From This Moment On

Chapter 11

Nick heard Amanda come downstairs and he immediately stood up, eager to know what was going on.

"Well?" he asked, holding up his hands.

"Sit down, baby." Amanda said. Nick helped her to the couch and took the seat next to hers.

"Are you okay? You look like you feel sick. Want to lie down?" he offered, noticing her pale face.

"Don't worry about that, this is about your brother, not me." she said wearily.

"What's wrong?"

"Aaron is being bullied at school....and don't fly off the handle yet, let me finish." Amanda snapped when Nick opened his mouth to speak. He nodded and she laughed before continuing.

"Apparently his teachers are comparing him to you...and the kids are giving him hell...." she said before falling silent.

"You're fucking kidding me." Nick said, running a hand through his hair. He closed his eyes and heard them, heard the teasing...

"He's not going back there." Amanda told him, jarring him from his thoughts.

"I'm gonna talk to that principal, baby. It has to stop....if they did it to me and him, its gonna keep happening." Nick said suddenly, his voice stern. Amanda knew the subject was a sore one for Nick, who had been abused as a child at home and bullied by other children at school. He was the runt back then, a small and skinny boy with a mop of blonde hair that didn't look like he fit in. Amanda stared at her husband, he had grown up in front of her eyes, Nick was now taller than all of his friends....girls threw themselves at him, but she didn't mind cause she was the one taking him home at night.

"Want me to set up a meeting with the principal? I know you will want to pull Aaron from that horrible school." Amanda said, her hand on his back.

"Yes. Let me talk to Aaron...I'm sure he needs me right now."

Nick walked slowly up the stairs and heard Aaron playing the guitar. He stopped in the doorway and smiled, it was one of his songs.

"That's supposed to be a G, kiddo." Nick commented with a smile. Aaron returned it weakly and put the guitar down on his bed before rubbing at his wrist, which was bruised.

"I guess she sent you up here?" Aaron said softly.

"You're not in trouble....I just wanted to make sure you're okay. How long has this been going on?" Nick asked, pulling up Aaron's computer chair.

"Since the kids at school found out I am your brother....so a few months."

"Look, I know this is hard for you. Believe me, I went through the same thing when I was about your age."

"You did? But my teachers told me that you were one of the top students..." Aaron protested. He had seen pictures of Nick in a showcase at the school, various awards for academic achievement....high honor roll, and he knew Nick had been valedictorian of his graduating class in high school. Nick had a 4.0 GPA and was in the top 5 of his graduating class. Aaron felt as if he would never catch up to his brother....he would never be that smart.

Aaron wasn't dumb, but he didn't get straight A's like Nick did. He could sing but didn't tell anyone, he didn't want to be compared to his brother any more than people already did. He wasn't bitter, but as a result he didn't believe in himself as he knew he should.

"Aaron, I was a good student....I played basketball in high school but I wasn't popular. I didn't want to fit in. Brian was the popular one, not me. When I was a kid I got bullied too. They put me in trash cans and rolled me into brick walls, threw kick balls at my back....they did a lot of things." Nick told him. Aaron listened with his mouth hanging open slightly.

"How did you make them stop?"

"I met Brian and they left me alone after Brian beat one of them up. You know my friend, Lance? Amanda's ex husband? He tried to fight me and Brian beat him up. He didn't touch me after that." Nick explained.

"Wow." Aaron said.

"I'm gonna talk to Principal Williams and see what we can do, but you're not going back to that school, okay kiddo?" Nick said, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder. After his talk with Aaron, Nick found out that Amanda had made the appointment to meet with the principal.

"Nick, he was there when you went there wasn't he?" Amanda asked as Nick put his arms around her and kissed her, feeling her back.

"Yeah he was." he sighed, thinking. He remembered the principal....he just hoped that the meeting would go well.

"Nick, it's gonna be okay." Amanda reassured him a few days later, as he drove over to the school. The school held grades 5 through 8....and was next to the elementary school. The willow tree still stood there, the one where he and Amanda had met. He smiled as he thought of the initials carved in the wood, surrounded by a heart...

"Baby, are you ready?"

"Yeah." Nick answered. He walked into the school and took a breath. He was amazed that the place hadn't changed that much, he remembered a lot of things.

"Principal Williams will see you now," the secretary announced as the door opened to the office.

"Hello, Mr. Carter....so nice to see you." Principal Williams said as he took Nick's hand, shaking it vigorously. Nick smiled weakly at him. The principal was a short man, chubby and with balding brownish grey hair.

"This is such an honor to have you visit our school, Mr. Carter..." he continued, walking right past Amanda as she shook her head at him. He was too busy buttering Nick up to notice a pregnant woman in his office.

"Oh, this is my wife Amanda. She and I look after my brother....Aaron." Nick explained, but he was cut off.

"Yes, Adam is a fine student."

"His name is Aaron. I came to talk to you because he is being bullied by the other classmates." Nick said as he sat in a leather armchair across from the desk. He didn't like that the principal seemed as if he didn't care, he simply cared that Nick was a celebrity.

"Alex is not bullied, we don't allow that in this school. You must be mistaken." the principal said, facing a potted plant near the window. Amanda saw Nick clench his hands against the chair, he was getting annoyed.

"Sir, his name is Aaron." Amanda offered, but she was ignored.

"How can you say you don't allow bullying? It happened when I went to school here, Principal Williams!" Nick hissed.

"Those are serious allegations, Mr. Carter. I can assure you we do not allow violence in our school-"

"With all due respect, he came home with a bruised arm-" Nick began.

"If I may remind you, Mr. Carter....home life reflects on a student's behavior during school hours, I would question his upbringing considering your past." the principal stated. Nick was getting angrier by the second.

"Sir, I live with them, Aaron is being taken care of." Amanda stated calmly although she wanted to slap him.

"I highly doubt any student harmed your brother...."

"Listen here, if you're not gonna make those kids stop bullying, I am going to bring this to the media's attention. This is a serious matter, and you don't seem to care!" Nick shouted, standing up and slamming his hand on the desk, causing the principal to jump.

"There is no need for that, Mr. Carter, surely we can work something out for young Andrew."

"HIS NAME IS AARON!" Nick shouted, his face red.

"Baby, calm down!" Amanda scolded him.

"If you do not restrain him, I am going to have to ask you to leave." the principal said.

"I'm out of here." Nick said, storming out of the room, slamming the door and leaving Amanda looking on in shock.