A Reason, Perhaps.

Chapter 3

Maybelle's POV

I rolled over and looked at the clock. "Shit." I exclaimed. I stumbled out of bed and hurried to my closet. I grabbed a pair of leggings and a hoodie off my floor. I ran downstairs, and my mum was already gone for work. I ran out the door without breakfast. I put my hair up into a messy bun as I walked (ran, actually.) to school.

I walked in and saw flyers for a morning assembly all over, so I jogged to the auditorium and joined my friends in the back. "Slept in, Maybelle?" Demi teased. "Yeah, just a little." I laughed. "You've slept around too, I see." Sam commented from a nearby seat. "Excuse me?" I raised my voice. "You were with Dylan last night at the party, then you went home with Harry. And you're wearing his hoodie, you whore." She shrugged and turned her attention back to the speaker on stage.

"I didn't sleep with anyone last night." I denied. "Looks like you did." Sam's friend chimed in. People around us were giggling and whispering. I looked down. (I guess the hoodie wasn't mine then. Well, too late for that.) "Not again.." I whispered to myself. "What?" Demi looked at me, concerned. I got up and started out the doors, when a man stepped in front of me. "Going somewhere, Ms. Winters?" He crossed his arms. "Y-yeah, the lavatory. Please." I said, looking at my feet. He stepped out of my way and I bursted into the hallway. I went into the loo and leaned on the sink. "This cannot be happening again." I said quietly to myself. A tear ran down my cheek. A stall door opened, and out stepped Harry, (I wasn't sure if that was good or bad at the time...).

"Love, what's going on?" He asked. "How many people did I sleep with last night?" I sobbed. "Zero." He replied, completely baffled. "That's not true," I wiped my tears, causing my makeup to run. "Everyone says that I slept with you and some guy named... Dylan." I choked on my words. "No, love. I took care of you last night. Nothing happened." He leaned against the wall. I punched his shoulder, (but I honestly think it hurt me worse than it hurt him). "I'm wearing your hoodie, why else would it have been on my bedroom floor?" I snapped. "Clearly we slept together! How else would you explain this?" I shouted. "I put it on you when I took you home, you were cold." He explained. "This just doesn't make sense." I rubbed my temples. "Look, if Dylan is saying he slept with you, it's not true. And, I'll kick his ass. Other than that, you didn't sleep with me, so don't sweat it." He walked towards me. "Now c'mon, we're going back." He took my hand and led me back to the assembly. We sat in the back next to Demi, as I was before.

"Oh look, there's the whore couple." Sam taunted. "I want you next, when are you free?" The same guy who asked me out said that... (How could my reputation be ruined already?) Harry clenched his jaw. I could see a certain look is his eyes. He could not freak out. "Let it go, Harry." I whispered to him. He looked over at me, I was crying, but I wouldn't let him see that. Demi rubbed my arm. "You know what you did, just forget them. They're total assholes." She whispered. I nodded slowly. Yeah, ignore them. (It's that simple.)

Maybelle's POV

The assembly finally let out, and I was sat on a bench in the hallway. Harry took my hand and led me to the lavatory once again. "C'mere love." He pulled me into a tight hug. I wrapped my arms around his broad figure and buried my face into his chest. "I didn't do anything." I sobbed. "You don't deserve any of this." He said quietly. The door opened. We both turned to see Demi standing there. "Let me fix your makeup." She said politely. "Okay." I agreed almost inaudibly.

Harry stood beside us with his hands in his pockets. "You know who you have and haven't done, and that's all that matters. Fuck anyone who isn't nice to you. You've got us." She said. I managed to put on a tiny smile for the two of them. "Thank you, both of you." I looked down at my feet, (that was quite a habit of mine). I looked up in the mirror, and saw just how crappy I actually looked. (Yikes.) "So, when do you want your shirt back?" I said with a laugh. "You can keep it, love." He winked and chuckled. We started to leave, when Harry pulled me close to him and spoke into my ear. "By the way, you look beautiful today." He smirked. I smiled back and kept walking.

-❁-

I closed my locker and started walking. I wasn't riding with Harry because my mum was picking me up for therapy. Dylan stopped me at the side of the hall. "Why is everyone saying I slept with you?" He asked abruptly. "I don't know. I don't remember anything from last night." I shrugged. "It didn't happen." He clarified. I looked to my left, to see my mum waving at me and motioning towards her watch. "Look, I'm sorry, but I really have to go." I walked away and joined my mum down the hall.

She dropped me off at my therapist's office for my weekly appointment. "So Maybeline, how are you adjusting to school?" My therapist, Gina, crossed her legs and looked at me. "I've adjusted well, I'm just getting a hard time from a couple people." I squeezed a complimentary stress ball repeatedly as I spoke. "Do they have any past knowledge of you?" She repositioned her glasses. "No, not that I know of." I shrugged. My therapist was pretty cool, she had a chair that hung from the ceiling (it was my favorite, I sat in it every time). "What are they saying?" She asked. "That I'm a whore, that I slept with this guy named Dylan, and Harry. Bu-" I stopped mid-sentence. "Harry is at my new school!" I shouted.

"Who?" She looked confused. "Oh! Marcel. He goes by Harry now." I was giddy. "And how does that make you feel?" She clicked her pen. "Good. I mean, there's rumors that we slept together, but I honestly don't mind because he is so hot and-" I babbled. She glared at me. I cleared my throat. "Anyway, I didn't sleep with him. But I do like having him there." I smiled faintly at the idea of him. "You seem to be swoon." She commented. "What? Oh, psssh, no.." I denied, (not very convincingly). "Hmm." She raised her eyebrows at me. "I mean, there's still something there, definitely, but," I paused for a long time. "who am I kidding? I do love him." I rested my head in my hands.

She nodded, almost smiling, and wrote something down. "I'm glad you admitted that." She sat down her notepad. "Really?" I asked. "Really. So have you made friends with anyone yet?" She seemed cheerier now. "Yeah, I met a girl named Demi. She introduced me to her friends. They're pretty nice so far. And, they're all friends with Harry." I smiled. She grinned. "There you go again." She laughed. "I can't help it." I looked down, smiling. "I really can't."

(Author's Note!)

Hi guys! I started school this week, and that's why I didn't update much. I have a long weekend now though, so expect more updates to come! :)