Heeeeeeey! So it's been quite a while huh? I know, but I always end up thinking back to this story because it's become one of, if not, my favorite story that I've been working on since the beginning. The world is going through tough times as we're all aware, and most of us are quarantined or have no other option to stay at home, so I'm going to try to start working on my stories again, you know, for anyone who's still reading them and to help them pass time and kill boredom. So I hope you guys enjoy the chapter, and please stay safe everyone.

(Morning/ Dawn)

She woke to the sound of her alarm going off, now rolling out of bed as she dragged her feet across the carpet making her way into the restroom.

"Mn," she stopped at the mirror, now looking at her disheveled reflection, her hair was scattered messily as her eyes were only half open until she rubbed them awake.

A sigh escaped her lips as she ran her face under the faucet, now completely waking herself up, she took a second look at herself in the mirror. This time seeing herself more clearly as she frowned, now realizing that the blackened bruises on her arms were still fresh, she hugged her body now grazing her fingers along her arms, jolting in pain as even the gentlest touch harmed her.

A second sigh came out as she frowned towards the mirror, "How am I going to be able to hide these during cheer practice again?"

"Dawn!" her body jumped at the frighteningly familiar voice.

She didn't say anything, hoping maybe he would just leave her this time, she closed her eyes, slowly whispering the word please over and over to herself.

"Idiot!" the loud bang on the bathroom door had startled her so much she shrieked in fright.

He banged again, "Dawn!"

She backed up against the shower, now trembling, "Y-yes, d-dad?"

"Where's my money! I need to go to the liquor store!"

"I don't have any money d-dad, t-the rent is coming up and I only have enough for my half."

He kept banging it, "What do you mean you only have enough for your half! We agreed you would pay the full thing!"

Her eyes widened in horror, "N-no! You said we would split the payment! The rent is due in two days! Please tell me you have the other half dad!"

The banging only got louder, "You idiot! I never said that! I'm broke! Why do you think I'm asking for money!"

She got quiet, suddenly tuning the sound of the banging from her ears, all that ran in her head was the thought of not having enough money for the rent, eventually leading to their third strike with the landlord who already warned them if it happened again they would be evicted immediately.

"N-no…..I….I can't keep doing this….." her knees gave in as she dropped to the ground, tears now welding up in her eyes as she became overwhelmed.

"DAWN!" the sound of glass breaking quickly snapped her out of it, she opened the door, stopping when she saw her broken musical box on the ground.

"The rent money." she whispered, now running out into the living room where she saw the door still open, he had left, now leaving the bluenette penniless.

"Shit!" she cried out, now picking up the lamp near her and throwing it against the wall in frustration.

(Morning/Leaf and Gary)

"Was this even necessary?" she asked, bluntly staring at Gary who was standing outside of the children's home with his car.

He rose an eyebrow up, "What, I'm just picking you up for school."

Her face only extended more, "No, I mean these guys!" she pointed angrily at the team of security who were standing outside of the home in a perfectly lined row.

One of them stepped forward, "The area has been scouted, Mr. Oak, we're all clear."

He flashed them his pearly whites, also giving them a thumbs up which the brunette was unamused by, "Great job guys! I'll take her from here but make sure to keep a lookout for anyone suspicious near this area."

"Roger that!" they all sounded out, each member now splitting off as they began their premises check once more.

"Oh my." Ivy stepped out, staggered by the strange armed men now roaming the property.

Leaf quickly turned to her, "Ivy! I-i don't know why-"

Gary smiled and waved at the older woman, "Good morning Ivy! I hope you'll excuse me and my men for the intrusion."

She blushed as Gary ran up to her, now kissing her hand as he handed her a big white cardboard box."

His smile kept enchanting her meanwhile Leaf watched him in disgust, "Hope you don't mind, I stopped by the city's best bakery and picked you all up some nice pastries."

"That's so sweet of you, thank you, children, why don't you all come out and say thank you as well."

All of the kids came rushing out, now tackling Gary down as he laughed along, "You're the best Gary!"

"I hope you guys like them, I'll be sure to bring more goodies next time."

"Yay!" they kept cuddling the brunette who played along.

"Area is clear!" shouted one of the men from a distance.

"Wow! It's like the men in black!" said one of the boys watching in amazement.

Gary proudly puffed his chest out, "Sure is! They're the best security team in the whole region, I doubt this Zero guy will try to pull anything now."

"Zero?" asked the kids in confusion, the only one familiar with the name was Ivy who frowned at just the thought of him.

Leaf rolled her eyes as she dragged Gary and made her way into the car, "Again, totally unnecessary, and did you really have to instal cameras in the home too?"

He got in as well, now driving off as he scoffed, "Look, I know you think what I'm doing is extreme-"

She quickly cut him off, "It is."

He coughed to bring the attention back to himself, "Whatever, look…...I couldn't sleep at all last night, and I don't think I'll ever be able to sleep in peace again, at least not until we catch Zero and make sure he stays out of your life completely, Red is off finding him, but my priority is you and your safety, so if it takes a team of highly trained men and state of the art security systems with cameras then so be it…...I'm going to protect you no matter what Leaf, so trust me."

There was no immediate response from her part, his words brought about some comfort to her, she didn't know why, but she wanted to trust him, she normally wouldn't, not after having lost connection with him for so long, they were still strangers at this point, but she wanted to trust him, something inside told her she had to.

