t h i r t y f o u r

Aurora tapped her fingers against the steering wheel impatiently. Students were beginning to pour out of the school doors, yet there was still no sign of Megan.

Ridgecrest Academy looked like the typical private school that she had often seen on TV. The buildings itself looked like a castle and in all honestly, it looked like a plainer version of Hogwarts.

Seeing that it had almost been 15 minutes since school let out, Aurora was starting to get worried. There was no text or call from Megan, so she decided to get out of the car and go look for her.

Grabbing her purse from the passenger seat, she stepped out of Xavier's Tesla and began to make her way towards the entrance. She could feel heads turn to look at her and she literally felt like she was in some cliché teenage movie.

From her peripheral vision, she could see stares linger on her figure, making her wasn't to squirm uncomfortably. God, she hated high school.

Given every student was in a uniform while she was in the clothes she wore to work— a thin peach blazer with a black jean skirt over a tight white top.. She definitely stuck out like a sore thumb.

Aurora quickly picked up her pace and finally made her way into the fancy-looking school. Not sure exactly where to go, she began to wander around, looking for Megan. She passed a couple of lingering students, feeling their stares as well.

It's like they've never seen a grown-ass woman wander into the school before.

She continued to wander until she heard a deep voice echo through the hall. Aurora quickly rushed towards the voice, having a feeling this was where she would find Megan.

"Megs, please just open the door."

A male student, she assumed, stood in front of the female restroom door, banging on the door. And Aurora had a bad feeling as she got closer.

"Is Megan McKay in there?" She asked, using Isabella's maiden name. The guy jumped slightly at the abrupt interruption and turned to look for her.

His dark brown hair was disheveled and his eyebrows were scrunched together as he tried to figure her out. He had on a jean jacket over a white t-shirt with a pair of ripped black jeans and white Air Force 1s. His blue eyes screamed mischief, but right now, she could see that they were laced with worry.

He was also taller than her— making her wonder what high schoolers ate nowadays to grow so tall.

"She is," he hesitated, looking at her suspiciously. "Why?"

"I'm—" she paused, unsure of how to introduce herself. Who would she even call herself? Megan's brother's girlfriend? Sister-in-law? No. She wasn't even sure if Megan had mentioned she had any siblings. Ultimately, she decided on the simplest answer that would prevent any further questions. "I'm a family friend."

Before he could question her any further, she gestured for him to move aside to which he was hesitant to oblige.

Knocking on the door, she called out, hoping Megan would hear. "Megan, it's me, Aurora."

With no hesitation, Megan opened the door slightly to let Aurora in. The guy stood off to the side looking shellshocked at the lack of reluctance Megan seemed to show the woman. Meanwhile, he had been here since she had locked herself in the restroom.

Closing the door behind her, she turned around to see the reason why Megan had been hiding the restroom. The young girl stood with her head down in embarrassment covered in what looked like spaghetti sauce and milk.

"Oh my god," whispered Aurora, grabbing Megan's hand to lead her to the sink. "What did they do to you?"

She helped Megan duck under the sink as she began to clean the mess off her beautiful brunette locks.

"I'm used to it," murmured Megan, letting Aurora help her clean up. "I usually have a spare change of gym clothes in my locker, but they stole them."

Aurora sighed angrily. "So, this has happened before?"

Megan nodded, causing Aurora to shake her head in disbelief. "And the principal and staff aren't doing anything about it? They just let this happen right under their noses?"

"When you have parents who have money, you can get away with a lot of things."

Aurora clenched her jaw in anger. "Un-fucking-believable. Xavier can probably buy this damn school. If only they knew."

And what a sad reality it was. Megan wasn't the type to bask in the spotlight of her famous family. She liked her privacy and she wanted to be treated normally, which was why, despite having gotten this far, she refused to reveal who she was— the youngest of the famous Knight family.

When her hair was as clean as it could be, Aurora helped Megan wring the water out before sticking the girl under the drier.

Squatting under the warm air, she gave Aurora a questioning look. "Believe it or not, it was something I picked up in high school when this happened to me."

Megan's mouth opened and closed, not knowing what to say. She couldn't believe for a minute that Aurora had been her shoes back when the older girl was in high school. To Megan, Aurora was beautiful and kind, everything she wanted to be when she got older. Everyone seemed to naturally like the older girl.

"Stay here," ordered Aurora. "I have a towel and a spare change of clothes that I keep in the car. I'm going to grab them real quick."

Megan nodded, not moving an inch from her spot as she stared off into space— her thoughts consuming her. After looking behind to check if Megan was alright, Aurora opened the door only to find the guy still there.

He was leaning against the wall across from the restroom door with both his legs and arms crossed, almost as if guarding it from any intruder. He didn't even look up when she walked out of the restroom. He seemed to be concerned for the girl and she found herself wondering who he was.

