Chapter 7: Never Leaving Again

Marco looked at Jean concerned.

"Did they just call for us? Why would they be calling me to the counselor's?" He reached for his bag and swung his legs to the side of the desk to stand up.

"I guess we better go see, huh?" He smiled and was completely unaware of the situation unfolding.

Jean nervously scratches his neck

"Yeah...Haha...ha" Grabbing his back, he helps Marco to the door. "You have no idea what's about to happen do you...?" He thought.

When they got to the counselor's office, they found Irwin, Levi, and the counselor, Mr. Pixis. Jean sat uncomfortably in a chair next to Levi, while Marco sat next to Irwin. Pixis was the first to speak.

"I believe you all know the situation...am I correct?" Marco looked around nervously. Looking to Jean for help.

Levi spoke up. "I think we need to make this so that everyone knows what is going on. Irwin, can you explain or do I have to do it?"

Irwin gestured at Marco.

"I think Mr. Bodt would like an explanation. You feel the most passionate about this by starting this meeting. Why don't you please explain the situation?"

Marco looked at Jean and begged silently for this to not be what he thought it was. Jean promised. Jean promised not to tell anyone. This couldn't be about what he thought it was.

"We're here to discuss your relations to one of your teachers Mr. Bodt." Pixis spoke up.

"We can have Mr. Levi explain it or you could just tell us in your own words." Marco tensed up and grew very pale.

His stomach tossed and turned and he couldn't believe Jean would tell them.

"I-I- I don't know what you're talking about... "

Jean looked at Marco, then said sadly,

"Marco, don't hate me...please. It's for your own safety. I worry about you..." He turns to Levi and nods.

Levi stands, and starts to pace, limping slightly as he did so. He refused to sit still; if he did he would probably be sick.

"Jean brought us a CD, sheer proof of what happens in the man's office. It had..." He paused, searching for a word, then continued,

"...information, that alerted us that someone was being forced to be intimate with him, and being abused. Irwin heard a rumor around, spread by someone unknown, that a student was hit by a teacher, and came to find Kirschtein. You all know the rest from that point."

As Levi spoke, Marco had tried to look like he had no idea but his thin shell broke and tears slid down his face. The secret he had protected for so long was out and by the person he had only recently pinned all of his trust and hope on. Marco was silent and looked down at the desk before him as tears landed in a small puddle below. What was he to say or do? There was no denying what was on that CD, or that Jean had betrayed him and stolen that disk from him. All he knew what to do was to sit there and cry. Cry and hope the punishment then phone call to his parents was swift.

Pixis was the next to speak.

"Mr. Bodt...You are old enough to keep this from your parents. 15 is the age where you can determine what is confidential and what is not when you're involved. It's true that it is best to tell them, but if you don't want to, this can and will remain in this room."

Jean felt a pang of guilt shoot through him, knowing that he had let them know what happened. He tried to speak.

"Marco...I found the CD in the closet of your dorm room. Dazz was blackmailing you...I know this is some sort of betrayal to you, but this is for your own protection..." He looks down at Marco,

"Irwin told me to take you out of school, and keep you away from this as long as Dazz is here, and or until you're alright." Putting a hand on Marco's shoulder, he adds,

"I know how you feel right now, but I'm here for you. I did what I thought was best..."

Levi straightens his jacket nonchalantly, then states,

"Since this is, I assume, going to be confidential and never leave this office, I assume you, Marco, will have Jean with you...?"

Pixis interrupts the conversation before Marco can say anything.

"We are not going to send you to any form of therapy, or put you on medication...You do not need to fear us doing any of those things, or even calling your family."

Levi asks again,

"Bodt..?" He kneels down in front of Marco, putting his weight on his good leg,

"What do you want to do?"

Marco is shaking and trying to hold back his tears. He doesn't know what to say or do. This entire afternoon has been too much to take in all at once and before he can even think of a better response he whimpers to Levi.

"I...I wanna call my mommy...I...wanna go home..." Irwin nods and Pixis leaves to go call Marco's parents.

The room is silent as Irwin, Jean, and Levi wait for Marco to say something more.

"...why did this happen to me..." He whispers and tears continue to roll down his face and on to his uniform.

"Bodt. Your parents are on the phone. "Pixis said while going back to where he was before

"The phone is on my desk." Marco nodded silently and walked to the other room and shut the door behind him.

"Marco? Sweetie? Are you there?" A familiar voice came from the phone and he picked the phone up.

His voice cracked and shook as he spoke.

"H-hi...mommy..."

