Scurrying through the school halls, I kept my head down, avoiding any sort of interaction with anyone I pass. Public places and I don't get along and having to attend school everyday really heightened my anxiety. I mean, being a senior, you'd think I'd be used to the cramped hallways and the rushing students, but as an anxiety ridden introvert, I would never be comfortable in that place and would much rather be at home, hidden from everything.
It really didn't help that I was instantly labeled as the nerd in freshman year, and then known as openly gay a year later. Of course, there's nothing wrong with being openly gay, but in high school, there are assholes that will use anything against you to insult you. So, for the entirety of high school, I was known as the 'gay nerd'. How fun.
For awhile, I was protected by my girlfriend, Lauren, but she's a year older than me, so now that she had started college, I was by myself for my last year. Luckily, she hadn't moved away for college, but not having my girlfriend with me everyday still left me feeling more vulnerable.
Grabbing my books out of my locker, I was so close to being able to go hide in the library. But then I heard a voice, and it was only the biggest asshole in the school, Alex.
"Hey, four-eyes!" I heard him shout and I immediately rolled my eyes. If you're going to insult me, at least come up with something more original.
I still felt helpless under his intimidating gaze though, wishing Lauren would be there, with her arm wrapped around my waist, protecting me from the bastard that I had the pleasure of knowing.
"Please, not today." I whispered under my breath, sighing as I turn around to face Alex. I could already hear him laughing from behind me at his pathetic joke.
"What was that, buddy," he asked sarcastically, "missing your little badass girlfriend, already?"
"Oh, Lo, I miss you so much. Everything's terrible without you."
"Aw, I miss you too, Y/N. I wish I was there with you. Muah." Alex's friends behind him mocked.
"You're so immature, you're fucking seniors, for crying out loud." I mumbled under my breath, hoping he wouldn't hear me.
Alex cocked an eyebrow, "what did you just say?" He almost growled, gripping my shoulders and pushing me into the lockers with a loud bang.
Suddenly gaining more confidence, I pushed Alex off me and spoke up.
"I said that you were fucking immature. I mean, you're fucking seniors and you act like you're still in kindergarten. What the fuck is wrong with you? Why do you feel the need to bring other people down for your own enjoyment? If that's what you need to do to make yourself feel better, I seriously suggest you find a hobby. I don't know, go read a book or something. Educate yourself. Clearly the last 18 years of you life have all gone to waste if you still act like this."
At this point, a large crowd had formed around Alex and I, but I couldn't care less as the amount of adrenaline pumping through my veins overpowered my anxiety, which would usually be at an all time high by now.
Suddenly, I saw my glasses being ripped off my face and, as I heard them smashing to the ground, I felt a clenched fist colliding with my cheek. I winced, already feeling the bruising come up. Yep, that would be sore tomorrow. I braced myself for a second impact as I squeezed my eyes shut, but then heard a gasp and felt the weight of Alex being pulled from me.
I hesitantly opened my eyes to see punch after punch being swung at Alex from... Lauren?
Her face was burning red from anger, and her hair and clothes were disheveled as she swung again and again at Alex. Jumping forward, I grabbed Lauren's tattoo covered arm, pulling her away from Alex.
"What are you doing here?" I said angrily through heavy breathing.
Lauren's eyes instantly softened at the sight of me. She brought her hand up to gently brush against my bruising cheek, but when I flinched away, she rested it on my neck instead and frowned.
"Well, I was originally here to surprise you. So, surprise," she tried to joke and make light of the situation, her breathing similar to mine. Her slight smile faded as I glared at her, "I was here to get you so we could skip school today, but then I saw that fucking asshole put his hands on you, and I kind of jumped in." Lauren continued as she inspected my cheek.
"Kind of? You almost fucking killed him, Lauren" I said, but winced at the pain in my cheek.
"That dick had it coming, babe. Look, let's get out of here, you need to get your cheek checked out by a doctor." Lauren grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers. I was going to protest, but I couldn't resist protective Lauren.
On the drive to the hospital, I could tell that Lauren was still angry as her hand gripped my thigh slightly harder than usual. Peeling her hand off of my thigh, I laced my fingers with hers, attempting to calm her down. She smiled slightly at me as I leaned over to kiss her cheek as reassurance that I was fine.
Lauren sat in a chair in the corner of the doctor's office, while I sat on the examination table. She glanced between the doctor, examining my cheek, and I, playing with her fingers, one of her nervous habits.
"It looks as if it's nothing more than a bruise. I suggest you take a couple pain killers and put some ice on it as soon as possible to reduce the swelling. But other than that, you'll be just fine." The doctor spoke up after a few minutes.
Lauren and I stood up, thanking the doctor as we made our way out of the building.
Making our way back to Lauren's house, we stopped off for ice cream. Lauren insisted as she felt bad that she wasn't there to prevent what happened, but I continued to protest and tell her it wasn't her fault.
Back at Lauren's house, she went to get me some ice from the freezer as I sat down on the couch, already picking out a movie for us to watch.
"Hey babe, here's some ice." Lauren spoke softly, approaching me slowly.
She sat down next to me on the couch, and I immediately cuddled up to her.
As Lauren placed the ice on my cheek, I hissed, the cold temperature startling me, "sorry, love." She said, kissing my forehead.
Soon, I relaxed, melting into Lauren's embrace as she trailed her fingers up and down my back. I wasn't even watching the movie anymore as I focused on the movement of her fingers on my body. Closing my eyes, I inhaled her scent, coconut and vanilla invading my nose.
"You're so fucking cute." I heard Lauren whisper just before I drifted off into a peaceful sleep.
I giggled, nuzzling my head into her neck, "shut up," I mumbled, a blush rising on my cheeks, "why do you act like a badass when you're really the biggest puppy ever?" I queried, not moving from my comfortable position.
"Because I've gotta protect my girl, that's why." She said almost instantly, causing the biggest grin to spread across my face.
"God, I'm so in love with you." I said, wrapping my arm around her toned and tattooed torso.
"I'm in love with you too, mi princesa." She whispered, kissing my forehead, her favorite place to kiss me as she had mentioned before.
I closed my eyes, feeling the fatigue from the earlier events take over me and soon, I was in a peaceful slumber, snuggled up to a puppy in disguise.
A/N: goodbye for another 382949692724 years
