A/N: Hey guys! So this is the first chaptered fanfic I have ever done!

Please don't read this if you will be triggered by it, if you need clarification on what this story contains, message me :)

Edit: So the plot at the beginning is kinda bad but I'm doing what I can to improve it without changing the story completely yikes

PHIL'S POV

I walked down the hall of my new school, keeping eyes to the ground and my fringe covering most of my face. I had decided that the best way to transfer would be quietly—only if I kept my head down and my mouth shut would I be able to blend in with the rest of the quiet kids and breeze through the next few years of my life with as few problems as possible.

My parents had gotten a messy divorce a little over a year ago, My mum ended up with the house and my dad and I moved from Manchester to London. I wasn't too distressed over the move, it's not like I had a lot of friends in our old community. If anything, this was a chance for me to start over. I could give myself a new reputation, make actual friends, maybe even meet a love interest. I let out a quiet snort of laughter, brushing aside my optimism. I knew very well this school would be just like this last.

I pulled my guide out of my pocket. It contained most of the information I needed for school: class periods, room numbers, my locker code and number, etc. My eyes scanned down the list until they landed on the locker information:

Locker: 211

Combination: 13-7-4

After several minutes of looking, I finally found number 211. It was rather battered and looked as if someone had drawn a dick on it, then someone else scribbled over it in sharpie. I opened the locker and began shoving my books in at random. I froze when I heard a gruff yell behind me.

"Hey, new kid!"

I turned around to see a group of several boys walking towards me. They all carried themselves with a cocky arrogance, their bags slung carelessly over their shoulders and a smug look on their faces.

"Erm... yeah?" I muttered nervously, trying to avoid making eye contact with any of them for too long.

"What's your name?" A boy with blonde hair and cold, grey eyes stepped forward. The remaining three boys stood behind him, muttering the occasional sentence to one another. I managed to hear the word "emo" and "queer" slipped in a few times.

"Phil," I muttered.

The blonde kid nodded, thoughtfully, malice shining in his eyes. "I'm Anthony. So are you like, depressed or something? You're wearing a lot of black."

"Shut up..." I glared, trying to push past him. I felt a hand grab my arm, and I was swung back against the locker.

"I'm not done talking to you, faggot," He sneered, looking down on me.

I glanced down at the tiny rainbow pin on my bag, wishing I hadn't been so careless about keeping it on. "What do you want?"

Anthony stepped forward, crossing his arms. "This school is filthy as it is, we don't need any more queers."

I stared at him in shock. The guys at my former school had been bad, but never this direct. I scanned across the smug faces looming in front of me, stopping at the end of the line. Lurking behind one of the bigger students was a skinny boy around my height. He didn't really seem to fit in with the group-his hair was styled differently, and he lacked the confidence his friends stood with. He met my gaze for a second, his eyes softening before he looked away with guilt.

"See? He's already bloody pinning after Howell!"

I felt my face heat up as the group laughed, elbowing the brunet teasingly. He shot them a dirty look then glared back at me.

"Filthy faggot!" Anthony spat. "My old man says all queers go to hell; it's where you belong ."

Despite hearing that hundreds of times before, I still felt the sting of his words. Perhaps it was because I believed them.

I balled my hand into a fist, trying to blink the tears out of my eyes. "Leave-leave me alone."

Anthony snickered, glancing back at his friends for approval before turning back to me. "You deserve this."

My eyes widened as he pulled back his fist and it came swinging towards me.

DAN'S POV

I had two thoughts when I saw the new kid:

"Damn, he's hot." and "Wait, that was gay."

I have no idea where that came from. Obviously, I have found guys attractive before, but it wasn't in a gay way! It was just an observation that they were a good-looking person. But this time, I was transfixed. I'm straight, I know I'm straight, but there was just something about him that really caught my attention. This threw me off guard for a moment, but I quickly regained my composure. Phil was just another creepy emo kid that probably listened to death metal to fall asleep.

The black-haired boy looked like he was trying to melt into his locker as he shrunk away from us. His eyes scanned the group until they met with mine. I felt a wave of guilt go through me.

"Drooling over Howell, huh?" Anthony spat, smirking. I stiffened and looked back at Phil, who was blushing slightly, averting his gaze to his shoes.

"Filthy faggot! My old man says all queers go to hell; it's where you belong." Anthony stepped forward pinning the new kid against the lockers.

"Leave-leave me alone..." Phil studdered anxiously.

"You deserve this."

I watched in a daze as Anthony reeled his hand back and hit Phil in the jaw.

I averted my gaze. I had never fully supported my friends' enjoyment of beating people up for fun. I hated it, actually. I told myself I didn't, and that it was better someone else than me, but it was starting to really eat at my conscience.

"Do you understand?" Anthony hit Phil again.

I could feel part of me screaming to go and help him, to stop all this, but I couldn't. I would become a social outcast. I'd get beaten up every day by the people that were once my friends and school would become more hellish than it already was... Was that what Phil went through at his old school? What he would go through again here?

"Oi, Anthony!" Tony, a rather stout boy who looked high regardless of whether or not he'd been smoking, shouted over the noise of passing students. "Why don't you give Dan a go, eh? He's the one Lester was going all gay on!"

I felt my stomach drop.

"Yea, c'mon Howell! Have a go!"

"I- I don't feel like it today..." I muttered, rubbing the back of my neck.

Anthony turned his attention from Phil to me, stepping forward and grabbing my shoulder.

"It wasn't a question, Dan." Anthony had a small smile on his face, but his eyes were dark. He knew he had power over me, and he also knew how much that scared me.

Swallowing, I nodded. I walked over towards Phil, who had sunk down to the floor.

He wiped a trail of blood away from his nose, looking up at me through watery eyes. "Please, don't."

"I..." I opened my mouth to say something, but no words came out. A gathering crowd of students was all cheering me on, hoping to spice up their day with a fight.

"Do it!"

"C'mon, man!"

"No..." I couldn't hear him, but I saw his lips move as he backed into the wall, unable to run.

I swallowed my empathy, staying focused on what would happen to me if I didn't do this. "I'm sorry," I mouthed, knowing very well it would do nothing to lessen the blow.

Phil's expression darkened as he realized what was coming next. I swung my foot back and kicked him in the stomach.

A/N: *le gasp* CLIFFHANGER! Don't worry though, the story will probably be up either tomorrow or maybe even later today! :D

Edit: why did I say that? Was the "le gasp" really necessary? Really?