"I trust you." she mumbled, hoping he maybe didn't hear.

She turned over to him, now seeing a smile on his face as he kept his eyes ahead on the road, "I'm glad."

(Morning/Drew and May)

"Morning." Her eyes fluttered from the light, now squinting and rubbing them as she found herself face to face with Drew who was already wide awake and dressed in what seemed like a fresh new outfit.

"M-morning…..y-you changed?" she mumbled now sitting up.

He chuckled, "I woke up pretty early and went back to my house to take a quick shower and get dressed while everybody was still asleep, also….."

Her eyes widened in delight as he held up a bag of food, "...I stopped by to get us some breakfast, I'll let you get ready and wait for you downstairs."

She grabbed his hand before he got up, now smiling at the green haired boy whom she pulled down lightly, planting a small peck on his lips, "Thank you…...for staying the night with me, I know it must have been troubling…..but for the first time in a long time…..I didn't feel alone."

It was his time to kiss her, returning that heart stopping grin, "For you, I'd do anything May, but next time, maybe I could sleep in the same bed as you? No tricks or dirty deeds, it's just the floor sucks no matter how many blankets you put on it."

They laughed together, she watched in content as he walked out, giving her privacy to get ready for the day as he prepared their breakfast, she sighed lovingly, now hugging her pillow as she flustered in the thought of her and Drew together, "My boyfriend…."

(Morning/ Ash and Misty)

Delia waited by the doors anxiously, "Come on you two! I'm dying over here!"

Both doors flung open, both of them had stepped out at the same time, "Wow." they breathed out.

She squealed excitedly, "Look at you two! Misty you're gorgeous! And Ash…...oh my baby is so handsome!"

He was embarrassed by her words, now scratching his neck sheepishly, but he kept finding himself still staring at the redhead who couldn't find her comfort with what she was wearing.

He was beginning to stammer, "Y-you look….whoa." he breathed out, still stunned by her beauty.

Her long red hair had been curled and waved down, she had bangs now to shape her already sculpted face, she was wearing light makeup, enough to enhance her natural beauty and the thickness and boldness of her lashes and the supple look of her pouty lips. Her outfit was one completely opposite of what she would normally wear. It was a short black leather skirt, ankle length black boots, a cropped red long sleeve top with a black leather jacket.

"A-and you…...too." she didn't realized that she was gawking, suddenly attracted to the Ash in front of her. His normal shaggy hair had been trimmed to look just a bit more tamed, enough so that he was able to style it neatly with a hair sprayed do. He had been wearing a maroon colored t-shirt, over it was a darker red leather bomber jacket with dark blue jeans and black fresh shoes. He had a pair of sunglasses hanging from his shirt along with a watch on his wrist.

"I'm amazing." Delia patted her back proudly.

"I'm nervous." said Misty, fiddling with her fingers.

"Me too, but…." he grabbed her hands to stop her and calm her down.

"We got this." he smiled at her, causing her to return it as Delia watched from the side, a sneaky grin on her face this time.

(Morning/Paul)

"Good morning master." he was greeted by the house staff, all of them standing in two straight rows as he made his way out, not a word spoken as he always felt irritated by the atmosphere.

"Good morning boss!" there was a second greeting once he stepped out of the doors, this time being from the members of his gang who were forming another two rows for him to walk through.

"Ngh." he grunted, now being joined by one of his top guys.

"How's Silver doing?" he asked.

He tried to keep up with him, "Silver's recovery is going smoothly, we have two of our guys with him in the hospital."

"Good, what about that other thing I told you guys to look into?"

"You mean about Volkner?" he asked.

Paul nodded, "Have you heard anything else suspicious about him in the streets?"

The guy shook his head, "Nah, the only word is that he's thinking of challenging for the wild's king title, that bastard's going to get killed."

"Which bastard, Volkner or the king." said the gang leader bluntly.

He climbed onto his bike, "Where are you going?"

"Paying someone a visit, don't wait for me." he sped off, leaving the members of his gang confused by his sudden rush.

H e kept cruising through the streets, now looking down at his phone for a quick check on the gps to make sure he was following the correct route.

The streets were becoming wider and more spacious, he was entering what was the suburban part of the city, "1134 Pearl street, Your destination will be on your left."

He halted at the pinpointed address, now parking in front of the house that his information gave him, it was a nice typical suburban house, "Hey Paul!"

That voice he recognized, he looked back to see Ash and Misty stopping in the middle of the street as Misty had put her car in park, "What are you doing here?" asked the redhead.

"You coming to visit old granny Lana?" asked Ash popping his head out.

"No you idiot, this is troublesome's address." he held up the piece of paper with her info on it.

He had a look of confusion, now getting out of the car as Misty parked right in front also getting out. Ash shook his head, snatching the paper from Paul's hand, " Where'd you get this?"

"Does it matter?" he asked, leering at Ash who then challenged his glare back.

"What's….going on?" asked Misty, catching up to them.

Paul remained silent, now getting a closer look at how Misty and Ash were dressed, "What's with you two? Going to a party or something?"

Their faces turned red, Misty was quick to retaliate, "N-no! We were on our way to school!"

"Y-yeah, besides can't we look nice for school or what?" Ash barked back.

