Mermaids and Men [mlm]

25. Flexing Like Pricks with Their Stolen Power

It was now Friday, the day of the full moon, and Elijah didn't appear to have any other dreams Thursday night-- at least not from what Nicki could tell. Elijah did actually sleep over at Nicki's last night, though he was a bit hesitant about it because he was still worrying that he was going to bump Nicki in his sleep. Thankfully, he didn't, but Nicki didn't wake up anytime last night because of Elijah having a nightmare. He didn't know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Nicki didn't want to see Elijah suffering from remembering all of that, but he also knew that whatever information he could get out of him right now would be beneficial.

Elijah would no doubt start to remember more after the full moon; everyone else is going to remember more, too. The more Nicki starts to remember, the more it'll all click in place for Elijah. Nicki had a feeling it was only going to get worse from here on out.

School, so far, was a bit of a hassle, especially since Nicki had to carry around a heavy backpack all day, so there were times when he needed to take a break and chill out for a second. The teachers all understood, as they were aware of his injuries, and even went pretty easy on him today. They assisted him when he needed it, which he was pretty thankful for. He was even excused from gym for a while, so that was a good thing. Honestly, he probably should have just stayed home today, but that's not something that's actually possible at all right now. Since it's the full moon, Nicki is going to be moving around a lot anyway when they get ready to camp out on Terremouth Island. This injury definitely came at quite a bad time.

The bruises on Nicki were now a lot more prominent, and when people saw what he looked like that first day he came back to school, they were a little shocked to see such bruises on him. He had a black eye for sure, as well as some cuts on his face and lip, and part of his cheekbone was a bit bruised as well. He also had bruise marks around his neck in almost the shape of a handprint. If you were to pull up his shirt right now, you would see just how bruised his ribs became; he looked like a complete wreck right now.

Thankfully, though, there was no Richie when Nicki came to school today. The principal even approached Nicki and talked with him about Richie, saying that he was indeed expelled for good and that his father wouldn't be bothering them about keeping him in school. Anthony must have had a talk with Richie's dad, and if that's the case, it's more than likely Anthony used his gift on him. What Nicki was worried about was Richie coming after him outside of school; would he go that far? Unless... Anthony used his gift on him as well.

Shit, now Nicki's really worried. What if when Anthony talked to Richie's dad, his dad told him everything that Richie told him? That he was on the island, and that he was a "witch"? What if Anthony saw Richie, too, and used his gift on him to get Richie to tell him everything he knew? It was scary to even think about.

Nicki just hoped, for his sake, that Anthony wasn't informed of things he should not know no matter what. Nicki's not sure if Anthony talked to Richie's dad before that day he had lunch over at his house, but Anthony never brought up anything regarding what happened, so Nicki feels like he might be okay.

Right now, lunchtime was around and Nicki was approaching his usual table with everyone; Elijah was the only one who hadn't arrived yet.

"Goddd, our poor boy... Look at those bruises. They're really bad," Aveline whined, frowning as Nicki brought his tray over to their lunch table. "Have you been managing okay at school so far, Nicki?" Natalie asked, frowning at him as well. "Yeah, how's your pain??" Colin questioned with a pout. "I'm fine, I'm fine. Honestly, it's a bit painful getting around, especially carrying my heavy ass backpack, but I'm fine. It's not like I can stay home and rest today anyway, seeing as the full moon is tonight," Nicki replied, sighing. "Yeah... Richie seriously beat you up at the wrong time. Tonight's probably going to be a bit stressful on you, and it's not going to make things any better with your rib fracture causing you pain," Alex mumbled, taking a sip of his drink. "I'll be fine. I'll probably start moving around a bit better in a week or two. Just gotta get myself used to it," Nicki said, offering them a small smile. "Well, we'll make sure you don't push yourself too much tonight, okay? I just hope your tranced state doesn't get in the way of you resting when your rib is practically screaming at you to," Logan told him, chuckling lightly. "Oh! Elijah's coming," Alex quickly spoke up, getting everyone to hold off on the Mermaids and Men team meeting. Elijah approached the table and set his tray down, taking his usual seat beside Nicki. "Hey, angel," Nicki greeted, leaning over to kiss Elijah's temple, which had him blushing. "How are you managing so far?" Elijah asked, smiling small. "I'm okay. I took some pain meds earlier, so I'll be alright," Nicki replied, dipping a french fry into his ketchup. "You know... I feel like it's been pretty quiet today ever since Richie officially got expelled. Reagan isn't even looking over at us, and I haven't heard her yapping on about Nicki either," Rose spoke up, glancing over at Reagan's table. "The silence is nice," Elijah joked, taking a sip of his drink. "Some people have been giving Nicki odd looks... Either because of how bruised he looks, or because they heard what Richie said about him being on the island," Alex stated, frowning. "Ah, yeah... You guys have noticed that, too?" Nicki replied, chuckling nervously as he swirled a fry into his ketchup. "I've actually had a few girls come up to me, telling me that they've heard I've been on the island... They asked if it was true or not, and all I could say was: 'Is anything that comes out of Richie's mouth true?' People seem to believe the idea that because it was Richie saying those things, then it's obviously not true. I mean, some would rather believe a charmer like me, than some brute with anger issues."