Just Hang In There

Chapter 9

(Mark)
Something was wrong. People just don't have bruises like that on their neck. Stuff like that wasn't because he bang it against a wall or something (is that even possible banging your neck against a wall?).
"It's nothing," he mumbled.
"Jacob, do I need to call someone?"
"No!" he said immediately. He looked scared.  "No, you don't. Just rubbed it to hard one day." If I wasn't so worried about him, I would of laughed at the dumb excuse.
"You can talk to me," I comforted. He looked at me. We locked eyes.  "Please talk. I promise I won't tell anyone."
"I said it's nothing," Jacob said one more time. He burst into tears. I went up and hugged him. He stiffened at my touch, then relaxed. I felt his warm tears hit my shoulder. We stood there hugging for a few minutes.
"You don't have to be scared," I whispered into his ear. Jacob pulled away. He looked confused, scared, and alone.
"No, I have to go back home," he said sternly.
"Or you could stay at my place for a little bit," I offered.
"Please stop Mark. I have to go home. You don't understand." He got me there.
"You're right, I don't understand. Can you help me though?" I tried.
"Can I have my jacket back?" I forgot I was holding it. I handed it back. Once he grabbed it, he immediately put it on and walked off leaving me more anxious then ever.

My mom sensed something was wrong as we drove to the school.
"Don't be nervous, I'm sure you did nothing wrong," she reassured. I wasn't nervous about that, I knew I was right. The footage should show what really happened yesterday. I was more nervous about Jacob. His bruises looked liked hand prints. 
That's when a thought occurred. Nate and Ian lived around. Did they have something to do with it? I doubted that thought, but you never know. And if they had something to do with it...
"Okay," my mom said pulling up into the school parking lot, "lets go sort this out." I got out of the car and followed her into the building.
The principal's office is straight ahead when you walked into the building. That's where we went. I opened the door first, feeling confident that this would be sorted through with. As I entered, my stomach dropped. Nate, Sullivan, Ian, their parents, the counselors, and a police officer were all in his office. I gulped.
"Good morning Mark and Mrs Steele," greeted the principal.
"Good morning Mr. Brighton," I replied a little more nervously. He gestured for us to have a seat. We did so, then the talking began.
"Now that everyone is here, let begin. We are going to start off by Mr. Damon (Nate's last name) sharing his point of view of the scenario." As told, Nate shared his "point of view" and everyone payed attention. The officer took notes. I kept glancing over at them. Ian looked calm. Sullivan looked like he was about to explode in rage.
Once Nate finished, we let his story sink and and let the officer finish taking notes. It sounded just like the one he told yesterday.
"Now," Mr Brighton said after a few minutes, "Lets here from Mr. Steels point of view." I shared my story. The officer took more notes. Once I finished, Mr. Brighton let everyone think about the two stories.
"Now that we have two different views, I would like to bring out something that should hopefully settle this case," continued Mr. Brighton. He pulled out my phone. I heard snickers from the the trouble trio (A new nickname I came up for Nate, Sullivan, and Ian).
"Mark, will you unlock your phone please," Mr. Brighton asked handing me phone. I unlocked it as he asked, then handed it back. He nodded in substitute of saying thank you. Then, I watched nervously as he started tapping the screen. After what seemed like hours, he finally found the video.
"Okay ladies and gentlemen, lets see what the camera reveals!"

(Jacob)
My brain was going back and forth the whole way I walked home. It was starting to give me a headache.
Tell him.
No, don't tell it is non of  his business.
But he is there to help.
Or make you feel worse about yourself.
He will keep your secret about your father.
Or expose you to everyone.