Paul rolled his eyes, scoffing in return to their defensive manner, "Whatever, I wasn't hating, you two look alright, now can we get back to this?" he snatched the paper back from Ash who then snatched it once more, this time angering Paul.

"What the hell is your problem?!" he grabbed Ash's jacket, pulling him in angrily.

"My problem is that this is Dawn's school info but this isn't her address!" he shoved the paper to Paul's chest who quickly released him.

"What are you talking about?" he crumpled the paper in his hand.

"I told you, old granny Lana lives here, she has been since like forever."

"How do you know?" asked Paul boredly.

He pointed down the street from where him and Misty had driven from, "Because I live just a couple houses down, I've lived here all my life, so I would know who were my neighbors and who was moving in and out, and I'm telling you, Dawn never lived here, I would have known."

"Then why would she lie to the school? Huh?" asked Paul.

Misty frowned, "Guys…..I have a bad feeling".

"Hey you kids!" Ash and Misty jolted at the voice, meanwhile Paul calmly turned to the gate expressionless. There was a little old lady at the porch, smiling gently at the teens who then looked at one another, not knowing whether to take off or remain still.

Ash waved at her hesitantly, "H-hello G-granny."

She waved her cane around, now strolling to the gate, "Hello sweetie, my are these your friends? Nice to meet you darlings."

"Good morning, My name is Misty." the redhead smiled and waved.

Paul nodded in response, "Morning miss, sorry for the disturbance, My name is Paul, May I ask you a question about the house?"

Ash and Misty looked at him in astonishment, finding his respectful and polite attitude towards the older woman out of character, she chuckled, "I don't see why not, though my house is nothing special."

"Actually I was wondering if anyone else has lived here before."

Ash facepalmed, "I already told you granny has lived here my whole life."

"Actually…" they all got quiet and turned to the older woman once more.

"...I bought this house from a single father and his young daughter 12 years ago, I believe she was around only five years old when I met them."

Ash was stunned by the news, "Really? But I don't remember anyone like that here."

Misty smacked him on the head, "You were also five you idiot, I doubt you knew your whole neighborhood at that age."

Paul looked down at the paper in his hand, it had a photo of Dawn beside all of her school info, "Is this the girl?"

He held the photo up to the lady who looked at it closely, "She seems really similar to the little girl I met back then, but I can't say it's absolute, I mean it was twelve years ago."

"Excuse me." Misty brought the attention to herself.

"You said the man was single? What happened to the girl's mother?"

The old lady's expression quickly turned grim, "I apologize, he wasn't single…..he, well he was widowed was what he had told me, his wife, the young girl's mother, had passed away, the reason I don't know."

"Guy's…do you really think Dawn is that little girl?" asked Misty sorrowfully.

Ash frowned, "Why not? Now that I think about it, Dawn never talked about her family, even when we were all so close, she knew all our families and lives…..but I don't think I remember a single thing about hers."

Paul sighed, "Ash is right…..troublesome and I were really close, I knew her better than anyone else…..but I can't recall a single thing about her family or life back at home."

"T-this is crazy, I-i mean what are you even trying to do Paul?" asked Misty now wanting to disregard their belief.

Ash looked at him curiously too, "Yeah, why did you come here Paul? What are you trying to do with Dawn?"

He remained silent after that, now walking to his bike which he climbed on, "Hey Paul!"

"Paul!" they shouted after him.

He placed his helmet on, now looking back at them, "It's none of your business, stay out of it."

They watched as he sped off, the little old lady chuckling to herself, "Oh dear, seems to me like that man is in love."

Misty and Ash turned to her, "LOVE?!"

She nodded, "You don't need words to know a person's feelings, sometimes it's just the way they act, that boy is deeply in love, and you."

She pointed to Ash who then pointed at himself, "So are you….you're so deeply in love, a fool in love as I like to call it." she laughed when he began to wave it off, Misty on the other hand had grown a saddened expression, the only thought in her head being if the person the old granny referred to Ash being in love with, was Serena.

(Dawn)

She stood in front of principal shirona's office, a letter in her hand as she tried her best to hold back her tears, the dark thoughts in her head taking over as she took in a deep breath now reaching for the doorknob.

"Whoa there." a hand grabbed her wrist, she whipped her head upwards, coming face to face with Volkner who looked down at her intensely, his icy blue eyes paralyzing her.

"V-volkner, what are you doing here? Let me go."

"You're going to cry, why?" he asked, still not letting her hand go.

"I-i'm not going to cry, let me go, please."

"Dawn…" his eyes found themselves on the letter in her other hand, he quickly snatched it.

"Hey!" she tried to snatch it back only for him to hold it high up, she couldn't reach it, now angering the bluenette.

He dodged all of her attempts while opening up and reading the letters contents, he paused just as she bumped into his back, "O-ow." she mumbled.

"Withdrawal from school? You're dropping out?" he turned back to her, now facing an angered Dawn who finally snatched it out of his hands.

"It's none of your business." she made her way to the office door only to yelp when Volkner gently pushed her against the wall beside it.

"Volkner…...let me go." her eyes turned more vicious this time.

"No, why are you doing this? What could you possibly be dropping out of school for?" he asked this time more sternly.

"You're quitting school?!" Her eyes widened as she found several students standing in the hallway looking at her and Volkner.

