Bullied Once, Loved Twice

Chapter 5 - One small step

Liam groaned as he lay on the bed, Matheo sitting by his side with a smirk on his face. He didn't understand why he was so happy about the situation. This was obnoxious to him.

"What are you smirking about?" Liam asked in an annoyed tone, receiving a chuckle from the questioned man.

"You really are mad with her, huh? Maybe she came to apologize again?" He teased as he pushed Liam, who pushed back with a smile.

"You're such a jerk! That was so embarrassing! Like, how could she just walk into the shower room and expect to talk! This girl gets under my skin and not in the right way." Liam whined, plopping on his back to stare at the ceiling. He didn't understand why she kept trying so hard to apologize to him. She always was so dead set on making his life miserable before, so what changed now?

"I'm just saying, takes a lot of guts to speak back to her like that." Matheo said with a chuckles as Liam rolled his eyes.

"I'm just sick of being bullied, I've changed now and will never let anyone step on me like that again." Liam said confidently. He was going to refuse her apology no matter what. She had no right to apologize after so long.

"I think you are right not to stand bullying, but would it be bad for you to let go of the past? All that anger, it can't do you much good, you know." Matheo said as Liam sighed and sat up. He knew it was true. Having so much anger was not doing him any good.

"I can't just accept it and move on, Matheo. It has haunted my dreams." He said as Matheo nodded. He would definitely ask what it is Narcia had done to him when they became closer. He didn't want to push his new friend so soon.

Liam stood up and started to grab a few things from his drawers, Matheo watched with curiosity as Liam pulled out what looked like an outfit.

"Where are you headed to?" Matheo asked as Liam sighed.

"To work." He said, making Matheo nod. Liam clearly didn't enjoy his job from the looks of it, but it wasn't like good jobs ever threw themselves at you.

Liam changed into his outfit and waved to Matheo as he left. He locked the door and ran downstairs, grabbing a water bottle on his way by the kitchen. He unlocked and picked up his bike before making his way to the forge downtown.

"Hey, kiddo! I thought you weren't gonna make it for a moment there!" The owner said as Liam locked his bike on the rack at the front.

"Sorry, Mr Jenkins. I got a little caught up with school." Liam said with a nervous chuckle before the large man gave him a hard slap on the back.

"Go on, boy, we have a lot of requests that came in this weekend. We'll work pretty late tonight." Mr Jenkins said as Liam rushed over the raw metal area.

Liam grabbed a few chunks and rushed over to the pots, placing them in before throwing them into the blaze, sweat already starting to form on his forehead. He wiped it away and started to use the blowing machine to enhance the embers. Hours passed rapidly as Liam worked, hammering the metals he had cooled down after melting them. By now, it was almost midnight. He stepped away from the heat and sighed, satisfied with the two swords he had made and the shield.

"Who still orders this kind of stuff..." He said with a groan as he took his gloves and shirt off to cool off. He walked over to the front desk, where he signed the book, making the first order finished.

"Oh? Already finished, young man?" Mr Jenkins asked as he put a massive mace to the side, most likely one he had just finished forging.

"I still have another order of armor, but... The request and dimentions are peculiar." Liam said as he passed the book to his mentor, who exchanged it with a wet towel. Liam took the towel and started to wipe the back of his neck as the door opened, a shiver running through Liam.