The Barefoot Violinist

Black

"Know your place fag!" Jake spat at him with a final hard kick to the ribs, then moved on. The students who had gathered to watch, parted automatically for him to saunter by. 

It was as if time had stood still. Bennett couldn't hear a sound, his eyes openly streaming with tears. His mouth open in a scream, but no sound came out. Wretched sobs ripped through his body. He stumbled to his violin that lay shattered in pieces, in pain. On his knees, holding the broken pieces in his hands, he sat hunched over the broken instrument, as if trying to protect it with his body. But it was too late. 

Stepping into school, Cory jogged to Bennett's locker. Today he wasn't going to let Bennett get away anymore. They loved each other, and that was enough. The wait over the weekend was excruciating, but today was going to be special, he just knew it.  

Turning the corner of the hallway, he was stopped by a ball of bodies blocking his path. Whispering loudly, the crowd almost sounded like a bees nest that had just been invaded. Everybody had their phone out, doing nothing except watching the scene. Cory pushed through, a feeling of dread replacing the earlier hope he'd had.

"Bennett?!" He shouted pushing harder through the mass of bodies who were slow to get out of his way. "Bennett! I'm coming! Bennett! Fear gripped his heart. For everybody to be gathered around his locker, meant that something bad had happened. This thought made him shove harder past the body of students.

Finally he broke through, standing inside the circle in shock. He stood motionless taking in Bennett's defeated frame, dry sobs shaking through him as he leaned protectively over his violin. 

The violin.

Seeing the broken instrument in his arms and the miserable state he was in, Cory immediately rushed toward him, wrapping his arms around Bennett. His heart torn to pieces at the state Bennett was in, knowing what this had done to him. What it had cost him. He felt Bennett stiffen like a board at his touch.

"Bennett?" Cory asked softly.

Hearing Cory say his name, made something snap inside Bennett. He pulled himself free from Cory, shooting up, creating a distance between them. Students were now longer pretending to hang about, they were openly staring at the scene in front of them. 

"Get away from me! This was you! This was all you!!!" He shouted, his face red with anger and tears still streaming down his cheeks. "I gave you everything! Everything!" It felt to Bennett like he was hyperventilating, the blood rushing in his ears, feeling like he wanted to wretch, but nothing happened. The pain of the beating forgotten as adrenalin rushed through his veins.

"I gave you everything and this is what you give me?! This is what I get?!!" He held up his broken violin, looking like a madman who was about to attack at any moment. Anger and hatred filled his blue eyes. 

"Bennett, please...?" Cory stepped closer to him, his hand reaching out to Bennett, worry written all over his face.

"Don't touch me! Don't. You. Ever. Fucking. Touch. Me. Again!" Each word punctuated with hatred. "You win Cory. Is that what you want to hear? huh?! You and your goons have finally broken me! You have made my life miserable from the moment you saw me, you've taken everything from me! But that wasn't enough for you was it?!" He screamed, feeling the blood rush to his head. "How did I ever think we could be friends?!" He spat out the last word with such venom that Cory was taken aback.  

"Bennett... please..." Cody tried again, moving toward him with his hand stretched out, feeling Bennett's anguish and anger. Confused at what happened he tried to calm Bennett, so that they could at least sort out this mess. All he knew was that he has never seen Bennett like this before. It was like standing in front of the furies. Anger burning off his skin, his arms still clutching the broken violin, his slight frame shaking while he kept shouting at Cory.