She pushed him away causing him to fall on the ground, now running off as the students who had witnessed everything began whispering and looking at the blonde who remained on the ground.

"Dawn…" he sighed, now pulling out his phone.

"...Is that man still hurting you?"

(Meanwhile)

All three cars crossed one another at the parking lot, each of them pausing and parking beside one another. "Hey!" they all said now getting out.

Drew and May had gotten out first, followed by Leaf and Gary and finally Ash and Misty, all of them exchanging waves and smiles as they suddenly grouped together.

"Whoa! What happened to you two?" asked May with her mouth open.

The others nodded while giving their approval to Misty and Ash's new looks, "Whoa, I didn't know you could look this hot Misty!" Gary whistled, groaning right after as he was hit by an irritated Leaf.

She then winked at the two, "He's right though, you guys look hot, you'll be snapping heads that's for sure."

"And breaking hearts." smirked Drew, doing a fist bump with Ash.

Ash grinned, finding the support from the others comforting, " Thanks, also I'm surprised you guys are all coming to school together."

Misty tilted her head, "That's right, Leaf and Gary…...and May and Drew…..what's going on with you four?" she asked with a cheeky smirk.

Ash joined her, both of them nudging Gary and Drew who rolled their eyes, Drew held his hands up defensively, "Alright alright, if you must know…"

He grabbed May's hand, interlocking it with his as he held it up, "Me and May, we're back together."

Leaf and Misty squealed, tackling May away from Drew and causing the boys to all cringe at their high pitched sounds, "No way! You two?! How? W-what happened?"

She couldn't stop blushing, "Well…..it's a long story, but….if you guys have the time, I'd like to share it with you guys."

They trapped her into a hug, "Yeah! Congratulations!"

Misty swooned, "Wow…...doesn't it bring back memories? Of when you and Drew were also dating back in middle school? I can't believe we got the lovey dovey couple back!"

Leaf chuckled, "Yeah, the school's really going to be in for a shock, the king of the school and the school's number one student are dating, hearts will definitely shatter today."

Gary patted Drew on the back, "Wow, that's great man, you and May are back together, just like old times, did you guys fix everything between each other?"

He snuck a glance at the brunette who then looked right back at him, he winked at her, causing her to blush even further, "Yeah, I think we did."

"That's awesome, and what about you Gary? What's the deal with you and Leaf? You two are also dating? Because that's long overdue now wouldn't you say?" laughed Ash.

Drew nodded, "He's right, you've been dead in love with her ever since I can remember, did you two finally realize your feelings for each other?"

Gary scoffed, "Yeah right, Leaf and I have barely started talking again….."

It was his turn to sneak a glance of the long haired brunette who noticed, now sticking her tongue out at him, he chuckled, holding a tiny smile on his lips, "...but I'm not letting her go anywhere this time, that's for sure."

Now it was Ash's turn, both Gary and Drew looked at him with devilish grins, "What's with you and Misty? You two show up to school completely redone and I caught you two together the other day."

He waved off Drew, "She and I were shopping for new clothes, besides…..I already have a girlfriend, sort of."

"You talking about Serena Kensington?" asked Gary much to Ash's surprise.

"H-how did-"

Gary and Drew exchanged smirks, "Do you really think we wouldn't know about the wild's?"

"Again h-how-"

Gary laughed again, "Clueless Ashy boy, anybody who is somebody around here knows about the wild's, I've been there a couple of times and so has Drew, we've seen some of your matches, they are impressive."

He was still at a loss for words, Drew wrapped his arm around the raven haired boy's neck, "We've also seen the girl who hangs by your side every time there, Serena right?"

Gary rubbed his chin in thought, "Yeah she's pretty, but is she really your girlfriend? Or more of a fangirl."

He stayed quiet, Drew tightened his grasp on Ash, "You should probably figure that out and let her know, Serena is a scary chick if you're not aware of it."

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"You didn't know? Serena is a beauty queen and actress, she won Miss Kalos three years in row and got offered an acting gig in some popular drama last year." Drew pulled out his phone to show Ash the headlines about Serena.

"Yeah and I heard she's competing for Miss Sinnoh this year too, my gramps' company along with Shinji corp are supposed to be sponsoring the competition".

"I didn't know." he mumbled, causing both his friends to face palm.

Gary sighed, "Ash, she's definitely not a girl to piss off, we've heard stories of how she gets back at her exes by humiliating them in the press, so unless you want to be the next headline, I suggest you figure out what you want to do with her."

All three of them paused when they saw Barry and Lucas passing by, both of them chuckling as Lucas threw a crumpled paper at the green haired boy, "Hey Hayden! Way to score some ass last night!"

"What the hell are you talking about!?" he walked forward, now grabbing the paper off the ground and unfolding it, Ash and Gary leaned in to also look, their eyes widening.

"Dude…" Ash mumbled.

"This is bad." Gary glared back at Barry and Lucas who were now far from them, though they could still hear them laughing.

"Drew what's wrong?" Asked May appearing from behind, she looked at the paper only for her smile to drop, she snatched the paper.

"W-what is this?!" her teeth clenched as she looked back at Drew whose anger was starting to show as well.

Misty and Leaf gasped as they also saw the paper, it had a photo of May and Drew kissing and hugging from within her house, the caption below reading "Secret affair?! Drew Hayden, the school's King shacking up with the smartest girl in school May Maple, perhaps the quiet top student isn't so quiet in bed."