Aurora shook her head out of her thoughts as she ran back to the parking lot where her car was waiting. After grabbing a large long-sleeved grey shirt and a pair of athletic shorts, she stuffed them in an old Zara bag before quickly running back to the restroom.

She pushed open the door to the restroom, making sure to lock it behind her. Megan gratefully took the clean clothes from her and began to change out of the now dry, but dirty uniform— her moves slow due to the slight pain in her body. Aurora had to hold back her gasp as she saw some of the older bruises on the younger girl's body.

Highschoolers played dirty and what a cruel world it was. And it was sad, really, that the school chose not to do anything about it, instead, accepting hush money to keep all of this quiet.

They were messing with the wrong girl— not knowing that Megan held the true power at school. The petty side of her wanted to see exactly what the Knights would do to them for allowing this to happen.

Lawsuit? Humiliation? The possibilities were endless. And as long as Megan and the other victims got their justice, she honestly didn't care what happened to those scumbags.

Bullying should never be allowed. And the fact that the school continued to turn a blind eye on this behavior enraged her. Did they not know the consequences of their actions?

Megan quickly stuffed her dirty uniform into the bag and stood in front of the mirror, looking at herself. She wondered what she did so wrong to be treated like this daily. Aurora could see the sadness in her eyes and for a second, she saw her younger self.

Megan began to silently comb through her still slightly damp hair with her fingers, growing frustrated with the tangles. She felt like giving up.

"Here," Sensing her frustration, Aurora gently stopped Megan. "Let me."

She gently combed back Megan's hair, using the scrunchie that she often kept in her purse to tie up her hair. Megan ducked down out of habit, feeling vulnerable with her face exposed.

Aurora held onto Megan's shoulder, offering her a small smile. "You're beautiful, Megan."

Megan slowly returned the smile, turning around to hug Aurora. Slightly taken aback, Aurora soothingly rubbed the younger girl's back, knowing that right now, she just needed the comfort.

When she pulled back, Aurora could see the tears that had begun to run down Megan's face. Softly, she wiped them away, giving her an encouraging smile— to let her know that everything was going to be okay.

After calming herself down, they finally walked out of the restroom. Of course, they didn't get far since a familiar figure sat on the ground, slumped against the door. He almost fell back at the sudden movement and jerked his head up. Quickly, he stood up, eyes not once leaving Megan.

His scrutinizing stare made her want to run back into the restroom and hide, but Aurora wouldn't allow that. She kept her head down, knowing that the makeup that she had desperately applied in the morning to hide her bruises had now washed away.

His jaw clenched angrily as he studied her face. He knew it was bad, but he didn't know it had gotten this bad. He was angry— angry at the people who had done this to her and angry at himself for not being good enough to protect her.

"Megs," he whispered, reaching up with his hand, but changed his mind last minute. His hand dropped back to his side.

Aurora stepped to the side, letting them have a little privacy despite not knowing who he was. But one thing's for sure— she could tell he cared for her.

She watched from the peripheral vision as they conversed back and forth in hushed whispers.

"I should get going, Noah," Megan looked behind him to see that Aurora was waiting for her patiently while texting on her phone, most likely with her brother.

Noah seemed hesitant to let her go. "But I- alright." He agreed. "I'll call you?"

Megan gave him a small smile as she nodded slightly. "See you tomorrow, Noah."

Before she could walk past him, he stopped her, leaning down to place a kiss on her forehead that was thankfully left untouched. Her cheeks flamed as he pulled away silently and began to walk in the opposite direction, stuffing his hands in his pocket.

Aurora bit her lip to stop the grin that was forming on her face. Knowing that she was probably embarrassed, she decided not to say anything and began to lead Megan towards the exit.

The warm sun shined down on them as they exited the school. By now, students were scarce and the ones left stared as the duo made their way to her car. Aurora kept her arm wrapped tightly around Megan, almost like a safety net.

Megan settled on the passenger seat as Aurora walked over to the driver's side. She threw her purse onto the back seat next to Megan's backpack and began to drive off.

"Are you hungry? Did you eat lunch?" Aurora asked worriedly. She could see that Megan was lost in her thoughts.

"No," Megan answered in a soft voice. "I didn't get the chance to."

Aurora nodded in understanding.

"Well, get ready to eat to your heart's content, because I'm not letting you go home without a full belly."

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"How did you do it?"

The sudden question startled Aurora as she quickly swallowed the food in her mouth. They were sitting in her car at the nearest beach. The view in front of them was beautiful, with the ocean sparkling in the sunlight.

After asking what Megan was craving, Aurora drove them to a local In-N-Out joint and had gotten them a couple of cheeseburgers with grilled onions, fries, and two Neapolitan shakes before driving down to the beach. The two enjoyed their food as they stared out into the beautiful view.

