever spoke. They had never really shared a word before the incident earlier this week, despite the fact that they shared multiple classes together. She felt a stab of guilt, suddenly feeling responsible for the way Vi had been treated by everyone.
“I’m sorry.” Caitlyn mumbled, locking eyes with Vi. “I think you’re really cool too.”
Vi forced a sad smile. “Thanks, cupcake.”
Caitlyn frowned and shook her head. “Cupcake? Really?”
The girl just nodded, pushing herself up. “You heard me.”
A scoffed escaped her lips as she followed her movement. “What makes you say that?” Caitlyn questioned, studying the way her eyes trailed over her body.
“You’re sweet.” She went silent, averting her gaze, suddenly very interested in her wall. “I like you.”
Caitlyn started blushing at the comment. “Thanks.” It only took her a few seconds to realise that wasn’t an appropriate way to respond to what Vi had just said, and she scrambled to correct herself. “I really like you too.” She stuttered, flustered by the way Vi looked at her.
Vi grabbed her face and kissed her quickly before letting go, staring at the flustered, frozen girl in front of her, before running out of the room, leaving Caitlyn alone, shaking slightly.
Caitlyn ran after her, following her down the stairs, nearly falling down the stairs as she tried to catch up with Vi. “Wait!”
Vi halted, turning around. She was trembling as she bit her lip, trying to make it stop. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”
Caitlyn grabbed her arm and gently held her in place. “Don’t apologise. I liked it.”
The sad smile returned to her face. She didn’t say anything, just looking at Caitlyn as she stepped a bit closer to Vi.
“You should do it again.”
A few weeks had passed, several lessons with them. Caitlyn was leaning against the lockers, whispering and chatting about something unimportant. People looked at her differently, now that she was openly interacting with Vi, but Caitlyn didn’t mind. They had always looked at her funny anyway.
Vi held her hand and whispered something in her ear. Caitlyn barely suppressed a giggle as she spotted Thomas across the hallway, staring at her and Vi with somewhat of a fire in his eyes. Caitlyn quickly looked away, ignoring him, when Vi let go of her hand.
“I’ll be right back, Cait. Wait up for me.” She turned around and walked away, leaving Caitlyn alone and vulnerable.
She wanted to run after her, ask her to stop and stay with her, but found herself frozen to the ground.
Of course, the shove to her shoulders wasn’t exactly surprising. She managed to catch herself and turned around, making herself bigger as Thomas doomed over her.
“You’ve caused me a lot of trouble, Kiramman.” He snarled at her, ready to shove her again, when Caitlyn suddenly relaxed her shoulder and threw a punch straight at her jaw. He fell back immediately, taken by surprise by the power Caitlyn was able to put into the hit, and ran back towards her.
A hand grabbed his shirt from behind, halting him in his movement. He was thrown to the floor and Vi appeared behind him, not amused at all. “Seriously? This again?” She tilted her head as she looked at his jaw and the red spots on it, smiling slightly. “Nice one.”
Caitlyn smiled back at Vi, proudly looking at her work, not even noticing the yelling behind them.
They found themselves in the same position once again, sitting next to each other in the principal’s office.
Vi tried to keep a straight face as they got another tirade thrown over them by the principal. She looked at Caitlyn and bit her lip as he continued to criticise her recent liking for violence. He left, leaving them alone.
“That was entertaining.” Vi said dryly. “I think you got him quite well. That’ll teach him to keep his paws of you next time he decides to be brave.”
Caitlyn shook her head slightly. “I just took him by surprise, that’s all.”
“You floored him, cupcake. Be proud of it.”
She blushed a bit as her mother walked into the office again, less angry than the last time. “Humor me, Caitlyn.” She sat down and looked at the girls in front of her, frowning slightly. “The same boy again?”
Caitlyn didn’t answer, so Vi nodded slowly.
Cassandra turned her head away and looked at the door, seemingly annoyed at the absence of their principal. She looked at her watch and scoffed, shaking her head.
A few more minutes passed in silence. When the principal finally did return, he opened his mouth to share the bad news.
“Considering this is the second incident this month, I’m afraid I’m going to have to suspend the both of you for the remainder of this week.”
Vi tensed up next to her, clearly uncomfortable at the situation. “I didn’t even do anything..” She mumbled under her breath, annoyed.
“Actually, no you won’t.” Cassandra said, taking him by surprise.
“Excuse me?” His face turned red.
“You heard me, sir. I have been hearing concerning things from my daughter. This way you’re going? I don’t appreciate it. What I’d like to hear is your strategy to prevent that foul twat of a child from ever touching my child again. Do I make myself clear? Or should I go around to have some chats about this school’s lack of anti-bullying programs?” She spat the words at him with disdain, looking at him as if he was filth. “Now tell me, principal. How long will Thomas be suspended?”
He cleared his throat and hesitated. “Unfortunately, Thomas is the only student who got injured in this fight. Even if this story about his antics are true, the way your daughter reacted was beyond any kind of necessary proportion.”
She shook her head. “I disagree. He has been bothering her for months now. If you don’t act now, I’ll show you proportion .” She emphasised the last word, almost mocking him. She looked to the side. “Let’s go, girls. We’ll leave the principal to think about everything that goes on in this school.”
Caitlyn grabbed Vi’s hand and pulled her out of the office, following her mother once again.