"Did you two-" asked Misty only to be stopped by a tear filled May.

"N-no! I mean yes! I asked Drew to stay over at my house because my parents were out of the region and my brother is still dorming in his school, all he did was sleep over, on the ground! Nothing happened!" she cried out, now breathing heavily as she was caught by Drew who rushed to her side when her feet lost support to hold her.

"It's ok…..it's ok…..." he whispered now holding her tightly in an embrace.

"Uh-oh….um guys…." said Ash now pointing to the main campus where they all saw hundreds of papers falling from the sky.

Several of them floated their way with Gary and Leaf picking some up, it was the same paper, "This is really bad, there's hundreds of them….who….who would do this?"

May buried her face into her hands, her sobbing becoming deeper which only angered Drew, "Whoever it is, I'm going to find them, and they're going to regret humiliating May once I'm done with them."

"Hey." he looked up at the others, Gary extended his hand down at him while Misty and Leaf helped May up, now comforting her in hugs.

Gary held tightly onto Drew's hand, "You're not alone, we're going to help you, no one humiliates our friends and gets away with it, alright?"

He nodded, biting down on his lip as he shared a quick hug with Ash and Gary, "Thanks guys."

"Count us in too!" Shouted Leaf and Misty.

(Paul)

He rode up to the front gates of the school, parking his bike as he stopped upon noticing all the flyers on the ground, he picked one up and read it, now crumpling it in his hand as he tossed it over his shoulder.

"Hey Paul!" he stopped and looked around only to find Volkner making his way towards him.

He rolled his eyes, grunting under his breath as he was anything but ecstatic to see him, "What the hell are you doing here?"

His rival chuckled, satisfied that he was bothering the purple haired boy, "I can do whatever I want, don't forget who I am."

Paul's eyes furrowed angrily, "Why are you doing this?"

The blonde smirked, "To be closer to her, I told you already, to take back what is mine, Dawn is my future wife, she has been since the moment I fell in love with her".

His hands had balled into fists, he could feel his anger building up with every passing minute, "Well you better keep looking because I'll never let that happen."

"No amount of threats are going to keep me away, Dawn and I are destined to be together, when she stumbled into my life, it was like an angel fell from the sky, she's the only one for me, I lost her once and regretted it every day, but now I found her…..and I'm never letting her go again". his lips dropped into a frown, his eyes narrowed dangerously towards Paul.

Paul took in a deep breath, "Funny you say that, because that's exactly how I feel, always have and always will, you may have history with her, but so do I, far more deeper than you can imagine, I know her better than you ever will, and you can try all you want, but let it be clear….I won't give her up to you or anyone else."

There fiery gazes connected into one tense filled lock, "Well then, may the better man win, and we both know who that is."

He walked past the purple haired teen, stopping just slightly behind him, a devious smirk now forming on his lips, "You say you know her better than anyone else, are you sure about?"

His eyes were shut as he controlled his urge to turn around and hit the blonde, but with one deep breath and exhale he had let it go, "Bastard."

He could hear a bunch of whispers only assuming it was about the whole flyer disaster, "Wow, May and Drew are sleeping together and now Dawn is dropping out of school? What's the world coming to?"

His eyes widened, "What the-"

"What did you say?" he grabbed one of the students and pulled them in, frightening the younger male who shrieked upon seeing it was Paul.

"A-about May and-"

"No you moron! About Dawn!"

The younger classmen flinched at the seniors rugged tone, "I-it's just there's a rumor g-going on about D-dawn, some other students said they saw her arguing with some blond guy in front of principal shirona's office and he blurted something about dropping out of school."

He let go of the kid, watching as he scurried off with his friend, though his mind was focused on other things, mainly on the blonde who they referred to earlier, he knew it, no doubt it was Volkner.

"She's dropping out?" he whispered to himself, still in disbelief.

(Flashback/ Paul)

His head whipped to the side forcefully, a voidless look in his eyes as a red handprint remained on his face, "I'm not going to keep wasting my time by sending my men out into the streets to look for you and bring you back, your the only heir to my company and I'm going to make sure to do right by you, understand?!"

He looked upwards, a mad glare facing directly towards his father who easily challenged it back, "Your brother was a disgrace by leaving, he was too weak to even run my company, but not you Paul, your much stronger, your intelligence is beyond your brothers, the only thing is you lack discipline, but I'm going to make sure you get enough of it, the games end here you understand? No more wasting time looking for that silly girlfriend of yours, she's history and so is everything else as of this moment, do I make myself clear?"

"She's not a waste of time…" he mumbled now facing the floor.

"She is…...friends, girlfriends, there's no time for any of that when you're busy running the world's largest empire, she's a distraction from your future, forget about her."

"NO!"

His father jolted from the young boy's tone of voice, he could hear his deep breaths of frustration, "She's not a waste of time, and I'll never forget her….never."

A discontent look appeared on his father's face, "No matter how many times you try to run away, I'll always be one step ahead of you so you might as well just give up because this is your life and there's no escaping it, do I make myself clear?"

He walked away, stopping as he reached the door to his sons room, "You have affection towards this girl that's apparent, but young love like this is only temporary, you say you won't, but eventually you will forget her and the world will move on and so will you, because nothing in this life lasts forever, including love".

