The walk home was quieter than usual.
Graham moved at a steady pace, though every step sent a dull ache through his ribs and shoulders. The late afternoon sun hung low over the city, casting long shadows across the pavement as people passed by without a second glance. To them, it was just another normal day. To him, it felt like everything had shifted slightly out of place.
Sophia walked beside him, hands tucked into the pockets of her jacket. She stole a few glances at him but didn't speak immediately. For once, she seemed to be holding back.
"You sure you're okay?" she asked after a while, her voice not as sharp as usual.
"I'm fine," Graham replied.
She scoffed lightly.
He didn't answer.
They turned into their street, the noise of the main road fading behind them. The quiet of the neighborhood settled in, broken only by the occasional sound of a gate closing or someone calling out from a distance.
Sophia nudged him slightly. "You know… that thing you did back there," she said, hesitating just a bit, "it was reckless. But… not bad."
Graham glanced at her briefly. "Not bad?"
She shrugged. "You didn't run. Most people would have."
"I don't like being pushed around," he said simply.
"Clearly," she muttered.
They reached the house soon after. Sophia pushed the door open and stepped in first, Graham following behind her. The moment they entered, Janet's voice came from the living room.
"You're back already…"
She stopped mid-sentence the second she saw Graham.
"Oh my God."
She rushed toward him immediately, her expression shifting from calm to alarm in a heartbeat. "Graham, what happened to your face?"
Before he could respond, her hands were already on him, gently turning his head from side to side as she examined the bruise on his cheek and the cut on his lip.
"You're hurt," she said, her voice tightening with worry. "Sit down, please. Sit down."
"I'm fine," Graham said, trying to step back slightly. "It's nothing serious. You don't have to…"
"Don't say that," Janet cut in firmly, guiding him to the couch. "You don't get to decide that for me. Sit."
Graham sighed quietly but sat anyway, knowing there was no point arguing.
Janet hurried off and came back with a first aid kit, kneeling in front of him like he was much younger than he actually was. Her big boobs shook and Graham tried his best not to look at them. She opened the kit quickly and began tending to his injuries with careful hands.
"This must hurt," she murmured as she cleaned the cut on his lip. "Why didn't anyone call me? I would have come immediately."
"It's already handled," Graham said. "You don't need to worry."
"Handled?" Janet repeated, frowning. "What does that even mean? Graham, what happened at school?"
He looked away slightly. "It was just a misunderstanding."
Sophia let out a quiet laugh from where she stood by the wall. "A misunderstanding? That's what we're calling it now?"
Graham shot her a warning look. "Sophia."
She ignored him completely and pushed herself off the wall. "You're not seriously going to leave her in the dark, are you?"
Janet turned to her quickly. "Sophia, what is he talking about?"
Sophia crossed her arms and walked closer, clearly ready to speak. "Since he won't say it, I will."
"Sophia," Graham said again, more firmly this time.
"Relax," she replied. "She deserves to know."
Janet's face tightened. "Know what?"
Sophia didn't hesitate. "He got jumped. Five guys. In class."
Janet froze. "Five?"
"Yes, five," Sophia repeated. "Ken and his little crew came back for him because he embarrassed Ken earlier. They didn't come to talk. They came to beat him."
Graham leaned back slightly, clearly not interested in correcting her.
"And instead of backing down," Sophia continued, "he fought them. All of them."
Janet looked back at Graham, disbelief all over her face. "You fought five boys?"
"I didn't have a choice," he said quietly.
"Oh, you had a choice," Sophia replied. "You just chose not to run."
Janet shook her head slowly, trying to process it. "This is… this is too much. What happened after that?"
Sophia let out a breath. "He won. That's what happened. And not in a small way. They had to be taken to the hospital."
Janet's hand froze in mid-air. "Hospital?"
Sophia nodded. "Yeah. And before you ask, no, I'm not exaggerating."
The room went still.
Graham stared ahead, saying nothing.
Sophia added, almost as an afterthought, "Oh, and the school wants him back tomorrow with a guardian. They're talking about possible expulsion."
Janet's head snapped toward her. "Expulsion?"
Sophia nodded again.
Silence settled over the room, heavy and thick.
Janet slowly looked back at Graham, her worry now mixed with something deeper, something more serious.
And Graham, sitting there with bruises on his face and tension in his chest, didn't say another word.