Peekaboo, I See The Real You

An Interruption

"Rose? What did he do to you?" Rose heard a familiar voice speak, but she still didn't have the courage to speak, so she lie there, on the floor.

"YOU?! YOU?! YOU RUINED THIS, YOU IDIOT! STEP AWAY OR I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" This could be none other than Max's voice, but she didn't want to open her eyes to find out.

"I'm not going go kill you, Max, but I can easily call the police with this button." Rose assumed he must have been referencing towards his phone which must have been ready for the police, but she could only guess with eyes closed. "P-p-pl-please don't r-r-ring it. Or I-I-I will kill you." Rose guessed Max didn't seem so sure as he pleaded this time, but she knew this wasn't the end either. Crash! Rose heard someone be pushed into the door of a cubicle and then a crack was all she needed to know they were in trouble. This was her chance. Opening her eyes, she stared around the room. Blood was dripping down from the cubicle door and, sure enough, Alex was shoved against it, his leg bending at an abnormal angle. Max was taking any chance he had against him. Getting up, Rose marched over to Max and slapped him. Once. Twice. Three times! She then shoved him far away into the window. He didn't put up with the fight; he was already launching towards her, taking a piece of shattered glass and stabbing her arm with it. Wincing, she threw it to the ceiling above him, raining tiny shards of glass onto his head. Blood was everywhere.

"Rose, no! We'll get in trouble again. Get out while you can. I'll deal with him." Alex spoke shoving her away. She just smirked and stepped closer to Max, looming over him as he curled up on the floor, "Girls can fight, too. Come on, Max. Throw a punch! Or are you too scared to fight a girl?" She isntantly felt regret bounce back in her face as he punched her again, this time much harder on her jaw. Rose didn't know what happened next as it happened to quick, but she tackled Max to the ground and punched him every chance she got. Flailing, he tried to fight back, but he had no hope. She had won. 

"ALEX AND MAX? ALEX?! YOU'RE BACK! OH MY GOD! Oh, sorry, got lost in the moment. ALEX, MAX AND ROSE IN MY OFFICE NOW! The police will be arriving soon," it was Rose's English teacher who spoke these words, pulling Max along the floor, Rose and Alex instantly walking there together, hand in hand. 

When they arrived, they noticed how messy the teacher's room was - all round was paper and pens, almost as if they spent their life writing but couldn't be bothered to store it anywhere, instead throwing it across the wall and floor. Rose found a seat next to Alex and quickly leaned into him, forcing herself as far away from Max as possible. 

"It has come to my attention you have been fighting. More importantly, in the women's toilets. You will each get your chance to speak, but I am very disappointed in you all. Max,  you first," the teacher spoke again, her expression unreadable behind her glasses. 

"I-I-I was in the hall with Rose and she left. I didn't know where she went and I realised she had been gone a while," Rose noticed his tone of voice changed and he forced tears out of his eyes as he spoke, as though crying, but only Rose and Alex weren't convinced, so he continued, "And then I found blood in the doorway to the girl's bathroom, so I followed it and I saw Rose unconscious and Alex leaning over her. He was angry that I found him about to murder her, so he blackmailed me into not telling on him, but he wasn't convinced so he p-p-unched me. He almost killed us both."

"I see. Max has had a reputation aswel as Rose of violence, but Rose returned conscious," the teacher was now looking at Rose, now beckoning her to speak her truth, so she took a deep breath and began. "I needed a break, so I headed to the girl's bathroom. Max kept standing too close but I didn't say anything to him. When I left the bathroom to go back, he shoved me in and into a cubicle, then he locked the door. He kissed me, but violently. I tried to stop him but he didn't. He felt under-underneath by skirt. I-I-I screamed and then the door unlocked. When I looked up, I saw Alex. Max got angry and started to punch and attack us, so we had to fight back. It was Alex and I against Max."

"I see. Alex?" She seemed very unreadable but Rose sensed a slight hint of empathy.

"I wanted to find Rose. I-I should have never left and I wanted to make it up to her for being a jerk. I saw the posters for the dance so I thought I would find her there. When I walked in, I couldn't see her, but I heard a scream. It-it sounded just like her, so I burst through the women's toilet door and unlocked the cubicle. He attacked me, so I fought back. Rose and I did. We all are guilty, Miss, but Alex is guilty of molest. If I didn't interrupt then, who knows what would have happened?" At these few words, Rose flung her arms around him and leaned her head on his shoulder. She felt a sudden feeling of warmth come over her. He really did care about her more than she realised.