Todd "Toad" Tolansky fell to the ground, clutching his stomach. His vision was blurring, but he tried his best to stand back up. He kept his yellowed eyes on the three massive athletes that surrounded him, cursing their buzz cut haircuts, their matching football jackets, and their superior strength.
"What's the matter, Tolansky?"
"He looks mad, guys, how about we wipe that scowl off his face?"
"Yeah, wouldn't want him to bring morale down."
Toad fell back as what he guessed was the leader connected his fist into the young mutant's jaw. He moved his jaw gingerly and winced.
"Duncan! Leave him alone!"
Toad groaned softly. He knew that voice. Not that he wasn't grateful the beatings were going to stop, but did those X-Men guys have to be the ones to end it?
Jean Gray looked down at Toad and walked over. Scott stayed by the wall, watching. Many encounters with Toad and the mutants he hung out with left the X-Men leader bitter.
"Hey...are you okay?" Jean asked.
"M'fine..." Toad said, sitting up. He didn't look at Jean.
Jean placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"Duncan's such a jerk... are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah, fine," Toad said, standing up and walking away.
"Hey!" Scott said. "You could be a little thankful, Jean was trying to help you!"
"I don't want any help from you guys!" Toad snapped, wheeling around to face the two mutants. "I got my own friends!"
"Oh yeah?" Scott retaliated, getting heated. "Real great friends, where are they when those jocks beat you up?"
Toad glared at those ruby shades, but deep down, he was more inclined to agree. Where WERE the others when he really needed them?? Did they even consider him a friend?
"Forget you, Summers," Toad said under his breath, turning around and walking away. He went into the boy's bathroom and bumped into a soft squishy wall.
Fred Dukes looked down and grinned.
"Hey Warty," he said. His smile vanished quickly as he began to notice the bruises on his small friend's face. "You run into a door?"
Toad looked up and grinned, despite himself. Fred definitely was his friend. No wonder he didn't help, he was in the bathroom!
"Yo, man," he said, hopping up onto his friend's back.
Fred sighed.
"I ain't a ride."
"Well, you should be."
Fred couldn't help but smile. Toad was always a kind of yes-man when it came to people with overbearing personalities, like Lance and Pietro, but when he was around the Texan mutant, he seemed to come out of that shell and be himself, comical and more confident.
"Alright, just don't fall asleep up there," Fred said.
Scott and Jean watched from where Toad had left them.
"Freddy's his friend, Scott," Jean said. "You shouldn't have said what you did..."
Scott frowned.
"Well, the rest of the Brotherhood never come to his defense," he said. "And neither does Fred. Who would?"
Jean sighed. Scott never saw clearly when he was angry.
- - -
The rest of the school day pretty much went as normally as it could. Todd wimped out on a lot of his classes, doing well in his Science class, but pretty much staying quiet.
When he was partnered up with Kurt for a class assignment in History, he hardly spoke as they worked through the period, and when he did, it was short and with no eye contact.
Kurt chewed his lip. He didn't exactly get along with Toad, but even so, Toad was usually more talkative. It was so... out of character.
Kurt opened his mouth to ask Toad if he was alright, but the bell rang for lunch and he was interrupted. Toad was up and gone before the teleporter could say anything.
Toad sat down at an empty table and set his head down. He felt tired, and his body ached, so he closed his eyes.
"Hey, Tolansky! Wake up, man!"
Toad opened an eye. Pietro crossed his arms, hip cocked out to the side.
"You look like crap," he said. "Thanks for grabbing a table for us."
Toad grimaced and got up, leaving the table without a word. Lance and Fred watched him leave the cafeteria with confused looks on their faces.
"...What's his problem?" Pietro asked.
"Probably your queen bitch attitude," Lance said nonchalantly, earning a punch in the shoulder from the speedster.
Fred didn't understand. Toad looked happier before school started. Now he was looking depressed and defeated.
Setting his tray of food down, Fred walked away from the other Brotherhood mutants and over to the X-Men. He remembered seeing Jean and Scott with Toad earlier, maybe they did something.
Pietro watched Fred walk away and huffed.
"What's with those two?" he asked.
Lance kept his mouth shut.
Fred approached the table the X-Men were sitting at, his shadow cast over their meals.
Jean looked up.
