17

Chapter 17 The moment Victorz got onto the bus, he spotted the boy sitting by himself in the middle row. He quickly made his way over to him. Victorz knew that his friend had never seen him before, but he didn't care. He just stood next to him, trying his hardest to appear nonchalant. "Hey, are you okay?" Victorz asked him tentatively. He turned to face him, smiling weakly, "Yeah I'm fine, thanks." He nodded his head and then leaned over to whisper in his ear, "So what's wrong?" "Nothing," he breathed out in relief. Victorz frowned as he examined him closely. He noticed a bruise on his cheekbone, his swollen eye and his split lip. He reached out and touched the side of his face gently, and then placed his hand on top of his forehead as if checking if his temperature was normal. "Why are you doing that?" questioned his friend curiously. "Just making sure that you're not sick," he answered. "Did you sleep well?" "No," he answered honestly, "and you?" "Me neither," Victorz said, chuckling slightly, "I slept great until my mom started yelling at me." "Is she alright? Is she angry with you or something?" he asked. "She's pissed. She hit me again. She thinks I should be in a nursing home with all those women that work here, and now she expects me to go see one every time she comes over." "She can't seriously believe that you would ever go to one?" he gasped. Victorz shrugged. "She wants me to go," he mumbled. "If I didn't, we would probably have gotten into an even bigger argument. I don't want that to happen," he added. They fell silent. Eventually Victorz sighed deeply and shifted uncomfortably. He looked around to see if anyone was watching them and then grabbed hold of the collar of his shirt. "Can you give me my necklace back?" Victorz's expression darkened instantly. For some reason, he found himself hoping that the other boy wouldn't refuse, knowing full well that that would mean he was telling the truth. He looked away nervously. "My father confiscated it before he left, and I only got it back about a month ago," he mumbled, his gaze remaining glued to the floor. "You don't have to worry about your family. We're leaving together. You don't have to worry," reassured Victorz reassuringly. He could practically feel his heart pounding against his chest, the adrenaline surging through his veins. This couldn't possibly go wrong. He was going home today. Everything was going to be fine. Victorz felt someone grab his arm as he continued to speak. They tugged lightly and eventually he lifted his head in confusion. "I'm sorry, who are you again?" He looked directly into the hazel eyes of the other boy. "Victorz." He shook his head slowly. "No, I mean who exactly do you live with?" he asked curiously. Victorz hesitated for a moment. He could tell by the look on the other boy's face that he was trying not to panic, but there was no point in denying it any longer. "My mother." The other boy stared blankly ahead before nodding slowly. "Right... well... my name is Harry. Do you want me to show you where you live, Vic?" Victorz shook his head violently. "No! No, that's alright. I don't need anything. Thank you," he assured him hastily, turning his back on him as fast as possible. "I'll see you at school." "Wait!" cried Harry, grabbing hold of the sleeve of the boy's shirt as he started to turn away. Victorz spun round impatiently, ready to snap at him, but froze. The smile that appeared on Harry's face suddenly vanished and his blue eyes clouded over with sadness and disappointment. Victorz blinked several times, not quite understanding the expression he had just seen on the other boy's face. "What's wrong?" Harry averted his gaze for a moment