More Than What They See

CHAPTER 19: All Alone and Back Again

Rhian’s POV

Days turned into weeks, and school felt even quieter and lonelier than before. I started noticing small things—how Liza and Mae would look away when I entered the room, how they would quickly walk the other way whenever they saw me coming, and how at lunch break, they would say they already promised to sit somewhere else whenever I asked if I could join them. My heart ached every time, but I understood completely. They were scared. Scared that if people saw them talking or laughing with me, Bea and her friends would turn on them too, and Gio, Jace, and Francis would start treating them the same way they treated me. It was better this way, I told myself. Better they stay safe and accepted than get hurt and pushed away just because of me.

One afternoon, after everyone had left the classroom, I stayed behind to wipe the chalkboard clean and arrange the chairs properly. I was used to being the last one to leave. As I ran the cloth over the dusty board, I heard slow footsteps enter the room. I turned around, ready to ask if they needed something, and my breath caught in my throat. It was not just a classmate or a teacher—it was Marco. My childhood best friend, the boy I used to run and play with every single day before my family had to move away.

He stood there staring at me, his eyes wide and full of disbelief. “Rhian? Is that really you? It has been so long… I never thought I would see you again here.”

My heart leaped with joy, and for a moment I forgot all the pain and loneliness. I was about to run over and smile, to ask him how he had been all these years, when Bea suddenly stepped right between us, blocking my view completely.

“Do not go near her, Marco,” she warned sharply, glancing back at me with a cold look. “She is nothing special. And it has been years—she has probably changed into someone you would not want to know anymore. You will only regret getting close to her.”

Marco looked at me, confused and hurt. He looked back at Bea. “Why are you saying things like that? She is my friend. Why does everyone treat her like she did something wrong?”

Before I could even open my mouth to speak, Gio walked into the room and gripped Marco’s shoulder tight, pulling him a little away from me.

“Listen to me,” Gio said in a low, threatening voice. “Leave while you still can. Stay out of this. You have no idea what she is really like now. It is better for you to just stay away.”

Marco tried to shake his hand off, but he just looked at me sadly before Gio pulled him along with them out of the room. I stood there alone again, the chalk cloth slipping from my hand.

That evening at the eatery, I moved slowly from one table to another, my mind full of what happened earlier. I was wiping the last table near the entrance when someone walked in and quietly sat down in the farthest, quietest corner. I walked over to take their order, and when I looked up, it was Marco again.

“I waited for everyone to leave,” he said softly, looking at me with concern. “I wanted to talk to you properly.”

I held my notebook tight. “What are you doing here? They will see you.”

“Let them see,” he answered seriously, leaning forward a little. “Why do you let them treat you like this, Rhian? You do not deserve any of this. I know you. I know the kind, brave girl I grew up with. You are not supposed to just take everything they throw at you. And if you need someone on your side—someone who will not run away—then I am here. I am not afraid of them.”

Tears welled up in my eyes and rolled down my cheeks before I could stop them. “Thank you,” I whispered. “But you do not know them. They will not like this.”

“Let them not like it,” Marco said firmly. “You are my friend. That is all that matters.”

I thanked him quietly, holding back sobs, but deep down in my heart, I knew this was only the beginning. I knew Gio, Jace, Bea, and especially Francis would not like seeing another boy stand up for me or stay close to me. And I had a feeling that things were about to get much harder before they ever got better.