"...Freddy?"
"You guys didn't hurt Toad, did you?" Fred demanded, crossing his massive arms.
"No way!" Scott said. "Jean tried to help him earlier, but he just yelled at her!"
Fred frowned.
"...Yeah...he's actin' weird..." he said.
"Ja... He was really quiet in History class," Kurt added.
"....He's been in fights with Duncan and his friends," Jean said. "They keep beating him up and teasing him. Maybe that's why he's acting different."
Fred glared. That explained everything. His poor friend, tortured by those meatheads. He turned around.
Jean stood up.
"...Is Todd depressed?" she asked.
"I dunno," Fred said. "Never asked."
"....Maybe you should," Jean said. "If he is, he could hurt himself if he doesn't get it looked at."
"...Like, cuttin'?" Fred asked.
"Sometimes," Jean said. "It's not uncommon, but not everyone with depression cuts themselves. But even so, he is at a risk of hurting himself. You should talk to him."
Fred nodded.
"Yeah..." And he was gone.
"...You're way too nice," Scott said.
Jean frowned.
"Just because you need to prove how manly you are, Tough Guy, doesn't mean you have to be a jerk to them," she said. "Depression is a serious problem, and if Todd has it, he could get hurt."
Scott sighed.
"It's not like I WANT them to get hurt," he said. "I just... if Toad's getting depressed, there's a reason. Or he's faking it for attention."
Kitty watched Fred leave.
"Well, if he is faking it, that Blob guy's gonna totally pound the crap out of him," she said. "If one of my friends faked depression for sympathy, I'd, like, go ballistic."
"...I don't think he's faking it," Kurt said quietly.
"Let's hope not..." Jean said.
- - -
Toad hovered over the water fountain outside of the school, scooping up the cool water and rubbing it across his face. So tired... so achy...
"Quit hogging the water, Tolansky," came the all-too familiar voice of Duncan.
Toad didn't even have time to blink before he was struck to the ground. He looked up. It was just Duncan. Where were the others?
"You aren't lookin' so good, Tolansky," Duncan continued. "How about I help you with that?"
Toad swaggered to his feet and kept his eyes on Duncan's.
"...You wanna beat me up, whatever..." he said. "Go ahead and do it..."
"Pleasure," Duncan said, grabbing Toad's collar and punching him square in the face. The force caught Toad off-guard. Duncan seemed angry, and this was more than hitting him for being different.
"I don't know why Jean was protecting you..." Duncan snarled, hitting Toad again. "But don't get any ideas!"
The fatigue, aches, and the new hits to the head were taking their tolls on Toad, his vision blurring.
Duncan raised his fist again, but it didn't come down.
"What the hell??" Duncan snapped, looking over his shoulder. He was lifted off the ground.
Fred dropped Duncan on the ground and stood between the jock and Toad.
Duncan knew he was no match against Fred Dukes, so he scrambled to his feet and took off running.
Fred turned around and helped Toad up. The smaller boy swayed on his feet, clinging to Fred's overalls for support.
"...You okay...?" Fred asked gently.
"...I dunno..." Toad said. "...think so."
Fred crouched down to let Toad on his back and the amphibious mutant weakly climbed to his perch.
"...You wanna talk about it?" Fred asked finally.
"....yeah..."
- - -
Fred watched Todd carefully as the small mutant curled up on the ruined couch back at the house they all shared. Fred and Toad had opted to skip school, as Toad was too weak to return and Fred was too worried.
As he laid on the couch, Toad had gone into a very long discussion with Fred about his life.
Fred could hardly believe it if Toad WASN'T depressed. Growing up in an orphanage away from his birthplace of York, England, alienated by the other kids because of how he looked, and bossed around by any adult that came into his life. It was no wonder he was depressed. Even changing his name to Todd Tolansky from Mortimer Toynbee hadn't helped him try to fit in better.
"And the worst part?" Toad continued. "I'm STILL nothin'..."
Fred placed a hand on Toad's knee.
"...That's not true..." he said. "I don' think you're nothin'..."
Toad smiled up at Fred.
"...Thanks, man..." he said. He sat up slowly and turned around, leaning against Fred.
"...means a lot," he said softly.
Fred placed his arm around Toad. It didn't matter who he was. Todd or Mort, either way, it was his Warty.