Silence. You could hear a pin drop in the few seconds that the entire crowd was stunned still. After another short moment, the surrounding area became one of quiet murmurs. Finally, one loud-mouthed blue-haired girl ended the rumors that were quickly spreading around.
"You were almost raped?!" She yelled incredulously. Something about that scream made everyone snap. The almost whispers and mutters became full-blown noise, however one brunette that the chaos was directed toward was in shock.
She didn't respond to the question, no matter how loud it was voiced. No, May Maple stood stock still, eyes closed and blocking out the sound, begging the present events to be just a nightmare. When she opened her eyes, though, her heart sank. And the worst thing, she reminded herself, was that no one was the cause for it except her. She was given a chance at privacy, but no, she just had to go and be the smartass and that cost May her pride – something that frustrated the teen to no end.
When she broke out of her stunned state and locked eyes with Ash, she thought about answering, and then remembered the crowd that surrounded her. She couldn't just stand there and reply truthfully without getting some blow to her social status. It just wouldn't happen.
Therefore, as Ash stood in front of May, waiting for her to give an answer, she made a decision and responded, "Why the hell do you always lie about everything?! Huh? It's not funny, you know that?!"
Ash flinched as the girl got up in his face. He then sighed. "Fine, get away from me if you want." His tone didn't give anything away, it was almost emotionless as he spoke. The crowd dispersed some and May felt a sudden pang of guilt. She had no idea where it came from, nor did she really care. She wanted to know why it was there, and kept trying to convince herself that she didn't do anything wrong. But then, she heard her dad's words.
"What if he wasn't lying though?" The thought of accusing Ash, and then somehow finding out his parents really were dead made May feel guilty all over again. Then, she tried to remember the rest of what Norman had said.
"Have you ever actually gotten to know him?"
"You really should try and be friends with him!" That was her mom. May sighed as her friends walked up to her. Drew wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close when May shoved him away, in tears.
"May!" Misty cried, clearly worried. "Are you alright?"
"No." May's reply caused confusion amongst the group.
"What do you mean, 'No', May? I mean…" Dawn trailed off, not sure herself what she was trying to explain.
"I'm not alright! That's what I mean!" May managed to get out before starting to cry. For what, even she had no idea. "Just…go away, okay? Please?"
The four exchanged glances with each other before an unspoken agreement passed between them. Relenting, they left for their first class, leaving a sobbing May alone.
'I need to apologize somehow.'
Ash sighed in annoyance as Gary and Drew strode up to him angrily.
"What the hell did you do to May?!" Drew demanded furiously.
"Nothing." Ash replied calmly.
"You shit! That's all lies, just like your made up story about your parents! They aren't dead, are they? Huh? Are they, you liar?!" Gary raged. He threw a punch at Ash's face, to which the boy just took a step back and the fist met air. No one noticed it, but Ash had lost his expressionless demeanor, his aura now a mix of sadness and disbelief. He turned on his heel and walked away, although he accidentally was seen by none other than May Maple.
She glanced at him, before noticing how he looked. She idly wondered what had happened, but then realized that only one thing could affect the usually dispassionate teenager.
As she walked up to him, he noticed her and sulked. "What?" He said in a tone full of irritation and sorrow. "Are you going to agree with them and call me a liar as well like you have been doing for the past few days?" With that, he started to sprint away from the girl before she could even utter a sound to disagree.
A/N: This chapter was longer than the previous, thanks be to God! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the content andw please Follow/Favorite and review if you want to see something specific happen!
Big thanks to everyone who has reviewed since the first chapter! Shoutouts to Blackcharzard62 and Shrouded Absol for reviewing the last chapter, and as always, thanks for reading!