(End flashback/ Dawn)

The bell rang, students had crowded into their classrooms now flooding out the halls, all except one.

She wandered through the empty hall, dragging her feet as she hung her head low, she stopped, burying her face into her hands as she sobbed quietly to herself.

"Why….why me…."

"Dawn?" he stepped out of the restroom just in time to see her.

Without even a thought her feet had taken her up the stairs and up onto the school's roof, she walked to the edge, staring out at the empty field as she took in a deep breath and closed her eyes for a minute, a moment of relief and freedom waved over her.

"Don't do it!" her eyes opened as she was startled by the second voice.

She turned around in utter shock, she was surprised to see Ash, a look of terror crossed over on his face as he began panting heavily, "Ash? What are-"

"Dawn, whatever you're going through, I can help, just please….don't jump."

"Jump?" she looked forward, finding that she was suddenly at the very edge of the building, one push and it would surely be the end for her.

She panicked and quickly stepped away, now looking over at Ash who still looked worried for her, "N-no….it wasn't what it seemed, I promise!"

"Dawn…." he muttered, now taking a step towards her as she hugged herself.

"...I know your secret." her eyes widened and her heart stopped.

"Y-you do?" he nodded.

"You're lying about where you live, Dawn…...Paul went to find you this morning and we stumbled onto him at the address you put down on your school file, I know who lives there because I live only a few houses down…...what's going on? Why are you lying?"

She felt some type of relief, but also disappointment from him not truly knowing her secret, the secret of her nightmare back at home, she sighed, now turning her gaze away from the raven haired boy, unable to face him from the humiliation she was feeling.

"I…...I….." she wanted to tell him, but she couldn't understand why her mouth wasn't spitting the answer out.

He frowned, "Dawn, I'm your friend….you can always trust me, and I can help you if you're in trouble…..please."

She still couldn't say anything, but she knew with all her heart that she could definitely trust Ash, but the pain of her secrets was chaining the truth down.

"Ash…...please….." tears began welling up in her eyes, she shook her head, frustrated that she couldn't be truthful.

"Dawn, please! You know you can always count on me and the rest of our friends, especially Paul!"

"No! No one can know!" she shouted in a tight gasp.

He narrowed his eyes down on her, "Know what."

"Just please…..leave me alone."

"No, I'll stick by your side all day if I have to, whatever is bothering you, you can tell me."

She looked at him, the seriousness in his eyes said it all, he was prepared to do as he said and she didn't want that, "Ok….."

"The truth is, I live on the other side of the city, I had to lie about my address otherwise they wouldn't let me attend school here, there."

He was a bit shocked by her answer, but she seemed confident enough with it that he couldn't really reject it, "That's all?"

She sighed, "Yeah, Sorry that I overreacted, it's just…...I really love attending school here, I don't want to be kicked out, so please….please don't tell anyone."

He zipped his lips, "Your secret is safe with me, but then...what about that rumor of you dropping out? People said they saw an argument with you and some guy and he said something about you leaving?"

She waved it off with a false chuckle, "Ugh! You already know how people love to make me look bad, no need to worry Ash, I'm not going anywhere."

"Really?" he asked, still unsure.

She gave him a wink, "Of course."

A smile now appeared on his lips, "I'm glad to hear that, you know…...we may have been apart all these years, but you and the rest of the gang will always be my best buds."

She giggled, still playing a facade, "Same here, well, I have to get to class, we're both already super late."

She waved at him only for him to do the same as he laid down on the ground, ready to take a nap, "I'll skip, it's not like our teacher will even be there, the class scared him off remember?"

The door closed behind her, she pulled out her phone now dialing one of her speed numbers, "Hello?"

She closed her eyes, now biting her lip before taking in a deep breath, "Zoey? Hey, um…...remember that thing you told me we should do? Well….I'm in."

There was a squeal on the other side of the line, "Seriously?! Omg I knew you'd come through! You won't regret it I swear! By the end of the night we'll have bagged a bunch of stacks, ok ok we have to start prepping because it's this weekend, meet me at my house later tonight, bye!"

She hung up, now throwing her head back in regret, "I can't believe it's come down to this."

The notification bell went off on her phone like crazy, she looked down at it, noticing it was a bunch of messages, she opened one only to find her jaw dropping at the image, "OH SHIT."

The roof door went flying open as Ash came racing down, his expression exactly like Dawns, "Dawn! Did you get it too?!"

She nodded, still in shock, both of them looked back down at the racy image, it was a picture of May in one of her very seductive costumes from one of her previous shows at the club she just quit from.

"I can't believe it, is that really May?" said Dawn, still in disbelief.

Both her and Ash looked at one another, another realization popping into their heads, "MAY!"

(Meanwhile)

It was bell after bell, everyone pulled their phone out, a wave of gasps and whispers filled the air as they began staring at the brunette who was trying her best to ignore it, "Those flyers…..I can't believe somebody would do that to us." she sighed now covering her face.

Leaf and Misty both pulled out their phones when they also got a notification, their eyes immediately flew wide open, "Uh oh….."

Drews also went off followed by Gary, both of them checking it at the same time only to have the same reaction as everybody else, except Drew dropped his phone from the sudden shock.

"Drew….what's wrong?" she picked up the phone, turning it over.

