Guardians and Angels

Chapter 20: Rapunzel

Today's the day. After 2 weeks of dread piling up inside me, the day had finally arrived.

And I was totally unprepared.

I was currently staring right at my once acclaimed safe haven, but now considered it a place of scrutiny instead of a peaceful distraction from my life. Now that Flynn and my mother were out of the picture, my entire outlook on this place had drastically changed from safety to anxiety. How was I supposed to face my peers who'd judge me and prod into my personal life to feed their ambitious, gossip-thriving souls?

I wasn't ready to answer questions of what happened to me. I wasn't ready for the blatant and pitiful stares of everyone. I wasn't ready for my problems to be put in the spotlight for the whole school to see. I wasn't ready for any of this.

Something warm intertwined with my fingers and I looked up to see Jack standing next to me, eyes full of reassurance. "Don't freak yourself out, 'kay? Everything's gonna be just fine."

"I know, I'm just a little nervous."

"Well, don't be. I'm here for you."

Hiccup and Merida also stood next to me and gave me soft, comforting smiles. "We're here for you too."

I breathed deeply and tried to muster any amount--no matter how small it may be--of confidence to walk through those doors. "Okay."

Jack gently began to tug me towards the building and I found it hard to keep the fear at bay, even with his radiating consolation. We finally reached the door and stepped into the school.

The moment was surreal. Not because it was exactly like the movies, where everyone freezes and turns their heads towards me while whispering rumors to their friends. No, it was surreal because it was the complete opposite. No one bothered to deter from their conversations or even glance away from their friends.

Huh. Not what I was expecting at all.

Jack squeezed my hand and looked down at me. "See? I told you everything would be okay."

I nodded my head, not knowing how to respond.

We all walked to my locker and I was met with another non-expectant outcome. My entire locker was decked out with paper hearts saying things like: "Welcome back!" or "We missed you!" and even several that said "We love you!" My eyes instantly started to tear up with joy and gratitude. Inside my locker was chocolate and more heartwarming cards.

"Did you guys do this?"

"It was Jack's idea, but we thought you might like it," Hiccup told me.

I turned to Jack, who was rubbing the back of his nape and trying to hide a sheepish smile from me. I lunged at him, ignoring the slight pain in my stomach, and hugged him. He stumbled back a bit but then soon wrapped his arms around my waist, returning the affection. "Thank you so much, Jack."

"It's nothing really." He pulled back from the embrace but didn't quite let me go all the way. "We knew how nervous you were so we wanted you to feel more welcomed."

My next move, as painful as it was, was another lunge for my two other friends. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! You guys are the best!"

"We know," Merida stated.

I couldn't help but laugh at that. "Seriously, I love you guys. Thank you."

Jack put his arm around my shoulder as I started to unwrap one of my chocolate bars. "Love me enough to share your chocolate?"

I thought about it, not entirely sure if I wanted to share. I had become pretty possessive of my food lately and hated the idea of being deprived of it again. But Jack's pleading eyes and pouty lip made me forget all about trying to protect my food from being stolen away.