"What do you mean?" She asked, not quite understanding the question.

Megan shifted her body to face Aurora. "Like, how did you get past everything?"

Aurora put her burger down, thinking for a second before answering. "I'll have to admit— it wasn't easy. Maddie helped me through a lot when I met her in college. And I know you're probably feeling like you're alone, but truth is, you're not. There are so many people around you who love and support you. We are here for you and we're not going to let you fall, Megan."

Megan sniffed, tears starting to blur her vision. "I just- sometimes I just feel like giving up. I ask myself every day what I did to deserve this and there are days where I convince myself that I do deserve this."

Their eyes met and immediately Aurora brought Megan close, wrapping the younger girl in a warm embrace. She rubbed her back, letting Megan cry it all out. It was better than keeping it all bottled up inside.

"No one ever deserves to be treated like that," whispered Aurora as she continued to rub Megan's back soothingly. Her own eyes were beginning to fill with tears. "I know that feeling all too well."

When her sobbing subsided, Megan pulled away and slowly began to tell her story.

"I don't even remember when it started, but Marissa— she's like the Queen Bee at school. She thought her boyfriend was flirting with me and vice versa. It was a misunderstanding and I explained it to her, but she wouldn't listen. Next thing I know, she got all her friends to target me, and it just got worse as the days went on."

Aurora listened to her story as the young girl went on in full detail— the similarities not even surprising her. High school girls can be vicious and she knew that first hand.

"I've been trying to hide them from my family, but I must not be doing a good job since they probably already figured it all out," she continued, looking down to play with the hems of the shirt. She laughed humorlessly as she reached up to wipe a few stray tears away. "I mean, even if they found out, there's nothing they can do."

"You Knights, really are pretty damn smart," Aurora muttered, causing Megan to chuckle. "And I think you underestimate your family."

"I just don't want any unnecessary attention on me," Megan whispered. "I'd rather live my life quietly, and when I do, this mess happens at school because I don't know how to speak up and defend myself. Sometimes, it just gets too much for me to handle."

Aurora nodded in understanding, rubbing her hand on Megan's arm in a comforting way. "What happened at school is not your fault. No one, and I mean no one, deserves to be treated like that. I know first-hand high school girls can be plain evil and what they're doing to you is not right. One day, they will see it coming for them and karma's going to get them good."

"I know you want to live your own life and I understand that," she continued. "But keeping your family out of this isn't going to do you any good. They love you no matter what and sometimes you have to trust them to help you."

"I just wish I could be like Stephanie or Maddie. They're beautiful and they have so much confidence. Meanwhile, there's plain old me— boring, unconfident, the wallflower of the family," she murmured, not meeting Aurora's eyes.

Aurora frowned, not liking the way Megan was talking about herself.

"Hey, look at me," Megan's eyes met hers with hesitation. Aurora grabbed her hands, holding them in hers. "You're beautiful and smart, everything your sisters are. You're young and you have so much time to flourish and learn to love yourself for who you are. Don't talk about yourself like that— I won't let you and I'm sure as hell your entire family won't allow you to talk badly about yourself either. Don't let those girls' words get to you because they sure aren't true. In reality, their words only showcase their insecurity. Don't give up, Megan, because you're only letting them win."

Megan nodded slowly as she comprehended what Aurora had just said. It made sense— it all did. Talking to Aurora made her feel a lot better and for the first time in a while, she felt the weight on her shoulders disappear. Surely, it wasn't all resolved just yet, but knowing that there were people there for her made her feel like it wasn't the end of the world.

They continued to eat and chat on a happier note with Aurora's encouragement. Megan laughed and smiled as Aurora told her stories about her and Maddie's dumb college days. The air around them turning more lighthearted and Aurora enjoyed seeing the younger girl laugh.

"Can we keep what we said from Xavier for the time being?" Megan asked as they pulled out of the parking lot.

"I'll try my best to, but you know I can't keep anything from your brother— he can see right through me. And you know, he's quite convincing when he wants to be," Aurora gave Megan an apologetic smile. "I'll try to leave out as many details as possible."

"Thank you," Megan gave her a grateful smile. "I guess I just want to the one to tell him and everyone else."

"Of course."

Aurora smiled, seeing that their talk ended in a good note. The first step is always the hardest, but knowing that Megan had already taken that first step, which was opening up, just says so much.

As they drove back to Xavier's house, Megan couldn't help but stare at the beautiful and amazing woman with admiration. Aurora wasn't even blood-related, yet she treated Megan like her very own sister. Xavier definitely hit the jackpot with Aurora and she hoped that one day she would find someone who loved her as much as Xavier loved Aurora.

She couldn't help but think that if Aurora could get through this, then she could, too.

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Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and let me know what you think! Thank you for reading and have a lovely weekend yall <3