Private Finished Bullies and Vampires

Maisie Belle pressed the red record button and saved the video to her phone. She lowered her hand and stared across the way at Ash, her expression grim. It was only a couple moments before that she'd arrived, just enough time to whip out her phone and record the last of the last of the bullies' assault on who she realized was her own roommate; had she gotten there earlier, and perhaps if she ran, she would've been able to break a couple jaws, but the best action she thought to take was to take a short video to send to a teacher later.

Maisie made her way over to Ash, her shoulders tense and her grip on her phone white-knuckle tight, and yet there was still worry visible in her expression and clearer as she got closer. "...Are you alright, Shortcake?" she asked quietly. She didn't know much of what to say in the moment--well, she knew plenty of what to say, but she didn't know if any of it would've helped.

Seeing her roommate ganged up on by so many people was heart-crushing, but what confused her even further was why he didn't fight back. She knew that Ash was strong--very strong, so it couldn't have been a matter of being too weak or being outnumbered. "I...took a video of the last of it. I'm sorry I didn't help much more'n that. I'm going to show the video to a teacher so they can help catch those people."

Maisie turned on her phone again, tapped a few times, then turned the screen to show Ash when she pressed the send button of the video in a text message to a teacher she knew. "Don't bullshit me with all that, Ash. I'll beat your ass if you say it's nothing and doesn't matter--wait, bad choice of words. I'm so sorry. I'm not goin' to hit you, but you better not try to play me like I'm stupid with all that 'it's fine' B-S. I know it's not fine. It's not nothing, and it does matter."

She sighed heavily and shoved her phone back in her pocket, her eyes on Ash. Then, she walked towards him very slowly with her chin tipped down and her hands up in the air to show she meant no harm and didn't have anything she was going to hurt him with, and when she reached him, she very gently wrapped her arms around him and gave him the gentlest, lightest hug a farm girl could give her vampire roommate who'd just been beat up.

"You're spittin' blood and I'm over here as fine as daisies, and you're asking me if I'm okay," she snorted quietly and squeezed him ever so slightly. Her words were soft, but she said them as clear as day so that she knew he wouldn't be able to mishear her. "You're weird, Shortcake, but I care about you; you gotta know that I do. Please don't let yourself get picked on like that again, okay? I'm just...I'm here for you; you know that. We said so.."

"How would you feel if you saw me getting beat up and I weren't doing a darn thing about it? If I told you it was nothing and it didn't matter and that because it's me it doesn't matter? I can't tell if I want to cry or be angry, Shortcake. I want to help you, I really do--I don't want you to feel like you just have to stand there even though I know you can turn those people into milkshakes."

Maisie sniffed and squeezed him a little harder, but she was still mindful of the force behind it just in case he'd been injured more than she thought and she was somehow squeezing his organs like oranges. Organges, like organ oranges. She rested her head on Ash's shoulder and just stood there with her arms around him even when he'd let go of the hug.

"I'm not going to let go of you 'til you admit it matters and that you're not fine and that it's something," she said, her voice coming out in a rigid waver as she was trying to keep it steady. "Even if it takes you hours and hours to admit it, you better know I'm not letting go, even if my legs feel like they'll collapse; I'll just phone someone to come and hold them for me. I don't want to hear you lying to me either, okay?"

"That's a dumb excuse and you know it," she said with a sharp huff. Not even his poking fingers could get her to let go, even if they made her face twist as she tried not to wiggle or laugh. This was a very serious moment and she had to stay absolutely serious. He wasn't going to distract her from her very important job of comfort hugging him forever because he didn't admit it right away like she thought he would've. In fact, she thought he would've just so she'd get off of him, but it seemed he was adamant about his negative mindset.

"Right about what, huh?" Maisie started, but then stopped and let out another sigh. If he didn't want to talk about it, she couldn't make him talk about it. "I told you, I'm not letting go. This hug stays 'til you can say that none of that was right, and none of it was okay. Okay? And I don't care about no teacher looking for us--I texted them that video for a reason, and it's so we can help you even a little bit."

Maisie squeezed him tighter and rubbed her head against his shoulder like she was a snake or a tarantula burrowing into the sand. "You'll heal on the outside, but will you heal on the inside? And I know I'm sounding like some dumb philosopher up on my high horse or something, but I just want you to listen to me even a little. You are listening, aren't you, Shortcake?"

Maisie could feel her temper rising as well as the conflict within her--her stubbornness told her not to let go, but her rational self was asking all sorts of questions like, 'what if he just wants to be left alone?' and 'how would you feel if there was some weird kid hanging on you saying they weren't going to let go 'til you said something?' and 'you can't force help on someone who doesn't want it'. Her brain felt like it was going to explode from all these conflicting wants and questions and actions.

Maisie pulled back from Ash and took several steps away, running her fingers through her hair and yanking on it at the roots a bit. "Fine! I can't help you if you don't want it, God darn it! And I know you're not gonna talk about it later 'maybe', so don't make them sorts of promises that you can't keep!"

If it were at all possible, Ash would probably have seen steam coming out her ears and nostrils like a tea kettle mixed with a bull, but more on the tea kettle side since her height sure wasn't making anyone take her seriously. "I just....Bye!" she said, then turned and started to run back towards the dorms. Her eyes stung with hot, frustrated tears threatening to boil over. It tore her apart knowing that Ash was being bullied and that he didn't even value himself enough to stop it or even try to talk about it, but it killed her even more knowing she couldn't do anything about it.