Donny wrapped himself around me in a huge hug. It threw me off because he usually wasn’t very emotional, but I hugged him back. It was nice.

We’d been through a lot together. From learning how to bike, to him teaching me how to shave, and now this. I assumed when he heard about me having an eating disorder, he would have thought less of me. I thought he would think I was sick, or needed help, or that I would hurt his vibe. But he was worried, concerned, and most importantly, he cared about me and wanted me to move forward.

“I love you, Donny,” I said.

“I love you, too, AC.”

He let go of his bear hug grip and gave me a huge pat on the back.

“God, I’m proud of you. You’re one of the strongest people I know.”

I smiled. Mel and Donny had been right all along. I was strong in a different way.

“I don’t know about you, Mel, but ever since AC told me that story, it got cool in here.”

Mel burst out into laughter. I frowned but ended up cracking a smile. It was fitting.

The lunch bell rang and we all drifted separate ways.

After school, Mel met me at my locker.

“You still wanna do this?” she asked.

I didn’t know if I really wanted to, but I knew I had to.

“Yeah. I’m ready.”

“Good, let’s go. I’m parked over at Redemption.”

Mel and I made our way across the park outside of school. It was starting to get a lot warmer. Spring was here, but the layers I wore weren’t going anywhere. From the distance I heard, “Yo, Adrian!”

I didn’t know who it was and didn’t feel like talking, so Mel and I ignored it. Then I heard it again.

“Adrian!”

The voice was louder and aggressive. I kept walking because I just wanted to go home and get the scale and be finished with all of it.

“Adrian, watch out!” Mel shouted. I turned around and was pushed to the ground. Lewis was standing over me.

“You piece of sh —” I cut him off by kneeing him in the crotch. It was the second time he’d attacked me from behind, so it was fair game.

I stood up. “Listen, Lewis. I had a long day yesterday, and today is going to be a tough one. I’m not in the mood for this.”

That didn’t stop him, though. He charged forward and threw a sucker punch that caught me off guard. He sent me back to the ground. A herd of students walking through the park caught sight of this and started forming another circle around us.

Not again, I thought.

Lewis stood over me with vengeance in his eyes. He couldn’t accept what had happened yesterday. He had to prove to everyone here that he was tougher than me.

“You think your girlfriend can stand up for you all the time?” he barked. “I’m putting you in your place. You don’t mess with me, kid.”