"What's wrong? Did something happen?" Her worry grew as the sounds of her oldest son crying became more apparent.

Irwin turned to Levi.

"I'm not sure it is his best idea to return to this school. In a side note of my own personal thoughts; I would seriously consider sending him for therapy. It seems he's barely functioning now."

Levi nods, and then straightens. He then flops onto the couch in the corner, throwing an arm over his face. Jean interrupts Irwin's statement,

"He's not crazy...therapy would make the situation even worse. He just needs love...and comfort now. Something the teachers in this school seem to be lacking...He just needs some time. I've known him since he was 8...He doesn't need therapy, just time."

Levi lifts his arm up away from his face, then swipes his hair back, stating,

"I agree with Jean. It makes sense. The best thing to do now is to report Dazz to the police, hand over any evidence, and send Marco home for a while." Sitting up, wincing, he supports his statement with holding up the CD.

"This needs to be dealt with quickly, and efficiently."

Marco was in the office for at least thirty minutes explaining all that had happened and begging his mother to come get him. By the end of their call, it was decided that she would be there in four hours and he'd go home. She also made sure after the call to call Jean's mother and urge her to remove him as well. When Marco came back out, he avoided the eyes of everyone at the table and sat back in his chair.

"...she'll be here in about four hours to come get me..." He didn't want to look at Jean. Even if it had been for his own good...Jean broke a promise...was everything going to be okay?

Since Jean broke his promise, would they really be able to arrest Dazz and Marco would go back to living like he had a year ago?

Levi continued talking while Marco was on the phone.

"I'll take full responsibility for turning Dazz in. Either of you will give it away, or all of us know how I got here anyways." He then proceeded to lay out a plan of how to do it, and decided to do it as soon as possible.

When Marco came back, golden eyes shot towards him, looking for an explanation. Then it came. Marco would be leaving...and it would all be his fault. Jean hated himself for breaking a promise, but at least Dazz would pay for what he had done to him. Marco wouldn't make eye contact with him, so he assumed Marco would be upset with him for a while. He had promised to not tell anyone, and he also promised to protect Marco...what a contradiction. He laughed bitterly at himself, "Why did I do this...?" He pondered. "Why do I promise so much...I can't hope to keep all of them."

Levi stood, and then walked over to Marco, putting a hand on his shoulder then stating quietly, so that only Marco could hear,

"Sometimes...to protect the ones we love, we have to make sacrifices..." He then squeezes Marco's shoulder comfortingly, and then emotionlessly walks towards Irwin, leaning down,

"We should go...We're not needed anymore." He grabs Irwin's suit jacket, and drags him up and out the door, closing it behind them.

Jean stays silent...He didn't know what to say...Marco hated him now, he wasn't even sure if he thought telling the others was a good thing or a bad thing. Marco could get suspended or expelled for having an intimate relationship with a teacher, but under the circumstances, he doubted that. Dazz forced him to do it. He leans back in his chair, stressed, and tired. He didn't want to be in this...if only he had said yes to Marco that last winter, then none of this would have happened. Marco would be singing again, he would be the one smiling at others, trying to cheer them up. He wouldn't be traumatized like he is now...And all of that was Jean's fault. He cursed himself for that. "Damn it Jean...You idiot...This is all because of you. Why..? Why couldn't you have answered him...?" With that thought running across his mind, Jean mentally cursed himself for being so stupid.

Marco sat in his chair, silently mulling over what had happened. On one hand he couldn't believe what had happened or the results of it all. He sat with his head bowed and hands clasped in his lap.

"Jean..." he spoke quietly, "I don't know what to say to you about this..." He looked up with his face flushed of color and continued on.

"I'm mad at you... but..." He paused for a second to look at Jean who was slumped in his chair. "But...I'm thankful...I guess this means the nightmare is over..."

Marco reached for Jean's hand.

"I'm mad that you broke our promise...but I... I still love you and... And I want you to come home with me..."

The nightmare was over and even though Jean had to lay down the line of risking their relationship, he made true a miracle and brought about the relief Marco had been searching for all the past year.

"Jean...thank you...Thank you for saving me..."

Pixis had left to his phone to continue working, leaving the two alone. Jean sat silently, in complete shock at Marco's words. Squeezing Marco's hand, smiling, he gave up trying to hold back tears...and let one slide down his face.

"Marco...I love you" He kisses Marco softly, sweetly, sadly almost, then helps Marco stand.

"Let's go..." He entwines his fingers with Marco's as the walk down the empty hallway, fading into the light shining through the doors.

"I'm never leaving you again..."