Heavy Is The Head: A Young Royals Fanfiction

The Consequences of Other People's Actions

"AUGUST!"

He barely had time to register that someone had said his name before he was hit with a hard blow to the face. Blood gushed from his nose, and before he could react, Simon punched him again, knocking him off his feet. 

In a matter of seconds, every student at Hillerska had gathered in the hallway to watch the fight. Felice was among the first to arrive, eyes wide as her fears came to life. It was a sea of bodies and cell phones, eager to catch the altercation on camera. Behind countless other people, Sara watched her brother through a screen. Her stomach twisted, but she was frozen to the floor, unable to intervene.

All at once, the hallway emptied around Wilhelm. He followed the distant shouting until he reached the crowd, which completely blocked the commotion from his sight. "What's happening?" he yelled to Sara. In response, she gestured to a stranger's cell phone. Wilhelm's heart dropped when he recognized them.

If it weren't for the adrenaline coursing through his body, Wilhelm wouldn't have been able to push through the crowd. But one by one, he maneuvered around every person in front of him until he reached Simon.

By the time he got there, the floor around them was stained with blood. Though August had gotten a few punches in, he remained on the floor, and there seemed to be no end to Simon's fury. He threw punch after punch, showing no sign of stopping.

"Simon!" Wilhelm shouted at the top of his lungs, but he couldn't even know if he was heard. "Simon, stop it!" From behind, he wrapped his arms around Simon's waist and pulled him to his feet.

"Let go of me!" Simon bellowed, thrashing against Wilhelm. It was lucky the headmistress appeared just then; otherwise, Simon may have broken free again. 

"My office. Now," she commanded.

"I didn't even do anything!" August protested. "That psycho attacked me!"

"Fuck you!" Simon screamed back.

"Enough!" The headmistress threw her hands up to silence them. "I want all three of you in my office right now!" She turned. "And the rest of you can go back to your rooms."

The entire student body scurried away almost as quickly as it had gathered, sharing whispers and glances over their shoulders, comparing notes on their recordings.

"Let go of me, Wilhelm," Simon growled. It was the only time he would directly address him. Once Wilhelm obeyed, Simon didn't even look at him; he just stormed away toward the office.

August stood on shaking legs. "Thank you for stopping him," he said.

Wilhelm didn't make eye contact as he strode past. "I didn't want him to break his knuckles."

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The headmistress had decided to speak to August first, leaving Simon and Wilhelm waiting in the corridor outside. Simon seethed in silence for several minutes before Wilhelm finally broke it. "How did you find out?"

"Felice kind of hinted at it, but eventually I put the pieces together." For the first time, Simon looked straight at him. "Did you know?"

If looks could kill, Wilhelm would have been dead. "Yeah," he admitted reluctantly. "Felice told me before break."

"Before break? It's been going on for that long?"

"Going on? What are you talking about?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The video."

"August leaked the video?" Simon looked at the ceiling. "Why does that not surprise me? Wait a second," he turned to face Wilhelm again. "You knew? Why didn't you tell me?"