"May wait!" it was too late, the image was displayed front and clear.

She shot up from her chair, gasping in horror, "N-no! H-how?!"

There was laughter all around, the chuckles and taunts all directed towards her, Barry and Lucas were among the group, both of them giving a thumbs up to her, further humiliating the brunette.

Lucas laughed as he kept staring at the image, "So not only is she a genius, but she's a slutty genius, who knew there was a kind like that."

"What did you say?!" Drew shot up from his seat, Gary held him back, knowing already that his friend was prepared to fight.

Barry threw bills up into the air, "Hey toots, how much for the night?"

"Shut up! All of you!" shouted the green haired boy.

The rest of the class laughed along, her face turned red in humiliation that she ran out with tears welded into her eyes, "May!"

Misty and Leaf glared back at the class before running after the brunette, Drew took one final look down at his phone, then up where he met eyes with an expressionless Brendan, he clenched his phone into his palm before taking off with Gary.

"How could they?! Who would do this?! Why?!" she shouted out in frustration, she wiped her tears away, stopping as she couldn't go further, there was so much going on in her mind, she didn't know what to do.

"May!" she looked up, watching as Misty and Leaf caught up to her, then Drew and Gary.

"May!" she turned around to find Dawn and Ash also running over to her.

"It seems everybody got the message." heads turned to Paul who was the last to show, he was holding his phone, no doubt he also received the sudden popular notification.

"May….is this really you?" asked Leaf, holding her phone out showing the picture.

She rolled her lips in, tears still falling as she wanted so badly to deny it, but she couldn't, she exhaled out in frustration, "Yes, It's me…...I used to work at this club and perform there…...but not anymore."

They were all in shock by her confession, all except Drew who stood by her side to comfort her, he furrowed his brows, still raging at the attack made on her with the anonymous post, "It's true, but like she said she ended all ties with that place, and even so she did nothing wrong, it was just singing and dancing."

May lowered her head, covering her face with her hand, "I can't believe someone would do this…..how could anyone know, that place was hidden…Why are they doing this?"

"Who could be behind this?" asked Leaf questionably.

"Somebody who has it out for you two." said Paul nudging his head towards May and Drew.

"That can be anybody in the school, lots of girls and even guys are madly in love with Drew and May's got admirers of her own". Dawn pointed out.

"Maybe, but I know exactly who's behind this." hissed Drew.

"Who?" they all wanted to know.

"Brendan, he comes here out of nowhere and suddenly you and I are getting attacked, he's the one behind this."

She was surprised by his answer, "N-no….it can't be him…..I mean, sure he might be hurt from the rejection, but I don't think Brendan is capable of something so cruel."

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go kick his ass!" growled Ash pounding his fist into his palm, the others riled up, agreeing with Ash's decision.

"Nobody's getting away with hurting our friend!" shouted Misty angrily.

"He's going down for this." scoffed Dawn.

Paul rolled his eyes, "I don't really care, but If you want I can just save us all the trouble and get some of my guys to teach him a lesson."

She was quick to stand in the way of them all, extending her arms out in panic as she tried to stop them from doing anything regrettable, "Please wait! I-i just can't believe it would be Brendan, he would never do something like this to hurt me!"

The girls frowned, the guys were unsure but Drew was one hundred percent certain on his accusation, Dawn sighed, "May, are you absolutely sure about that? I mean no offense, but none of us know Brendan like you do, how close were you two back then?"

That question had sparked everyone's interest, the atmosphere became silent when all eyes were on the brunette who remained stunned by the sudden response, more so she was paralyzed into silence by Drew's intense gaze, he wanted to know more than any of them.

(Years ago)

"No…...it's not right, it's just….ugh! Why can't I get it right!" she threw her papers on the floor, burying her face into her hands in defeat.

He stopped upon seeing the papers scattered at her feet, he reached down for one, "My my, such aggression from one of the best singers in my camp, what's the matter my little mayflower?"

She looked up to see Harley holding her paper, reading it down with a heartfelt smile, "These lyrics…..I can feel tears behind them, what's troubling you?"

May sighed once more, tapping one of the keys to the Piano, "I sang my heart out, I wanted to reintroduce myself to the world as the new May, I thought I told what I needed to tell through my music….but my heart still hurts."

He sat down next to the younger girl, placing the page in front of her, "Hm…..if you ask me, I'd say you lied to yourself, you think you sang out what you were feeling, and maybe you did, but there's something deeper within that can't just be sung out and forgotten, this pain you hold inside, it is much more deeper and nobody will ever understand what you went through. You can let them sense it through your melody and words, sometimes the things we want to say can only be explained through music, so tell me May, what is your musical truth?"

His words sunk deep in, she did have something to say, to somebody she loved, somebody she couldn't forget no matter how much she wanted to, the pain she suffered in silence and couldn't speak about, those were the lyrics she was missing.

"Lose you to love me…" she whispered, tapping one key and then a second, starting a musical chain that quickly led to her creating a beautiful light melody.

Harley pulled his head back with closed eyes and a smile, "It's beautiful…..I can sense the tears you shed, your music is unique May, anyone can make it and play it, but only a few can truly touch the hearts of their listeners and make them feel every emotion displayed into the journey".

She stopped playing, her tears now falling onto the keys of the piano as Harley looked on in shock, "Oh my, what's the matter dear?"

