Disclaimer: I do not own Waterloo Road or any of the characters in the story

Chapter 25

Leo sat alone in the library at lunch, feeling just as uncomfortable as he did at home. People were looking at him as if he had two heads and he hated it.

So he was relieved when his phone rang and he managed to step outside.

"Hey, how's your first day off." Leo joked, but by the silence on the other end of the line, Marco really wasn't in the mood.

"Shit. Leo, I have something to tell you, promise you won't flip out." Marco replied solemnly, making Leo panic, this couldn't be good.

"What's up?"

"Brandon's asked to meet me on Friday, and I said yes."

"What the hell? Are you stupid?" Leo asked.

"It's complicated. He said if I don't go he'd drag you there instead and in his words make it twice as bad. I couldn't let him do that to you."

"I'm more than capable of handling this, you should've thought about it."

"Leo, Brandon would've hurt you, I'm the one he asked to meet. I shouldn't let him hurt you."

"And what about you? You got lucky catching him off guard; it doesn't mean you're Rocky. You need to think Marco."

"I am. I can handle him." Marco insisted. "I'll call you if things go wrong so you can help sort it."

"I'm still certain this is a bad idea Marco."

"It's a terrible idea, but we have those two options, and I can take a beating."

"What about staying out of trouble, boarding school, your parents…"

"…They'll not find out. It's no biggie." Marco lied. He was terrified.

"If you're not going to change your mind, at least make sure you're alright, and call me if you need me."

"Don't worry, Brandon won't know what hit him.

Leo had pushed his thoughts to the back of his mind as best he could until Friday rolled around, and he had a gut feeling this wasn't going to go well.

He'd had the slight distraction of being told his Mum had improved and visitors were more than welcome, and the family were going to see her on Sunday.

Marco on the other hand, hated his idea more and more as the time grew closer to Friday. He'd found it difficult to bring himself to go, but he didn't want to know what they'd do to Leo if he didn't.

"Pull yourself together Marco. You can do this." He said to himself in the mirror, mentally preparing himself for what was to come.

"Leo." Miss Mulgrew snapped Leo out of his thoughts as he was sat just staring into space. Cover lessons were boring in the first place, so it was pretty easy for anyone to get distracted.

"I suppose you've done all your work then?" She asked.

"Sorry miss." Leo mumbled, looking down at the work in front of him, knowing it was only one lesson until lunch time. As much as he'd tried to convince Marco he was being an idiot, he knew how stubborn Marco could be, and it was definitely coming through.

The bell rang for lunch, and Leo's eyes widened as Brandon left the school grounds with a large group of boys. Marco was in trouble.

He tried calling him but his phone was off, so he sent him a rushed text. He had no clue what to do. If he stayed and Marco got in trouble, he'd never forgive himself, but if he went along and got caught, they'd both be in bother with nobody to save the day.

Either way, Leo was really worried.

Marco waited with his back rested against the wall, and as he checked his phone for the time, he noticed a missed call and text from Leo, telling him Brandon had brought company.

'Oh fuck.' Marco panicked, he left his phone unlocked so he could easily just call Leo.

It didn't take long for Brandon and his mates to rock up, all with similar smug looks on their face.

"I'm surprised you showed up, faggot."

"Nice eye shadow Brandon, but black and blue aren't really your colours." Marco sneered, smirking at Brandon's bruised face. He commended himself for it mentally.

"Get him." He ordered, and they attacked and grabbed Marco, pinning him to the floor as others kicked and punched him. Marco managed to land a punch or two but he was obviously powerless against the larger group.

Brandon took a back seat, watching his friends fight for him. Marco wanted to run over and smash his face into the floor. He couldn't take much more.

Managing to writher out of the boy's grasp, Marco stood to his feet and staggered backwards. His face was scraped and bruised, his nose was bleeding and he was sure his ankle was damaged.

"What the fuck?" He finally managed to say. "If you're going to fucking fight me Brandon, fight me properly."

Brandon just laughed and reached into his pocket. Marco's eyes darted around the group, as they all began cheering Brandon on. As Brandon pulled his hand from his pocket, Marco caught the glint of something shiny. Something sharp. Marco's eyes widened, as he knew exactly what was in Brandon's hand.

A knife.

A knife that could quite easily kill him on the spot.

Marco reached into his pocket and pressed the call button, hoping Leo would be able to hear him.

Leo's nerves felt like ten tonne weights as he saw his phone ringing. He answered it as he would usually, and although it sounded muffled, he could hear the conversation Marco was having.

He knew there were two possibilities.

Number one: He'd just called him by accident, and he had no reason to panic.

Number two: He couldn't speak to him because something really bad was happening, but he needed him to get help.

"Whoa, Brandon, take it easy man." Marco laughed nervously. His heart felt like it couldn't beat any faster. Terror consumed his entire being, with his gaze fixated on the knife.

"We don't want the likes of you round here. And it's best to let any other freaks know what happens round here."

"No, you don't need to do this Brandon."

Contradicting what Brandon had said, his group were cheering him on, wanting him to do it, and by the look on Brandon's face, he was loyal to his mates.

'Leo, hurry up!' Marco thought.

Leo hurried down to sea front unsure whether that was where he'd be. He just had to get there before anything bad happened.

"Go on Brandon!" The boys cheered as the boy ran and grabbed a hold of Marco, as the latter struggled in his grip.

The boy lifter the knife and sliced quickly across Marco's cheek, making him wince in pain. As he was distracted, Marco felt a sharp pain in his abdomen, as Brandon just sprinted away.
Feeling as if he was unable to move, Marco settled himself on the ground, as he felt lightheaded and as if everything was taking so much effort. To keep his eyes open, to stop the pain, to breathe.

Leo saw the boys sprinting away and feared the worse. He hurried round the back of the chip shop and had to double take. There he saw a beaten up Marco with a stab wound on his stomach.

Rushing over and calling an ambulance, Leo was trying his best to talk to the phone operator whilst attempting to keep Marco conscious. When he could finally put the phone down, he could feel himself shaking. He shouldn't have let him do this.

"Stay with me Marco, please." Leo pleaded with tears streaming down his face. "Come on Marco, you can hear me."

Marco was slipping in and out of consciousness and could hear someone speaking to him, but he didn't know who or what they were saying.

As the ambulance arrived and Marco was whisked away in an ambulance, Leo was left standing the street. He was overwhelmed with emotion, as he tried to process exactly what had happened.

If only he'd made sure Marco didn't go.

He should've gotten there sooner.

He couldn't help but blame himself for what had just happened.

AN:Is this too dramatic, idek it's waterloo road, not much is too dramatic - sorry it's late, no excuses, I'm just forgetful.

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