FATAL ATTRACTION

12. not again

As they turned to see who had spoken, they saw Gerald coming towards them. He quickly pulled Winnie away from Michelle, putting himself between the two girls.

"Are you okay?" he asked Winnie, his voice full of concern.
She nodded, her eyes wide with shock.

"What are you doing?" Eva yelled, her face red with anger. "You can't just interfere like that."

Gerald took a deep breath, trying to keep his own anger in check. "How many times have I warned you to stay away from her?" Gerald said, his voice rising in anger.

"I was just trying to teach her some manners," Michelle said, crossing her arms.

"You're the one who needs to learn some manners," Gerald shot back. "Not her."

"Oh, really?" Michelle said, her eyes flashing. "And who are you to say that?"

"I'm the one who's going to make sure you never bother Winnie again," Gerald said, his jaw set in determination.

"You're trespassing, Gerald," Eva said, her voice full of accusation.

"I don't care," Gerald said, his eyes flashing. "I've warned you both before to stay away from Winnie, but you just won't listen to me."

"And who do you think you are that we have to listen to you?" Michelle demanded.

"I'm the one who can make sure our group gets disqualified from the competition for what you just did," Gerald said, his voice steely. "You don't want that to happen, do you?"

"What, you're going to get us disqualified just because of her?" Michelle said, her voice incredulous. "We're on the same team! You'd be screwing yourself over too."

"I don't care," Gerald said, his voice unwavering. "I'm not going to let you two keep treating her like this."

"Why are you doing this?" Eva asked, a suspicious edge to her voice. "Do you like her or something?"

Winnie's heart skipped a beat as she waited for Gerald's answer.

"Yes, I love her," Gerald said, his voice firm. "What of it?"

"You're joking, right?" Michelle said, her eyes wide. "There's no way you actually like her. You're just doing this to get to me, right?"

"No, I'm not joking," Gerald said again. "I really do care about her. I know you don't want to hear that, but it's the truth."

Winnie's heart was beating so fast she thought it might burst out of her chest. Was he really saying what she thought he was saying?

"If you don't want me to report you to the judges, then you two need to stay away from her," Gerald said, his voice serious. "I mean it.

He turned to Winnie and gently took her hand. "Come on," he said. "Let's get out of here."

Winnie let him lead her away from them, her mind racing. She couldn't believe what had just happened. Was it possible that Gerald really felt that way about her?

Gerald led Winnie into an empty classroom and closed the door behind them.

"You are stronger than this," he said, his voice firm but kind. "You shouldn't let them bully you like this. You have a lot of people who care about you, including me."

Winnie couldn't find the words to respond. She just stared at him, her mind reeling.

"The whole school loves you now," he continued. "You should be proud of who you are. Don't let them get to you like this."Still, Winnie couldn't find her voice.

There was a long silence, and then Winnie finally managed to find her voice. "Did you mean what you said earlier?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.