She shook her head, now wiping her tears away as she took in a deep breath, "I just….need a moment, thank you Harley, for helping me".

It was all too quick, the music instructor watched as May took off, a frown displayed on his lips as he picked up the rest of her music sheets, "That poor girl, she's been through something…...something she just can't let go of".

"I hate you! I hate you!" she kicked and punched the side of the tree, now leaning against it as she wept loudly.

She slid down now hiding her face between her knees, "Why can't I forget you?! Why can't I forget it! Just please….I don't want to feel like this anymore".

"May…" she kept crying, looking up to find Brendan hovering in front.

"W-who are you?" she asked, trying to contain her tears but they kept flowing out.

"You don't know me…...but I've watched you perform many times since coming here….you're amazing, you know that"?

She shook her head, "No…...what's good about a singer if they can't truly express their feelings, I thought I did….but these feelings of anger, sadness…...I can't stop them".

"You express so many things with your singing, you just have to channel all that anger and sadness into the music, don't be afraid".

He got up, holding his hand down towards her, "I can help you channel those feelings into your music".

She was hesitant, looking up at him with red eyes and uncertainty, but ultimately she took a chance, "I still don't know who you are".

He helped her up on her feet, smiling with sincerity towards the heartbroken brunette, "I'm Brendan".

Weeks had passed by and the two had spent every day of that period together, growing closer, making music together.

"May…"

She stopped the keys on the piano, now turning around to find Brendan with a handmade bouquet of flowers he had picked from around the camp. He sat down next to her, now looking at the sheet of lyrics placed in front of her.

"New song? What happened to the one you were working on?"

Her smile slowly faded, "It's um….finished…...but I don't think it's right, this one though…..I think it tells my truth".

He scooted closer to her, closing the gap between the two as he began playing the keys, "Sing May, I want to hear the truth".

(Someone you loved by Lewis Capaldi, Cover by Madilyn Bailey)

May: I'm going under and this time I fear there's no one to save me

This all or nothing really got a way of driving me crazy

I need somebody to heal

Somebody to know

Somebody to have

Somebody to hold

It's easy to say

But it's never the same

I guess I kinda liked the way you numbed all the pain

Now the day bleeds

Into nightfall

And you're not here

To get me through it all

I let my guard down

And then you pulled the rug

I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved

I'm going under and this time I fear there's no one to turn to

This all or nothing way of loving got me sleeping without you

Now, I need somebody to know

Somebody to heal

Somebody to have

Just to know how it feels

It's easy to say but it's never the same

I guess I kinda liked the way you helped me escape

Now the day bleeds

Into nightfall

And you're not here

To get me through it all

I let my guard down

And then you pulled the rug

I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved

And I tend to close my eyes when it hurts sometimes

I fall into your arms

I'll be safe in your sound 'til I come back around

For now the day bleeds

Into nightfall

And you're not here

To get me through it all

I let my guard down

And then you pulled the rug

I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved

But now the day bleeds

Into nightfall

And you're not here

To get me through it all

I let my guard down

And then you pulled the rug

I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved

I let my guard down

And then you pulled the rug

I was getting kinda used to being someone you loved

She let out a sigh, keeping her eyes closed as she refused to open them, knowing that if she did she would start crying. He grabbed her hand, leaning over to place a kiss on her lips, startling the brunette whose eyes shot open.

"B-brendan….what are you-". She scooted back only to be stopped when he grabbed her other hand.

"May…...I like you…...alot…...when I first heard you sing, the look in your eyes was something I had never seen on another person…...you had…...all these emotions, this passion that I couldn't describe, there's something different about you, something special…..and I want to know more about you, I want to know everything about you".

She slipped her hand from his, getting up from the seat as she stepped back, "Brendan…...I'm sorry….but I can't return your feel-"

He cut her off again, "I know there's someone you like already…..the songs you've sang have told me that he's someone really close to you…..but they've also told me that he's someone who has hurt you".

She clenched her hands into fists, they began trembling as all the memories of her time with Drew began reemerging, it was a flood of emotions that she couldn't process.

"He…...he was important to me….but it's over…...I just…...need to heal…...the pain I feel when I think of him, is what I'd imagine a knife to the heart feels like….I just feel so…...so broken….."

"He did all that to you….." Brendan mumbled unhappily.

She tried to give him a smile, but he knew she hid all her pain and sorrow behind it, "I like you Brendan…..but not like that, and you deserve someone who will return your feelings".

"I'll wait…." he whispered.

"What".

He closed the gap between them once with a hug this time, "I'll wait for your feelings May…..let me help you heal…...let me help you forget about him".

She didn't pull away from him, she was lost in his words, she didn't know what to say, but she couldn't deny that the warmth of his embrace made her feel safe, it made her feel like she wasn't alone for the first time in a long time.

Tears flooded out of her eyes, she clenched his shirt into her hands as she returned his hug tightly, her sobs now slowly coming out as she tried to cancel them out by hiding her face into his chest.

He looked up at the sky, holding onto her embrace as he let her continue crying, "I'll never hurt you…..I promise".

Alright guys! Well there you have it, a little something to pass by for anyone who's bored at home, hope you all enjoyed it , let me know what you guys thought about it and I'll try my best to try to get the next chapter out, stay safe everybody! Until then.