𝘼𝙉𝙂𝙀𝙇 - 𝙀𝙇𝙄 𝙈𝙊𝙎𝙆𝙊𝙒𝙄𝙏𝙕

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this morning johnny decided to call you guys in for some early karate, which miguel didn't mind, but you did. johnny was in his office while you and miguel took turns punching the dummy, as you did yesterday.

"hey, you guys don't happen to know any friends who wanna learn karate, do you?" johnny yelled out, as he walked out of his office. he didn't give you guys any time to respond before saying, "aw, what am i saying? you don't have any friends. sorry." you turned around from punching, insulted. "i actually have lots of friends, sensei. miguel on the other hand-" you started. "hey, sensei, when are we gonna learn some kicking? I was watching this youtube video of these guys breaking boards and it looked bad ass." the tan boy interrupted. "yeah, no shit. kicking is badass. but you're not ready." johnny replied. "well, maybe you could teach us. we've been learning pretty quickly." you tried to reason. "look, if i don't get more students in here, i won't be teaching you anything. kicking is the least of our worries now." the blonde replied. "you've thought about advertising, right?" miguel interjected. the blonde man looked down, realizing that he had not done that yet. "yeah, duh." he lied. "you're lying." you remarked. johnny looked between you and miguel before saying practice was over and to go home so you can get ready for school.

the school day seemed to go by fast and it was already lunch. "...cyberbullying is no laughing matter. sending a cruel message to someone online can be just as hurtful as saying it to their face." counselor blatt told the cafeteria. you honestly had no idea what she was talking about, nor did you care, so you just sat there slouched and picking at your nails. "i'm not gonna name any names, but the other day a mother called me up because her son was crying after some kids online made fun of his facial deformity." the counselor continued.

you immediately perked up at this. you knew who she was talking about, everyone did. whispers flew across the cafeteria as people looked at your table. you clenched your jaw and gave a glare to everyone who looked at your table, causing them to quickly look away. there was one group of girls who just couldn't help but stare. making direct eye contact with them, you raised your hand and waved your finger in a circle telling them to turn around. and they did. afterwards, you looked over at eli, who had his hand covering his lip. it became a natural instinct for him whenever he got nervous or felt like too many eyes were on him.

you moved his hand from his lip with a small smile, taking it into your own. holding hands always made eli feel comfortable and safe, in a way. he sent you a grateful smile, but you could tell he was still nervous, and that made your heart break knowing there was nothing you could do.

"you know if you're sick of getting bullied, our karate dojo's looking for recruits." miguel told eli, specifically. the boy with the scar looked hopeful and interested, before his friend spoke for him. "yeah, right. you hear that eli? a little karate training and you're gonna learn to kick some major ass." demetri spoke out. "hey, let him speak for himself. if he wants to do karate or even think about it, let him decide. he doesn't need to to think for him, too." you told demetri. the sarcastic nerd never knew when to shut up, but you constantly reminded him that just because he could speak doesn't mean he should. "i'm serious, demetri. my sensei's the real deal. i'm sure i could get you both discounts." the tan boy looked at the two other boys. "yeah, just give it a shot, guys. you might like it." you told demetri and eli, hopeful. the thought of doing karate with your two other best friends excited you. "as enticing as that sounds, i think we'd rather spend our afternoons playing crucible control than getting hit in the face." demitri told you. eli looked down, disappointingly, and your lips pressed into a thin line; you were getting frustrated. it wasn't fair that demetri always spoke for eli, he may be shy, but he can speak for himself.

you were going to speak up again, but eli squeezed your hand causing you to look up at him. he shook his head at you, not wanting you to speak up, so you left it alone. "one last thing, while we're all looking forward to the halloween dance, let's make sure our costumes are culturally sensitive. For example, instead of "sexy nurse," maybe try "gender-neutral hospital employee." counselor blatt told the teens in the lunchroom.