Does he really care?

I will always be right by your side.

I arrive at school at 7:45 I'm super early so I decide to go into the library and wait.

Time flies and it's already 8:25. I head out of the library and head to my locker, hopefully, Isabella and her other friends don't pick on me. I walk over to my locker open it and start to switch out my books. I feel someone looking at me and of course, it's no one other than Isabella.

"Shit" I mutter under my breath

"Well look who it is, the freak" She screeched from down the hall with her minions following close behind her.

She yanks my hair from behind and pulls me to the ground. She and her two other friends Rachel and Lisa take turns kicking me. After they lose interest in beating me Isabella kneels to me on the floor and whispers in my ear.

"Just remember no one will ever love you you're just another nuisance to this world" Isabella then gets up kicks me one last time and walks away.

'I'll keep that noted, thank you' I sarcastically say in my head as I watch her go down the hall.

I feel dizzy and the whole room is spinning, everyone has cleared the halls after Isabella left. I was the only one. I gripped my locker which was still open, I immediately regret that. The football team comes running down the hall and I can only recognize some of the faces, but then I feel the locker being slammed shut on my fingers as I hear the boys laughing as they run by. At this point, I'm crying sitting on the floor holding my stomach, and right hand.

<Lucas' POV>

Jace told the football team to meet him outside and we had to walk into the school building together. We aren't really sure why, I assumed it was for spirit week. So we all gathered outside and started to make our way into the building. We run down an empty hallway and I see a girl laying on the floor, gripping her locker for support, it looks like she had been beaten up. I try to get to her but before a could I see Jace slam her locker door right in her fingers and then I hear her screams.

"What was that for!" I yell at Jace

"I didn't see her, no one will know!" Jace yells back at me. He turns around and starts running to the next hall.

I look down at the girl and I recognize her. It's Dakota she's in a lot of my classes. I see that she's crying and like she's in a lot of pain.

"Lucas get your ass over here!" Christian yells from down the hall.

"No, I'm staying with Dakota!" I respond back to him. The team disappears to the next hall and I return my attention to Dakota. Her eyes are barely open but I can tell she's trying her hardest to stay awake.

"Dakota keep your eyes open, I'm gonna take you to the nurse," I tell her. 

"L-Lucas?" She questions as her eyes become heavier.

"Yes that's me, Dakota you need to stay awake we are almost to the nurse."

I finally make it to the nurse and told her what was going on. I noticed that when I put Dakota on the beds they have she was passed out. I go and sit in a chair close by examining her. She has cuts and bruises everywhere and she looks extremely skinny.

< Dakotas POV >

I lay while I watch the football players pass by, but one stays back. Lucas. I remember him yelling at Jace saying that he's gonna stay back and help me.

'Why would he help me I'm a nobody'

'Does he know who he's talking to, now he's gonna be made fun of for being seen with me.'

As I'm thinking to myself I feel muscular arms wrap around my legs and my neck, I flinch from the pain. He tells me that we were going to the nurse, I became less afraid when we started to move 

"L-Lucas?" I question. I still feel like I'm dreaming. Why is Lucas Walter helping me?

"Yes that's me, Dakota you need to stay awake we are almost to the nurse." He tells me but it's too late I drift off to sleep right in his arms.

--------- 4 hours later ----------

I wake up in the nurse's office with Lucas sitting right there staring at me. He sees I'm awake and his eyes light up he notifies the nurse and she looks at me.

"What happened Dakota?" She asks

I explain everything that had happened at school that morning and in the corner of my eye, I see Lucas' eyes soften. The nurse, Mrs. Brown, lets me leave and it's the start of lunch so Lucas and I walk to the cafeteria. I get in line to buy my food but Lucas quickly gets in front of me and pays for it himself.

"Thanks" I mutter loud enough for him to hear.

"It's no problem, but follow me," he says.

So I do what he says and I fim outside trying to ignore all the dirty glances I was getting. Eventually, Lucas leads me to under a tree and we sit down.

"Dakota I'm really sorry about what happened to you this morning I had no idea that Isabella was hurting you I would have stopped h-"

"Lucas, why did you help me?" I question while cutting him off

Lucas looks shocked at my question "first call me Luke, and second I helped you because you were hurt." He says

"you shouldn't have helped me, I'm a worthless piece of garbage that no one cares about." I say but mutter the last part in the same tone Isabella uses quietly.

Luke looks up at me and grabs my hand. I just look at the grass blades we Who sitting on. He lifts my chin up, so I'm now staring directly into his bright blue eyes, and his short brown hair is blowing with the wind.

"Who said that?"

"Isabella," I respond

"Don't believe her, she's probably just jealous of you." He says bluntly, "She's always in other people's business anyways. We should hang out more though we haven't talked in years." 

I smile and nod slowly knowing that Luke and I have been going to school with each other for a while now but never really had the chance to talk.